Thoughts On Orange Espresso And Other Coffee Concoctions, And Instant Fruity Coffee Mixes
Orange and coffee? Yeah, that’s kind of an unusual mix. But I tried it, and I started drinking it ever since.
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Orange espresso is one of the coffee concoctions I love so much that I tried making my own. Before this, there were some coffee concoctions and fruity instant coffee mixes that I had so far.
Back in 2021, I had matcha espresso from a milk tea shop (ordered via a food delivery app as the pandemic was still ongoing), and I didn’t like it. The...
Hi everyone, Keihancarl here. These past few weeks, the heat’s getting unbearable. It won’t be long before the rain cools everything down… well, maybe not.
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Anyway, this year’s POF event was postponed to September, meaning that there won’t be this year’s #TheFourWeekendPlan. Nevertheless, I feel like going on a mall-hopping trip today. Having visited some parts of the Gateway Mall 2 in Araneta City (the expansion to the original Gateway Mall) a few months back, I was raring to check out the rest of the mall, as well as the rest of Araneta City/Cubao area, so that will be my focus for this mall-hopping trip. If there’s still time left, I might also check Robinsons Magnolia or SM North EDSA/Trinoma, whichever is more accessible.
Outfit check: I decided on the newly bought Uniqlo boxy shirt and the beige Harry Potter shirt. I left the house at 2:30 PM, and it took me about an hour and a half to reach Cubao (I took the UV Express to Philcoa, and then took the jeep to Araneta City). Yeah, traffic is mostly light, except in North Fairview.
I reached Araneta City before 4:00 PM. As soon as I got off near Ali Mall, I decided to check the Cubao Expo first.
The place is a haven for collectors, as some shops have interesting vintage items, vinyl records, and memorabilia. It is also the creative hub for artists.
There are also cafes, bars, and restaurants in the complex, including the Italian restaurant Bellini’s.
I stopped by INT.Bar/EXT.Cafe and ordered the Pulp Fiction, an orange espresso drink. I chose the drink randomly.
Well, I was really into orange espresso drinks these days, especially after I had it a couple of times at Kaptan in Lagro. Anyway, the Pulp Fiction was great, and I really enjoyed it.
Next stop, Ali Mall. It’s been a long time since I last visited the mall, probably before the pandemic. I wasn’t able to check the mall during my recent stops, post-pandemic.
I only checked a few shops, particularly the ones at Ali X. There were old newspapers, posters, household items, typewriters, mostly relics from the past.
There was even a framed clipping of an ad featuring Nida Blanca and Nestor de Villa.
Tomoro Coffee collaborated with the fantasy anime series Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End. They’re having a promo at the moment. I would love to try their drinks one of these days.
Next stop, SM Araneta City. I only checked the graphic tees at the second level. At the lower ground floor (supermarket level), there was an ongoing e-sports event at the Cyberzone area.
And I arrived at the Gateway Mall. Of course, I visited the expansion first, a.k.a. Gateway 2. I only checked a couple of shops (MN+LA and Top Ten), as well as Shopwise.
I then had a beef gyudon at Yoshinoya as I was starting to get hungry. I managed to finish the meal within 15 minutes, though I also took a moment to upload some pics to my Instagram account.
Wolfgang’s Steakhouse (which had a branch on the upper ground level of the mall) had a premier dine-in cinema experience (Wolfgang’s Premiere) on the cinema level (4th floor). Perfect for movie dates. Also, there's World Kitchens (also on the 4th floor), an upscale food hall with a luxurious atmosphere and full table service of a 5-star hotel/restaurant, featuring cuisines from around the world.
On my previous visits to the Gateway Mall expansion, I wasn’t able to check the upper floors due to time constraints. Well, I finally got to see the rooftop garden for the first time. I had a nice view of the Vertis North skyline from there.
The Sagrada Familia Church is also located in the rooftop garden.
Now, on to the original Gateway Mall. I visited a couple of shops, especially Fully Booked.
The mall’s interiors remained the same as they had on my first visit 14 years ago. The hanging butterfly decorations still amaze me, as does the oasis (the semi-enclosed garden inside the mall area) that also serves as a fine-dining area.
I passed by the multi-level National Book Store beside it. However, only the ground floor is open. The escalator to the upper floors was cordoned off. That NBS branch was probably downsizing.
And lastly, Farmer’s Plaza Mall. That mall really needs a major renovation. Even the doors (except the MRT-3/EDSA access) were antiquated, it feels squeaky and heavy to open.
I only checked the clothing shop closest to the MRT entrance (Milton). But I took a moment to check some parts of the mall before heading to the MRT station. Once I exited the mall, I took the train to North Avenue.
My original plan was to visit Robinsons Magnolia, but I decided to visit the two North Avenue malls, Trinoma and SM North EDSA, instead.
At Trinoma, I checked some of the shops, including Anko and IKEA (the smaller branch called the plan and order shop, which also has smaller items for purchase). After that, I visited the mall’s garden area. The mall’s original water features are gone, but the new ones are being built.
The garden area on the fourth floor (outside the cinema) now has a children's playground. Great idea, but not when it’s hot and sunny out there.
And on to the final stop, SM North EDSA. I only checked a couple of shops at the mall, particularly Muji. I didn’t even bother checking the Fully Booked x Kinokuniya branch at the fifth level (The Block) and the Booksale branch at the main building.
At this point, I was getting hungry again, so I had a bowl of ramen at the food court and a lemon tea drink at Tiger Sugar before finally heading home.
Traffic was incredibly smooth along the way. It took me about 30 minutes to reach SM Fairview, and an additional 15 minutes to get home.
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The trip felt kind of unusual (and kind of unplanned), but it gave me a chance to explore most of Araneta City (including the Cubao Expo) and the malls in the area, especially Gateway 2. And speaking of Cubao Expo, the area was more lively at night. A perfect reason for me to go back and experience it myself.
Had the POF event not been postponed to a later date (this September), #TheFourWeekendPlan would’ve gone on as planned, but I’d probably end up going to a different area for the mall-hopping trip, probably Ortigas or BGC. Well, everything happens for a reason, I suppose. I’ll probably focus on the Ortigas area for my next mall-hopping trip, and the BGC area for either October or November.
Well then, this mall-hopping trip certainly provided me with a change of scenery, and it was definitely for the better. Until next time, maybe I’ll finally get to revisit Ortigas next.
All pics are from my Instagram account, @kcox_105.
Back then, I was definitely not a coffee person. In fact, the bitterness of coffee would deter me from ever drinking it, especially if there’s no sugar in it. On the other hand, tea seems more drinkable to me, well, if there’s at least a teaspoon of sugar in it.
That was then. Nowadays, I find myself drinking it more often, at times alongside tea. Now, what made me appreciate coffee?
2016. There’s nothing special about this year, but for some reason, there are some notable moments.
For starters, I fell in love with my favorite hangout place so much that I started visiting it often, mostly for a sip of milk tea (and at times, fruit tea and coffee). But there’s more to it than that. Later in the year, there’ll be an...
2011 was another fun year to write about. My life was somewhat relaxed back then, even though I was spending my final year in college. Wait, final year in college?
Let me explain: soon after I graduated from high school, I took a year-long break from studying. Most of my friends graduated that year, and I’m still focusing on my studies and my internship. They even asked why I hadn’t
The moment I started revisiting some of the notable moments from twenty years ago, I thought, I really missed those times.
In 2017, I wrote about how great 2005 was, and it was all personal, from riding my bicycle on weekend afternoons to playing RPG games, and how I suddenly became interested in geometry (and got higher grades, too). And of course, the moment I accidentally tuned in to a smooth jazz station on my pocket radio during a...
Gong Xi Fa Cai! It’s officially the Year Of The Fire Horse, and I’m raring to go out and visit Binondo and check out all the happenings there (and probably check some of the shops at the 999 and 168 malls). And yes, I’ll be revisiting the Rockwell Center and Circuit areas (both in Makati) for the first time since 2020. Hi everyone, Keihancarl here, and this is my second mall-hopping trip for 2026.
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It’s red and black this time, featuring the black Muji washed broadcloth short-sleeve shirt that I bought during my previous mall-hopping trip at the North Avenue malls. And of course, I also wear the red shirt that says 一網打尽 (ichimou dajin), literally "catching all the fish with one throw of the net" or something. Well, that’s actually one of the shirts Yu Nishinoya (Haikyuu!!) was seen wearing in some of the episodes. I sometimes have unusual outfit choices, but I don’t go too overboard like I used to.
Not wanting to waste my time getting stuck in traffic, I decided to leave the house as early as I could, even if I ended up getting hives trying to catch the UV Express or the train. I wonder if some of the contactless turnstiles at all MRT/LRT stations have already been updated. I mean, I was anxious about having to tap my GCash card just to get in.
Anyway, traffic was okay, a little heavy but moving at least. It took me less than an hour to reach Trinoma.
Arriving at the MRT North Avenue station, I checked my Beep card for remaining balance, which is enough for at least two rides. I then head inside the train, as it is about to leave the station. I got off at the MRT Guadalupe station, which is near my first stop, the Power Plant Mall in Rockwell.
Getting out of the station, I took a ten-minute walk to my first stop, the Rockwell Center. Reaching the Power Plant Mall, I was greeted by the red tree (with red envelopes) near the entrance.
I visited several shops, including Frankie General Store, Muji, and Fully Booked x Kinokuniya.
The Chinese New Year decorations are still up. Meanwhile, all of the mall’s right door entrances are automated.
I was hoping to buy the short-sleeved, washed broadcloth green shirt (like the one I’m wearing, but a different color) at Muji, but they only have a medium-sized one at the moment.
I visited the Fully Booked x Kinokuniya branch there. They have some awesome anime merch, but they’re pricey.
Outside, the sky was dim, with a chance of rain. I managed to take a short ride to Circuit Makati, my next destination.
There was an unusual carousel near the entrance. There was even a manananggal. Turns out, it was actually an art piece. Also, I don’t see any CNY decorations throughout the mall area.
At this point, I was getting hungry, so I decided to have lunch at Hayashi. I had a tonkatsu bento, with shredded cabbage and soup.
I check the rest of the Circuit, starting with the Circuit Walk. The open area adjacent to the Circuit Walk was closed to give way to the Contemporary Art Center. There’s another open space beside the mall area (A. Reyes side), but these open lots will soon give way to commercial buildings, probably high rises.
I then checked the mall area. There’s a martial arts competition happening at the activity center.
And finally, the rooftop park. There were benches placed on the artificial grass. This is actually one of my favorite spots.
You can see the Makati skyline from there. Though not in the picture, you can also see the tall buildings of Rockwell Center, featuring the Proscenium Towers. At the other side (facing the Circuit Walk), you can also see the Ortigas skyline.
And it’s time to head to Binondo, the highlight of this trip. I took a jeepney to the LRT Quirino station. I got off at the LRT Carriedo station.
I passed by the Escolta and Ongpin streets. The latter was crowded.
There were long lines at some shops, especially Eng Bee Tin and Polland. They’re famous for hopia and other Chinese delicacies.
And finally, Lucky Chinatown Mall. I decided to visit the Imperial Wing first. What used to be the tiangge stalls in that wing is now replaced by restaurants and some global brands. Nitori, KKV, Robinsons Supermarket, and a few restaurants are now open.
I checked Nitori first. I was quite amazed at some of the items, particularly the N-Cool items.
I decided to visit the 999 Mall. Last time, there weren’t many shoppers inside the mall. Must be the effect of online shopping, perhaps? Yup, the mall isn’t as crowded as it used to be.
I couldn’t find anything either, so I decided to go back to LCM and had a snack at the Chinatown Walk. I ordered some hakaw. Quite pricey, but it was great. The shrimp seems to be a little tough, though.
I took a break and had a raspberry choco bliss at Starbucks (it doesn't have coffee). I then uploaded some pics, especially the ones I’ve taken at the Escolta and Ongpin streets.
I checked the rest of the mall within 30 minutes (it's already past 7:00 PM). Of course, I took more pictures and selfies.
And it’s time to go home. I took a tricycle to the LRT-2 Recto station and immediately boarded the train to Araneta Center-Cubao. I hoped the stored value on my Beep card is enough, or it’ll be problematic. Well, there are four pesos left from my Beep card once I get off the concourse, and I add 101 pesos more. Should be more than enough for my next mall-hopping trip, provided I don’t take too many train rides in one day.
I passed by the Gateway Mall (1 and 2) and visited a couple of shops. I reached the transport terminal and took the mini bus to SM Fairview. Traffic is light throughout Commonwealth Avenue, so it should only take less than an hour to get there, and another 10-15 minutes to get home. I got home around 10:30 PM, which isn’t that bad.
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The mall-hopping trip went well without any problems. I must’ve spent a lot of time in some places, and I took my time walking the streets of Escolta and Ongpin. After all, I had a lot of fun. The 999 Mall, however, was the only disappointing part of this trip. Maybe I’ll skip that, along with 168 Mall, in my future Binondo trips.
Hey, that was a lot of fun. And since I passed by the Gateway Mall (along with the expansion), maybe I should visit that mall next, along with GH Mall and the two malls along the LRT-2 route. How does June sound?
Well, time to wrap this one. Until next time!
All pics (except the first and last pic) are from my Instagram account, @kcox_105.
My Two Years With Bluesky: Is It Really A Great Alternative To Twitter/X?
I joined Bluesky in February 2024. By that time, you no longer need an invite (probably from other users) to sign up. This is great news for those who wished to leave the chaotic, toxic environment of Twitter/X, now that Elon Musk has taken control of the platform and made some (unnecessary) changes.
I, too, am looking for an alternative to the once-awesome social media platform (Twitter). But I’ll have to make do with Mastodon and Threads in the meantime, until Bluesky finally...
January 2013. Thirteen years ago. The World According To KCOX went online.
Thirteen years? That’s a very long time indeed. How I managed to get this far is really beyond me. I mean, it’s time to write an anniversary special about the notable highlights from each blogging year.
2013: TWATKcox’s First Year
The World According To KCOX went online on January 26, 2013. It also marked the end of my former blog, The Kin Keihan Times, after four years and seven months.
In its first year, I’ve published a lot of posts, including...
Keihancarl here. All right, it’s time for the first mall-hopping trip for 2026!
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I decided on a mostly all-black outfit this time, and I’m off to the North Avenue malls… well, just because. Last time I went there, I had to deal with horrendous traffic along Commonwealth Avenue. Will it be the case this time? I hope not.
The weather appears to be fine, though. Yup. So I left home past 2:00 PM, believing that the traffic along Commonwealth Avenue isn’t really that bad (except in the Fairview area). Sure enough, travel time was faster than expected. So there’s more time for me to shop and explore the three malls on North Avenue.
I reached SM North EDSA around 3:30 PM. The mall’s entrances were decorated for the Lunar New Year. Not wanting to waste any time, I started visiting several shops inside the mall.
I checked the Pop Mart store at The Block atrium (they’ll open a shop on the third level). It looks like certain figures are all sold out, especially the Hirono collection.
I then head to North Towers. I passed by Flying Tiger at the bridgeway. I also checked Decathlon and saw a button-down shirt, not sure if it’s dark green or brown. I was thinking of buying it, but I was planning to buy something at Muji, so I passed on it.
And yes, I made it to Muji. There’s a button-down shirt I wanted to buy, but I never did get to buy it at the pop-up store in SM Fairview. I finally got to buy it, along with the knitted cardigan I first saw at the SM Mall Of Asia branch during MIBF last year. Too bad they don’t have the olive-green button-down shirt in stock, at least the short-sleeved ones. I ended up buying the black one instead.
I passed by the Biblio branch on the ground level and was thinking twice about getting a drink at Starbucks, but realized I’m still dealing with a sore throat, so I can’t have any ice-blended drinks in the meantime.
I headed back to The Block and visited a few more shops, including Uniqlo, Fully Booked (both the old store at the fourth level and the Fully Booked x Kinokuniya store at the fifth level), Bocu, and The Craft Central.
I saw a bunch of awesome items at The Craft Central. Too bad I decided not to buy it. And I didn’t spend too much time at the other shops.
I was thinking of having an early dinner at the Food Hall, but I held off and headed to City Central, the mall's main building.
I visited the Mi Store and Booksale on the second level. I’ll check the rest of the shops there later.
There’s a double-deck carousel somewhere in the City Center.
Hoshino Coffee has opened in one of the former cinema spaces. Meanwhile, I decided to skip the KKV nearby.
And I reached The Annex. I checked a couple of shops before I decided to have an early dinner at Popeyes on the third level. I had fried chicken with rice, fries, and drinks. And a mashed potato. Too bad I wasn’t able to take a pic as I was really hungry.
I then proceed with checking the rest of The Annex. There's a Book Nook near the glass spiral staircase. Bookworms will surely spend a lot of time there.
There’s an event at the 4th level featuring WRIVE (pronounced “RAYV”), a P-Pop group.
I also noticed a cleaning robot similar to the one I saw at S'Maison back in September. It's being recharged at the moment. Anyway, I visited a couple of stores at Cyberzone. It’s actually just the Power Mac Center and Samsung.
Heading back to the City Center, I only checked Surplus and Biblio (their second branch). There’s also a dome theater adventure, Sky Glide, located on the third level, offering immersive virtual flights on a giant dome screen. Meanwhile, the staircase near the cinemas (City Center's west wing) is closed off for some reason.
It’s already past 7:00 PM, and I still haven’t visited the other two malls yet. Since I’ll be skipping the Interior Zone due to time constraints, I'll be heading to Trinoma and Vertis North Mall. I visited the latter first.
By the way, Trinoma is currently being redeveloped (more of a massive renovation). There are some construction works on the North Avenue side. I never get to visit most parts of the mall, as I did with my previous visits, especially after Vertis North Mall opened back in 2017.
The additional towers (possibly office spaces and additional retail spaces) are nearing completion. That’s where the Vertis Tent (an events area) used to be.
I passed by the bazaar and bought a manga book at one of the stalls. There were a lot of awesome books, but I decided to hold off buying any more novels right now.
The mall’s entrance is decorated with so many lights. Also, I noticed that some holiday decorations haven’t been put out yet.
I only checked a handful of shops and visited Japan Town on the 4th level. Only a few Japanese restaurants and a takoyaki stall remained in the area. I believe the Japan Fudo Street is still open, though I didn’t bother checking the rest of Japan Town.
I decided to stop by Dean and Deluca for an iced Spanish latte, with vanilla syrup (as an add-on). Not too bitter, if you mix it properly. I really enjoyed it.
Heading back to Trinoma, I only visited the Fully Booked branch there. Besides that, I didn’t check the other shops. There's a Chagee branch by the activity area. And even though it’s a Saturday, the Landmark Department Store still closes at 9:00 PM.
And it’s time to go home. Traffic is incredibly light in most parts of Commonwealth Avenue. It’s always moderate to heavy in the Fairview area, as usual. I got home around 10:30 PM.
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Overall, the entire mall-hopping trip went well. I ended up spending a little more time at Muji (SM North EDSA North Towers) since I’m shopping for potential additions to my wardrobe, and maybe a few household items. Well, I only bought the buttoned shirt and the knitted cardigan.
Now, if Nitori could open a branch in either SMNE, Trinoma, or Vertis North… well, that would be nice. Too bad I skipped IKEA and Anko (both in Trinoma), and I never got to check the rest of Trinoma due to time constraints. Maybe once the MRT-7 is finished, I will probably get to visit these North Avenue malls more often.
I’m looking forward to another mall-hopping trip, this time to Binondo (and hopefully, the Rockwell and Circuit areas). And definitely not on the actual Lunar New Year celebration.
That’s all for now. Keihancarl out.
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Most of the pics are from my Instagram account, @kcox_105. The selfies are from my private Instagram account.
The year 2014, also the Year of the Wooden Horse, is definitely one of the best years of my life. Although it began with yet another chapter in my life, after quitting my job as a call center agent (in training), things have become much better since that day. But I struggled to find another job after that, and I simply gave up.
The World According to KCOX celebrated its first anniversary, during which I listed some of the blog's notable posts from its first year. Along with that, I also published the Golden Post special, which is a list of facts about me, Keihancarl X (I have only used that name since 2019), as well as a series of Obsessions posts and several personal posts. I also managed to muster up my courage to publish an awareness post, dealing with the...
I can’t believe that I’ll begin this year differently, as this is the second time that I’ll celebrate the new year on my own (my dad doesn’t count at all). Anyway, it’s time to share my thoughts on the previous year and my plans for this year.
So, 2025 is almost the same as 2024, but with fewer notable events. I managed to skip the Binondo trip (Chinese New Year) as I don’t feel like dealing with crowds at the moment, even though the CNY is held on a weekday. Also, I...
So, what? The snake has slithered its way through the end of the year, huh? Whatever. The horse will come to stomp the traitorous reptile very soon!
Anyway, here's how my 2025 went:
A few days after the start of the new year, I watched two MMFF (Metro Manila Film Festival) entries, Green Bones and The Kingdom.
TWATKcox-WP's 12th Anniversary Post features the list of my favorite posts on that blog. Some of the posts were picked randomly, but these are the most meaningful posts I've ever written (and published) on this blog.
I didn't bother checking out this year's Chinese New Year celebration in Binondo, as the crowds exhaust me. I could've used that opportunity to visit some of the shops in the 999 and 168 malls.
In mid-February, I finally attended my mom's clan's family reunion (held at a resort in Amadeo, Cavite) for the first time. As an added bonus, we passed by Tagaytay (my fourth visit) and had lunch at one of the restaurants at Summit Ridge Mall (Robinsons). We never get to visit the Sky Ranch since there are a lot of people inside, not to mention that it's Valentine's weekend. But at least we did get to see the Taal Volcano along the way.
I encountered an unfortunate issue with Instagram: In mid-March, I was surprised to see my story post taken down due to spam, even though it wasn't. And that's just the beginning. Honestly, that platform is stressing me out so much that I'll probably rethink uploading more photos to my private IG account until this content moderation issue is resolved. No matter how many times I sent my complaints to the "report problem" option in the Instagram app and even sent a couple of direct messages to the app's official Instagram account, they simply wouldn't respond and resolve the issues I had with the platform. Typical Meta... it Zucks.
I decided to join Reddit last April, but I'm not sure if I'll actually use it to voice my grievances and complaints on certain issues. I'll probably try to engage in certain discussions, as long as it's not about BS politics or religion-related topics outside Christianity.
I decided to proceed with the (last-minute) plans for this year's #TheFourWeekendPlan despite initially trimming it down to just two, to be tentatively called #TwoWeekends and focusing exclusively on this year's Pinoy Otaku Festival (10-Shunen) and the planned mall-hopping trip right after that.
I attended this year's POF event (10-Shunen), which was held at Robinsons Novaliches. At the same time, an Ozine event (From The Streets Of Harajuku) was held at the neighboring Fairview Terraces. I managed to enjoy both events, but I had a lot more selfies with cosplayers at the Ozine event than at the POF event.
For the third part of #TheFourWeekendPlan, I decided to revisit the Monumento and Manila (San Lazaro/Binondo/Ermita) areas. I really enjoyed the trip so much that I ended up taking a lot of pics and selfies and uploading them on my Instagram accounts. I even get to ride the new-generation LRT trains, the red ones, twice within the same day.
For the final part of #TheFourWeekendPlan, I spent the afternoon at my favorite hangout place and bought a new pair of shoes.
In preparation for the upcoming trip to Cebu, I bought a couple of new bags online: a waterproof, large-capacity tote bag (which serves as my daily/weekly bag) and a large travel bag (self-explanatory). I bought a couple more things as well, one of which is a must-have for organizing stuff inside the luggage.
And yes, the Cebu trip (our company outing). My first time on an airplane, as well as visiting a place outside of Luzon. Our team visited lots of amazing places and tourist spots, including the Sirao Garden (Little Amsterdam), the Temple of Leah, Sachiko's Little Kyoto, Magellan's Cross, Cebu Ocean Park, and the 10,000 Roses. I also get to visit two malls in Cebu (SM City Cebu and Ayala Center Cebu).
My younger sister celebrated her 18th birthday, and she's now of legal age. Everything went well.
In early September, one of my college friends commented on one of my Instagram/Facebook posts. It turns out that she also discovered one of the cafes at my favorite hangout place (she also mentioned that it is one of her favorites), and was wondering why she didn't see me. Who knows, one of these days, we'll finally get to see each other.
For the seventh time, I visited this year's Manila International Book Fair (MIBF) at the SMX Convention Center, SM Mall Of Asia Complex (Pasay). At the same time, I also visited the two malls in Aseana City (Parañaque): Parqal and Ayala Malls Manila Bay. I bought some manga books at the MIBF, and a cooling pillow from Nitori (SM Mall Of Asia). Going home, however, turned out to be chaotic, and I got home around midnight.
I celebrated my 35th birthday with a simple feast. I decided to go low-key on this one as I'm not really fond of birthday greetings from friends and acquaintances, unlike the pre-pandemic days.
I visited the last day of the Ozine Fest Halloween Special at the Fairview Terraces. As I was also visiting someone on that day, I decided to leave home early so I could attend the event first before proceeding with my plans for that day. I didn't buy anything at the event, but I did have a lot of selfies with cosplayers.
I discovered a couple of cafes (Brew Brothers and Kaptan) at my favorite hangout place that serve great food and drinks, but they're outside the radius of my high school. Nevertheless, these cafes are a nice alternative to the ones I had frequented in the past few years.
After almost three years, I finally concluded the anniversary-themed #TWATKcox@10 series, which focused on the blog's first ten years, as well as my achievements and struggles of maintaining the blog.
For our company's Christmas party, we had a lunch buffet at Fresh Buffet (Solaire North). It was mostly okay, but the cold cuts and the turkey were a bit too salty for my liking. I didn't get to try some of the fried rice, having opted for pasta (especially carbonara) as my carbs, but I had steaks and some Japanese food (shrimp tempura and salmon sashimi).
I passed by Kai Mall for two reasons: to check out the newly opened KKV at the former bazaar area and to attend the Otaku Musika Christmas event at the Kai Bar (I didn't stay long, though). While it is a neighborhood mall (at least it is), I'm amazed that they can actually hold some events and tenants that were otherwise more suited for larger malls like Ayala or Robinsons.
We decided on a simple Christmas Eve feast (just pasta and some grilled meat), and nothing else. For Christmas breakfast, I served some Christmas ham alongside the leftovers from last night. I also visited my mom on Christmas Day, and I bought a dozen donuts from J.Co. Besides the donuts, I also had a bowl of fruit salad.
This year's New Year's Eve feast will be a lot simpler compared to the previous year, just because my brother and sister-in-law decided to spend the New Year in Japan. Well, I'm ringing in the year 2026 with a bottle of wine, just for myself. Oh, and I published the year-end post a few days early just because I'll be quite busy on that day.
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So what’s in store for me this 2026?
TWATKcox’s 13th Anniversary Post (hopefully not a list of notable posts again...)
Pinoy Otaku Festival 2026: KAIKO (Retro Festival) (a three-day event)
TWATKcox Literary Special (tentative)
#TheFourWeekendPlan (along with POF: KAIKO and the planned mall-hopping trip)
10000+ word autobiography (tentative)
Manila International Book Fair 2026
Another otaku event (either Anime & Cosplay Expo 2026 or Cosplay Matsuri 2026)
An all-black birthday celebration (this time, it will happen)
Going on several mall-hopping trips, including the three SM Malls in Parañaque (Sucat, BF Parañaque, and Bicutan) for the first time (this is originally slated for 2025, but...)
My first novel, still a work in progress
An upcoming company outing (planned destination TBA)
And my plans for 2026?
Read a lot of books (I’ve yet to read the books I’ve bought since 2021)
Organize a lot of stuff
Buy a new hard drive, as well as a notebook PC or a tablet
Update banners across all my blogs (still a work in progress)
Buy some drawers and shelves
Let go of some of the junk inside my room
Create an artwork
Readjust my body clock
Visit a lot of new places, as well as newly opened malls
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2025 isn't really that bad. I find it just a little boring. Except for the Cebu trip.
So, will things change in 2026? Hopefully. After all, I'm not really looking forward to yet another boring year ahead.
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