2008 October | Ajay's Writings on the Wall

October, 2008

DigitalFilipino.com Club networking in Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao – whew!

October 29, 2008 by ajay

The past week has been very busy as I joined my first roadshow which had us flying to Davao in Mindanao, Cebu in Central Visayas and back again to Manila for DigitalFilipino.com Club‘s bloggers’ networking events. Here, I witnessed first-hand “Blogger Power” and the charisma of Ms. InfluentialBlogger herself, Janette Toral, to pull in the numbers.

It was my first time to join blogger events “on a mass scale,” with the exception of the Blog Awards, and I liked it. It was great to know the faces behind the blogs, and I like the part where everyone introduces themselves. There’s bound to be an interesting story on how one got to blog, or what one has gained from it so far. It’s my first exposure to DigitalFilipino and I think am joining it soon, haha.

Our first stop was the boom city of Davao, home of the Mindanao Bloggers. Close to 100 bloggers had fun in PAGCOR-Davao’s Pantawan Hall where we ate and drank the night away, capped by a friendly tournament of Texas Hold ‘Em Poker.

At the Teatro Casino party in PAGCOR-Cebu, members of the Cebu Bloggers Society came in identical “Blogger Ko Bai!” shirts which showed their complete solidarity. Couldn’t resist buying one.

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Category Blogosphere | Tags: | 17 Comments
Mario’s Restaurant Quezon City : a classic reinvents itself

October 26, 2008 by ajay

Mario’s Restaurant has been there for as long as we can remember. During a dinner recently, we were surprised to find out from Mario’s scion Fil Benitez that the original Mario’s in Baguio City is 37 years old, while the one in QC is 28 years old! I believe these two are the only surviving branches now; still, that’s impressive for a highly competitive industry where the average life span is from five to ten years.

In the case of Mario’s, it pays to be known for something. It has always been a preferred place for cozy meetings and romantic dates. We learned that they pay attention to nitty-gritty details like installing the right lighting, comfy nooks, and even a “back entrance” for personalities who want to stay away from the public eye.

Then of course, there’s the food. Even with the Wagyu craze around, Mario’s rep (reputation) as a place for mouth-watering steaks has stuck. I must say its Caesar’s Salad is one of the best in town, and will easily turn a carnivore into a vegetarian overnight. House bestsellers include Spanish specialties like paella, lengua and cochinillo (roast suckling pig).

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Category Munchin', My Manila | Tags: | 20 Comments
Biggest outdoor art gallery in Asia… only in the Philippines

October 26, 2008 by ajay

It was only in the Philippines where you find a member of the so-called Manila’s Finest being apprehended for the crime of snatching. It is also only in the Philippines where you can now find the “biggest outdoor art gallery in Asia.” The latter is good news. We love it when things turn for the better, and aren’t screwy, as some events and happenings in this country are.

This humble space can’t help but laud the gigantic effort of the Outdoor Advertising Association of the Philippines (OAAP) to mount works of art in the metro’s major highways. While it is human to ogle at those beautiful faces and sexy bodies in billboards peppered by artistas and lingerie-clad models around the city, contemplating about art while stuck in the traffic rut can be an edifying experience. And this commuters will see with masterpieces about nature and preserving the environment dominating ad spaces in some of the country’s major roads.

The Manila Outdoor Art Gallery route coming soon in the highway near you. Featured are the works of the most promising Filipino artists Popo San Pascual, Riel Hilario, Eddie Boy Escudero, Jose Terence Ruiz, Mario V. Fernandez, Gari Buenavista, MM Yu, Christina Quisumbing Ramilo, Lotsu Manes, and Tina Fernandez .

More pictures after the jump:

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Category Happenings & Events | Tags: | 12 Comments
Chariya’s Thai Kitchen …. nomnomnom!

October 14, 2008 by ajay

LOLcats say nomnomnom when something is yummy, and I just gotta say “omnomnomnom” after visiting Chariya’s Thai Kitchen over the weekend. It’s a fairly new (more than a month old) establishment serving authentic Thai food near Makati’s Bel-Air-Kalayaan Ave. area. We say “authentic” because a sister-brother Thai tandem is behind it. Chairya Thaikupt is a teacher of Thai cooking at Gene Gonzales’ culinary school while her brother Jok Bhamornsoot used to be a chef at the Four Seasons hotel in Bangkok.

Still, nothing in the menu is above P150 which makes it a must-visit if you want to taste Thai food without digging deep, deep into your pocket. I beg to differ when the owner said it’s a “hole in the wall” because I found the area quite spacious and airy. The place used to be occupied by that successful Thai food joint Som’s Noodle House. I guess this is where one of their many similarities lie.

Chariya’s pad thai (P!20) is one of their specialties. Turned out to be delicious that I can manage to eat two plates of those And the green papaya salad (P70) , with its perfect blend of sweet-tangy dressing, will perhaps convince me to become a vegetarian a la Natalie Portman. Hah.

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Category Munchin' | Tags: | 7 Comments
Stress-busters to remember by….

October 11, 2008 by ajay

All right, it’s been a stressful week. Dealing with loss can bring a lot of stress, and so does staring at death almost in the face. Rather than stay like this in a daze, I deem it better to answer the Middle Zone Musings’ “What I Learned From...” carnival. Blogging about one’s feelings is therapy, and so are the following stress-busters:

Elders often tell us to count till 100 before blowing off steam. This is so true, except that am sometimes too impulsive. Other people would call it mind-conditioning. For every one ugly situation facing us, there are 10 other angles to view it differently from. Couldn’t help but be amused that Google has something like the Mail Goggles. Before trying to send mail you might regret, the email-sender is given a mathematical exercise to verify if one’s in the proper state of mind:

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Category Life & Living | Tags: | 8 Comments
The man who snatched my bag… was a policeman!!

October 8, 2008 by ajay

As you can see in my Facebook status here, it was an unlucky Monday. I know I’ve been a victim of thievery several times before that I already consider it a form of TITHING Somehow, you never expect it to happen again to you and then bam! there goes another one. So that’s what happened to me last Monday in, of all places, the company parking lot. I was just a few steps to my car when a man in a motorcycle very casually grabbed my handbag away from me and sped off. I was at first speechless from shock, but managed to shout “please run after him!!” to nothingness. It was dark, and there were no roving guards. At least the ones who came responded very late It was an early Christmas for that snatcher, as he carted away with him an XXXXX amount of cash and three of my high-end gadgets.

This incident would have a bizarre turn as my officemate told me that she heard on TV how a motorcyle-riding man was apprehended in the same area early this morning, after he tried to snatch again the bag of another woman. And that he was a policeman! The Inquirer story is here.

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Category Life & Living | Tags: | 22 Comments
Kinabuhayan Cafe, Quezon: all-Filipino bed & breakfast

October 6, 2008 by ajay

A visit to Kubli Springs is almost a given, if you’re a guest or staying in Kinabuhayan Cafe. The latter is a Filipino-inspired bed & breakfast ( B&B) in the heart of Dolores, Quezon. It is highly recommended if you’re trekking up the mystical Mount Banahaw or simple doing your Viaje del Sol tour. Tourists and city dwellers can fully experience staying in open air nipa huts which is the traditional Filipino dwelling. Primarily, this means sleeping on slotted bamboo floor amid the lush gardens and cool mountain air.

The cafe-cum-B&B has a very homey atmosphere. We saw a number of friendly pets, a billiard table and of course, the food expertly prepared by the owner is simply irresistible. In fact, we think the food is the cafe’s finest point, especially if you’re only on a day trip. What they serve is certainly not local carinderia food, but Filipino cuisine with a global twist. For starters, I didn’t really expect to eat risotto in Quezon or pandan-infused brewed coffee and sweetened camote with whipped cream topping.

Let these pictures show you what the place is like:

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Category Road Adventures, Travel | Tags: Filipino bed & breakfast,Filipino cuisine,kinabuhayan cafe,Kinabuhayan Cafe Dolores Quezon,Mount Banahaw,Quezon bed and breakfast,viaje del sol | 7 Comments
Lunch at Kubli Springs, Quezon: eating with our feet under the water

October 4, 2008 by ajay

After our hearty breakfast at Kusina Salud and visiting farms and ricefields, it wasn’t quite apparent where we were headed. All I know is that we were traversing Dolores, Quezon en route to Kinabuhayan Cafe and Kubli Springs. So I asked my van seatmate, Kinabuhayan proprietor Jay Herrera why I did not see sign boards or directional signs. He said that was really intentional, “the fun part is in discovering things.” He clearly didn’t want all sorts of people to flock to Kubli, which is the Tagalog verb for “hide.”

Finally, we arrive there and it seems the heavens smiled at us because it didn’t rain. The place is a secluded spot that can be reached after moderate trekking. It kinda reminded me of a place in our province where the womenfolk washed clothes in the clear water and took a bath there as well. It was all so clean and clear.

Our lunch for the day, like this salad of fresh veggies, was neatly laid out on bamboo tables. The delectable arrangement was a prelude to another fantastic meal on this Viaje del Sol trip. Our table was right there on the shallow part of the river so that we ate amid the rocks and the running water. Truly a whiff of the countryside!

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Category Road Adventures | Tags: | No Comments
Kusina Salud: country home cooking that never fails…

October 1, 2008 by ajay

Kusina Salud is definitely one of the must-go-to destinations in San Pablo City, a favorite on many a foodies’ list. There is something about this resto which makes one trek the country roads, for the close to two hours of travel it takes to get here from Manila. The food is simply exquisite. There might be similar establishments of exquisite food sprouting in the city (like Greenbelt 5) but none quite poses the same challenge of getting here, or savoring the shabby chic ambiance, with even an aviary nearby.

Brown rice paella topped with crabs, chorizo, assorted veggies and seafood. Note the arroz caldo in the background too. I’ve never eaten paella for breakfast before, but it was gooood.

Another Kusina Salud favorite is the pako (wild fern ) salad, with grated cheese! We tell you,nothing about this salad is unpleasant, even if you’re a non-veggie fan.

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Category Munchin', Road Adventures | Tags: | 3 Comments
On the road, & joining the Greenpeace GMO-free rice campaign…

October 1, 2008 by ajay

As a busy city dweller, am not the most environmentally-active person around. That is why am thankful when internationally-known groups like Greenpeace get in touch with me, as what happened with this site’s reports on the e-jeeps. Their work keeps me up-to-date on their tireless lobby for sustainability and the protection of Mother Nature (even now as we speak, they were hailing the passage of the Renewable Energy bill).

So many things going on behind the scenes that we don’t know about. Take for example, our knowledge of rice, the basic Filipino staple. All I really know about is how rice has become expensive these days, and the irony of importing from countries like Thailand which learned from us on rice technologies a few decades ago. Now, Greenpeace has raised the alarm on the possibility of GMO-contaminated rice having reached our shores. Through our road trip last week, I was able to learn that organic is still the best, and how local farmers should be lauded for hanging on to age-old practices that never use fertilizers and such, because they are harmful to the environment.

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Category Road Adventures | Tags: | 1 Comment