Today, I receive all God’s love for me. Today, I open myself to the unbounded, limitless, overflowing abundance of God’s Universe. Today, I open myself to your Blessings, healing and miracles.Today, I open myself to God’s Word so that I become more like Jesus Everyday. Today, I proclaim that I’m God’s Beloved, I’m God’s Servant, I’m God’s powerful champion, And because I am blessed, I will bless the world, In Jesus Name, Amen.

Featured Post

The Great Wall of China in Mutianyu

The Great Wall of China is referred to in Mandarin as Wanli Changcheng   (10,000-Li Long Wall or simply very long wall) BEIJING, ...

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

BUFFET DINNER PLUS DAILY CULTURAL PRESENTATION AT BARBARA'S RESTAURANT IN INTRAMUROS, MANILA


 
I was wowed over by the beautiful and well kept facade of BARBARA'S RESTAURANT located in Intramuros, Manila, Philippines. 
We walked along the historic streets of the walled city to reach Barbara's Restaurant located along the historical General Luna street in Intramuros. The restaurant evokes the charm and beauty of a bygone era. It is as if we were transported back in time to the Spanish Era in the 16th century.
Barbara's Restaurant is just in front of Saint Agustin church and is inside the grandiose Plaza San Luis Complex just beside White Knight Hotel.
We went up the intricately-carved staircase and were greeted by magnificent silver-gilted mirrors.
When we entered Barbara's restaurant it is as if we stepped into a place reminiscent of old world elegance. We then walked towards the main hall and get seated at the round dining table to experience the luxury of fine dining at its finest.
Barbara's Restaurant table settings are very well organized and coordinated. Barbara's Restaurant use tablecloths as part of their table setting complete with folded napkins. I personally considered it much more enjoyable to eat my food on a pleasantly arranged table and Barbara's Restaurant did not fail me. The tableware for this buffet dinner includes soup spoon, entree fork and spoon for dessert (variations exist), side plate, side knife, wine glasses, napkin and a beautiful flower center piece.
Barbara's Restaurant has high ceilings and crystal chandeliers the setting is a world-apart from your modern-day shopping mall restaurant. 

Barbara's Restaurant with a beautiful flower center piece and candle-lit table set.

Barbara's Restaurant offers buffet lunches and dinners as well as A la Carte choices. Buffet is only 500 pesos. Not bad for a buffet dinner with one-hour cultural presentation from the in-house student dance group who, I should mention, are very good dancers.
 Yummy food yum yum!
 
Roasted Chicken two thumbs up!
The salads are fresh and delicious.

Barbara's restaurant lumpia is to die for! I love it!
Barbara Restaurant's Linguini Alessandro pasta is delicious.
The delicious mix vegetables.
 
Pastel de Lengua
  
Salad mixed with lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes with shrimp paste or vinaigrette for dressing

We enjoyed our dinner from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. while taking in the grace and beauty of traditional Filipino Dance, music and very cozy and warm ambiance @ Barbara's restaurant. The young performers are Barbara's Restaurant scholars. They made the audience cheerful with their exciting fiesta dances like sayaw sa bangko, binasuan, pastores, and the perennial favorite, the tinikling! They even invited some volunteers from the audience to dance w/ them. It was fun to see some volunteers tripping in the tinikling dance. It really added to the fun. Making it a really fantastic night for everyone.
The audience were in good spirits. This quintet serenaded us while we were eating dinner.
We were entertained by this Traditional Filipino Dancers
The crowd's favorite is the Tinikling dance
We ought to introduce to another generation the joys of Philippine folk dance.
Our folk dances are colorful, vivid and vibrant - alive and exciting, charming and inviting.
Amazing native dance entertainment

Barbara's Restaurant staff were all very accommodating and they truly provide a very good service. There was no discrimination at all between the foreigners or Filipino guests. The food were very palatable. The servers always refill the buffet trays. For dessert we ate squares of Brazo de Mercedes, brownies topped with cherry, Café Gelatin con Sago served in wine glasses and banana fritters. For me, the banana with sesame seeds dessert is the best!

Everybody love the cultural dance. It was superb! There's no guest in that room that night who is not watching the cultural presentation. Kudos to the dancers especially to the guy who is shouting so loud. He made it more fun @ Barbara's restaurant that night. The Spanish colonial style architecture with live music and cultural presentation every evening and the neighborhood of Intramuros is a little oasis in chaotic Manila. We enjoyed the show tremendously. Barbara's Restaurant is worth a try. See and experience Barbara's Restaurant classic elegance for yourself.

Barbara's Restaurant
Gen. Luna St. (just beside San Agustin Church)
Plaza San Luis Complex
Intramuros, Manila

(+632) 527-3893
(+632) 527-4086
 


Monday, February 6, 2012

Magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck Negros Oriental and Cebu


At 11:49 this morning, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck between the islands of Negros Oriental and Cebu.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has mentioned that the quake struck 5 kilometers northwest of Tayasan, Negros Oriental, of which the origin is tectonic. The main quake was followed by 4 aftershocks, measuring between magnitudes 4.5 to 5.8.

Residents in the coastal areas are earlier advised to seek higher ground because a Tsunami alert No. 2 which was earlier raised on Cebu and Negros Oriental, most especially on the coastal towns between the two provinces but is now cancelled.


 


Hotels and Resorts in the coastal towns facing Tañon Strait are also advised earlier by the Department of Tourism to assist their guests and heed any advice issued by appropriate government agencies.

Phivolcs earlier issued the bulletin warning to alert the public for unusual waves.The tsunami alert has been lifted but vigilance should remain, Phivolcs Director Renato Solidum said."As of 2:30 pm, level 2 is canceled. The alert was for the eastern side of Negros and western coast of Cebu. But we will continue to monitor," said Solidum in a phone interview with Yahoo! Southeast Asia.

Earlier in the day, Phivolcs placed several areas on tsunami alert Level 2, following a 6.9-magnitude quake in Negros and Cebu.

Panic and worry gripped several PH areas while netizens called for calm and prayers as Phivolcs issued the bulletin warning to alert the public for unusual waves.
According to an ABS-CBN report, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) chief Benito Ramos said the quake has killed one person - a child from Tayasan, Negros Oriental after a wall fell on him.

Lacierda said Coast Guard Chief Edmund Tan has been instructed to prevent fishermen from going out to sea for the duration of the alert, while Department of Social Welfare and Development personnel are already on standby to lend support and relief to affected citizens.

“While there are no forced evacuations being ordered, we implore the people in affected areas to remain vigilant and take the necessary safety precautions. Let us cooperate with government agencies, allow them to do their work, and remain calm and watchful,” he said. Source:yahoo


Friday, February 3, 2012

UMBILICAL CORD BLOOD BANKING CAN SAVE LIVES


Attention: Expectant Parents

Cord blood banking is probably one of the most important long-term investments for your family's health. While it is crucial that your child's stem cells are processed and stored with the best methods possible, it is even more vital that you need a cord blood bank that would be with you for years to come, regardless of how uncertain times may be.

During pregnancy, the umbilical cord functions as a lifeline between mother and child. Years later, the blood present within the umbilical cord could offer hope for the child or other individuals in the family.
The umbilical cord blood is a rich source of haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs); cells responsible for replenishing blood and regenerating the immune system. HSCs are known as 'precursor cells', as they have the unique ability to differentiate into the different types of cells found in the body, namely:
  • Red Blood Cells - which transport oxygen
  • White Blood Cells - which produce antibodies and fight bacteria
  • Platelets - which assist blood clotting
Since 1988, UCB stem cells have been used to treat an increasing number of diseases. Today, this numbers more than 80, including blood and metabolic disorders, immunodeficiency ailments and autoimmune diseases. For a full list of treatable diseases, click here.
When transplanted into a patient, the haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) migrate to the bone marrow and produce new blood cells, boosting the immune system. With the rapid advances in technology, the number of diseases treated by stem cell therapies is expected to increase.
Advantages of storing UCB stem cells are:
  • A guaranteed match for autologous transplants (where the donor and recipient are the same individual)
  • A readily available supply of stored HSCs. This compares well to having to do a national or international search which is costly and time-consuming in an already time critical situation.
  • Lower risk of Graft vs. Host Disease for autologous transplants, a situation where the transplanted tissue attacks the patients own tissue.
  • Ease of collection, which is pain-free and risk-free to both mother and child.
  • UCB stem cells are more vigorous, have a higher rate of engraftment and are more tolerant to tissue mismatches, compared to other types of stem cells, e.g. bone marrow.
The main intention for a stem cell transplant is the need to reconstitute a patient's blood and immune system, following treatments such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy, which destroys the blood cells. The HSCs are infused directly into the patient's blood stream, and subsequently migrate to the bone marrow.
Within the bone marrow environment, the HSCs are able to begin their differentiation into the three types of blood cells, thereby initiating the regeneration of the patient's blood and immune system.
The first umbilical cord blood transplant was performed in 1988 and resulted in the successful treatment of a 5-year old boy diagnosed with Fanconi Anaemia. To date there have been more than 14000 umbilical cord blood stem cell transplants reported worldwide.
                                                               Source: Cord Blood Forum. Accessed 10 November 2009
 
List 1: DISEASES TREATED BY STEM CELL TRANSPLANTATION
Malignant diseases (cancers):
  • Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia
  • Acute Myelocytic Leukemia
  • Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia
  • Chronic Myelogeneous Leukemia
  • Juvenile Chronic Myelogeneous Leukemia
  • Juvenile Mono-Myelocytic Leukemia
  • Myeloid/Natural Killer (NK) Cell Precursor Acute Leukemia
  • Myelodysplastic syndromes
    • Refractory anemia
    • Refractory anemia with ringed sideroblasts
    • Refractory anemia with excess blasts
    • Refractory anemia with excess blasts in transformation
    • Chronic myelomonocytic leukemia
  • Neuroblastoma
  • Polymphocytic Leukemia
Non-malignant diseases (such as inherited metabolic storage disorders, immune system disorders etc):
  • Agnogenic myeloid metaplasia (also called Myelofibrosis)
  • Amegakaryocytic Thrombocytopenia
  • Blackfan-Diamond Syndrome
  • Cerebral X-linked Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD)
  • Dyskeratosis Congenita
  • Evans syndrome
  • Familial Erythrophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis
  • Fanconi’s Anemia
  • Globoid Cell Leukodystrophy (also called Krabbe disease)
  • Gunther Disease
  • Hurler Syndrome
  • Kostmann Syndrome
  • Lesch Nyhan Syndrome
  • Maroteaux-Lamy Syndrome
  • Osteopetrosis
  • Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria
  • Pure Red Cell Aplasia
  • Purine Nucleotide Phosphorylase Deficiency
  • Reticular Dysgenesis
  • Severe Aplastic Anemia
  • Severe Combined Immune Deficiency (SCID)
  • SCID with absence of T & B cells
  • SCID with absence of T cells, normal B cells
  • Combined Immmunodeficiency
  • Common Variable Immunodeficiency
  • Sickle Cell Anemia
  • Thalassemia (Major)
  • Thymic Dysplasia
  • Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome
  • X-linked Lymphoproliferative Syndrome
  • X-linked HyperIgM syndrome
List 2: ADDITIONAL DISEASES TREATED BY STEM CELL TRANSPLANTATION (2002-2004)
Malignant diseases:
  • Lymphomas:      
    • Burkitt’s Lymphoma
    • Hodgkin’s Disease
    • Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
  • Multiple Myeloma
Non-malignant diseases:
  • (Alpha-)Mannosidosis
  • Aspartylglycoasminuria
  • Bare Lymphocyte Syndrome
  • Chediak-Higashi Syndrome
  • Chronic Granulomatous Disease
  • Congenital Neutropenia
  • DiGeorge Syndrome
  • Histiocytosis X (also called Langerhans’ Cell Histiocytosis)
  • Hurler-Scheie Syndrome
  • Gangliosidosis
  • Glanzmann's Thrombasthenia
  • Omenn Syndrome
  • Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency
  • Mucolipidosis II (I cell disease)
  • Metachromatic leukodystrophy
  • Neuronal/Infantile Ceroid Lipofuscinosis (also called Batten Disease)
  • Nezelof Syndrome
  • Sialidosis
  • Shwachman–Diamond syndrome
  • Sly Syndrome
  • Tay-Sachs Syndrome
  • Wolman Disease
List 3: ADDITIONAL DISEASES TREATED BY STEM CELL TRANSPLANTATION (2006-2007)
Malignant diseases:
  • Acute Biphenotypic Leukemia*
  • Acute Undifferentiated Leukemia*
  • Mantle Cell Lymphoma
Other malignancies:
  • Brain tumour*
  • Ewing Sarcoma*
  • Ovarian Cancer*
  • Renal Cell Carcinoma*
  • Rhabdomyosarcoma
  • Small Cell Lung Cancer*
  • Testicular Cancer*
Non-malignant diseases:
  • Rescue after autologous bone marrow transplant failure
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
    • Amyloidosis
  • Congenital Amegakaryocytic Thrombocytopenia
  • Congenital Cytopenia*
  • Congenital Dyserythropoietic Anemia
  • Griscelli Syndrome
  • Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura
  • Polycythemia Vera*
  • Fucosidosis
  • Gaucher’s Disease*
  • Niemann-Pick Disease*
  • Sandhoff Disease*
  • SCID with Adenosine Deaminase Deficiency*
  • Thrombocytopenia
  • Nijmegen Breakage Syndrome
  • Chronic Active Epstein Barr (resulting in lymphoproliferative disease)
  • X-linked Immune Dysregulation Polyendocrine Enteropathy
  • Multiple Sclerosis *
  • Rheumatoid Arthritis*
  • Type 1 Diabetes*
  • Cerebral palsy*
*Part of ongoing clinical trials in the U.S. (refer to www.clinicaltrials.gov for more info).
References:
  • Raetz et al., BMT, 1997
  • Shaw et al., Pediatric Transplantation, 1999
  • S. J. Fasouliotis, J.G. Schenker / European Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, 2000
  • Ballen et al., BBMT, 2001
  • Gluckman et al., Exp Hematol., 2004
  • Martin et al., BBMT, 2004
  • Gluckman and Wagner, BMT, 2008
  • www.marrow.org
  • www.cordblood.com
  • www.nationalcordbloodprogram.org 
Banking cord blood does not guarantee that the cells will provide a cure or be applicable in every situation. Use will be ultimately determined by the treating physician.
Last update 4th Aug 2011.

Studies have shown that cord blood stem cells can also be used for siblings and other members of your family who have a matching tissue type. Siblings have up to a 75% chance of compatibility, and the cord blood may even be a match for parents (50%) and grandparents.
Cord blood stem cells are currently used in the treatment of several life-threatening diseases, and play an important role in the treatment of blood and immune system related genetic diseases, cancers, and blood disorders
Saving our first-born's cord blood stem cells was a no-brainer for my husband and me. As new parents we want to be able to provide the best options we can for Noah; we'd also like to try and start preparing for his future. Cord blood banking does both for us. We don't know if or when we'll be needing the stored cord blood stem cells, but it gives us a sense of security and peace that, should we ever need it, the best solutions are available to us.

We chose CordLife for 2 reasons – their service quality and the fact that they have a facility in Manila. It just made a lot more sense to us and we're so happy we did it!

Gillian Akiko Thomson-Guevara
3-time Olympian, gold medalist SEA Games and entrepreneur

Type 1 diabetes

A clinical trial underway at the University of Florida is examining how an infusion of autologous cord blood stem cells into children with Type 1 diabetes will impact metabolic control over time, as compared to standard insulin treatments. Preliminary results demonstrate that an infusion of cord blood stem cells is safe and may provide some slowing of the loss of insulin production in children with type 1 diabetes
Cord blood banking was a completely new concept to me when I had my first child, but I had read up on it due to the fact that my mom was diagnosed with stage 3b cancer the year prior to my pregnancy – and I wanted to do my tiny part in perhaps saving a family member’s life down the line. With percentages high on potentially saving lives within my family – I knew that I wanted to do this for those I love more than life itself.

Lexi Schulze Berenguer-Testa
TV Host and Magazine Editor

Singapore Storage Facility
Singapore is an ideal long-term storage place for your baby's cord blood unit because of its natural disaster-free location, political and socio-economic stability. Located in Singapore Science Park II, our cord blood processing laboratory is housed in the most prestigious research and development (R&D) and technology hub in the country.
Our AABB accredited facility is well equipped with 24/7 backup systems, which are further enhanced with remote alarm to alert our staff via phone if anything is amiss. Our equipment, critical materials and services also undergo stringent testing and certification regularly.
Your baby's cord blood will be stored in fire retardant and vacuum insulated double hull nitrogen tanks which can remain at optimal temperature for more than two weeks without replenishing liquid nitrogen.
As Singapore is geographically small and free from natural disasters, there is no real need to store your baby's cord blood in different locations. This unnecessary location transfer will only heighten the risks of exposing your baby's cord blood to heat, resulting in cellular damage and sample mix-up. It is CordLife's lifelong commitment to safeguard your baby's cord blood unit under the best storage conditions in the most secure and safest location in Singapore.
CordLife Singapore's AABB accredited facility
Philippines Storage Facility
Located in UP-Ayalaland Technohub in Metro Manila, Philippines’ first and only cord blood processing and storage facility was officially inaugurated on 23 February 2010. This world-class facility is registered with the Department of Health and is built in accordance with global gold standards such as the American Association of Blood Banks and ISO. The facility operates 365 days a year and offers the world’s only fully automated cord blood processing system, SEPAX, with a storage capacity for more than 20,000 cord blood units.
"CordLife's latest cord blood processing and storage facility in the Philippines marks another regional expansion milestone for the company. Focusing on high quality services, CordLife has been investing in various innovations to ensure that it provides value-added services to all its customers. SPRING will continue to partner CordLife in its journey to enhance capabilities for greater growth locally and regionally," said Ms Samantha Su, Deputy Director of Services & Biomedical and International Partnership Office, SPRING Singapore.
                                                Photo courtesy of Aidea Philippines, Inc.

CordLife Limited is a leading healthcare company that provides a full suite of cord blood and tissue banking services to expectant parents for the collection, processing and cryopreservation of cord blood stem cells and umbilical cord tissue. The Company is dedicated to offering the highest possibility of successful adult stem cell therapy to give hope and save lives. Listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, CordLife Limited is well established as the largest network of private stem cell banks across Asia Pacific with state-of-the-art cord blood and tissue processing and cryopreservation facilities in India, Indonesia and the Philippines as well as a network that extends to Singapore, Hong Kong, and China Safe and secure processing and storage facility equipped with 24/7 laboratory monitoring technology

Call (02) 710-9195 to find out about their flexible payment plans.

     


KC CONCEPCION'S COMPLETE ROGUE MAGAZINE PHOTOS


The complete pictures of KC Concepcion @ Rogue Magazine
  
 Bakat ang nipples ni KC sa Rogue Magazine Grabeeeee!
KC in Rogue Magazine bakat na Nipples at ang alaga niyang ahas na si Coco!
KC in Rogue Magazine
Beautiful KC in Rogue Magazine
KC in Rogue Magazine
 Sexy KC in Rogue Magazine
KC in Rogue Magazine
KC in Rogue Magazine Cover
 KC in Rogue Magazine so sexy~!

Go buy your copies now. My friend will be buying two copies! Ha ha ha! I want a copy too~!

KC CONCEPCION'S COMPLETE ROGUE MAGAZINE PHOTOS source: Spanky Enriquez thank you my dearest~!



Other articles about KC Concepcion:

KC and Piolo Rogue

Sexy KC Concepcion's X-factor and Pet Snake

Sexier Photo of KC Concepcion for Rogue Magazine

Daring KC Concepcion in Rogue Magazine

KC Concepcion Rogue Magazine Cover Trended on Twitter

KC Bikini Cover Shoot for Cosmopolitan Magazine

KC Concepcion dons two-piece Bikini on Cosmopolitan Magazine

ABS-CBN PR heads vs. KC Concepcion

Mark Bautista tagged as third party in the Piolo Pascual and KC Concepcion break-up?

Piolo and KC's break-up

Sharon Cuneta - KC's new suitor is real man

KC Concepcion 2013 Tanduay Cover Girl


Welcome

 

Travel, Photographs and Lifestyle Copyright © 2010 LKart Theme is Designed by Lasantha