tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56900824856001465802024-02-21T08:53:37.243-08:00eatership"Good leaders are made, not born." This is the basic rule in Leadership. As a member and Past President of the Manila Jaycees, this notion was drilled into my head time and again. It is also because of my MJC friends that I have come to know among the most interesting eats in Manila. Between leadership and eating with my friends, I thought it would be cool to meld the two ideas together, hence, eatership. After all, good eaters are also made, not born.
So read and eat away!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-87756352739819205422014-07-31T02:48:00.001-07:002014-07-31T02:48:24.591-07:00SHUTTERFLY ROCKS!<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the great things about living in the US is the freebies that you get. One time I was walking down 34th on my way to school and passed by the opening of <a href="http://www.dsw.com/">DSW</a>, a mega shoe store. I was handed a shoe box with a coupon for $50. I promptly bought a pair of Adidas Sambas. How cool is that?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Recently, I got a free offer from <a href="http://oldnavy.gap.com/">Old Navy</a> for a <a href="http://shutterfly.com/">Shutterfly</a> photo book. I'd ordered Shutterfly photo books before to give as gifts, and this time around, I am giving myself a gift. Normally, the book would cost about $40, but with the offer, I ended up paying only $10! Yay for freebies!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Can't wait to get my book. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Oddly, Shutterfly gave me an embed code to share my book, but it's not showing)</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-47351928115228090092014-01-29T19:20:00.002-08:002014-01-30T01:24:25.930-08:00DO YOU HEAR THE PEOPLE SING? <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9Wwitq9F7Rj71-wkOfoIXQxusscz6c_5kuK0UQXoFpl8YNGjBwZWu1ZZMe-MvFXZeIcyaUCSzSj1Chtjy2ZauqxSQcTcHr1s4amth6Rwi9QRK9D7N4SL2VJDlBDH2jq7CZeIDeZZvFMDa/s1600/1796577_10152134555753911_1201926689_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9Wwitq9F7Rj71-wkOfoIXQxusscz6c_5kuK0UQXoFpl8YNGjBwZWu1ZZMe-MvFXZeIcyaUCSzSj1Chtjy2ZauqxSQcTcHr1s4amth6Rwi9QRK9D7N4SL2VJDlBDH2jq7CZeIDeZZvFMDa/s1600/1796577_10152134555753911_1201926689_n.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Photograph from the facebook account of Mickey Muñoz)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">OK. So my friend chats me up near midnight and offers me a
ticket to <a href="http://www.rwmanila.com/events/do-you-hear-people-sing">DO YOU HEAR THE PEOPLE SING?</a>Didn’t say yes right away, for a few
reasons: Resorts World is not my favorite theater show venue, the mall allows
smoking, I’ve seen MISS SAIGON thrice, LES MISERABLES twice, a lot of the
performers are friends anyway, and I will just feel bad during and after the
show out of inggit that I’m not one of the performers onstage (ha!).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank God I went to watch.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First, Lea Salonga still wows. Even I was surprised she
still wowed me, and I am not saying that as some arrogant idiot who thinks he
knows better, but as a fan. Having worked with her when she was a young girl,
then later just before she became the international star that she is now, I was
always amazed by her pure voice and far-reaching talent. The latter impression
was cemented when I watched her first foray into cabaret at the Carlyle in New York,
in 2009. Didn’t know she’d do well in such an intimate setting. And last night
was further affirmation that whether the venue is big or small, Lea Salonga
still packs ‘em in and floors ‘em.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Second, the show itself is glorious on two levels: it
features the works of<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #222222; font-size: 8.5pt;"> </span>Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil. The show begins
with the stirring BUI DOI and the ends with, naturally, the moving DO YOU HEAR
THE PEOPLE SING. In between, the show seamlessly moves from one work to the
next, including two of the duo’s lesser-known works, MARTIN GUERRE and THE
PIRATE QUEEN. The performances were top-notch, and the show was especially affecting
for the audience because it featured a good number of MISS SAIGON alumni who
had performed the show in many parts of the world. But the more amazing part of
the show is that everyone involved in the show – from the technicians to the
stars – donated their time, talent and energies to raise P24,000,000 to rebuild
200 homes for Typhoon Yolanda survivors. Even Resorts World donated the venue. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The show came about last December when M. Schönberg suggested
the project to Lea and her brother Gerard, who immediately signed on. The
logistics that went into the production must be daunting, not least because
artists, gear and technicians had to be flown in. (After the show, Robbie Guevara
said that so many things went wrong that evening – but no one noticed). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Perhaps it was because everyone – the audience, the
performers onstage and the technicians behind the scenes – knew that the show
was more than just a showcase that the emotional tug of the show was just so
strong. The performances were flawless, especially Lea’s rendition of a MISS
SAIGON discard, TOO MUCH FOR ONE HEART, and her duet with Marie Zamora on MON
HISTOIRE/ON MY OWN, and her other duet with future MISS SAIGON cast member
RACHELLE ANN GO, who showed off her top pop pipes with their own version of I
DREAMED A DREAM. Not to be outdone was CARLA GUEVARA-LAFORTEZA, whom I have
seen on stage and at lounge shows, but never as a vulnerable Ellen in STILL or
a feisty PIRATE QUEEN. What a revelation. David Harris had the enviable
position of singing the songs of all the male lead parts in the Schönberg-Boublil
book, and kissing all the female but Marie. (I squirmed in my seat when some
members of the audience went, OOOOYYYYYYYY!!! each time there was kissing
onstage. Why? Another source of annoyance was this buffoon two seats away who
was on his Android phone, texting and surfing throughout the show. Why?) Leo
Valdez pulled all stops singing the demented Engineer’s THE AMERICAN DREAM. It’s
something else when an actor performs with artistic abandon and reels you in
with him. Another highlight of the show was the Valjean chestnut THE PRAYER
done as a quartet, with the surprise appearance of Cocoy Laurel, who should
have sung a song of his own.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before the finale, M. Schönberg narrated how this show came
to be, and began his speech with, “This show is for the Filipinos, by the
Filipinos. Thank you for giving us your talent. The world gave us Lea Salonga.
And thank you for giving me a Filipina daughter, who is now 21 years old.” M.
Boublil went on to share his and M. Schönberg’s love for the Philippines,
manifested in many ways, including the establishment of the Sun and Moon
Orphanage. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So if you are a theater buff, and/or want to help Yolanda,
rush to Resorts World tonight and watch DO YOU HEAR THE PEOPLE SING. It’s one
hell of a show, but heavenly.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thanks again, Ampy for the ticket!</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-21732114492127136832014-01-06T20:36:00.002-08:002014-01-06T20:38:12.383-08:00COURTESY IS A CONCEPT ALIEN TO GLOBE<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I wake up this morning in a really good mood. I had a good night's sleep, after having had dinner with old friends, and a few beers afterwards. My trip to work was pleasant, not too many people on the MRT, and no armpits crushed against my face. Part of my morning plan was to pay my Globe bill at their business center in SM Makati, because it does not get very crowded. The staff is surly and impersonal, but, that's Globe for you.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I got to Globe, and the security guard at the door greets me a good morning politely. My turn is called and the cashier doesn't greet me, or bothers to look up, and I hand my payment slip to her. Without looking up, she mumbles the amount I need to pay and I toss (yes, I tossed) my credit card to her, to see if she would snap at it the way a hungry hyena would when tossed some meat. No reaction. She </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">proceeds to print out the credit card receipt, hands it to me, still without looking up or saying anything. I swear, she was robotic. After I sign the receipt, I tossed it again at her, still, no reaction. It was amazingly disturbing. At this point, I could not take any more, so I said, "I'd like to speak to your OIC after this transaction." Still no reaction. So I asked, "Did you hear what I asked you to do?" She just nods her head. After I get my receipt from her, she stands up and fetches the OIC.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I reported what had just happened, ending with the question of how long the cashier was employed (1 year) and whether Globe had a customer care program (yes). And yet, the rude and impersonal behavior from that cashier.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This behavior is not isolated as far as Globe is concerned. I've transacted at their Greenhills, SM Megamall, Greenbelt and Shangrila branches and it's all consistent: impersonal treatment bordering on the, or outrightly rude. When I berated the OIC this morning for the behavior of the cashier, he kept on apologizing, and when I pointed out that the cashier did not even apologize, she robotically apologized.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is this Globe's culture?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">P.S.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The cashier's name is MAYLA A. MALCO and the OIC's is ISAIAH JAVIER. Shame on both of you.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-76782094512060585682013-12-23T06:19:00.004-08:002013-12-23T06:19:30.873-08:00MUSEORLINA<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The final leg of our excursion took us to <a href="http://www.orlina.com/">Museo Orlina</a>. We were lucky. Only a week old, it wasn't crowded, and we were afforded the rare privilege of being given a tour of the museum by Maestro Ramon himself.<span id="goog_469680105"></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6qMLmHiZ8cxlRAYVIB3e4fPgt5KYVUdSMwnnVfIbo3oxGkQeOGoUA4-CIZOpgizFaScFGrUSzVNnmLL0PK06jg1y0erd979kM8yltNvLmDn2OlgavWeMxIa6gPrKLebz4Kj6wvT_YPCaA/s1600/IMG_4068.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6qMLmHiZ8cxlRAYVIB3e4fPgt5KYVUdSMwnnVfIbo3oxGkQeOGoUA4-CIZOpgizFaScFGrUSzVNnmLL0PK06jg1y0erd979kM8yltNvLmDn2OlgavWeMxIa6gPrKLebz4Kj6wvT_YPCaA/s320/IMG_4068.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPdzknIdtojQIfbg3PULEJdHJ7qmo8107tx4L4ugpemz8joJkvheFm0-PLPrnwWaba9gDlL3EJed_saXX_4-GA24chDxfd7nyElRFcMpNcdCre-7is6wy-ppVx2qqDTwTyrFpfhYIp27Kd/s1600/IMG_4069.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPdzknIdtojQIfbg3PULEJdHJ7qmo8107tx4L4ugpemz8joJkvheFm0-PLPrnwWaba9gDlL3EJed_saXX_4-GA24chDxfd7nyElRFcMpNcdCre-7is6wy-ppVx2qqDTwTyrFpfhYIp27Kd/s320/IMG_4069.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A rare cobalt blue piece</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkOClh3NSxwLotBk_k79epYaX0OeWAcYYybcBs0Q6DFBPBlPQA0b5u9iZaN8w5RJyKUUDw0RtUjq1wCyJoE2URS9l5dfM9qt0Z1uscxjT4vFRheo8w8pNJzD2Lds-hJfFMokYNuCfsjL3N/s1600/IMG_4070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkOClh3NSxwLotBk_k79epYaX0OeWAcYYybcBs0Q6DFBPBlPQA0b5u9iZaN8w5RJyKUUDw0RtUjq1wCyJoE2URS9l5dfM9qt0Z1uscxjT4vFRheo8w8pNJzD2Lds-hJfFMokYNuCfsjL3N/s320/IMG_4070.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tired and close</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxHlNO13xwl8xR5cekhdgGAPbumm53OUljFGky2J3vN7ky2wrt8hv2s0n5SzBwR0pi0s4ENW_nxciTm6kMWz2b-hEgLubAkKaWPlvollgkSvqTGe0zxkOIB2uo64ZtrIpkS5BNiyfSdonM/s1600/IMG_4071.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxHlNO13xwl8xR5cekhdgGAPbumm53OUljFGky2J3vN7ky2wrt8hv2s0n5SzBwR0pi0s4ENW_nxciTm6kMWz2b-hEgLubAkKaWPlvollgkSvqTGe0zxkOIB2uo64ZtrIpkS5BNiyfSdonM/s320/IMG_4071.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Didn't know there is also Orlina jewellery</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZoVbtI7ZcoK8-L9Lt0xSceWdWnSkz-oxgpgE7prEYc8q-byTG39YrEE4nQNiA6rBGKW0wBkEwp3AhwrVqt2dBVZysqShQQvWGYx9KW-GLMoFh2WuUwndP5DxS0sMyABpdm7z_dqCfVoGW/s1600/IMG_4072.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZoVbtI7ZcoK8-L9Lt0xSceWdWnSkz-oxgpgE7prEYc8q-byTG39YrEE4nQNiA6rBGKW0wBkEwp3AhwrVqt2dBVZysqShQQvWGYx9KW-GLMoFh2WuUwndP5DxS0sMyABpdm7z_dqCfVoGW/s320/IMG_4072.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVsxVNjLi8yry5fH8admou-IM-1HI6B6ca0ljdwBbzfV0Ju6XpBdFHKmP3ZyvglFW5TZAacmr9_UjiQnIlGDQb-gszUYkOxCjyMQr9u5_2CLFc_5UwGHaZ3JFzTRtg0H58ZSxIo5JBe5Dr/s1600/IMG_4073.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVsxVNjLi8yry5fH8admou-IM-1HI6B6ca0ljdwBbzfV0Ju6XpBdFHKmP3ZyvglFW5TZAacmr9_UjiQnIlGDQb-gszUYkOxCjyMQr9u5_2CLFc_5UwGHaZ3JFzTRtg0H58ZSxIo5JBe5Dr/s320/IMG_4073.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCjapPvay6uSrAfuZq_xL-d4h0up9Owaz-45Bh8EvvSyauiCOOwt1m8kOMvMlqyxq1OjQnFedTPOGBgri85B0BgMQ96pIde7rq8_tAsUCMhqobXo3QmVJ86WvwWtoh2JEZcY1HGr7hO42-/s1600/IMG_4075.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCjapPvay6uSrAfuZq_xL-d4h0up9Owaz-45Bh8EvvSyauiCOOwt1m8kOMvMlqyxq1OjQnFedTPOGBgri85B0BgMQ96pIde7rq8_tAsUCMhqobXo3QmVJ86WvwWtoh2JEZcY1HGr7hO42-/s320/IMG_4075.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNqBsBX-0FlFdsCYBWFVAA3BIb81vSNmjNyMDOMflkfZ34ZBVOeemWA0zwM0a8WNMHSFQC1kDWs2cH5JwvKzs97j75pLizh127rZtwAXtFli8z1BkwibNu8Ysas3QlaVdCOv8y5LvBHurt/s1600/IMG_4076.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNqBsBX-0FlFdsCYBWFVAA3BIb81vSNmjNyMDOMflkfZ34ZBVOeemWA0zwM0a8WNMHSFQC1kDWs2cH5JwvKzs97j75pLizh127rZtwAXtFli8z1BkwibNu8Ysas3QlaVdCOv8y5LvBHurt/s320/IMG_4076.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of 3 pieces that I truly liked</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8CorEqMyrAJOpLVJuJYplLWT1waWNlvtWhve_Wm4CSiMz3KRmqshKfg5sAdwMlc16v14tjjEDinXyTK23d4WH1WzLE9GaEt2LU1iDnubh8S4sJz0ht_JSM7xzhLJyi11R1f-WKbTxSSer/s1600/IMG_4077.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8CorEqMyrAJOpLVJuJYplLWT1waWNlvtWhve_Wm4CSiMz3KRmqshKfg5sAdwMlc16v14tjjEDinXyTK23d4WH1WzLE9GaEt2LU1iDnubh8S4sJz0ht_JSM7xzhLJyi11R1f-WKbTxSSer/s320/IMG_4077.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is my absolute favorite. From a private collection</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpF7WZ2ykcguQ2m9CopHKirSQNR2trMBjXgDa6j6MIuJOe3sS-Pv_rPbViHtc0VtkUkfsPxVQy8F29g4e2tZ047qoO6qcLn7Uew6T4cPqKnECNAPbFb5No8vU8QFtXLvZCli5_ELxP7xdj/s1600/IMG_4080.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpF7WZ2ykcguQ2m9CopHKirSQNR2trMBjXgDa6j6MIuJOe3sS-Pv_rPbViHtc0VtkUkfsPxVQy8F29g4e2tZ047qoO6qcLn7Uew6T4cPqKnECNAPbFb5No8vU8QFtXLvZCli5_ELxP7xdj/s320/IMG_4080.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">An Ana Pamintuan piece. Surprisingly comfortable</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTW_CpocbXkbru9eGf7JOzB_piIbseCL5NnJI5ObqtOxkm0J9os_sQAUExZhYiAIDoevvfZjVirGad7KsjBiC9WUIq6JLjZxJpO-DdJyKhdTlMmJKF-eofWZjFhfBqxZF8PtGDanE5D4I2/s1600/IMG_4082.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTW_CpocbXkbru9eGf7JOzB_piIbseCL5NnJI5ObqtOxkm0J9os_sQAUExZhYiAIDoevvfZjVirGad7KsjBiC9WUIq6JLjZxJpO-DdJyKhdTlMmJKF-eofWZjFhfBqxZF8PtGDanE5D4I2/s320/IMG_4082.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Maestro showing the kid in him; and his Beetle collection</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5SRRrfzOJxHW_yZy2uRndduan_SjmbgSSdsCX1W4qbFErV6mLmCTjQC0Gn2VoHWBHsfHLCvWZQQZh9YhhS6Fn0j-gYpbHhDfj6E5oflR323trTg0Txgy_J_yxvMCriMCuT9WOnWce9i8c/s320/IMG_4083.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="239" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Herbie!!!</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5SRRrfzOJxHW_yZy2uRndduan_SjmbgSSdsCX1W4qbFErV6mLmCTjQC0Gn2VoHWBHsfHLCvWZQQZh9YhhS6Fn0j-gYpbHhDfj6E5oflR323trTg0Txgy_J_yxvMCriMCuT9WOnWce9i8c/s1600/IMG_4083.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgg8CI4cKLLiBH-PHPjw5seQ2W_ZhMXjTgJNjoztQCASVWrzHlz7Wue54E1C3okMkSsFocFfaat95Vy6ev-nVXhPGs75SgTOEB5Oicxg2UFIYetSzJcAwk_grxqs9OFHnlcQngCV3khOmC/s1600/IMG_4084.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgg8CI4cKLLiBH-PHPjw5seQ2W_ZhMXjTgJNjoztQCASVWrzHlz7Wue54E1C3okMkSsFocFfaat95Vy6ev-nVXhPGs75SgTOEB5Oicxg2UFIYetSzJcAwk_grxqs9OFHnlcQngCV3khOmC/s320/IMG_4084.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The basement and first level spaces are devoted to a gallery that features the works of other artists, and the premier exhibit will benefit Typhoon Yolanda beneficiaries. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Parked in the museum are Maestro Ramon's two unique cars: a Beetle customized by BenCab as part of his signature Sabel series, and a Volvo painted in the style of Piet Mondrian.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also in the museum is an interactive giant TV that lets one explore everything Orlina: history, awards, body of work, and even videos of how 10 Orlinas were stolen.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On the upper floors are the works of the Maestro, with pieces culled from his workshop and private collections. I fell in love with three, two of which are part of private collections, and one being way out of my disposable income.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Among the features of the Museo is an amphitheater that will be open to shows of local and outside artists. Can't wait for the first performance. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">MuseOrlina is another Tagaytay destination one must visit.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Ip1fSY0u71qdVvsdTxnZ3bYrZo8ZomuNrC645mhZczF7BzyPZonKTiRCOhVtIo09TFTCaN5IENVlKM-1i1CgR6jbIF9koZxNdS11SAcV7XXih0JUEpiZKCdtAXiYmR9DqDFtwTN_tQD6/s1600/orlina+map001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Ip1fSY0u71qdVvsdTxnZ3bYrZo8ZomuNrC645mhZczF7BzyPZonKTiRCOhVtIo09TFTCaN5IENVlKM-1i1CgR6jbIF9koZxNdS11SAcV7XXih0JUEpiZKCdtAXiYmR9DqDFtwTN_tQD6/s320/orlina+map001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-63262257957981735842013-12-23T02:43:00.000-08:002013-12-23T02:43:46.829-08:00A VISIT TO HISTORIC TAAL TOWN (The Pictures)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlbr14SOg0p7H8TQDd66CkKRoVvj32VGautDkEFuKxBVXII0Mw3_gQJnPqhbK7aDqJfvT9OXnbEQHA79XHp1tDhfOgnu7pYy3xQthMwaOOpz6bjFGAfxyioTkPxYw5G_RREmpbq_xVBkRM/s1600/IMG_0012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlbr14SOg0p7H8TQDd66CkKRoVvj32VGautDkEFuKxBVXII0Mw3_gQJnPqhbK7aDqJfvT9OXnbEQHA79XHp1tDhfOgnu7pYy3xQthMwaOOpz6bjFGAfxyioTkPxYw5G_RREmpbq_xVBkRM/s320/IMG_0012.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We had such fun doing this! </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-bZOT2RiQ6rLv6903wI7QqzCkninVmKXzEJ05KlBikLykidUL8kfd73dkdORds7BCfi49DWoI2KJjPQwDPbmHhdEYwHESKPitiePp0hdbSM7ZQN-Xd-rahyphenhyphenFSU1n1_uLSftrpN4dQvoB1/s1600/IMG_0015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-bZOT2RiQ6rLv6903wI7QqzCkninVmKXzEJ05KlBikLykidUL8kfd73dkdORds7BCfi49DWoI2KJjPQwDPbmHhdEYwHESKPitiePp0hdbSM7ZQN-Xd-rahyphenhyphenFSU1n1_uLSftrpN4dQvoB1/s320/IMG_0015.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Luna and her cameo</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwPEqjg9-azZi2U99d8sbR1LsVrQy8Isz0xJGC-USIJbuZxFdXXqrSwRwegwmhT36zLuWuL7EJ70zKVKBrWUW_bO_5z_Cq10FxShJ1e7Gris6fMYqOq8UZQkYE45zLl3uTF6uGdOuXMiul/s320/IMG_0016.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="213" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lito Perez helping Grace Soong for her closeup</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwPEqjg9-azZi2U99d8sbR1LsVrQy8Isz0xJGC-USIJbuZxFdXXqrSwRwegwmhT36zLuWuL7EJ70zKVKBrWUW_bO_5z_Cq10FxShJ1e7Gris6fMYqOq8UZQkYE45zLl3uTF6uGdOuXMiul/s1600/IMG_0016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhte5rcmPAxkd6DYYTTR70TS4sPybH_QvKLW0ldPWv7TsA8GK604F8rkabRSTrOS6XVxkYLP01MKg5b-ZrtkTIcac9VXV4gDMlbidi-drvA9tpX0jPlXJ1nHaUEprownYad97pLvwhzJyxM/s1600/IMG_0039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhte5rcmPAxkd6DYYTTR70TS4sPybH_QvKLW0ldPWv7TsA8GK604F8rkabRSTrOS6XVxkYLP01MKg5b-ZrtkTIcac9VXV4gDMlbidi-drvA9tpX0jPlXJ1nHaUEprownYad97pLvwhzJyxM/s320/IMG_0039.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A Portrait of Dorian Gemora</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK-23qznKZAafFAOIFTiUA6CvVV-Lqa47hZn5tgdSjH57HLaYod1dF2nCNAf0BJjZ3bjHcLu6g-hnZqZJ2-hnS2u3WgsIMHErYlgIqYb6GgOiTLEqYw2RNiUPhtG7ZkrwtEQYtI-vn93rz/s1600/IMG_0046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK-23qznKZAafFAOIFTiUA6CvVV-Lqa47hZn5tgdSjH57HLaYod1dF2nCNAf0BJjZ3bjHcLu6g-hnZqZJ2-hnS2u3WgsIMHErYlgIqYb6GgOiTLEqYw2RNiUPhtG7ZkrwtEQYtI-vn93rz/s320/IMG_0046.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the most pensive I've ever seen Freddie </span> </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcyaTz9_tUtRm6K-0c29Fj3VWfA1EaGvFOGLElIMjIAKZqOR6Z0tDAzMD-vISQIf39Ot2ezyOsc1bnI8vD6bKqb0LwqQ5p527bgcdmxPyGboBslNvKFuDh38Zmjds3QR_nNqNvDHGSHzrn/s1600/IMG_0054.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcyaTz9_tUtRm6K-0c29Fj3VWfA1EaGvFOGLElIMjIAKZqOR6Z0tDAzMD-vISQIf39Ot2ezyOsc1bnI8vD6bKqb0LwqQ5p527bgcdmxPyGboBslNvKFuDh38Zmjds3QR_nNqNvDHGSHzrn/s320/IMG_0054.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Adorning the stairway with conch shells is still done up to now </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvTECBJpz2yUMgTy71aPjRRq9QZLIRXHqiC-ZCAMYiy6qS9dA9xgBr0rRvERSDY7EY3XT5L-506nhF7Cj4sN4nk5tbw9BP1M82BoWC0KxSdHHIl3st1F-WTVmpoz585kH2nnuQaLAjru3t/s1600/IMG_0064.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvTECBJpz2yUMgTy71aPjRRq9QZLIRXHqiC-ZCAMYiy6qS9dA9xgBr0rRvERSDY7EY3XT5L-506nhF7Cj4sN4nk5tbw9BP1M82BoWC0KxSdHHIl3st1F-WTVmpoz585kH2nnuQaLAjru3t/s320/IMG_0064.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lito used old and new for our table ware </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3swWxh5i5SRd307WJaXIc0geq8wje_p8hADSqVphb2NA9podJT9NQTTn9O4HdpMM3GJc7dwAZsceGXT_SndEJ-G-UbSWcdCtEDt0J8klmcZnIIhaY99AFa17YHSiH93wFzTcWjAUs8DAG/s1600/IMG_0065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3swWxh5i5SRd307WJaXIc0geq8wje_p8hADSqVphb2NA9podJT9NQTTn9O4HdpMM3GJc7dwAZsceGXT_SndEJ-G-UbSWcdCtEDt0J8klmcZnIIhaY99AFa17YHSiH93wFzTcWjAUs8DAG/s320/IMG_0065.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This steamed vegetable dish (with ripe mango) was such a treat</span> </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDSdKUz8H7AfKfiSbazgQBol7AGWnJwRESHe0ArNgUxlm3bK7YIf6VkuSocChyphenhyphenlUSVEyMm88kpDsLnngP20D9qruxCy-Ir_xWkOSH4nUmCaL0YuBsGf9CrOdPYhsNB8MWlPHybVBcPihLe/s1600/IMG_0067.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDSdKUz8H7AfKfiSbazgQBol7AGWnJwRESHe0ArNgUxlm3bK7YIf6VkuSocChyphenhyphenlUSVEyMm88kpDsLnngP20D9qruxCy-Ir_xWkOSH4nUmCaL0YuBsGf9CrOdPYhsNB8MWlPHybVBcPihLe/s320/IMG_0067.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is an heirloom recipe from Mike Santos' grandmother</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2lcShLFI6Wmy4Uv60mo4vF6L4w2NtV0P_KOPUc032BBIp7HSOXYo0xpZNdcieqgBXrYtQMUlYNMAN34dmVB2_5681LZBKSm6-UXLFy1Y_9bEUZcdUReEEJ34eEBBMDCWSDdhhsWa2ftyr/s1600/IMG_0068.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2lcShLFI6Wmy4Uv60mo4vF6L4w2NtV0P_KOPUc032BBIp7HSOXYo0xpZNdcieqgBXrYtQMUlYNMAN34dmVB2_5681LZBKSm6-UXLFy1Y_9bEUZcdUReEEJ34eEBBMDCWSDdhhsWa2ftyr/s320/IMG_0068.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Adobo is commonplace but when cooked with turmeric, assumes a new flavor</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5scODASWScqXgNjYiCszcQAj3S_u6RCogQMN7uou_Py0wqNX_fxfq60JpTPN_QqPAYZZMaMNLDzZF5DX5l5kqTR3f1YF2K2bLauTb5tJ4jUNirvJ7AERw7kA3oAAQGIPOTGlcQK4K5Kdg/s1600/IMG_0069.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5scODASWScqXgNjYiCszcQAj3S_u6RCogQMN7uou_Py0wqNX_fxfq60JpTPN_QqPAYZZMaMNLDzZF5DX5l5kqTR3f1YF2K2bLauTb5tJ4jUNirvJ7AERw7kA3oAAQGIPOTGlcQK4K5Kdg/s320/IMG_0069.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The remains of the pig</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje1lViYjq0cfkDk-T8jPZ0cxrImmqu_k-duT3pfbsGPLs32v-s_jWX6fZxDDYkpLcWdZAvCq6AqmSj-aYfUjaj96i1ZAGkyTnGA1z_CPLUN4OGBS04iNBD2agxgKQgjoig02utMuok9zrG/s1600/IMG_0070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje1lViYjq0cfkDk-T8jPZ0cxrImmqu_k-duT3pfbsGPLs32v-s_jWX6fZxDDYkpLcWdZAvCq6AqmSj-aYfUjaj96i1ZAGkyTnGA1z_CPLUN4OGBS04iNBD2agxgKQgjoig02utMuok9zrG/s320/IMG_0070.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chocolate e(speso) and Taal suman</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZum05DZihDyKZTeqC4m7Hx2GBWpl_0nuPaNZR7y-tR-g7Yd2KDBWmFQJsT5UVdbZDNMHDZIW0XE1nptwHXDyHqaXDjQre11GaORpqM_rvZM1CvoCvU5eLx4jWCOKZPn5LfhkLlvKcngMs/s1600/IMG_0071.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZum05DZihDyKZTeqC4m7Hx2GBWpl_0nuPaNZR7y-tR-g7Yd2KDBWmFQJsT5UVdbZDNMHDZIW0XE1nptwHXDyHqaXDjQre11GaORpqM_rvZM1CvoCvU5eLx4jWCOKZPn5LfhkLlvKcngMs/s320/IMG_0071.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Organic banana chips top a gatas kalabaw ice cream and buko pandan confection </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjes2NdZkT7DdGjiUFQpt1EQcVviiepqDAMHh6jsj_k6Z37cw9AOwUsv70eSDDJOeMQlLriYfhCTJ43wChqsHCkd7q_aj3o22RIMZBhrdT1z6OCubtxjxV_nH3wpbywPZYU1U_PFKbHLu-W/s1600/IMG_0073.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjes2NdZkT7DdGjiUFQpt1EQcVviiepqDAMHh6jsj_k6Z37cw9AOwUsv70eSDDJOeMQlLriYfhCTJ43wChqsHCkd7q_aj3o22RIMZBhrdT1z6OCubtxjxV_nH3wpbywPZYU1U_PFKbHLu-W/s320/IMG_0073.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Happy diners all!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj2t-O4-EI2-Lxl3wAKeR0RnwvwyzahTwKScpAd4iOzqQmdXJE-PFmf-JjD-mUkhUayZlxoa-nL4WCynlIQSf_zYBdjwIc7oTBbmcUEO-4hs_dgqGmcET_Wmt7NA_nGwX-uoBXoyuMKW27/s1600/IMG_0076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj2t-O4-EI2-Lxl3wAKeR0RnwvwyzahTwKScpAd4iOzqQmdXJE-PFmf-JjD-mUkhUayZlxoa-nL4WCynlIQSf_zYBdjwIc7oTBbmcUEO-4hs_dgqGmcET_Wmt7NA_nGwX-uoBXoyuMKW27/s320/IMG_0076.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The smaller of the two dining rooms of Villa Tortuga </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihNYE6oOuGNYWoywERJNBq2AlTpNDWPC-yRfXTxXEBYYoaUJjzWsPTLE8LTEJYMudoyYzLL6n2kdE2B1w5kjjK_nLKCfTQ-PwE34Uo-SaVByl4THEmbisbSu6OE2j1PV-5a-VisYQBDF1v/s1600/IMG_0077.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihNYE6oOuGNYWoywERJNBq2AlTpNDWPC-yRfXTxXEBYYoaUJjzWsPTLE8LTEJYMudoyYzLL6n2kdE2B1w5kjjK_nLKCfTQ-PwE34Uo-SaVByl4THEmbisbSu6OE2j1PV-5a-VisYQBDF1v/s320/IMG_0077.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I really like this display of old sari-sari store jars and ice shaver</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxcUs7m3o42sEq2pRwlrmkGAPBOeJH7qFMLlXNm1X-nrIRzXcDOcWZKnnRMJR_b1b9wi7ZCcBNMP8joVHGHlat787Tjpt66aLb0w_fszXxHACJ9eUD8T5AVxi9cv8dlc2uIwSH149a9TB/s1600/IMG_0079.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxcUs7m3o42sEq2pRwlrmkGAPBOeJH7qFMLlXNm1X-nrIRzXcDOcWZKnnRMJR_b1b9wi7ZCcBNMP8joVHGHlat787Tjpt66aLb0w_fszXxHACJ9eUD8T5AVxi9cv8dlc2uIwSH149a9TB/s320/IMG_0079.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not so old goblets, but still adds a whimsical touch to the table</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3MWbfnFNB-O7FwULs08iyIPSX1tSGsRBBbbwjlRf4lnmW3VAlt08mFxkYEtkPBZi1oXe3Z1wikzxIIva03fgM1Dvrv0El7r961lV_hYjnvXt0bgtsJCkrkapMaUvrzcbLc1CtYv4QEcx6/s1600/IMG_0084.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3MWbfnFNB-O7FwULs08iyIPSX1tSGsRBBbbwjlRf4lnmW3VAlt08mFxkYEtkPBZi1oXe3Z1wikzxIIva03fgM1Dvrv0El7r961lV_hYjnvXt0bgtsJCkrkapMaUvrzcbLc1CtYv4QEcx6/s320/IMG_0084.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Damien?</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1pPQ6l60u6K9Rs5yiQu8bUDf42zAUt_M7qdbyNddjYoiEP_-flew1akQS9_EvB9W_TpQbyiZA6O7a-3_Iqa6aTQRR-72FaWXPUuqriyvEaUDf7lkedwUJRBJ3z5PWpHrQ2tfHnzYfdQoX/s1600/IMG_0089.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1pPQ6l60u6K9Rs5yiQu8bUDf42zAUt_M7qdbyNddjYoiEP_-flew1akQS9_EvB9W_TpQbyiZA6O7a-3_Iqa6aTQRR-72FaWXPUuqriyvEaUDf7lkedwUJRBJ3z5PWpHrQ2tfHnzYfdQoX/s320/IMG_0089.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The window of the studio</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj1VDPg0F2UpF_azPKK8vi84CtWbf_z7i1Ks6fhdVUqkK_V2Lgx9HiG9kzd5egd4e_k6YZxNinBuQjmjLkBnAr2lRG5MYc-CicOAGZxkX21gJsIXDd2WxcYPLHgJ41JdN1KSIilx5H94Rj/s1600/IMG_0090.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj1VDPg0F2UpF_azPKK8vi84CtWbf_z7i1Ks6fhdVUqkK_V2Lgx9HiG9kzd5egd4e_k6YZxNinBuQjmjLkBnAr2lRG5MYc-CicOAGZxkX21gJsIXDd2WxcYPLHgJ41JdN1KSIilx5H94Rj/s320/IMG_0090.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Villa Tortuga, entero</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQfTHHk3DNZsFfrmRbDtg4jJKbe6sT_wykVMZXuXlOIXtRQhiQ-ZVz1ho4eXwt24n4YE-Oc3-rfOrOXcc7VJgRDKNnvJ5iJS8F6CFujnJM52X4ukvWVzhlTcNyYYNFz0oAEuGUIpbMBCdx/s1600/IMG_0095.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQfTHHk3DNZsFfrmRbDtg4jJKbe6sT_wykVMZXuXlOIXtRQhiQ-ZVz1ho4eXwt24n4YE-Oc3-rfOrOXcc7VJgRDKNnvJ5iJS8F6CFujnJM52X4ukvWVzhlTcNyYYNFz0oAEuGUIpbMBCdx/s320/IMG_0095.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitI3U0zpH7JYGTOkHDMaNxefopYfXC1Dd9iCvc2kBgqmHZvbZgOywjshzF_nDDYVyFABa5X84PlkaeulhRp4Hh7z2cKVyS5fBExC_2gB2c-YQSUca8PL5wjJSHqGK_F2yV84XUm7Ojyb1j/s1600/IMG_0096.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitI3U0zpH7JYGTOkHDMaNxefopYfXC1Dd9iCvc2kBgqmHZvbZgOywjshzF_nDDYVyFABa5X84PlkaeulhRp4Hh7z2cKVyS5fBExC_2gB2c-YQSUca8PL5wjJSHqGK_F2yV84XUm7Ojyb1j/s320/IMG_0096.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9zyurYrt_vVu97EorFCZejmFhus_-Ay_VdaouWpG6jBfybVwbEVsY4X1Ukerz00NSVyRPE2WwT1MK7EtOVPYv5FM_zRkspzNGYZGCemC-TVKw72NprALDA-hNE75p-SuD9cUJvdEoPZa5/s1600/IMG_0097.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9zyurYrt_vVu97EorFCZejmFhus_-Ay_VdaouWpG6jBfybVwbEVsY4X1Ukerz00NSVyRPE2WwT1MK7EtOVPYv5FM_zRkspzNGYZGCemC-TVKw72NprALDA-hNE75p-SuD9cUJvdEoPZa5/s320/IMG_0097.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the ruins of an old house, now used as a garage</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRp9PmWle8PQOlg0AhCBR2MhyphenhyphenIrOhcfNyZmoawijGWAyXQltvJz2rVnyStkxdwXRRhjuSc6-6E9Wez14PcrvbK5Zy3YTfNnSIXXUteGGc_X29lLNS4TpGhUHkx-79QNzq7_OhRLngGMD6z/s1600/IMG_0099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRp9PmWle8PQOlg0AhCBR2MhyphenhyphenIrOhcfNyZmoawijGWAyXQltvJz2rVnyStkxdwXRRhjuSc6-6E9Wez14PcrvbK5Zy3YTfNnSIXXUteGGc_X29lLNS4TpGhUHkx-79QNzq7_OhRLngGMD6z/s320/IMG_0099.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I haven't seen solihiya making in a long time. This lady <br />said it will take her 5 days to cane this bed</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVbYZNawT1cKpr91U-eDVHEcFDS6ElfGix0Eue-H_GQYZzR_merlN2o7RT53aTnZ1JrbCD1l3k7ICmaaHCPjfqpgrwlu7DLcpF6KIDmQjo9EKn0vN7Q53LcpPWislBDMyW3Pq3ug5ha5RK/s1600/IMG_0101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVbYZNawT1cKpr91U-eDVHEcFDS6ElfGix0Eue-H_GQYZzR_merlN2o7RT53aTnZ1JrbCD1l3k7ICmaaHCPjfqpgrwlu7DLcpF6KIDmQjo9EKn0vN7Q53LcpPWislBDMyW3Pq3ug5ha5RK/s320/IMG_0101.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yep. That's an Andy Warhol. In a Philippine antique shop</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAdQ9Q8ZDrk09tq2bi4NPGRmhpX4R-DrlqJObjUuJHES8DLiOkbd_EtGxpPUlPWwvL9xxj0NS0XseiZg73AOUdqHTey61Idvsan6HqRcJ-GnZCzDpYl7na7ho5Ht9BZgLyzmxqRzka-HJ6/s1600/IMG_0106.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAdQ9Q8ZDrk09tq2bi4NPGRmhpX4R-DrlqJObjUuJHES8DLiOkbd_EtGxpPUlPWwvL9xxj0NS0XseiZg73AOUdqHTey61Idvsan6HqRcJ-GnZCzDpYl7na7ho5Ht9BZgLyzmxqRzka-HJ6/s320/IMG_0106.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Grace doing her best Linda Blair in prison impression</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3LUbjE1_wrNFGHaUbyK1b6GyB88GUzbyR2sfWRYcJQjUaK-CXs6dxknzCnj5il3EA4rbuYK-3tTVzQfWifYUmX7eqt9WZTbVfdNWV8yed6ba9Bgj07WGjL2YQdk1DaB81-faeGDedzs2n/s1600/IMG_0108.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3LUbjE1_wrNFGHaUbyK1b6GyB88GUzbyR2sfWRYcJQjUaK-CXs6dxknzCnj5il3EA4rbuYK-3tTVzQfWifYUmX7eqt9WZTbVfdNWV8yed6ba9Bgj07WGjL2YQdk1DaB81-faeGDedzs2n/s320/IMG_0108.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Can someone explain why this style of furniture is called Ambassador Chairs? </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl-MUI4U0KMPPftPC48j8UDlm9EAZpiBpTSHTrq9i7yJh-5k9Ex7rJ6ZaozzK5uU-Tu7EsWQQBi3fbEKwuvWo4mO8tFNyOx8ap0SYDvLg76EpkXmrdyv0C4jspLM4Xx4jzpyNyAWyeE3e3/s1600/IMG_0112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl-MUI4U0KMPPftPC48j8UDlm9EAZpiBpTSHTrq9i7yJh-5k9Ex7rJ6ZaozzK5uU-Tu7EsWQQBi3fbEKwuvWo4mO8tFNyOx8ap0SYDvLg76EpkXmrdyv0C4jspLM4Xx4jzpyNyAWyeE3e3/s320/IMG_0112.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sunka. I miss Lola Tasya.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6vj_z9P1LD3iJAAAsjGdzVhd1hjAk9JveLuHVYNP0OZkitipytIQ4YZ9odTSPZyMXVUH9qhnt4Ip5AezTnYmLQ4WndEojo6efdV_AQPVZcFKLttJdmSp-rn7Rv_daFYEJR7DltJIu2Tp0/s1600/IMG_0117.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6vj_z9P1LD3iJAAAsjGdzVhd1hjAk9JveLuHVYNP0OZkitipytIQ4YZ9odTSPZyMXVUH9qhnt4Ip5AezTnYmLQ4WndEojo6efdV_AQPVZcFKLttJdmSp-rn7Rv_daFYEJR7DltJIu2Tp0/s320/IMG_0117.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A dress once worn by Marcela Agoncillo</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVWAZkHc7lV30k8bjrWrvJ3EeVPUWnboHJfMX-ZY9B6hBqdn58iC8nY3pHdISaomw8qS6J8vohLAvSYsmP4E1tyrUDN0WjZ6TT1rDbT0gOTjr4YfiOtqF56blKsm27yZOKopa_qMhyphenhyphen7WYb/s1600/IMG_0121.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVWAZkHc7lV30k8bjrWrvJ3EeVPUWnboHJfMX-ZY9B6hBqdn58iC8nY3pHdISaomw8qS6J8vohLAvSYsmP4E1tyrUDN0WjZ6TT1rDbT0gOTjr4YfiOtqF56blKsm27yZOKopa_qMhyphenhyphen7WYb/s320/IMG_0121.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kitchen implements of yore</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP5JRF7xy0mmZ0x62uVRcMuh47Z5MV3cZUbodV7eAv5_eciCs0YvO6Tyc-U5QO7HIE3Ki8dLo_G6WX8spgh_NZ1VcNMpCeB6tgXOktWuMWzZ_fIG8QNFKaYw2bGuNfmvZ9sTG5pCirQfVK/s1600/IMG_0123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP5JRF7xy0mmZ0x62uVRcMuh47Z5MV3cZUbodV7eAv5_eciCs0YvO6Tyc-U5QO7HIE3Ki8dLo_G6WX8spgh_NZ1VcNMpCeB6tgXOktWuMWzZ_fIG8QNFKaYw2bGuNfmvZ9sTG5pCirQfVK/s320/IMG_0123.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Asan si Adan?</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8JmRZlP1uG_IrSxEOKmyvwwWBwMKBp19QgFGP3mYNCqxRLDoSWUy7ZCJAQpGkXP2W2W-M4BNOXBYHpyENhjyMvMfHl4TSFO1N5nbN1AjWGDBd_dJnWjVk3-5MiOKiJLH2xpuxtavJwHgO/s1600/IMG_0125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8JmRZlP1uG_IrSxEOKmyvwwWBwMKBp19QgFGP3mYNCqxRLDoSWUy7ZCJAQpGkXP2W2W-M4BNOXBYHpyENhjyMvMfHl4TSFO1N5nbN1AjWGDBd_dJnWjVk3-5MiOKiJLH2xpuxtavJwHgO/s320/IMG_0125.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Row upon row of old houses</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutK6kmCYEOVmBP_5cCk5cjT6BOKZnBFrmCJTvXTIRl0SRBwzdYg2yq-xUD2e6Xu14YooX2kEN0CXnlhV-lk7eDGHLNeTuFE9Aa0xQV8dLtSTzT8oyaGqh9RVGUoSa7kc48EPPl-Gbn5DP/s1600/IMG_0129.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutK6kmCYEOVmBP_5cCk5cjT6BOKZnBFrmCJTvXTIRl0SRBwzdYg2yq-xUD2e6Xu14YooX2kEN0CXnlhV-lk7eDGHLNeTuFE9Aa0xQV8dLtSTzT8oyaGqh9RVGUoSa7kc48EPPl-Gbn5DP/s320/IMG_0129.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVYXOSCWP3eKpNXGgCtGP27JHXW3V2X9k-IiMOjswsE1tmXXPrnoSuOk0Zp82g6AsJ2pEOiqG8hjT_Ye0eDru-bWj6YLXx4MGXBjoHD4FM6m9t548IXDEQe41AOJW-Vq9BflucNr20gfmq/s1600/IMG_0130.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVYXOSCWP3eKpNXGgCtGP27JHXW3V2X9k-IiMOjswsE1tmXXPrnoSuOk0Zp82g6AsJ2pEOiqG8hjT_Ye0eDru-bWj6YLXx4MGXBjoHD4FM6m9t548IXDEQe41AOJW-Vq9BflucNr20gfmq/s320/IMG_0130.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chillin'</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwloAAP_QpKoKoIRe9CkFOBxeHBZ1Dy1PWq3YPTjuyXswUBurtd43trJMTV26Z-kwxHcV6-XA3EAISIdV_-3YIto6brMNIJfkALwdkhFofMIfFl_0f0lpBp0hRnPKWWdG_rRDq_iez5Ims/s320/IMG_0134.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="213" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This guy is not into hats.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwloAAP_QpKoKoIRe9CkFOBxeHBZ1Dy1PWq3YPTjuyXswUBurtd43trJMTV26Z-kwxHcV6-XA3EAISIdV_-3YIto6brMNIJfkALwdkhFofMIfFl_0f0lpBp0hRnPKWWdG_rRDq_iez5Ims/s1600/IMG_0134.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_WUxefxWBeO38Xej4yyIdVZXg16GP_XUAIlwgYrW4En-8-QfJM-H-5vKkPCMVPxR2n9fqhkwAoY96mxTx87vzBRiCPm8rSNaixXahNW6SeqFZ4G5RA89rQHNuq8utt7sO3bHRRbGnvyUf/s1600/IMG_4057.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_WUxefxWBeO38Xej4yyIdVZXg16GP_XUAIlwgYrW4En-8-QfJM-H-5vKkPCMVPxR2n9fqhkwAoY96mxTx87vzBRiCPm8rSNaixXahNW6SeqFZ4G5RA89rQHNuq8utt7sO3bHRRbGnvyUf/s320/IMG_4057.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No really, he isn't</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioE0cX1NDskuQGWm4h5eizUbXW25Cc6MGfLOoKSFyqqrFOu2TzzN71x435y9V_MogwyuMJv9cO9bbyv5PHggQE3uK5bjyMd6QYFsMWSIlShhl5mknI5V6cEsPw2vVhcN5nO3-na6idUrV1/s1600/IMG_4062.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioE0cX1NDskuQGWm4h5eizUbXW25Cc6MGfLOoKSFyqqrFOu2TzzN71x435y9V_MogwyuMJv9cO9bbyv5PHggQE3uK5bjyMd6QYFsMWSIlShhl5mknI5V6cEsPw2vVhcN5nO3-na6idUrV1/s320/IMG_4062.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nope, they're not self-absorbed</span></td></tr>
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<span id="goog_252255111"></span><span id="goog_252255112"></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-18669598935618513742013-12-23T00:55:00.000-08:002013-12-23T01:14:41.078-08:00A VISIT TO HISTORIC TAAL TOWN (Part 1)<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmTq3r2pncavBJSBWUwh1idBJlqSEYM1_Di4r6u-X4Z-K0cETKIjEIJ34CbKMBnlbFDR7pV79SmRXmWHUh8DbICD5aqitnoSOmxEfyW7zMWYBTj6f2-qkSvBBu83OyjWNwBSCIZsqlvbNS/s1600/IMG_0050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmTq3r2pncavBJSBWUwh1idBJlqSEYM1_Di4r6u-X4Z-K0cETKIjEIJ34CbKMBnlbFDR7pV79SmRXmWHUh8DbICD5aqitnoSOmxEfyW7zMWYBTj6f2-qkSvBBu83OyjWNwBSCIZsqlvbNS/s320/IMG_0050.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All of these stuffed turtles are antiques. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFXRvzHtmC_lYNSX4qTHtJQyuVOIyPBTa-IFTttix6L4nykR0zlruShaD0nCgTUg1LsUIkgIBPS0Spbrw1hBm6rU68Y_dgxQztU3mblPtFS7xzjEbvteYgzYBdCoFCgd7Idacd8mcgeSN8/s1600/IMG_0052.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFXRvzHtmC_lYNSX4qTHtJQyuVOIyPBTa-IFTttix6L4nykR0zlruShaD0nCgTUg1LsUIkgIBPS0Spbrw1hBm6rU68Y_dgxQztU3mblPtFS7xzjEbvteYgzYBdCoFCgd7Idacd8mcgeSN8/s320/IMG_0052.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The entresuelo of Villa Tortuga</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I first visited Taal in the 1980s, and it was love at first sight. What's not to like? The beautiful cathedral, imposing homes, friendly people, and cheap barongs. With each subsequent visit, my liking for the town remains undiminished. It was therefore a welcome treat to have been invited by a friend to an excursion (is this word even used still?) to one of Lito Perez' heritage bed and breakfasts, Villa Tortuga (Turtle House, so named after the river turtles that, up to now, nest in Lito's yard). The house is beautifully preserved, and further embellished with Lito's personal collections of old photographs, frames, glassware, furniture, and friends.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before lunch was served, we had a trip putting on colonial costumes and having our photos taken at Villa Tortuga's studio. Lito has an aunt who owned a photo studio and he was lucky enough to have salvaged a lot of the studio's furniture and fittings. This kodakan session is part of the Taal Heritage Tour that Lito conducts for tourists. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We were served lunch featuring tilapia (which no Bisaya of my generation eats), and heirloom recipes like adobo sa turmeric, pinasingawan na gulay at manggang hinog, and baboy sa piña, with suman Taal with chocolate eh as dessert. It was made into an even more decadent feast with the addition of really delicious relleno, crispy ulo ng baboy and kalabaw ice cream with buko pandan, brought by Freddie Santos.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKYevuphbDnkA0OCxWWMk4M28JUhhKvgB_P_bDS3mW_XFy0HzkXeTaIN5jIM6-GmgLGfAP6_9vN-9_HtXeQJZg_rN7YlPL0fIAwCFsWWjmNJNg7XMTe9NMYJF3KGjE0SWhQdtL9FdDNjcW/s1600/IMG_0061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKYevuphbDnkA0OCxWWMk4M28JUhhKvgB_P_bDS3mW_XFy0HzkXeTaIN5jIM6-GmgLGfAP6_9vN-9_HtXeQJZg_rN7YlPL0fIAwCFsWWjmNJNg7XMTe9NMYJF3KGjE0SWhQdtL9FdDNjcW/s320/IMG_0061.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lito's antiques collection is formidable, and this tureen is still used, not just displayed </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We were longing for a post-prandial nap, but there was just so much to see. We went to Ramon Orlina's Taal home, the ground floor of which has been converted into a gallery. Maestro Orlina, whose mother is Taaleña, supports local artists by opening his gallery gratis to them. What a guy.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyW_vNY4km7ZYB5e-aUy70E6QGdqo7hQTwXq9g7SpKyNl-6vrH5kfXWkDFy5G5oAWXpuuwcV9AQXFAiWe2-XG_H0b2YUJFYzDRCo_vUuBKTSz6rBGEBpO4pQ1gqxYGCSkTt7wUFkBsa26P/s1600/IMG_0091.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyW_vNY4km7ZYB5e-aUy70E6QGdqo7hQTwXq9g7SpKyNl-6vrH5kfXWkDFy5G5oAWXpuuwcV9AQXFAiWe2-XG_H0b2YUJFYzDRCo_vUuBKTSz6rBGEBpO4pQ1gqxYGCSkTt7wUFkBsa26P/s320/IMG_0091.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maestro Ramon Orlina's art gallery.</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdscD_EOIXm-w7IUUyubn1Ivs6AGCrEMzSIcA6FcqvnwBqpWgI0YO9uDWUS3WfVmDnB3XDtBOKggSikasvMt5T2l7IHBDn0cB71Nvb_V6pa2nCkvC4xPKGerRh8bQ9fVWzcwvi98iOJYew/s1600/IMG_0094.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdscD_EOIXm-w7IUUyubn1Ivs6AGCrEMzSIcA6FcqvnwBqpWgI0YO9uDWUS3WfVmDnB3XDtBOKggSikasvMt5T2l7IHBDn0cB71Nvb_V6pa2nCkvC4xPKGerRh8bQ9fVWzcwvi98iOJYew/s320/IMG_0094.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Typical of old Filipino homes, only the second floor is used as the residence. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then we went on to the house of Marcela Agoncillo, who sewed the first Philippine flag. Lito was of course our tour guide, and he was very informative and insightful. He fielded our questions (Hong Kong was a popular destination for Filipino exiles because of its proximity and the welcoming attitude of the British) and filled us in on our Philippine history.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqC5Z9zf8PbdvTnu6lluQ1Nuy59nTeQfoujFgSMWn-DHIJ_RLlzNh-uWan0xVNAiWMLa1_MyNGWc5Lb1rIkYMTqZYQodxfYG2lae2mILC1hfAHpV3Fsl1eMwwjFEh48m5mqaoOwRFiYRql/s1600/IMG_0111.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqC5Z9zf8PbdvTnu6lluQ1Nuy59nTeQfoujFgSMWn-DHIJ_RLlzNh-uWan0xVNAiWMLa1_MyNGWc5Lb1rIkYMTqZYQodxfYG2lae2mILC1hfAHpV3Fsl1eMwwjFEh48m5mqaoOwRFiYRql/s320/IMG_0111.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lito Perez conducting the intro to the Marcela Agoncillo tour. In the background<br /> is a resin sculpture of the three women sewing the first Philippine flag. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNDwy9bxRn9OdKJJCoWonROhLZs815yEZI6oarMStfGIC1xBtY65Jr1RmeVKArKluxGUJ_LtM0ufQRMRD7pAvdkteixyeQ2BZry9G51LXKjSO63lsBUI0whRap6ixYIvB7zyO-X3ADjDR7/s1600/IMG_0113.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNDwy9bxRn9OdKJJCoWonROhLZs815yEZI6oarMStfGIC1xBtY65Jr1RmeVKArKluxGUJ_LtM0ufQRMRD7pAvdkteixyeQ2BZry9G51LXKjSO63lsBUI0whRap6ixYIvB7zyO-X3ADjDR7/s320/IMG_0113.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A window at the Agoncillo house</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-uChbdHmSwyB4IVEaLyP78s_SfOVDG2aelQ0Hs1GeqqLd9m8mbyJTbEvq_bzx3a95-1zpCBshbolMBP9KM4YBMwRlmlU0tiyadyl5TnrFk1OyWVmLJFqLBDZx9KjnJ5xKzg0D4vjXm1y_/s1600/IMG_0126.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-uChbdHmSwyB4IVEaLyP78s_SfOVDG2aelQ0Hs1GeqqLd9m8mbyJTbEvq_bzx3a95-1zpCBshbolMBP9KM4YBMwRlmlU0tiyadyl5TnrFk1OyWVmLJFqLBDZx9KjnJ5xKzg0D4vjXm1y_/s320/IMG_0126.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Main sitting area of the Agoncillo residence</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We then had coffee (barako, of course!) at Tam-puhan Café that had framed magazine covers of old print ads. And scary frames of a childhood chant.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzF6VHqSGdL3tMfh1zdl5yCiTBsl_BMMKCmj8L0zBMyEoTJlAjQtc3ZL-DJqAAherVCwXrS7Cn8wRx2xvHdl4jvQ2O6YTaq-ZZGZvAXZJfYCgCt2MisDCE5YVRPrwoex_NXp12Wc5YsaYF/s1600/IMG_0132.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzF6VHqSGdL3tMfh1zdl5yCiTBsl_BMMKCmj8L0zBMyEoTJlAjQtc3ZL-DJqAAherVCwXrS7Cn8wRx2xvHdl4jvQ2O6YTaq-ZZGZvAXZJfYCgCt2MisDCE5YVRPrwoex_NXp12Wc5YsaYF/s320/IMG_0132.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzDI-8biEKZb0rLtwJsd0TFGrAmn15P4cZxfKXMVH7crgY2JcY7z-xv209gWKnMYd_Wm8ifB8kyHdfU5xOegORGC9AtvB4z7RHuWw5zD1VcPiZ-RTqGI75MwAJ_xcOt4_L0q4Xf44OzsA/s1600/IMG_0133.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzDI-8biEKZb0rLtwJsd0TFGrAmn15P4cZxfKXMVH7crgY2JcY7z-xv209gWKnMYd_Wm8ifB8kyHdfU5xOegORGC9AtvB4z7RHuWw5zD1VcPiZ-RTqGI75MwAJ_xcOt4_L0q4Xf44OzsA/s320/IMG_0133.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our final stop was Casa Victrola, another bed and breakfast, before we finally left for Tagaytay for the second stop of our excursion.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJWS4gDON0SLGYlPKCIfgJGT8ZNfGHkGHDUEeLi0pcDTMnGbsHj8aLsbv5G4XEarjDxBq4KhNysP-9glWddpPTFNz85V8NGsR6wRCDynpKgwTvVYOgDVGMGy6iHE3IQls2jXGcb5jw_oHc/s1600/IMG_4059.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJWS4gDON0SLGYlPKCIfgJGT8ZNfGHkGHDUEeLi0pcDTMnGbsHj8aLsbv5G4XEarjDxBq4KhNysP-9glWddpPTFNz85V8NGsR6wRCDynpKgwTvVYOgDVGMGy6iHE3IQls2jXGcb5jw_oHc/s320/IMG_4059.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mabini by Warhol x Casa Victrola</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5FL_A33XvALQB66qptC_QudVWrXYxm43vkqzlBqK1e_Ju1w4E383WpFo4IXnTeJ_JTNGkbrgbZGaaEv67utEZJ1HtDmJaEf1E3bjCnFK_iym9LfUPxLRbPauUhvWiivtT-Pr9G3x_3Jm8/s1600/IMG_4060.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5FL_A33XvALQB66qptC_QudVWrXYxm43vkqzlBqK1e_Ju1w4E383WpFo4IXnTeJ_JTNGkbrgbZGaaEv67utEZJ1HtDmJaEf1E3bjCnFK_iym9LfUPxLRbPauUhvWiivtT-Pr9G3x_3Jm8/s320/IMG_4060.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It would be cool if the Victrola would be restored to working condition</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For inquiries on these tours, please call Lito Perez at 09279751683. </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-48567104784033643442013-12-08T21:15:00.001-08:002013-12-08T21:15:07.683-08:00DO NOT GRAB A GRABTAXI<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So one rainy evening, on a payday, I was with my
friend and he was going to go home and I was going to get a cab. I was going to
take my chances and line up for a cab, but he recommended I get a grabtaxi, and
I said, "Huh?" It's a smartphone-based taxi service: download the
app, then book your cab. My first experience was very good. I got a cab in
about 20 minutes. The cab driver was very good. For an extra P70 you get a cab
without having to jostle for one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">My subsequent experiences were hit-or-miss,
mostly misses, in terms of how quickly I got a cab.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Then came the horror story: I was going to a
dinner at 6 and tried booking a cab at 530. No luck. I decided to go to a mall
to line up at a cab stand. The line was very long. Thankfully, that mall had a
grabtaxi kiosk. The kiosk attendants were very helpful, and when they sensed my
impatience, they suggested I line up at the cab stand, and they would continue
to try to book a grabtaxi, and told me to call them right away o</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">nce I got a text confirmation from a
driver, then head back to the grabtaxi kiosk immediately. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So off I went to line up for a cab at the taxi stand. After some
time, I was no. 7 in the queue, when I got a text confirmation from UVL 264. I
immediately called the kiosk, but the number was busy. I then left the taxi queue
and went to the kiosk. We called the driver of UVL 264 and asked where he was,
and he said he was in Magallanes, about 1.7 km away from the pickup point (VIOLATION
NO. 1: a grabtaxi driver should not book a ride if he is more than .5 km away
from the pickup point). He was asked how long it would take for him to arrive,
and he said 10 minutes. He arrived after 30 minutes. (If I had stayed in the
taxi queue I would have been able to get a cab in less time). Moreover, the
kiosk attendant found out that the driver picked up another passenger before
me, and dropped that passenger off at Glorietta (VIOLATION NO. 2)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">When I was in the cab, I told the driver of UVL 264 that he
should not have said he was just 10 minutes away. He cut me off, and raised
voice at me, saying traffic was bad. (VIOLATION NO. 3: rudeness). He also
denied having said he was only 10 minutes away, contrary to what he told the
kiosk attendant earlier. I did not like the tone of the driver so I told him
that I was reporting him to grabtaxi and he said, "Eh di magsumbong
ka." He kept on yammering and I told him to just stop talking because
there was nothing more to discuss, yet when we reached EDSA, he said,
"Hayan o! Tingnan mo kung gaano ka-traffic sa EDSA!!!"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">As if this were not enough, I wanted to test his honesty. When I
booked the cab, I got a text/email saying that I was entitled to the no-booking
fee promo. So when I arrived at my destination, I gave the cab driver the extra
P70, and he just drove away, instead of pointing out that I did not have to pay
the booking fee. (VIOLATION NO 4: dishonesty).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I emailed my complaint to grabtaxi. Their reaction: a warning
was given to the driver. The email was proforma, and badly written at that. I
then emailed them back, saying that their callous disregard of my complaint,
where the driver was treated with more courtesy than I was, has caused me to
disavow their service. A while later, someone called, and tried to explain that
they will investigate my complaint. Huh? You’ve already warned the driver, what’s
left to investigate. At least four violations from one driver in one incident
and all he got was a warning?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Why pay a premium
to be treated rudely, first by your cabbie, then by some customer service
lackey?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica;">I’d rather take my chances with regular cabs.</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica;"> </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-88207069484644975372013-10-01T22:03:00.003-07:002013-10-01T22:03:48.377-07:00METRO MANILA<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Disclosure: four of the actors in this movie - Jake Macapagal, JM Rodriguez, Ana Abad Santos and John Arcilla - are longtime friends of mine. Jake gave me a ticket for last night's special screening at Megamall.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fact: regardless of my friendship with these actors, I will still say that Metro Manila is among the best films that I have seen so far.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Written and directed by Sean Ellis (not a friend, but I did meet him at last night's screening), the story is tight and engaging, and no scene seems gratuitous, no shot careless, no line a throwaway.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I first saw the poster of this movie, I was wondering why make Metro Manila the title? Watching the movie, I came to realize why: the main character in the movie is the city itself, and how it affects the protagonist, Oscar Ramirez (played with pained verity by Jake Macapagal) and his family. Metro Manila is depicted as an unforgiving monster who does not appear to have a nurturing side except to monsters like her. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSiPinJCQDd0MWqBcNs7EPiGoutk8R7GKObcnZjd9E35EDVlGiBEMrikU_9y6T8ibbHUPZuqb2CudwVVAtplj7CoCfgq1Ae-3r_yeSAlerVoXaOx9z3zmczxvf4oSQAwCQ6Qmoci-zkDrO/s1600/Metro_Manila-poster-film.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSiPinJCQDd0MWqBcNs7EPiGoutk8R7GKObcnZjd9E35EDVlGiBEMrikU_9y6T8ibbHUPZuqb2CudwVVAtplj7CoCfgq1Ae-3r_yeSAlerVoXaOx9z3zmczxvf4oSQAwCQ6Qmoci-zkDrO/s400/Metro_Manila-poster-film.jpg" width="268" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">(Image taken from Jake Macapagal's Facebook page)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Watching this movie made me remember four movies, three by Lino Brocka (Maynila: Sa Kuko ng Liwanag, Jaguar and Insiang) and Ishmael Bernal's Manila By Night. I wonder if Sean Ellis had seen any of these movies. If he has, then these films must have informed Metro Manila in some way. If he hasn't, then it's alarming that nothing has changed since the 70s, insofar as our lives are concerned. We are still enveloped in poverty, our moral values have not changed, and there is little to hope for in the future. Which brings me to one of the strengths of the movie: we see destitution all around us, but there is no commentary on why this is so. I am not sure if the writers deliberately avoided this by choice, and if they did, then this was a brilliant choice because the telling of Oscar's story becomes more direct and pure.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After the screening, there was a Q&A and I was cringing in my seat at how inane and downright stupid some of the questions were. A few questions were actually observations that were equally cringeworthy. The most common theme seems to be why the abject depiction of life in Metro Manila (the scenes showing the squalor of the slums are Brocka-worthy and will upset apologists from the MMDA and the Catholic church and other like-minded institutions). And I don't get this comment. After all, Manila is a multi-faceted city and it so happens that the movie shows that one facet - poverty - as a part of its plot. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My one quibble about the movie is that the subtitling is awkward in most parts. The reference to telling stories from an armchair is very Western and middle-class. The concept of the Filipino idea of "kapit sa patalim (which could very well be a good title for the movie)" was not captured in the transliteration. (Which brings an interesting point to the dialogue. The script was written in English, and the actors were asked to translate the lines to Tagalog. I wonder if the subtitles are from the original English script).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Metro Manila opens to the public on October 9, 2013. It won the Audience Award at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for Grand Jury Prize, and has been chosen as the official submission of the United Kingdom to the 2014 Oscars as its entry in the Best Foreign Language Film category.</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-43970480964566740032013-08-26T21:57:00.001-07:002013-08-26T22:00:14.031-07:00SEEMS LIKE OLD TIMES<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1983, Ninoy Aquino was assassinated, believed by many to be by the cronies of the dictator Marcos. This event galvanized Filipinos, especially the middle class, into rallying behind the anti-Marcos movement, with the late Corazon C. Aquino as our figurehead. Between 1983 and Tita Cory's phenomenal ascendancy to the Presidency of the Republic of the Philippines in 1986, that movement gained ground. On the other hand, the acts of political repression fomented by Marcos and his henchmen, escalated to disturbing levels. Some political leaders and even followers were murdered, badly injured, and some went missing. Some Filipinos fled abroad to protect themselves. The Philippine economy was in a shambles. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But the anti-Marcos movement prevailed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rallies were held around the Philippines, notably in Makati, where Fridays were confetti days. At around 3 in the afternoon, office windows would come open, with employees showering Ayala Avenue with confetti, mostly made from the yellow pages of the PLDT directory (an ironic twist, considering the PLDT monopoly was headed by the Cojuangcos, a Marcos crony family). Most of these rallies were festive, with things going serious when political leaders would take the stage to discuss the more serious issues of the so called People Power Revolution.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In December 1985, Tita Cory declared her candidacy for the Philippine presidency at Plaza Lawton. It was a heart-breaking assembly, with only a few hundred in attendance. I was honestly crestfallen, thinking that she would be roundly beaten by Marcos. Judging from that gathering, Tita Cory obviously did not have the numbers. Thankfully, her political machinery and supporters were made of sturdier stuff than the callow fellow that I was. In a short time (if I am not mistaken, among the people who pushed support for Tita Cory was the late Chino Roces, who famously went around in a shopping cart, collecting whatever money could be spared for the Piso Para Kay Cory fund-raising campaign), her campaign took a 180 degree turn, getting mass support like it was nobody's business. No amount of mudslinging or condescension from the Marcos camp fazed Tita Cory. One of my favorites is Marcos' dismissal of Tita Cory as being "a simple housewife." Tita Cory's response? "Opo. Ako ay isang maybahay lamang. At hindi po ako magnanakaw o diktador," or words to that effect.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgeQC6nuVlPeNWkcQ4ano9iUwsQ_iYaeVEPwK15Q3SeGaBsQhzV1LvEmktgWu05v7XRLi3e8OaGAI0JvmrD3lRaW2NkSIeH25Xfg1OTEVcjYFaByVfvcrplF3G_HvGARyZzy9MkUU4ufF/s1600/P8280167.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgeQC6nuVlPeNWkcQ4ano9iUwsQ_iYaeVEPwK15Q3SeGaBsQhzV1LvEmktgWu05v7XRLi3e8OaGAI0JvmrD3lRaW2NkSIeH25Xfg1OTEVcjYFaByVfvcrplF3G_HvGARyZzy9MkUU4ufF/s320/P8280167.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">EDSA People Power 1 will remain in my heart and mind as one of the most memorable times in my life. EDSA People Power 2, which put into office that teapot despot GMA, will remain in my mind and heart as one of the most regrettable things I've ever participated in.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yesterday's rally, I think, will become like EDSA People Power 1. Sure we did not reach the million mark, but the estimated 100,000 people who turned out in Luneta is a good start. Tita Cory's first official public rally was even worse, in terms of numbers. I just hope that since it is a leaderless movement, it will not fizzle out. We need to sustain our outrage, and transform this into results. I believe that with social networks being great and speedy instruments of information dissemination, this movement will go somewhere. (In the days of EDSA, Marcos' censors were no match for xerox journalism. I remember reading articles about Imelda's lifestyle and the Manotoc kidnapping from photocopies of photocopies of photocopies. It's amazing how information about rallies got relayed so efficiently and quickly, considering all we had were pen, paper and telephones. And of course, Radio Veritas in later days).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here are some pictures I took yesterday. I hope things will go the right way. And someone has to do something about the chanting. "MAKIBAKA, HUWAG MAGBABOY" doesn't make sense. At all. Perhaps, </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"MAKIBAKA, HUWAG MAGPABABOY," but the meter is all wrong. Or maybe,</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"MAKIBAKA, NO TO BABOY," but it kinda sounds colegiala-ish.</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(<a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151595365400779.1073741865.641255778&type=1&l=412645dcaf">For more photos, please go to this link.</a>)</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-34473458198909973502013-07-31T06:53:00.003-07:002013-07-31T06:53:43.003-07:00Modern Sichuan (The Fort Strip, Bonifacio Global City)<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Full disclosure: the dinner I am about to describe was comped by the owner of the restaurant, who happens to be a long-time friend. We were not invited to dinner, but I had heard good things about the restaurant (I am a die-hard fan of its sister restaurant, Modern China at Glorietta, and its Sesame Fried Chicken), and decided to book a table for our mini-reunion of Rep old-timers. When we got to the restaurant, we were told that the owner had reserved a special room for us (I'm sure in anticipation of the noise that we were going to be making - an expected behavior from theater people). We had ordered stuff on our own, but when we got to the room, we were told that the owner had ordered for us. Soon he arrived, and it was good having him around because it took the guess work out of the ordering.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiym5N1jAPMj2iYGi6iCfT-NLA4SyoD7_gmH0I4AAhHiHbc7iEQxVY3PmzWRYPWyOzx5QkSlX1Id_6HQ67DwRbd4o540oyGmfsPAZSfvDR2T3uyHxh7lREMTqvmD3-lMUjCdjLfrU4jPqJe/s1600/730195_10151523760400779_2009137665_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiym5N1jAPMj2iYGi6iCfT-NLA4SyoD7_gmH0I4AAhHiHbc7iEQxVY3PmzWRYPWyOzx5QkSlX1Id_6HQ67DwRbd4o540oyGmfsPAZSfvDR2T3uyHxh7lREMTqvmD3-lMUjCdjLfrU4jPqJe/s320/730195_10151523760400779_2009137665_o.jpg" width="236" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Sampay" Novel way to serve a cold appetizer</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If I am asked what my favorite cuisine is, I invariably answer Chinese and Filipino. Naturally. Modern Sichuan has a lot of good new stuff, starting with sampay, a cold appetizer of thinly-sliced pork belly and cucumber, hung (hence the moniker) from a bamboo serving dish with a spicy dipping sauce. Another winner was the Uni Fried Rice, my first time to try uni cooked instead of served raw. This was really, really, really good. I can't wait to go to Modern Sichuan again to pair this with the Sesame Fried Chicken (a bonus at this restaurant: they Modern China menu is also available here).</span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuLjlq8ua3Ct5nN6pYj7VTeSW025rWLsTaCCoi_zAaaEP8qHOA9dGPAPU0EWPt5how_pdeDs_EtaAdWYdmM2Ev1dCdCwGXtyWtdF424SkfI0oKrneP9FVg7PtiLNXh7ig60f79NFHBp54_/s1600/895934_10151523757970779_1416031698_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuLjlq8ua3Ct5nN6pYj7VTeSW025rWLsTaCCoi_zAaaEP8qHOA9dGPAPU0EWPt5how_pdeDs_EtaAdWYdmM2Ev1dCdCwGXtyWtdF424SkfI0oKrneP9FVg7PtiLNXh7ig60f79NFHBp54_/s320/895934_10151523757970779_1416031698_o.jpg" width="236" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The evening's champion: sweet potato au gratin</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By meal's end, we were really, really stuffed but the owner brought in two desserts: the avocado sago and a dessert that will remain in my dreams for the rest of my days: the sweet potato au gratin. Sounds un-Chinese, but the owner swears this is a Sichuan dish. My best guess as to how this dish is prepared: the side of the sweet potato is lopped off, its flesh scooped out and mashed with condensed milk, then reunited with the shell, and baked with a cheese topping. I thought I couldn't finish mine, but I did. I even ate (some) of the potato skin. It was that good.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4izQAHDHuMa_LX709N0dnhxnWGSUYN2Risx-J74wRrs2W7uni0_QiCNjAYVDrZ1tXMEPZeWnuuL4DdIVmB0U3Tb1ALtpz-gjJYfyiviQcPlgtOC-9QtioQspkNonWUaeRVUDE-QRZg2o1/s1600/1004181_10151523759530779_386659346_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4izQAHDHuMa_LX709N0dnhxnWGSUYN2Risx-J74wRrs2W7uni0_QiCNjAYVDrZ1tXMEPZeWnuuL4DdIVmB0U3Tb1ALtpz-gjJYfyiviQcPlgtOC-9QtioQspkNonWUaeRVUDE-QRZg2o1/s320/1004181_10151523759530779_386659346_o.jpg" width="236" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A close second to the au gratin: uni fried rice</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQI0xLk52jVY2OFSPnR29evZnV028s3qGWDB_wPsgCD6lplSi5fMZZUnl3LY7wIsZExhOYwZ7MMxQ_w72BOxNqLKVoi-wNPgWaFis7NZKGvSuILaafweO7QQth5O3ZY462W7aKslUlZ6T9/s1600/1056784_10151523760145779_1789041973_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQI0xLk52jVY2OFSPnR29evZnV028s3qGWDB_wPsgCD6lplSi5fMZZUnl3LY7wIsZExhOYwZ7MMxQ_w72BOxNqLKVoi-wNPgWaFis7NZKGvSuILaafweO7QQth5O3ZY462W7aKslUlZ6T9/s320/1056784_10151523760145779_1789041973_o.jpg" width="236" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A very simple and fresh vegetarian soup: just spinach and chicken broth</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the way, I have had other meals that were comped but I did not write about them because I did want to seem ungrateful for someone's hospitality. I have written good and bad things about meals that I have paid for, good things for meals that I have been treated to, but never good things about bad meals that I was treated to, or bad things about bad meals that I did not have to pay for. I wonder if I expressed my philosophy correctly?</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-27997787258429937602013-07-02T02:16:00.001-07:002013-07-02T02:16:08.349-07:00Halo-Halo + Cake = Halo-Halo Cake<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">OK. I'm a sucker for dessert so this is a no-brainer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of my favorite lunch buddies invited me to lunch, after I'd had lunch so I said I'd join him but would order only dessert. He likes UCC and it's near our work place so. He had pasta, which looked appetizing but. I went over the dessert list and everything looked boring. Then the menu card caught my eye: Halo-Halo Cake. Intriguing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I ordered it and happily, the picture nearly matched the actual product. The concept and presentation are actually impressive: Using ube cake as the base, the first layer is topped with custard (leche flan), and the second layer is topped with macapuno, langka, beans, saba and more custard, and everything is plated with a huge scoop of langka ice cream and corn flakes. Masarap sya! A keeper! I'd go to UCC again just for this. I wonder though if all UCC branches serve this. This must be a best-seller.</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-17203332893276506182013-07-02T02:08:00.000-07:002013-07-02T02:08:20.466-07:00Maple at The Shang Mall<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Shang Mall in Ortigas has a pretty new wing with lots of yet-to-be-opened shops and restaurants. It has a ramen place with good ramen, and it has Maple, the wealthier cousin of The Pancake House, one of my go-to places for brunch.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A friend invited me to World War Z and we had time for dinner so I suggested Maple, which I hadn't tried yet. I immediately chose a favorite, eggs Benedict. It is a simple dish which is in my list of favorites.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maple's is definitely not a favorite version.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To begin with, instead of a muffin, this one uses a puff pastry "bread," and the eggs straddle lettuce leaves and greasy bacon. With a side of tater tots. Odd. And off. It was difficult to cut through the eggs and the bacon, with the lettuce making things squiggly, and the oily "bread" layers giving way with each tug of the knife. It was one greasy mess.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maybe I'm too much of a purist but to me, nothing beats doing a classic the classic way.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Too bad. I thought that Maple would be a keeper, but turns out it is not. Or maybe I am being too dismissive. I'll give its pancakes and waffles a shot, and if these are still fussy and off, then back to The Pancake House I shall go.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(My dinner companion had the tapa sirloin. We both thought the concept was all wrong and a waste of good sirloin. Again, nothing beats doing a classic the classic way).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-26394395078335413892013-06-19T17:44:00.001-07:002013-06-19T17:44:21.259-07:00(Belated) Happy Birthday, Jose P. Rizal<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I feel so dumb. I missed this important date.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I always pay tribute to Rizal, by quoting my favorite passage from his book, Noli Me Tangere. These words are spoken </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">by Crisostomo Ibarra in Chapter 3:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“…I noted that a people’s
prosperity or misery lay in direct proportion to its freedoms or its
inhibitions and, along the same lines, of the sacrifice or selfishness of its
ancestors.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you haven't read the Noli yet, read it. If you have, re-read it. Once you get over the stodgy language and focus on the story and message, it will be a breeze, and more important, an eye-opener. PowerBooks has a good Penguin edition, translated by Harold Augenbraum, which is also available as a Kindle e-book.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6aUP5_WOQw-rla8cxfgeni53fLOGVeESNq6Dthn4_EhJyjB6Ft28Nr2i8F0oNlYOcsPK5VDelTSKqmDarUbmi4hi-LJ9_4ME-c6N6lYikxpxJQI_3TMJpivO8YdRoAYAYnbaoUb3q7QzI/s1600/pqgnfz2rbafu84yn3j9l.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6aUP5_WOQw-rla8cxfgeni53fLOGVeESNq6Dthn4_EhJyjB6Ft28Nr2i8F0oNlYOcsPK5VDelTSKqmDarUbmi4hi-LJ9_4ME-c6N6lYikxpxJQI_3TMJpivO8YdRoAYAYnbaoUb3q7QzI/s320/pqgnfz2rbafu84yn3j9l.jpeg" width="275" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Image courtesy of </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;">https://si0.twimg.com/profile_images/2289196937/pqgnfz2rbafu84yn3j9l.jpeg)</span></span></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-48791220743392796032013-06-19T17:14:00.001-07:002013-06-19T17:14:19.294-07:00#ThrowbackThursday<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Who started this trend? Where did this start? When? Researched online but nothing came up, only what it is about.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Never thought of joining this trend, until yesterday. I was collating videos and photos from the Centennial of the UP College of Law, which will be placed in a time capsule in the Malcolm Walk. In the process, I came across some interesting old photos.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, here's my contribution to <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px;">#ThrowbackThursday:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHDlD_kuWZN86ri524CNUINHJnTXnInoGXTMLCTy3gyWb1IGtQPk3_TOXiGz4nnWdwsMXSs-KwXCu2e5_J5_fv25rOJCcy2RlkajuMDYyijVURvE2JkBoHoI50mlei8Qb2em5bfmciQVBg/s1600/1999mjc1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHDlD_kuWZN86ri524CNUINHJnTXnInoGXTMLCTy3gyWb1IGtQPk3_TOXiGz4nnWdwsMXSs-KwXCu2e5_J5_fv25rOJCcy2RlkajuMDYyijVURvE2JkBoHoI50mlei8Qb2em5bfmciQVBg/s640/1999mjc1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was way back in the day when I was still an active Manila Jaycee. I went to Luneta's Chinese Garden to support the project of Vernes Go and Jeff Lao's </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Baby Jaycee</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Group. Here with us are guests from the Macajalar Jaycees. I did not reset the date on my camera, and I'm sure this was not taken on January 1, 1998. Vernes? Any leads?</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-38192181077904067932013-06-19T03:18:00.001-07:002013-06-19T03:18:56.693-07:00Solar powered cell phone charging stations? YES!<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was at a mall recently to have my Mom's 8-year-old Nokia fixed. No, she doesn't want a new one because then she's have to learn a new set of keystrokes. Besides, newer phones don't have the ring tones (!) that she likes and is familiar with. Her phone has gone through so many case changes, fixes, etc., but she will not budge and change it. So we've had it fixed again and again.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyhow, I was at a mall and while waiting for my Mom's phone to be fixed, I noticed that my own was running low on power, so I asked the repair guy if I could charge my phone. He pointed me to the saleslady in the stall he was sharing space with, so I asked if I could charge my phone, and she said, "Twenty pesos po." Very enterprising.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Which is why when I saw this news article (http://www.amny.com/urbanite-1.812039/new-yorkers-welcome-city-s-solar-powered-cellphone-charge-stations-1.5516062?cmpid=am_New_York), I just had to share it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I wonder if this is expensive because this would be totally cool and helpful for us.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXhrMUM24IJBnWWhoFvglzpweuwCSJcPqmnR4b2k7BYGXt-3eSeDjKB2Yd2BOLIjHFMLGsQfT6WTgfh7SwsLKr3reh0haw1058MTFJoacmLVh7Z7o1idxMCIj9B4x8ilEikL_dQge43x1E/s1600/cell+solar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXhrMUM24IJBnWWhoFvglzpweuwCSJcPqmnR4b2k7BYGXt-3eSeDjKB2Yd2BOLIjHFMLGsQfT6WTgfh7SwsLKr3reh0haw1058MTFJoacmLVh7Z7o1idxMCIj9B4x8ilEikL_dQge43x1E/s320/cell+solar.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">(Photo from amnewyork/Getty Images)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-10644665162680895902013-06-19T03:02:00.001-07:002013-06-19T03:02:23.632-07:00What a hairy way to repel attention!<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dear Female Reader,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What say you? Would you actually wear stockings like these, just so you don't seem attractive to guys? The article says that these stockings are "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">essential for young girls going out." But don't all girls who go out primp and make themselves pretty first?</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For the full article, go to </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2344134/Would-caught-wearing-The-hairy-leg-stockings-designed-help-women-ward-unwanted-male-attention.html</span><br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-17319036948589718662013-04-10T18:18:00.002-07:002013-04-10T18:18:20.274-07:00New Music That I Like<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Back in the day - and I know this will age me, but who cares - l learned of new music two ways: from the radio and from my parents each time they came home from Cebu or Manila, bringing with them LPs and 45s of new music. Two songs stand out: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ad9SV2rb4Ns">The Theme from Love Story (Where Do I Begin) by Andy Williams</a> and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ITvY8sPeWk">Barbra Streisand's "What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life?"</a>. Both beautiful, haunting songs, both from movies (the latter is from "The Happy Ending"). They stand out because I remember having to listen to these songs again and again while my parents and their barkada tried to take down the lyrics. The first song wasn't so tricky, but the second, with Barbra's nasal voice and special way of enunciating her lyrics, bogged them down, especially the lyric that goes, "And when you stand before the candles on your cake, oh, let me the one to hear the silent wish you make."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These days, I rely on my students and newspapers to learn about new music. Chief among these new singers is Laura Mvula. Her music has strong rhythms, she looks singular, her voice is strong, and her music bear a strong message. Take a look at That's All Right. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The second singer I heard about recently is Jessie Ware. Less "message-y," but still a captivating singer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The one I like of these new singers is Lianne La Havas. She reminds me a bit of Cassandra Wilson: a deep female voice overflowing with energy and power. Give her Is Your Love Big Enough a listen.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-67754673379762702972013-03-29T04:52:00.003-07:002013-03-29T04:59:12.090-07:00Tortilla de Patata<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Growing up, we sometimes had what we called Spanish omelet for breakfast. It was a favorite of Daddy, and being so, like most children, it became mine. It was a simple but hearty dish: sliced tomatoes and yellow onions </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">sauteed then cooked with </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">beaten eggs. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we'd have some <i>kainan</i> at school, my Spanish students would always bring tortilla and it would always be good. I asked them how to make one but one's description would be different from another's. Like our adobo, or the Korean kimchi, each cook's version is the best, the definitive, the authentic one. And like these other dishes, there is a basic technique from which one can riff. Finally, one of my Spanish students, who lived in an apartment with a nice kitchen, graciously showed me how it's done, step-by-step. And one night, I made one myself. I posted a picture of the finished product on my Facebook page and it generated a good number of likes and inquiries on how I did it. The dish is simple, and so is its preparation. (The only tricky part is flipping the uncooked half tortilla on to the pan). Here's my version of Juanra's Tortilla de Patata:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">7 large eggs (at room temperature) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3/4 lb. potatoes, peeled and sliced (use the 2 mm blade when using a food processor or mandoline) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(An option is to use 3/4 of
the usual quantity of potato and 1/4 of white or yellow or Spanish
onion)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 cup olive oil</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">salt and pepper to taste</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlejgIEpfSr5DquRNiQw1vKkEMQTu6rMtZsUAVzvnJ7B6fX0TW7Y2RTnEwaXVkwSFV7MMmk78wIcQyIdeX3Lfj78mdBbtgZzVRn3KRvUC7klS24Fq_-MSA0ptLfQypub0eiZlUsabMFbG/s1600/IMG_0018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlejgIEpfSr5DquRNiQw1vKkEMQTu6rMtZsUAVzvnJ7B6fX0TW7Y2RTnEwaXVkwSFV7MMmk78wIcQyIdeX3Lfj78mdBbtgZzVRn3KRvUC7klS24Fq_-MSA0ptLfQypub0eiZlUsabMFbG/s1600/IMG_0018.JPG" height="133" width="200" /></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I cooked my tortilla in one </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">of </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> my cooking essentials, the cast iron pan. A good kitchen should have one: it is inexpensive, versatile, and will live longer than Methuselah. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO1zK_kCIOZmO2wAfTkDjzgdSVRazXfwDr6ub_iP-NiUq7Pt2LG4l7Y51L2evtJlNm6z3IMnD1djjgN57b9LD_a8YGsKf4ejPHSw1kEbcKX-2F3ra3l83wWm08iGzrCdeUyV8nrTxWfGP_/s1600/IMG_0013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO1zK_kCIOZmO2wAfTkDjzgdSVRazXfwDr6ub_iP-NiUq7Pt2LG4l7Y51L2evtJlNm6z3IMnD1djjgN57b9LD_a8YGsKf4ejPHSw1kEbcKX-2F3ra3l83wWm08iGzrCdeUyV8nrTxWfGP_/s1600/IMG_0013.JPG" height="200" width="133" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fill the pan with the olive oil. Essentially, what you are doing is boiling, yes boiling, the potato in olive oil, not frying them, so make sure you don't fill up your pan with the sliced potato and that you don't brown them. If your pan is too small, boil the potatoes in batches, about 10 minutes. Season, then continue to cook them until they are fork tender. Set aside. If you are using onions, cook them separately from the potatoes for about 10 minutes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pour off the oil and save any excess for future use (you can reuse olive oil up to three times. It's best to separate leftover oil for each type of food cooked in it). Rub the pan clean with a paper towel.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3y2TRHJIk4DEiBJUVrfRZgF-NuVUmdeeRynoxMo4JeKg9A7sXUc97rch06UUL3a9aku9sb3tzWgy6Udgtfd-ONuRMkyP3DpI9jhO5l0MH05F0xRCWuUeEu56lFH17zjfC73OwSr-d93K/s1600/IMG_0016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3y2TRHJIk4DEiBJUVrfRZgF-NuVUmdeeRynoxMo4JeKg9A7sXUc97rch06UUL3a9aku9sb3tzWgy6Udgtfd-ONuRMkyP3DpI9jhO5l0MH05F0xRCWuUeEu56lFH17zjfC73OwSr-d93K/s1600/IMG_0016.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is not the way to cook the potatoes. There should only be one layer cooking in the pan at a time.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-w6SsiX4CDuGuZzKdx4x7GqrPLRmxpeTyhxYszu32s1PhwX95F0HvijfPYx9QD57ptI9UI44A4EVwdYPKmy5qz1CxhBkAGNEivzYH9Eh85O-XqyWANB-Y6gCU8ku2i5diX4tGsIbaw88_/s1600/IMG_0022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-w6SsiX4CDuGuZzKdx4x7GqrPLRmxpeTyhxYszu32s1PhwX95F0HvijfPYx9QD57ptI9UI44A4EVwdYPKmy5qz1CxhBkAGNEivzYH9Eh85O-XqyWANB-Y6gCU8ku2i5diX4tGsIbaw88_/s1600/IMG_0022.JPG" height="320" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Incorporating the cooked potatoes into the beaten eggs</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Beat the eggs until creamy, then mix in the cooked potatoes (and onion), mashing them into the beaten eggs</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, and season</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. Using about 2 tablespoons of the leftover oil, heat up the pan over a low flame and pour in the egg mixture. Let the mixture set for a minute, then push the cooking mixture in, to let the uncooked portion go to the bottom of the pan. After about 3 minutes, place a plate that is larger than the pan over it. Carefully flip the pan over and slide the tortilla on to the plate. Then slowly slide the tortilla back into the pan, half-cooked part down. Let the tortilla sit for another 2-5 minutes (depending on whether you want the tortilla to be firm and tostado, or not). Check out this <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ly_xtFepPLg">video</a> so you can perfect your technique. (I used to make a fritatta by broiling the top uncooked half).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And there you have it: quick, simple, easy, filling and inexpensive. Spanish bars cut up cold tortilla into cubes to serve as tapas with mayonnaise on the side (God forbid you should suggest ketchup to a Spaniard). Serve with a green salad and bread for a meal. Snack on leftovers. It is also a very versatile dish. You can add chorizo, ham, flaked cooked fish, chopped asparagus, etc. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiX4Kpx5BmIgpIhqqZ6rkCyfgqEQvGfs3osrN42N-LxOox11QDv1wKBWR04IH_Q8VOZ2gEUwKDp873HL_p_f6TFWtQNuZ94pK2EmyMOlhCXAiuwMrT2jjgxEPklUw_xu_tv_id3-BSjryT/s1600/IMG_0023.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiX4Kpx5BmIgpIhqqZ6rkCyfgqEQvGfs3osrN42N-LxOox11QDv1wKBWR04IH_Q8VOZ2gEUwKDp873HL_p_f6TFWtQNuZ94pK2EmyMOlhCXAiuwMrT2jjgxEPklUw_xu_tv_id3-BSjryT/s1600/IMG_0023.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The top uncooked half of the tortilla </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And there you have the tortilla de patata.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkRAAF9_fv2_XJq6Q8055LJFKvlhJqaeq-X_d0NK7Vt39TDkgh2SKl9-ndQd8hzQDJdNCY4LVSW8Ji2Wgh_N_q6laOTvrSc3plNi3bgHweU4auVl32ZiqwXoNUMmlADyaD9l9S8yUwJJba/s1600/IMG_0027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkRAAF9_fv2_XJq6Q8055LJFKvlhJqaeq-X_d0NK7Vt39TDkgh2SKl9-ndQd8hzQDJdNCY4LVSW8Ji2Wgh_N_q6laOTvrSc3plNi3bgHweU4auVl32ZiqwXoNUMmlADyaD9l9S8yUwJJba/s1600/IMG_0027.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The finished product.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bon appetit! </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-61652561926919259272013-03-23T06:29:00.000-07:002013-03-23T06:29:22.150-07:00A Favorite New York Shop<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I haven't been to many places in the world, but I think New York is a foodie's paradise. Trivia (that I picked off of a Snapple cap, so don't hold me to this): there are more French restaurants in New York than there are in Paris. This says a lot about the city's appetite, right? Moreover, I think all cuisines and permutations thereof are represented in New York. Just go to <a href="http://www.yelp.com/">yelp</a> and you can search for any restaurant. Lastly, New York is a great source of any ingredient. Balut? Check! Tanglad? Check! Caviar? Check! Tabun-tabun...well...maybe when Kinilaw Bisaya takes over ceviche and sashimi as the raw fish of choice of New York diners.</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Which brings me to International Foods.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ignore the eccentric spelling.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The New York terminus for NJ Transit, which I take to commute to and from work in the city, is the <a href="http://www.panynj.gov/bus-terminals/port-authority-bus-terminal.html">Port Authority Bus Terminal</a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. It can get very busy at times and having to avoid crowds on 8th Avenue can be a headache. One time, I detoured through 9th Avenue and discovered many good places on the walk to the Terminal, among which are <a href="https://plus.google.com/106628768296740943844/about?gl=US&hl=en-US">Atomic Wings</a> (good product. About $10 for 10 wings, a soda, carrot and celery sticks), and <a href="http://www.espositosausage.com/">Esposito's Meat Shop</a>, which merits a separate blog. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM6vdxSEpLThVWfNK5x0Meykj24JahHg_aAmsZzEuSGQ8WjleHWw7Gqj5kpu2pjb4x295onS1halTtE5GkqXgoepW2kosvbNOcgG9lEegGBGSngZWuWYt_Otinvi4VfDm2_7AOEcxN4ieW/s1600/DSC_8651.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM6vdxSEpLThVWfNK5x0Meykj24JahHg_aAmsZzEuSGQ8WjleHWw7Gqj5kpu2pjb4x295onS1halTtE5GkqXgoepW2kosvbNOcgG9lEegGBGSngZWuWYt_Otinvi4VfDm2_7AOEcxN4ieW/s320/DSC_8651.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I like the Divisoria vibe of this store. Hanging from the ceiling racks are dried herbs and pans.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then I discovered International Foods (sorry, it has no website). It's basically a Greek deli that sells more than just Greek staples. The staff is Mexican, and we call each other <i>primo</i>, and on my first visit, I saw a huge pail of <i>pulpo</i> (boiled octopus tentacles) on display. Then there was a customer trying out this pinkish dip with what looked like <i>bizcocho</i> (just don't say that word to a Mexican woman or you'll be thought of as crass). My <i>primo</i> offered me a toast with the dip, and...I was in heaven. I have been buying their taramasalata (also spelled taramosalata) ever since. What is it, you ask? It's a paste with roe as the main ingredient, with potato, onion, lemon and olive oil. International Foods' version is so good that Greek restaurants in the city don't bother making their own and just buy from International Foods in bulk. What makes its version special? The addition of seltzer water, rendering it moussey and light. While used mostly as a dip, the Pinoy in me tried it as taramasilog. Yes. I mashed it into rice with a poached egg.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My favorite olives in the store. Being a <i>suki</i>, I am charged only $6 each time I buy these</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Besides my favorite <i>pulpo</i> and <i>taramasalata</i>, this shop is a wealth of cured meats, preserves, <i>halwa</i>, spices, sweets, breads, herbs, rice, coffees, olives, cheeses. Name it, and they usually have it. The Greek owner looks <i>masungit</i> but is actually very friendly. If you're a <i>suki</i>, then you get a discount or an extra ounce or two </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">on your purchase (most stuff is sold by the pound). It was one of my <i>primos</i> who suggested using smoked paprika with my <i>pulpo</i> and I'm now a smoked parika fan.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of my <i>primos</i> slicing my order of prosciutto</span></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-85298130651778323382013-01-19T05:51:00.000-08:002013-01-19T05:51:22.968-08:00A Groupon virgin's experience in a French house <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Two of my Japanese students recently ended their studies at Zoni. One had to work full-time, and the other is soon returning to Japan. They, along with a student from Korea, have become my friends and we had gone out on photo safaris or drinking in New York izakayas. I have learned so much from them in terms of food, culture, language. It was time to say our farewells, and for a change, they wanted to try French food. Knowing it could be expensive, even at bistros, I turned to the internet for deals, and ended up at the Groupon website. I found a good deal from Maison: $80 for 4 people, inclusive of an appetizer, entree and a glass of wine.</span><div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Maison has a cozy interior and a casual vibe</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we got to the restaurant, we were immediately attended to by a very nice and friendly server (I forgot to ask for her name). I thought that we would be given a set menu with limited choices. Instead, we were given the full menu and told that we could order a dessert in place of the appetizer or entree. What a pleasant surprise. There were some excluded items, like the charcuterie plate, the seafood items and the rib, and the salade Nicoise was considered an entree. My three friends decided on the steak, salad and calamari, and I the goat cheese tart and bouillabaisse. We were given the usual bread basket with two pats of anchovy butter. A</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">lthough the butter was good, t</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">he bread wasn't. Made me miss the bread basket of Sala in Manila. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga-DprTrDBl2exnuaF5Wozjq9-cXQyXk7N3AIqZPP0d8h__RIDcTqRemuoua-pR33T2AUZJ0BWYneQxmzwWqwY74zcOAYf3EEkSR3rYxlKd8NywDlx2wizzWBum_Fi3aHhwblowJ8d-Kha/s1600/IMG_0002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga-DprTrDBl2exnuaF5Wozjq9-cXQyXk7N3AIqZPP0d8h__RIDcTqRemuoua-pR33T2AUZJ0BWYneQxmzwWqwY74zcOAYf3EEkSR3rYxlKd8NywDlx2wizzWBum_Fi3aHhwblowJ8d-Kha/s200/IMG_0002.JPG" width="133" /></a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We were each served a demi-carafe of the house Bordeaux, which I thought was a nice touch. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Goat Cheese Tart</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our food arrived shortly, and although I liked the presentation of my goat cheese tart, I wasn't too happy with the tart, which was obviously pre-baked, and therefore ended up on my plate hard with burnt edges. I just scraped the cheese and caramelized onion from the crust and ate the dish as a salad.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Calamari with Aioli</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_ZnXSZ7CHPpG8nj9qylTHEpGovJtqnTMz2f9x3cIBlSjJWLtHlYCPjvVqfrvVyXEByA76WVTJXdTjfYscM5xB_sSv2i5ZoMxUNeSGAGxRXuQjEFGW2TmLTZ56ST1xKN98Ei3VjIR2gsfw/s1600/IMG_0007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_ZnXSZ7CHPpG8nj9qylTHEpGovJtqnTMz2f9x3cIBlSjJWLtHlYCPjvVqfrvVyXEByA76WVTJXdTjfYscM5xB_sSv2i5ZoMxUNeSGAGxRXuQjEFGW2TmLTZ56ST1xKN98Ei3VjIR2gsfw/s200/IMG_0007.JPG" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bouillabaisse</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My bouillabaisse was good, and I particularly enjoyed the savory broth and the garlicky rouille, but I would have preferred a bigger chunk of fish (cod I think). I suspect I was served the scaled-down Groupon version because my bowl was small with a puny serving of seafood (with shrimp instead of lobster). The fish was a bit rubbery, so I soaked it in the broth, and it turned out OK. Last night was a particularly cold night, which is why I chose soup over a heavy dish.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hanger steak with really good mashed potato</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuIjbczAvHShSxZc3FyM3zM5sEhtFIQK8i9tDAGJyFdm767ztU46KKBI5w4wjqaORsqXXPHztQ7L5vTOWxaIx6rjmoteiF8pNRMTBlfqMsU9H1vOd_bTtuElZAWldnquAOKh_62ecvdadF/s1600/IMG_0008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuIjbczAvHShSxZc3FyM3zM5sEhtFIQK8i9tDAGJyFdm767ztU46KKBI5w4wjqaORsqXXPHztQ7L5vTOWxaIx6rjmoteiF8pNRMTBlfqMsU9H1vOd_bTtuElZAWldnquAOKh_62ecvdadF/s320/IMG_0008.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Steak Frite. Deadly.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Clafoutis with Pistachio Ice Cream</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I love crema on my coffee, and nothing else</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We unwisely ordered dessert (not part of the Groupon). Not that the dessert selection was bad, except that we were just too full. Still, there is always room for dessert and I was delighted to see clafoutis in the menu, because the first and only time I had tried it was back in the 80s, a very good homemade version (using canned cherries, but I didn't complain). Maison's was disappointing. It had more flan than cherry. The flan tasted good, but I would have wanted more cherries. It is a clafoutis, after all, not a flan with cherry garnish.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I should have ordered this sundae</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I got to try my friends' dessert: a very simple but very good chocolate and vanilla sundae served with a yummy ganache, and an apple crepe, also good, but too heavy after a meal of calamari and steak.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Overall, I would do Groupon again. We each paid $42, with tips, for our very sizeable meal. I probably would go back to Maison, but order different things. It was crowded, and tables are set close together, so forget privacy. The table next to ours was occupied by a couple, and the guy kept on in a loud voice, as if he were in a sports bar instead of a bistro, and peppering his speech with salty words. There is a private dining area upstairs for bigger groups. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maison</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">http://www.maisonnyc.com/</span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-6623717918127840682012-12-25T20:14:00.000-08:002012-12-25T21:02:51.659-08:00LES MISÉRABLES<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12pt;">Of course I had to watch this movie, on its
opening day. If there had been a way for me to watch the New York premiere, I
would have. Les Miz is one of those musicals that, when it came out in 1985,
created such a stir and struck a chord with so many, that immediately talk was
rife about the imminence of a movie version. My first exposure to the
music was through my friend, Jaime del Mundo, and I was immediately entranced
by BRING HIM HOME, I DREAMED A DREAM, ON MY OWN, STARS, and ONE DAY MORE. I vowed
to watch it one day, and watch it I did, in Toronto in 1991. The staging,
by <span style="background: white;">Trevor Nunn and John Caird, did not
disappoint, and it was the first time I had seen a theater production that was
set on a revolve from start to end. I thought, how so much like a movie this
show is.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12pt;">And now, we have the movie
version</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS 明朝"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;">, which does not disappoint. Of course this is
a movie adaptation, and the material had to be edited to translate it to
cinematic terms, so purists shouldn't expect a transliteration of the musical. The most remarkable aspect of this movie though is that the
actors sang their songs live as the movie was shot, making for a more visceral
interpretation of the music. This is not the first time that music used in a movie was recorded live during the shoot (n.b. 'ROUND MIDNIGHT, or the movie that beat THE </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12pt;">MISSION
for Oscar</span> <span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12pt;">Best
Music, Original Score in 1987), but it is the first time to have recorded actors singing live. </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12pt;">This technique makes the singing and acting more seamless and "real," and is most palpable in Jean Valjean’s
(remarkably played by Hugh Jackman) WHO AM I, and the soon-to-be classic, I
DREAMED A DREAM, sung by Anne Hathaway, playing Fantine. The latter number left
the audience breathless, and in tears. Shot in one take (I wonder if there were
other takes) with one camera, the number begins with Fantine prone in a
crib-like bed, having just been birthed into the lowest of her life’s lows,
when she succumbs to prostitution in order to support her daughter Cosette, and
singing the introduction of the song </span><i style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12pt;">a
capella</i><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12pt;">. She slowly rises, as the instrumental of the song is played, and
sums up her life in the heartbreaking solo. The movie audience, atypical in our
neighborhood, broke into applause after the number. The hype that this number
is enjoying in press and in social media is not hype. This is one showstopper
that will be remembered for a long, long time. I hope that after Martin Nievera
watches this movie, he will have the good sense to re-record his bastardization
of this beautiful song. Better yet, to destroy all existing copies of the
original recording. But then again, no ugly interpretation of this song will be
able to survive in anyone’s consciousness after Anne Hathaway’s masterful
version.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS 明朝"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;">I
dissed Eddie Redmayne in the trailers as <i>mukhang
bisugo </i>and Amanda Seyfried as <i>boses
ipis</i>. My apologies. In the movie, they vindicate themselves quite well.
Most of the rest of the leads are good, notably Samantha Barks, who plays
Eponine without sentimentality. Russell Crowe is the odd man out in the movie.
Although a gifted actor, he is sadly a weak singer, which is all the more
highlighted by the fact that (1) all his co-actors are vocally strong, and (2)
his character is an intimidating monster of a single-minded buffoon. His
singing is truly disappointing, and at some points, sounds like it was learned
from the Vilma Santos School of Singing. I think he did what he did at the end
of his final number out of shame, not for compromising his principles, but
because of his singing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS 明朝"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;">Another
disappointment in the movie is how the songs with counterpoints (ONE DAY MORE,
A HEART FULL OF LOVE) are shot. On stage, the actors singing different parts
can be blocked in levels or by having each group take downstage at the point of
their solo. In the movie, it was quite disconcerting to see the editing from
actor to actor, or group to group in such a hasty manner. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS 明朝"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;">Still,
Russell Crowe or not, faulty editing or not, LES MISÉRABLES is one movie that
will be remembered by audiences for a long time. It is not perfect, but it is
beautiful. By the way, a new song was composed for the movie, purportedly to push the story forward and to vocalize Valjean's thoughts when he adopts Cosette. But we all know that this is also to get it nominated for Best Original Song in the Oscars, right? Whatever the reason is, it is engaging, and may become a love song for some people. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuNy9He4KQ8qVsal4VNsKyqCbDh3XuKHWTWu0DIsdEbyNqGho9OFi9AmxDEWm9sxRTotcocwv21qaPSw41APA1ussFUhrp9ViBPvP2jAn_K8R0Ux4pKEpm4EGhe6zg2DIUYiV1g477Ce4O/s1600/les+miz.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuNy9He4KQ8qVsal4VNsKyqCbDh3XuKHWTWu0DIsdEbyNqGho9OFi9AmxDEWm9sxRTotcocwv21qaPSw41APA1ussFUhrp9ViBPvP2jAn_K8R0Ux4pKEpm4EGhe6zg2DIUYiV1g477Ce4O/s640/les+miz.jpg" width="473" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">P.S. The actor who originated the role of Jean Valjean in London's West End and on Broadway, Colm Wilkinson, plays the role of the kind Bishop who paves the way for Valjean to go on the straight and narrow.</span></div>
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<!--EndFragment-->Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-51897161190758592152012-12-15T20:30:00.000-08:002012-12-15T20:34:25.661-08:00COOKING CALDERETANG BAKA<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was going to a
potluck party to celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, patroness
of my hometown, Ozamiz City, and the school where I finished my elementary
and high school studies. Most everyone was bringing either a pork dish or a
dessert, so I decided to bring caldereta.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Problem was, I
didn’t know how to cook this dish. I’d eaten a number of versions, my Lola
Inday’s being my favorite. There was the carinderia or cafeteria version, the
Mama Sita version, and the Batangas version. I particularly like my Lola’s,
because it was rich, savory and the one I grew up on. I also favor the Batangas
version, which is almost all-meat, and the sauce is mostly beef fat. I had no
time to get my Lola’s recipe so I went to my friend Connie Santiago-Veneracion’s
hugely popular and successful <a href="http://home.casaveneracion.com/">website</a> to look up her recipe. I like Connie’s
recipes, least of all because she is a friend, but because her recipes are
fool-proof, delicious and tested personally by her. I tweaked her recipe a bit,
adding yellow and green peppers to contrast with the red sauce, reducing the
amount of the liver and using beer instead of water to tenderize the beef. I
also amped up the garlic and baked the potatoes instead of frying them. I’m too
lazy to be watching over frying potatoes. I find baking more efficient because
I don’t have to watch the cooking, but also because I can bake the potatoes and
liver at the same time. You can substitute the liver with chicken liver spread
but fresh liver is cheaper AND tastier.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CALDERETANG BAKA
(6 servings)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 kilo / 2.2 lbs. beef
(chuck. Ask your butcher to cut the beef for you. Saves you a lot of time)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2 large white onions, finely chopped (I used a mandolin because I
have no knife skills)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 kilo / 2.2 lbs. fresh tomatoes, finely
chopped (best to use overripe plum tomatoes. Again, I relied on the mandolin to
slice the tomatoes) OR <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 can (33 1/2 oz.) of diced or crushed
tomatoes. Choose Spanish or Italian brands)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3 heads of garlic, minced (I pounded them using
a mortar and pestle, peeled them, and let the food processor do the rest)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2 medium pcs. yellow bell peppers, chopped<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2 medium pcs. green bell peppers, chopped<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3 cups chopped carrots or baby carrots<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">½ cup tomato paste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 bay leaf<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Extra virgin olive oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1/8 kilo / ¼ lb. chicken livers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5 medium pcs. potatoes, cut into large cubes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2-3 cups water (or a bottle of beer. Choose a
lager or pilsen. If using a dark beer, you may choose to omit the chicken liver.
Another option is to use red wine. I prefer a hearty Shiraz)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 cup seedless green olives<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 medium piece jalapeño pepper or siling labuyo
(optional)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: .5in; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Salt and pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1.
<!--[endif]-->Cut the beef into
2″ chunks, season with salt and pepper and sear in a heavy sauce pan or Dutch
oven. Remove seared meat from the pan or Dutch oven, and sauté the garlic just
before it turns golden brown, then sauté the onions for about 7 minutes. Add
the tomatoes. Stir, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir and simmer for another
5 minutes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeeeGQ7xYBz7xaNOXFSC6px6IUDBwuWLo65w2Z6Bqqfvd8NDyywdr_YHspjkI8LhfGhLamlhWgJGDI4XcdRB8ebtgXiwhIP2otAdld9PoYdFJdPKiD6wsnhxEt3h1FPWkhoFpgvvRrBM1M/s1600/IMG_0015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeeeGQ7xYBz7xaNOXFSC6px6IUDBwuWLo65w2Z6Bqqfvd8NDyywdr_YHspjkI8LhfGhLamlhWgJGDI4XcdRB8ebtgXiwhIP2otAdld9PoYdFJdPKiD6wsnhxEt3h1FPWkhoFpgvvRrBM1M/s320/IMG_0015.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Brown the meat in batches, not in one go.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgifJ-CmL0NxA39cEEzDRD3PuKU5C8foBjLuhUbl1XfvT6ItfjASHazyximfgwzRSpRxatDUbFYTH-ycyZI-kc1lHDPDB5wGvFB5uX9ZKZ5iX7q7dV83pNw8coz34hCoRsLNBIVosJX05H5/s1600/IMG_0021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgifJ-CmL0NxA39cEEzDRD3PuKU5C8foBjLuhUbl1XfvT6ItfjASHazyximfgwzRSpRxatDUbFYTH-ycyZI-kc1lHDPDB5wGvFB5uX9ZKZ5iX7q7dV83pNw8coz34hCoRsLNBIVosJX05H5/s320/IMG_0021.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The beer was so tempting to drink. But I stayed disciplined.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkaZ7u1IWxDRjnZeli_O04ZUyONpG-7TezszbbnwbJ5X-fM4SZR5-KqvEYbrxHZPyXifBBiL2GyFVOQiaXXj1_dWy9BlUM7CFS59RVzDGXoqaxYBgm2RwyjkFqEsbTDv9vLLH8VXNtZ6TY/s1600/IMG_0022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkaZ7u1IWxDRjnZeli_O04ZUyONpG-7TezszbbnwbJ5X-fM4SZR5-KqvEYbrxHZPyXifBBiL2GyFVOQiaXXj1_dWy9BlUM7CFS59RVzDGXoqaxYBgm2RwyjkFqEsbTDv9vLLH8VXNtZ6TY/s320/IMG_0022.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The tomatoes looked really good. I like using fresh instead of canned tomatoes, which tend to be more acidic. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcZf79b-8j_1Jpp0qzNyPG7wkKaqhN8wcIWhFKlIRQ3LfIiQrMKkATtz2tl04V2tgPdEpwguukxl900qi1UyvMVW557F3zbn346vVVjqMZ0CTfa0Bm4gkFt4cvkhUhaDoweiq5Jw0pwE-l/s1600/IMG_0025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcZf79b-8j_1Jpp0qzNyPG7wkKaqhN8wcIWhFKlIRQ3LfIiQrMKkATtz2tl04V2tgPdEpwguukxl900qi1UyvMVW557F3zbn346vVVjqMZ0CTfa0Bm4gkFt4cvkhUhaDoweiq5Jw0pwE-l/s320/IMG_0025.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The stew, after about an hour of simmering.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwaIyA7hx-DzRYUMtrffun6XyshHkm2rQXSLovuREGl-gkXV2HU092oCRGRvEhbpsRdRG7Hwp09t5Xxs7DIN4FOcair_4FqTbwcvmG-DzgfYtDaMTpncQAdGkSSl2V73juBbRKpMbzMUth/s1600/IMG_0035.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwaIyA7hx-DzRYUMtrffun6XyshHkm2rQXSLovuREGl-gkXV2HU092oCRGRvEhbpsRdRG7Hwp09t5Xxs7DIN4FOcair_4FqTbwcvmG-DzgfYtDaMTpncQAdGkSSl2V73juBbRKpMbzMUth/s320/IMG_0035.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The finished product. I'm proud to say that this 7-quart pot was eaten up, with only the veggies to pack home.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2.
<!--[endif]-->Add the beef and bay
leaf to the cooked vegetables. Pour in the liquid (water, beer or wine). Add
the tomato paste, stir well and bring to a boil.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3.
<!--[endif]-->Lower the heat, cover
and simmer. After an hour, add the carrots, olives and bell pepper. Simmer for one
more hour or until the meat is fork tender. Stir occasionally during cooking.
If the sauce becomes too dry before the meat is cooked, add more liquid (water,
beer or wine), about half a cup at a time. Correct the seasonings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4.
<!--[endif]-->While the beef
simmers, wash, peel and cut the potatoes into wedges. Season with salt and
pepper, and drizzle with olive oil. Bake at 425F for 20 minutes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5.
<!--[endif]-->Clean the chicken
livers, season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with olive oil. Bake along with the potatoes. When cooked, blend
or pass through a food processor with a little beer or sauce from the simmering
caldereta until smooth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">6.
<!--[endif]--></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When the beef is
cooked, add the broiled potatoes and mashed liver. Stir until the liver is
incorporated into the sauce. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Adjust the
seasonings. Drizzle olive oil before serving over warm rice or crusty bread.</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-6602487624675411622012-11-11T06:08:00.004-08:002012-11-11T06:09:21.308-08:00Here's an opportunity for your photograph to be made part of the American Museum of National History<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">One great thing about
being in New York is the nonstop opportunity to do a variety of activities. This
is the city that never sleeps, after all.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Next week, the <a href="http://www.amnh.org/">American Museum of Natural History</a> is
opening <a href="http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/upcoming-exhibitions/our-global-kitchen">OUR GLOBAL KITCHEN: FOOD, NATURE, CULTURE</a>, which should be interesting to
foodies and historians. As described in the website, the exhibit seeks to address
the following questions:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: .1in; margin-left: .2in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in; vertical-align: baseline;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Arial;">How does
food reflect and influence culture and identity?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: .1in; margin-left: .2in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in; vertical-align: baseline;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Arial;">What’s
the role of human ingenuity in shaping food – past, present, and future?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: .1in; margin-left: .2in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in; vertical-align: baseline;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Arial;">How does
what we eat affect the planet? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: .1in; margin-left: .2in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in; vertical-align: baseline;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Arial;">Why is
the diversity of food important?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Arial;">What’s
the role of food in human health?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: .1in; margin-left: .2in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.25in; vertical-align: baseline;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Arial;">How does
our sense of taste affect our food choices?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Cool, right? Even
cooler is the chance, whether you are in New York or not, to share your food photos
and make these photos part of the Museum's collection. Through Instagram and hash
tags, the Museum invites everyone to "share your celebrations of food with
images of gatherings with family and friends or the food itself. Be creative-and
feel free to embellish your photograph with words about what made the meal so special.
Then post it on with hashtag #CelebrateFood. The photo may be featured in Our Global
Kitchen or on <a href="http://amnh.org/"><span style="color: black; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">amnh.org</span></a>. Share as many as you like!"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I think an obvious choice for most Pinoys is lechon, but in my case, I am submitting this photo that I took in Ozamiz, when my cousins Yeye and Cosette gave me a step-by-step demo on how to prepare kinilaw, beloved amongst Bisayas to be eaten at a meal or with drinks.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX7-DyQ1_5f2h1ZEyr-_nLEHEWcST7Le3W2EmneakKuQAri2wmMCXFKWCOmOkuSJocMBBPRIiwIkWLlkutRTyxsdQ7lzvq5ecYRy2VEuw55c8jw2pw0qoi_9Cspas0BcEFQBhgqMmlijoB/s1600/kinilaw.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX7-DyQ1_5f2h1ZEyr-_nLEHEWcST7Le3W2EmneakKuQAri2wmMCXFKWCOmOkuSJocMBBPRIiwIkWLlkutRTyxsdQ7lzvq5ecYRy2VEuw55c8jw2pw0qoi_9Cspas0BcEFQBhgqMmlijoB/s320/kinilaw.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">How about you? What photo are you submitting?</span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-91884014836613846422012-06-06T04:25:00.000-07:002012-06-06T04:42:58.705-07:00'CUE<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I heard about 'CUE while I was still in the US, and it seems to have so much going for it, chiefly that it is a barbecue restaurant. I happen to enjoy barbecue, having grown up on Landoy's, that late lamented barbecue place in my hometown of Ozamiz. I think barbecued meat is the most fun dish around.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJa667jLbSqVmkkN24ABHyxnA3xBjEESANwDAGRdDXjEujelt2h4CGBZhJlkgymxkzmJiZ2jLhoRXrTctEYJ1g1zHcT19zDb9T4Jx54z5dq_qO0PjI5WtBbjvY2EmjPmckm5Dc4XCeJbrV/s1600/IMG_1891.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJa667jLbSqVmkkN24ABHyxnA3xBjEESANwDAGRdDXjEujelt2h4CGBZhJlkgymxkzmJiZ2jLhoRXrTctEYJ1g1zHcT19zDb9T4Jx54z5dq_qO0PjI5WtBbjvY2EmjPmckm5Dc4XCeJbrV/s200/IMG_1891.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">With jet lag bearing down hard on me, I had lunch at 'CUE. It is one of the new establishments in the new High Street mall. The place is beautiful and stylish, with a portion of its ceiling covered in cowhide. Dowa thought it was disturbing; I didn't. One drawback: this mall is one of those with a set of restrooms servicing all the tenants. This seems to be a trend among the smaller Ayala Malls (cf. Triangle, TechnoHub). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The menu is short, which I like. I don't like restaurants with too many things that end up overwhelming the customer. The first item that just grabbed me was the steak and marrow tacos. I mean, could there be a more sinful and deadly and savory dish than this? I've had marrow in soup, I've had marrow to "butter" some crunchy bread, I've had marrow as a burger topping, but I've never had a marrow taco. So we had that. </span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyIxatpavGM6rcAC06D21EO3ypLIUV6qPvtQaog5dLNF7RrcbuTBq7XMELxUFSvcWZJhvE655g4ceQ-2Ohxaoui2oI1QpLYeFYhpzHrTPqiVgi3-VFhIoYOKMaP9H2ZTlmUyGRt81zk18/s1600/IMG_1885.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyIxatpavGM6rcAC06D21EO3ypLIUV6qPvtQaog5dLNF7RrcbuTBq7XMELxUFSvcWZJhvE655g4ceQ-2Ohxaoui2oI1QpLYeFYhpzHrTPqiVgi3-VFhIoYOKMaP9H2ZTlmUyGRt81zk18/s200/IMG_1885.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQVhxvA3JKRUC3Gx70m7JIPJkpbjPMU9RcJWES5KKpXDsvmwbwOoT0SR089WlnsAzJ64yQfKQTyT3JYbVdUYSeGHweGFvPMa2r1AvN2LBryRFUOBV7FPZqv5D_98277p1EHRXCOs0LhbNn/s1600/IMG_1883.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQVhxvA3JKRUC3Gx70m7JIPJkpbjPMU9RcJWES5KKpXDsvmwbwOoT0SR089WlnsAzJ64yQfKQTyT3JYbVdUYSeGHweGFvPMa2r1AvN2LBryRFUOBV7FPZqv5D_98277p1EHRXCOs0LhbNn/s200/IMG_1883.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The dish was served on a chopping board with an espresso spoon for scraping the marrow, and came with 6 perfect tacos, a corn salsa and a green pepper sauce. We eagerly scraped off the marrow, and s</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">adly, the bottom half of the marrow was congealed, whereas the top layer was perfectly roasted. Our waiter quickly took our dish back and returned a few minutes later. This time, the (smaller) marrow was perfectly cooked and we felt indulgent indulging in this singular dish. A real winner, a keeper, but I worry for my next trip to the doctor's. Perhaps the red wine in the sangria will help?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Along with the tacos, we ordered the two arugula salad varieties, which were disappointing. Both seemed to be swimming in dressing and the blue cheese variety came with paltry smidgens of cheese.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoDJ6AqMEHIjY09OMAxnCqg40xGKEwhEmm4ywhK30mfVJPPtHQ9YXdkymfmgUiESQVXB5BmOFUa8ORizaashq5c_22SwQMehyAx48elru5vrbHc1rSYEPU9FRxywlW14wUPsk88VQPFoyR/s1600/IMG_1889.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoDJ6AqMEHIjY09OMAxnCqg40xGKEwhEmm4ywhK30mfVJPPtHQ9YXdkymfmgUiESQVXB5BmOFUa8ORizaashq5c_22SwQMehyAx48elru5vrbHc1rSYEPU9FRxywlW14wUPsk88VQPFoyR/s200/IMG_1889.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvJEztWHxsoYk-mtEXeo6BEVAGeM3XOhL8krF5ZGaA7aWPB_85ZItuqK4iJLB0Qbh7fNNVR08KpofRQnV58UnQNk8PEmuJJOLWssTOM92QFhOvFqYOrhzYuq5uUiewp8Ft1AIWSXAE_gAs/s1600/IMG_1887.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvJEztWHxsoYk-mtEXeo6BEVAGeM3XOhL8krF5ZGaA7aWPB_85ZItuqK4iJLB0Qbh7fNNVR08KpofRQnV58UnQNk8PEmuJJOLWssTOM92QFhOvFqYOrhzYuq5uUiewp8Ft1AIWSXAE_gAs/s200/IMG_1887.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We also had the pasta with a pulled-pork ragu, which was okay. We did like the Louisiana Beef Stew, with a good amount of meat and oxtail, and grits. I could be wrong, but 'CUE may be the first Manila restaurant to feature grits in the menu. The perfect side for saucy dishes, grits absorb the sauce and is pleasantly sweet - perfect for the Pinoy palate.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17553710005293207608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5690082485600146580.post-78456717899084219402012-06-06T02:52:00.000-07:002012-06-06T02:52:24.243-07:00New Blog Feature - Funny Pics From All Over<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">To the readers of this blog who are also my facebook friends, you may be familiar with one of my photo albums, which features pictures that I have taken or come across which have some funny element in them, usually the text found in the pictures. Since this album seems to have become a favorite on my facebook account, I would like to include the same in this blog.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Let me start with this picture which I took yesterday, June 5, 2012, at a Divisoria mall's food court. I really love how we Pinoys come up with such punny shop signs.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhysi58sj5DDExUg7C5U09Y9iopbXxrFYtYKpD8cyNWEJkSMkVng8XDKr5BPa9su-ORQvBh6nfDOBeOBj_aQOpSjfKhTS9cE7L6ku-J4lryonoYsfT8aJc9q8D_LhxcXocaKYh-e8UdMiZC/s1600/IMG_1892.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhysi58sj5DDExUg7C5U09Y9iopbXxrFYtYKpD8cyNWEJkSMkVng8XDKr5BPa9su-ORQvBh6nfDOBeOBj_aQOpSjfKhTS9cE7L6ku-J4lryonoYsfT8aJc9q8D_LhxcXocaKYh-e8UdMiZC/s320/IMG_1892.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Another picture is this billboard advertising the new cologne from Richard Gutierrez. It's from Bench, and I am amazed at how jejemon the copy is, and confusing as well. How is the brand to be read? GUTZ AND GLORY, as in guts and glory, or GUTZ AND GLORY, as in GUTierreZ and GLORY? If Richard is the GUTZ, who is Glory?</span><br />
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