Hello Balloon | italian

Mamarazzi Meets Melatonin Bear

Posted by Arlu on May 18, 2012 in Featured, Food, Thought Bubbles | 6 comments

We were all excited to take my mom to Edsa Shangri La Hotel for Mother’s Day, where we booked ourselves a table at Paparazzi, a family favorite. Thank heavens they seated us in a cozy corner of the restaurant because as expected, the antics began long before the first breadstick was served.

Love at First Slice

Posted by Arlu on Mar 13, 2012 in Featured, Food, Thought Bubbles | 6 comments

Since Anthony arrived in Manila, he has kept a tight watch over our local pizza joints, keeping a meticulous tally of the strengths and weaknesses of each (It’s an Italian thing). Now imagine his thrill when my cousin Charlie first told him about Nolita, the newest restaurant to set up shop in the recently-expanded section of Bonifacio High Street that served authentic New York pizza by the slice.

A Day of Awkward Cheese and Difficult Lollipops

Posted by Arlu on Feb 24, 2012 in Culture, Featured, Thought Bubbles, Travel | 2 comments

We were thrilled to receive a text message from my cousins Patricia and Richard inviting us for a one-day excursion with their families up north. I must mention right off the bat that I love road trips, and at the same time, I also love traveling with my cousins in particular. We’ve gone on many, many trips over the years, and they’re always fun, pleasant and easy-going. As for their kids, my adorable nieces and nephews, let’s just say that they kept us adults on our toes. Hahaha!

Two Brick-Oven Pizzas and a Surprise Doughnut

Posted by Arlu on Feb 1, 2012 in Featured, Food, Thought Bubbles | 7 comments

It all began when the name came up during a recent dinner with friends — That there was this pizza place, Gino’s, along Katipunan. As soon as Anthony heard the words “BRICK OVEN,” I caught him doing a specific head tilt that I’ve only seen in that one Youtube video featuring a couple of attentive pug puppies (Everyone, tilt your heads to the left THEN tilt to the right). Hahaha!

Watch Me Jiggle // A New Year’s Eve Special

Posted by Arlu on Jan 3, 2012 in Featured, Food, Thought Bubbles, Travel | 7 comments

It has been many years since my last visit to Singapore, so you can imagine my excitement at the thought of spending New Year’s eve with the family right in the heart of the “Lion City.” I must mention that this is also Anthony’s first visit, which made it doubly thrilling for me to introduce him to all things beautiful-lah!