Bicycle Tour: Challenging the Streets of Manila One Pedal at a Time

Wazzup Pilipinas!

There is truth in the old cliche that once you've learned how to ride a bicycle, you'll never forget.

The last time I rode a bicycle was way back 2008. I had to stop riding a bicycle when my family and I had to move to a rent-to-own apartment for more convenience to our daily commuting to our workplace. Commuting a long distance from home to work adds a great amount of stress to the daily challenges we usually get, and traveling using our own private vehicles will only leave us spending more from our meager take-home pays. The public trains (MRT/LRT) somehow help lessen the hours but we usually end up all feeling squished like a lemon but smelling awful and sweaty like we just came from a workout.

Going through the huge crowd enduring the traffic or the over-congested trains are just some of the struggles in the Metro. Most of us are all similarly rushing to our respective work places and need to make do of what's available to the ordinary Pinoys. Only a few of us were luckily blessed with an affluent family while many of us can't afford to be too choosy because we were not born with rich parents.  Thus we are often called a resilient race because we learn how to make ends meet with very little resources and don't complain much.

My mountain bike was used for traveling to nearby areas for  sudden urges to buy snacks at the nearest neighborhood groceries, or whatever other errands I needed to do. It was better to sweat it out a little than wasting a few bucks on "special" tricycle fares. It was also ideal as an early morning exercise especially when I needed to escape our neighborhood and just freely ride away into anywhere. Sadly, it just ended up in storage, gathering dust and almost forgotten at one of our houses because it will be difficult to bring along with me through 9 floors of our building apartment. If it was not for the Bicycle Tour offered by Smokey Tours, I wouldn't have remembered my previously well-cherished possession.

Fiftea: Taiwan’s Finest Milk Tea Has Arrived

Wazzup Pilipinas!

We've been fooled long enough! I thought I've been drinking quality milk tea only to find out there's a big significant difference after tasting a new brand at a media launch held last May 14, 2014 at the basement level of Alphaland at Makati Place Rustan's Supermarket located at Ayala Avenue corner Malugay Street in Makati.

Those milk tea imposters and wannabees should step aside for they have fooled us long enough. They've taken advantage of the popularity of milk tea shops that proliferated the country for a long time already. Filipinos were just less discriminatory of milk tea since we easily get fooled by sweetness added to the tea that we couldn't even distinguish if its brewed or from a powdered source, and fail to realize we are being shortchanged of quality and health benefits.

It's time for the expert to take over.  Fiftea, Taiwan's finest milk tea brand, is in town to serve what real milk tea is all about.

After tasting Fiftea’s creamy, fresh version, you won’t get confused anymore. Fiftea’s milk tea flavor is quite distinctive, that’s because the leaves are all imported and the trained baristas prepare them the right way. If you don’t believe it, ask your Taiwanese friends if they heard of Fiftea and what they think of it. Fiftea is one of the first brands of milk tea in Taiwan and is already established as a brand of high quality.

Wen Cleansing Conditioner: The Multitasking Hair Cleanser

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Is it really possible to just use one product for our daily hair cleansing needs? Is there really a product that can act as both shampoo and conditioner? If ever there is one, will it be better than the normal shampoo then conditioner routine?

Well, I got to try out a new product that promises to be comparable, if not better, than the usual cleansing ways we normally do during shower time. The product is now available for you to try as well but its relatively new in the Philippines since it was just introduced in the country this month of May.

Wen Cleansing Conditioner is a five-in-one conditioning cleanser designed to improve hair health, reduce frizz, moisturize, add shine, and retain color. The product is a luxurious, multitasking cleanser and conditioner designed to impart shine, luster, and softness. It has two variants available - the Sweet Almond Mint and the Pomegranate. I got to try the Sweet Almond Mint which was really had a relaxing feel on my scalp.

The lightweight, low-lather formula is a universal product that caters to all our haircare needs, regardless of hair type. Herbal extracts like aloe vera and sweet almond oil help our locks retain moisture, while protecting them from daily and future damage. The Cherry bark brings out the color, shine and softness in all shades of natural and color-treated hair. Since I grew up with white hair as it runs in the family, my hair coloring treatment needs that feature to keep it looking good longer. The Rosemary extract content promises to help against premature baldness, stimulates hair growth and fights scalp problems. The product has a lot  more ingredients with their specific properties beneficial to our hair but it will be too long to enumerate all of them.