When In Cubao eX

Saturday afternoon coffee. That was the plan when my good friend Juli and I met up yesterday. Though we just had an afterwork dinner at Xocolat couple of weeks back, she's now in the process of moving to her new apartment, while I'm in the process of moving on (?), so things pretty much called for another girlfriend date. Anyway, we thought of pouring our hearts out in Libreria at Cubao Ex.

I've been to Libreria before when they were still located in Tomas Morato. It was a pretty neat place, (the books were kinda pricey though) and I thought their new spot would be a more quirky, laid-back version so I was pretty excited. 

Apparently, Libreria is no longer located at Cubao Ex (pbft). Or we were that stupid not to find it there??(haha).

But since we already got a (highly-covetted) parking space, we decided to stay. So off we went on an afternoon of thrift shop raiding, bargain book hunting, trying desperately to fit into the the art scene, and feeling a tad lighter about all the crap I'm going through right now.

If you look past all the clutter, you're bound to find something good. || Angelspirits Thrift House. 

When broken, you can try putting them back together. Just be ready to get cut in the process.
|| Assorted mugs and assorted glasses. 

My weakness. || Bargain books. 

I've been to Cubao eX several times before, but usually just to drink and, back in college, to get wasted.  I didn't know there was so much to check out in that small area! Juli was actually looking for a lamp to deck her apartment with and I was hoping for new reads. But even if you're not looking for anything in particular, it's a lot fun just going through the shops.

Time does wonders. || Antique clock.

Loads of second-hand books and what-have-you's.

Pre-loved stuff. || Me.

Found a couple that are the Panic at the Disco of book covers. Haha.

This book I don't know where the title starts and ends. #mouthful

THIS. "Sex, Drugs, Violence, Rock 'n' roll and Politics." Has covered it ALL. 

Vanity break while book hunting. 

We were totally clueless that there was an event that night. Some 70+ local artists came together to celebrate... well, art, in what they call the Bloom Art Festival. The event was sponsored mostly by the shops in Cubao eX and there were a lot of cool stuff happening on the street- music, bazaars, exhibits etc. Plus the staple guys-with-beer-bottle-in-hand lining the sidewalks.

One of my favorite bookstores. Bookay-Ukay's s stall at the Art Festival. 

Artists doing 6-ft tall paintings on the spot. Cool.

Colors. 

After hours of walking around, we grabbed some dinner at Fred's. I was surprised at how good their food tasted! Haha. Told you I don't remember doing anything else in Cubao eX before than chugging down beer. Anyway, if you want to get stuffed with good food, try Fred's. They have hefty servings at really friendly prices. Plus their waiters are really nice.

I forgot the name of the dish. Basta it's sausage over mashed potatoes.:) The gravy's really good and the serving's big enough to share. P160-ish.

Buffalo wings. Yummy and big enough to share. P160-ish.

Had a round of beer and some pouring of hearts out to go with the chow. It just feels good to talk to someone these days. It’s nice to have someone do the thinking and the feeling and the cursing for you. Or at least share it with you. Times like these, people who care about you are the only thing that keeps you from wanting to crawl in a hole and disappear.

After dinner we walked around some more 'cause it was already 830pm and we should be heading home 'cause we're titas like that. Haha. It was a good night all in all.

I'll get there, one night like this at a time. Saw several shutter-worthy stuff to cap the night.

I know this is supposed to be some inspiring stuff to hang on your wall but I totally don't get what it means. Haha.

This.

Happiness after love.

There is. Not right away, but there is. :)

Roanni