Miniso Opens in SM San Pablo!

After months of eager anticipation, an unexpected change in schedule, and a few more weeks of waiting... Miniso SM San Pablo is finally open!

The first lady of San Pablo City, as well as Miniso VIPs, gracing this momentous occasion.

The Japanese fast fashion brand, which has gained global popularity for its wide range of household and consumer goods, has found a new home in SM San Pablo. And together with my friends, we trooped to the mall today to witness the opening ceremonies, and of course, do a bit of shopping.

We Bare Bears at Miniso!

Attending ribbon-cutting ceremonies isn't exactly my style, but I was willing to make an exception for Miniso. I've developed quite an interest for the brand after its breakthrough appearance in the hit 2016 Korean drama Goblin, where the lead characters Kim Shin and Ji Eun Tak were seen shopping at the Miniso store in Lotte World Mall. But what solidified me as a huge Miniso fan was their collaboration collection with one of our favorite animated shows, We Bare Bears. 

We Bare Bears plushies, Php 399 each.

These adorable bears were the main reason why I wanted to be at Miniso today as soon as the store opened. I wanted to get my hand on these plushies as early as possible, because from what I've heard, these items sell like hotcakes! True enough, almost everyone headed straight for the bear stack as soon as the ribbon was cut and the store was declared officially open.

Here are some of the We Bare Bears items that you can find at Miniso SM Pablo.

We Bare Bears water bottles, Php 179.

We Bare Bears neck pillow, Php 229.

We Bare Bears facial tissues, Php 149 per pack.

We Bare Bears tote bag, Php 229.

We Bare Bears steam mask, Php 179 per box.

Aside from these three adorable bears, Miniso also has Pink Panther and Moomin products, all licensed by MGM and Moomin Characters Ltd., respectively.

Pink Panther plushies, Php 299 - Php 499.

Pink Panther key ring, Php 179.

Moomin hand mirror, Php 179. 

Pink Panther notebooks, Php 179.

Pink Panther makeup palette, 299.

Moomin power bank, Php 799 - Php 999.

Other interesting finds at Miniso include these makeup brushes, perfumes and body mists, makeup, and toys. They also have arts and crafts supplies, computer peripherals, and even kitchen tools! 

Beauty brushes starting at Php 179.

Perfumes and body mists starting at Php 99.

Makeup items starting at Php 99.

Toys starting at Php 149.

If one-stop shopping and affordable prices are your thing, then swing by Miniso this weekend and check out their wide array of products. Their San Pablo branch, which happens to be their first in Laguna and the 59th store in the country, is located at the second floor of SM San Pablo right across Kidzoona.

And before I end this post, allow me to share with you my Miniso haul. I got all three bears, yay!

My Miniso haul!
We Bare Bears plushies (Php 399 each), We Bare Bears Children's Towel (Php 179, pack of two),
We Bare Bears Steam Eye Mask (Php 179 pack of five), Pink Panther Makeup Palette (Php 299),
Screen Cleaning Kit (Php 99),
TOTAL: Php 1953.

Seoul Searching | Children's Day at Lotte World Mall.

Children's Day may have long been over, but this will always be Yue's favorite Korean holiday. After all, he has been part of this occasion for two years running.

In Korea and Japan, Children's Day is celebrated every 5th of May. Parents often give presents to their children, as well as spend quality time with them. More often than not, the children are taken on excursions to zoos, museums, parks, and other venues with kid-friendly entertainment.

Last year, I took Yue to Seoul Forest, where he fed deer by hand, went bird-watching, and enjoyed the beauty of nature as we strolled around. This year, we chose to go to the Lotte World Mall because we heard there'd be lots of fun activities on Children's Day. And true enough, there was already a great buzz happening when we arrived at the place. Kids were crowding around the mascots that made a surprise appearance at the Lotte Department Store!

Miniso mascot, and the Miniso pop-up store at the first floor.

Dokkaebi!

Snorkmaiden!

Playful Moomintroll!

The house-cleaning hamster, Ebichu!

More Children's Day photos after the jump!

Sneak Peek | Miniso x We Bare Bears Collection.

I got hooked to We Bare Bears just recently, thanks to my cartoon-loving eight-year-old son. If you're a parent, you probably have an idea of what I'm talking about.

We Bare Bears!

We Bare Bears is an animated sitcom about three adoptive bear brothers, Grizzly, Panda, and Ice Bear. The bears awkwardly attempt to find their place in civilized society and try to do what everyone around them does - whether it's grocery shopping, going to the museum, or posting photos on social media. Created by Daniel Chong, the show first aired on Cartoon Network in 2015 and is currently on its third season.

I've been following Daniel Chong on Twitter for awhile now, and thanks to his tweets, I discovered this makeup collaboration between We Bare Bears and Chinese variety store chain Miniso. My jaw almost dropped as I marveled at this cuteness.

Miniso x We Bare Bears collection.

More of the bears after the jump! :)

Seoul Searching | Lotte World Mall.

On the day that Yue and I were supposed to do a walking tour of Insadong, it rained like crazy as soon as we boarded the Green Bus that would transport us to the nearest subway station. Right at that moment, I decided to make a raincheck (quite literally) and head for Lotte World Mall instead.

Yue was more than glad with the change of plan. "Are we going to the amusement park again?" he asked. "No, since Daddy is not with us today. But we'll look for something fun to do when we get there", I said.

Truth be told, the two reasons why I decided to go to Lotte World Mall is because it's just a 12-minute subway ride from Ttukseom AND there is no risk of getting wet in the rain as the mall is connected to Jamsil Station.

Welcome to Lotte World Mall!

We arrived at Lotte World Mall in no time, and I was surprised to see a throng of shoppers despite the weather being very erratic that day. Holiday rush I guess, since Christmas was just three days away.

More of the 'Landmark of Korea' after the jump!