Kapuso Instadate: Enzo Pineda, Stephanie Sol, Juancho Trivino and Ashley Ortega

If you had the chance to date a GMA star during Valentines day, who would it be and why? What would you ask them? How would you feel if they were right in front of you? Well, we just got the answers to those questions when the GMA Social Media Team arranged these gorgeous hunks and ladies an intimate night with us bloggers. It was really fun to get to sit down and talk with them after all the shows they've done in the Kapuso network. I'd really want to get to know them behind these glamorous facade. Well okay, this isn't really a romantic date. We're starting with one of GMA's good looking guys Enzo Pineda.

 I've interviewed Enzo in the past and I can say he's a good friend. It was kind of easy to talk with him since he's very open and doesn't make a fuzz about him being a celebrity and all, he's really humble.

When I sat down with him, he was in character. He made me comfortable by getting Nate into the picture. It's his character in More Than Words which is ending this week. During this week, his character is going back to the picture and he'll be with Ikay again as he got drunk during some scenes. He'll be shocked about the change of Ikay and it's a very funny scene. He says "It's something hard and emotional for Nate. He's a type of guy who would give everything for Ikay. You've seen how his love developed for her and there's like a 180' turn into someone that's loving and caring, but still maintains that attractive bad boy look that everybody loves with his character. Nate is someone who has a hard exterior, but has a soft heart. I did have a phase when I was the bad guy but I like that. There's a transformation of the character and I like it because the viewers react on my character, it makes them think.

I do have movies that are coming up, definitely indie but it's more of an acting piece. I'll be going around the Philippines again so I have tons of regional shows starting next week, please don't forget also that I have another Bench campaign that will come out pretty soon. After More Than Words, I'll be training again for my first Triathlon, hopefully summer I'd be able to compete. I've done Aquathlons, a couple runs, I hope I'd be able to that in the next few months. I want to do that race on my birthday, I want a marathon, it's good that I keep myself very occupied when I'm taking a break from work. That feeling is good, it's that feeling of constantly achieving something.

When asked about his girlfriend and how I see them so happy on Instagram, he says "Ever since, I've been very serious with girl friends. I like taking relationships seriously. I'm really happy and I'm so lucky to really have someone like her." now isn't he sweet?! Awww Nate, oh Enzo, you are awesome!

Next one's the beautiful Stephanie Sol.

Steph is such a sweetheart. Whenever we meet on events, she never fails to say hi and acknowledge me when she can. She's also in several shows on GMA but when I asked about it, she was a little sepanx about it, of course it's More Than Words. "Last taping day was yesterday, so it was like two scenes for me. It was fast but it was very emotional. We had all the units together, we had the cast together, we prayed and said our good byes during the company call. It was a sad day for me, but I know all good things must come to an end. We do seldom meet but the production and cast is like family, we have dinner together, we watch films together, we even have a Viber group and we're very close. I don't know how we'll still keep in touch but I'm sure we're all going to have that in the back of our minds. We might have different schedules, so that's hard. They haven't told me yet what plans they have for me but after the show, I'll get their feedback and wait for meetings. I hope I did get to impress them with what I had to offer during this show.

I'm co managed by Artist Center and Ms. Becky Aguila. We haven't really have spoken about it but she really takes care of me. She's very hands on, spot on because she watches us. I want Belle to be remembered in the show as "Rebellious for a Reason", and hope that with her in the show people would still appreciate her." Steph adds. For what it's worth, I think Steph is a diamond in the rough. She's a very promising actress and she's just starting. I hope GMA continues to give her more breaks especially this 2015. A change of character? Perhaps real soon, but for now we're happy about what she's doing. I hope she also finds a pairing with someone too.

Then we got to the table of Juancho Trivino.

Ladies love him. I'm not surprised. Juancho Trivino is around 6'1, well built, a bit moreno and everything that a person who would categorize a perfect guy with "Tall, Dark, and Handsome". I bet underneath all that is a chiseled german physique and a soft heart somewhere. He's got a very positive demeanor but he could switch into a tough guy if he wanted to in seconds. That I think is what would make him a good actor. Am I too assuming? No, I don't think so. I just felt it that evening when I got to talk with him a little better.

"I'm still in Bubble Gang, and yes I was surprised they let me sing in that show (I saw him in Istambay). The feedback was great but now, I'm going to do a new youth oriented show that will be called InstaDAD. It's going to show on Sundays and will be something like Teen Gen. I'm going to be here with Ashley (whom I'll be featuring in a little bit) and this is a new pairing. Ashley is really nice, we've got so many things in common and I find her really really pretty. We've known each other even before the show. I didn't hesitate accepting this show, I'll be here with Gabbi Eigenmann and he'll be the Dad of three girls. In the social media age, this show will be part of that enlightenment of reality. It'll be like a modern day Dad. I want to be an example on this show, that even if I'd end up doing something really bad in the show, I'll be showing how to be a good son, a good brother too. It's going to start with Ashley and me having a relationship. So people really should watch out how things happen, as I'm really excited about it!" he says.

Then we got to talk to Ashley Ortega.

Well this is officially the first time I'm seeing Ashley Ortega. I thought I've seen her before but I realized just now that it was only for a former series Dormitoryo. She was with other GMA stars and I learned that night that this is their first official pairing.

I got her to introduce herself so we get on to what they're doing. At first glance, I thought she was a bit older but heck I was surprised that this girl, is only 16 years old! "I started showbiz 2 years ago. I started in Philippine Fashion Week and that's where they basically discovered me. I was younger back then and walked for SM Kids two years ago. I wore clothes for tweens, auditioned and got in regularly through that. I'm currently managed by ICONS, Bebong Munoz and Artist Center. Right now, I'm in KBNTAM or "Kailan Ba Naging Tama ang Mali" playing the sister of Max. I didn't know it was going to be this big and felt it was only going to be on the sidelines, but when I read the script, I had so many lines and so much exposure, which was nice! So I'm so happy. 

Then I got to InstaDad also, which is a youth oriented show. There's a lot of twists here and there plus they got us to play something like rich kids (that you may consider a little spoiled!) of Beverly Hills. We have tons of hashtags in regular conversations so it's really going to be fun, and a lot of people would really be able to relate especially the teens. We even have our own instagram where we're going to post actual things we're doing in the show. There are nerds, jocks, different kinds of personalities. Our Dad here is Gabbi Eigenmann and with the three sisters, three different personalities, I'm little Ms. Perfect but one day I'll get pregnant, so that's where the story is going to start. That's also the place where Juancho will come in. I haven't really worked with Juancho yet but I've been able to go with him in workshops. He's a very nice guy, good looking. If you're asking if I'd like somebody like Juancho, like more than friends, (pwede naman she says) yes of course because the guy is very kind and he's very well educated too." then I wished to see more of her in other shows in the same channel of course. She's very pretty and I think I like her! If Juancho and Ashley become something else soon, they would really look good. 

 

To be continued:

For Part 2 of our series (Ken Alfonso, Janine Gutierrez and Elmo Magalona), just swipe right for the next story on your phones or click on this link!

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The Perfect Coke

I was mind blown seeing tons of Coke bottles in a giant cooler in the middle of Glorietta's Activity Center. Coca Cola Philippines invited us for a day of fun and excitement as they ask us to reminisce how it was to have our first time. With the hashtag #SarapNgFirstTime already out being advertised on TV, we've always wondered what was it all about? Is this a new variant of Coke? You see, I even speculated about that already, that they'll be bringing something new and announcing it in a grand way.

You see the thing behind me? I didn't think about it that much, but that was actually a hint already of what they were about to announce that afternoon. When Gino Quillamor from RX93.1 arrived to host the show, he kept on coming back to check the status of the thermometer and telling us about how to have the #PerfectCoke. I mean, really though, is there such a thing?

I like my coke ice cold, but do you know what's the exact temperature to have a perfect one? We waited a while to see what Coca Cola Philippines had to say. It's like an official pronouncement of what certain point would it be to say that it is the actual #PerfectCoke, but before that, they got stars in the mix and launched it simultaneously here in Manila, Cebu and Davao in the south. It felt like a huge party where the main thing to celebrate with is this awesome beverage.

They had Manolo Pedrosa and Miles Ocampo to sing and dance for us. That was something worthy to be told later LOL.. Or you can check out this video about their individual performances!

I even saw some admins of the IGersManila group, they were there like me as they were invited by Coke!

Then these guys finally came up the stage and told us that the Coke bottles they've been keeping cold in the back is almost perfect, enough with the suspense already! 

The first time you had a Coke should always and is recommended to be at 3' Celsius! Yes, it's not a nee flavor, it's the perfect coke if it's on that particular temperature. Isn't that great news? Well it won't be if we didn't try it out ourselves that afternoon, so we did!

When they started to ask for a toast, I already drank half the bottle hahaha! So I did the smartest thing after that, I got another bottle! Genius!

Now it's easy to do it too in your own homes. Just make sure you have enough ice to fill the coolers and put in bottles of Coke there! Or if you're a little tired, and if it's too hot outside this summer, you can actually wait for them to come to you! Ob yes you heard that right! They have brand new spanking Coke Happy Cycles that will go around the country to give away a million bottle of #PerfectCoke! Just make sure you follow their official social media channels so you can request your barangay, township or city to be the next one! Free coke is just weeee! 

For more information about their stores:

Coca-Cola Philippines

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Sky Launches "Sky On Demand"

We were at the Sky Cable On Demand launch earlier and they were really keeping things from us prior to this day. The invitation was misleading and they were talking about other things on the venue before we heard it from the CEO himself. Finally, it's something like a Netflix/TIVO service by Sky Cable, though you have to have Sky Broadband with it. Aside from that, it also works with the proprietary box intended for it. 

Ross Legaspi of Sky Marketing says "This service is simple, it's like having IWantTV on Sky Cable On Demand. You have your own profile, you can have it customized. You have every show from the most popular network in the country, but now you'll have tons of channels that are exclusive to SkyCable Broadband. You can have a marathon at the comforts of your own home. You can even stop it, then go back and play where you paused the machine when you partially watched it".

It's easy to watch now, you can watch it in your own home as Sky On Demand becomes available in your homes soon. There's a one time fee of 499 and about capacity, it's going to be unlimited because it's going to be in the cloud. It will soon be available by March and the plan is to implement it in the whole country where Sky Broadband is available. They're continuing to populate the channels and even partnered with big outfits so you can be sure you'll have more titles that you can watch over and over again only on SKY On Demand.

Morisette Amon also provided entertainment earlier!

"Sky is headed where the customer will lead us. It now is allowing us to listen to customers and choose their own content if they don't want to pay for it. The whole season of shows are already on cable and it's the currency of the content that can set us apart" Legaspi adds. If you don't have Sky Broadband, and you are a Sky Cable subscriber like me, you won't have the additional movie channels exclusive on their line. If you want to try it out, they told me they can accommodate anyone a 15 day FREE trial so just ask and see if the experience wows you, that's SKY ON DEMAND! 

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New Places to Stay: Makati Junction Hostel

The owners and the Clingers at Makati Junction Hostel (Photo credit to Rodel Flordeliz of NognogintheCity.com)

It's a new place that deserves to be mentioned. This is the new Makati Junction Hotel located at the Annex Matheus Building at General Luna St. corner Don Pedro, Makati City. I had fun when the Clingies and I visited the place a few days back. You see, I've always have high standards with hotels, and hostels were much like a different league for me so I don't really expect much if I'm staying in one when I'm out of the country. I guess in the Philippines, this might just change your mind when looking at hostels. Yes, I think I found a spot that I can say, be worthy of fun, worthy of the trip to be there.

The interiors and design was done by Edwin Uy, a well renowned Architect in Manila. When this project was given to him, he had hesitations because the place was pretty much like a dump when he found it. The building was new, but the floors and everything else looked dated. There were things here and there that he knew would be a pretty tough job to work on. He mentions "If you really saw what this place looked like when we started, you wouldn't think it would turn out this way. It was hard because we also had a similar adjacent building, we painted the walls, the windows, the rooms, the hallways, the tiles were "baduy", even the air conditioning, we had to make everything else from scratch to make it all look different."

"The kitchen is made of a trailer, and needed a ten wheeler truck, plus a crane to put it in (it was a nightmare waiting to happen). They decided to cut it up on a weekend and opened up the windows so they could get it all in, then rebuilt it by welding it back. We felt we needed something different to give back to Pinoys. It has to be Pinoy. It's a global Filipino, the millenas, that's how it started. We took a trip but only got drunk when we got there. When we found it, we offered it to him (Edwin Uy) and he said NO. It was a huge work and we were in a budget, City really pushed it and it was scary. We did go over budget a little but it is a challenge, and he liked that challenge. It's an economical way of making interiors. From there, it just came through. The lights on the ground floor, it wasn't easy either. It's 123 individual lights so just imagine the magnitude of it. The board is the map of the world and those who stay are encouraged to pin up something from their country to signify they're here." says Ms. Cyndy Jarabata who owns the hostel.

When we saw the ground floor, we felt Edwin Uy seems to be very experimental. It was like taking the things from outside the street in.

His play in textures, colors and graphics is unbelievable. I think he's been given a lot of freedom when it comes to the aesthetics, I like it a lot. The common room would be so nice to hang out in. The decor would also be a nice conversation piece. Aside from that, the kitchen, the tables, the chairs, the windows, everything else contributes to a whimsical play on Makati, to show what it's like to live there.

I don't know any other hostel in the area that encourages hooking up, but I know it's conducive for talk and communing. The rooms are also set up to accommodate male, female, or coed bed spaces and could fit up to 100 people in one go. This is one of the firsts among a number of hostels and hotels that they want to put up. They showed us the rooms later on with the help of their very warm staff.

As for me and my friends the "Clingies", we'll definitely be back there and try out the stay. There's more things to discover and more reasons why to stay in this new place in Makati. There are hundreds of people to meet and who knows, it could happen right here in Makati  Junction Hostel. It's a stones throw away from Makati Avenue and about a few meters away from the fun district. You just have to try and stay in a place that's unique, ultra modern and fun because that's where you'll meet the most interesting people. You can call them at +632-5016575 or visit them at Annex Mattheus Building at General Luna Street Corner Don Pedro in Makati City. 

Fun hehe!

For more information about their hostel:

Makati Junction Hostel

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http://www.junctionhostels.com/