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Let's check out the packaging first.. shall we?

I have created this series on my blog which summarizes the things that happened to me lately. It's hard to think of a catchy name for this one, but I thought of the word Raconteur;

During these past few weeks, I learned a lot about myself and discovering a few of my worst fears. Let's start from April 1st, shall we? :)

[ 1 ]


We went to a secluded paradise—just a few miles away from Tagaytay's busy streets. I was amazed by going through patches and patches of rice fields and end up cruising a mountain, gaining a nice view of the private beach. 


There were rentable bikes, man-made lakes, shops, game rooms, courts for playing sports, pools, a country club, a beach club, shuttles that goes around the area, trees, lilies, nice employees and towers named after exotic birds.

We stayed in the Jacana tower and we met my cousin's boyfriend and his family. They were so nice and they cook amazing dishes that I couldn't get over of. We stayed in Pico De Loro for three days; all I did was play with a kid, ride bikes, play wii and swam in the warm waters of Nasugbu.


During cold nights, we got out and walked a few blocks to the shore to look at the twinkling stars, bright moon, boats exchanging morse codes using their signal lamps to the nearby lighthouse and a faint sound of a band playing in the beach club. I buried my toes in the sand while listening to Ed Sheeran's recent album. It was from this Hamilo stay—that my current obsession with snapchat grew like a wildfire. (ADD ME! "arapostrophe" is my snapchat username)

[ 2 ]

If you have been following me on my twitter account; @AraCesista , you might have an idea about my broken phone. My phone lived 2 years (and still counting) before breaking down. (I hope it won't break down tho)


I can see through my phone's sides and I can peek a little closer to see its white back-light. I don't know if this thing is just about a 'bloated battery' problem... orrrr the screen has some issues.

My parents replaced it with a new phone that I'm happy about. Its battery life is AMAZING. I never had a phone that could do that. (or it's just because I don't use my phone that much..?) Its camera is awesome and those graphics. Damn.

[ 3 ]

My love for midnight / early morning strolls grew. Our current village isn't really 'Night Stroll' material.. So I don't go out at night even if I'm itching to do so. Whenever I'm in a new place, I will take 30 minutes and reserve it for long walks.

I currently had a long midnight stroll in QC Circle.....in nude pumps. (As a girl, I really need to practice walking in high heels or else I wouldn't be a lady. lol.

In my observations, there are tons of people working-out in the vicinity. There's someone who jogs, walks, runs and most of them just used the metal equipment made by the government that can be used  for working out sessions. (The QC government really did a great job on that thing) Sooo if you live close to the QC Circle and you want to tone your body, go ahead and spend a day there. :)

Me and my friends got out in a morning stroll for multiple purposes. It's nice to go out early in the morning to take in the fresh air and the quiet environment to go with it.

[ 4 ]

I discovered a really old place that is located somewhere in Makati City. Once you come in, there is an old grocery that has been closed down for years and years. It's connected into a newer building that has tons of ukay-ukay shops, old bookstores, gadget stores, some salons, a pawnshop, restaurants, a chapel, a new grocery, audio shops and a lot more. You wouldn't expect a lot from it when you see it from the outside.

I also discovered a firing range deep in the building's basement. My dad told me to try it and so I did. I just used a 9mm gun because I might not like the recoil of the other guns as a beginner. I think I did a pretty great job. Haha. Take a look on my shots below:


We came back to Makati yesterday and we came back there. I looked at dresses and bought books that I will talk about in a short while haha.

We brought my tita and two cousin's for dinner in a restaurant across from the building. We went to this area called 'Little Tokyo' and ate in a yakiniku restaurant.



[ 5 ]

One of my circle of sisters— 'thrill' decided to have a slumber party in one of our friends' house. So we did that. We played a lot of rounds of truth and dare. All of us ended up being wet and some— a few different consequences.

The next day, we went to SM Megamall to try to ice skate for the very first time. It was hard at first; but now, I got a new obtained goal that I'm very happy about :) (Special shout-out to Reg Abbariao! :D I love you, girl!)


[ 6 ]

I have this scary nightmare.. of reading the classics. Haha. I never thought that I will be into Shakespeare, Austen, Dickens, Caroll, Doyle and a few other ancient authors. I was once amazed by Mr. Darcy's letter to a maiden named Elizabeth from Austen's Pride and Prejudice. My fascination grew because of this certain fan fiction that I read in wattpad a few weeks ago. 

I was out yesterday and decided to find Austen's Pride and Prejudice in an old bookstore in Makati. I couldn't find it anywhere. I was about to get Sense and Sensibility—another great book from Austen; when I saw Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Macbeth and Hamlet—with a modernized english version beside the old english script. So I bought Shakespeare's AMND and H instead. Haha.

So now I'm currently reading AMND and just focusing on the old english side. When I need a little help, I will just take a look on the right side of the page to see the modernized one and highlight the words for future reference.

After the gun shooting stuff and the ice skating trial, my body as been going down on the ground. I have multiple problems with my muscles and it's hard to put my arms up. But luckily, It's all good now. I'm just dealing with a skin fungal infection, but it's slowly healing now.

I think that this will be all for the very first Raconteur's Rundown. I will post a blog coming up soon. Once this thing is up, I'm currently editing the vid. :)

This is my 30th post! *squeals* We've made this far! haha :) Thank you for still keeping up with me.

Hi Guys!

I'd like to present you a little series coming up this Summer in my very own blog. I got this bright idea in school yesterday and thought of the preparations needed and I think I should've thought of this last January but since this is in such short notice, I promise to post it as 'early' as I can.

Some schools are off with the term and some are not but hey, this could be a really good reference for your vacation every summer, yeah?

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This first article will be about the long-term things that you need to decide on.

#1
THE DESTINATION

Summer can be a little bit cray-cray. Hotels and resorts are full all the time! (Especially when they get amazing exposure from television shows)

Soooo I recommend weeks before your date of relaxation. You need to plan for this. You need an agenda. You need a intinerary!

Find amazing spots local & international (If going somewhere international, you can get a pretty good deal and not much of a hassle because we celebrate the summer season differently from theirs, so there wouldn't be a ton of people getting on your way when booking for a place to stay)

IF YOU'RE GOING LOCAL...
You gotta get your game up, girl! (or boy)

If you want to stay in the metro... try

{Manila}

Photo credit : http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/01/ee/93/74/metro-manila.jpg

Places to Visit:

1. Manila Ocean Park

Perfect for families-especially targeted for kids and people who are interested with sea critters. You will get to see amazing laser light shows, mermaids, penguins, sharks, stingrays and a whole lot more! Has different amenities that everyone can enjoy.

2. City Of Dreams Manila

Summarized as a whole package. A place where you can stay, dine & play all at the same time. If you're curious about De Niro, Scorsese & DiCaprio's commercial popping up on your television screens, why not see for yourselves? :)

3. Intramuros

Go back in time and explore Manila's ruins that withstood war. If you're fascinated by architectural designs and reading through facts, this is the perfect stop for you. (PS: ride a kalesa while touring the city!)

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Places not too far from the metro...

{Tagaytay / Batangas / Cavite}

Photo by Gerry RuizPlaces To Visit: 1. Sky Ranch Rides?! Of course we want them! :D The thrill on a boat-like structure near the edge of a cliff would be awesome! They also offer other rides that anyone would enjoy. 2. Laiya Beaches Whenever we need to get away from the chaos of the city, we always end-up in Laiya, Batangas. It's a nest full of beach resorts to choose from! + I'm pretty sure that there's a lot of places to visit in the Philippines! I wish I could make a whole list of places that you guys will surely want to go to, but I need to make the #2 in this article... + + + #2 CASH You need to get a little bit off from your savings for you to go to a different place. I think the most amazing thing that you can actually do is to travel. For me, travel is luxury. And when we usually go out, we spend wayyyy more than we should. So it's always good to be ready and to save up for something as a reward for yourself because you, deserve a good break :) Ask your parents or any person that you know that could help you raise money for your Summer Escapade. Try selling food out, bracelets, try to resell something, do a garage sale.. There are multiple ways to save up money! It wouldn't be easy but, everyone needs a good 'ol goal right? :) + + + #3 THE BODY & THE MINDSET A lot of people are working hard for their bods to be in shape (maybe including me..?) but I don't care if people around me doesn't have the perfect body. I want to see people confident with their own body and I love people who loves their own body. Who cares if you don't have a perfect body? Rock it, girl! (or boy again hihi)  Buy a swimming wear that you feel good in and go ahead and hit the beach! :)  ***  But before you take a dip in the pool or go anywhere else, wait for the rest of my series and you will get to see my routines and my summer essentials :)  Follow me on +Bloglovin so that you will be updated when I post the next few articles for the #SummerReady series :) See you on my next post!

 Hi lovelies! I'm back with a new review for you.

I have been seeing this around Lazada for quite some time now.. I have read multiple review about this and most of them aren't THAT GOOD. I felt a little intrigue so I knew that I need to find out for myself.

This "Foundation" is available in 4 shades. Fair, Light, Medium and Tan.

Its Claims & Ingredients:

As stated, it comes with "color beads" that allegedly "adjusts" to your shade.

It includes 1 oz. of product (28 g) and is pretty small but a good amount for its price range.

I picked up the shade "Medium" and tested the product on the back of my hand.

As you can see, it produces pearl beads which includes the color / shade inside when you pop it and it comes with an almost-clear liquid. I rubbed it in to see what happens.

It has glitter on it-but not too noticeable. To be honest, It never did anything on my skin except that It created a flawless base for a real foundation or any product the goes with it. The name itself can be misleading and I would strongly suggest that Wet 'N Wild should've changed its name into a "Tinted Primer" which has a semi-matte finish. It feels very light and silky (which lived up to one of its claims) 

You also wouldn't get an exact amount of products when you add it into your skin because the beads don't go with the white liquid for the most part (which is a total bummer) The smell isn't so nice.. but you wouldn't smell it all over your face when you apply it on. It doesn't match to your skin-or it really did because I couldn't see anything. (Oh no... this is becoming a rant) 

I wouldn't recommend this to any of you out there. I love Wet 'N Wild's lipsticks and some of their eyeshadows and It made me kind of not like it anymore because of this one. I have read that people had bumped into problems with this product (ex. itchiness, it stings) Fortunately, none of those happened to my face soooo yeah.

I would rate this product a 3 out of 5. You might think that I should've given less, but It's a really good drugstore primer so that's a plus.

*****

I hope that my review helped and I am looking forward to a bunch of new opportunities this summer time :) Our classes will end in 2 days and I'm excited about it. (But I'm going to miss my classmates so much that I feel like leaving them will hurt me so bad...) But here's to great end!

 {model : faith lopez ; location : up diliman grounds}