It's definitely summer. The heat is crazy. My electricity bill is insane! So when Pilipinas Shell invited my family to go on a road trip on their tab, you betcha we jumped at their offer asap! Our destination: Tagaytay and its brisk weather!
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| On the road again! |
Thanks so much for the gas, Shell! Since we were going to do a lot of driving on long stretches of road, Shell recommended we use their most premium gasoline, the Shell V-Power Nitro+ Racing gas. It's the gas Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa uses in his race car! Well, not quite. It's 99% similar so yun na rin yun in my book!
When we were gassing up, Vince said he wasn't expecting any difference. Gas is gas is gas. But as soon as we turned on the ignition, our cute little Mazda 2 roared! Kalurkey! Plus, you know that part on Sta. Rosa, as you're climbing up the hills in those tiny roads and you get stuck behind trucks and slow cars and you want to tear your hair out because it's sooo hard to overtake? With the Shell V-Power Nitro+ Racing gas, we were zipping in and out! We were here, we were there! Overtaking is so easy kasi our little car is now so fast and quick to respond!
In no time at all, we were at Tagaytay, enjoying the cool breeze and this gorgeous view of the volcano.
There's our toy car, Zoom Zoom! It's the cute little blue thing. Who'd have thunk that little car can go fast? Racing fuel. Every car must have it!
We stayed at Summit Ridge Hotel. We wanted a hotel that offers a 2-bedroom suite and is near the sites we planned to visit. Summit Ridge fit the bill! It's not a fantastic hotel. Maybe 3 stars at best (my husband and I are spoiled brats when it comes to hotels). But it was nice and clean, the service was good and hot water really came out of the shower and the faucets (unlike in Discovery Country Suites sadly, but I still like Country Suites best!).
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| Not very big suite but it was designed well—it felt spacious. And it felt quite homey. |
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| There's a seating area, a desk, a fully-equipped kitchen, and a small dining table. |
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One bedroom has two single beds. It was where my brother and his wife, Theodore and Rose, stayed.
Oh, and Vito spent a lot of time in there, too. At night, Theodore just pushed the beds together. |
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The other bedroom has a king-sized bed. It was quite comfy.
The room also has its own TV and balcony. |
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| Little Iñigo was supplied with his own playpen, complete with adorable beddings. He enjoyed it! |
After we settled in, we had a little nap then we went to the mini mall adjacent to Summit Ridge. That's another thing I liked about the hotel—they had convenience in mind for their guests. I think families will like this hotel (we did) better than honeymooners or old people.
Anyway, we ate merienda at Razon's and then Vito ran around the plaza while his Ninong Theodore chased him around. We then planned to go watch the sunset at Calaruega but as we were driving, we saw the newly opened Sky Ranch. It's just a minute from Summit Ridge and right beside Taal Vista Hotel. Mommies and daddies, you have to bring the kiddies there!
I don't have photos but Vince does so
click here to see them. Or you can read on after the jump...
We had an amazing time at Sky Ranch. Kainis lang kasi it's so hassle that we need to pay for everything tingi-tingi. Entrance fee, a fee for every ride, parking fee. Sana wala ng entrance fee. Or kung may entrance fee, wala ng parking fee. Then hassle yung pipila ko for each ride kasi go na go na ang mga kiddies so nakaka-dampen ng excitement ang pila. So sana there's a day pass where it's ride all you can.
I know I sound like I'm complaining haha but we really did enjoy Sky Ranch. The Sky Eye was thrilling because it was indeed very high and the strong winds made our ride very scary haha. Make sure you wear jackets, by the way. The wind is quite chilly. We wanted to stay longer but we were defeated by the cold. We had to go back to our hotel to get warm!
Our dinner. This is arroz caldo for me (I was freezing), green mango salad, binagoongang lechong kawali and some fish dish. The food is by C2, which is one of our favorites, but the taste and presentation of Manila's C2 restaurants are much better. It was still very good, though.
Then off to bed!
The next morning, Vito woke up at the crack of dawn as usual. He's so cute because he quickly looked around to check if we were all there. "Papa? Baby? Ninong? Ta Rose? Zoom Zoom?" Once assured he's still surrounded by familiar (albeit sleeping) faces, he had ice cream for breakfast! This is the life!
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| Iñigo had the turon. Such a cutie! |
When everyone was awake, off we went to C2 for our buffet breakfast. Vito and Iñigo had a real breakfast now. Then we ran around the lawn behind the hotel, chased away birds, counted steps (Vito can count up to 10, hooray!), and, well, I started dreaming of a life in the country. I'm getting tired of Manila.
Okay, how did that slip out???
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| Don't we all have a photo by the white terraces? |
Anyway, we went to Residence Inn to check out the animals. We've not been there in 20 years! My goodness, it was so nice to be back! Most places deteriorate but Residence Inn must be doing really well because it actually looks and smells better!
After we said bye-bye to the animals, we went a few meters down to the famous Breakfast at Antonio's. Sigh. I loved the place. The house, the space, the light, the views. Vito kept running around the beautiful hardwood floors. He liked it there so much! And of course, the food did not disappoint. We had large, satisfying dishes. Must go back soon!
And when we go back, we'll definitely still use Shell V-Power Nitro+ Racing gas! It's really the best gas for the open road and for long road trips.
This coming Holy Week, if you're planning to drive anywhere for a vacation, we highly recommend Shell V-Power Nitro+ Racing gas. Walang biro, it really does make a difference. There's a Shell gas station almost everywhere!
Thanks, Shell, for my family's little vacation! We had so much fun!
For more photos, just
visit Vince's blog!
