Edge Aruta

Not just about me. It's about us

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The Newest “Tambayan” At The “Kanto” of Katipunan With Santorini Vibes, The Kantorini Food Park

If you’re looking for a new “tambayan” along Katipunan Avenue, Kantorini is the place that will welcome you. This newest food park offers food from around the globe while giving you the vibe of the Santorni Island with an open space where you can enjoy the view at night. The Architecture of the food park is inspired by the Santorini Island of Greece. With its blue and white color and domed rooftops of some the structures. 

The food park has a wide enough space where you can park your cars. But since there are already a lot people coming at this place, you might want to go early to save your parking space. Here’s the map to help you find where Kantorini is.

Come on and let’s discover more about this food park!

Kantorini is open from 4:00PM-12:01AM, but you can stay longer after 12 midnight if you want to chill out more and enjoy the night.  It is a good place where you can spend time and bond with your family and “barkada” because of the vibrant ambience of the place especially at night. The music played at kantorini is not through speakers but is played by live performers and bands at the hilltop which is placed nearly at the center of the whole area. You can also request songs from the band and let them serenade you while enjoying your time with family or friends.

Let’s eat! Let’s eat! Let’s eat!

The first thing I noticed when I went to Kantorini is that in almost every table, people has a juice that is placed in medium sized fishbowl with 3 or more straws to share it with friends and family members. It seemed that it is one the bestseller beverage at kantorini so I and my other 3 friends contributed money to pay for the juice worth php150. We ordered the pink lychee and we are indeed satisfied with the beverage. I’ve only visited the place once but the next time I visit, I want to try some of the foods in Kantorini.

Kantorini Food Park has more than 19 restaurants that also offer different cuisines from around the world. Here are some of the restaurants that I checked in Kantorini:

1.       The Shrimp Basket

If you really love seafood, this one is for you! They have of course steamed shrimp, fried catfish, fried popcorn shrimp and more!

2.       Chief-ER Sausages

I haven’t tried Chief-ER Sausages but I really crave for sausages some times. This is an American cuisine and I want to try their best seller, Admiral (The Redneck Dog) soon!

3.       Wing Vibe

Now I’m dying! Another American cuisine. I would do everything for wings! Thankfully they also have it at Kantorini!

4.       Gyu Tom

Kinda sounds like “Gutom” for me but anyway, it will really make you feel hungry especially if Japanese cuisine is your favorite! They have Wagyu cubes on stick served with a plain rice, Kani Bacon, and a Barkada Platter served on 10 sticks of different barbequed Japanese comfort food.

 And of course since the place is Santorini-Inspired, they will have

5.       Parte Non or Greek Gyros

A cuisine that caters you with Greek foods and Greek Salads. This Restaurant will really complete your feel of Santorini!

 And since Kantorini is in the Philippines, Filipino dish will always be in our list!

6.       Budbod Level Up

This Filipino Cuisine restaurant servers you with Pork, Beef and Chicken Budbod and Shanghai Budbod. Try their fried rice toppings and let’s #BudbodLover!

There are still lots of different cuisines to try at Kantorini Food Park like Chinese, Dessert, Pizza, Grill, Korean, and Mexican. They really looked delicious!

I really recommend this place but I don’t recommend that you would go alone. You will really enjoy the place if you’re with your barkada or family.

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Reasons Why Our Dreams Stays as a Dream

All people wanted to achieve something great. We all dreamed of being a person that can someday, be at the top. Sometimes, it is because we envy others who achieved something. Or because we just wanted to gain respect from our social group or prove something and avoid the feeling of being left behind. The main reason is because we have pride. We are being motivated by what we see from the achievements of other people or by the situation we are currently facing and therefore comparing ourselves, our lives, from the lives of other people around us. So we wanted to act and start doing something that could help us reach our goals and dreams. Have you heard the saying, “the hardest thing to do is to start”? Maybe it’s true, but I’ll explain later why you don’t have to think about the word “start” for you not to make the “do” hard. For now, let’s talk about the goals and dreams that we have in our minds and the reasons why all of these dreams that we have all stays in the mind, as illusions, and are not becoming a reality.

First reason why all of our dreams are not becoming a reality is because we always build a “trash” habit.

You know that the time of our day is divided into three (3) eight (8) hours: 8 for sleeping, 8 for work, and 8 for leisure. But of course we cannot legalistically follow those exact eight hours. Sometimes it’s just sleep, work, and leisure. The hours? Who cares? It’s your time you are free to use it. The question is, what habit are we really building in the span of these 24 hours? A habit of sleeping? A habit of playing computer games (unless you are pro who makes money out of it)? Habit of scrolling, checking, liking, and staring at your Facebook page or twitter account? Or simply having the habit of wasting your time. How much do we spend our 24 hours with our habits? I’m not saying that the habits I mentioned are bad. They are not. It is just they become a trash in our lives if we don’t give meaning and purpose to our own habits and if we let these habits control us rather us controlling them. Doing such habits could help us become a person that we want in the future if we know its value for our life’s success. If you can’t find any value with your current habit, try changing it into something that you think can help you in the future. This may sound existential but what can you do? You’re existing.

Second, we can’t identify what we really want. 

Maybe this is common to people who are known as jack of all traits and master of none. We can’t focus and master one thing because we want to try many things but then we can’t identify what we really want. Sometimes we get confused, asking ourselves, “What do you really want to do? What do you really want to be?” It is not also easy to choose between following your “passion” and following “other’s passion” and identifying which of the two really has the truth. But which of those gave you real happiness, excitement, thrill and challenge? Think of that and think how you can improve that one trait that can help you master your talents.

Third reason is we always live in the future, not in the present.

There’s nothing wrong on thinking about your future. We just don’t have to be stuck in a long distance time which is not present in the present reality. For example, thinking about tomorrow distracts us on what we really have to do today and we end up accomplishing nothing in the present because we’re too busy thinking about tomorrow. None of us knows the future. So why bother? Doing what is to be done today is the thing to be done, and just trust what will happen next.

Another reason is we often want to take time with “lazy.”

I’m too lazy to write, I’ll just do this some other day... Oops. Yes it’s me. Anyway, I don’t think people are lazy. We actually want to do something, we just can’t find something that is interesting for us or something that we understand the value. But I admit that laziness is indeed our problem. Even though we already know what to do, “lazy” often time attacks. So we procrastinate and delay things that we know we can already do and finish. As I said at the first reason, most of us already made laziness as a habit controlling our time. And it’s dangerous. I believe in the balance of things. In each word, good and bad are present. They’re not separated. But the level of goodness and badness depends on how a person used the word and perceived by the receiver. Being lazy or delaying things could still give us good results like giving you more time to think or makes you to wait that maybe better opportunity might come. But like I said, remember to live in the present and know that we don’t live forever. So you might not be able to do tomorrow what you delayed now.

Lastly, despite of being motivated by what we see in the present, we’re just good at the start. 

We’ve already built our good habits, we identified what we want, we are already living the present, we already stopped being lazy, but after a few days or weeks, our fire burns out. We don’t anymore want to continue doing what we’re doing because we’ve been distracted or discouraged. From running towards making our dreams a reality, we turned back again because we think that we can’t afford the cost. “It’s not about how you start, it’s about how you finish the race.”

Let’s go back to the saying that says, “The hardest thing to do is to start.” I can agree that it is true because most of us doesn’t know how to start even though we wanted to start. But the thing is, you don’t have to “start”. You just have to “do”. Even doing nothing is doing something so there’s no such thing as doing nothing, it is just wasting time. Right now, do and achieve to have every piece of your present and collect those, day by day like a puzzle. Then see what it may look like by the time you’ve completed and formed those pieces in the future. 

Be faithful on what is given to you and to the small things you are doing right now, use your time wisely, find a proper perspective, and trust your future.

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WIMtern Task 1: Introduce your self and why you're a good fit for When In Manila

This is me, this is who I am, and this is my identity. 

This is Edwin Cayago Aruta Jr. Also known as Edge. At first glance, most of the people see this person as unfriendly, innocent-looking, or a mysterious person. Unfriendly, maybe because he only talks occasionally in public and most of the people observe that he doesn’t take the initiative to introduce his self to a new person. Most people also say that he has an innocent looks. Probably because of the eyebrows and a young looking face? And a mysterious guy, as some of his friends told him that they’ve been curious about this person when he was still a stranger to them. What is your first impression?  

Now, let me take you into a closer get-to-truly-know about Edge. 

Hi! My name is Edwin. But you can call me Edge if you like. I’m a third-year student of the University of the Philippines in Diliman and currently taking BA Art Studies (Interdisciplinary), minor in film. My course demand lots of writings like research, critique, art and film reviews etc. and it makes me crazy because of the tons of papers that I have to submit in my major classes especially during midterms and finals. Despite of this crazy loads of writing, I can still manage to pass because of the interest that I have about the topic of my papers and I get to learn more things and discover new ideas. I don’t still any experience writing reviews about a restaurant and I only write at the notes of my Facebook just to express my ideas and emotions and publish them privately. Or chat my friends about a food that I tried and share to them my thoughts about the food and the place where it is served.  

I am just a simple person with a simple dream, and it is to make my dreams come true. I’m from a family who doesn’t have much. I even have worries enrolling every semester thinking if I can get the lowest bracket in the Socialized Tuition System of UP because I may not be able to continue my studies if I don’t get a free tuition. Our financial crisis has been my anxiety but at the same time, my motivation to push harder to realize my dream of becoming successful in my field and give my parents the life that they deserve. Of course, my dreams will not be realized without the help of my friends, people around me, and most especially, My Father in Heaven, my God.  I’m actually a friendly person. And I’d love to have more friends and family around me. 

When my friends begin to tell their first impression to me, they will usually say, “Akala ko nung una suplado ka, sobrang friendly mo pala.” Even though I’m already used with those first-impressions, I can’t still help myself not to get shocked. Maybe because of the fact that I am an ambivert type of person and predominantly introvert. Yet, I’m excited to meet new people and friends if I get accepted as an intern for the writing team in When In Manila. I could easily adapt in my environment especially if I feel that it is a good community. I could also adjust and become flexible with my surroundings and the situation that is taking place.  

I may not have so much experience about writing blogs or articles in the internet, I still have the necessary skills and personality to fit as an intern for When In Manila: I’ve been trained a lot about writing reviews and critics in my major classes, I have the passion and motivation to get better, I desire to share and help other people by reading what I wrote, I believe in team work or synergy, we share the same passion on telling the story of our own culture and identity as a nation. In other words, why I am a good fit for when in Manila? Because I love to share my stories. Most especially, the story of my beloved country.  

This is me, this is who I am, and this is my identity.  

#WIMtern #Task1 #WhenInEdge,#WhenInManila, #EdWinInManila

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Camera Phone Photographs 

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I Don’t Know If I Can But I’ll Continue to Step Forward

Hello everyone! I just wanted to share some of the things that went through my mind during my first three years in college. These are my anxieties, my doubts, my complaints, questions about my capabilities and my path. I’m an incoming fourth year student at the University of the Philippines, Diliman, studying BA Art Studies minor in Film and I can’t even believe that I made it this far. Each year in my college life is a test to my belief. I have so many reasons to give up studying and just let go of everything.  But I continue to trust what I don’t understand and not quit when depression comes. Below are the 2 reasons why I could have given up my studies, yet I didn’t.

1. I want to help my family financially.

When I told my parents that I got accepted to UP, the first thing that they said to me was, “Kaya ba? Wala tayong pera pang bayad ng tuition o kahit pang allowance. Itutuloy mo ba?” I didn’t even know what to say after hearing that. There are so many things that are running into my mind and I just went to bed pretending to sleep but actually crying. Thinking that if I stop, I can apply for work and just financially help my family. But something pops into my mind telling me that there is something greater. I wanted to make my parents proud and give them so much more by pursuing and finishing college and have a better job to help them. So I told them the next day that I’ll confirm my slot and study in UP even though I don’t know where to get money for my tuition and allowance. But God is faithful. When I discovered and applied for the Socialized Tuition System of UP, I got accepted for bracket E2 with free tuition and stipend and also found some sponsors. So my college life started.

 If I decided to stop studying after what my parents said, and turned back, I may not have found the way to college. Yes maybe it’s a little bit different for me because the school is UP with a different system, but the lesson is the same. Trust what you believe in. Never turn back and just continue moving forward no matter what the pace.

 2. I don’t know if I still can 

Now that I’m in college, struggles continue to grow. I can’t deny the fact that reaching the end is the toughest. I always ask myself, “kaya mo pa ba? Mahal mo pa ba inaaral mo? Ga-graduate ka pa kaya?” Again I doubted if I can really finish my studies and if I can get enough money to help me continue studying. I don’t know if I can still pass all my subjects next year especially that my subjects are getting harder and time consuming for a student like me who procrastinates a lot. I don’t know if I can really finish my thesis and graduate on time. But here’s the thing. It’s not about what you don’t know, it’s about what you know. And what I know is that I can finish what I started. What I know is that I can still graduate no matter what even if I stay for seven years in UP. What I know is that it’s not about how I started the race, it’s about how I finish the race and focusing on the ultimate goal, and it is to graduate and help my parents.

 Being a student does not only mean that you should just pass every required units. It mainly teaches us how to be persistent no matter what and overcoming many trials with the right attitude. This is where we should know more about life lessons and not just about our required subject (which we even forget). You don’t know how great the reward is by just making a step of faith in every single trial and not turning back.

 But all of these things will become a heavy burden without loving what you are about to learn in every step you make.

“Success in no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.” -Pele