Rita Daniela Spreads Her Wings in New "Flying High" Music Video

Rita Daniela has been one of the most promising artists in GMA's stable. I think people are actually missing a lot when they haven't heard her sing live or perform on stage. I have seen her do things that other singers could only try. Well she's not about to just let that dream fly, she's grabbing it by the tail and taking it head on today as she launches her newest video called "Flying High"!

Make sure you watch the music video on HD or the highest video setting possible. The danceable tune, the choreography, the little details of this shoot took her a whole day to finish as it was deemed impossible to do because of their tight schedules. With the help of her industry friends, Ms. Geleen Eugenio, Addlib Dancers and a ton of people behind the scenes, she has sought to make this a worthwhile thing to watch for those who love her music, and those of which are still discovering who she is as an artist. I must say, I was a little shocked that after the preview of this music video because instead of me asking questions, Rita went ahead and asked us what we thought of it and what we generally felt after seeing it. I told her one honest remark and I think she was actually glad to hear it from me. I told her the video didn't look cheap, while the rest of us agreed that it also had certain parts that you could compare with international artists like J.Lo or Rihanna. The choreography also seemed to have been designed to make it easy for everybody else to follow, something that has promise to be viral in the next coming weeks. 

To show their support for Rita Daniela, Glaiza De Castro sang songs from her album Synthesis plus a couple more on stage to the delight of Rita's fans. Glaiza was awesome, she wished Rita to continue doing what she's doing and said she's happy for what she's accomplished after launching her self titled album.

Rita was jeering on the sidelines and asked best friend Joyce Ching to sing on stage plus do a couple of her antics. She's funny, a very charming girl and wishes her best friend all the best in launching her newest video. Here's her performance that evening.

Rita says "The reason why we took Tita Geleen as a choreographer is because people can catch up with the steps. The sound is a little classy, and she took the choreography to an achievable state that can be easily done by a lot of people. This is my style, and I want this to be a start of something revolutionary. Even if we've a lot of people would fancy tunes that are loved by the masses, I want my music to start a new tune here in the Philippines. My stylist is JP Dizon, he also dressed me today. He's the same person who dresses Marian and the pieces in the video are really good. I hope you liked them. I talked to him and asked to be sexy, class but light... I wanted something fun and people might not enjoy it that much, so I really asked specifically for that. When I was a kid, the only thing I wanted to do is dance, I grew up with my Mom who's also a Wea dancer. So every bonding time we had at home includes dancing, and I did dream of one day if I get the chance to sing, I get to dance as well. I wanted to share that same talent to others. I already know the second single but it's going to be a secret, but we've got a director and we're just finishing a few details. I'm still excited about this new video though. I know, some of the songs in album are somehow a little hurtful - but it means a lot, and it comes from different angles." 

She adds "I thought of certain things in the music video that also highlighted some of the dancers, I didn't want it to become just me, me and me on the shots. People thought that this is somehow a little KPOP but I think it's just my features, we didn't intend to have it look that way. This was supposed to be done a long time ago, but it's all worth the wait. Shooting music videos usually take 2-3 days but we did it in 1 and we were dead tired, yet we finished it all. I'm so proud about the people who worked with us during the shoot, and the end product was worth it. I am not yet sure if this is going to be a series of shows, and I hope GMA would be able to help me do this elsewhere like mall shows and other GMA programs."

Here's Rita singing Flying High live on Off The Grill in Timog Avenue, Quezon City who hosted our dinner. Thank you so much for the awesome food Off the Grill!

Please don't forget to get a copy of her self titled album "Rita Daniela" available at all major record bars and stores. This is also produced by GMA Records. Congratulations Rita! Hope this goes all the way up the charts real soon! Vote for it on MYX by the way, she's already getting there!

For more information about their artists:

Official GMA Artist Center

Like them on Facebook


Visit their official website

http://gmanetwork.com/artistcenter

Lunch or Dinner Places: Tien Ma Taiwanese Cuisine

I haven't been to La Loma for quite a while now. My Mom used to be a school administrator at E. Rodriguez Jr. High School so a trip to this part of Quezon City was but a normal thing. This place is sprawling with restaurants, several specialty stores and the haven for lechon. There are tons of Chinese Restaurants but only a few good ones. I guess it's time you pay a visit to Tien Ma, a restaurant that specializes in Taiwanese cuisine. I haven't been here but honestly, my first impression is, they've got really good food in this joint. 

Tien Ma is owned and operated by the same people who brought you Angel's Pizza and Figaro. The owners are Chinese, and the family wanted to have authentic tasting Chinese food while they live here in the Philippines. Tien Ma means Mama Tien, and the premise is, to ultimately make this place feel like home. You can say it's a hole in the wall thing, they also have some dishes that you can only find in Taiwanese stalls and theirs is a good version.

The place can sit around 80-100 people, but lunch and dinner probably gets pretty packed especially on weekends. Parking is another matter, so if you're planning to have lunch, go there a little earlier. As for the price, I haven't really seen anything too expensive at all. I love what we had that evening though, which I'll show you here.

 

For starters, we had Xiao Long Bao.  This small steamed bun just explodes in your mouth when you get your teeth pierce its exterior. As with any dimsum, you must consume it while it's hot. Take notice of the dipping sauce (vinegar with ginger) that will be served with this because it'll probably taste bland without it. It's essential and is just so good when you bite on it.

Since it was a little hot outside, I ordered the Chinese Melon Shake. They use real fruit and none of those powders you see in other stores. It did it's job, albeit a little pricey it was well worth it because I think they use Chinese melons, prolly imported.

I think this is still part of the appetizers, they call this Beef Cold Cuts. It's on the savory side so I thought this was going to be heavy but since they sliced it real thin, it was something good you can imagine to put onto hot white rice. But we didn't have white rice that evening.

This is Tien Ma's Taiwan Style Fried Rice. I think it's mostly comprised of savory pork sausages and dark soy, plus a couple of other herbs from the Chinese side of things. It's not too oily, just right. If you're a little tired of white rice, then this would be a good thing. They also had Pineapple Fried Rice on the other table when I peeked.

It's like chicken broiled for hours in soy based sauce, this is their 3 Cups Chicken. Anything cooked in a claypot is really good for me, I think I've tasted something like this in the past and I think the way they cook this is with just three cups of ingredients hence the name. I can imagine a hot bowl of porridge together with this because it's fresh and the basil breaks your Chinese experience a bit in this dish. It's savory, on the sweet side but still very good. I'd probably order this again.

This is one of their specialties, they call it the Pan Fried Dumplings. I think they use the same batter to keep the pieces together and they flip it over after a few minutes of frying in the wok. They also have a thick sweet sauce with this which makes it have a little character. This is very pretty in person and you're going to love it once you start slicing it open, a pretty good thing with kids who have never tasted Chinese food.

This is my personal favorite on their menu, the Pork with Kuchai Dumpling. Well I have to admit I really love these boiled type of dumplings. It's like a canvass where you can dip it into anything and it'll still taste great. If taken alone, it was pretty bland but once you get the dips in the mix, this is just so good. I was the only one who took quite a lot on the dinner table and I haven't been sorry since LOL!

I was afraid of it when they mentioned they had this on the menu. This is the famous Stinky Tofu in Special Sauce. It's been said that when you have this in Taiwan, you can smell it from a block away and know where it's being served. This however wasn't the case in Tien Ma, I think they know how to tone it down a bit by using the special sauce, it was my first time trying this and you know what? I didn't find it so bad. If you can, you might actually compare this with cheese but of course it's made of tofu. I survived and the others liked it too. If you're feeling adventurous, then by all means go ahead!

This is their Ja Chang Noodles. I guess it's soy based and the bits and pieces are made with mushrooms and tofu. You can opt to have this dry which will make it savory and a tad sweet or have it with beef broth and it'll turn out like a rice noodle. It's nice both ways but I prefer the dry version, you'll get to experience the intense flavors.

I heard the dessert selections and this one is their Pear in Red Wine. I didn't think it would work, but it really was good. I can compare it with the Sweetened Saba Bananas which Moms usually make at home. The thing is surprisingly similar but it felt lighter since it is a pear poached with this sauce. Pretty good!

Most of you probably had this Cuapao before and never even thought that it could actually be fried. Yes, this is their Fried Cuapao. They serve this with a side of Condensed Milk which for me made it even interesting. I didn't know you could do this really, so the next time I'm going to the grocery's freezer, I'll pick up Cuapao and make one at home. Or better yet, just order one off Tien Ma since their version is crunchy outside and a little fluffy inside. I could finish a whole plate of these just for lunch, that's how good it is. Loved it so much that I took some home.

I thought I already had Chinese food in other restaurants but this one by Tien Ma made me thing that there's really some other things out there that are just waiting to be tasted! If you're around the area, or if your family or friends are finding some place to eat, make sure one of your choices would be Tien Ma. They're located at 168 D Tuazon Street Corner NS Amoranto Avenue in Quezon City. It's like a block away from Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Retiro, the street's former name. Don't hesitate to take the trip down there because as I've seen, they don't have anything on the menu that is past 200 pesos. Really bang for the buck!

For more information about their restaurant:

Tien Ma Taiwanese Cuisine

Like them on Facebook


Visit their official website

Tien Ma Taiwanese Cuisine

Entertainment Everywhere with IFLIX!

Yesterday was Fathers Day and I couldn't quite think of anything to give to my Dad as gift. He doesn't need material things, I think he's got tons of that. I don't think he's also the handyman type and love those things in the garage which most Dads do. I thought about the hours he spend watching videos on iPad when he rests or when he tries to get some sleep. It's like a habit and since I'm the good son, I probably should think of giving him iFlix subscription. Now that's a good idea!

IFLIX is a video on demand service that's got countless videos on it's library that you can watch while you're subscribed to them. The thing is, it's designed to work with your handsets too. So wherever you are, when you're stuck in traffic or just at home, you can watch all day from thousands of movies using their app. Now I'm a little worried about costs but I went ahead and installed it on my Dad's iPad yesterday.

Complete with a sad face, the app says I don't have a subscription, but I was quite surprised it's dirt cheap for just Php 129 a month. You can even save more if you purchase Php 1308 per year. I scrolled down a bit and even got the BIGGEST surprise too.

OMG! Would you believe? For customers of PLDT, SMART and Sun Cellular, you can have the subscription for only Php 99 per month! Now that's even better! :) 

As for the choices, my Dad loves action movies. One click on the menu and you've got tons of action movies on your screen. If you're fond of Jackie Chan movies like I am, you'll have Rush Hour, The Tuxedo, or the Shanghai series to start with. Aside from that, they've got tons of TV shows also available on the app. Now, it would be a waste if only Dad would be able to use it right? So the next best thing is to install this on 5 different devices. Yes, you're reading that right. Now I can install this on my 2 iPhones, 2 iPads and use my laptop at the same time. We can watch different shows even when it's in the middle of Edsa as long as I'm covered with my Smart and Sun lines!

Entertainment Everywhere while living the Smart Life!

Aside from that, Smart has got FOX too where you can get 9 new live broadcast channels from Fox International. Now, there's no excuse NOT to be entertained while you're out there. It's like having cable TV on your smart phones, tablets and laptops. It's not too late to be Smart and live the Smart life that everyone's been dreaming of. It shouldn't be hard to do that right? Check out https://www.iflix.com/ today or http//smart.com.ph/smartlife and ask yourself, how do you lead a smart life?

By the way, Dad's still at it today and using the thing to watch Korean shows with Mom. Isn't that the perfect Fathers Day gift? :)

For more information about their services:

Smart Communications

Like them on Facebook


Visit their official website

http://smart.com.ph

Wattpad Presents: Jenny and the Magic Arinola

I guess people are already waiting for a new Wattpad Series episode this week because they played replay episodes last week together with the Sea Games. As usual, TV5 is offering a new play and flavor to make the fans of this show a little more faithful in finding love in unexpected circumstances. You wouldn't believe this one because aside from the "love story", they're bringing in some magic.

It's been a while since we've seen Alex Castro on TV. Right now, he's doing Pasion De Amor in ABSCBN. His political career hasn't ended yet and he's planning to go for a higher post next election season. This time, he's in TV5 doing a Wattpad episode as a Genie. Yeap! You might see a little skin, that's given... I mean who wears those arabian looking outfits once they pop out of the lamp right? Oh... and that's another thing, they're not actually using a lamp for this episode. The title of the week's book is "Jenny and the Magic Arinola". So just imagine how funny it'll be when he comes out of that thing... they told us it's not just going to be the normal smoke on some instances LOL!

Isabelle De Leon on the other hand has been appearing in Wattpad Presents for a couple of times now. She's also starred in several shows in the Kapatid Network of which one is noted, remember Trenderas? Isabelle is a spirited singer, and she can do ballads, pop to rock without any hitch. Among her many accomplishments, she's considered to be one of the TV5's prized singers and actresses and I think she's even a triple threat. She's putting her singing prowess aside and wore poor girl's clothing on this episode as Jenny. She's about to beat those who have hurt those in the past with the genie's help, but what if she ended up in love with him too?