Memory Lane

Memory Lane at Tagaytay is one stop dine-shop-spa-salon place owned by the family of a local movie celebrity Jolina Magdangal. The Magdangal mom was even there during our visit, attending the cashier.

My girls fell in love with the vintage 50's/60's theme of the place. Memory Lane is seriously cottage-y /country home through and through. The girls took loads of photos of every corner.

The main house was full when we arrived at the place.

We were escorted to the annex house located at the back of the main house. I think this one is being used for private gatherings

The vintage cottage house vibe is liquefying up to here. The table linens reminded me of old country kitchen I've seen in the magazines. Foods laterlaterlater @ My 3rd & 7th Sense.




vintage hollywood posters on the walls




vintage trinkets corner with the family-owner portrait

mini shop found at the main house



selling cd collections of the celebrity-owner

the salon which looks like just another beauty parlor in a small town. . .

is actually very city-ish  according to their menu price tags.



I really thought_ the place looked so familiar and was pretty sure it wasn't my first visit. Until I found this photo taken a year or two ago. haha. Now I remember, we went there to eat breakfast but the place was still close. They are only serving lunch and dinner.


Valentine's day is up in the air, I know couples are busy googling for a place to dine. I would have had suggested this place if it's only all about  it's pretty vintage thematic ambiance. But the sad news is I'm ververyvery disappointed about the food which personally I think counts a lot in a date. Until Memory Lane hasn't step up in food category, I don't think this place deserves a romantic page down your memory lane.

Sonya's Garden

I had this photo of Canyon Cove Beach Club taken on a boat ride in Nasugbu, Batangas  months ago. My girls thought we must pay it a visit the next time.

Last, last weekend, a quick breakfast at Tagaytay with the sun beaming beach-happy to us, made us push the dad to continue our random road trip down to Nasugbu Batangas. The truth was all the while the girls and I had ofcourse a hidden agenda_ we actually included swimsuits in our daytour bags, haha.
It took us more than an hour to reach Nasugbu from Tagaytay. There was a partial road reconstruction going on along the way. Hmm. . we could smell a stench of karma there, haha.

We entered the resort and intentionally ignored the front desk. We wanted to see the place first. The reception lobby was too busy anyway to attend to us. From the open lobby we took a quick glance of the huge pool fronting the beach. All bareness. Nothing follows.  That quick glance was all we needed to cut the beach day idea. Right away, we went back to the car with the dad who hadn't even  yet unloaded himself  and alibied to him that it was fully booked. White lie. We didn't like the resort. It looked so contrived to us. Sorry.

We decided to go back to Tagaytay. To compensate for the useless/failed  Nasugbu drive, we made a stop at Sonya's Garden in Alfonso Cavite. The girls, guilty of the tiring driving task imposed to their father, thought to make up by treating him ( remember, at this time of the year, the girls' wallets were still fat from the holiday's aguinaldo )  to his favorite indulgence_ massage! Husband had the spa's signature massage for about P800 which the girls paid willingly.




Since it was my girls first time at Sonya's, they spent the waiting time (for their dad) checking each corner of the garden.

daybed

rose petal pot

terra-cota garden chimes

Lunch done outside ( good news to my wallet, haha. actually, dining here is quite costly but soo worth it ). The girls enjoyed freshly baked goodies from the bakeshop of the garden resort. Check them at my food blog.

We also went to check the country store of the garden.




I bought a bottle of an oil-based insect repellent which I thought would be very useful on our  trips.




The youngest member of the family, my budding religious daughter had her eyes on religious items, whatelse?   She bought a rosary bracelet.




scented candles & soap

so italy

pure cuteness

pure chessy-ness,haha

Sonya's Garden is so conducive for spending the day doing nothing but to relax. It also offers a B&B cottages. Hmmm. . wish.wish. we could spend even only for a single night here next time.

Real Beauty

While I adhere discovering totally unfamiliar places, husband is the opposite who hates something new. So when he asked where? I simply answered_ just drive babe. Until we reached a fork road along Tagaytay Ridge, hubby was clueless of our weekend destination.
We stopped right at this signage-less, unassuming gate and walked the seemingly uninhabited flourishing garden path.

I made a reservation the day before and got confirmed only the morning of our first day. Our first time at the overrated Moon Garden.

So after a long walk under arch tunnels, we reached the center of the garden. Just one swiftly gazed around the place and I thought I've seen everything.

main dining hall

another dining hall

floating gazebo

another floating gazebo

My snooty self  said - not bad, pretty yes but not p.y.t. as in preeeeety!!! We were escorted to our casita, click here to see. Took some rest inside and went out for dinner later.

It was on our early breakfast  the following morning ( see our bf's here , here and here ) at the garden when we started to truly inhale the detailed beauty of Moon Garden. Art and nature mode was sensitized by the animated garden.

Well, I was kindah' fell short of words there. . .I thought it was just right to let the photos spoke for themselves.
If you want to see more of inanimate objects that animated the garden, pay me a visit again later.