The Last Hurrah

Just one more day to go before I get back to work; and what better way to spend it than by going to Tagaytay for the New Year for the last hurrah this holiday season.

Tagaytay is just about an hour away by car from my place. Situated at the top of a mountain, Tagaytay City is among the best tourist destinations in the metro. Unlike other travel destinations, Tagaytay City is pretty much urbanized with dozens of shopping stores, restaurants and clubs any yuppie would enjoy hanging out in. It is paradise for those of us who wanted to get away from the city yet still feel the urban life. Since Tagaytay City is located on top of a mountain, the wind breeze is pretty cold this time of the season. Temperature can drop up to 15 degrees Celsius- just like in New York except for the snow!

Since it's only an hour away from the City, my family and I left at around 5:30PM. Tagaytay is well known for it's very cold weather and tonight was no exception. Jackets and scarf in hand, we traveled for over an hour and a half (thanks to the heavy traffic- seems like everybody is either on their way up to Tagaytay or going down from it); our destination- the Summit Ridge Hotel; a hip place for yuppies, families and businessmen who wants to cool down and relax while taking in a marvelous view of the city.

The Robinson's Summit Ridge Hotel & Promenade

Summit Ridge Hotel boasts a large promenade filled with various stores, restaurants and recreational activity spots for the whole family to enjoy. This evening, there was a bazaar set up near the fountain and hundreds of guests loiter around the area, checking out the different items for sale or dining at the finest restaurants in the area. Since I'm a shopaholic, I couldn't resist from taking a peek at the bazaar and see for myself if there are any items I might actually be interested in getting for myself. Necklaces, bead bracelets, scarves and animal hats adorned several stores. Though I found nothing really interesting and unique, I was fascinated with the animal head caps they have on display. I thought only kids wear those stuff- but I was wrong. Adults and grannies loiter the area wearing different animal heads on their heads! It was hilarious. I wouldn't try one because I'm afraid it will mess up my hair. 

The Top View Of The Promenade

There were two spacious floors to the summit promenade. Restaurants and shops are littered all over the place. The second floor balcony is a popular picture perfect spot for people who brought their cameras. A sucker for good pictures myself, I had several shots of me taken on the balcony and the bridge way.

Kids won't get bored with the place. An arcade area is set up on the second floor with several games for the little brats to enjoy. I'm not big on kids so I just let my uncle and my mom bring my nephew there to play while I stroll around the area enjoying the gust of cold wind and the snaps of the paparazzi wanting to take my picture with other tourists and guests.

A Paparazzi Who Took My Picture

My & My Famous Mom By The Arcade

Another Paparazzi Took My Picture While I Was On The Phone

Since the place was jam packed with people and an acoustic band was set up by the fountain on the ground floor, it's quite difficult for us to find a good place to eat. There are about more than 10 restaurants on the promenade: Giligan's Island, Sanctuaryo, Inasal Bacolod Chicken, Pepper Steak Lunch and even Starbucks to name a few. We found an empty table at Cows On Fire- a grilling and steakhouse and I'm glad we did. It's not very often we go to Tagaytay so I'd rather try something different here rather than the old usual restaurants I can find and dine in the metro. Besides, I'm in the mood for burgers and steaks anyway and Cows On Fire is just the perfect place to enjoy it.

Starbucks & Giligans At The Summit Ridge

Cows On Fire- I Love It!

The meal was sumptuous and not very expensive. I ordered the Cheese and Chicken Strips for appetizers which costs P255 and for the main course, Salisbury Steak which costs only P279 and a glass of bottomless Iced Tea. They also serve beers and wines that goes best with your steak. My uncle ordered a bucket of San Miguel Lights and I had 2 bottles for the evening just to experience the perfect steak-beer dinner the way the Australians do. I wasn't disappointed at all. The whole meal was excellent!

We headed back home at around 02:00 AM since the traffic almost wounded down. The whole trip was fun and relaxing. It was the perfect adventure to close the holiday season. Next year, we might go somewhere different to celebrate the last hurrah- but as far as I'm concerned, this was one of the best I had experienced.

Happy New Year Everyone!