Malling is not for me. Malling is not for men. Except when courting women. Shopping is not fun when it’s just shopping. Shopping is fun because we men get to spend time with the women (that doesn’t sound right) we’re making porma (still doesn’t sound right). And that’s before we get married.

There are a number of reasons why I’m not ashamed to admit I frequent The Annex. Yes, it’s the mall complex in Quezon City which includes The Block. At the junction of EDSA (Epifanio de los Santos Avenue), West Ave, and North Ave, is a waterfall, from the second floor skywalk, covering a public transport terminal. That waterfall is one of the latest additions to the mall that started it all — the SM City North EDSA. (I already said it’s right across the TriNoMa).

At the heart is the main, original SM building. At the back is the multi-level parking. In one side is The Block, the higher-end part of SM. At the other side of the main building is The Annex, relatively still a high-end part of SM.

If I may take a little detour, Ricky Reyes and Mr. Sy has a special history because Mama Ricky, when no one believed back then that a mall would work in that grassy spot in Quezon City, was one of the first tenants to stick it out.

By the way, when I say I “frequent” The Annex, that’s a grand total of around 4 times. And not one of those visits involves shopping, so please don’t ask me about what shops are there.

The first time, I tried out their bowling lane. It looks good. Except when you try to imitate Paeng Nepomuceno and the little tykes at both sides just run and throw the ball without regard to the “no lofting” rule. Or the etiquette to wait until the bowler in both lanes have finished throwing the ball. Or just about any rule. It’s fun, though. The second time, I think I bought something at the hardware (but since it would kill me to take a photo of the hardware, let me have another photo of the bowling lane).

The third and fourth time, I accompanied my kid at a play area. We shall talk about that in a later post. The waiting time allowed me to take some photos of this nice place. It claims to be the biggest Cyber Zone in the country. The addition of The Annex makes SM City North EDSA the third largest mall in the world. As of this writing.