This club has a sleepy, low-key, more easygoing vibe compared to the other country clubs in the…read moremetro that are more into activities, activities, activities. It's located a bit farther, in the hills of Antipolo, but I think that contributes to a more naturally beautiful landscape for the golf greens. Valley Golf's much more dedicated to golf actually, and despite having that more laidback "personality," it still has regular patrons from oldtimer members and their guests to newbies. It consistently gets full on weekends! I've never tried golfing myself and have always just gone straight to the club's swimming pool, haha. I like that pool because there are hardly any people and you can just do laps or float along to your heart's content. Once, my friends and I even set up a blanket poolside for tanning. Haha! It's that private. The maintenance staff generally leave you alone once you show up there, but a lifeguard immediately pops up. The pool's big and kidney-shaped, and goes pretty deep at the farther end so be careful. There's a kiddie pool over on one side though for children. Shower & changing rooms are right there too, separate from the golf showers. The amenities at Valley Golf are pretty dated but they've steadily been improving through the years. The men's and women's locker rooms have been refurbished, and so have the gym and lobby/reception area. The restaurant's also been renovated and a new caterer currently services it. Good stuff! You can even have them serve the food poolside. There's also a gym somewhere, a golf shop, lounges, and function halls where you can hold events. Valley Golf's always a great lazy weekend hangout.

I remember first finding out about Mystery Manila when one of their sponsored ads caught my eye on…read moreFacebook. I have to give props to their advertising agency or advertising team as the ad was extremely enticing and I know I wasn't the only one whose attention was caught by the copy and graphic that they used. Anyway, when the website finally launched (www.mysterymanila.com), my friends and I rushed to book the first room we could get our hands on. It was called Chained Chamber and we were a group of five (two guys, three girls). Upon entering the grounds at Libis, we were greeted warmly, briefed, offered drinks, and finally, blindfolded, and accompanied to the room we would be solving the mystery in by a guide. I was extremely expressed by what the owners have done with the place and how they've been able to so ingeniously utilize the small space that they have. For that space in time, I really did feel like I was somewhere else and the challenge in itself was quite a feat to tackle. I don't want to give away too much, but allow me to liken the experience to the Amazing Race. Been back several times since the first visit, and I can say that those experiences were super fun as well. I can vouch for the Sinister Sensorium (Jupiter branch) and the Ticking Time Bomb (Libis). Have fun... and don't forget your brain food!

If you feel like you want to play a game... *puts on a Jigsaw voice*…read more You're bound to have fun at Mystery Manila. You and your friends are locked in a room for one hour, and you need to solve some kind of puzzle (depending on the scenario) to get out. No athletics or brute force needed here, just lots of skill points in problem solving and teamwork! It's all about mind games and riddles, which you'll have to solve under an hour. I went with a group of 5 friends for the Sinister Sensorium room in their Makati branch (across Mapua). This was lots of fun because each of us had to pick a disability: 2 of us had to be deaf, 2 blind, and 2 mute. I won't give any spoilers here, but let me just say that it we had an awesome time. Gather a group of friends and try it out! :D (We also realized that if we were to actually be in a serial killer scenario, we'd be so screwed. :P)

While we always go to Tagaytay - both planned and unplanned. We would pass Nuvali on our way up and…read moresometimes stop over when we're hungry. I've seen the 'Wakepark' signs but didn't really know where it is, maybe because I wasn't looking hard enough. Or I just have just looked it up online to see the map. My friends took me to go Republic Wakepark because it's their recreational activity, to get away from the stress that living in the Metro brings, well, also school. And it's something that's fun to experience together as a group (individually if we're being specific but you get what I'm saying). I love these types of things because I know everyone gets tired of doing the same old thing and with Nuvali being about an hour or less drive away from Metro Manila, it's the perfect thing to do. If you don't think it's for you and you're being invited to come along then you can always go and stay at the bar or at the pool, take pictures and hang out.

This is the main hangout space for my friends whenever we come back to Manila from studying abroad…read more The employees are very accommodating and are very helpful in teaching you how to wakeboard. It is in a great location and I would definitely recommend this place to anyone who loves water sports within the South area. However, the rentals for boards are quite expensive and are very limited to only a couple of boards if you have grown out of the slip-on boards. The food service takes quite awhile for you to get your food. Putting that aside, this is a place that I would highly recommend anyone to come to for a day mainly just for the awesome facility to wakeboard. It's also best to go during the weekdays early in the morning so that you can get the most out of your buck, or else you would be in line for quite awhile as that takes up your riding time. Night boarding on the weekends are also enjoyable and are less crowded than during the day based on my experience from going.

If you want to reenact that Tom Cruise rock climbing scene in Mission: Impossible 2, one possible…read moreway to do that is via wall climbing. We have to at least start with a harness and a belayer. Otherwise, we might fall to our untimely demise without those two important things. BaseKamp is stationed at the 5th floor of Market! Market! welcoming wall climbing hobbyists and enthusiasts. They offer lessons at P3500 for 9 sessions. It's 2 hours per session, so you'll really get those arms toned in no time. A single climb with a belayer is only P50. Imagine that! And I've always thought that this sport is expensive. For unlimited climbs for adults with belayer is P340; P140 without a belayer. They even encourage kids to try this sport out! If your child is between 7-13 years old, then he or she can try wall climbing already. An unlimited climb for kids without a belayer is P110 while with one, it's P310. It's also open from 12nn-9pm.

I have too many good memories here at Worlds of Fun. From the haunted train ride to the bump cars,…read moreeverything was magical specially because it was a time I spent with friends and I was at a point where the biggest problem I had was my first crush, it was indeed a good time. Looking back I was thankful that they've put up small amusement parks like these in malls where kids can easily go to, not just this one in particular but also in other malls too. As a child, we couldn't afford to go to big ones on our own because: 1. we didn't know how to drive and 2. our baons weren't enough to cover the expenses to go there. Unlike most kids nowadays! Worlds of Fun though, they're really budget friendly. Give a kid a couple of hundred and he'd be all set for the day. I also loved playing arcade games there though that wasn't my main focus. It was the haunted train ride that still haunts me to this day (scaredy cat!).

When the baby boomers of the previous generation had children of their own, the demand for places…read moreto take the little toddlers rose considerably, leading to some malls and supermarkets or other major shopping establishments to create mini-carnivals which catered to the young and the young at heart. I don't know if this is something unique to the Philippines, but when you're not up to travel all the way to Star City or Enchanted Kingdom, Worlds of Fun may be a very viable option for you. Boasting mini roller coasters and smaller scale carousels, as well as a plethora of modern, digital arcade games, this area provides children with multiple worlds of fun to go to! Designed in a grandiose fashion that I still find impressive (the entrance gateway is in Egyptian style, for example), the area manages to make something affordable and reasonable look like a lot of fun, even to a young adult like myself, who may be secretly wishing to have the ability to go back to those carefree times.

For someone who had never experienced field trip from kindergarten to high school (because the…read moreschool I used to attend to is such a killjoy to all the glorious things a student could enjoy), I was too ecstatic to go on a second one for my minor subjects in college. The first one was in Vigan for my Histo I class wherein I, f.y.i, drowned for the first time. It's also funny because I was thinking that maybe this time in Subic, I'd suffer another tragedy or injury. Thank God I didn't. Whew. What made this experience so fun was because my professor crush was also there at that time. Apart from his charming presence, it was also thrilling to experience the tree drop where I thought I was gonna die because the harness won't work at all. Thankfully, it did work before I face the ground and there's a giant foam to catch me if it failed. The facilitators also made sure that everyone is safe before jumping. They do take precautionary measures seriously. It was also fun eating at a boodle fight on a plate. Yes, we ate on a plate that is placed on top of a banana leaf.

If you're looking for something new to do, then you should visit Tree Top Adventure. My husband and…read moreI wanted to go on a day trip somewhere near the city so we decided to check out Tree Top Adventure. They are basically a forest with different activities revolving around the trees. There are activities where you simply walk or ride alongside and above the trees. Then there are activities for the more adventurous ones where you either swing through the trees or drop down from one really tall one. I like how they stuck to tree activities, without destroying the place. There are no carnival rides or games or anything else to steer away from the whole point of the place. It's a great alternative to the hustle and bustle of the city. Not only do you experience something new, you get to clean your lungs too! My husband and I had a great time there. We did the canopy ride, as well as the superman and drop. I was scared at first but I enjoyed them as I was in the moment. We will definitely go back with our future kids someday. Hopefully they maintain it that way.

This is the 2nd time that we had an event held at Valle Verde Country Club. This past Sunday,…read moreafter 2 years of planning, our family reunion was realized. I'd like to do this review and share our experiences from planning and the actual event. First of all, I give Anne, the Sales Reservation Officer 5 stars for her assistance through the process. I am based abroad and I did everything remotely and it was not easy. She was very attentive and truly cares in giving us a great experience at this club. We encountered some mishap on the function room set up and she facilitated the set up changes we requested and still able to meet our timeframe. The event was a family reunion which entails a lot of bonding and therefore this Agono & Barras rooms should not be recommended to cater for this purpose because the divider cannot be opened fully to have 1 big function room . The food was delicious from the main to the desserts but the best part are the service staff. They were attentive and catered to everything we needed. Lastly, this club has a very old and dull looking facade. The club sign is an eye sore and truly needs some serious refurbishing. It matters because that's the first thing you see and the club sign would be nice to be featured on the video of the event. That takes out 1 star for this my review. Thank you Anne and to your wonderful service staff.

Note: This is a 4.5 Stars Review!…read more My parents have been going here even before I was born. This Country Club was one of the first clubs in Manila. Though the facilities are not as new or "flashy" as the other clubs in the Makati area, Valle Verde Country Club or VVCC feels like a second home for me and my family. I spent my summers here with my friends and cousins. This is where we would have Sunday lunches with family and friends. My dad and brother still go here on weekdays to play tennis. I go here to eat! :) Like any club, you need to be a member to get into VVCC. I only get to eat here because of my dad's membership and he's been a member since the 70's. Some of the waiters here have been working for VVCC since the 80's and know the members like they were family. They know my dad so well that, once they see him, they will have his regular order prepared! The food here is top-notch and they also make a point to add new dishes every month. My favorite dishes are the Pork Chops (two thick pork chops + rice and unli-gravy), Corned Beef, Lengua con Champignon (ox tongue with mushroom butter sauce), and Roast Beef. All their dishes are delicious. I haven't ordered anything I did not like. On Sundays, they have their lunch buffet which includes made-to-order Mongolian rice and barbecue/grilled meats. The lunch sets are "super sulit" and the desserts/pastries are very good too! Did I mention that their dishes each cost about Php250-350 only? Nice! :D Lastly, they also have a "Party Pack" or "Christmas Specials" menu! Available for Take-out and Pick-up, their big orders are perfect for special occasions or get-togethers with family and friends. My dad ALWAYS orders their Paella and Chicken Galantina! I also recommend their Roast Beef. Super delicious dishes! Saves you time and energy come Noche Buena! :D

We have already tried Escape Hunt Bangkok and it being the original, we assumed we already tried…read morethe best. But Escape Hunt Manila was way better! First off, we love the place. It was bigger and more comfortable, and it exuded a more elegant yet still cozy feel. And of course, the best assets of this Manila branch is its people. From the owner (Mark) to the game masters (we had Carlo and Sam), we were treated like royalty. We were a big family celebrating my niece's 15th birthday, and Escape Hunt provided a nice cake for the birthday girl. All 14 of us also played at the same time and the staff volunteered to look after our 3 little ones under age 7 since it was not yet a busy hour. And of course the games were so much fun! It required lots of teamwork, critical thinking, problem solving, fast decisions, and even some math (yes!) but it was all worth it. Good thing we were the only ones scheduled to play during our assigned time because I'm pretty sure we got pretty loud. :) Definitely a place to visit for locals and tourists alike. And since their 3 themed rooms change every 6 months, there is so much more to look forward to. Thanks Escape Hunt Manila for a wonderful family bonding experience! We'll be back!

I still call the place ULTRA. Most of my friends still do. Now, it is formally named Philsports…read moreArena, short for Philippine Institute of Sports Arena. My earliest memory of ULTRA was when my parents brought me here for various sporting events. After that, I would not hear about ULTRA again until I got into running and my friend encouraged me to try its outdoor oval. The track has a rubberized surface designed to relieve the force of impact in my strides, which must be the reason why it attracts both casual joggers and hardcore marathoners. To give some sort of order, the sprinters were relegated to take the inner lanes while the slow joggers stayed on the outer. (Also, I think this is where our national athletes practice and they have the place all to themselves in the morning.) It was a midsummer sunset run but somehow, the place was cool. It had a nice view of the tall buildings by the horizon, which reminded me of the field at the Manila Polo Club. One only has to pay 35 pesos to use the track, which is open until 9pm. It stretches 400 meters long, meaning I had to go around 25 times if I were to achieve my target distance. Another thing worth mentioning is that ice-cold water and Gatorade is being sold by the bleachers.

Carl (the previous reviewer) is right. Nobody I know calls this place "PhilSports Arena" or…read more"PhilSports Complex". To us, it was and it will always be ULTRA. I love it here. I have plenty of fond memories in the oval as I used to run for the track team back in college. So I've witnessed several sunsets here with people that I loved and bonded with even for but a time. The pool is decent too. I've even been inside the fencing hall because my best friends used to train there as they were part of the varsity team in their respective universities. This place is great for a run, a swim, or even just for hanging out. The arena isn't half-bad either.

I was actually confused on how I would categorize this part of my village park. The truth is that…read morethis facility of the park is just a covered court and is used for a wide array of different activities. When it was first made, this court was actually meant to be a volleyball court or a badminton court. It could be used by the village residents absolutely free of charge. There were times when my mother and I would spend our afternoons playing badminton here. Those were the good old days. Anyway, things have changed since then. Nowadays the net isn't there anymore. Im not sure what happened to it, but with the net gone people don't play volleyball or badminton there anymore. However, during the morning I noticed that the court is used for Zumba. There are moms, lolas, and titas there who all dance to the beat in order to lose weight. I have no idea if its free or open to anyone though.