on films, books, food, restaurants, favorite haunts in Metro Manila (and now, Philadelphia)...
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| rants and raves on films, books, food, restaurants, favorite haunts in Metro Manila (and now, Philadelphia)... |
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Wednesday, February 25, 2004 In the UK they have this thing called Pancake Day that falls right before Ash Wednesday, the first day of the Lenten Season. From my understanding it's a day when people gorge themselves on pancakes because they'll be fasting and all that for all of Lent. It's hilarious how people throw these wild parties right before they're supposed to be atoning for their sins, remembering God, etc. I've heard that on the last day of Ramadan (or the day after) there are people who totally gorge themselves after having fasted for 40 days or something like that. I would totally and absolutely love to go to Mardi Gras in New Orleans some time soon. Maybe in 2005, that seems like an excellent year to travel. Must start bugging my friends now though, because that's how long it'll take for them to come around to actually booking tickets, etc. In Latin America (Panama, Brazil, etc.) they have this celebration Carnival , similar concept to the Mardi Gras ... go all out before Lenten Season by eating, drinking, being merry and just partying like there was no tomorrow. posted by wys | 4:23 AM 0 comments I've decided to try and stop converting everything into Philippine pesos over here, otherwise I'll end up staying home all the time miserable and in the end feeling regretful over not taking the chance to really go out and explore. When traveling, it's important to stick to a budget but it's also essential that you don't get too caught up in comparing the prices of everything in whatever foreign land you're in to the prices of goods back home (because really, how many places actually have cheaper stuff than the Philippines?). In my head I like to fool myself into thinking that all the Sterling prices can actually be converted at the USD exchange rate of about PHP55, which is ridiculous because the Sterling-Peso spot rate is around PHP100 upwards. Oh well, I'll just shock myself when I get back home and get my credit card bills. posted by wys | 3:54 AM 0 comments Saturday, February 21, 2004 I can't believe I've been in the UK for two weeks already. That means I only have five more weeks to go to the pub every single weekday, clubbing every single weekend, and eat loads more awful English food. Anyway I'm having a blast and I'm meeting so many interesting people from all over the world. Loads and loads of fun. Being so far removed from the Philippines there's this feeling of ambivalence towards the bits and pieces I've been hearing in the news about all the crap our country is going through. Peso falling to its lowest levels ever, people screaming the coming of ARGENTINA all over the place, FPJ's supporters threatening to stage a rally. Hmmm, I don't know if I should bother reading the paper because there will be new scandals and issues plaguing the country by the time I get back. I find myself going out more when I'm abroad than when I'm back home. In a Randall of Clerks sort of way, I love gatherings but I don't like people. I think I dislike the familiarity of all the people when I go out in Manila. If I don't know 95% of the crowd, they don't really count. I hate seeing snobby people from my high school that make pains to ignore me, although I have a few friends of my own that go out of their way to ignore old high school classmates as well (shame on you!). Trying out a plethora of new restaurants, bars, pubs, clubs, museums and all that, I'm inclined to think I've grown too comfortable in my environment in Manila and fallen into a routine of doing the same things in the same places. 2004 is the year for trying out new things.
Thursday, February 19, 2004 Tis human nature to try and justify our chocolate binges. (From the New York Times). That Valentine's box of delectable chocolates that made your heart sing last weekend also might — if it is the right type — help make it tick better and longer, scientists gathered last week in Washington said.posted by wys | 1:47 AM 0 comments Tuesday, February 17, 2004 In what may be my worst food experience so far, we ended up eating in TGIFriday's last weekend. You remember Friday's, I think it was actually hangout sometime in the early 90s in Manila. Terrible choice, TGIFriday's has atrocious food in Manila and I know why I was expecting any better in the UK. Wishful thinking perhaps. We ended up with watered down cocktails, greasy sandwiches, bland chicken, and overall slow service. And when the bill was split between 17 people we ended up paying 18 pounds each. That's PHP1800 right there! I don't think I could spend that much on myself in the most expensive restaurant in Metro Manila. posted by wys | 3:34 AM 0 comments Thursday, February 12, 2004 The other night it was the grand finale of this reality show called "Help! I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!" Cameras follow around these B-celebrities (I only knew Peter Andre and Jordan) 24 hours a day who do Fear Factor like stunts, and then viewers vote people off the show. Ridiculous what people will watch. An hour long show a week I can understand, but not a round the clock type show. Today I was given a little education about the luridness of British Tabloids. I had heard that The Sun had this feature called the Page Three Girl where they have some skanky girl featured just for the fun of it. I wasn't aware though that the model was actually friggin topless and they have this in every single issue every single day of the year. How redundant can that get? I also met some locals and they asked me about the Philippines and commented that they heard our country is thinking about electing an actor into the presidency. I had to say sadly, yes. Then they said, didn't we already do that? Ha, what a joke our country must seem like to the rest of the world. posted by wys | 5:19 AM 0 comments Wednesday, February 11, 2004 I'm unsure if I should try McDonald's here in the UK. What better way to understand a country's food tastes than by the freakish localised items they have on their McDonald's menu? In the Philippines we have our Fried Chicken (we're a poultry loving bunch), sweet Spaghetti, and Burger McDo topped with mayo-ketchup-trying-to-pass-itself-off-as-Thousand-Island-Dressing. In Hong Kong they had Taro Ice Cream. In Malaysia they had a arroz-caldo like porridge. In Portugal they had Pork Burgers. posted by wys | 5:40 AM 0 comments Cold weather and I just do not get along. And after three days here, I'm ready to make some hasty generalisations about English food:
Sunday, February 08, 2004 Ah finally arrived in the UK after 18 or so hours of planes and airports. I had the misfortune of a window seat for the Singapore-London (Heathrow) leg of my trip and while I was staring at the snowy Tibetan-Himlayan-type (I'm awful at geography) mountains I began to think about what an amazing scientific breakthrough air flight must have been. To this day I have never bothered to understand even the basics of the science behind flight. Anyway, Singapore Airlines has the most amazing In-Flight Entertainment System. I had never heard previously of their entertainment so I assumed it would be as lame as PAL's (old movies that start and stop in the middle). With Singapore Air, each seat (all classes) has its own screen and you can choose from 20 movies, 100 CDs, 70 TV shows, 30 Nintendo Games that you can enjoy at your own leisure. I ended up watching TV: Without a Trace, CSI, Everybody Loves Raymond, Frasier, Oliver's Twist; Movies: Out of Time, School of Rock (loved it!), Intolerable Cruelty. I also listened to some CDs (they have the entire album available): Sting, Michael Buble, Travis and played a little Mario Brothers. Whew, I almost didn't want to sleep because I was having too much fun. You can also play the computer games with other passengers, who may be seated anywhere. posted by wys | 5:46 AM 0 comments Friday, February 06, 2004 People are talking about ... Janet Jackson's exposed boob in her halftime Super Bowl performance with Justin Timberlake. Wardrobe malfunction or intended scandal? Better question -- Does it matter? In the latest reactions to the furor surrounding the breast-baring stunt during the Super Bowl broadcast, Janet Jackson, the performer in the middle of the controversy, will no longer appear as a presenter at the Grammy Awards ceremony on CBS on Sunday.People love a good show. Maybe that's why we like voting entertainers into public office. They'll never be able to help the economy nor improve the lives of the Filipino people, but we get treated to a free show everytime one of them attempts to say something. posted by wys | 12:54 AM 0 comments I think I’m actually getting sick of eating out (Dencio's, Superbowl, Di Mark's, Old Manila and tomorrow Paseo Uno in three days!). Does anyone have any suggestions for interesting places to try out (in the general Metro Manila area)? Let it be known I have an aversion to trying out perennially empty restaurants. I end up feeling suspicious about the food and/or slightly self-conscious about ordering a meal whose cost probably doesn’t even begin to cover the overhead expenses of the establishment. Or I could just save money, run to the grocery and cook. Many people have this terribly romaticised notion that cooking is this complex endeavor that requires hours of preparation and some mysterious inborn genetic skill. All it really takes are a few ruined meals, a household filled with people that will eat anything (burned, undercooked, overbaked, rock hard, etc.), some good cook books, and a little reckless abandon. posted by wys | 12:43 AM 0 comments Tuesday, February 03, 2004 Gonuts Donuts (Fort Bonifacio) is so hip, happening and in demand that it’s almost scary. They only have one branch (in the same complex as Le Souffle, Gourdo’s, etc.). I think the whole metropolis is scrambling to get their sticky sugared hands on a franchise. Stringent rules, from what I hear. You need to open a number of well-located franchises in one go. Supposedly, the family that owns the chain took two years on the R&D for their donuts. At PHP180 a dozen, they’re reasonably priced. If Krispy Kreme were to open here, I don’t see how they would be able to charge less than PHP50 a piece. I sent my driver over to Gonuts Donuts last Friday at noontime for 5 boxes of Birthday Donuts and he had to wait for one and a half hours. Just this past weekend I hear they imposed a three box per buyer limit … posted by wys | 10:22 PM 0 comments Monday, February 02, 2004 I made a pretty good batch of last-minute Paella Valenciana last night. As I was not planning to cook (mother just strongly suggested over lunch that I prepare dinner) I didn't have time to prepare any ingredients. Quick peek in the larder and I found myself throwing in a chopped up chicken, some leftover prawns from a party (still frozen and in good shape, mind you), bell peppers, chorizo bilbao, baguio beans, saffron, paprika, onions, rice and chicken broth (I admit it! I use Knorr chicken cubes! I'm not a purist that makes her own chicken broth!) into our handy dandy paelleria. Zip zap boom, dinner for eight. posted by wys | 11:45 PM 0 comments Someone emailed me this link to an article about this guy who ate nothing but McDonald's for 30 days and made a documentary about the dire effects of subsisting on grease and lard. Arch Enemy Morgan Spurlock got scarily overweight, but he did get to share his message about the real price of a big mac. posted by wys | 8:51 PM 0 comments Sunday, February 01, 2004 Hey Jamie Oliver has this new contest and you have the chance of winning the following:
Cheeky Chops is an interesting charity. It follows on the heels of Fifteen’s success, where Jamie Oliver picked up fifteen kids from the street, trained them to cook and opened his smashing success of a restaurant. Cheeky Chops Ltd aims to provide unique opportunities for unemployed young people to learn about the hospitality and catering industry through training and practical experience. College learning is supplemented by real-world experience in top restaurants such as The Ivy and the River Café and finally, of course in Jamie’s restaurant, Fifteen. All profits from the Fifteen restaurant will go back to the charity towards training for the current and future intakes of students. It is hoped that these young chefs will be fully equipped with high-class employable skills, self-confidence and, of course, a passion for food, so that they may move forward and carve out their own futures.Join now! posted by wys | 2:59 PM 0 comments |
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