To His Royal Highness who sits on the Chrysanthemum Throne,
Good morning.
Let me take the pleasure of sending you a word and your imperial army that the most delicious earthling is due to arrive in your splendid land and noble empire anytime soon. In so doing, your gracious directive and decree is hereby in order which your dwellers have to ensure:
First requirement: Ensure that the delicate flowers that signify the welcome of spring season in your dynasty will be in its full bloom. The delicious earthling would like to witness this incredible phenomenon.
Second requirement: Your land being at the zone of the planet’s ring of fire must ensure that no tectonic-shaking circumstance must take place at any time during the length of stay of the delicious earthling. The delicious visitor hates the feeling of disequilibrium and whirling sensation.
Last and final requirement: Your kingdom is known to have preposterous fees and sky-rocketing prices. The delicious earthling plans to trade his wealth and richness with your abundant commercialized treasures. In other words, he plans to go on shopping! Therefore, ensure to assess and lower down the financial value of your land’s commodities during the delicious earthling’s stay. Otherwise, the delicious earthling will carry with him tons of Ma-Ling (canned luncheon meat) and large boxes of ensaymada (sugar-sprinkled buttered pastry bread).
Your Comrade in Wealth,
The Delicious Earthling
Dahil malamig dun, magbabaon din ako ng Kopiko tri-in-wan copi.
The benefit of being with your mother is that you are allowed to simply be yourself and say whatever you like to the point of throwing tantrums. That is what I exhibited when my family was travelling back to Manila after an overnight stay at the hometown of my father in Pangasinan last weekend.
And as usual, just like any rural adventure that my family would carry out from time to time, Nengkoy never fails to stop over and shop at the local palengke (wet and public market) of the rural place we visit. Our journey would not be complete without Nengkoy buying the local produce of the province or the countryside we visit – bushy-tailed vegetables, freshly caught fishes, newly slaughtered meat, brightly colored fruits as well as local indigenous delicacies. She wouldn’t just buy a piece or two just to satisfy her shopping passion. She would buy tons of it!!!
This usually makes me cranky and grouchy. This is because I and the whole family need to spend considerable amount of time at the border and perimeters of the wet market doing nothing but wait while Nengkoy finish her procurement. My considerate and selfless brothers and sisters are so used to Nengkoy’s habit they would sometimes join her in penetrating the labyrinthine passageways of the palengke to locate the freshest produce and help her out carry the loads of her purchases. I, at all times refuse to join the pack but instead just wait and wait and wait. Did I already say that I impatiently wait?
Anyway, while we were in Manaoag, Nengkoy purchased local delicacies of Pangasinan: bags of puto calasiao (local rice cakes of Calasiao, Pangasinan) and tupig (charcoal-grilled glutinous rice and grated coconut wrapped in banana leaves).
While we were in Dagupan, she purchased tubs-full of fresh bangus (milk fish), oysters, large shrimps, a bag full of mangoes and large bottles of the local bagoong (a brown, murky yet tasty sauce made from fermented tiny fishes).
We also made a stopover in Villasis where she bought heaps and oodles of locally grown vegetables – malunggay (fruits of moringa tree), talong (eggplants), sibuyas-pula (tiny red onions), bawang (garlic), kalabasa (pumpkin), and even bouquets of bulaklak ng kalabasa (squash blossoms).
All throughout these panic purchasing moments, I did nothing but wait and complain. Grrr! We literally could no longer move inside the car for it was full of the local produce of Pangasinan. Out of madness, I even cried out loud to everybody inside the vehicle traversing the highways of North Luzon on our way back to Manila that we are already like “Umaandar na Bulanglang!” (a rolling Bulanglang – a stew made of fish and mixed vegetables seasoned with bagoong that originated from northern Luzon).
nengkoy with some of her bulanglang veggies
Pagdating sa bahay ni Nengkoy, ako din naman ang kumain ng mga yon. ‘Yan si Nengkoy walang kupas. At ako, walang pasensya.
Devotees from around the world would usually go to the magnanimously divine Shrine of Our Lady of Manaoag to ask for a holy intercession. I did not. After travelling more than 200 kilometers by land from Manila to Manaoag, Pangasinan and as soon as we settled on the seats of the church the only thought and prayer I did was to thank God and the miraculous Lady of Manaoag for the health, wealth and happiness of my family.
Our Lady of Manaoag
the candle i lit...
Imadyin? Pinapasok ang demonyito kong ito sa loob ng simbahan? Hahaha!
Abundantly lined-up are red plastic bags hanging on the branches of massive trees at the edge of a long stretch of highway in Tarlac contains a local fruit. My family on our way to Manaoag Pangasinan last Saturday noticed and initially wondered what those red plastic bags contains. Until one of us realized that it contains Camachile being sold by the local folks right under the shade of the trees.
I haven’t tasted Camachile so I told my siblings inside the vehicle that I wanted to buy and savor its taste. But when I told them this, we already passed Tarlac and no vendor is in sight. Nengkoy however explained that it is okay since Camachile is actually not a tasty fruit variant. She added that I will not actually like it. But on our way back to Manila the following day, I insisted on buying and hopefully enjoy the taste of the fruit for the first time which is considered rare for a city dweller like me.
My brother-in-law considerately stopped the vehicle when we were along the highway stretch of Moncada Tarlac to purchase two full plastic bags. Each bag cost twenty-five pesos. I gave Kuya Bogis (my brother seated at the front seat of the car) sixty pesos to hand over to the lady vendor for two bags of Camachile and told him to tell the vendor to keep the change. Nengkoy gave me her usual indescribable stare to express her disgust on why she was not given the chance to practice her price-haggling-skills. When we continued our journey back to Manila she told everyone inside the vehicle that price haggling is supposed to be done to lower down the price of the item being purchased and not to swell it higher which I, according to her, unacceptably just did. Nengkoy of course is just being her usual self! That was the moment that I told everyone that I won’t give them even a little piece in case I liked it.
When I excitedly opened one bag of Camachile, I was surprised to find that all of the fruit’s skin crusts were cracked open. In full shock I shouted and asked them that this may no longer be edible since the fruit’s edible meat has been exposed! Everyone laughed because of my stupidity and explained that the crusts are expected to be naturally open to signify that the meat is already ripe and could already be devoured.
With full gentleness, I picked one fruit and took off the seed beneath the white meat. I chose the one whose skin crust has turned red expecting it to be sweet. But when I placed it in my mouth and chewed it, the only words that came out of my mouth was, “Ay! Lasang papel!!!” (It tasted like paper!). Nengkoy and the rest of the pack broke a big laugh.
Nengkoy then told me “I told you so…” and practically started her usual litany by saying that sixty pesos could have purchased a kilo of sweet ripe mangoes in Villasis Pangasinan and that I was such a bull headed monster for not listening to her. With my insistence I again tried another Camachille expecting a sweeter version but to no avail. That was the moment I offered everyone inside the car to have Camachile as their snack while we headed back to Manila. Some took a little piece, tasted it and by no means asked for another one.
Nengkoy wished that her 75th birthday be held and celebrated in the vast coconut plantation estate that was converted into a tourist destination located south of Metro Manila. True enough, her wish was made into a reality when Nengkoy, twenty seven crazy members of my family and I trooped to Villa Escudero Plantation & Resort on her birthday.
Every member of my family was treated with a 2-day glimpse of a typical life of rural Philippines. Upon arrival we were served with refreshing “gulaman” as a welcome drink. After which, the whole pack were led to the magnificent museum that houses the marvelous antique and unique collections of the Escuderos. There were all forms of Catholic statues and statuettes. We saw an overwhelming array of Filipino costumes, jars, vases, indigenous forest hunting gears, stuffed Pinoy-once-endemic fauna and other eclectic treasures made, found and discovered in the Philippines. I was particularly was astonished by the collection of authentic handwritten letters of Philippines’ National Hero Dr. Jose Rizal displayed in that marvelous museum.
facade of the museum
After feasting our eyes to the overwhelming collections found in the museum, we were then taken for a ride on a carabao-drawn cart for a tour around the vast resort. Seated at the end of the cart were two resort staffs in traditional Filipino clothes. One played the guitar while the other sang traditional Filipino songs while the cart was being drawn to lead us to checked-in at our respective nipa-like villas built right at the edge of a serene lake. The villas were reminiscent of a traditional Filipino house called “Bahay Kubo”.
my monster "pamangkins" on their carabao caravan ride
jumpshot!!!
We then immediately proceeded to one of the highlights of our stay. The scrumptious buffet lunch served and eaten al fresco style few meters away from the base of a waterfall. Still typical of a Filipino dining set-up, we ate on native bamboo-craft-woven plates with banana leaf as its lining and our soup bowls were coconut shells! Breakable chinaware was non-existent! Flowing water on the ground touching and lashing our feet add up to the delicious dining experience.
An hour after lunch, we then headed to one of the resort’s pavilions where a Filipino cultural dance display is being held. The show featured various ethnic and colonially influenced Filipino dances performed by the employees of the resort. The costumes, the music, the colors, the graceful dance moves were all but a rewarding add-on during our stay in Villa Escudero.
a piece of a young coconut palm leaf weaved to form like a fish handed to me by one of the dancers
After the show, we proceeded to our assigned villa for a short afternoon rest. The villa is not equipped with TV, sound system and not even an internet. All you got is the refreshingly beautiful scenery of what the old Philippines were plus the melodious sound of birds lurking around the area.
Later in the afternoon, majority of us lined up to get our respective paddles plus a life vest for we did a little of rowing at the pristine lake using an old-fashioned kayak in the form of a bamboo raft. While we do the rowing, other members of the family were busy trying to catch live fish from the lake or just busy lazing around. In the same afternoon, a number of employees of the resort serenaded Nengkoy at the villa singing a couple of Kundiman songs plus of course the classic birthday song in Tagalog version.
erika and the band!!!
Dinner buffet was served inside an elegant pavilion. This is the moment when Nengkoy was greeted by the singers performing during dinner time and was surprised when a birthday cake was brought to her table for her to make a wish and blow the candle. After which, the rest of the night was spent bonding and chitchatting before everybody hit the sack with smiles on our faces.
nengkoy about to blow her birthday cake candle
Our stay and adventure in Villa Escudero to celebrate Nengkoy’s 75th birthday is no doubt one of my family’s memorable experiences! I actually don’t know how to end this writing. But one thing is for sure Villa Escudero is one authentic representation of Filipino pride, culture and extravaganza.
It made me want to dance the Tinikling as sang by the 50’s circa Pinay diva, Sylvia La Torre…
gmanetwork.com recently issued a news and clarification that Filipinos can visit 25 countries around the world without the need for a tourist visa. This is in clarification to the starting-to-get viral Facebook post that Filipinos can go to 60 countries visa-free. Press Link here for the clarification and list of visa-free countries which if you will actually count is 26.
I have been a believer of my country’s awesomeness but I love being a tourist and I fancy travelling out of the country. Nengkoy (my mom) in her exasperated demeanor would often tell me that I don’t have kayamanan (investments, wealth and assets) because according to her my kayamanan are the experiences I gained out from my travels out of the country. So when I checked on the list, there have been six countries that I have already personally visited out of the 26 countries listed.
In each of the destinations I go to, may it be out of the country or within, I always make it a point to bring home with me a memento. A “delicious” budget traveler like me cannot afford to buy exorbitant souvenirs like paintings, crystals or even silver spoons so I would settle for the cheapest. That would be a ref magnet! So, without further pomp and circumstance, here’s a look at the treasures of my adventures:
malaysia "truly asia"
morocco "land of the setting sun"
"amazing" thailand
vietnam "timeless charm"
"your" singapore
hongkong "best place, best taste"
Availability of ref magnets in tourist destinations bearing the name of the city or country as a simple memento is an indication that such place or destination is a tourist hub.
Anyway, referring back to the list, I still have a long way to go in covering all these countries. I still have 20 more countries to go to visa-free. However, I noticed that Macau is not included in the list. It’s also visa-free…
macau "a world of difference"
I do not have investments and Nengkoy is correct. I may have zero assets, humongous liabilities and mediocre net worth but the experiences and wisdoms I gained out from these travels are priceless.
Since the Philippines has started to guilelessly emphasize its tourist destinations to be “more” fun as compared to other destinations in the planet, the tourism bureau, ministries and departments of other countries will definitely contemplate and strategize on challenging the slogan recently unveiled by the country’s Department of Tourism.
If you are to put yourself into the shoes of tourism executives of other countries, would you just sit down and buy this blunt claim and proclamation of the Philippines? Definitely not. Having more than five or ten times the budget of the Philippine tourism department, you being a tourism executive of your country will never allow such claim and will definitely carry out ways and strategies to prove the Philippines wrong. A case in point, the United States of America, without spending a dime released a travel advisory discouraging its citizens to travel to the southern part of the Philippines two days after the controversial slogan was unveiled.
If you are a proud and loyal inhabitant of another country, would you allow the citizens of the Philippines to claim that they’re having more fun in their place than yours? Definitely not. You would not even think or plan of going there (in the Philippines) so that tourist arrival would not improve and prove that such claim is wrong. Or worst, you would travel to the Philippines – have yourself easily be subjected to holda-fun, kidna-fun or carna-fun – and with a breeze can announce that the slogan is a wrong claim and say that your home country is more fun.
If you are a Filipino travelling outside the Philippines, you would definitely meet the locals. In such meeting circumstance, you would tell them that you are a tourist from the Philippines. At some point you would try to encourage the locals – in support for the Philippine tourism – to visit the Philippines. But when you would be asked why should they go here, would you say “It’s more fun in the Philippines”? Definitely not. This will only show that you are somewhat not enjoying your travel in their country and would rather be in the Philippines. Thus, two possible things will happen to you. You would be either brought by these locals to their worst and most boring places because of your arrogance or you would be taken to their most exciting venues and events for you to have the best time of your life to prove to you that the Philippine tourism department’s slogan is wrong.
Don’t get me wrong, Philippines is fun. But I guess I need more convincing to be swayed by this new slogan…
“More” is defined as being greater in quantity, measure or degree. This word entails a person to compare, match and equate at least two elements so as to conclude which is of greater quantity, measure or degree.
This is the very word that seems to bother me with the newly launched tourism slogan of the country – It’s more fun in the Philippines. The word “more” in the slogan would tend to drive the tourist to compare the country with other tourist destinations which for me need not be. I being a tourist in some points in my life cannot compare the sights and experiences of other destinations for these places and their events possess distinct and unique qualities.
Thus, one should never say that a certain destination like the Philippines is “more” fun than the others. For me, only immature tourists would compare one destination and his experiences to that of other places and events on the planet.
It is indeed and no doubt fun and interesting to travel, see and experience the Philippines but personally I need not compare or match it to other tourist destinations. I am proud of the Philippines but comparing and saying there’s more fun here seems a bit juvenile. Sorry but due to the word “more”, it created a speckle of reservations on me concerning the new slogan if I would totally welcome and help justify such pronouncement about my country.
It could have been better if the Tourism Department just simply say “Fun Philippines”. It’s simple, uncomplicated, non-pretentious and undemanding. Yet, it’s classy, refined and world-class in thought.
If you are to equate the shape of the Philippines to a human body and try to locate where the heart is, you will no doubt identify the island of Marinduque as its heart. Interestingly enough, the shape of Marinduque is similar to the shape of a human heart. Google your Philippine geography to see what I mean!
Ironic yet parallel to the experiences of a Filipino, the country’s heart is considered one of the most abused and devastated, not by nature, not by its own citizens but by foreigners. Marinduque a decade ago was in the world’s headlines because of a massive mining disaster (remember the Canadian-owned Marcopper mining toxic leaks?) that inflicted the health, livelihood and environment of the locals.
I don’t know if clean-up, rehabilitation and restorations has been finalized, but while still recovering from the long term impact of the disaster, located at the apex of the heart is a glimmering hope for this tranquil and laid-back island. It is like a pacemaker has been installed to an ailing heart to keep the blood from pumping. At the southernmost part of the island, you can find a small islet called Elephant Island where tourism boost is on-going.
Elephant Island in Buenavista, Marinduque is the very site where one of the most sought after resorts in the country today is located – Bellarocca Island Resort & Spa.
my travel buddies - karen & denton (the crowned prince and princess of armidale)
I enjoyed the relaxing stay in this world-class resort. Combining excellent service and breathtaking scenery, Bellarocca is the perfect place for some rest and recreation…
With the advent of NAIA being named as the worst airport in the world and with the long over-due plans of improving it, the government neither the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) should not aim for the-now-hideous NAIA to become the best airport in the world. With the constant improvements in their respective airports done by richer countries, NAIA will never become the best airport in the world. But instead, MIAA should aim for NAIA to be the most honest and most caring airport in the world. This goal I guess is more feasible.
Present people working in NAIA seem to have imbibed the distorted culture of corruption, thievery and extortion. Sorry if I maybe too harsh but that is the image they project. And that is how I and a lot of travelers perceive them to be. Not all workers in NAIA, if I may say, are like these but those crooked individuals seem to have effectively impinged everyone.
Because if all people working in NAIA will simply be caring and be honest, everything else will follow like: (i) the sky rocketing 8.5 billion pesos annual collection from terminal fees will be used on where it is supposed to be used, i.e. facilities upgrade and improvement; (3) it will encourage reputable restaurants and boutiques to operate business in the airport; and (iii) a feeling of a more welcomed and more secured 10.5 million passengers that passed through NAIA every year.
I may want NAIA to be grand, luxurious and elegant but for now all I need NAIA to be is simply be caring and be honest.
Nengkoy 