The "Cherry on Top of our Häagen Dazs"

Mabuhay!

Three days and two nights in Hong Kong with KC was fun, exciting, productive, and therapeutic! More than the fabulous shopping experience, this getaway gave us the chance to bond again with each other. It made us realize that despite our busy schedule, we are "connected" in spirit and through our Blackberry phones. LOL

KC and I are both dreamers and achievers and no matter how wonderful our partners are, they will never grasp why the choice of Chucks over Loubs are crucial. Haha!

Spending time with a friend who you love, support, and complement you, can give you a sense of playful freedom, often bringing out a side of you that you (almost) forgot was there.

My dear KC, thank you for a memorable trip! This is only the beginning of our other great adventures!;P

Because sharing is caring...

One of the things KC and I have in common:

We both like coffee and ice cream and together, they are the best combo!

We flew Cathay Pacific Business Class on our way to Hong Kong and it a was lovely flight. On our way back to Manila, Cathay Pacific upgraded us to First Class! I believe that it was KC's Asian Miles card that was the culprit. Yay!

Allow me to share our experience flying Cathay Pacific in First Class (minsan lang 'to, at least for me):

Class na class: Each passenger gets his or her own cabin. First Class features a wonderfully big bed – 81 inches long – that will remind you of sleeping at home. And when you awake, a press of a button will transform it into one of the most comfortable seats in the sky, with massage function, extendable side seat, drop-down armrest, and all the adjustments you could want for a pleasant journey.

Reminds me of Powerplant Mall's love seat in the cinema. Popcorn na lang ang kulang!

Mimosa before take off. Why not?

Assorted dimsum and sticky rice with pork wrapped in a lotus leaf. Yum!

Cathay Pacific website perfectly describes the experience we had: Think of our First Class as a suite, rather than a seat. With more personal space than ever before, there's even enough room to invite a guest. Awake, you'll enjoy a comfortable seat, exceptional food, incredible entertainment, and mood lighting to enhance your flying experience. Asleep, you'll dream in one of the biggest beds in the sky. And always, our attentive staff are at your beck and call.

Hi seatmate, er... suite mate! KC sporting an Hermés striped cap, Burberry coat, and Jeffrey Campbell slouchy boots. She's so kyoot!

Ready for take off!

My HK getaway with KC was exactly what I needed to recharge. I'm more inspired than ever! A little dose of girl bonding, shopping, and "First class" treatment can do wonders to a mom balancing family and fashion! LOL

Thank you KC for a super fun trip! I love that our HK getaway was beyond shopping. You're the best travel buddy! Alam mo yan!


Shoppingero/shoppingera, what do you do to recharge your creative batteries?

Juma-Japanese + Day 2 Loot

Mabuhay!

Yes, it's another food blog.

Bawal magbasa ang gutom.

KC and I started our days in Hong Kong late. We were first and foremost on vacation, and shopping, while it is fun and exciting, our days did not revolve around the malls. We just enjoyed our stay in the hotel in the morning and gave each other time to relax and do our usual seremoñas, but once we stepped out of the hotel, we shopped fast and got hungry fast too! Haha!

KC: "What do you want to eat babe?"
Me: "Japanese food!"
KC: "Me too!"
Me: "OMG. I want to eat tempura... sashimi... sukiyaki... wagyu beef."
KC: "Hmm... Yun lang?" *LOL*
 
The luto-lutuan portion of our trip:

Hakata Ichome Horumone BBQ Restaurant
9/F, Kyoto Plaza, 491-499 Lockhart Road, Causeway Bay

Wagyu beef for me...

Seafood for KC!

We were lucky to find this Japanese BBQ place as it was located on the top floor of a building. There were a lot of Japanese restaurants in Kyoto Plaza but since Hakata Ichome Horumone BBQ Restaurant was on the top most floor, we figured it's the better resto of the lot. We were right!

Shopping break muna. KC scored at Hermés! She was able to buy the elusive Hermés red Constance wallet!

KC also got the newest Prada denim logo handbag that doubles as a messenger bag too! Deadma lang sha while I was shrieking in the store! Aaaaaahahaha!

Banyo portion, haha!

One of the coolest public toilets can be found at Pacific Place. Check out the curvy architecture of the cubicles! So chic!

Kainan ulit!

KC and I were looking for another Japanese restaurant, but for some reason, we couldn't find it. Instead, our feet (and stomachs) led us to Roka—a trendy Japanese resto serving mouthwatering modern Japanese cuisine. I remember reading about this place in Luxuo Luxury Blog!

According to the restaurant’s manager, the word “ro” in Roka means hearth, or gathering place, and “ka” stands for a burning fire that projects a welcoming and energetic atmosphere, and that’s what most of the menu focuses on. They also have a well-stocked cellar with more than 500 bottles!

The interior was done by Japanese designer Noriyoshi Muramatsu of Studio Glitt

The Roka staff was efficient and professional. A lot of them are Pinoys too!

It's worth going to Roka just for their signature cocktails! The manager suggested the signature mojito for me and I must say, it's the best I've tried! I love that the leaves are sprinkled only on top and not mixed in with the drink. So no need for tinga check. Ew. KC had some kind of strawberry chuchu, masarap din!

Steamed spinach with sesame dressing. This warm salad is so good! I'll try to copy this at home.

Robata: tiger prawns with chili paste. They are like ebi tempura popcorn ! So kyoot! So good!

KC's choice: Gindara Saikyo-Zoku

We actually ordered a lot of food, but after one cocktail drink, I forgot to take pictures of the other dishes! Haha! Anyway, if you visit Hong Kong, try Roka for their delicious food and modern ambiance.

Roka, Pacific Place, LG1, Shop 002, 88 Queensway, Central, Hong Kong.
Phone: +852-3960 5988 or click on rokarestaurant.com.

KC says hi!!!

Shoppingero/shoppingera, tune in for the last post on our HK getaway and beyond!

Luncheroo + Hairdo + Walkaroo

Edit:

Here's a list of I.T shops that carry Jeffrey Campbell shoes. Best to call the shop to make sure they they have stock.

Mabuhay!

Day one in Hong Kong was all about shopping for the home, but I don't want to bore you with textile shots. I have to say though that after five years of looking for a particular print for curtains, I finally found it at IKEA!

KC and I are both doing home renovations/improvements and we're both building a collection of furniture for our abode. It's so nice to be with someone who appreciates shopping for tela! KC also showed me photos of chairs and tables she bought for her new pad, and all I can say is... Class.

I also realized that we were both goal-oriented especially when it comes to shopping. We have a general idea on what to buy and we focus on that. Once we're done with one task, we're quick to move on to the next. It's a "productive" way of shopping. So much so, that we were done buying homeware in 3 hours! It also helps that we were in an area where there are a lot of furniture shops.

Anyway, nakakagutom talagang magshopping! Haha! So, here's another food blog plus, a sneak peek of our loot for the day.

Lunch at I Thai
If you want good Western Thai food, KC and I suggest I Thai. The service is fast and efficient, good food, and it's located near all the cool shopping spots!

Lemon tea please.

The soft shell crab salad was delish! Two people can share this dish.

Broccoli and blossoms

Fish with chili. Not too spicy, just right.

Black Pepper prawns. Dala kayo ng toothbrush if you decide to order this dish. Haha!

I Thai, Shop 112-113, 1/F, New Town Plaza Phase 1, 18 Sha Tin Centre Street, Sha Tin in Causeway Bay.

After lunch, we headed out to Fashion Walk and spotted a sales assistant with the coolest hair color!

KC: *whispering* "Check out the color of the guy's hair. Take a photo of him. Isn't the color unusual?"
Me: "Tinatamad ako." *LOL*
KC: "Fine. I'll take the photo!"
After we left the shop...
Me: "Babe, send me the photo of the guy with the silver gray hair, ha!"
KC: "Tinatamad ako." *LOL*

Silver gray haired SA. His hair color looks surreal in person.

Here's one of my "fun and function" finds in HK:

Table corner guards from IKEA
For household with babies and toddlers: babyproof sharp table corners using table corner guards. I found these super kyoot hand design corner guards for our dining table.

Excuse me for the low-res quality of the photo, I used my BB to take a photo the table guards I bought from IKEA. The kyoot corner guards gave our table character. The Epperson love it!

Because we finished early shopping for fabrics and home accessories, there was time to buy shoes!

This trip was all about shopping with an open mind (and stomach). Usually, Louboutin is always in the shopping list. This time, we didn't buy any. Instead, we bought shoes we can actually walk in.

KC hoarded Chucks!

I love Jeffrey Campbell shoes!

Shoppingero/shoppingera, tune in for more of our HK adventure and beyond!

The Tourists

Mabuhay!

KC and I arrived in Hong Kong hungry! Haha!

We asked the hotel concierge for a good (and close by) dimsum brunch place and he recommended Cheers Restaurant at Windsor House building.

There were two restaurants that served dimsum but we gravitated to the one where there seem to be more locals eating.

The venue:

Cheers Restaurant, Windsor House Building - they serve brunch till 2pm for a discounted price.
Well, hello there! We were the ONLY tourists eating at Cheers or at least it seemed like we were the only Filipino customers. Very cool.

The challenge: Ordering in Cantonese! Haay! The last thing two hungry ladies need is to order using sign language! Haha! How does one order Xiao Long Bao using hand gestures? Mahirap s'ya day! Try mo!

Like what I wrote earlier, our HK trip was full of lovely surprises! A Chinese couple visiting from Canada noticed our ordering "dilemma" and went out of their way to help us. God was watching over us—thank you for our guardian angel who spoke both Cantonese and English! 

The table setting:

Hello! You look better with food.

The menu and order sheet:

The menu the waitress originally gave us was in Chinese. Thanks to the helpful couple beside our table, she requested for an English version for us. You can tick off the photos if you don't understand Chinese. If not for the couple who helped us order, we would have put a check on ALL the pictures!

Foodam:
 

Century eggs
Since KC is pescatarian, she starts with this dish. I think she was quite happy devouring the eggs as I don't eat them.

Seaweeds with sesame seeds
Again, solong-solo ni KC etong dish na 'to kasi di ko s'ya type!

Steamed shrimp dumplings

Xia Long Bao
The skin was quite disappointing but the soup inside the dimsum is always a yummy surprise! Keri na!

Mini pork team buns
Because KC doesn't eat meat, solong-solo ko naman ito! Yay! Haha!

Vegetable dimsum in rice wrapper
Hating kapatid kami ni KC dito. Oh, we ordered two... or was it three of the same dish. Very, very PG lang ang dating! LOL

Note to selves: Chili sauce is not soup. Between the two of us, I think we consumed four small bowls of this!

We also ordered other steamed veggies but I wasn't able to take photos because we were deliriously "Tom Jones".

The seatmates:

We were famished, we didn't have the energy to take pictures of ourselves kaya mga bagelya na lang namin!
Say hi to Louis and Celine! LOL

Cheers Restaurant has good food at good prices. It's definitely worth another visit when you go to Causeway Bay area in Hong Kong.


Shoppingero/shoppingera, tune in for more of our HK getaway and beyond!