Be the next AirAsia Travel Photographer, and fly one of AirAsia’s exotic destinations and win as much as 200,000 AirAsia BIG Points!!!

One of my closest blog friends Sarah is currently in Indonesia, so it came as a surprise when I got an event a bit related to it. It's a 2-day expo at the Glorietta Activity Center last July 25-26 to showcase Wonderful Indonesia in all its many aspects: From food, to housewares, to education, etcetera.

In the last 50 years, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf® has grown to up to 1,000 stores in 25 countries and has since made numerous milestones in the Philippines since it opened its first branch at Greenbelt 3 in 2003. Through the years they have launched the CBTL™ Single Serve Beverage System in 2010 and opened the brand's first restaurant concept, The 26^th St. Bistro, and the first CBTL™ Coffee Bar in 2012.

This year, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf® has proudly opened six new branches.

Shakey’s is giving their Guests a good reason to look forward to Mondays much, much more through their Chicken ’N' Mojos Monday Madness Promo!

Silka celebrates #TheSkinYouLove on their 15th year! Coinciding their anniversary is the launch of their two new products, and a Silkamazing event last Saturday at the Trinoma Activity Center.

Went all the way to the north to be with my fellow Silka ladies:

Finally found time to blog about my one month dorm life with Space EDSA! Last February 23, I decided to take the plunge and live at a new dormitory in the middle of EDSA. As with anything, there are upsides and downsides. But overall, the whole gig was a worthwhile experience for me, it made me learn a lot of things with this pseudo-independent living.

Sharing here some of my stories!

One of my favorite annual events is Oishi's Snacktacular. They beat themselves every year, and I am amazed with all the concepts they come up with to provide something new for their fans! From Glorietta to Trinoma, this year their venue of choice is SM Mall of Asia's Music Hall. 

As always, Oishi Snacktacular is a blockbuster!

We had a party yesterday! Wingstop lets flavor enthusiasts experience ALL 14 of their flavors through the Wingstop Flavor Invasion, and most of their influencers are our friends! We were there actually to support our blog barkada Paul Chuapoco, the influencer for Wingstop's Hickory Barbecue flavor!

Okay, so I am now on my last post for the whole Japanagon Season 2 Serye, hehe. I realized that I haven't given you guys concrete tips, tricks, and budget (sorry!). I am not a travel blogger after all, HAHA, I am just here to tell my stories. Personal blogger? I think I'll take that title any day. :)

This is me while travelling: big humongous maleta, magastos (I love buying little things for my family and friends back home), loves her coffee breaks, and photo taking here and there. HAHA. I don't think there should be ANY RULES in traveling, anyway. Hindi pamurahan ng nagastos or pagandahan ng shot. Just make the most out of it, the best way possible for you. No right or wrong answers, pass your papers! Lol.

I can't believe I'm finally down to our last few hours in Japan (not my final blog post though, I will have just one more for summary + personal budget). The rush isn't because I have a deadline, I just want to lay everything down before I go on and move on with my life (haha!).

The Japan hangover is real! My friends and I catch ourselves still dining in Japanese restaurants here in Manila, and wear high socks like most of the teens in Harajuku. :p

Yokohama 横浜 is our one and only side-trip from Tokyo, a spur of the moment decision as recommended by one of our JaPinoy friends Kiko the day before. We were supposed to go to Kamakura to visit the hydrangeas-filled temple garden, but decided to go for the one with lesser travel time (Yokohama is less than 30 minutes from Tokyo via train).

When you find the LBD (Little Black Dress), or white t-shirt, or the pair of jeans that suits you best, they say that your fashion life becomes easier as you only need to accessorize. Imagine if it is the same thing with your shoes! That's what I felt after trying on my first Faux Pas Paris - to me, the perfect pair of pointy nude flats.

Still reading my new Kinfolk Travel where it says that travel is ideal in stimulating creativity because we're immersed in a variety of unfamiliar all at once.

"You're interacting with people who may not speak your language and might have a different code of dress, form of money, food and a totally different environment --all those things can be very beneficial to the brain."
- Paul Nassbaum, psychologist and professor

Welcome to Tokyo, where everything's so different from what we are accustomed to, you will not leave the city the same person again.

The first thing I noticed from Japanese women is their style. They always look chic, so effortless if I may say, but still stylish in their own different ways. Aside from the wide range, extreme styles you'll see while walking around the streets of Tokyo, I also can't help but admire their beautiful skin!

Did you know that Kojiesan is actually inspired by Japanese women's luminous, flawless skin? Their products are formulated the way Japanese traditionally formulated theirs.

The limbo. After an exciting 2 days in Kyoto, on our second night we made a more economical and adventurous choice: To take the night bus.

I've always been on the look out for sturdy, stylish bags for hand-carry during travels. Today, I discovered a bag that allows you to express your individuality and originality. Read more below on Timbuk2, their Manila launch, and their 2-month Custom Bag Studio in Bratpack Greenbelt 5.

Also known as the thousand year capital, Kyoto to me is the ultimate side-trip from Osaka if you want to experience old Japan. It is the land of geishas, countless temples and shrines, traditional Japanese gardens and houses, and other historical structures that survived the bombings during the war.

Another month, another exciting offerings from our favorite tech accessories stores!

While I was away, Avon Philippines sent these beautiful gifts! Sharing some of their exciting news below...

Avon invites every Filipina to "care for her curves”!

Avon Fashions and Avon Skin So Soft match their best products that pamper and empower—pamper with revitalizing body care and empower with perfectly fitting intimate apparel.

I like side-trips. Feeling ko nasulit ko na kaagad ang airfare when I'm able to go to different cities in one trip.

What I like about Osaka, or actually Japan in general, is that it is easy to go to these day-tours because everything's accessible naman via their well-planned train system. But before the tips, here are some morning photos from our Day 2!

View from our Airbnb's balcony:

Back in Manila, but my heart is still in Japan. I remember during my first day back in Manila, I woke up searching for the rush that only comes with traveling. Then I realized I'm back in my room with no schedules for the day. It's always a love-hate, bitter-sweet thing to retire after all the fun.

Congrats to the Greenwich #UltimateBandkada Search Season Two finalists: ABCG, Alab, Musico, Shalom, Relentless, Plethora, Ace Form, and Happy Ending! After 2 months and 150 live and online auditions, these bands were chosen amongst all the contestants from all over the country!

Denim jackets overloaded with patches are all the rage now, and I've been trying to look for the perfect one for a few weeks already. I also tried to search in Japan but they are either too expensive or not the one that I am looking for. So here's the solution brought to us by PENSHOPPE: A DENIM LAB DIY BAR! Read on for the details, it's till Sunday only!

Ahhh.. Japan! There's a reason why I brought a "pang States" maleta and automatically adjusted my baggage limit to 30 kilos for this trip. I will endure lugging this around train stations' staircase down to every street, because I know myself too well: Gagastos at gagastos ako! Lol.

I just transferred all 2000++ photos I accumulated in my camera for my 8-day Japan trip. And just like the last time, I will start my intro post with the easiest kwento: My Japanagon Round 2 Haul. 

Hope you enjoy! :)