[Guest Post] Bohol, Philippines 2014: South Palms Resort Panglao review

What’s up, beaches?

Yes, that was my very lame attempt at a pun to show you this amazing picture of the beach BUT if my lame attempt made you laugh anyway…thank you for taking in my shenanigans! But back in business, let me just take you around the residence of mine over 3 days and 2 nights when I was in Bohol. Welcome to South Palms Resort Panglao.

Spotted within 45 hectares of beach space is a 9.3 hectare tropical enclave with just 90 rooms and villas set in the land of Barangay Bohol in Panglao, just a 20 minute drive away from the city center of Bohol Island called Tagbilaran. For those flying in and arriving at the Tagbilaran Airport, fret not for the hotel does provide a 2-way transit for the convenience of guests. You will however find that there isn’t much that you can do outside of the hotel if you’re on foot because it’s not exactly placed in the most happening spot in Bohol but if you’re up for a peaceful escapade, this is just the place you want to be in.

Magnum cafe, Midvalley review

When was the last time any of us queued for ce-cream? The last I remember was when I was a kid and the ice-cream potong guy would come around on his motorcycle and all the neighbourhood kids (and their maids) would crowd him to get their ice-cream fix. 

Because we were kids, we had no concept of queuing. Fortunately, as adults the concept of queuing (ie waiting for our turn) is not lost on some of us. Point in case: the new opened Magnum Cafe in Midvalley Megamall. 

You know what they say, a crowd draws a crowd and this rings very true with Malaysians. Since its opening in November 2014, the Magnum cafe has seen hordes of adults and teenagers queuing patiently outside its two-floored cafe on the highest floor of the mall. All to customise their dream Magnum. 

The concept that allows customers to 'design' their own Magnum ice-cream has spawned outlets in Bangkok, Singapore and now Kuala Lumpur. We Malaysians are generally very proud about our creativity with food and this gave us that opportunity to flex that creativity. 

Gold Coast 2014 : Day 4 - Wet & Wild and Warner Bros Movie World Theme Parks

After a day of trashing our bodies at Spartan and a day of animal touring, it was time to spend a day getting our adrenaline up and in our separate cars, headed down to Wet andWild theme park which was perfectly located right next to Warner Bros Movie World. From our apartments slight south of Surfers Paradise, it was a hour's drive.

 

Before this trip, we had searched the Internet for discounted prices and deals and then my friend spotted a VIP Magic Pass at $79.99 that covered three theme parks (Wet and Wild, Warner Bros Movie World and Seaworld) entrances for a whole year. To order the pass, you would need to fill in the form online (using an Aussie address), make the payment and a confirmation email with your name and details on it will be sent to your email. You would need to print this out to collect your VIP pass at any one of the theme parks.

Shop Philips online at Blip.my

Hey over to my brothers and sisters over in Sarawak and Sabah! 

Looking for your must-have-but-hard-to-find Philips product has never been easier. Because you can now order it online on Blip.my, the first Philips-exclusive online store in Malaysia. Fret not about paying extra because shipping is free to any part in Malaysia and there are always bargain steals on Blip.my. 

Basically what you see in the physical stores and in the mall, is what you'll get when you order online. Heck you can even order your products in the wee hours of the morning! 

adidas Skincare for Men x Malaysia's 1st National Dodgeball Tournament, Jumpstreet PJ

We all know about Adidas but not many of us know about dodgeball. Or that you can play dodgeballs on trampolines.

In conjunction with the launch of adidas Skincare for Men, Malaysia's first National Dodgeball Tournament was announced to be held at Jumpstreet Trampoline in Petaling Jaya. Jumpstreet has become a popular place amongst those in Petaling Jaya and Kuala Lumpur and it only seemed fitting that the launch of both related occasions were held there. 

[Guest Post] Bohol, Philippines 2014: F1 Manila Hotel review by Elie

Guess who’s back and back again? Okay, I’m sorry but that was my lame attempt in being funny. Back to business and I’ll be taking you around to have a look at the hotels I stayed in while I was in Philippines. As I’ve mentioned in my previous post, you would have to stay the night while you’re in Manila before you could take off to Tagbilaran with AirAsia Zest and the folks in the Philippines had proudly put us up in…

The F1 Hotel Manila

Located in the urbanized area of the Bonifacio Global City, the F1 Hotel Manila definitely sweeps you off the floor with thoughts of a rather run down city, especially given reports of what the media depicts of Manila.

Gold Coast 2014 : Day 3 - Alpaca Farm and Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary

In the months leading up to the Gold Coast trip, whale-watching had been on the table as one of the must-do activities. However after scanning for a Groupon deal and further research, I opted out whale-watching in favour of....alpacas. Well, alpacas and a visit to Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary

Despite being semi-crippled, sunburnt and bruised from Spartan Beast the prior day, I was determined to follow through with my day plans for our third day in Gold Coast. My sister was a huge lover of alpacas (god knows why) and I decided to make a visit to the Mountview Alpaca Farm, a hour and a half drive from Gold Coast. Getting to the area went smoothly thanks to Waze that took us over Mount Nathan and into Canungra.

[Guest Post] Bohol, Philippines 2014: Jetting off with AirAsia Zest by Elie

Philippines as a travel destination has never been more appealing now that Airasia has flight routes there. Manila, Boracay and now Bohol. Airasia has certainly opened up plenty of traveling opportunities and as part of its Bohol media familiarization trip, invited a group of media members and bloggers to join them. Sugoi desu ne! 

But due to prior commitments, I was unable to go personally and instead suggested fellow cipet blogger, Elie Lam for the media fam trip in my place.

And after 4 days of frolicking on the sandy beaches of Bohol, here's the first of Elie's Philipines adventure posts.

An Indulging Charity at Indulge, TGV 1Utama

Now who says you can't treat yourself while doing some charity?

Taking the initiative to give back to charity, TGV in partnership with Omnicom Media Group have launched A Delicious Charity campagn in order to raise funds for PERTIWI Soup Kitchen and Fungates Superflow Foundation. 

From November 2014 to October 2015 (a whole year!), 12 different dishes will be featured each month, of which 5% of the 'dish of the month' will go to charity. The 12 dishes were selected and  made reality from the pages of the OMG Can Cook recipe book which only cost RM10.

In the coming months, here are some of the dishes you can expect to look forward to.

Gold Coast 2014: Day 2 - Hurricane's Grill & Bar, Surfers Paradise

So after running/walking 21km and overcoming 35 obstacles (or burpeeing our way through), it only seemed right that we treat ourselves to a scrumptious meal at one of the famous eateries in Gold Coast, Hurricane's Grill and Bar in Surfers Paradise. 

A good many blogs and TripAdvisor reviews recommended this place so we were excite to dine there especially after an exhausting day. Reservations were made a week in advance and a deposit was paid to secure our booking as we had a huge group of over 20 people.