Philippine Travel Notes

This is one of the newer eateries along the famous “AS Fortuna Avenue” in Cebu – well, er, more appropriately, should be Mandaue, for indeed it is already on the Mandaue portion of Banilad. Did you know that there are two Barangays named Banilad, and are sitting beside each other? Yup, this is that area, where Brgy Banilad, Cebu and Brgy Banilad, Mandaue kiss each other! And if you’re not extra observant, you would never even realize that. Just like ‘where does QC end and where does Marikina start? Or when traveling along Bonifacio Ave., where is QC, Caloocan or Manila?! Something like that! Anyway, Fudge is more of a cake, pastry or bakeshop really. But presented and with the ambience of a modern coffee shop. However, what I like in there is lunch hehe! Yup yup, they have delectable food from breakfast ‘till dinner. Ah well, to be exact, most of the times I ate at this place were for ‘brunch’ really – before I would go anywhere. And I am nearing a point where I may have already trie...

I did not know this existed here arounds! Do you even know what Pastil is? No no, not Pastel. Those are two different things, though both are delectable and originally from the Mindanao area! Pastel is the yummy sweet bun with an even sweeter filling, and this is more of a snack that we commonly find in CDO and Camiguin, right? And for those with Euro-inclinations, the more that this is not "pastille", "pastillas" nor "pastilyas"! Way far actually. Pastil is a meal (though it can easily be a snack too) – made of rice and sautéed beef, chicken or fish, wrapped in banana leaves. Yumminess! I have tasted Pastil a number of times, though all those encounters were at places in Mindanao like Cotabato or Marawi. I think I even had similar fares as far down as Kota Kinabalu and Kuching, even farther down in Surabaya and far Medan, though am not sure if they're called the same name. But I never imagined they have already invaded Cebu! How did I find out? I was...

Well I might even have to call this a study. And this is one thing I like with the Visayans. They really know how to make real witty fun at just about anything! Let’s interpret… I asked the driver as to who made this signage in his jeep. He said the signage maker made an error on the letter sizes so he went on just the same and gave it for free! Driver further says, that is the reason why “your” was shortened into the sms-like “ur”. He did not make mention about the missing “a” in “setbelt” so I did not ask anymore. If it was also an error on the part of the maker, now we would not know! I asked what was the “w.w.w…com…” he said “ambot, sa internet tingali na” (I don’t know, maybe it has something to do with the internet)! I did not say anything but in my mind I said “duh”! I asked what “iga.id” means and he told me “gaid” is a visayan term to mean “tie”, but used mainly for big things to tie down like a boat or a ship! Thus, the sign maker wants to tell us “tie the passengers” (and ta...

There is that humungous multicab again hehe! This time I spotted it by the road near SM’s North Wing. First time I saw one of these up close was over at the Metropolitan Cathedral though I did not have a chance to talk to anyone in charge. This time, I saw the manong driver doing nothing (that man at rear side seemingly dwarfed by the size of this jeep), so I asked him a few questions. The “jeep” is actually a converted 10-wheeler truck! ‘Di ba obvious?! He says, it is only given to mountain barangays of Cebu City. What for? For whatever use they may deem necessary. I asked who owns them jeeps (expecting a reply that would either say “city government” or “barangay”), and the fantastic reply was “Si Capitan”! Who maintains these jeeps? The barangays. How many can sit in there? “Daghan”! I asked for a specific number. He couldn’t give one and instead said “tibuok barangay”! Oh well, what a giant jeep really! Aren’t these the kinds that should be distributed at flood-prone areas like Mari...

Bibingka or bingka. I thought this was such a welcome find. I mean it probably had been months since I last saw and tasted the bibingka made in rural places. This one though was definitely at an urban location – the sidewalk along Osmena Ave., also called Jones Ave. in Cebu City! And it looked and smelled inviting, so I got one! Delicious enough! Just like many that I have tasted in Abra, Ilocos, Samar, Sorsogon. Not fluffy but a bit compact, not too soft but moist! ‘Five-pesos lang’!     ISSN 2515139.125-0949

Not (yet) common in this country, right? In fact, this was my first encounter with such a establishment, and I liked the idea! This is at the 2nd Floor of Raintree Maill in downtown Cebu. What is this thing? Hmm, very much like your high-end karaoke rooms like “I.O” or “KTV 21” and so on. There are also rooms (many of them) with comfy seats and nice sound systems. The diff is they are not for you to enter and select your songs so you can wail and shout or chirp and chant in front of a big screen. Here you watch your favorite movies! A nice alternative when looking for anything else to do with friends and/or family! Now you don’t have to dream of installing a mini-theater in that little house of yours! All you need is P300 (I think) and you have a room good for probably 5 or 6 of you! And they’re open 24 hours a day! The DVDs are displayed in the thousands at wall racks for oyu to diszzyingly choose from. There are also popcorns, drinks and chichirya to buy just before “showtime” and th...

So that’s the Cebuano word for “pull”! Hmm, why didn't I learn this from my tutor? Ah, maybe I was not listening when that topic was discussed! Anyway, I was seated at this atrium inside the Raintree Mall waiting for the eye doctor and was facing this door to one of the establishments there (Koken?). And even with those big and redundant signage, I saw at least 3 people attempt to enter by pushing that door! Gosh really! Hey, about that word (root word “bira”). It means something else in other places of this country. It could mean “hit” (biraha means “hit it”) in Tagalog or Ilonggo, and it could also mean “spread your legs in Waray” (bira). Da hahaha! Oh well, Hala Bira!     ISSN 2515139.625-1044

So the boat I was waiting for arrived! This picture was taken at 8:20AM – against the arrival schedule that said 7AM. Well many of you would know that it still takes so many minutes for the boat to be properly docked and for the passengers to eventually disembark – especially if those men who throw the ropes to shore can’t seem to do it properly – and it happens often hehehe! Apprentices! Anyway, though I’ve been on this boat only once (Cebu to Catbalogan), coupled with my 2 rides on Cokaliong (both Cebu to Calbayog), I think I can show here one of the reasons why I’m starting to like riding in them. Look at that white shirted man below. He is a guard – yep, the normal usual guard, sekyu, jaguar that we know. He seems to be proudly standing there alone. And look behind him. It is total darkness with nothing, no cargoes, vehicles nor anything, right? So, riding on these boats (when you’re not in a hurry) is fine and fun as there are just a few people on board with a lot of room to roam ...

Well, it is no pig, but I wonder why this thing was called a Pig Pie! I was down at Pier 4 waiting for a friend to arrive. And these inter-island boats usually arrive very early in the morning. This one I was waiting for was scheduled to dock at 7AM. At 623AM, I was of course hungry! So I looked for any food to eat or at least soup to sip. There are two gas stations a block away from the pier but these are the only things my mouth and stomach seemed to have liked – hopia baboy (I kow it's not pork too) and the Pig Pie! I finished all slices just the same, but reading the ingredients printed on the wrapper, it said “Flour, Sugar, Salt, Oil, Water and Onion”! So where’s the pig? A friend says, maybe the oil is pig flavored hahaha. It is not! Oh well, oh well!     ISSN 2515139.625-0750

I was puffing at the terrace (whatever it is called) just outside the 2F food court at SM Consolacion. Somebody came near and asked for a light, so I instinctively gave my lighter though my eyes were still focused down at the highway as I was watching traffic and the Ceres buses picking passengers. I did notice that when the lighter flicked, it happened at just about a few inches above my head (I was seated), so I looked who the hell was lighting up… and when I looked… It was a kid! OMG yes, a youngster! He was already puffing, so I could not anymore deny him my lighter. And he sat on the very same table where I was too! That, while his companion, an even younger kid, stood behind him waiting. I asked how old the kid was (as he was busy puffing his cigarette), his reply was “eight... seventeen” and I told him outright it was a lie. He did not seem perturbed with my comment and just continued puffing. I turned to the smaller kid and asked how old he was. He said “ten”! But I clarified I...

Roaming the Visayas (esp Cebu), I always find people flocking to the bakeries in the afternoons. Many just buy bread ‘to go’ and some eat theirs right at these bakeshops where almost all have tables and chairs for the purpose. And trying to belong, trying to call myself now a Cebuano, I must try what they do – eat my bread at benches and tables provided by the bakeries! I actually enjoy this! It affords me more time to watch and observe my “mga higala” hehe. Plus, the interesting names these eatables bear just blows me away at times! If you are used to cinnamon, raisin or banana bread, try mushroom or corn . No they are not flavored with those vegetables! These are little breads made to look like well, mushroom or corn! Mushroom bread is that round compact kind of bread that seems to have been made so that it breaks while baking. I know this takes another name in Metro Manila and elsewhere. Corn bread is a softer kind, elongated almost like an unbended croissant in shape but the dou...

Cebu, Philippines. They cause undue alarm to passengers and should be stopped yes, but how? Golly this is one tricky urban evolution for everyone to think about! I have not seen anything like this all my life in Metro Manila or elsewhere. Fact is, I have not even seen this in Metro Cebu the past 3 Christmas seasons! No pictures here of course (I still want to live hehe) but when I say adult, I mean they are something as old as late twenties to late thirties, mugger-looking and have the strength and ability to do something wrong to any other adult of any size or shape! Or something like so! Here’s the story… First time was about a month ago. Yep, the early days of November and I was on a 22I jeep from Banilad to J Centre Mall (commonly referred to as J-Mall). When the jeep picked passengers across that corner called “Eskina Sampaguita”, these 3 dudes boarded, one went straight towards the back of the driver, one in the middle and some kind of crouched there without taking a seat, while ...

Remember my previous story here ? Well, I encountered the same kind of set-up at Davao International Airport. Two boxes too, just like at Cebu. And mind you, both boxes were working! I saw a girl tinkering with one, so the atrevida me went to the other, to check it out! Ah, the things I do when I am early for a flight! Really.., even I myself later often gets surprised at many ridiculous things I do when I am bored! Do those boxes really work? Hey, they do/did! Though I still say  Dear Cebu Pacific, please remove and throw them away! Just donate the PCs inside those boxes to elementary schools in need, or even me! Let’s do a run-through of my check-in, so you know why those self-service boxes need to go away! It asks for your booking reference number and you enter it on the touch screen: Your name displayed, it asks you to tick a little box to the right (for check-in): It then displays some reminders, and you affirm you have read them by touching "Check Me In Now"...

Hmm and whoa! No no folks, not Aldevinco hehe! This one is a real pasalubong center made by the Davao city government just like you see at other places in the country. But if we talk about this category, Davao City’s is one of the biggest! It is a whole building, not just a stall or a room. And the displayed items, wares or foodstuff are of course products of the place – not an ukay-ukay style group of stalls as what is becoming of other pasalubong centers. It is rather new though, so we cannot tell just yet if indeed there won’t be pirated DVDs, pirated tsinelas, maxam, batik, plum blossom or the ever omnipresent ukay-ukay type of clothes hehe! I loved looking at the things on sale in this place. An interesting cornucopia of many things Davao. From the common cheap novelties to the expensive rare and the bewildering uncommon products. Many of them are displayed and for sale in this building. T-Shirts? Yes they have, but all are printed with Davao or things about Davao–definitely not a...