April 29, 2014

A Presidential Visit









We had the Big Boss visit this week and it was a pretty amazing experience.










There is a huge amount of preparation that goes in to a presidential visit and the small glimpse that I got to see was incredibly impressive.  There are people from the White House and people from the Embassy organizing every possible detail. They investigate and prepare and practice so that it all goes smoothly.  I am in awe of all those moving parts coming together so seamlessly.










I got to be on the team at the event at Fort Bonifacio.











It was wonderful to be able to be a part of it all and I had a great time with my teammates - even though it was super hot in that space.















Luckily my colleague had a fan that she let me borrow.











It was a pretty cool experience!

Meet and Great the POTUS

So - the President of the United States was in town this week and he did a special Meet and Great with folks from the Embassy.  We were all pretty excited and the event filled up quickly - even though we knew we'd have to get there super early and wait a very long time.






Of course we got dressed up - some of us even got new outfits.



Then we took special busses to get to the location.


















The stage was all set for a long time.











There was a special area for the kids  - a great idea.  Not only did they then have a place to play and hang out, but, they were all together in case the President decided to do a photo with them.














The adults were in a larger space - kind of like a big mosh pit.











Eventually, however, the President arrived and was introduced by our Ambassador.












It was a bit hard to see with all the cell phones and tall people.










And it got even harder when he headed over to the kids section.  He took a picture with all the kids and both N. and O. got to high-five and fist-bump him.  Sadly, I couldn't see it - but I'm hoping that there will be some official photos.



Pretty cool!

Legaspi Farmer's Market

There are two farmer's markets that we visit a lot - Salcedo is on Saturdays, and Legaspi is on Sundays.  They both have lots of vegetables and fruits, as well as vendors selling artisan crafts, prepared food, plants, furniture, ice cream, etc.  It's pretty amazing and we usually go to one or the other on the weekend.



There are places to sit and eat the food you get from various vendors.

And so many different types of foods to try!




I like the roast peanut man.



And the Thai food.



The produce is wonderful and there's a great variety.  I try to also pick out new things each week and ask how to prepare.  It's been very interesting.




Fiddlehead ferns.  Super yummy!  I just blanched them and added them to my salad.

April 27, 2014

Trip to the countryside

I had occasion to travel outside the city and it was quite beautiful.  

There are rice fields lining the roads.  Different families and people have their patches that the grow and then process.  
They place the rice out on the sidewalks and roadside to dry - it takes several days.  Oftentimes, one lane of the road is covered in drying rice and everyone must just use one lane.





On the way back we stopped at a local fast food chain for some lumpia and sesame balls.

And I got to try the national dessert - HaloHalo.  It's very interesting and tasty.  It will definitely cool you on a hot day.  The purple ice cream is ube.  And then there are green cubes on coconut jello, red tapioca,  pieces of flan, shaved ice, and then garbanzo beans, white beans, black beans, banana, and jackfruit.

Binondo - Manila's Chinatown


The fabulous CLO (Community Liaison Officer) organized a Wokking tour of Manila's Chinatown - the neighborhood of Binondo.  Actually, it was more of a walking and eating tour - so right up our alley!


We learned that the Chinese community developed on the other side of the river from the old city - Intramuros (within the walls).  The Chinese people there traded with the native peoples (Filipinos) as well as the Spanish - who controlled the area.  Many Chinese people came and settled there and incorporated the food they knew, with what was available.






The first stop we made was to a Chinese lumpia place - very different from the Filipino lumpia I've had.  It's more like a burrito, with lots of vegetables.







We went down a hallway that opened up into a lovely interior courtyard.


















There we were introduced to Chinese lumpia.  There was sweetened chopped peanuts and toasted rice with seaweed as toppings.


Here's half a lumpia before you put the toppings on.


And here it is with the toppings.  You also add hot sauce, chopped garlic in vinegar, and a sweet syrup.  Put it all together and it's super yummy!
















From there we walked through some narrow alleys.


















Notice all the electrical wire grouped together overhead.













There is a cute bridge over the river. But the river itself is not particularly clean.











We went down the famous main street - Ongpin Street.















People get around on tricycles - with sidecars.







There's great fruit sold on the street - mangosteens are wonderful.

















Great street ambience






and interesting shops.
Our tour guide explaining about dumplings and donuts.  

These dumplings reminded me of char siu bao - but they were filled with ground meat - not bbq pork.

And here are the donuts - sort of.  Traditional Chinese fried dough - but here they often toss them with sugar - then they resemble a churro.

The yams here are purple on the inside and called ube - with a different flavor. Then the sweet potatoes are red on the inside - and taste more like yams.






We eventually came to a very small dumpling shop.  Just 20 seats and they make everything by hand right there in the window.  Wonderful!






Our last stop was at a pastry shop that sold hopia.  Small cakes with various fillings.  Traditionally filled with mung bean paste.

Purple is ube - the purple yam.

But they also had ones filled with flan - my favorite.




The last thing I tried, were these peanut cakes - they tasted a lot like a really great Butterfinger.

A very fun and interesting day.