Category: Philippine Travels


Traveling Without An Itinerary? Eating With No Mercy!

Filed under: Philippine Travels, Travel, travels — 18 Comments
May 22, 2011

“Tourists don’t know where they’ve been, travelers don’t know where they’re going.”  — Quote from Paul Theroux

 

I only managed to book the first 2 nights of our week-long holiday.   In fact,  just the one night.   At the last minute, I arranged to book 2 nights in the same place in Donsol.  After that,  I grew tired explaining to the children that we don’t know where we’d stop for a night or two, and which hotel or inn we’d stay in.  You should see them.  Those eyes growing bigger, to express surprise, a tinge of nervousness maybe,  and utter despair that this time around, their grandma has no answers.

 

 

We found a good coffee place in Daraga, Albay with wifi to bring us back to the safety and comforts of this digital environment.   While we sipped our lattes, exotic shakes (think pili and sili!) and cappuccinos,  I checked out the hotel on the second floor of the building which houses both Bicol Blends Cafe and 1st Colonial Grill.  Same owners.  Same cheery staff.   Villa Amada Hotel has family rooms.   Two adjoining rooms with a connecting door.  Lots of space.  And a window that looks out to Mayon Volcano.  Perfect!   I booked the next 2 nights.

 

Family Rooms: 1 room with Queen Bed connects to 2nd room with twin beds

 

And so it went that we spent 2 nights in Donsol and another 2 nights in Daraga/Legazpi City.  The children are happy.  They slept well. They also ate well as the menu offerings downstairs at 1st Colonial Grill and Bicol Blends Cafe are exactly what they hanker for.   Until they remembered we still had the remainder of the week in Bicol.  Where to sleep the next few nights before heading home?

 

Tinapa Rice from 1st Colonial Grill

Buco Chopsuey @1st Colonial Grill. Goes well with tinapa rice!

 

As Typhoon Signal #2 was declared in the Bicol Region,  the poor weather condition was the least of  their worries.   We still had to get bookings for our Naga stay.  But there’s a lot to do to keep them busy. And there’s a lot of serious eating to be done too. We pigged out in 1st Colonial Grill down below the hotel. This is also where we can have our free breakfast — goes with the rooms we booked.   And then finish off with gourmet, exotic coffee and shakes at the Bicol Blends Cafe beside it.  The owners of Villa Amada Hotel and 1st Colonial Grill are one and the same.  Bicol Blends Cafe is owned by the son of the family.   Pretty soon,  I would be cornering a corner at the coffee shop. Slurping good coffee while surfing the Net.

 

Sili Shake, anyone?

Small Talk Cafe

 

We also found time to drive by Small Talk Cafe to take out some pasta and pizza to eat back in the hotel. We figured that if the weather conditions worsen,  we would be better off in the hotel than eating out to savor this fusion cuisine.  Ever heard of Pasta Mayon?  That is laing-filled ravioli.  How about laing pizza , or pasta pinangat? And there’s the Pili Pasta with Basil. Yummy! We ordered all these plus the more traditional pizza margherita and cappriciosa (combination pizza) for the kids.  While waiting,  we couldn’t help but check out what were being served in the next table.  Before long, we were trying out their pili pie and mud pie.   Not bad at all!  Amazing how this small cafe fuses italian goodies with local cuisine centered on pili nuts, coconut cream and chilies.   By the time we made our way back to Villa Amada Hotel,  we were ready for the typhoon with all our takeout goodies.  What gluttons we were!  No mercy.

 

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Ziplining Before A Big(g) Meal @Embarcadero

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May 21, 2011

Our very first day in Legazpi City and the first order of the day was this adrenaline-pumping activity.  Sort of  like a prelude to next day’s Butanding Interaction in Donsol.

 

It was  a Sunday.  Soon after hearing mass at the Albay Cathedral, we proceeded to the Embarcadero de Legazpi.   It was too early for lunch.   We pondered what to do before our big meal at Bigg’s Diner, that famous Bicol food chain.  The cable lines beckoned.   From the Embarcadero “tower”,  across the waters, down to that mound of earth at the end.  Should we?

 

The entire family minus one queued up for the zipline.   The 2 kids are ziplining in tandem with 2 adults.   At the last minute, the older kid asked to go solo.  Fine.  Brave.   We waited till an earlier batch of teens got through.   Then one of these teens began cursing , and cussing, and screaming as he ziplined down.   Either he wanted to grab attention,  tried to be “cute” or simply had a bad mouth.  For sure, he wasn’t scared.   So it could be all of the 3.   All that was enough to drive my grandson nearly  out of his wits as he had second thoughts about this daredevil activity.   Damn.   Oops, no cussing.   In the end, he was persuaded to go through with it in tandem with his mom.  But not without reciting the Lord’s Prayer in its entirety.  Phew!

It was over even before we were ready to quit.   Enough adrenaline rush for a big meal at the famous Bicol foodchain.   This American-inspired, Hollywood-ish diner beats McDonald’s anytime of day.   Spag and chix for some of the  adults, while the “babies” craved for their baby back ribs.  My not-so-little boy nearly begged for a second serving.   Wow. That zipline must have really revved up their appetite.

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A Little Bit of Elvis, A Little Bit of Maria Clara ;-)

Filed under: Philippine Travels, Travel, travels — 9 Comments
May 20, 2011

I wasn’t feeling so “wasted” after all.  The Pahiyas Festival in Lucban, Quezon was truly a must-do destination.  After all these years, I finally got there.  But not without some sidetrips.

 

 

The Ultimate Philippines Tours brought us to Graceland Estates and Country Club in nearby Tayabas, Quezon.  This was a sprawling estate so named because…………. Need I tell you?  All of ten hectares, featuring a Burnham Park-ish lake complete with small boats,  an al fresco restaurant overlooking the lake, and I hear some eco-trails  meandering around the vast property.   Soothing for the soul.   If only the heat wasn’t so annoying!

 

 

As our bus passed Palaisdaan sa Tayabas featuring floating tables  at a time when hunger pangs reminded us of this obligatory activity, we felt almost sorry the bus didn’t stop to  unload us.  But our uber cool local guide Tina Decal was right.  With all those buses and vans parked right outside,  we can certainly do with some peace and quiet.  We were relieved to be away from the crowds at this time of day and spend a leisurely, peaceful lunch in Graceland Estates and Country Club in the same town.   No, there was no Elvis Presley crooning while we enjoyed our lechon (thanks, Tina!), hardinera ,  corn soup, fish fillet and veggies.  But we cooled enough to get ready for another afternoon of exploring other towns of Quezon.   Oh sure, the buko (young coconut)  a la mode (with ube ice cream!) made our day.   And I am saying that even after having “sprayed” ube ice cream all over my white shirt.  Now, don’t ask me how I did that!

 

Having changed into another cotton shirt,  I was ready with the rest of the troop for Sariaya.  We skipped the Mahoyan Festival as we had no energy for the suman-throwing spectacle.  Instead,  we dropped in on some of the ancestral houses in Sariaya, Quezon and relived the glorious and rich past of the coconut barons of Sariaya.

 

 

The Sariaya Coconut Barons

If Negros had their sugar tycoons,  this quaint farming town at the foot of Mount Banahaw had its share of coconut or copra barons!   Judging by the number and ownership of the heirloom houses in the area though,  the wealth derived from coconut/copra farming was limited to a few families.   And so, while Negros had their Jalandonis, Lacsons, Locsins, Gascons, Hofilenas and what have you………Sariaya had their Rodriguezes, the Galas, the Enriquezes, the Alcalas, the Arguelleses.

 

We visited 2 of these ancestral houses. Both beautifully preserved by the descendants of these prominent citizens of Sariaya circa 1920s or so.   Pre-war.   Money was soooo good they built these mansions.  In the case of the Gala-Rodriguez House,  this Art Deco House was built for an ailing wife and mother of 7 children only for the wife to die without seeing the house completed.   This same mansion housed the office of the chief of the Imperial Army during the Japanese Occupation. There are stories about how this Japanese Army officer liked the  beautiful daughter that the family had to hide her in the cellar whenever the Chief is around.  Our local tour guide didn’t miss pointing to us the hidden passageway to the cellar right under the family’s dining table.   Since it was the HQ of the Japanese forces in this area,  this same house was a target of the US forces.   The story goes that a bomb was dropped at the back part of the house.   That big hole created by the dropped bomb is now a swimming pool separating the Mansion to an area where refreshments are served.

 

 

From the Gala-Rodriguez House, we took the back gate to walk around town and witness the Agawan Festival.  The houses here are not as lavishly decorated as the houses in Lucban for the Pahiyas Festival. We also didn’t see the “kiping” rice wafers that were used to make “aranyas” and other buntings in Lucban.  Instead, we found loot tied to bagakays on display.  As soon as the procession and the blessings are done,  the crowds grab the loot from these young bamboos called bagakay.   Too tired to join the crowds around the procession,  I watched from another heirloom house around the corner.

 

 

Rodriguez House , now called Villa Sariaya,  is such a lovely ancestral house.   With its wide and many windows lining the walls from the living room through the dining and kitchen areas,  we were thankful for the breeze that would pass in through one wide window and out another.   The family of Don Catalino Rodriguez  was also in town and the great grandchildren paraded before us in Filipiniana costumes and friar outfits, much to our delight.  The entertainment turned hilarious when some in our group donned similar Filipiniana outfits (they are rented out for only P300) for a “photo-shoot”.  What a nice interactive activity to end the day!   All these we enjoyed while partaking of the local snacks — tamales, jacobina, lemonada, etc.   Somehow, we were reminded of how life was a century ago.  Life without internet, digicams, cellphones, DVDs, etc.  A life when money was better spent on………..mansions and all those parties hosted in those pre-war days.  Oh,  life must have been real good then.   The Maria Claras of that era surely didn’t miss Elvis Presley. 😉

 

Thank you Tina and Spanky, for a wonderful day in Quezon!   If I were to spend another day sleep-starved and in punishing heat ,  I will spend the day with you guys.  Cheers all around!

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“Wasted” In Lucban’s Pahiyas Festival

Filed under: Philippine Travels, Travel, travels — 12 Comments
May 16, 2011

Even after a good night’s rest, I still feel so tired after yesterday’s Pahiyas Festival.  Been wanting and planning to do this trip each year for the last decade or so, but never got to go till yesterday.  So there I was, uncomplaining, even if it meant waking up at 2 am. Come to think of it,  ‘waking up’ is not exactly the appropriate term .  Knowing we had to meet at Starbucks 6750 in Makati and leave at exactly 3 am,  I was so afraid to doze off and miss my tour.   I once looked at my alarm clock the night before,  set at 2am,  and thought there’s still a chance to manage 3 hours of sleep.  Guess what. I kept looking at that watch every 20 minutes or so till it was time.  😦

 

 

 

On our way to Lucban, we had to make an unscheduled stop to check this whacking noise under the bus. It disturbed me so that I failed to catch up on my sleep on the 3 hour drive.  Just the same, we reached Lucban around 6:30am just when the bands were starting to get ready to march.  Early enough to be allowed to park nearer town,  it was an easy walk to Cafe San Luis where we partook of a breakfast of Lucban Longganiza,  scrambled egg, tinapa and garlic rice.   I would have wanted my egg sunny side up and another piece of the tinapa, but it was too early to complain. Lol.  🙂

 

 

After breakfast,  I found a small group to walk around with.  We took to the main street and headed for the Church, then easily found ourselves along streets with colourful Pahiyas decorations.  My first time.  And even after breakfast, I was thinking “Pancit HabHab, Hardinera, and More Lucban Longganiza”.   I have to admit I remember a better-tasting, more crispily-fried (with minced pork bursting through the skins) lucban longganiza than the ones I had for breakfast.   But that’s fine.  Just walking along these streets,  you get enough longganizas to smell like one.

 

 

How nice that the people of Lucban preserved this tradition all through the years.  Next time,  I would be here much earlier to see how they actually work on the decorations and then transform their homes to these colourful , very original and creative decor.  A family effort, they say, to showcase what each family’s livelihood is.  A way of offering thanks for their blessings.  I will not even bother to complicate the reason for this festival — it is simply, a celebration of gratitude for what we have.

 

 

There are many young bloggers out there,  perhaps arriving just when our group was preparing to leave. Am I glad we came before mid 6am and enjoyed the walk early morning.  Towards noon,  the sun threatened to burn our shirts and skins sooo bad that I took whatever liquids I found here and there.  We had to walk a good half hour to reach our bus , meeting many tourists and locals braving the midday sun’s heat.   When we reached our bus,  the driver and a mechanic were still busily working on the bus.  Poor men.  While the airconditioning inside the bus was running,  we pitied the men working just outside just to make sure we drive safely.  Gratitude.  That was the day’s theme.

 

 


 

And so, I leave to others the duty of writing more about the Festival. Or posting better photos.  I am way too tired, even now.  I am preparing to go back to sleep.  Or just prop a book on my lap while sipping a good brew.  Gratitude.  You guys do the writing.  Mamu is all ‘wasted’ after yesterday.   Ta Ta. (Thank you, Spanky and Tina. Wow, 20 hours, straight!  You guys are tops.  Thanks too to our bus driver. )

 



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Will Never Grow Tired of Tagaytay

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Filed under: Food Trip, Philippine Travels — 7 Comments
May 5, 2011

It took this long for me to think of blogging about one of my favorite places in my own country. Perhaps because I visit it too often, or I took its beauty so much for granted. Tagaytay holds many happy childhood memories for me and myfamily. Both my parents are from Cavite where Tagaytay is. And many weekends were spent here, in a neighboring town called Silang, Cavite where my grandmother used to live, long before it became a favorite tourist destination. From Manila, it would take about an hour and a half traveling south for 60 km to reach Tagaytay to view the “volcano island” inside a lake called Taal Lake, or Lake Taal.

Childhood Memories

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As a child, my ears got so used to many old folks’ stories about Taal Volcano where one finds a lake within a volcano within a lake within a volcano. Yeah, I know, it sounds redundant. Can you imagine me listening to all these stories and this line which has now become an adjective to describe Taal Volcano back when I was still of pre-school age? It appears Taal Volcano made up for its size by always threatening to erupt, as if drawing attention all the time. Records show it is the smallest active volcano in the world. And for good measure, the old folks back in the province recount to this day all their experiences with Taal Volcano’s mini-eruptions in the past until it was no longer news.

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The story goes that Tagaytay Ridge where one gets a perfect view of Taal Lake and Volcano was actually part of a bigger volcano until a major eruption hundreds or thousands of years ago. Originally a huge volcano towering 18,000 feet, many people don’t realize that it used to be one of the largest volcanoes in the world. Tagaytay Ridge is the rim of the volcano! Before it was “reduced” to its present size, Tagaytay ridge would have been only about a sixth of the way to the top of the volcano!! This caldera is now fringed with many tourist inns, hotels, restaurants and picnic groves. A major golf course and upscale community (Tagaytay Highlands) and a casino hotel (near Taal Vista Lodge Hotel) can also be found along this ridge. Most tourists make day trips from Manila to this place, missing out on an unhurried day of adventure which may include a boat journey across the lake to reach the volcano island (about 1,500 pesos or US $30 for the entire boat so you can split it among the 3 or 4 of you), a trek to the top of the volcano on a donkey (most recommended, unless you are very very fit but be ready to shed another US$10 per person), as well as trying out the many fine-dining and local restaurants in the area.

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A Mountain Resort? A Summer Retreat? Religious Retreat Center? A Garden Restaurant?

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Many years back when Tagaytay only had picnic huts available for rent to locals bringing in their own picnic baskets, the place was famous for its many retreat houses and prayer centers. The cool climate and the now-lost “rustic innocence” of the place made for a very meaningful weekend of prayers and meditation. The retreat houses are still there. And many retreat weekends are still held there. The popularity of the place has also resulted in many foreigners deciding to stay permanently and setting up their own restaurants and shops there. These days, one can make trips to Tagaytay to try out this new Vietnamese restaurant (Bawai), or this Austrian-German bistro called Chateau Hestia, a greek taverna, or a lovely garden restaurant called Moon Garden run by a Belgian. Taal Vista Lodge Hotel is a newly renovated hotel complex , Josephine’s Restaurant with its seafood delicacies still stands attracting both local and foreign patrons, the Discovery chain of serviced apartments runs Country Suites and I must say, serves the best lamb chops, and of course there is Sonya’s Garden and Antonio’s – 2 of the fine dining establishments in the area. My personal favorite is Antonio’s though that will set you back a good US$30 to $50 per pax. For local food, one can try Josephine’s (their buffet is a steal at only US$7) and Leslie’s (try their “bulalo” which is beef stew). As for the kids, there is Residence Inn and Zoo where you can spend an entire afternoon with small children. Lunch is also served in this place, a good way to spend an hour or two after checking out the zoo. Restless kids can go to a nearby playground while the adults enjoy their coffee after lunch, or simply wait out for the sunset while viewing the volcano.

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There is always something to do in Tagaytay other than just taking in the view. The more adventurous go for the boat ride and donkey trek. The prayerful spend their retreat weekends there and head back to Manila with emptied minds, restful spirits and re-energized bodies. The hedonists spend time in their favorite spas while their husbands play a round of golf in Tagaytay Highlands. The foodies try out the many food establishments, where the variety caters to every pocket range. The kids can check out the tigers, crocs, gorillas, etc in the zoo. Or simply rent out bikes or go horseback riding in the park.

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I live in Makati, the financial center of Manila. This urban jungle has its advantages and disadvantages. Thank God for Tagaytay. In under 2 hours, we can enjoy its breeze and open spaces. There is just no way we will ever grow tired of Tagaytay!

This is my entry to the PTB Blog Carnival hosted by Mhe-Anne Ojeda

on the theme My Hometown.


Read also my blog on same subject in TravelBlog.


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Mystical Makiling: A Dose of Tranquility, Serenity and Friendship

Filed under: Philippine Travels, Travel, travels — 5 Comments

From “lola” mode during a long weekend in Baguio City with the grandchildren,  and sensing every rise in the summery temperature of Metro Manila, it was a no brainer to decide to join my old friends for a night in Makiling.

 

Fishpens @Laguna de Bay

 

As our van climbed its way towards our accommodations for the night on a promontory overlooking Laguna de Bay,  we couldn’t help but appreciate the tranquility  offered by this mystical place in Laguna.   No wonder they chose this place as an Arts Center.  In the middle of a lush forest , we find ourselves in this one-storey structure with all of 9 spacious rooms, each with a balcony with a view.  Laid out like a square with a swimming pool  in the middle,  the old sala sets can be found at almost every corner of this bungalow.   We chatted nearly every step of the way, from one end to the next, till we all ended up in the huge living and dining room attached to a similarly-sized kitchen.   We had the place all to ourselves.  Just 5 of us.  And all of 9 rooms.   While 2 of my friends busied themselves in the kitchen for our dinner of mache and arugula salad with cherry tomatoes, paired with a huge slab of t-bone steak for the carnivores (4 of us) and a fish dish for the lone meatless diner,   I took off to claim a space in the balcony overlooking the bay.   This is where I waited for sunset , and stayed on till twilight.    Lights flickered from the distance.  Fishpens grew in obscurity as the sun set,  with dear old me growing frustrated over my lack of photography skills.   A better camera and an expert photographer would have loved the display of colors bursting from the skies.   No DLSR for me.  No tripod.  Just my dependable Point & Shoot kept me company all that time.  Shaky hands.  More so, after a couple of glasses of wine.  Can you blame me?  It was my favorite Pinot Noir. 😉

 

 

The book I brought with me remained unread.   Sleep came easy.  What with the breeze, the peace and quiet.  The wind makes some sounds as it blows through the screened windows and lets the curtains rise and fall in rhythm with the resident “tuko”  making its presence felt.   The lone moth trapped in the dining area brushes the ceiling light every now and then, just as the crickets organize themselves into a choir.   What bliss.

 

 

In the morning, we woke up to a simple breakfast of pandesal and kesong puti.   The leftover arugula and mache were not wasted as they made good beddings for the local mozarrella and feta cheese.  The Deliz ricotta and goat cheese we bought on our way to Makiling have such a subtle taste that in no time,  we were eating the day-old turnovers and oven-burnt croissant with the local cheese.  C’est la vie.  Life is good.  Especially when your taste buds remind you that.

 

Pook ni Maria Makiling Park

 

Pretty soon, we were making our way to Maria Makiling Park.  The Olympic-size swimming pool is still there, but the cage housings are unoccupied.  No birds, no parrots, or whatever was there before.   There was a pair of lonesome ducks too eager to follow us around.  They probably don’t get too many visitors these days.   The cottages have had their heyday, but now look quite dilapidated that  I chose to take photos from a distance , if only to make them look good.   Up close, the eaves, roofing, window frames, etc. have all seen better days.

 

The van weaved around bends till we found ourselves inside the U.P. Los Banos Campus.    It is still a lovely, lively campus. We were tempted to take our lunch here with the students but the summer heat was quite unbearable even in those open-air eateries.   At the Dairy,  we made our purchases of kesong puti, pastillas from carabao milk, yogurt (yum!).   There were no cara-beef  cervelat and schublig ( the restos must have cornered them!) available for sale.  I should remember to do my shopping earlier next time.

 

UP Los Banos' Animal Husbandry Dept

I'm no big fan of Imelda, but I thank her for this Center. 😉

 

And so we bid adieu to Makiling.  Bags packed, shopping done, minds emptied, muscles relaxed,  we brace ourselves for the chaos of Manila.  No big fans of Imelda here,  but she had it right building the Arts Center here.

 

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BenCab Museum: A Feast for the Senses

Filed under: Philippine Travels, Travel, travels — 5 Comments
May 1, 2011

BenCab Museum is more than just a museum.  

 

We came , knowing we won’t get disappointed with this National Artist’s works and art collections.   Learning more about the indigenous art in this neck of the woods comes as a bonus . Appreciating how BenCab’s art evolved through the years since he dropped out of college to emerge as a Master of Contemporary Art is  a natural consequence. Beyond all these, we were still surprised to find that behind the Museum is a farm and garden where one can arrange an eco-trail tour to meander around duck ponds, a forest, a layered garden imitating the famous rice terraces,  typical indigenous architecture of the Ifugao, Kalinga and Bontoc.  We wandered around the pond, crossed a charming wooden bridge leading to a small kiosk overlooking a mini forest and a river meandering through the property along with a cascading waterfalls on one end of the property.

 

 

We found BenCab Museum on our way to Baguio City.  From Marcos Highway, we turned left at Kilometer 6 Asin Road, Tadiangan, Tuba, Benguet.  It would be another 4.5 kilometers till we reached the Museum. Admission is 100 pesos.  The place is only a 15 minute ride from Baguio City Center, passing the Woodcarvers’ Village along Asin Street.  There are jeeps to Asin from the jeepney terminal found near Baguio market. Just be sure you don’t go on a Monday when the Museum is closed.

 

 

Since we arrived noontime,  we were pleased to find that the Museum has a charming dining place called Cafe Sabel right on the Farm and Garden Level.   There is a good menu selection ranging from the very local “Longsilog”  consisting of the Baguio Longganiza or local sausages, served with an egg and fried mountain rice,   to the more continental soup, salad and sandwich combination,  to chicken cacciatore, pork schnitzel and a number of pasta selections.   We ate our lunch here on a table with an open wide window overlooking the farm and garden.

 

 

Interestingly,  Cafe Sabel was named after a somewhat mad, bag lady  whom the artist observed and sketched from a window of a house somewhere in Bambang, Tondo where he lived for a time. In his mind, this mad scavenger must have been a symbol of dislocation, poverty, hopelessness  and isolation.  

In the lovely words penned by Rene Guatlo:

“This vagrant woman is one of the best known muses of the artist’s storied career. In her plainness, he saw beauty.

In her anonymity, he saw an individual person who chose to live as she saw fit.

In her weakness, he saw her native wit and strength. It is a tribute to BenCab that what he saw, what he painted, are what endure.”

 

 

The painting of rooftops was when the artist was still relatively young.  Easily one of my favorites along with the Sabel pieces and the painting of 3 masked men.   Taking off from the rooftop painting, one can observe how his art has evolved through the years.  There is even a special gallery in the Museum called Erotica.  From sensual paintings to erotic woodcarvings and sculptures, this room may overwhelm your senses.  😉

 

 

And then there is the collection of indigenous art from the Cordillera region.  Abra, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga, Mountain Province, Apayao and Baguio City make up the Cordillera Region.  It happens to be the ONLY landlocked region in the country encompassing most of the areas within the Cordillera Central mountain range of Luzon, the largest range in the country.

 

The Museum showcases the skills of Igorots in weaving and basketry,  and the woodcarving skills of the Ifugaos.   Notably,  it was the Ifugaos who carved the Banaue rice terraces in the Cordillera mountainside 3,000 years ago. 

 

 

In the middle of the Cordillera Gallery is this very long wooden bench called “hagabi”. Carved from a single piece of wood,  the “hagabi” is a symbol of wealth and social prestige among the Ifugaos.  The “ritual” involves the hosting of a public feast where priests (called “Mumbaki”) perform a ceremony called “mamaldang” to determine if the omens for the creation of the hagabi bench are favorable.  If so,  the ritual begins with the search for the right tree (usually a narra) , the journey of the woodcarvers to the forest to select, cut and carve the tree,  and the villagers taking turns in transporting the carved hagabi bench out of the forest through mountain trails . This activity takes several days and ends with more days of eating, drinking of rice wine and dancing.  Quite an elaborate feast, if you ask me.  And I am reminded of the ceremonies attendant to the creation and carving of totem poles in Alaska to mark a “special event or milestone” .  Interesting.

 

 

The last room we visited was the Maestro Gallery.  Here one finds a selection of works by Joya, Edades, Aguinaldo, Chabet, Legazpi, Luz, Magsaysay-Ho, Sanso, Zobel and other masters.   The Museum definitely does justice to this art collection.  All of 3 levels plus the Farm and Garden Level,  the BenCab Museum makes for an afternoon well-spent.   For sure,  I will come visiting again in my next Baguio trip. Perhaps spend more time in the Farm and Garden, or just sit it out in one of the kiosks in the middle of the duck pond.  Who knows?  The Cafe Sabel may even have a resident Chef by then.  Or am I expecting too much?

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The Street Vendors of Manila

Filed under: Don't Skip Manila!, Food Trip, Philippine Travels, Travel, travels
April 22, 2011

We get this all the time.  Foreigners in the workplace telling us that Filipinos tend to eat every so often.  Lunch is no sandwich and a fruit.  Neither is it a half hour break.  Naaaah.  That one hour lunch break can easily stretch to a couple of hours, often blaming the traffic for not getting back soon enough. These days,  there are many joints a walking distance from the offices. But lunch is lunch, and every Filipino observes it not just as a break from work but also as a chance to chat away the blues and break the monotony of working behind a desk. As for snacks or mid-day “mini-meals”?   That’s when it is more likely to find Filipinos eating that sandwich or fruit.  But the hardcore ones would still crave for their carbo fix:  a noodle dish, rice porridge or rice cakes.  In between lunch and that midday mini-meal, don’t be surprised to find them munching peanuts, pork cracklings, chips, or splitting pumpkin seeds.

 

Taho. Best for breakfast!

Sago at Gulaman

 

Luckily for us,  there is no shortage of food to be found and bought.  Stuck in a traffic jam?  No worries.   The street vendors plying the main roads sell anything from peanuts to pork cracklings to boiled eggs to mint candies to fruits to bottled water to “fish balls, squid balls and shrimp balls”. Boiled bananas, boiled peanuts, even corn on the cob! Walking the streets of Manila is an adventure.  Every tourist should try this.  Buying street food is very much a part of every Filipino’s way of life.  And there’s more to be found in urban centers like Manila, where folks are supposed to be “busier” than their counterparts in the provinces who may have the time and energy to cook their own meals and snacks.


Halo Halo!

 

As it is summer, try going to San Andres Market, a stone’s throw from Malate Church.   You can get your freshest fruits here to eat, or to be made into a fruit shake.   You can’t go wrong with a 10 peso fruit shake (less than US $0.25) or the local “halo-halo” (literally means “mix-mix”) for 20 pesos (less than US$0.50). I strongly suggest you try the halo-halo which is a mixture of  sweetened fruits, ice shavings and milk, topped with a local sweetened ube yam. You can’t be more Filipino than that!

 


 

Or you may want to head all the way to Chinatown for your dimsum fix and other foodstuff.  The street vendors here range from those selling fruits, vegetables and cooked food to those selling almost anything you need to get from an honest-to-goodness hardware and supermarket.  Around Quiapo Church,  you can buy your religious icons,  candles,  fans (strongly suggested on hot, humid days) , flower garlands, brooms (yes, brooms),  fruits, vegetables , squash flowers, and fish (live, dead, smoked or dried!).  From Quiapo Church through Santa Cruz Church to Binondo Church,  you will find street stalls selling footwear, garments and again,  more foodstuff.  There is an alley near the Binondo Church called Carvajal where I wanted to buy almost everything I laid my eyes on!  Forget the diet.  There is so much to buy here to take home as TV dinners.  Sushi?  Taho? Meat loaf?  Rice cakes?  

 

Barbequed Pork and Innards. Guess what!

Puto Bumbong

You may also want to check out more photos from my TravelBlog site. 

 

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Four Hours to “Waste” in Manila?

Filed under: Don't Skip Manila!, Philippine Travels — Leave a comment
April 13, 2011

Met up with my friend E and without much planning, decided we make good use of our time together while waiting for her son to get off summer school.  That’s from 10am till 2pm, if you wanna know.

 

Almost instantly, we agreed we should check out the Pasig River Ferry at the  Guadalupe Ferry Station where we can take the ferry ride to Escolta, or all the way to Plaza Mexico in Intramuros. But alas,  the station was closed as we unhappily learned the ferry company has ceased operations. Shoots!

 

Not easily discouraged,  we mapped out another plan.  Something in keeping with the Lenten Season.   From under the Guadalupe Bridge where the Ferry Station is located, we drove back up to EDSA southbound and took the right at the corner where you’d find Loyola Memorial .  This street goes a few hundred meters down to Nuestra Senora de Gracia or Guadalupe Church.  Foundations laid in 1601, construction completed by 1629.  I have once attended a wedding here, and was not disappointed with how beautiful the Church is just past midmorning.

 

 

From this nearly 400 year-old Church in Guadalupe, we drove down to J. P. Rizal Street all the way to Sta. Ana, Manila.   We passed what used to be the Sta. Ana Race Track,  until we found the Church of the Abandoned.  I have passed this Church many times before,  always referring to it simply as Sta. Ana Church.  Never realized it ranks among the oldest churches around Manila.   At this hour,  there was hardly any crowd inside this  17th century-Church , more so in the adjoining halls of the church where they kept religious statues of a few saints.  We even ventured up the stairs, but was gently reminded that the convent is not open to the public.

 

 

Driving further west towards Paco, Manila, we visited the Paco Church and Cemetery only to find it closed.  Today is a Tuesday and Paco Park Complex is closed Mondays and Tuesdays.   From outside, it looks like your mini-Intramuros as the Park is closed in by this  ancient wall.   No wonder this Church is a favorite wedding  as well as concert venue.    Never mind that it is also a cemetery!  After all, it has a distinguished list of VIPs interred in its park grounds.  No less than the national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal was buried here until 1912 (errr, did you know that?) , and so with the martyred priests Fathers Gomez, Burgos and Zamora, more commonly referred to as Gomburza.

 

 

 

From Paco Park,  we decided to have lunch at Aristocrat which is right beside the Malate Church.  But not without a quick visit to the San Andres Market where we found fruit stalls after fruit stalls of mangoes – yellow ripe, unripe green, smallish “supsupin” mangoes, Indian mangoes – along with racks of chicos, durian, dalandans, honeydew melons, watermelons , turnips, bananas, sweet potatoes, etc.  I even bought myself a glass of halo-halo (ice shavings with various sweetened fruits like bananas, sweet potatoes, garbanzos, beans, jackfruit, mixed in with ube yam, leche flan, gelatine,  sago and milk) for only 20 pesos.  What a refreshing drink, and all for just half a US dollar!  The same stall even offers hot chocolate and coffee for 5 pesos. Dirt cheap!  I shared the halo-halo (literally meaning “mix-mix”) with my friend E as I didn’t want to spoil my appetite for my bbq lunch at Aristocrat.

 

 

Aristocrat was doing brisk business by the time we got there.  Well, it’s noon time, but the waiter there says they get this crowd daily.  For me, Aristocrat (and another established chain restaurant Max’s) is a great “equalizer”.  Nothing fancy here, just plain good old barbecue and local dishes.  You’d be fine to allocate 200 pesos per head for a good meal. And it draws a big crowd from all sections of society.  From a table occupied by a group of students, another by working men and women out on a lunch break, to a group of nuns and yet another group of balikbayans (literally “back to country” Filipinos) having this comfort food.  It is always a yummy meal here in Aristocrat, and it won’t burn a hole in your pockets too.

 

 

And so, on full stomachs we crossed the street to visit the Malate Church.  Built in 1588 originally as an Augustinian Friar Building, it withstood a number of earthquakes and the February 3-17, 1945 Battle of Manila which left nearly the entire Malate area flattened, with thousands dead from the shelling from American forces and burning from Japanese occupiers.  This centuries-old church was left charred and roofless, and reconstruction began soon after the end of World War II.  At the time we visited, absolutely no one was inside the Church.  All quiet and peaceful . A fitting final stop for our attempt to “waste” four hours around Manila.  Call it the final part of our 7-church Visita Iglesia.  Having done Manila Cathedral and San Agustin Church last week and San Sebastian Church much earlier (hmmm, that last one  shouldn’t count, really), and 4 today (Guadalupe, Sta Ana, Paco and Malate),  I have completed the mandatory 7 Churches for the Visita Iglesia.  But there is this weekend when I plan to visit Binondo , Santa Cruz and Quiapo.  Now wait, that makes 10!  And I am still agonizing whether to include Tondo Church or not.  We’ll see………….no harm in visiting a dozen churches.  Especially churches loaded with history! So , next time you have an extra 4 hours to waste,  why not put it to good use and learn bits of history while doing your spiritual duty?

 

And if you do have more than 4 hours,  you can cross Roxas Boulevard  from Malate Church and stroll along the Baywalk and wait for the lovely Manila Bay sunset.  Who knows?  You may even work up an appetite again and head back to the Malate Church Square and this time, try the Max’s Fried Chicken just across Aristocrat.  Both are institutions in the Philippine dining scene, so don’t miss them.  Not to worry, you can enjoy budget meals in either one of these 2 eating places, and live to go back again and again.

 

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Revisiting San Agustin Church and Monastery

Filed under: Don't Skip Manila!, Philippine Travels — 9 Comments
April 9, 2011

It is Lent. Time to go visiting the Churches. The norm for Catholics here is to visit 7 Churches, preferably on Maundy Thursday.  But I have decided to instead do the 7 during the entire Lenten Season, and to choose the 7 Churches with lots of history. First off: San Agustin Church in Intramuros, a 16th century church claimed to be the oldest stone church in the country.

 

 


 

Filipinos:  A Strange Race?

 

From Makati where I live,  we drove along Roxas Boulevard with a lovely view of Manila Bay towards the Pier.  We took the right towards Intramuros, where one finds Fort Santiago and the Manila Cathedral.  We skipped both, and drove directly to San Agustin Church and Monastery.

 

 

Standing right in front of the Church and looking around, I found how un-Asian this corner in Intramuros is.  No wonder some of my foreigner friends tell me that Filipinos are “strange” in that way. Strange in that most of us bear Spanish-sounding surnames.  Like Ramirez.  Like Chavez. Like Guerrero. Or Mendoza.  Sure, we were a Spanish colony for close to 400 years, but other countries had Dutch or Portuguese or British colonizers – yet, I don’t hear of them with Dutch or British or Portuguese family names.  Or am I wrong?   Strange in that our language is interspersed with a lot of Spanish words and that Filipinos very readily use Spanish expletives that I do not wish to repeat here.  Truth is we even coined a word for the elitist Filipinos …… “con** crowd” — which literally means a lady’s private part in Spanish.  Strange in that we are so used to counting in Spanish (uno, dos, tres………) or in telling the time in Spanish ( a las tres y media, a las dose, etc.).   But more than anything else, we are very “Spanish” in our faith.  The Philippines does not have the temples of Cambodia, Laos or Thailand,  nor the pagodas of China , Japan and Korea,  but we have many Catholic Churches dotting the countryside which are worth seeing. Churches always form a central and core part of every Filipino’s lifestyle.  Here in Manila,  a few old Churches remain standing despite this city being the second most -bombed city during World War II.

 

 

 

More Than Just An Old Church

 

San Agustin Church at the corner of General Luna Street and Real Street in Intramuros is hard to miss.  It is just a stone’s throw from the Manila Cathedral (when facing the Cathedral, take the right side and walk straight towards San Agustin Church) and an easy walk from the Fort Santiago, another tourist destination.

 

Inside the Church, one finds off some corner a confessional box.  The parish priest sits inside while parishioners take turns to have their confessions heard by the priest with only a small screen window separating them.  On your knees, you confess your sins!  In another corner,  there is the pulpit where the parish priest used to say his homily or sermons.   Times have changed since those days.   And the ornately designed pulpit is now simply a reminder of how grand our old Churches were or still are, if luckily preserved and bomb-spared as with this Church.  But Filipino Catholics still make their confessions to their priests in this box-like structures though modern-day Catholics are not discouraged from doing face-to-face confessions.

 

This Church is a favorite among brides such that “bookings” for weddings need to be arranged at least a year in advance.  I have attended one too many wedding ceremonies here, and wedding receptions were held in any one of the nearby colonial-inspired restaurants and bistros just across the Church, or in the garden within the church courtyard.  On weekdays,  you may find school groups doing their field trips, and on weekends you would likely witness wedding ceremonies.  That is how “busy” this Church is.

 

 

 

 

Yet………the adjoining Monastery which has since been converted into a Museum hardly gets a crowd. The day I visited,  I walked alone along many corridors.  Kind of eerie, if you ask me.  I honestly felt like some statues are staring down at me.  In one of the exhibit rooms ,  I got goosebumps finding a dark corner with 4 or 5 statues clad in black robes.  They were representations of the early Augustinian friars who built this Church and established a religious order in the country.  It “helped” that the room was dimly lit, such that you find the robed statues just when you are almost face to face with them.  Off another corridor,  I found huge paintings, some pitifully warped, and woodcarvings depicting hell.  You bet my hair stood on edge and felt my heart beating out of my chest.  I almost had regrets that I came when school’s over. I could have timed my visit with a school group’s field trip instead and spared myself of some palpitations.

 

 

 

Miguel Lopez de Legazpi Rests Here: A Short History Lesson


Filipinos all know that Ferdinand Magellan discovered the Philippines. But Spanish colonization and the subsequent Christianization of the Philippines didn’t start with the discovery of Magellan in 1521, who incidentally was slain by a local tribal chieftain named Lapu Lapu in the island of Mactan in Central Visayas. While Magellan captained the very first ship to sail completely around the world,  Magellan never lived to tell his tale of discovering the Philippines and to prove that the world is indeed round. However, his discovery led to Spanish Expeditions led by Ruy Lopez de Villalobos in 1541 (who was driven away by hostile locals)  and then by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in 1565. Legazpi befriended a native Bohol chieftain called Datu Sikatuna  in a ceremony called “Blood Compact” and from there, established Spanish colonies with the aid of  local allies starting with the island of Cebu. With the colonization, came Christianization of the natives who earlier practiced nature worship.  And as pagans converted to Christianity, they were baptized and given Christian names.  So.  Now you know why many Filipinos have Spanish family names. Right?

 

Legazpi was a diplomat more than he was an explorer.  In Manila, he befriended both Rajahs Lakandula and Sulaiman and with some help from Augustinian and Franciscan friars, established a governing city council in 1571. At the same time, he ordered the construction of Intramuros, proclaiming it the capital of Manila and seat of the Spanish Government in the East Indies. He died in 1572 and was laid to rest right here in the San Agustin Church.

 

Now, enough of history and back to topic.

 

 

 

Father Blanco’s Garden


After doing the rounds (actually the “squares”) in the Museum,  it is refreshing to go down and spend some time within the garden.   If you have a book with you,  you can take over one of the benches and while away the time while resting your legs and feet in Father Blanco’s garden.  The garden can do with more flora, but you can enjoy the afternoon breeze here before venturing out of the Museum grounds. In my case,  I found the time to check out the “Binondo Food Wok Map” while here in the courtyard garden.  This is the map I bought (for 100 pesos) in the Bahay Tsinoy (literally means House of Filipino-Chinese) one block away from San Agustin Church.  (Facing the Manila Cathedral, one can take the road on the left side till you hit the 2nd corner.  This is Cabildo Street corner Anda Street)  Of course, if it is too sunny, you may simply have a drink and some chips or biscuits in a corner stall (can’t even call it a cafe) within the Museum.  There are tables and chairs where you can sit, facing some huge paintings.  Not bad in terms of scenery, but the corner stall can certainly offer better drinks (like a good brew?) and better wafers or local rice cakes.

 

 

 

More Time to Spare?


If you have more time to kill,  you may head straight for the Walls by taking Real Street (the Church is right at the corner of Real and General Luna Streets) , passing by a good bistro called Ristorante delle Mistre and remembering to have a cozy dinner there on the way back.  There is an option to walk along the walls or ON the walls.   There are stairways to get on top from where one is afforded a view of the nearby Manila Hotel and the sprawling golf links which get all lighted up at night.  On this visit, I found many young couples on a date here.  Good choice.  It is quiet, breezy and has good views.

 

As I trace my steps back to the Church, I passed bronze representations of ex-Presidents in what is dubbed as Gallery of the Presidents.  I cannot help but feel amused to find those of ex-presidents Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Joseph Estrada side by side.  Even in bronze, it is kind of strange and quite amusing to find them together.  Can’t wait till 2016 when that of incumbent President Noynoy Aquino joins them.  Oh, I do not mean to be disrespectful.  Just that it is no secret in my country how these 3 ‘adore’ each other.   Enough said.  Go drop by Ristorante delle Mistre and have that mango cheesecake (less than US$2)  to go with your brew.  If you have the appetite for lunch or dinner, order their set menu. Come, visit and enjoy Manila!

 

Better still, enjoy the many islands of the Philippines.  I am a local living here and must admit I still have a long list of must-visit destinations around the country. Like Mount Pinatubo.  Or Puerto Galera in Mindoro.  Or Sagada.  Plus many more.  Now, that’s a confession!

 

For more photos, check out my TravelBlog site.  

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