DIVIMART ~ Divisoria Prices in a Mall Setting

Welcome to DIVIMART!

This place is a real haven for budget shoppers, who doesn't have the heart to brave the terrible Manila traffic to shop in Divisoria. This is the place to shop, if you want to stretch your hard earned Pesos.

This mall seems to have everything at very low prices.

Groceries, school supplies, cosmetics and accessories, account for most of the First floor.

Cutie fashion accessories ~ perfect for your little divas (I am sure my niece's eyes will popped-out with the sight of all these pretty bows and hairclips) ~ priced at P40 and up.

Wallets and pouches made of canvas  ~ P80 and up per set.

Pretty character backpacks ~ starting at P240. 

Character loot bag set, nice for your child's next party ~ priced at P40 and up.

Or DIY with these goodie bags/drawstrings, priced at P20 and up.

These school supplies make good loot bag fillers.

These metallic balloons will complete your birthday party at P19 and up. 

School supplies ~

Housewares, appliances, toys and apparel is seen at the Second floor.

Food trays are priced at P120 and up a piece.  

Tents at only P900. 

Apparel section is only about 1/5th of the upstair's floor, but enough to choose from.

If you are shopping with kids, stay away from the toys' section.

I spent about 2-3 hours roving about and checking out all the merchandise.   They have so much stuff, packed inside DiviMart.   I was literally all over the place, but I didn't felt tired one bit.  I think it helped that the place was air-conditioned.

The only downside is the limited parking space.  Parking could be a problem if you are arriving late.

My favorite buys for the day:

 Pokémon Cap ~ P75each

Silicon ice tray ~ P45

Toothpick ~ P20

DiviMart is located behind the New Taytay Public Market; And is just a short walk from the Taytay Tiangge Market.

For more information on Taytay DiviMart please check their facebook page: Taytay DiviMart.

Celebrating Our Lola's Birthday Luau Style

My Lola just turned 94 years old ~ Luau Style!

Two weeks before her birthday, I asked her how does she want to celebrate her birthday.  With out blinking her eyes she told me, she wants to go to Hawaii (me and my big mouth).

One of her daughters, who resides in the States celebrated her Golden Wedding Anniversary in Hawaii, Lola saw the pictures and I guess that gave her the idea.  As she obviously wasn't in a travelling condition (yes plus the budget constraints)...

We decided to give her a Luau Birthday Party instead!

She was so prepped and excited.

I was kidding her the whole time, that she should ready her bikini as she is having a Luau Pool Party. 

What's a Luau without water right? So we rented a private resort near our place. 

We ordered a Luau inspired cake with matching themed cup cakes.

My cousin who owns JPJ Food Craze cooked for us,

such  labor or love. 

(My cousin and my mom).

Goofing with a pineapple... 

Our Lola, looking radiant as she inspects the revelry.

With her apo sa tuhod.

Blowing her candles (she only blew one, blowing 94 candles would take forever to finish).

And look who dropped by ~ Mr. Spidey~ Checking on our Lola!  How cool is that?

It was a sunny day, perfect for a Luau Birthday Party.

Swimming time ~ Kids!!!

Happy Birthday Nanay ~  We love you!!!

Now we could start planning for your 95th Birthday.

Check out also, post from Nanay's 93rd Glam Birthday Party ~

Glam Party for Nanay's 93rd Birthday

Birthday Staycation at Puerto del Sol Bolinao Pangasinan

We have always wanted to go to Bolinao, but the 5 hours drive from Manila and often unpredictable weather have been huge deterrents preventing us from visiting sooner ~

We were glad that we finally had an opportunity to finally visit Bolinao and experience first hand Puerto del Sol ~ for my youngest birthday weekend.

We left Manila at 5:30am and arrived in Bolinao at 1pm.

The road to Bolinao is a combination of both paved and rough road. The travel left us both hungry and tired. I checked the trusted TripAdvisor for recommended places to eat and became excited when I saw a signage directing to Sungayan Restaurant.

Sungayan is one of the best recommended places to eat in Bolinao.

(Will write about our Sungayan experience in a separate review), so yes, we stopped by to  re-charge  before our final stop ~ Puerto del Sol.

Finally arrived ~ Welcome to Puerto del Sol!

The staff were nice and accommodating.  Check-in was fast and efficient too.  The receptionist carefully explained our package inclusions, before ushering us to our accommodation for the weekend ~ the Mansion Villa.

Our birthday boy.

Waiting for our room...

The Mansion Villa is a short walk from the resort's entrance lobby and located right in front of the resort's swimming pool. 

I was completely taken with the resort's well kept garden...  

All that green is truly relaxing!

We were billed in a Mansion Villa (see picture below).  

Our room is about 29-30sqm in size with a private patio and seating area. The room is quite small and basic. 

The TV channel selections were limited (with some of the channels were not children friendly) and wifi really bad (there are limited areas in the resort that will give you reasonable wifi signal.  

The bathroom (the toiletries were mediocre).  It was good that the linens and towels were soft, nicely laundered. 

But these hang ups were no biggie, since we were there for the beach and the pool (with the beautifully trimmed garden, a plus)!

Comfortable bed.

Pikachu getting cozy!  

Sad that there is no real coffee maker/kettle inside  the room.  We were just given a thermos of hot water (note: you can request for additional hot water anytime).  There is also a mini-bar though, items inside were quite pricey (a bottle of beer at P100+).

Our private patio... 

If you are not in the mood to go swimming,  the resort has a gaming area that checked-in guests can use for free. They have pool, air hockey, ping-pong and darts.

Just a few meters walk from the Mansion Villa ~ Beach Bound!

The water does not go higher than your knees though  ~ not very good for swimming, but perfect for beach walks!

And since, this birthday boy has been begging to go swimming since the time we left Manila about 8 hours ago, we just had to go NOW!

Obviously enjoying his swim..

Our room package included buffet dinner and breakfast.

Food is served  at Café Del Sol and

La Playa, Al Fresco restaurant by the beach.

Food were good, but with limited selection.  I think the resort can better.

VERDICT:

The beach and pool are enough reasons to visit Puerto Del Sol.  

We enjoyed our stay. 

The kids had fun and the parents got to relax.

For questions and inquiries, please check Puerto Del Sol website:  www.puertodelsol.com.ph