new year's eve in our neighborhood

Ringing in the new year Pinoy style can be summed up in three words: fireworks, music, and food.
(I didn't take a photo of our NYE spread, though. Sorry.)

My neighbors got themselves this karaoke system to ring in the new year. They started pretty early, around 7 pm. 

Fireworks lighting up the sky... 

... everywhere we turn. 

Here's one of my brother's contribution to the spectacle. 

Show's over. 

top 12 travel moments of 2012

Another year is coming to a close and like most people, I'd like to take a look back at what happened in the course of the year. I must admit that 2011 was a banner year for my own personal travels and I was a bit skeptical of 2012. But me of little faith have, once again, been proven wrong because 2012 was one great year.


1. GOT TO BACKPACK WITH FIRST-TIMERS ABE AND IDA. 
Don't get me wrong, Abe and Ida are two of the most well-traveled people I know BUT they always do so in style. Some of the Tampeeps and I were just too happy to introduce them to our way of life. Hehehe.

Abe and Ida on the streets of Kota Kinabalu. 

2. ENJOYED THE BEACH WITH MUSLIM WOMEN. 
I've seen barely-there-bikinis and not-even-there bikinis. But to be covered with a scuba-like-suit was such a novel sight.

Muslim women still covered from head to toe even when swimming. WOW. 

3. SET FOOT ON THE FOOT OF MT. KINABALU. 
We might only have wandered around its foot but to be in the presence of the highest peak in southeast Asia gave me such a high!

Ready to explore the forest in the rain!

4. CONQUERED MT. PINATUBO
I have skinned my hands and toes while climbing my way to the top but the sight and the swim at the top was worth every drop of blood. That's an item ticked off my bucket list!

Cam and I, with both our walking sticks, pose for the requisite photo in front of the crater lake. 

5. AND GOT OUT MT. PINATUBO ALIVE.
We headed down too late, late enough for us to start losing daylight. The rain poured and turned the valley into a raging river of lahar. If not for a sandbar which provided us a few minutes to catch our breath and plot our way to higher ground, we would've sunk and died right there in the middle of nowhere.

6. SURVIVED THE THREE-HOUR RIDE ON YANGON'S CIRCLE LINE. 
I literally had to fight my instinct to flee and stayed on board despite the assault to my senses.

I had to hang my head out of the window just to survive the three-hour ride. 

7. WITNESSED THE SUNSET IN AMARAPURA. 
I fell in love with this teak bridge and was enchanted by one of the best sunsets in the world.

They say its great to watch the sunset from the bridge. I think its greater to witness it on the water, with a view of the bridge. 

8. SET EYES ON A SEA OF TERRACOTTA TEMPLES IN BAGAN. 
It was the Myanmar of my dreams.

(From the back) Simrit, Raffy, Cathy, and I savoring the sunset on top of Buledi. Photo by Ice

9. WENT PARASAILING IN PENANG. 
I got to fly!

Here we goooo! Photo by Jenie Gabriel

10. SAT OUT THE 12-HOUR CRAWL FROM PENANG TO KUALA LUMPUR. 
The motorways to KL were clogged with holidaymakers heading back to the city and we were caught right in the middle. The jam was so horrible that we arrived in KL at 01:30 am which resulted to Rafael missing his flight.

11. REACHED THE FARTHEST POINT P170 HAVE GOTTEN ME - FROM ROBINSONS GALLERIA TO INFANTA, QUEZON. 
If we are talking about 'bang for one's buck', this one certainly takes the cake. It wasn't the most comfortable of rides, not by a long shot, but it sure was a long interesting one.

Standing Room Only (SRO) on this trip. 

12. MET THE FORMER MS. MARANAN AND HER HUSBAND IN INFANTA.
The tale of our high school math teacher getting married has reached the status of "the great inspirational story" for singletons. During breakfast at Ionas, I was able to get the story out of her. This old maid retired to her hometown of Infanta and bumped into her high school sweetheart. The rest, as they say, is history. (It's a shame she refused to take a photo with us.)

So that was 2012 in a nutshell.
And I have a feeling that 2013 is going to be better!

Oh, and to new friends from around the globe - thank you and hope to see you soon!


Cheers to a blessed new year!

the bus ride to Infanta

Perhaps, deep down, I do loathe myself.

It is the only logical explanation I could think of as to why I would subject myself to another of these trying trips. (And well, there is also the fact that I decided to help my friend C with her research.)

It is almost the end the year and it didn't matter that I've explored the forest of Borneo in the rain and almost suffered a concussion due to roots sticking out of nowhere. It didn't matter that I skinned my hand and toes while climbing Mt. Pinatubo or that I had to literally fight my instinct to flee and stayed on board Yangon's circle line despite the assault to my senses.

Because yet again, I found myself saying no to comfort and boarded an ordinary bus (Read: No AC.) bound for Infanta, Quezon. I waited for it at the bus bay of Robinsons Galleria amid the smoke-belching buses and jeepneys. The bus was packed and I mean with grown-ups and kids sitting along the aisle because it would nearly be impossible to endure the four-hour journey standing up.

The bus smelled of sun, sweat, and the occasional whiff of sewer as it wound its way up and down the Sierra Madre mountain range. The children cried to the tune of Micheal Learns To Rock, Black Eyed Peas, and Nikki Minaj and believe me when I say I wanted to weep with them. It wasn't enough that the sounds caused me a first-class headache but the rain opted to pour that afternoon which meant shut windows. My acute claustrophobia started to act up and the only way to survive was for me to close my eyes and shut out the world.

No, I didn't go to sleep so I still felt my seatmate's every breath and the road's every curve. The ride went on for a couple more hours until darkness had set in and the road was only illuminated by our pair of headlights.

I knew we were near when we passed by rows of houses and beach resorts. This made me feel both excited and surprisingly sad - excited to see my friend C again and quite sad because I apparently enjoyed the journey. (It definitely was the farthest my P170 has taken me.)

I alighted at the bus station where C was waiting for me with a charted tryc, ready to whisk me away to our lodging.

Standing room only. 

Here's my view for a couple of hours.

This sleeping woman sat right behind me. 

To my right is this boy, sans shoes, clutching his mother's thigh. 

Sleep, evidently, was a good way to pass the time. 

Night was upon us yet still I was on the bus. 

25 Days of Christmas: Emmanuel!

The reason for the season is finally here!

May you and your family, wherever you might be in the world, have a blessed merry Christmas!

I love this Nativity Scene at Sta. Lucia East Grand Mall since it's out on the lawn. Though, I wonder why it has towers.  

Here's St. Joseph looking at his newborn son. 

And here's Mother Mary doing the same thing. 

25 Days of Christmas: waiting for Him

I was in Infanta, Quezon a couple of days ago and in front of the Church was this Nativity Scene. The supposed stable is nothing but several hollow blocks held together by cement. There were shepherds nor wise men. The baby Jesus is missing since Christmas was still a few days away.

In a couple of hours, He's coming. I can hardly wait.

Wonder what they'll do with this space after the holidays. 

P.S. You could read about my Infanta trip in a couple of days.  

25 Days of Christmas: happy encounters at simbang gabi

I usually attend simbang gabi at the church in my university and perhaps because of my age, I don't see much friends or spot batch mates in the crowd. Instead, I see former students seated on the pews or serving at mass. And even though I didn't do anything to cause such actions, I am pretty proud of their behavior.

But tonight at mass, I bumped into two friends and spotted my college crush in the crowd. Ciara, who patrols the metro every night for a news program, had the night off and was able to attend mass. We found out that we've been standing next to each other all along when we exchanged 'peace'. Another friend, Anna, was seated a meter in front of from me and approached her right after mass.

But the highlight of the night was spotting my college crush in the crowd. He was a pretty quiet smart cookie who briefly joined our block when he decided to pursue the fine arts. A year later, he shifted out having figured that it wasn't for him. He eventually landed himself a girlfriend and was happy as a bee.

I haven't seen him since graduation. Though nothing moved when I saw him again last night, I was pretty amused by the memories that flashed across my mind's eye. The entire block was my wing man yet I still didn't get the guy.  Oh, the audacity of youth!

hordes of people flock to the Gesu for simbang gabi 

Ciara gamely posed with me right after mass. 

Very happy that I was able to greet Anna a merry Christmas right before the holidays. 

25 Days of Christmas: singing carols at the mall

I was doing some last-minute shopping at Robinsons Metro East Department Store having completed my errands when I heard some carol singers. Like some sailor being drawn by a siren's song, I walked out with my bags in hand and descended to the entertainment area. There I took at a seat at the second row and spent the next half hour listening to this lot.

In high school, I was a part of the glee club and we also did this sort of thing. For that half hour. I so wanted to be a sixteen year-old again and sing holiday hymns to a crowd.

Shoppers are treated to some Christmas carols. 

25 Days of Christmas: Ho! Ho! Ho!

I was at the mall yesterday on some errand when I chanced upon Santa and a bunch of kids. Notice that they aren't exactly toddlers but rather, teenagers! Isn't that cute?

But the funny part is that just when I was walking away, Santa, literally, intercepted me and asked me to take a photo with him! Ha! Ha! Ha! Oh rather, Ho! Ho! Ho!

Say cheese!

Santa was soft and cuddly! 

25 Days of Christmas: Bamboo and Parols at Baclaran

Yesterday, like a lot of the faithful in Metro Manila, my brother and I went to the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. We always go every Wednesday as it is her Novena Day. Known for granting petitions of all kinds, she has become the refuge of most people in need. And for a country where most of its citizens is considered poor, there's a lot of them.

Not much has changed since my mother dragged my older brother and me to this church. I think I was about four back then. I do remember a row of drinking fountains to the left of the front of the doors which is now gone. But aside from that and the flat screen TVs attached to the pillars, I believe not much have changed over the years.

This year, the church has gone traditional Filipino and used bamboo, driftwood, and parols for their Christmas Decor. My brother and I usually go on the eve of Wednesday to escape the crowd andso last night was the first time we've seen the church all lit-up in its festive beauty.

The altar is decked for the holidays!

It's a rather long walk from the front door. 

25 Days of Christmas: Subspace Coffee House in Ortigas

A favorite hangout of my friends and former students, Subspace Coffee House is, to me, a proper coffee house. It serves gorgeous drinks; it is intimate; and it inspires. Recently, they were named by JuicePH  as an alternative to Starbucks and described was full of "Korean Kitsch, vintage Paraphernalia, mid-century modern designer furniture, and strikingly strange, yet delicious brews". 

If you still need to catch-up with some dear friends, sit down and enjoy a cup of purple potato latte at Subspace Coffee House. 

Subspace Coffee House from the street

Happy Holidays from Subspace Coffee House

 Black & White Holiday Cookies now available.

Still need to do some last-minute shopping? :) 

Their schedule this holiday season. 

*images from their FB page 

25 Days of Christmas: Excelente Ham

"If you're lost, get yourself to Quiapo. From there, you'll find your way home." So the saying goes. With all the buses, jeepneys, and now the LRT, you're bound to find a PUV  (Public Utility Vehicle) that could take you home or at least somewhere near it. It seems that even with the rise of CBD, Quiapo remains to be the true heart of the Manila.

A couple of days ago, my father found himself in Quiapo. Nope, he wasn't lost at all. Rather, he made his way to Quiapo for one profound reason - to buy our Holiday Hams. My parents love their ham - its salty bone-in goodness, and every year, they try to make it a point to have one on our table on both Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

There are other goodies to be found in Quiapo. But for the holidays, this is the best one I could think of.

The Quiapo church from Plaza Miranda. 

Excelente Ham is a holiday fixture in our home. 

25 Days of Christmas: puto bungbong and bibingka

Yesterday, 16 December, was day one of Simbang Gabi. It’s the Christmas Novena that is celebrated before dawn. Lore has it, since I still have to see a verified document, that the church moved the novena mass from the evening to pre-dawn so that the farmers can attend without keeling over due to the exhaustion from the heat and work of the day.

We here in the Philippines have always thought that this Christmas novena is a unique Filipino tradition.  I recently found out that they have quite the same thing in Columbia. Christmas Novena masses in the morning and evening, nine days before Christmas. 

People do this novena for many reasons – tradition, intentions, and the food. Oh, the food. Several years ago, you could eat  - puto bungbong and bibingka only when you attend a dawn mass. Puto Bungbong is steamed sticky rice topped with panocha (cane sugar) while Bibingka is cake made of rice flour and coconut milk or butter. It is topped with salted eggs and grated coconut. Some entrepreneurial souls decided that these treats should be available all-year round and set up shop selling them. But I must say, they’re still best eaten right after mass while the sun is rising, signaling a new day. 

Here's how they cook puto bungbong: 

Step one: fill that cylinder with purple malagkit.

The cylinder needs to be well-stuffed!

Step two: stick the bamboo into the steamer.

Step three: wait until it's cooked. 

The steamer is heated by charcoal. 

Step four: sing a knife, take the cooked puto-bungbong out of the cylinder using a knife. slather on some butter while hot. 

And here's how they bake the bibingka:

Pour the mixture into a clay plot lined with a banana leaf. 

Add the salted egg so it would be on top when it is baked. 

The bibingka is with heat underneath and by topping the claypot with a tray of charcoal. 

The bibingka is done!

25 Days of Christmas: proper catch up on google hangout

Since it's the holidays and we are scattered all over the globe, we did what any group of sensible human beings would do - use technology to make chicka!  So here we are, my blockmates in uni, doing what we all love to do - gab, gab, and gab!

It was a bit tricky, getting things started, but we managed to do it.

Ciara, in Sydney, managed to squeeze us in even if she had a party in a couple hours!

Our New Yorker Nikko got all bundled up just for us. 

Martha, who's now living quite happily in San Fo, finally introduced us to her hubby. 

Kriska, in Germany, joined us an hour later. :P 

Oliver, in Connecticut, enjoying a good laugh. 

local boy Colin joins us without a mic! tsk. tsk. 

Maricar, our very own beauty queen, hangs out with us via her mobile phone. oh, she 's local too. 

And then there's me, straight out of bed! bwahahaha!

*all images by Nikko Viquiera