Single? It doesn’t matter, you can still enjoy Valentine’s season. Here are some fun things you can do this month:
Watch movies at drive-in cinema
Miss going to the movies? We do, too. SM Cinema celebrates Valentine’s weekend with “Love Under the Stars” by showing romantic films at the SM Mall of Asia Concert Grounds.
“Five Feet Apart,” which stars Cole Spouse and Haley Lu Richardson, is about two teens who fall in love after meeting at a hospital. But, because they both have cystic fibrosis, that means they can’t get close physically. Directed by Justin Baldoni (yes, Rafael Solano from “Jane the Virgin”), this is a tale that will resonate in the time of social distancing. Screening Feb. 14, 6 p.m.
Here’s another familiar face from “Riverdale.” KJ Apa stars in “I Still Believe” with Britt Robertson. This film, created by the same team that worked on “A Walk to Remember” and “Five Feet Apart,” is the true story of Christian singer-songwriter Jeremy Camp who marries his college sweetheart and then finds out that she has terminal cancer. Get your tissues ready. Screening Feb. 13, 6 p.m. and Feb. 14, 8:30 p.m.
In “Belle Douleur,” Liz, 45, is reeling from the death of her mother when she meets Josh, a 25-year-old antique dealer. This Cinemalaya film stars Mylene Dizon and Kit Thompson. Witness their passion on Feb. 13, 8:30 p.m.
Buy tickets in advance at smtickets.com. The P350 ticket comes with a Snack Time bundle (bottled water, regular-sized popcorn, beef franks sandwich). There are food concessions there, too.
Moviegoers from Feb. 12 to 14 will get free heart-shaped balloons and get to flash messages of love on the outdoor cinema screen.
Up to 106 vehicles can join each screening, with a maximum of four passengers (ages 15 to 65) per car or SUV. Safety protocols are in place. Don’t forget your mask.
Adopt (and fully commit to) a pet
If you’ve always wanted to have a dog or cat in your life, maybe it’s finally the time—but only if you’re really sure. Because owning a pet is more than just having a cute furball to cuddle with; it’s a total commitment. And, unlike some relationships, it’s totally worth it.
MARS Petcare, an advocate of responsible pet ownership and the company behind brands like Pedigree, Whiskas, Cesar, Royal Canin and Eukanuba, is spearheading a Valentine’s adoption drive to help homeless pets find their new fur-ever home.
“Adopting a shelter animal can be a most fulfilling, life-changing experience for the adopter and the chosen animal. These homeless animals can bring so much joy into people’s lives,” said Phua Fui Ching, MARS Petcare Southeast Asia Pet Nutrition D-commerce director.
In partnership with the City Veterinarian Office of Imus, MARS Petcare will provide one month’s worth of pet food to people who will successfully sign up for pet adoption on Feb. 13 to 15 (until stocks run out). Pedigree’s official Shopee and Lazada stores will also be doing a livestream on Feb. 15 to promote the adoption program.
There are many other places you can find an animal to fall in love with. You can help save the Laguna pitbulls (helpsavethepitbulls.com). There’s PAWS, of course (paws.org.ph). Lara’s Ark still has Taal rescue pups waiting for open hearts and open doors (web.facebook.com/larasark.ph).
Check out the dogs and cats of Happy Animals Club (happyanimalsclub.org). Your new best friend might be at Hound Haven (houndhavenph.org/adoptables) or Philippine Animal Rescue Team (philanimalrescue.org/pets-for-adoption.html).
(You can also check out @adopt.ph, @barkmission, @pawssionproject and @hopeforstrays_cebu on Instagram.)
And if you’re not ready to adopt yet, you can try fostering. A number of these places also need volunteers.
Escape Zoom
If you’re longing for the challenge and thrill of escape rooms, you can actually enjoy them virtually—for now. Breakout Philippines offers online virtual 360 escape room experiences that you can enjoy on your own or with your date, your friends or family no matter where they are in the world.
Each game costs just P400 (yup, whether you play alone or with others) and you can play the game over and over again.
According to Breakout, “You have to explore the room in 360 degrees and click on certain elements to uncover clues, solve puzzles and escape before you run out of time.” There’s Fairy’s Tale presented by Breakout and Shoor which has you going through the possessions of your recently deceased grandma, The Red Door, which is inspired by the movie “Insidious: The Last Key,” Dead End which is inspired by the movie “Escape Room” and pits you against five strangers.
Breakout Philippines also has a Virtual Escape Room Avatar (Vera) which allows you to control your very own Vera as they navigate through the crowd-favorite Clownhouse room. Teams of 4 need to pay P400 per person while teams of 5 to 12 pay P350 per head. Find Breakout Philippines on Facebook or visit www.breakout.com.ph.
Mystery Manila has two Escape Zoom mysteries for you: Pym Particle which lets you invade the office of evil Dr. Cross and Alien Assault which challenges you to destroy a ship’s beacon. Five to 10 players can play for P399 per head.
Mystery Manila also offers different Zoomdunnit adventures. Play detective for a day and investigate mysteries. Gather four or more of your friends, pick a date and time and the challenge that you want: The Murderous Meeting, Revenge at the Reunion, Missing Masterpiece, Wicked Webinar, Train 2 Busan: Peninsula, Where In The Philippines is Sam San Mateo? or Hong Kong Heist. Visit booknow.mysterymanila.com or find Mystery Manila on Facebook.
Virtual art hunt
It’s Art in the Park’s 15th anniversary and they’re celebrating with eight days of art, 60 exhibitors and more than 6,000 artworks. The fair is happening online at www.artinthepark.ph, beginning on Feb. 21 at 10 a.m.
The exciting lineup of exhibitors include Ang I.n.K., Arnold Art Collection, Art Underground, College Of St. Benilde, FEATI University School of Fine Arts, FEU, Kasibulan (Kababaihan sa Sining at Bagong Sibol na Kamalayan), Kulay Art Group, M A G, Manila Collage Collective, Nord Anglia International School, Orange Project, Sagada Pottery, Sheerjoy, Silverlens, Space Encounters, TUP Fine Arts Manila, The Thursday Group, UP College of Fine Arts, Village Art Gallery, Vinyl on Vinyl, vMeme Contemporary Art Gallery (Young Artists’ Studio) and more.
Buy art (nothing is over P50,000) and support the Museum Foundation of the Philippines, their projects and programs for the National Museum of the Philippines and its network. You can pay using credit or debit cards and GCash.