Cagayan de Oro Quick Tour

Celine and I went to Cagayan de Oro (CDO) City last July 27 to 28 to join the 6th Monthsary Meetup of GDG CDO. It was our first time in CDO so we're really looking forward to this weekend. We arrived in Laguindingan International Airport (LIA) at 08:20 in the morning (the ETA). Paul Labis, our former officemate from O&B who is now home-based in CDO, picked us up at the airport. It was a long way to the city proper. Paul suggested we go to the Divine Mercy Archdiocesan Shrine. Celine and I walked the stairs and have read about the dancing sun and other miracles. It started to rain so we got back to the car and continued our travel.

Photo from Celine's Foursquare Account

Based from Paul's recommendation, we had late breakfast at Panagatan Seafoods Restaurant for a late breakfast. It was a restaurant by the sea side and the view is quite good. Our order include seafood noodles, baked scallops, calamares and fresh buko juice. We were so full that it also served as our lunch.

Photo from Celine's Foursquare Account

After eating, we went to Tunes Hotel but apparently only a floor has been opened yet so there are no more rooms available. The receptionists there were so kind they helped us book a room in Mallberry Suites Business Hotel. We took a cab to the hotel but it took us more than sixty minutes to get the room (because the previous occupant just checked out and the hotel staff still need to clean it)

After dropping our stuff, we walked to Mindanao University of Science and Technology for the GDG CDO meetup. This event is to celebrate their sixth month and their inclusion in the Google Developers Group directory as an active chapter. It was a full house event and it was good to be a part of it. Romar Mayer Micabalo of Caelum Techlogic talked about the Yii Framework, Celine talked about Google Apps for Education, I talked about Android Design and Josan discussed HTML5.

After the event, we joined Josan and the CDO IT Group in their planning about the upcoming GDG DevFest in CDO, which will be the first GDG DevFest in Mindanao. Josan, Paul, Celine and I then went to Thai Me Up for dinner. We also we went to Vjandep Bakeshop to buy pastel before going back. The next day, we woke up early for our flight back to Manila.

Our dinner at Thai Me Up (Photo from Celine's Foursquare Account)

Takbo.ph RunFest 2013

taken from http://www.takbo.net

Last July 14, I joined in the 10k category of Takbo.ph RunFest 2013 at Bonifacio Global City. RunFest is a run being organized by Takbo.ph and Leadpack. The last time they had a RunFest was in 2011 where I had my first 16k. This year, they only have 3k, 5k, 10k and 21k. There was a personalized bib too so I registered early for this run.

Takbo.ph RunFest 2013 Personalized Bib

I finished the run in around 75 minutes according to the unofficial results. I was unable to beat my best record again but I'm already happy that I finished the run despite the lack of practice and rest and sleep the days before (We had events on Friday night and the whole day of Saturday). After the run, I also got my third finisher's medal.

10k finisher's medal

Indonesia Adventure

We were at Indonesia last week for the SEARCH Summit 2013. Most of the time we just stayed at Hyatt Regency Yogyakarta, the venue of the summit and the hotel where we are also staying. It was a great hotel and we had a good time there.

On the afternoon on the last day of the summit, the GDG SEA leads with Chelle, Uttam and Van went to Borobodur Temple. Borobodur Temple is one of the oldest Buddhist temples in the world and is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was a long trip and we arrived at least an hour before closing. There were a lot of people (mostly tourists) climbing the stairs and taking pictures. It was good that we were there during sunset because it is no longer that hot.

Photo from Celine

After the long trip, we went back to the hotel and had a few minutes rest. We then went to Ikan Bakar Jimbaran for our Balinese dinner. We have banana leaves as plates and we ate with our hands.

Photo from Josan

The next day is our time to see the rest of Yogyakarta. It was great that Reymart have friends nearby, Bella and Titis, who not only gave us a tour but also drove us around. Our first stop is Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM). Bella and Titis are still students there. They had this sunday morning market where you can find lots of different stuff. They also have a mosque inside the campus.

Photo from Josan

Next, we went to Taman Sari Water Palace which used to be the residence of the Sultan. There were pools which was said to be where the palace chooses his girls. We looked around inside the changing rooms inside. We stopped to buy refreshments then walked to Masjid Bawah Tanah underground temple. We then had late lunch at House of Raminten. We were seating on the floor and had tried different Indonesian food that were not available in Hyatt. The food there tastes good and affordable too.

Photo from Keshan

Our last stop was Malioboro. It is a shopping street in Yogyakarta. There are a lot of stores there. We then went back to the hotel afterwards.

This was also my first time to be in Indonesia and it was great to be in Yogyakarta. I am hoping I can be back there and also other places in Indonesia too.