up | Etcetera

Wow! I can’t believe it’s been a month since I’ve been to Los Baños, Laguna for the first time… and I’m only posting about it now. Haha!

For our special date, my boyfriend and I decided to go to his alma mater, UPLB. He’s been meaning to take me there and we’ve been planning this months before, but it was only this year that we had the opportunity. I was as excited as he was, because I’ve always been curious about the place. I used to study in a state university too, so going to another state U was like going back to my “probinsyana” roots. It took me back in time… back when I was still a college freshman who lived in a dormitory and experienced a refreshing kind of life, as opposed to the city life I’m living now. Hahaha.

Going to LB from Manila wasn’t a smooth and fast ride. We had to take a bus to Pacita Complex for, like, an hour, endure a very long jeepney ride to Calamba Crossing Terminal, then take another jeep to UPLB that was, fortunately, shorter than the previous one. But it was fun! Yes, we were both so sleepy that we took turns sleeping in the jeep (lol), but it was really fun. 😉 I even got the chance to try a delightful snack in the terminal. It’s called “proven,” a much cheaper— yet more delicious— version of KFC’s Funshots. A small pack is not enough, trust me. 😛

Anyway, it was already almost 2pm when we got to UPLB, so first, we stopped by Bugong Roast Chicken for lunch.

The resto’s specialty is their quarter roast chicken, served with your choice of soup and iced tea.

(Of course I ordered mushroom soup. Haha. My buddy ordered the vegetable soup…which was good too!)

In fairness, it was delicious! The chicken’s a bit dry for me, but it was good. Most of the time, a 1-piece chicken isn’t enough for me, so having a quarter chicken in front of me was totally awesome. 😛 It kinda reminded me of Max’s and Kenny Rogers, but not really. Haha. Overall, the meal was good. I liked the soup, too. 😉

After that, we tried one of their cupcake flavors: Berry Forest. Dark chocolate cupcake with chocolate ganache filling and berry frosting.

They also have a Red Velvet cupcake, but I figured I could bake one at home so… there. Haha. Anyway, the cupcake was also good. 😉 Not too sweet and overwhelming. I especially liked the chocolate ganache filling— tastes like melted semisweet droplets! 😛 It actually inspired me to make my own version… it was okay. HAHAHA.

After lunch, we headed to UPLB, where Mark toured me in every nook and cranny of the whole place. It was huge! It reminded me of my former alma mater, Cavite State University (CvSU) in Indang, which is also known for its vast landscape and forestry areas (7 hectares). It was a long and tiring, yet fascinating and memorable experience for the both of us— he reminiscing about his college days, and me exploring a new and totally different environment, a far cry from the hustle-and-bustle of the city. 🙂

I won’t bore you with the details, so here are some snaps instead:

(Obligatory entrance shot. Haha)

(Coming in!)

(Feelingera. Haha.)

(Fun uphill battle with this guy <3)

(Selfie with the Carillon Tower for our friend haha)

After the long tour, it was normal to feel exhausted. Good thing there were benches by the oblation statue…

(Hahaha!)

But I had so much fun! It was a good exercise for the both of us, since we’ve gained weight over the past few months. It was nice seeing all the buildings and departments that make up one of the top universities of the country… and the beginnings of one of our company’s great web developers. Hehe. ❤ The weather was great for our afternoon hike, thank goodness. It rained a little for a few minutes, but after that, it was all sunny and awesome. 😉

(Beautiful day, indeed!)

After leaving UPLB, we made a few stops in some places, like his favorite siomai place, Papu’s…

(Good siomai! Definitely sulit for P60/9pcs. So yummy and all meat, unlike others which are all wrapper haha)

…and The Practical Shop, which houses super affordable (but very old and dusty, but I don’t mind!) books, magazines and other great finds, like vintage movie posters, chairs, dinnerware, mirrors (creepy ones you see in horror movies haha) and more!

These endless piles of old books and magazines will drive your booknerd self crazy! Some of them are really dusty and not quite taken care of (I took one book out and it just fell apart), but if you’re really determined to buy (like me), you won’t care. After all, they all cost less than P100, and if you look hard, you’ll find some cheap ones (P10 is a real bargain!).