4 things to do when you’re in Nuvali

Life in Nuvali Philippines
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Aside from feeding the koi at the lake, what else is there to do in Nuvali these days?
(Watch out for a separate post on the newest restaurants in Nuvali)

1. Family fun for everyone.

Enjoy the lake breeze, do some shopping or ride the water taxis.

Last Sunday I saw a lot of families on their weekend pasyal at the retail center of Nuvali, also known as Solenad.

There was a bazaar as part of the pre-Halloween festivities–so for those who love their retail therapy, there’s definitely shopping to be done. Am guessing we’ll see more of these weekend markets as Christmas approaches!

Solenad at Nuvali

One of Nuvali’s thrusts centers on social interaction, and the 4-hectare lake is the main draw for families looking to enjoy the scenery and have quality time for almost next-to-nothing.

Solenad at Nuvali
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Those looking for more active activities can ride the water taxis around the lake for P30 per head…

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…or choose to rent one of those cute Nuvali bikes for P60 per hour:\"Solenad

These are simple bicycles good for leisurely rides from Solenad until the EvoLiving Center, perfect for those cloudy afternoons!  The smallest bikes they have are still too big for children though (unless they have incredibly long legs!)

2. Get eco-aware.

Learn about our environment and how we can do our part in taking care of it–as if you were on an educational field trip!

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I’m not sure if the EvoLiving Center –the big white building at the end of the lake– gets the volume of visitors it deserves.

sustainable living in Nuvali

We checked out the exhibit area on the environmental vision of Nuvali and were wowed by the different features of this eco-city!

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4 things to do when you’re in NuvaliRead More »

manilarat signing off.

Sustainable Living

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Been dreaming of wide open spaces and clean fresh air everyday for a good while, and now I get to smile in my heart and say it for real: it’s all happening.

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Am moving on to literally “greener pastures” in Nuvali, Sta. Rosa, Laguna, and will no longer be a true blue manilarat.

Thank you for the visits through the years and most especially for the kind words. Will maintain this site as a tourism jump off point to keep fighting the good fight to #helpDOT, but do hope you also join me on my journey towards sustainable living in MyNuvaliHome.com:

I dream of a simple home, a home that keeps me home.
I dream of a home that’s pretty.
I dream of a home that makes me happy.
I dream of a home that would make retreats and vacations unneeded, because the clarity and deep joy that I find in them, I find at home, everyday.
I dream of a home that has both silence and laughter.
I dream of a home that has love.

My Nuvali Home: my first big adult commitment.

It’s not just a house; it’s a big YES to a lifestyle shift– to more quiet everydays, filled with meaning, in resonance with the quiet shift to a healthier, more conscious lifestyle that values and always upholds what truly matters: family, people, ordinary lives, joy in the everyday, helping others, helping who needs help now. It’s one that requires a lot of listening, and a lot of path-clearing… one that is awakened, awakening and awakens.

This is the sustainable life, this is what My Nuvali Home is about.

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house designing

Uncategorized

Nuvali house drawings

This is my most recent work: a house plan.
I am building a house. My house. Before 30.

That’s something I wrote I would do before December, and with grace, it is here before me– what I asked for.

THANK YOU from the deepest of my heart.

Sunrooms!

Green Design and Architecture

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My fave new word!

Been researching patio and indoor garden designs to incorporate into my house, and came across Rusco, a door and window supplier which offered exactly what I was looking for– a bright, sunny happy room for lounging, entertaining, or doing some serious quiet time:

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And what could be a more apt word for it than sunroom!

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I can already see it– a cheery sunroom surrounded with green vertical gardens and happy living walls…!

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Ayayay, so exciting!

More sunroom photos at Rusco.Ca.

Do you know what a coconut apple is?

Farming and Gardening Food Sustainable Living

My friend Cris told me she opened up a coconut at home today and along with extremely rich coco oil, it had a soft whitish mass inside.  A quick search told her it was actually a coconut apple:

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(Image from Fresh Greenery)

I\’ve never seen anything like this before, but turns out it\’s widely eaten in Latin America and India.

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(Image from Niya\’s World)

Angel Nunez from Belize writes:

When a coconut falls to the ground, it is already mature and partly green and brown. This coconut has the potentials of growing into a new plant. Shortly, in the presence of moisture, air and sunlight, this nut will break a small shoot with miniature leaves. Soon it will break roots which will feed water to the developing plant.

However, before the roots shoot, the plant uses the coconut water inside the nut. It is at this early stage that a white spongy material grows inside the nut to provide nutrients to the plant before the roots sprout. This white spongy material is the coconut apple. To enjoy a juicy sweet apple you need to cut open the nut at the right stage just before the roots are too long or the apple will be dry and tough and will no longer be sweet.

Anyone knows what this is called in Tagalog?

Never pictured a coconut sprouting, even if my friend Cris always tells me they make good indoor plants and are everywhere in Ponderosa (sa tabi-tabi lang daw)….!

Here\’s a good visual of a coconut sprout from Niya\’s World:
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Interesting stuff!! Will be planting coconut sprouts in Nuvali for sure, or at the very least in Tagaytay!

More on coconut apples and coconut sprouts here:
Niya\’s World
Fresh Greenery
Ever Heard of Coconut Apples? by Angel Nunez

Vegetable juicing (research)

Food

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Read today that carrot juice is the best vegetable juice for daily consumption.  We swayed against juicing carrots a long time ago because they stained our juicer, but I guess we\’ll have to love those orange stains from now on!

More info on juicing from TheMedicineHut.com:

Juicing – short intro to juicing
Vegetable juices – lists different pros and cons of each vegetable in relation to juicing
Fruit juices – lists pros and cons for fruits
10 Biggest Rules of Juicing from DrinkRawJuice.com – good basic tips, like using a hand juicer for citrus (an auto juicer will also juice the seeds–a big no no!)

raw food menu planning (research)

Food

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Some sites for future study, summary, and testing!  Excited to see which ones will work best using Philippine ingredients:

WeLikeItRaw.com – repost of David Wolfe\’s All-Raw Diet Weekly for Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter seasons
Daily menu from RawFoodExplained.com – comprehensive raw menu good for 4 weeks
The Ultimate Raw Diet by Dr. Stanley S. Bass – strict step-by-step meal plan for one week
GiveItToMeRaw.com – short discussion on top daily raw menus
e-how.com – short essay with tips on planning your raw food menu

OUCH! Sta. Rosa gas and toll fare

Life in Nuvali Philippines

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Definitely one of the biggest adjustments I\’ll make in moving to the South is the added cost of gas and toll!

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I used to spend P500 for gas weekly and zero for toll fare. Compare that to this week, which saw at least five visits to Nuvali from Quezon City, and voila– I\’ve gone well over P1,500 for my transpo expenses in one week!

Must think of more efficient ways of traveling to and fro the city… hopefully I get to figure out the shuttle services within Nuvali itself, and from Paseo de Sta. Rosa to Makati and Ortigas.

Mud House training in Palawan

Green Design and Architecture

This is sustainable architecture!

Hope to visit Bacungan and see this for myself next month:
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Learn to Sculpt your own house with your bare hands, using just clay, sand and bamboo!

Interactive workshop starts on November 4, 2010
Innerdance Energy School,
Earth Village, Bacungan,
Puerto Princesa City, Palawan

For more info/reservation contact 09994512765

Reposted from Bahay Kalipay\’s facebook page