Our Human got to Post Today

We were visiting Maggie and Mitch's and Lorenza's bloggie and they were posting the same game. And so, we thought it would be nice to answer the same Qs, but since this will be our first Christmas, yet, we will be giving the floor to manang...

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper, although gift bags come in handy sometimes for those last minute gifts.

2. Real tree or Artificial? We don't have a lot of pine trees here, so we go for artificial

3. When do you put up the tree? there won't be any tree today because Aki and Poopie are still too hyper to be left inside the house with it. *sigh*

4. Wreath on your door? land lady says no drilling in the house, so we don't have that, either. *sigh again*

5. Do you like eggnog? we don't have eggnor per se, but we have the "eggnog cookie" although I doubt that is what the authentic eggnog looks and tastes like.

6. Favourite Christmas gift received as a child? stuffed toys are the only things in my christmas list

7. Easiest person to buy for? Aki and my dogs (aside from myself, of course!)

8. Least easiest? My friends who have everything

9. Do you have a nativity scene? we had one, but it was so long ago.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? we'll do both so we can spread the cheer with as many doggies as possible.

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? a shower gel. :(

12. Favourite Christmas Movie? The Town Santa Forgot and the Yogi's First Christmas.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Normally, October or November, but we'll just do it when we get to Bacolod this year, because we will be bringing Poopie along.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? err.. yes. It will just sit in a corner and gather dust, if I won't.

15. Open presents on Christmas eve or morning? Christmas morning, although some gifts arrive rather late, so I open it when I receive it..

16. Lights on the tree? Yes, if we had one. But there will be lights on the house.

17. Favourite Christmas song? Jose Mari Chan's Christmas carols, esp. Christmas in Our Hearts

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? stay home!! that is what Christmas is for- togetherness!

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? yes, but with much help.. hehe.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? we had a star but an angel would be nice.

21. Favourite thing to eat at Christmas? ham and pitsi-pitsi with lots of melted cheese (this is a local kakanin or snack made with mushed cassava and normally sprinkled with grated cocount- although i prefer grated cheese, instead)

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Christmas rush and traffic. But what i feel bad about most is not being able to spend Christmas and New Year with Aki since Poopie and I will go home and visit my family and other dogs in Bacolod City *wails*

23. Favourite Tree ornament, theme or colour? I'd like to redo my high school Christmas tree project- a non-traditional, spiral wire tree wrapped with golden weaved abaca ribbon and lined with pine leaves and flowers.

24. Favourite for Christmas dinner? ham with lots of ham sauce.

25. Brussels Sprouts - love or hate them? haven't tried it yet, but I sure do love broccoli

26. Favourite accompaniment to the Christmas Pud? hmmm.. chocolate sauce?

27. Favourite Christmas Carol? Christmas in our Hearts

28. Your very Favourite Christmas Thing? Being able to spend time with my family (although, it

won't be really complete this year, because Aki will be in Cebu... buhuhuhuhuhuhhu) for almost 2 weeks

29. A Christmas wish!

Good health, Joy, Peace and Love between all people regardless of race, color, gender, religion and status in life. For every living being, be it humans, animals, insects to somehow feel the spirit of Christmas, take a break from the hustle and bustle of daily living and just bask at the blessing that is our life.

Personal wish: that Aki will be okay with his tito (i.e uncle) Emer and that the dogs in his temporary day care will be nice to him and that he will make new friends. That he won't get sick, get bitten or get into a fight with a dominant dog and he won't get lonely and he won't get scared of all the fireworks. That he won't miss us too much and won't feel that we have abandoned him. (We will be going home on the 20th and will be back by Jan. 4. I am bleeding as I write this but for now, bringing him to Bacolod with us for the Holidays is not only an big ordeal but it will also stressful for him considering the length of travel)

30. Tag a Seasonal Six!
I know some of the puppies have already been tagged, so we encourage anyone who wants to play to feel free and play along with us. This will be a very good opportunity for us to know you better through your Christmas Traditions.

We would like to make a special tag to: Aki's mommy Secretary and their dogs Moymoy and co.

Have a happy weekend every pup!

Isla Romantica: My Videos

Woofyy! Finally, uploaded some of our videos. Hope you'll be able to somehow experience what I have experienced during my last weekedn getaway

(Btw, sorry for the lack of post. Manang is very very busy with work and is turning into a raccoon rather quickly. I am happy to announce though that she was finally able to have our Christmas Cards printed and we had already bought the materials for the cards yesterday, but since we will be personalizing them, we might be able to have everything mailed by next week, yet. whew!)

Isla Romantica: Islet Meets Dog

Okay, so we have arrived in Isla Romantica, what's a dog to do then?

It's a little hot outside and we arrived around 10 AM with the sun almost directly above us. After gathering myself and urging the hoomans to cool off in the water, we were gone.

Manang and I were getting ready to go explore the island. The small makeshift hut at the back is where we deposited our things. We only paid Php 100.00 ($2.00) for the entire day's use of this hut. Except for that, staying in the island was free!

Hurry, manang!

Last one to the water is a rotten egg!

I love playing fetch

I think that it is best played in water... woofy!!

man, am I good at it or what?

manang, here is my ball.

can we do it again?

(sorry, the sun is directly above us in this shot)

and again!

whew, I'm beat.

I'm retiring for the moment.

Don't think I'm done yet.

I'll be back for you Mr. Water, so don't you dare ebb.

manag R', I'm bored.

can we go back into the water again?

manang R', manang tin and Ms. Clavel brought me to the other part of the sea near another nearby island. I had lots of fun playing with the sea weeds.

What are you?

A star--fish, you say?

But why aren't you up in the sky where you belong?

Bonding with Manang R'

and stepping on her foot in the process

hurry up manang!

why are you so slow?

me and the girls just right after our visit to the nearby island

are we missing another 'girl' here?

bonding time with my sisters was fun, but I am a man's man

and I need male company (just so I won't go soft all over... BOL)

manong taught me how to snorkel, isn't that cool?

I am now officially known as Achilles the snorkeling dog.

Hwwatt?

I hear sounds of distress!!

Wait, you mortals, Super Achilles the Snorkeling Dog will save you!

Hold on tight, manong.

I'll get you to shore.

After bonding with all of my human companions, what else is left for me to do? Apparently, a group of rambunctious kids were eyeing me from the corner. At first, everyone in the water (except for my humans) would shriek in sheer terror as if I were about to remove their spleen. Finally convinced that no amount of reassurance from my humans would make them change their minds, I have decided to bridge the gap by giving each of them a big, fat, drooly salty kurukukoy kiss. Soon enough, everyone was my friend- Mission Accomplished. *insert smug look here*

Swimming with the heavily tanned visitors

My new friends

Do you think I am a gentleman for letting them lean on me like this?

The best part of the day was making a stranger open up

and trust you with their lives, even for a bit.

This kid said I was his new bestfriend...

It's almost 3:00 PM.

We've been here for almost 5 hours already.

The sun is no longer as hot.

I am totally beat.

Is it time for a last lap?

Give me a few sec, okay?

This will be done in no time.

That sealed the deal for all water dwellers.

Officially.

Please watch out for our last segment: Saying Goodbye. Also, we will be posting the videos in a separate post because it is just to heavy altogether. Hope you enjoyed our little trip.

Isla Romantica: Getting There

When I was a puppy and all that surrounds me is an endless trail of roof ceilings, manang told me that when I feel sad and see a little shimmery glint of diamond in the sky, I should close my eyes and then make a wish…

Mr. Starlight,
Radiating gleefully in the sky tonight,
please enable my hoomans to bring me back to the beach one more time.

A few weeks back, exactly 10 days ago, we received another invitation from Ms. Clavel to go visit the beach. Every day manang would pester manang R’ and Tin if the beach trip would push through, and so it did.

Taking a rented jeepney (a famous Filipino mode of transportation) from manang’s company driver, we left the Ilonggo House at around 7:00 AM and headed for Lapu Lapu City, which was about an hour’s drive (see map in tool bar).

This time we are not going to our Eden, instead we will be going to a new place located somewhere in Cordova Alegria, still in Lapu Lapu City.

I love jeepney rides because it allows me unlimited tongue wagging possibilities.

There are 2 bridges connecting Cebu City/ Mandaue City with Lapu Lapu City: the new bridge and the old bridge. We took the old one and got a full view of the Marcelo H. Fernan bridge (a.k.a. the new bridge).

Poopie looked sleepy. This was her first official road trip in Cebu. With Poopie is our birthday girl- Manang Tintin…

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MANANG TINTIN!!!!

Jeepney rides had been part of my travelling lifestyle. Here are my before and after Jeepney-riding, beach-bound pictures.

Finally we had arrived. We took a 5-10 minute walk through unspoken vegetation and marshland (just kidding!), traversing through a well treaded path which leads to a quaint sand bar where we are supposed to meet with our next mode of transport.

We are the leader of the pack- the alpha dog.

And just so everyone knows... I left my indelible mark

This path leads down the sand bar.
Wooofy!! Is that where we are going?

waiting for the banca to arrive

Manang, can you hear my heartbeat?
It screams: “WATER!!!”

While waiting for the banca to arrive, Poopie hid beneath the crevice of this rock. Unlike me, she was deathly afraid of the water and was happier land-bound.

“I hope that banca never arrives”

Is that the banca already, kuya?

I can see it!
Our banca is coming.
I can see the islet clearly, too!!

Wooofy! Our ride is here…

The banca (small boat) ride from the drop off point to the island took us another 10-15 minutes. On low tides, the sand bar becomes more prominent and one can just traverse through the knee to shoulder-deep water.

For my first ride, the hoomans were surprised to discover that I was such a good boy.

I never knew banca rides were so much fun!

This isn’t too bad, at all, isn’t it manong Aki?

Destination: Isla Romantica

The island was owned by the banca operator. Its Spanish name “Isla Romantica” literally translates to Romantic Island or Island of Romance.

I surveyed the place with much enthusiasm and gusto


I tested the waters and the indulged in its tranquil waves


Finally, the Chinese Labrador has landed.



watch out for our adventures in our next post: Islet meets Dog