Guam Hotel Options

Given the advance notice of our friends on the geographical size of the island, we decided to book in a nicer resort in Guam. This way we would have the hotel amenities to enjoy in case we run out of activities to do.  And a week after our trip, I must say that was a pretty smart move.

 

We had a rough criteria of the hotel that we're looking for. We wanted a hotel that has access to the beach (Tumon Bay) and located along Pale San Vitores Rd in Tamuning - this is where most of the action happens.  That way we would be pretty much walking distance to the duty-free shops and restaurants. 

 

So after some research, we narrowed our choices down to the following based on reviews and ratings.

1. Hyatt Regency Guam

• We stayed at the Hyatt Regency and do not regret it one bit. The hotel is beautiful. A few of the toilet fixtures have seen better days but it's still relatively good compared to most 4-star hotels I have stayed in. The hotel has a nice beach front and the pool area is perfect for the kids. Lots of slides and waterfalls. Truly felt brought me back to our vacation in Hawaii last year.

2. Hilton Guam Resort & Spa

• Hilton was recommended to us by a friend who knew someone who stayed there already. The hotel is located very near the Duty Free shops. Definitely walking-distance. At around P7,000 (USD 150), it is probably the best priced hotel with access to Tumon Bay in the area.  Although we eventually decided on Hyatt since activity and pool area was perfect for the kids.

3.  Outrigger Guam Beach Resort

• The photo below will show you how centrally located Outrigger Guam Beach Resort is. The shops and restaurants are practically housed in its lobby! While that does seem very attractive, we decided not to book with them since the hotel does not have direct access to the beach. This was pretty important for us since the kids wanted to enjoy both the beach and the pool on a daily basis. But if you are after the nightlife and the shopping, then this hotel is definitely for you.

4.  Dusit Thani Guam Resort

• Dusit is the newest resort to open in Tumon Bay. It is located right behind Outrigger Resort which makes the located just as perfect. What's even better is that it has direct access to the beach. So you get the best of both worlds as far as shopping and swimming are concerned. The only problem with Dusit is that unless you find a promo, it's quite pricey. But if money is not an issue, I highly recommend that you stay at Dusit.

So there's the rundown of our top hotel choices in Guam. Do post a comment when you get to visit. I'd love to hear your feedback!
 

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How to Enjoy Six Days in Guam

You know how people usually say they need a vacation from a vacation? I feel that way after almost every trip. I want packed schedules and productive days. This goes for both weekends, holidays and vacations. This is totally opposite to my husband who prefers to wake up late and lounge around during vacation. He always tells me that's how vacations should be.

 

Last week, we found ourselves booked for a 6-day vacation in Guam. Prior to the trip, friends have been telling us that 6 days in Guam might be too long since the place is pretty small. As soon as we arrived, we knew they were right. We can practically see our hotel from the airport. No kidding. It was indeed quite compact.

 

One thing we discovered about our family during the trip is that we are pretty much 'plug and play'. You put us anywhere and we can create a packed schedule. We do not run out of things to do.

• Shopping during the day - we don't really care if we go back to the same shop over and over again. We enjoy trying different clothes, sneaking to get more testers of the yummy chocolate macadamia, and road testing various perfumes. Never mind that we don't really get to buy a lot of things. Window shopping is free and fun.

• Late afternoons at the pool and  beach - the resort we stayed in has really nice pools. All of us took turn going down the water slides - every one from my 66-year old dad to my 5-year old daughter. On some occasions, we end our afternoon dip in the Jacuzzi. We would play word games where everyone (again, from grandparents to kids) can participate.
  

  
• Nice dinners and stroll down the boulevard - we spent one evening enjoying a sit-down dinner + show at the Sand Castle (which was an awesome acrobatic and magic show, by the way) and the rest of the evenings visiting nice restaurants and walking down the main street. We would stop for ice cream or visit the Godiva chocolate for free hazelnut coffee. Easy breezy evenings.

• Movie and late night snacks - this is something we do even at home in Manila. We spend late evenings watching a nice movie, drinking tea/coffee while enjoying cookies, chips and mixed nuts. We came to Guam prepared with a moved-packed external hard drive. We did movie marathons in the hotel rooms until late at night.

One very noteworthy thing about our vacation in Guam is that we got to wake up relatively late most of the time. On our last day, we woke up at 10:30am. It was my first time in probably 10 years to get 10 hours of sleep and not be woken up by my alarm or the kids. I just woke up on my own. It was uh-ma-zing! I felt very relaxed the entire day and keep on dreaming back to that morning even after our trip.

 

I was chatting with Dens last night and told him I miss that 10-hour sleep in Guam. He reminded me of his concept of a vacation. And I must say I am almost convinced. For the first time in a long time, I did not need a vacation from my vacation. It was easy and relaxing. No hectic schedule.  No rushing to meet an appointment.  We just go by our own pace and enjoy. I guess there is value in booking a vacation in a small island.  You will not be tempted to over-schedule. And once in a while, you will get that vacation that you truly need.

 

 

 

 

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Tribord Easybreath Snorkeling Mask

Here's what your kids need to experience full snorkeling fun: Tribord masks!


Unlike the traditional Snorkeling Mask and spout, this one is very easy for the kids to use since they can breathe through their nose while underwater. On top of that, the breathing tube has an automatic shut-off function so that water will not go inside in case you dip your head too low. Of course, needless to say, the mask will give you a better view of the sea with the 180 degrees visibility screen. 

I am very grateful my friend recommended that mask to me because it gave my 8-year old son the confidence and motivation to snorkel without worrying about the technicalities of breathing through your mouth. Given the compressed air inside the mask, it will also give your head a certain level of buoyancy. When my husband and I use the mask (yes, they have adult sizes too!), we don't even use life vests anymore. Although I don't recommend doing that when you're swimming with the kids as it can get tiring to keep on paddling to stay afloat.

The masks come in four sizes (XS, S/M, M/L, L/XL) and three colors.

Here's a guide on how to get the right size to fit your face.

There are imitation easybreath masks now and I have not tried them so I cannot say whether they're a good replacement or not. But from the reviews, I heard that the imitations fog easily. Not something you'd want to worry about once you or your kids are already in the water.

The Tribord masks cost P3,500 here in the Philipines. We got ours through a seller we met at OLX. You may also order online through Amazon.

 

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Dumaguete Adventure Series: ATV to Tierra Alta

On our last day in Dumaguete, we decided to go to take the kids on an ATV adventure.  We rented a van and drove for about 40 minutes from our resort, Pura Vida, to Tejero Highland Resort and Adventure Park in Valencia.

 

You have the option to choose the type of ATV you want to drive and the route you wish to take. For our family of two adults and two kids (8 and 5 years old), we got the ATV 300cc and took tour B to Tierra Alta.

The trip lead us to cross mini rivers and ride up the mountain on various types of terrains. It was honestly more exciting (read: scary) than I expected. The kids enjoyed the ride worry-free. I, on the other hand, feared we might topple over some rocks or worst, the mountain edge!

 

The tour brought us to the Tierra Alta subdivision where we got to take photos up the lighthouse. It felt a bit like a real estate tour - which is probably accurate given that the operator of the ATV is the same group as the developers of the Tierra Alta subdivision.

 

The entire tour took about 1 hour, including the stop at Tierra Alta. It was a great experience, especially for our kids who rarely get to ride on motorcycles and the like.

You may book by calling Tejero Highland Resort at 0917-707-0791. Lines open between 8am and 5pm Mondays-Fridays.

 

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Dumaguete Adventure Series: Whale Sharks in Oslob

On the last day of May of 2016, my 8-year old son experienced something he will never forget. He finally got to swim and snorkel with the whale sharks! After his first snorkeling stint in Apo Island, I was quite hopeful that he will agree to go down and swim with the whale sharks with us. The first time we visited Oslob a year ago, he wanted to go down but was too scared to do so. When he finally did, the whale sharks were already too far to be seen underwater. 

 

With much prayers and a lengthy heart-to-heard talk with his dad, my son finally agreed to go down. The moment he put on his mask and peeked under the water, I knew he was in awe. I can hear his muffled screams underwater. Thank God for Tribord masks! It's truly different seeing them from the boat and witnessing them underwater. 



Here are some fun facts about whale sharks (some taken from National Geographic):

• They are the largest fish in the sea (in case you're wondering about whales, they are mammals and not fish)
• Whale Sharks are sharks, not whales
• Can reach lengths of 40 feet (12 meters) or more
• Their favorite meal is plankton. They scoop these tiny plants and animals up, along with any small fish that happen to be around, with their colossal gaping mouths while swimming close to the water's surface.
• They use a technique called "cross-flow filtration" to passively filter food through its formidably sized
• They prefer warm waters which is why whale sharks are often found in tropical seas

You may travel to see the Whale Sharks in Oslob via a 3-hour land trip from Cebu which is what we did last year, or a 1-hour boat ride from Dumaguete like what we recently did. I found this very helpful site on how to get to Oslob from various cities. Click here to view it.

 

Seeing these gentle giants are worth the trip. The whole family will love the experience. Even smaller kids who are not brave enough to go down the water will be able to see the Whale Sharks feeding from the boat. Should you decide to go down to swim, do not forget your underwater cameras. You may also rent there and ask the boatman to take your photos. They are quite the experts at underwater 'whale shark' photography.

 

(Photos from this blog are my friend Franc Ng's GoPro. Not a professional photographer, not a 'Butanding boat man' either. Thanks, Franc!)

 

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Dumaguete Adventure Series: Dolphins in Bais and The Manjuyod Sand Bar

We woke up at 4:00 in the morning on the second day of our Dumaguete adventure. We had to leave by 5:00am to reach Bais before 6:30am.

Bais City is well known for its proximity to the protected marine sanctuary, the Tañon Strait.

From the Capiñahan Wharf in the South Bay, the boat heads out to the Bais Bay and into the Tañon Strait where the dolphins frolic in the water, and the whales emerge from the deep. [Dumagueteinfo.com]

We booked two vans from the resort which costs P4,500 (11-12pax per van) round trip from Dauin to the Bais and another P6,000 for the boat going to see the dolphins and the sand bar. The boat could fit all 23 of us and had it's own toilet. 

After about 30 minutes of sailing,  we were getting a bit discouraged. We decided to pray together as a group and asked the Lord to send the dolphins.  After a few minutes, we found them. We were able to see a few big ones swimming near us.

We were already quite happy with our dolphin-sighting but prayed for more. I wanted to see them jumping out of the water while my friend, Kim, wanted to see dolphins swimming alongside our boat. With our boat already far from the site where we found the pod of dolphins, we were not very hopeful with our requests. But after about 15 minutes, God surprised us. One by one the dolphins came up to do a show for us. There were proabably around a hundred of them swimming around us. The boatman even said 'libo (thousands) na yan, ma'am!' though I don't think it reached that figure. And guess what? They jumped out of the water and swam alongside our boat. We prayed for dolphins but we got more than that. We experienced God's power and His wonderful presence.  That morning in Bais, we searched for dolphins, but we found the Lord.

Watch this short clip to see the dolphins swimming near us.

We have watched the videos over and over again. And as I watch it, I thank God over and over again. It was such an unforgettable experience. My 8-year old son said "They look like cartoons!". It was surreal.

 

After our dolphin encounter, we headed to the Manjuyod Sand Bar, also known as the 'Maldives of the Philippines'. It was not low-tide enough when we went but the kids still enjoyed swimming in what look to them like a natural kiddie pool.

We reached the sand bar around 10am and stayed until around 12nn. We brought packed lunches with us and ate inside our boat while docked in Manjuyod.

After lunch we headed back to the resort and arrived at around 1:30pm.  The kids spent the rest of the afternoon swimming in the pool while the adults did intro-diving. It was a very fruitful day to say the least.

 

Next stop: Oslob Whale Sharks

 

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Make Your Own Ice Cream at Home

Going out of an air-conditioned room has been sheer torture the past few weeks.  Walking out feels like walking into an oven. Seriously, almost not even a metaphor.

 

I recently wrote about the best umbrella to use in this weather. Now, let's talk about another hot (pun intended) topic during summer: Ice cream!

 

I personally do not really like ice cream. I prefer popsicles or ice candy since I don't like anything creamy and cold. The combination hurts my throat for some reason. Should I decide eat ice cream, soft serve is best as it's less creamy. But just because I don't like ice cream does not mean my family cannot enjoy it. 

 

We did a bit of experiment over the weekend and created our very own homemade ice cream. We used this nifty little ice cream maker that was given to us years ago by my sister. But I will also tell you how you can make ice cream without it.

 

Ingredients:

 

Set A

1 cup fresh milk (we used full cream.  You may use non-fat if you wish to avoid the extra calories)

1 cup evaporated milk

1/3 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Set B

Lots and lots of Ice

Lots and lots of Rock salt

 

Step 1:  Pour Set A ingredients in a Ziploc bag and make sure it's sealed properly.

 

In our case we had an Ice Cream Ball (check it out here) where one side opens up for your ingredients and the other side for your ice.

 

Step 2: Get another Ziploc bag that is twice the size of your initial Ziploc.  Put the smaller Ziploc inside the larger one and pour lots and lots of ice and rock salt into it. The larger Ziploc should now contain the smaller Ziploc with the contents of Set A ingredients and lots of ice and rock salt surrounding the smaller bag.  The rock salt will allow your ice to remain solid which is why it's important to put as many as you can.

 

Again, in our case we just opened the other end of the Ice Cream Ball and pour ice and rock salt inside.

Step 3: Shake the Ziploc like crazy until you see the ice cream forming inside the smaller Ziploc. This will take about 15 to 20 minutes.

With the Ice Cream Ball, we had fun by kicking the ball around and playing soccer inside the house. We did this for about 20 to 30 minutes.

 Step 4: Scrape the ice cream out and enjoy!

You may add various ingredients to make different flavors of ice cream. Add fruits or jam to make fruit-flavored ice cream, or add coffee + chocolate powder for Mocha ice cream. You can be creative with your flavors.

My husband says it's easier to just go out and buy ice cream (hmp!).  But hey, it's educational and fun for the kids. They will love the idea of making their own ice cream it's a good way to keep them busy for a good 30mins too! Yay, moms!




  

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Umbrella Color Matters

There's an irony in my life that I am trying to reconcile.

I love going to the beach.

I love running outdoors.

I love picnics.

But I hate the sun.

I grew up with a lot of freckles on my face. While some find them cute and like having them, I don't. I spent years finding the best sunblock and doing research on the best way to completely eradicate them.

With that, I also own a handful of umbrellas that I always use whenever I need to go out of the office during lunch time. I am currently using my white Smiggle umbrella like the one below. 

www.pinterest.com

Summer is here and I recently noticed that I had to squint my eyes even under the shade of the umbrella. That never happened with my old navy blue one.  This got me to do a little research. Do the colors of our umbrella matter as far as sun protection goes?

Here is what Prevention.com has to say following a study done by the Emory University School of Medicine.

Researchers evaluated the abilities of 23 different umbrellas at blocking UV radiation, and found that all of the umbrellas blocked at least 77% of damaging rays. 

Another thing: When you do bust out the umbrella on the next nice day, you might want to opt for a black one. While all the umbrellas in the study offered protection, black models fared the best, intercepting at least 90% of the sun’s rays. “If you wear a dark-colored shirt, for instance, you get hotter because the color absorbs more UV rays,” say Dr. McMichael and Dr. Chen. “Black umbrellas, too, absorb more of the sun’s energy, so less of it is able to seep through the fabric to your skin.”

This makes sense. Looks like I am going to save this Smiggle umbrella for the rainy days bring out the darker ones for summer. You should too!

Have a great summer, everyone!

 

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Summer Activity Fair #ExpoKid2016



At the end of each school year, most moms begin the search for the best summer activity for their kids. As much as we want them to enjoy the school break, we also want them to be productive while they're at it. Unfortunately, our busy schedule sometimes inhibits visiting or call different activity centers and we usually end up with what is most convenient.  

 

Well, good news, moms! Mommy Mundo is bringing together the various summer activity options to one venue so that we only need one day to scout for the best summer activity for our children.

 

On April 2 and 3 (that's this weekend!), there will be a Summer Activity Fair at the High Street Activity Center (fronting Nike) in the Bonifacio Global City. Drop by anytime from 11am to 9pm and be ready for the #bestsummerever  ! 

 

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