Oozing at Onze

Last year, I asked my good friend Mister Google what Onze means but unfortunately, there was no exact meaning about the word. But I remembered Maam Sheila telling me before that they named the place Onze because it’s actually their house number. So I figured that it’s actually Once (in Spanish) and was just spelled as Onze to make it sound “saucy”. Note: this is just my own observation. 

Onze is owned by fellow Ungo Runner Sheila Apepe Colmenares. Maam Sheila calls herself the Golden Girl Runner. She and her 3 kids helped out in preparing and serving of the food and drinks. Of course, the ever helpful Ate Cerile is always there to wrap things up for you.

Located at 11 Orchid Street, I considered this cozy resto bar my haven. My first visit to Onze was last November when Agz and I had a nice time chatting and drinking beer. We were sitting at the outdoor sofa and just chilling out and we didn’t even notice time had gone so fast.

Onze serves San Miguel Light and Red Horse beers, Tanguy Ice and a few short orders. But now they added a new set meal in their menu: a choice chicken, fish or pork; served with mixed veggies and macaroni salad; a dessert and iced tea. And the price? – just 148 pesos!                

V-Day

On Valentine’s Day, Agatha and had our dinner at Onze. I pre-ordered the set meal (with fish as my choice) and was instantly salivating just seeing the dish. The fish is tender, so juicy and was served with garlic. The mixed veggies complimented the main dish. 

main dish with the molten lava

After a few spoonfuls of our well-cooked meal, I quickly munched the dessert.  Agz can’t get over the taste of the vanilla ice cream. We had to order some more dessert. We had the Molten Lava and it was indeed a perfect pair for our main dish.

If your weakness is sweets, then the Molten Lava is the perfect must-have at Onze. It is served with Brownies bursting with yummy chocolate syrup topped with vanilla ice cream. Now I call that lip-smacking!

Kwikies

Onze also serves short orders. They call it Kwikies (not the one you’re thinking... you naughty, you!). Their best-selling Lasagna is really a must-try for the first-timers. Other Kwikies include calamares (I once ordered this but paired with rice), chicken sandwich, tuna melt sandwich, fries and kropek.

Calamares and Lasagna 

Desserts

Desserts are as welcoming in Onze. Aside from the Molten Lava, they also serve Peach Cobbler (also topped with vanilla ice cream), Creamy Flan, Chocolate Fondeau and Sylvanas con Crema. If you like going Pinoy, they have this delicious Suman embedded with sliced ripe mango and served with native tsokolate or tablea.

Runners’ Refuge

Ungo Runners during Max's Bday

Since its opening last October 10, 2010, Onze became a haven for runners like me. Running groups Ungo, TeamTytsBogdo and RH Runners, goes to Onze for some re-hydration especially after a hard day’s run or simply celebrating after a completing a big race. 

Last week, Ungo Supremo Max Limpag celebrated his birthday with a night run and everyone headed to Onze for some delectable Lasagna and wine. And last year, Dailymiler friend and serial marathoner Wayne Plymale had a kick of Red Horse at Onze. He also had his first taste of balut there.

L: Katol with the singles last V-Day | R: Max enjoying his birthday at Onze

The homey feeling at Onze makes this a come-on haven for me and Agatha. The place is simply very modest. The food tastes really good and it’s cheap. I would love to make this my own refuge.

It was a gastronomic love affair for me and Agatha last Valentine’s Day.  Onze just made it simple yet perfect.

Hmmm.. would love to have the Tuesday Group to go to Onze next week.

*burp* Excuse me! J

ONZE
11 Orchid St. Capitol Site, Cebu City
In close proximity to STK and Yayoy's Grill
Very near to Hotel Asia and BOs Coffee (near Cebu Doctors Hospital)
Opens from 7:30 pm to 12 MN (open everyday Monday to Sunday)
Usually, last call for food is at 12-12:30MN
FREE WIFI for those who want to make use of it.

Photos by: Belle, Arianne, Ray & Sam

1000kms in Running

Today marks my 1000kms in Running.
Thank you to all my DM, TTB and Ungo Family
for all the support, motivations and inspiration. 

10 Things I Am Thankful For

There are many things that we are thankful for the year 2010. For some, it could be for good health, good business, good education, prosperous year, great career, or even having a great relationship. Let me thank some things that happened to me in the year 2010 especially in this sport that we all love - RUNNING!

Here are my 10 things that I am thankful for:

my first race

1. CCM 01-10-10 - this was my first race. Kumpare Kirk Milan invited me in September 2009, I wasn't able to join one race for that year. But luck is on my side. I was able to ran the first ever Cebu City Marahon in its 5K race. Since then, I was hooked! CCM 01-09-11 will be my Runniversary and will ran my very first Full Marathon! 

2. 19 Races for 2010 - Yes! I have completed 19 races for this year. I actually signed up for more than that but I missed Run for IT, Run for the Footure, Hearts Run, MO Plus Run and RunRio Leg 3 due to time constraints and family emergency. But all in all, I've finished all 19 races (16 of these races are held in Cebu City, one at the Fort Bonifacio in Metro Manila, one in Danao, Bohol and another one in Dumaguete City) were done with sweat and tears and had my personal bests at that!

Ungo runners after the CDU 5th University Run

3. A Shoe Story: Running with Nikia - this is my blog which I started last May 2010. The blog title came up when I had my new shoes -- New Balance 749; got it from a friend a few days before the SRP Sundown Run and named her Nikia which means "people of victory".

 4. Ungo - I am very thankful for my Ungo family. These runners have been very helpful and motivating all the way. I first joined last April and been active for a few months till I was into that Friday night running hiatus due to schedule constraints. Last August, I was able to run each Friday with this group. The Friday Night Runs from SunStar to IT Park is keeps us Ungo Runners bond together. Thanx to Max Limpag and the Ungo family for welcoming me.

5. Dailymile - I joined dailymile last April and since then, I was addicted to it. I already deactivated  my Facebook page but now I am logging my miles in dailymile. Met new friends from here and abroad thru this social networking site for athletes and runners like me. Thank you DMers!

me at the Milo 21K

6. Two Pikermis - Yes! I've ran two half-marathons this year. My first was during the 34th Milo Marathon Cebu Eliminations last September 05. My second was last October during the CitiGym Halloween Run. I beat my personal best and I am thankful I was able to pace with Agz the whole race. 

7. VFFs - I purchased my first Vibram Five Fingers (KSO Flow) last August and since then I was hooked to being a minimalist runner. I still use Nikia (NB 749) during transition running but most of my runs are with Phalangging (name I coined to my VFF. Thanx to Doc King2x Perez and Jacob Ong). I also purchased a second pair of VFFs (KSO Trek) and named him Spock (name courtesy of Doc Ling2x Abella). I will be running with Spock this CCM 2011.

TTB after the CitiGym Halloween Half Marathon

8. TeamTytsBogdo - ah! my ever fun-loving TTB family! Who can forget this group emerged because of the love for running tights! Well, I got two tights now and I got a TTB family to motivate me every single run! Thank you TTB!

9. Unofficial Full Marathon and Beyond - I had the courage to finish 46.15 kms from JY Square to Balamban with my fellow Ungo runners. This was my longest run so far and I was running with Phalangging. Yes, on VFFs! See story here.

@KM34 marker in Danao

10. 34K Birthday Run - Since I wasn't able to join the RunRio Leg 3 32K Run with my fellow TTB mates in Manila due to Dad's hospital confinement, I opted to ran from Cebu City to Danao City for 34 kilometers -- that's 1KM per year of my existence. Next year, I will do it again. Of course, adding 1KM!

"Sayang ang Miles" - as quoted by TTB mate Eric Agaton, sayang jud ang miles! From my first 5K race in 01-10-10 up to this afternoon's year-ender run, I was able to run a distance of 838.52 kilometers. Since I joined Dailymile in April, I was able to log 804 kilometers. 

These are just 10 things that I am thankful for. I know there are still lots to thank for but I'll just keep it this way. But most of all, I am thankful that the Lord gave me the strength and the courage to finish all the races, all the training runs, for all the blessings, the pains, the sores, the heat, the friends, the love, the spirit, the faith. Without Him, I am nothing. Thank you Lord!

Thank you all! May each of us be blessed with good health as we enter a new year. All the best for 2011!

Birthday Run

I really wanted to ran on my birthday.... and to ran  1 kilometer per year of my life. 

I was invited by fellow TTB members for the RunRio Leg 3 November 21 and ran 32K at that. I said to myself that this race will be very timely as I will turn 34 by the day before the race. But to back track, I was supposed to go home to Dumaguete and ran at the Dumaguete City 3/4 Marathon. Anyhow, I was fully prepared for the RunRio 32K run. But luck isn't on my side as my Dad was confined at the hospital a day before my birthday. His blood pressure shoot up. So there I was throwing away the excitement of running for the 2nd time in Manila.

But I realized that family comes first. Of course I had to take care of my Dad and I decided not to join RunRio and gave my race bib and D-Tag to RH Runner Daryl Igot. Later I knew it was fellow Ungo Runner April Dagandan who ran for my race number (thanx April!). So yeah! Family always should come first!

And while all of my TTB running mates were excited in their Manila trip, I was at the hospital to take care of my Dad. But the itchiness of my feet prevailed as I decided to ran on my birthday as my dad was resting at the hospital. He actually knew first hand that that was my goal that day. So I decided to use Nikia and ran on my birthday!

Katol @ pan break

What made it more special is that I was able to ran with friends who supported me in my birthday run. I ran with Agz from KM0 to Consolacion while Doc King2x and Adz waited for us. We had a short pan break at Julies and ran again. We were heading North and hoping to reach the KM34 mark in time for lunch. 

Doc King2x & Agz at Km17

Adz decided to be our support crew along with his cute dog. The 3 of us ran and did some "find the kilometer marker" game. It was basically a very relaxed run -- lots of walk breaks, re-hydration, chi (ka) running and buko juice break. We are even laughed our asses off when we see signs of food like lechon or local delicacies. We can't help but envy and feel hungry!

Each kilometer marker was an achievement for us as we slowly paced on the road amidst the dust, the heat and some reckless drivers of vehicles passing by. But inspite of all these, I was determined to finish the run and grab hold of the KM34 marker.

Most of the time, we are just goofing ourselves and take photos when we reach a significant marker. Adz gladly waited for us every 2kms to offer water. He was indeed a big help.

Doc King2x @ buko juice break -- Adz giving water to sweetyms Dockie

Reaching the Goal

The last 2 kilometers was very sloooooow as we are already dragging ourselves. I felt slight pain in my right big toe already. I said to myself that someday I will say goodbye to my big toe. My left big toe said goodbye to me when I conquered the 46.15kms ran from JY to Balamban last September.

I was so excited to see the KM32 marker. Inspite of he heat, we were still able to smile to get a photo of ourselves. And we know that the last 2 kms will be another achievement for us. And of course, we can't help but getting hungrier as we pass by some food stands.

Seeing the KM34 marker past Danao City was a sight to behold. I can't explain the exact feeling at that very moment. All I can think of is how happy I am to reach my goal that day and I am very happy to achieve it with my friends. 

Happy Birthday to me!

A very yummy lunch awaited us at the fish port. A nice treat to ourselves. The long run paid off. My birthday run was a success. 

Thank you to Agz and Doc King2x and Adz for their warm support during my birthday run. Another tick off in my bucket list. Another personal achievement. 

Thank you Lord for giving me more life to my years and more years to my life. 

I turned 34 years old last November 20, 2010. I figured... my age is just a number. :-)

NEXT STOP: Adrian Catingub's 33KM Birthday Run on December 19, 2010

Wayne's World

It's been almost a month that I haven't posted a write-up. So please bear with me as I will make a series of write-ups in the next few days or so.

Wayne with Doc Reel

The month of November was one of the best months ever for me... not to mention the fact that it was my birthday month but also because a good friend was here in Cebu to visit us and give motivation and inspiration to the running community.

Wayne Plymale hails from San Francisco and was here in Cebu last  November 16. I had the opportunity to see him first as I fetched him at the airport. Thanx to Sir Jerry Chua and Epoy Perral for setting up the transportation needs for Wayne's arrival. Wayne was donning his PAU orange finisher's t-shirt. He was so proud to share his experience from his first ultramarathon. He joined the 50K run from Nasugbu to Tagaytay Sunday before he arrived here.

Dinner with TTB

The sumptuous meal at Spice Fusion made Wayne love Cebu more. Thanx to Epoy (again!) for hosting the dinner. We were so lovin' the food. Wayne shared his experience with the running sport with the members of TeamTytsBogdo. 

Wayne with TTB (photo courtesy from Doc Tata)

Run for Wayne

Wayne with his Yogo

Eric Agaton and I had a previous ran with Wayne from Mango Park Hotel to IT Park in Lahug on Wednesday. A Run for Wayne was held on Thursday with TTB and some friends in the running community. We started at the Coffeecat in IT Park and ended at Onze (TTBs and Ungo's tambayan!). Wayne had fun and he admitted he isn't used to running at night. After the run, we had some re-hyrdration Cebuano-style! The RH really had a kick at Wayne. He drank 2 bottles of Red Horse beer while also trying out the local Balut (duck embryo).

Friday Night Ungo Run

I had the honor to introduce Wayne to the members of the Ungo Running Cub during the Friday Night Run. It was a short but simple introduction. But it was Wayne who was actually nervous in his inspirational talk. He just went ahead with a short talk and a Q&A after that. He answered one question from Bikik Besavilla that made every jaw dropped. The questions was "How many pairs of shoes do you have?". Wayne's answer was "Ive got more than 90 pairs of shoes already since I started running!". I'm like.... what?!? I  only have 2 shoes and 2 VFFs since I started running last January. Amazing isn't it.

Wayne with the Ungo Runners

The usual run ended at IT Park with all Ungo making all smiles during the photo ops with Wayne. Of course, another round of Yogo at the Coffeecat ended the night. I also celebrated the first minute of my birthday with Wayne and some Ungo friends.

Well, I hope I got my stats right for Wayne:

• started running since he was in middle school
• ran more than 70,000 miles
• had more than 90 pairs of shoes
• ran 24 full marathons
• ran 25 half-marathons
• ran his first 50K Ultramarathon from Nasugbu to Tagaytay
• RunRio 32K was his 1000th race to date
• need I say more?

Check out Wayne's blog: Crossroads Of A Long Distance Runner

Thank you Mr. Wayne Plymale for the inspiration. Till we meet again on CCM2012.

Next Stop!

Next Stop!

TeamTytsBogdo and RH Runners
will join forces to endure 32K!

www.runrio.com

Runner's Circle

I ask my friend Mister Google to define the word “Circle” for me. And he came up with several sites. So I checked out Mister Wiki and he says, “In mathematics, a circle generally is the set of all points in a plane at a fixed distance from a fixed point. 

A Circle may also refer to a Social circle, a group of socially interconnected people; a Circle pit, a style of dancing associated with ska, punk rock, thrash and heavy metal music. A Circle is a place in Alaska and Montana in the US”.

Moreover, social circles are groups of socially interconnected people. A Social circle is distinguished from a social pyramid in that there are two perspectives that can be used to describe a social circle: the perspective of an individual who is the locus of a particular group of socially interconnected people; and the aggregate perspective of a group of socially interconnected people, such as cohesive blocks.¹

But in Cebu, we have the Runner’s Circle. It’s a group of runners who runs every Wednesday night at the Cebu Business Park. The running clinic includes paced group runs, mini lectures, raffles and freebies. The running clinic is organized by Runnr and this is their way of giving back to the running community.

Jerwin Ngo from Nike

After my painful sundown run, I decided to pass the run last night but brought Mikaela instead and be the PhotoBogdo for last night running clinic.

Last night was the 5th series of the running clinic. Jerwin Ngo, product specialist of Nike Philippines, was the speaker and he talked about… well, shoes!

In his mini lecture, Jerwin shared the importance of choosing the right shoes based on the foot type.  Foot type refers to the differences in foot structure and shape. He emphasized on the pronation of the feet as runners may have neutral pronation, overpronation and supination.

SMS Runners after the run

Last night’s running clinic had a special participation from the SMS or the Samahang Mananakbo ng Smart. Maam Grace Ruperto, Smart’s Trade Marketing Manager, gladly gave her business card and asks if I can send her the photos. SMS runners are great bunch of people. They love the running fever as they donned their official blue singlet… and they simply had fun!

Of course, the Runnr’s Circle will not be complete without the photo-ops. As you can see, it is very evident that this one way to make the runners be quiet – by making smile for a group picture. 

Left photo: Accenture Running Club with Jack and Weng
Right photo: Katol, Rowena and Glen 

So run with us! Catch the Runnr’s Circle Running Clinic at the Ayala Active Zone here in Cebu. Who knows you’ll be like Doc Cecille Milan who won a Polar watch. Hmmm…. Nice!

Regular runners in the Runnr's Circle
TTB Sighting: FunnyBogdo on Ungo Shirt and QueenBogdo on Orange Shirt

Slideshow photos in the PicasaWeb Album: Runnr's Circle

Source: 1wikipedia

Birthday Run

Today is a good day. With so many blessings in her life, Dr. Cecille "QueenBogdo" Milan celebrated her birthday with a run. Members of the TeamTytsBogdo donned their official singlet and ran with their, well... tights! 

TeamTytsBogdo with QueenBogdo Doc Tata (in white singlet)

Doc Tata got her wish for everyone in the team to run on her special day. The route was about 10K and the weather cooperated throughout the run. Present during the run were RH Brothers Chard and Chill, Eric Bogdonator, Pastor Jack, Christian (nice bike bro!), Superman Doc Izzy, Abi Glamorosa, Wonder Colili, Cadjing, Benjchz and Kalbogdo. RH1 paced with her wife Ivy (how sweet!) while Axl and Richelle joined the group when we reach McDo at Fuente. Coach Boying was the photobogdo for the day. :-)

Saw some runner friends during the run. Jaymarl Padreganda of ARC had his early Pikermi today. Elite Pam Juday also had her quad zip code run this morning. Hanep!

Of course, the run won't be complete without some funny moments courtesy of Pastor Jack and foodie courtesy of Doc Tata. The moron from Baybay really tastes good. Thanx to Doc Tata and Boying's mom for bringing home some delicacy. :-)

So cheers to you Doc Tata! May Jah bless you and keep you. May you have more years to run and more runs for your years ahead. Happy Birthday!

By the way, I can't help but laugh everytime you say "Gorilla Feet!" at me and Phalangging! :-)

So who's next?

More pics courtesy of Coach Boying:

TTB Rules!