Tried the Yellow Cab Taxis in Cebu

For the past few years that I've been going back and forth to Cebu, I would normally take the airport taxi, which is white in color and would have a fixed rate depending on the destination.  This time around though, in my recent Cebu trip, I decided to take the yellow taxi, which they said would use the meter!  I thought, well, why not!  Well, sad to say, it's just as expensive as the white airport taxi.  I still shelled out 300 bucks for my fare to Marriott Hotel.  I guess now, it's fifty pesos more expensive than my fare three years ago.  Inflation, of course. 

But the service is good and they do carry your bags.  Also, be sure to BRING THE EXACT AMOUNT or have one hundreds so that if your bill can be rounded off to it, you will have no problems. THE DRIVERS PRETEND TO HAVE NO CHANGE.  I wasn't feeling too generous that time anyway, so my fare read 285 pesos, so I just gave him 300 pesos.  If he had change, maybe I would've given him a 100 peso tip, just to check if he's not maro!

Hotel Review: Marriott Hotel Cebu Ups the Ante

my king size bed - lovett!

yes, there is a lounging chair beside the window, which you could use for reading, I just hung my wet towels and clothes here hahaha

love that design on my bed head board!

an unintrusive abstract on the wall

my bedside table, love the lamp and that snaky thingy lamp for reading!

a view of my room

my bathroom mirror and wash basin!

it's a rainforest shower pour moi!

look Ma, les toiletries sont complete!

was never able to use these glasses though....

the gorgeous capiz lamps in the bathroom!

they have an iron and a safe!! parfait!

flat screen and Skycable!

all my bottled water during my four day stay was free!!

I love my work area - just plug in the internet plug and surf you go!!

a beautiful mirror facing me while I worked

my view!!

my front view!!

I was actually surprised when people commented when I posted my hotel room pics in FB.  Well, Vic and I usually stay in hotels like Marriott when we travel, for the simple reason that in our age, we have certain demand for our rooms and I do prefer to sleep in comfort.  Yes, I can travel cowboy style but really, I'd still prefer comfort above everything.  And we do usually stay at the Marriott when we go to Cebu since the Ayala Center is beside it.

Well, I haven't stayed here for the past three years and frankly, I'm impressed by the renovations in the room and the bathroom.  Everything is divine, as in everything!! My only suggestion is for them to place an Ipod dock since almost everyone I know has an Apple product and we do need to charge these things and we also want to play our songs instead of just watching TV.  Well, just a suggestion.  Otherwise, I loved my stay here and will definitely stay here again next time soon!

Restaurant Review: Sunburst Chicken Ayala Terraces Cebu

The entrance to the resto

their 2-piece chicken

Anyone who grew up in Cebu in the 80s would be familiar with Sunburst chicken!  When I was in high school this was one of the preferred places to eat!! You have to remember that in the early 80s, Jollibee and McDo were not that ubiquitous yet, and were not considered 'class' places to eat for a celebration.

Fast forward almost thirty years later and the first resto I wanted to try out in my recent Cebu vaycay was, well, Sunburst! I bumped into my cousins late afternoon Wednesday and I coaxed them to join me for an early dinner treat.  They just had clubhouse sandwiches while I had their version of a 2-piece chicken.  Well, sad to say, the chicken was really bland and not tasty at all.  T'was a bit of a disappointment really since Sunburst chicken is considered "homegrown" food for many Cebuanos - and we have wonderful memories of the food.  Not this time though.  Maybe I should try their branch at SM City Cebu next time.

Restaurant Review: Cyma at Ayala Terraces

angel hair pomodoro

the resto at the Ayala Terraces Cebu

Interestingly, the only restaurant that let me down in my Cebu trip is Cyma, mainly because I found their angel hair pomodoro there to be a bit soggy.  Considering that they charge the same arm and leg price as here in Manila, I did feel sore about it, especially also that my friend Meo treated me and my other friend, Buggy there - and I did choose Cyma since I was craving for pomodoro that night. Big mistake!! I should've just chosen another home-grown Cebu resto!

Restaurant Review: The Tinder Box in Banilad, Cebu

that's where we actually sat!! you see those two framed photos hanged vertically?  well, there!!

this is how the place looks from the outside, and at night - the same time we went there!

this is exactly what we ate!! YUM YUM!!

Another must place you have to go when you dine in Cebu is the Tinder Box.  My friend, Meo, told me that this place has been there for a long time already, practically an institution, but well, I think it was my first time there, and the first time for me to sample their food too!  You can actually choose the wine, and we chose something from Chile, medium priced, at about 900 pesos thereabouts and well, I'm no wine connoisseur but it was the perfect companion to the cold cuts and cheese plate we ordered!!  We practically cleaned out the plate!!

Restaurant Review: Moon Cafe at the Ayala Terraces in Cebu

quesadilla

spare ribs - A MUST TO ALL MEATLOVERS!

grilled tangigue - A MUST FOR ALL FISH LOVERS!

the scene inside the resto that Wednesday night - t'was packed!!

the whirling fans that definitely provided some cool to the customers!

Moi avec ma cousine et sa epouse!

Anyone who loves spare ribs should try the spare ribs of the Moon Cafe at the Ayala Terraces Cebu.  It's tender, delicious and the servings are huge vis-a-vis the price!!  Imagine, I ordered quesadilla, a burrito, then my cousins ordered tangigue and spare ribs, plus two bottomless iced teas and calamansi juice and three cups of plain rice - and our bill DID NOT EVEN REACH 900 pesos!!!

In Manila, the spare ribs alone WOULD BE 900 pesos!!  I love Cebu hahaha!!

Anyhow, try to skip the Mexican food, you can get better tasting Mexican food here but do try the spare ribs and tangigue and maybe the rest of their Pinoy food menu!! It was just really MALINAMNAM!!  And REASONABLY PRICED!

The Impressive and Expansively Glittering Ayala Terraces in Cebu

All these photos were taken at midnight already after I had dinner with my cousins last Wednesday, December 28, 2011.  I dare you say that this Ayala mall is actually the best of all the Ayala malls.  I just love the garden and the flowing mini-waterfalls and how they zoned everything from electronics to sportswear, to restaurants.  Good job to the people of Ayala malls!

By the way, I was in Cebu 2008 and I was really surprised to see that everything has been finished already when I returned there last week!