Easter Break 2016 (Part I): Aruga By Rockwell

 

Since it was the end of the school year for my nieces (my nephew Joaki will have his by end April) and the eldest, Joanna, is graduating from High School, I arranged a staycation with them at Aruga by Rockwell this Easter break. As anticipated, there was hardly any traffic, the only time of the year that we Manileños get such a respite.

I booked a two-bedroom suite. It was a good size at 107 square meters with spacious living, dining and kitchen areas. It even has a laundry room with washer and dryer, which is practical for long stays.

The fully equipped kitchen

The rooms were rather small. The master’s bedroom has a king bed that can fit a couple and a child (or maybe a slight teen). The second room has a double bed that is good for two. You may request for a rollaway bed but since the rooms don’t have enough space for one, I assume it will be set up in the living area.The kids loved the soft beds so much they hardly noticed they were cramped. They slept so well they almost missed breakfast.

The master's bedroom

The second room

There were two bathrooms, one inside the master's and another beside the second room. I was expecting to find a bathtub but neither had one.

Probably one of the best things about staying at Aruga is getting access to the Rockwell Club. Aruga has its own pool and gym but the Club's are much bigger.

Aruga's pool area

The Rockwell Club also has more amenities to offer including a spa with its own Jacuzzi, steam bath, and sauna; a wider selection of restaurants such as the topnotch Chef Jessie; sports courts; and, dance and fitness studios. From Aruga, we took a buggy to take us to the Club (it was close by but we were on staycation mode).

The Rockwell Club's pool area

Julia at the pool

The Clubhouse all lit up when evening set in

The teens trying to earn their dinner

For dinner, we opted to go to Dean & Deluca (next post), which the kids haven't tried and is right beside Aruga. We had reservations at Powerplant Cinema for the 10:30 p.m. screening of Batman vs. Superman. I booked and paid for our tickets and chose our seats earlier in the day using their very convenient online payment system.

The following day, we had breakfast at Aruga's cafe. Since it was small and we were having our meal very close to the 10 a.m. cut-off, I anticipated it would get packed. I decided to advise guest services that we will be needing a table for five. They called our room when our table was ready (it didn't take  long). They had to set up our table at the lobby just outside the cafe entrance but we didn't mind.

The cafe

Inside the cafe

The buffet selection was spare but it had all the breakfast favorites of the kids such as cereals, beef tapa, corned beef, eggs, and pancakes, and bonus treats like lady fingers with nutella and chocolate eggs.

Aruga By Rockwell
Waterfront Drive, Rockwell Center,
Makati City, 1200
Metro Manila, Philippines
PHONE (632) 818 0000
FAX (632) 230 6732
reservations@aruga.com.ph

Pros: Location and proximity to shopping and a great selection of restaurants
         Access to the Rockwell Club and all its facilities
         Attentive Service
         Tastefully decorated and fully equipped suites
         Late checkout until 2 p.m.
     
Cons: Relatively expensive
          No bathtub
          Check-in was quick but the room wasn't ready even if we arrived late (we had to wait about 20 minutes)
          We spotted a roach in our living room but it was most likely an isolated incident because every corner of the suite was spotless

Hotel Room Review: Marco Polo Hotel Ortigas

 I celebrated a special family gathering at Marco Polo Ortigas recently and stayed for two nights at a Premier Suite.

Prior to this stay, I’ve had the opportunity to visit three times, twice to dine at Cucina and once at Cafe Pronto. The attentiveness of the staff made a great impression on me. So did the tastefully decorated check-in lobby at the 24th floor. Other common areas are equally well put-together.

Even more impressive were the rooms. The Premier Room is 51 square meters, with floor to ceiling windows, a king size bed (you can request for 2 doubles instead), a lounge chair, a bench chair at the foot of the bed and a round glass table with two chairs for dining.
 
The water closet has separate bath and shower areas, lavatory, and double basins so you and your companion can get ready at the same time. So much space!

The room is also equipped with a cute Nespresso machine and three capsules in a variety of flavors.



Even better are the price points. Because we were booked for an event, I got the room at P7,500 net. The most affordable rooms are the superior rooms, which were offered to me at P5,000 net. All rates are inclusive of buffet breakfast for two at Cucina. The buffet spread, both for breakfast and dinner, has a substantial selection of continental and Asian fare that has enough variety yet is manageable and well curated.

We booked a total of four rooms for our family but, as expected, my nieces invaded my room. JM loved soaking in the tub. I had to request for housekeeping service three times to keep my OC self sane. The staff were always obliging.

The banquet services attended to all our needs without any hassle. I expected to be badgered with paperwork and approvals but, to my delight, there was none!

The most trouble I had was figuring out which elevator led to the parking since there was no direct lift from the rooms. But I got the hang of it eventually so it didn't dampen my impression of the hotel.

Down Under with Gusto (Last Part)

Arriving from Auckland the night before, we had only one full day left to enjoy Sydney before taking an early flight to Manila the following day. Our main agenda was to catch South Pacific at the Sydney Opera House. But first, I had to look for triple brie cheese for my sister-in-law, Joy. I found it at David Jones. I made arrangements to pick it up after the show.



With the cheese business settled, we proceeded to the ferry terminal area and looked for a place for lunch.



The opera house was a short walk away so we took our time. The sun blazed happily and so did we.



When we arrived outside the theater, we still had enough time for a latte and some people watching. The attendees were mostly old white people so we looked a little out of place.

The theater was small, more like the Ateneo college auditorium, but it felt cozy. Too bad we weren’t allowed to take pictures. It was my first time to see South Pacific and I thought I wouldn’t enjoy it because the theme is a little dated but I found myself humming the songs Dites-Moi and Carefully Taught. I found myself swooning over the male lead who was such a dreamboat that even the old ladies in front of me looked moonstruck every time he sang.

It was a perfect way to end the trip. I will be back.

For a recap of my trip, please visit the links below:

Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Part V
Part VI
Part VII
Part VIII
Part IX
Part X

Because my flight was in the evening, I still had a full day in Auckland and I made sure I put it to good use. I made a mental note the day before to go to Devonport, which was a 15-minute a boat ride, according to guidebooks, but I wasn’t sure if the weather would let me.

A blazing sun and blue skies greeted me so I went to the Fullers office at the ferry terminal to buy a ticket.  

(Above) Devonport from the boat

I wanted to ride the buggy with cute horses

Devonport has all the requisite clapboard homes and flower-paved roads that define charm.

I looked around the stores first before settling at the Stone Oven Bakery and Cafe for lunch.

I took my time, reading a local newspaper and magazine while enjoying the food and coffee.

To burn off some of the calories that have piled up during this trip, I hiked to the highest peak of Devonport, which offered a sweeping view of Auckland. As I walked up, I looked back and saw the view above. Lovely.

From the top



A playful touch



Going down, I took another road and saw beautiful and bountiful blooms.

Next time, I’d really like to spend a night at a bed and breakfast here. 

Down Under with Gusto (Part VI)

This was the crazy weather edition of my trip. The sky was so fickle; it kept switching from sunny to pouring and varying degrees of overcast. But it was invariably windy. The weather threw my itinerary (and my sinuses) out of whack but I learned to roll with it.



From my bus exploration the day before, I earmarked the locations I wanted to get to know better–Queen Victoria Market and Lygon Street. My other had the good sense of buying a myKi card at 7-11, which allowed us to hop on and off to any bus in the city as often as we liked for a day pass fee of AU$6. Nice.

We grabbed a muffin and coffee at a nearby café while waiting for the bank to open at 9 a.m. but when we got to the bank, we saw a posting saying that the new opening time will be 9:30. We decided to postpone the currency exchange and took the bus to Queen Victoria market.



It was a blustery walk to the bus station and my nose was dripping from hay fever but I forgot all that when we arrived at the market. We entered the deli area and were welcomed by cheese of every predilection! I fought the urge to buy because I was starting to worry about my baggage allowance to Auckland.



We walked towards the open stalls selling bottled items and fresh flowers but I caught a whiff of a pollen-loaded breeze and started to sneeze like crazy. My throat began to constrict so I ran indoors, bought a bottled water and took an antihistamine. We cut short our QV market tour then and decided to proceed to Lygon.

After having some money changed at Commonwealth Bank, we rode the free city tram to Lygon. The stop was a short walk to Lygon Street, but when we got there, most of the restaurants were still closed. We agreed to check out the University of Melbourne to kill time. It began to rain so we took our jackets out but we were able to advance just a few meters before it started to pour. We took shelter under one of the buildings. Just as we were preparing to abandon our UM visit, the sun showed up so we proceeded.

We went inside the visitor center to ask if they had a gift shop. They had two, the main located at the heart of the campus. It’s been years since I visited a university campus so I felt very nostalgic. It didn’t take much to recall how I felt as a college student–the future held so much promise.

We saw some nice items at the UM gift shop but some of the sizes were off so we just got a UM hoodie and a mug.



Lygon was coming to life when we got back. We couldn’t decide where to eat so we  judged the restaurants based on the size of the crowd it attracted. One stood out–Caffe Noturnno. We loved it. The pizza and Rigatoni Matriciana at Caffe Noturnno were just amazing. And while I’m not a lover of cheesecake, theirs was superb.


After lunch, we rode a bus from the UM stop and got off one stop too early, right at the heart of the shopping district where we saw these street artists.



Since this was our only free day to visit St. Kilda, we braved the fickle weather and went there after a short rest at our hotel. It wasn’t the best day to go because the wind was invariably strong. It was almost too cold for us but we sucked it up and ran to the nearest coffeeshop we could find. The boardwalk was empty and most of the stores were closed but we were amazed to see people from the adjacent indoor pool running to the beach for a quick dip in the water. Maybe it was therapeutic?



Back at the CBD, we had dinner at Rare, a highly rated steak place in Tripadvisor. We wanted our Angus because this was Australia, but, to be honest, I’ve tasted better steaks back home (or maybe, my taste is simply too Pinoy). After dinner, it began to rain again. Thankfully, the restaurant was near our hotel so we made a dash for it.

Always In Season

*Published in Mabuhay Magazine




When a staff offered me, “a glass of OMG, Ma’am,” I didn’t realize that she was also handing out the acronym of the day. I took a sip of the deliciously cooling concoction made of oranges, mango syrup and grenadine, and mechanically repeated after her, OMG.  Then she gave me a plate of crinkles and fudgy bar cookies, followed by a serving of churros with two dips – caramel and chocolate. OMG.





A few minutes later, I keyed in to my room, excitedly swept my gaze across the king-size bed, iPod dock, and flat-screen TV, then opened the sliding glass door to my private wooden deck with its own Jacuzzi. OMG.



And for the knockout punch, I stepped into the bathroom and took a hot shower under the wide rainfall showerhead. As a curtain of warm water deliciously cosseted me from the cares of the world, I continued my mantra, OMG. This was exactly how I needed to feel. Coddled. And Two Seasons in Coron certainly knows how it’s done.



I had my adventures earlier in the day. I revisited Cayangan Lake, a consistent winner in the Philippines’ cleanest lakes competition that it had been elevated to the hall of fame. I snorkeled my way to the Twin Lagoon and fed fish at the Skeleton Wreck, where we parked our boat for a lunch feast onboard.



With all that excitement and the equal thrill of a choppy boat ride to the resort, I crawled my way to bed after my shower and had one of the best siestas of my life.



By the time I got up, the sun was hanging low on the horizon. I joined friends at the Sulu Restaurant for cocktails and a pizza, which I hardly partook of, as I was nursing my appetite for dinner, which had crabs on the menu. We moved to an al fresco table for a better view of the full moon and indulged on a gourmet dinner prepared by chefs trained by Gene Gonzalez of Café Ysabel. The Crab Maritess didn’t disappoint. It even came with a melted butter dip. Why not? A vacation is never complete without an extra serving of fat. For good measure, we rounded the meal with an order of panna cotta.

I meant to wake up at 8 a.m. but my body clock decided to ring in at 9:30. I could hear the wind hissing outside and I feared that the drizzle the night before had turned into a storm. So I gingerly drew the drapes and rubbed the sleep off my eyes. My vision slowly adjusted to the Technicolor sight of gradient blue seas slipping from lapis lazuli to azure. My Jacuzzi was bubbling. The wind was gale-force. And my stomach was calling for breakfast. Bacon and eggs, please.





When I had my fill, I changed to my bathing suit and took a dip in the Jacuzzi until the sun was high enough to give my skin a sharper color. Nothing feels like a vacation than a lazy morning. The laziness spilled into the afternoon as I listened to Michael Learns To Rock ditties and other sleepy ballads while checking my email at the restaurant. My succulent grilled pork belly lunch didn’t help stir me up either, so I decided to squeeze in an afternoon activity lest I slip into another long siesta.

I wanted to try paddle boarding but the wind wouldn’t permit so I opted for the bubble hop, also known as a scuba bike. It is similar to helmet diving, but better because your helmet isn’t attached to a rope. The machine is motorized so you are free to move around. I slipped my head into the helmet attached to the machine and rode it like a motorcycle, controlling my speed and direction using the handlebar lever. I didn’t realize how rich with marine life the shore reef was until I went under. A school of fish with longitudinal black stripes passed by. Another with yellow fins swarmed around me and nipped me with their tickle-y snout. Every direction I took, took me to more fish.



I needed a good knead before the day ended so I scheduled a massage just before dinner. By the time it was finished, I needed very little else to complete my day so I just had soup and a small serving of paella. Cookies and fudgy bars were at my beverage counter when I turned in, both of which I could not resist. Still, I managed to sleep early, and wake up early for my morning flight.

While taking my shower before dawn, I opened the blinds and saw a very pregnant moon casting a silvery light on the water. It was another OMG moment, and perhaps a fitting end to a sublime Two Seasons experience.