CandyMag.Com

Our dearest assistant features editor is celebrating her 25th year of existence today. Here’s what we love about her:

“I love how Angel always walks in with a big smile on her face. I admire her vibrant energy and love for life. Climbing mountains, seeing every inch of the Philippines, writing a killer article—there’s nothing Angel can’t do!” —Mia

“I love the fact that she’s a no-nonsense gal. She’s steadfast in her opinions, and she’s very reliable.” —Jennie

“She’s easy to work with and fun to talk to (especially about traveling!). I really appreciated it when she took time out to answer my questions about Mount Kinabalu last year so that I could explain it to my friends/fellow first-time climbers. When I reached the rest house and let her know I survived the long climb, she texted me, ‘The important thing is you survived. Not many people could have done that. Galing! I’m so proud of you. Don’t give up, okay? You can do it!’ That message boosted my spirit and helped me trek down the mountain the next morning, and for that, I shall be eternally grateful.” —Mimi

“All of us at the Candy team see each other as friends and Angel is sweet and fun just like everyone else! She’s a great explorer and traveler too.” —Margaux

“I love how Angel’s always on top of things—literally (she reaches new heights through her mountain-climbing adventures) and figuratively (she’s so organized and dependable). It’s the little things she does that truly make her an angel, from accompanying me to events and helping me deal with rock stars, to constantly welcoming us into her home for impromptu shoots. Enjoy your special day with your family and your personal Candy Cutie (yihee!). Oh, and just for today, you can have Joey—just for today. Hahaha! We love you, A. Hugs!” —Marla

“I love it when Angel and I (plus Steph) talk about how hot Christopher Gorham is in Ugly Betty. And just for today, you can have Henry—just for today. Hahaha! Happy Birthday. Angel! Mwah! :D” —Roch

“What I love about Angel: She loves Ugly Betty as much as Roch and I do! Heehee! It’s so much fun to watch episodes with her over lunch, and how we both get kilig at the same moments! Angel, happy birthday! Enjoy your special day! Hugs!” —Steph

“I love Angel because she’s a fellow Assumptionista. I love that we can live our adventures through her because she’s always up on some mountain, or some faraway place, discovering new things. Happy birthday, Angel! Hope we can go on an adventure together soon! (Surfing? Let’s goooo!)” —Macy

“Angel, thanks for sharing your cookies with me. Happy birthday! XOXO, Guzzip Gurrl.” —Candice of YES! magazine

To our resident Curly Sue, don’t change your ways! We love you just as you are. Don’t worry, in next year’s party, you won’t be the black girl anymore. Hehe!

Happy birthday!!!

The Candy staff

Hey, Candy peeps!

Are you all happily on Christmas vacation mode by now? I hope so! We at the Candy headquarters are also gearing up for the holidays. We’re having our company Christmas party tonight. The theme is high school and we’re all going as The Unicorn Club. Do you guys know who they are? Don’t worry, we’ll post pics!

Anyway, last Tuesday, Macy and I attended the opening of a brand new café in Greenbelt 5—Travel Café Philippines! It’s an amazing concept because aside from serving special native coffee and food, the café will also be used as a tool to promote tourism. You can even book tickets to go anywhere in the Philippines, right inside the café!

The event opened with a video of different travel-worthy spots in the country. Here's a snap I took while watching… so cheesy but I love it!

Then, we were serenaded by the Ryan Cayabyab Singers (RCS). They sang old Pinoy favorites like "Da Coconut Nut" and "Kay Ganda ng Ating Musika." They were also accompanied by the very talented flutist Mr. Jong Cuenco, and of course, Mr. Ryan Cayabyab himself!

After that, a speech by Tourism secretary Ace Durano.

Guess who else we bumped into at the event? Yummy magazine's Becky and Shar, your former fashion editor. Here we are trying coffee from the Cordilleras.

Check out their very delicious food. Concocted by a French chef, they're old Pinoy favorites with a twist!

So if I were you, I would head over to Greenbelt 5 and dine in Travel Café Philippines (for Christmas lunch with your family, perhaps?). And while you're there, you can book a trip to one of the islands for your summer vacation.

Merry Christmas, Candy girls, and advanced Happy New Year!

Angel 

The celeb chat with AJ was a success, except for the technical difficulties we encountered along the way. Here are some snapshots we took during the event.

CandyMag.com team Mel, Macy and I with AJ before the chat.

   
Because of some problems, Aj had to transfer computers. He was confused with the
questions of all the girls haha! 

 
He was just right beside me!

Here's Mimi checking on AJ.

A screenshot of the chat window. See AJ's webcam?

 
AJ holding a Candy Cupcake!

AJ's brother, Angelo, was waiting for AJ to finish.

I hope to see you all on our next Celeb Chat on Jan 11, 2008 from 7-8pm. It's Dino Imperial's turn to answer your questions. Happy Holidays girls!

Love Lots,
Roch <3 

Things that rocked last Friday, in no particular order:

1. Celebrating the holidays with my two freshman InTACT classes in Ateneo. Fastfood and Christmas presents make quite a good mix. I also discovered what a huge sucker I am for Christmas messages, from the simplest ("Thank you for the cookies!" and "I love your outfits!") to the most profound ones ("Few match your patience." and "You are a great mentor.") Thanks, sections K and UU.

2. Going Christmas shopping. Congratulate me because I'm almost done. Yay! Haha.

3. Christmas cupcakes! The Candy girls are such big fans of anything capable of inducing a sugar rush. What made this surprise even better is that it came from one of our favorite bands in the world. Thank you for the sweet gift, Sponge Cola.

R and S, plus the 4 Ms. We're missing one more M, one A, and one J.

4. Visits from Candy Cuties are always a lot of fun. Did you girls all get to chat with teen heartthrob and Abt Ur Luv star AJ Perez? Did you get kilig when he said he'd date a fan if she were really special? 'Cause we know we did!

5. Meeting up with one of my best-est friends for dinner. We talked for hours, and I even got to meet his special someone. I'm so happy for you, Ed. Yihee! Hehe.

Have a wonderful and meaningful Christmas season, Candy girls. I love you all!

Warm holiday hugs,
Marla 

Marla and I had a great shopping adventure yesterday at the SM Mall of Asia! Along with Candy Cutie Kenny Waymack (the event host) and members of the press, we were treated to lunch at Highlands Steakhouse.

It was my first time in Highlands, so I just had to order steak. The Rib Eye I ate was utterly divine.

After the meal, we were presented with this breakthrough PayPass card from MasterCard and Banco de Oro. All you had to do was tap the card on the PayPass machine, present your purchases (absolutely anything under P499), and it would automatically debit your card. Believe it or not, this fan-tap-stic card can also be used as an ATM or a credit card!

The fun part was getting to use the MasterCard PayPass and seeing it work wonders! We even had a game to try it. We were all handed a map of MoA and were asked to purchase at least six items from the nine various categories. The person who came back the fastest after one hour with the most number of purchases would win.

Marla and I studied the map then decided to trek in a semi-circular manner. BDO's Alex Marquez even tagged along to help us out. (Thanks, Alex!) We didn’t make a mad dash to buy all the items, but took our sweet time in picking out stuff we could give everyone in the office. In the end, we only spent P850, but it was money well spent.

At the Face Shop, figuring out which nail polish to buy. Too bad Marla didn’t find black. Meanwhile, I got violet and white!

Paying for our various purchases. The guy holding the Ghost Rider DVD is T3’s editor in chief, Ed. When we got back to the office, we were so excited to present our gifts to the Candy girls!

Here’s everything we bought minus the Café Latte Marla drank and the Jammin’ Jamaica pattie we gave to our driver who patiently waited for us. Can you spot anything you want?

Happy recipients of our purchases: Angel with her new rosary card, Steph with her Freaky Friday VCD (for more CMM moments!), Mia and her golden ponytail holders, Roch and Macy with their matchy-matchy giant pens (great for meetings), and Margaux’s sweet treats. (Sadly, Jennie hasn’t gotten her chocolates yet. )

Roch and Macy pretend to fight with their pen/lightsabers. Hehe! Maybe they were fighting over who would get my PayPass card? Sorry, it's mine. Haha!

In case you’re wondering how it works, there’s a radio frequency antenna in the card that communicates with the PayPass reader. That way, you don’t need to sign for anything or check your pockets to find loose change. Tap the card, and you can step out in seconds with your purchases!

Now addicted to tapping…
Mimi

PS: Thanks to everyone who chit-chatted with AJ in our chatroom. He had so much fun despite the technical difficulties, and he apologizes if he wasn't able to answer all your questions. Hopefully, the next chat we have with Candy Cutie/cover boy Dino Imperial will be as successful!