The Lifestyle Portal

Another year done and more great books were added to our personal libraries.

Forget about Netflix and chillin’, 2016 was another amazing year for Philippine publishing. While the rest of the world was binge-watching various TV series on their devices, Filipinos were clutching, honest-to-goodness printed books. Already coming from a banner year in 2015, Filipino readers were even more spoiled this year with an even more diverse lineup of local books from mostly new and unexpected authors.







In today’s ever changing world dominated by social networking sites, Wi-Fi, and hashtags, more and more Filipinos are now engaged in a new reading habit.

ABS-CBN Publishing’s top five bestsellers for 2016 is led by President Vice: Ang Panggulo ng Pilipinas. In his book debut, the self-appointed Panggulo ng Pilipinas Vice Ganda gives a voice to the voiceless as he proclaims new rules and decrees that will have no effect whatsoever on our lives. “No to PDA!,” “No to #NoFilter!,” and “No to paasa!” are j…

Niall Horan, Lukas Graham, Shawn Mendes, Emeli Sande and Fifth Harmony featuring Kid Ink and Ty Dolla $ign join the biggest celebration of the year, performing from the Billboard Hollywood Party on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2017.”  Fergie, set to host the event from Los Angeles, will perform two songs leading up to the 2017 countdown.
This year marks the 45th anniversary of America‟s biggest celebration of the year and will  include 5 ½ hours of special performances and reports on New Year‟s celebrations from around the globe. Ryan Seacrest will host and lead the traditional countdown to midnight from Times Square in New York City as he has for the last 11 years with live reporting from actress and comedian Jenny McCarthy. Mariah Carey, DNCE, Thomas Rhett and Gloria Estefan with the cast of her Broadway musical ON YOUR FEET! will perform for over one million fans live in Times Square and millions more on TV.
Fifth Harmony’s record-breaking success on the c…

It’s officially a few more days before we celebrate New Year. Around the globe, most people are trying to look their best, new clothes, new gadgets, and new shoes, but can these make up for looking best at what’s on top of our head, our hair!
Taking care of our mane should be on top of our list just as we go to spa to pamper our body, our hair needs pampering as well. Novuhair, Nature’s answer to hair loss has got you covered. 
As we bid adieu to 2016, throw away your difficulties on hair loss and scalp problems with Novuhair’s 19 natural ingredients. Made of herbal ingredients that include moringaoleifera, panax ginseng, virgin coconut oil and the natural essences of rosemary and peppermint, Novuhair nourishes the scalp and hair by increasing the flow of nutrients and improving blood circulation to the scalp. Novuhair also helps hydrate the scalp, maintain the hair’s natural luster and prevent early hair graying, hair dryness and itching.
The brand has helped thousands of satisfied user…

The yuletide season is not yet over! As we welcome the new year, a great news from one of the leading mobile brands has been announced and has already started!  
Heads up, Christmas shoppers: there’s another P1,000 off on the OPPO F1 starting on December 9.The discount applies to OPPO’s P9,990 holiday promo on the F1, further dropping the price to a mere P8,990.
The OPPO F1 is the first smartphone in the mobile technology brand’s camera-focused F series, which made its debut in the Philippines last February.
“We always want our selfies to be upload-ready as soon as we take them, and this is especially true during the holiday season,” said OPPO Brand Marketing Manager Stephen Cheng.
“The OPPO F1 would make a great gift for anyone who wants to immortalize their holiday moments. Our newest discount just makes that even more possible,” he added.
The smartphone features an 8-megapixel front camera with a wide f/2.0 aperture lens and a 1/4 inch sensorto capture vibrant selfies even in less…

Jollibee opened its first store in Winnipeg, Canada, home to over 70,000 Filipinos last December 15. The inagural location was chosen because Winnipeg is home away from home for a lot of our countrymen, with Tagalog being the second-most common mother tongue language spoken. 
In typical Jollibee fashion, the store was welcomed by long cues with people lining up as early as 10:30 PM the night before. The crowd braved the -25 celsius weather to get a chance to taste a bit of home with Jollibee favorites Jolly Crispy Chicken, Peach Mango Pie, and Jolly Spaghetti. The store is the beginning of Jollibee’s aggressive North American expansion plans that is lined up until 2018. The store also created over 100 jobs for the people of Manitoba.





“We are very encouraged by the turnout and excitement at the grand opening of Canada’s first Jollibee,” said Jose Miñana, Jollibee Foods Corporation’s Group President for North America and Foreign Franchise Brands. “It brings us great joy that we are abl…

Christmas may be the most wonderful time of the year, but it also presents one with certain challenges. After all, it isn’t always easy to think of what to give the special people in our lives, especially when on a budget.

Thankfully, Digital Walker, the country’s largest retailer of premium gadgets and accessories, is making things easier this season by hosting a Holiday Wish List Promo!

Back by popular demand, Asian Food Channel’s original series, Cooking For Love season 2 returns with tougher competition and more delectable recipes by culinary host Sarah Benjamin, and Malaysia’s celebrity chef, Nik Michael Imran!

The brand new season features 6 new families of diverse backgrounds, following Nik and Sarah as they pit their kitchen skills and creativity to outdo one another and prove that the best way to a person’s heart is through their stomach. With each episode capturing a family’s unique story, the competitive duo not only tries to challenge each other but also themselves, as they draw culinary inspiration from each personalized story and create a menu especially for them. From intimate family reunions to grand Mother’s Day celebrations, find out who will win the most number of hearts this season!

Culinary host and blogger from Singapore, Sarah Benjamin, began her food journey young, assisting her grandmother in the kitchen to make home-cooked Chinese Hakka dishes…

In the second installment of Lifestyle’s “The Crawl,” Piolo Pascual and son Inigo take their curious taste buds to the Northern part of Thailand—Chiang Mai. The father and son team goes on a culinary adventure, and explore the different flavors and food selections that Thailand has to offer starting December 8 on Lifestyle.

The Philippines’ ultimate heartthrob will once again venture through streets and cities, and show Filipinos a glimpse of a different culinary culture, including tips on surviving the task and insights on how to maximize the food and travel experience.


Food crawling is a form of bonding among people with common passion for food. The Crawl shows another side of Piolo Pascual—the adventurous, outgoing, and multi-faceted father and friend who loves experiencing what life has to offer, particularly through travel with his new companion.

Watch Piolo and Inigo try out Chiang Mai’s myriad food specialties such as spicy sausage, khao soy,Pad Thai, Kang Puk Wan, and Madame Bu…

A familiar name in Asian households, Chef Martin Yan returns to AFC this January as he serves up two decades’ worth of insider knowledge and kitchen tricks on Martin Yan’s Asian Favorites. Viewers can find more information as well as download recipes from each episode upon premiere of the show at www.asianfoodchannel.com/lovetocook
Martin Yan’s Asian Favorites is presented by Panasonic and co-sponsored by Dr. Thanh Herbal Tea premiering on:  ·       Thursday, 5 January at 9.00pm on Asian Food Channel  Cignal Ch 62, Destiny Cable Ch 71 (Analog)/Ch 22 (Digital), Dream Satellite TV Ch 27, SkyCable Ch 22 (Analog)/Ch 248 (HD)  
Martin Yan’s Asian Favorites
Over the years, Chef Yan has journeyed across Asia, meeting chefs, home-cooks and locals from all walks of life, getting inspiration from their stories and family recipes. This 8-episode series features over 30 dishes influenced by Chef Yan’s 20 years of experience and extensive travels, bringing out the distinct local flavors from 6 cit…

The phrase “locals know best” is true when it comes to travelling abroad. Be it in the city or outskirts of a town, you can always trust a local cab driver to recommend you their local best eats and sightseeing destinations, and that is how Andrew Zimmern is going to travel in his new series of Andrew Zimmern’s Driven By Food! Forgoing all the pre-trip research and read-ups, Andrew will go on spontaneous road trips across the globe as he hunts for authentic local favourites, all recommended by experienced cabbies! In Andrew Zimmern’s Driven By Food, Andrew will entrust his itinerary to cabbies who will bring him on a unique journey to uncover the city’s must-try and give viewers an eyeful of entertaining behind-the scenes adventure, exploring the unique food and culture of each city from a brand new perspective.  


In the premiere episode, Andrew will pay a visit to Nashville where he is welcomed with warm southern hospitality and explore the amazing city with his taxi driver. Andrew …

An infectious and energetic blend of music filled the atmosphere at McKinley West as over 10,000 participants, a.k.a. Music Runners™ ran, danced and partied at the second edition of The Music Run™ by Philam Vitality. The event, hailed in other countries as the Ultimate 5k Running and Music Festival, returned to Manila bigger and bolder following a smash-hit debut at the Philippine Arena last year. 
A phenomenal and futuristic run, The Music Run™ is an award-winning event that offers a unique total music immersion experience and has been making waves all over the world, including multiple sold-out events in Asia this year, and new tour dates announced in India, Europe and South Africa for next year. 
The Music Run™ by Philam Vitality started on a high note at the Music Village with a pre-party featuring local alternative soul band Sud, who rocked the crowd with upbeat renditions of their hits ‘How We Play’ and ‘Profanities’. Pre-race energy levels were further pumped up with a mass wa…