LOYD Tea Infused with Manuka Honey and Cardamom

Tea is the most popular beverage in the world after water, and drinking tea is a quintessential custom in Great Britain and most parts of Asia. 

Great Britain popularized the concept of Afternoon Tea, a break from one’s routine in which tea is served alongside sandwiches and baked goods such as scones and biscuits. However, the tradition of drinking tea reportedly began in China.

The traditional tea varies by where the tea leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant are harvested and how they are grown and processed. And the taste varies depending on the season of harvesting and the method of processing. 

For instance, according to Harvard University's health studies about tea: "Black tea is made by crushing and drying fresh tea leaves and allowing them to ferment, which oxidizes the leaves and changes their color and flavor. Oolong tea is partly fermented, and green tea undergoes no fermentation. Matcha is a special form of green tea in which the dried leaves are ground into a fine powder".

LOYD Tea in Manuka Flavor

I'm a tea drinker for more than a decade now and I've tried almost all tea brands in the market, from Lipton, Celestial seasoning, and Gold Spoon, to Twinings, Bigelow, London Tea, and English Teashop. 

Recently, my sister brought home a pack of Loyd Tea's original recipe with the taste of Manuka honey, a product from Poland. 

According to its packaging, this tea is infused with Manuka honey from New Zealand, in addition to lemon, chamomile, and cardamom. It also contains cranberries, raspberries, and a vivid note of oriental ginger, giving this tea a distinct citrusy flavor. 

Cardamom is a spice that smells like mint or eucalyptus. The seeds, oils, and extracts of cardamom are thought to have impressive medicinal properties and have been used in traditional medicine for centuries. 

Cardamom may be helpful for people with high blood pressure, most likely due to its antioxidant and diuretic properties. It is also citrusy when infused with tea.

Chamomile is the common name for several daisy-like plants of the family Asteraceae. Two of the species, Matricaria recutita, and Anthemis nobilis are commonly used to make herbal infusions for beverages, particularly tea.

For centuries, people have used this flowering plant to ease upset stomachs, gas, diarrhea, insomnia, and anxiety. Some research suggests that it may help relieve generalized anxiety disorder, but there’s not much evidence to back other claims.

Manuka honey, known as the treasure of New Zealand, has a velvety and sharp flavor, which perfectly complimented the fruity notes of lemon and berries.

This box has 20 tea bags, each with 2 grams of tea.

My Review:

The infusion of honey, herbs, and fruits, made this tea a relaxing beverage. I love the combined flavors of spices, herbs, and fruits in this tea. The smell is so good and relaxing, it feels like I am chilling in an exotic location somewhere. 

It soothes the tired senses and calms the nerves, which helps mollify my "confused" mind recently. The fragrance and the fruity smell give me an easy day in every cup. It helps bring back my focus in writing despite the naughty pets in the house.

This is more or less an herbal tea, rather than a traditional tea because this is concocted from different herbs, spices, and fruits. But the good thing is, this is caffeine-free! And I love the fact that it has no after-taste of grass notes.

This is good for people who do not like the bitter taste of tea but just want a moment of relaxation sipping a fruity, sweet beverage, with some herbs in it.

The aroma has a calming effect on the senses. The flavor of honey and lemon made this beverage a perfect choice for morning tea. 

I love the citrusy scent and the combination of the sweetness of honey and other fruity infusions made this tea a relaxing aroma to sniff right after waking up. It helps calm a stressed mind. 

The taste is different from black tea or green tea, Loyd tea is milder, sweeter, and aromatic.

Some tips:

For the best tea experience with this brand, let it steep for 5 minutes in a hot water to get the full flavor. 

You may add a small amount of honey for additional sweetness if you detest the taste of an herb tea. But I am fine with the taste so I did not add any sweetener. 

Razon's scrumptious halo-halo and sizzling bulalo

I am not choosy when it comes to food it’s one of my stress relievers in life, food provides me comfort and thrill. Back in Davao, I and my good friend, Kathy Dacanay, used to go cafe hopping and we already visited quite a number of cafe houses in Davao City,  Chicco de Caffe, Cafe France, Cafe Demitasse, Annie Pie, Kangaroo to name a few, and the night before I left for Manila, Kathy and I once again spent few hours at Chicco.

My favorites include Carbonara,  Blueberry Cheesecake and Brazo de mercedes, Japanese food is another special craving, Maki for instance :-) The best California Maki I tried was at Sangkai Restaurant, an authentic Japanese resto in front of Central Bank in Davao.

But when I left Davao and relocated here in Metro Manila, this weekly food adventure halted, I've not yet visited a cafe house here so my craving for pasta and all sorts of yummy desserts was put on hold, not sure also where to go, I am not yet familiar with the place.

Until one day, Jerome Abendan brought us to Razon's, a fine food chain along McKinley Hill in Taguig offering delectable dishes including yummy desserts. He told us about the scrumptious halo-halo that is so utterly different from other varieties, so I was thrilled to try this refreshment. According to him, there are lots of branches of Razon's in the metropolis but the one that offers the best halo-halo is the outlet along McKinley Hill.

Ultra delectable Halo-halo at Razon's!

Razon's along McKinley Hill, Taguig City

True enough, when we had lunch there and had halo-halo as our dessert I felt the hype of the taste perfectly authentic! So yummy and smooth, very gratifying, I did not feel any roughness effect on my tongue, you know the usual stuff in halo-halo that is so annoying sometimes -- the coarse ice granules. At Razon's that was so different, the sweetener was just right too and there were no excessive beans mixed in the ingredients.

Razons is a quiet place to hang out with friends, very relaxing with a cool atmosphere, perfect to enjoy the food and the refreshment! Jerome introduced us to another unique cuisine: Sizzling Bulalo. My God totally appetizing!!Something that should never missed out!I was used to the idea of bulalo in stew but at Razon's it was completely different, an extraordinary lip-smacking recipe.

 Luscious lunch treats from Anelyn and Jerome, thank you guys!

Sizzling bulalo, sisig and boneless bangus, soooooo delightful!

Halo-halo at Razon's along McKinley Hill utterly refreshing with a finely crashed ice that almost feel like powdery granules in your tongue, no extra effort of pounding to make, a little stir is enough. This halo-halo however has no blob of ice cream topping only Leche flan. Don't miss this out when you come to Taguig. Other food offerings are equally delightful, love to go back there some other time! 

More stories in my MY CUP OF TEA blog

Delta Hotel, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon Hongkong

Two months ago when I was looking for a hotel to stay in Hongkong for our leisure trip, I first made a thorough research about the most affordable tourist inns in Hongkong that have high customer’s satisfaction rating/review. I’d got several suggestions in the net but the one that really caught my attention was Delta Hotel because aside from its very affordable rate per night, it earned a very good rating from satisfied customers, so I went on to book our 3 night stay there.

 Bedroom at Delta Hotel

Delta hotel is more like a transient inn where travellers can just spend the night with a bed to sleep on, it is far from the traditional hotel that everyone is thinking, it is like you are just renting a room in a small apartment. But its services and basic amenities are very good. This is ideal for people who are embarking into a short vacation trip abroad under a tight budget and for backpackers.

Delta hotel is located on the 16^th floor of Chungking Mansion, Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hongkong, just across the Tsim Sha Tsui MTR station. The rooms are clean and conducive for sleeping and resting. Each room has a private bathroom with shower. The room provides telephone and free wifi with a choice of electric fan or aircon, there's a refrigerator and water dispenser posted outside the rooms.

Each guest is provided with bath towel, freebies like shampoo, bath soap and toothbrush kit. Guests are safe because the main door of the hotel has an electronic automatic lock and outsiders cannot easily enter the vicinity. It is equipped with a 24-hour security camera.

Comfort Room 

Freebies

When we arrived at Chungking Mansion, I was worried and anxious because the ground floor was full of vendors and the elevator was packed with people of different nationalities, at first I thought it was not a safe place, I was also concerned with the mansion’s appearance, but the moment we got there and entered the room my apprehension was replaced with contentment. It was worth the money.

The rate is per room. We chose the room with four occupants which has a rate of Php630.00 per night or HK$119. Please be aware that all the rooms have no extra bed.

Chungking Mansion is located at the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui just beside CKE department store, the location is just a walking distance from Victoria Harbour and Avenue of Stars. It is also closer to China Ferry Terminal where Cotai Jet travelling to Macau is located.

From the airport, you can get a ride via A21 bus of City Flier, then disembark at bus stop no.14. From there, you have to turn left and walk just few steps to arrive at Chungking Mansion. There are two elevators serving the building, you may ask for assistance from the security guard on duty if you are not sure what elevator to take.

Here’s how I rate Delta Hotel:

Scale:

                1              -              Very Poor

                2              -              Poor

                3              -              Average

                4              -              Satisfactory

                5              -              Excellent

Cleanliness                -              4

Friendly Staff            -              5

Safety                      -               4

Value of money         -              5

Location                   -               4

AirAsia Airline

Just got home from my first travel abroad! Glad I was able to make it before the expiration of my passport  :-) and because I was living under a scanty budget, I joined friends in the University embarking into the nearest foreign route -- Hongkong. We chose the cheapest round trip promo rates available online at Airasia, there was no direct flight from Davao to Hongkong so we had to go to Clark to catch the Hongkong route.

At first, I had a slight reservation about this airline because aside from being new, its reputation is not yet established due to its very fresh operation in the Philippines, but I did not stress out my brain analyzing what might happen when we're up on air, I just trusted God that He will guide us for this adventure.

So finally, on May 31, 2013, on a sunny Friday afternoon, we left Davao International Airport with Airasia. I was closely observing the movement of the plane hehehe! I kept my senses alive, I did not take a nap like other passengers.

Oh well, it was great, the aircraft did not sway up on air, no rattling above the clouds, or maybe because the weather was fine during our travel so we never experience any abnormalities. We safely landed at the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport at the Clark airbase at 4:20.

On the following day, we left Clark for Hongkong at 6:25 in the evening, the sky was so calm and quiet and the clouds rested like lovely cotton balls in the atmosphere while Airasia peacefully navigated the skyline of Luzon. I did not feel any bumpy stuff up there, the travel was peaceful and steady, no unnecessary movement of the aircraft and before I could finish the biscuit I was eating, the crew announced the preparation for landing at Hongkong international airport, wow! That was so fast and relax! Hongkong air travel from Clark took only one hour and forty minutes.  

Airasia's international pilots and even their domestic pilots are really well-trained because the aircraft did not bang when it touches the airport ground, it was a very smooth landing, felt like we just glided. They knew exactly how to maneuver an aircraft, very safe and sound.

I memorized the names of Airasia's pilots so that I can thanked them here for keeping us very safe during the flight. On our way to Hongkong, the pilot was Captain Kintanar and on our way back to Clark, Air asia's pilot was Captain Francisco. The flight attendants were also nice, very accommodating and approachable. They have a very good service too, both on board and at the ground.

It was a very relaxing air travel. I have a full trust with Airasia now, it's a beautiful plane to travel internationally. 

The Hobbit - unexpectedly boring

I must admit, I was extremely disappointed last year (December 2012 to be exact) when I was not able to catch up "The Hobbit" in cinema. I've been waiting it for years to arrive in the big screen so just imagine the exasperation I felt when it was finally shown and no one to go with.

Fast forward April 2013, after doing some DVD marathon and became greatly enchanted with Legend of the Seeker series, I tried to go back to the Lord of the Rings finest days by re-watching the three installments because it has something to do with my fascination towards Legend.

Legend and Lord have so many things in common. They shared the same genre - fantasy adventure. Both were filmed in the breathtaking valleys and wilderness of New Zealand, in fact when you watched it successively, you will notice the identical location of each scene. They had almost the same concept --- quest and wizardry. But the similarities ended up there.

While Lord of the Rings executed some of the finest sound and visual effects the world cinema had ever known, there's one important ingredient missing -- the magical quest of romance. Everyone loves fantasy but it is more appealing and spellbinding if two people moving on the big screen, fighting enemies, riding the thrill of spell and magic have at least some personal issues to battle on --- affairs of the heart.

You know amidst the terrible hurdles of saving the world and mankind in the fantasy world, fulfilling the mission, defeating evils and tyrants, viewers are still looking for that pang of magic sprung from the human heart -- that is to see the heroes and heroines fall in love. It makes the movie experience more exciting and memorable. 

It is what makes us relate. We cannot be like Frodo or Gandalf or Arwen or Legolas but we can at least felt love amidst the chaos in our surroundings. This important ingredient of romance in an epic adventure is what makes Legend of the Seeker different. We cannot be like Richard the seeker or Kahlan Amnell the confessor or Darken Rahl the tyrant or Cara Mason the Mord-Sith but we can at least felt love, fall in love just like them.

So after doing marathon on both shows, I remember what I had missed last December 2012 and since I am currently in the spell of magic and could not get over with the fantasy and tricks, I've decided to finally buy a copy of "The Hobbit". Its significance to my latest obsession is massive, aside from being the prequel of Lord of the Rings, the film is also shot in New Zealand.

So one lazy evening, I started watching it.

I don't know if it's for my senses, my mood at the moment, the DVD copy I bought or my obsession towards Legend of the Seeker, but after one hour I began to take a deep long breath, releasing fits of sigh and yawn, clear signal that I am slowly entering the parameter of extreme boredom.

Thirty minutes later I began hitting the "forward" button of my laptop. At first, I thought the trouble was in the DVD copy I bought so I stopped forwarding and patiently followed each scene, I even went back to the beginning of the film. But I could not really take it, not that I didn't understand the sequences of the film or scarcely grasped the adventure-of-the-elves plot but the entire thing is really tedious and awfully exasperating. 

I just can't believe it! The Hobbit, with all its glory and fantasy, is painfully boring and dull! Now I am very thankful I did not waste my money catching it in cinema.

what the story is trying to prove? It was just a simple journey of a wizard and elves in the barren mountain to reclaim a Dwarf Kingdom with dragons and goblins as nemeses, a story that can only be told in 30 minutes but stretched to almost three hours. If I am the student of that storytelling class I would be scrambling at my feet and left the room instantly.

The point of the story is just to lay a framework for Lord of the Rings so Bilbo Baggins was put into the center of the story and thrust to the scene where he must fell into the dark cave and encounter this ghastly creature named Gollum and take the ring and plunged the world into darkness, that's it no more no less.

And as if to add a little spike of history, the plot incorporated the concept where Bilbo prepared a book that chronicled his journey with the elves and obviously in finding the ring of power. His intention is to leave the book to Frodo, his nephew, so that well, maybe, when he is gone, his quest will be remembered sort of thing.

But I don't know, maybe I am too idealistic when it comes to fantasy adventure genre and I am looking for some elements which could not be provided with The Hobbit. But personally, well, I just realized there's no need to film The Hobbit to understand Lord of the Rings.

And to my shocking glory I read that the unexpected journey is just the first installment of the three film series of The Hobbit, oh my God! Please do not make it a series! What a catastrophe. One installment is enough! 

Reviews from film critics are unflattering and it scored 66% in rotten tomatoes which means The Hobbit did not live to the hype of fantasy, it did not meet expectations of a memorable film.