maybelle victor

Nung una kong narinig ang MORCON, nagutom ako. Malay ko ba naman na ang ibig sabihin ng MORCon ay Mastering Online Rankings Conference. Hindi lang siguro talaga ako nagppay attention. On second thought, para naman talagang Morcon yung seminar – it’s stuffed of juicy ingredients that made SEO (Search Engine Optimization), SM (Social Media) and SMO (Social Media Optimization) much easier to deal with.

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For someone who has visited Hongkong’s Ocean Park and Singapore’s Sentosa Park, I must admit, Manila Ocean Park is young and underdeveloped.

But for someone who is just looking for something different from the usual places to visit, this is going to be quite an experience.

The first section of the park is a display of separate aquariums. This one is not air-conditioned but the place was designed in such a way that you’ll get a feel of a lake or forest. You’ll see some alligators, turtles and huge different types of fish.

The next section of the park is a darkened area opening to a small tunnel.

The tunnel experience is a bit short and I find the glass too sharp as it gave me a dizzy feeling. After the tunnel you can enjoy or consider other activities such as the Fish Foot Spa, Glass Boat Ride and the Drawing/Tracing Area. We also got to watch the mermaid show.

The Fish Foot Spa is ticklish and you have to familiarize yourself with the “idea” that fish is going to bite the dead skin off your feet before you get to “enjoy” it. The Glass Boat Ride is pretty educational and seeing through the glass on the boat to see the top view of the tunnel gives you a different perspective. I did get a bit dizzy, afterwards. I guess, I simply am not a boat-rider.

I didn’t get to finish my draw/trace. There was simply too much samples there for me to trace, I just got to try 3 of them and there are like 10 more or so. This is a very useful activity to pass time.

The Mermaid Show was a special. I had the impression that it wasn’t usually shown and that we only chanced by to watch it. It’s nothing much actually, nothing to the likes of Ariel’s presentation at Little Mermaid or any theatrical effect. It was just music playing with some mermaids swimming, attempting to entertain the audience with some of their moves. They are swimming in the same fish aquarium, mind you, and you get to view them through the glass too.

The Restaurant looks really inviting, with its huge posters and mouth-watering viands, it would have been a pleasant experience to eat there as an end to the entire visit. However, since the park is situated in a mall-to-be area, there are some other food chain/restaurants outside, with the likes of North Park, Pancake House, Chowking and others.

At this time, entrance for children below 2ft is free, Php350 for kids between 2 to 4ft and Php400 for adults.   Once inside, additional ticket prices are available for other features and activities which starts at Php100.  A summer promo is ongoing and we availed that for Php500 (same rate for children and adult).

The guide said that more features are being developed.  Jellyfish and Seals section are to be added by September 2009 and a Diving with the animals feature will be added soon.

My siblings and I were scouting for a good restaurant to hold our parents’ 30th wedding anniversary and our feet led us to our first food tasting at Great Eastern Hotel at Makati Avenue – at Aberdeen Court (Makati).

The restaurant specializes in Chinese cuisine which the restaurant have carefully arranged into set menu packages for easier selection.  We chose Set6 of the packages.

The service is wonderful and the seat was cozy however, it wouldn’t be advisable for someone of a larger body frame.  The function room is not bad but everything to be done on the occasion has to be planned prior. There are charges involved with various activities/rental/corkage, etc… The food was good but not as authentic or unique as we had hoped.

Crab Meat in Fresh Mushroom Soup

This is a bland soup with mushroom bits, crab meat and egg whites. I find that it’s too thin and watery rather than a bit thick or stocky. In spite of that, the warm soup was a good start. The kids enjoyed it for some reason and well, actually put the bowl out in spite of the other viands available.

Beef tenderloins

This viand was an upgrade as prescribed by my beloved sister in place of the Beef with Four Vegetables viand on the set menu. This one is pretty tender and sweet, a tasty treat for someone as hungry as us. It should be eaten while it’s still a bit hot rather than taken after trying all the rest of the viands, I should know because it was already too late when I found out.

Patatim

This is a classic amongst set menus. I’ve often eaten this at occasions that rendered Chinese food. My brother found this dish pretty salty and that the meat is not as juicy and tasty. I find this one pretty good and unique though. My brother is right but I find that the strongest point of the dish. Unlike most Patatim dish, this one has a watery sauce, a bit salty but just right to match the meat’s soft and tender parts. I find it better served with plain rice rather than the fried rice the set menu came with.

Lapu-Lapu Fillet in Corn Sauce

This one is not very appropriate to the menu. Well, it would have been more Chinese to find a fish fillet with tofu or a hotpot but this is here. The fish seemed to be toasted although the corn sauce was pretty good. This would be better with plain rice.

Chicken Imperial

Was it just me or it almost always is a click amongst kids? Chicken tastes almost the same to me at all restaurants but what’s good about this one is the sauce isn’t catsup and that the meat is not dry. The skin, which the kids are fighting over for, was pretty crunchy and the usual crackers on the side is not bad. Pretty thick crackers that seemed to be different from the crackers you buy outside of churches or the groceries.

Special Chopsuey

This is an upgrade in replacement of the Sesame Shrimp on Toast dish on the set. We didn’t have any vegetables on the menu because we had the Beef with Four Vegetables replaced so we had to change one of the viands to vegie dish and this is what we have. This is one of the few dishes that my brother and I agreed to be really good. Special Chopsuey is often full of vegetables but this dish is also full of various types of meat, which brought out the tasty sauce. What I like about this dish is I know it has been stir-fried on a hot wok. The vegetables are very crunchy and the sauce compliments the taste rather than add flavor. Vegetables are unusually, very bland, but with this dish, you’ll appreciate vegetables all the more.

Mixed Meats Chow Mien

I know that Chow Mien is supposed to taste like this but I find that it lacks authenticity, meat and color. My brother found it salty and the kids didn’t like it that much. This dish reminded me of something instant.

Aberdeen Fried Rice

Rice is rice, whatever you do but Aberdeen Court placed a twist by adding a little flavor and color. What’s good about this is the rice isn’t sticky and that it’s neither too bland or too salty. The kids ate a bunch.

Sweet Sesame Balls

I could have sworn I took a picture of this one but I can’t find it. This is a really good end to the food tasting experience. Even the kids took a bite of the butchi. What’s good about this is the sesame seeds have a little flavor that makes the bite on the ball a bit crunchy and tasty than usual. The filling is not too sweet and just right to “cleanse” the tongue of all the food taken for the day.

I was ultimately stuffed with this half-table set-up and was utterly convinced that even though the entire menu wasn’t perfect, it is good enough of an experience and is worth a shot. The set menu prices range from Php1000 onwards, depending on the number of people per table and the menu chosen. Ours started as Php2800 but since we upgraded a couple of dishes, we had to add a few more hundreds. The price is just about right.

It was the 12% VAT and the SC that’s a bummer. But the hotel service is very good, I guess it’s just fair.