YOU KNOW IT'S ALMOST CHRISTMAS WHEN...

...Badjao children start attacking jeeps with their drums, dances, and crumpled dirty envelopes with "MAAWAPOKAYO sa mga Badjaos" scrawled in front.

Aircraft models. Photo by Dylan Gozum, 2007

“Remember what Bilbo used to say: It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.” - J.R.R. Tolkien

MANILA CENTRAL POST OFFICE AT NIGHT

Was waiting for a bus home when I noticed the warm lights coming from the Manila Central Post Office's fountain. It changes from green to yellow to hot pink adding life to the stoic facade of the building. This place is always full of people because FX and bus rides to Las Piñas, Sucat, Alabang and other places south of Manila all come from this area.

It is sad, however, to see the squalor that has slowly returned to Liwasang Bonifacio, the park fronting the Post Office. Several of the swings and huts already have entire families living in them. Several parts of the park have lost its grass cover and floods during light rains. Some of the statues of Ifugaos have lost legs and arms. Some are already totally broken. I hope that authorities take a second look at this place because good money was spent in sprucing it up during Atienza's time.

By the way, anybody out there who knows what happened to the original four (4) globes that acted as this place's fountains before?

TIKIM: A THAI NIGHT AT SOMS

Finally had the chance to visit this place which my friends have been raving about. SOMS Noodle House is all about Thai food - delicious, fresh, and just like in many places in the kingdom, eaten on the street. The owners have been renting this series of apartments on Alger St. in Makati City and have made the street right in front of it - the sidewalk to be exact - the restaurant. How this was made possible by the city government is beyond me, but that's not what we are here for now, are we?

SOMS' kitchen is a one apartment affair and it looked really crampy and magulo (see photo below), but it seems to work for them. It's a family affair with Ilonggo women acting as manager and servers. SOMS also used to have a branch on N. Garcia, but this has been closed already. They are due to open a new branch somewhere in Katipunan, hopefully a full-service resto already. SOMS is owned by Parinya Pauamadiolok. former chef of Sukothai. His parents used to serve the Royal Family.

Al fresco dining is the order of the day. Some tables have umbrellas and lighted by bulbs like that above. Some are on the street itself.

Thai milk tea. So far so good. They come in these refillable plastic water bottles.

Pad thai! But I think I will just eat this once a year. Too heavy on the tummy but a meal in itself. Anyhow, I really don't know anymore what is a good pad thai. I have tasted many versions already. Sorry, but I have no good photos of the soup, Tom Yam Goong.

I loved this salad. It has huge shrimps in crunchy greens with a delightfully light lemon sauce.

And finally, the traditional Thai dessert: mango and sticky rice. The tartness of the mango (yep, it isn't sweet) goes very well with the sweet sauce of the sticky rice.

HOT TIP: SOMS does not accept reservation so you have to come early, usually before the usual meal times of 12NN or 7PM so you do not have to wait for a seat. Anyway, if you need to wait to be seated, order ahead. Be firm with the server girls. They are too busy to even notice you, but good things come to those who wait. See you there!

SOMS
5921 A. Alger Street
Poblacion, Makati City

WILD, WILD TAGAYTAY

Was in Tagaytay City many many weekends ago to attend a house blessing. During a lull, I decided to explore the vacant lots around the village and found these pretty little things. It's lovely how even the tiniest of wild flowers can be so beautiful when seen up close. Please forgive my sorry attempts at macro. I'm just starting.

LUMPIANG SALCEDO WEEKEND MARKET

Was at the Salcedo Weekend Market last month and I was on the lookout for fresh lumpia to add to my Search for Manila's Best Lumpia. This is the 3rd lumpia to be featured. This particular stall makes them on the spot as you wait (as with the other fresh lumpia shops). The ingredients have been pre-cooked but still warm. This is sold at PHP 35 per. Goes well with fresh buko juice (but don't buy from the stall right across it. Their young bukos are totally tasteless).

There's a mixture of veggies (was that a hint of parsley?), crush nuts, and fried vermicelli to add crunch to what otherwise would be a usual fresh lumpia.

The wrapper is not particularly special. Just your usual mercado or supermarket wrapper.

C'mon, dig in! You know you want to!

ONE DAY, ISANG ARAW

The City Hall Clock Tower is Manila's most visible landmark outside of Intramuros. You can see it from miles around, towering over the landscape.

CAS Bdg., UP Diliman (Photo by Dylan Gozum, 2007)

"I am not afraid of tomorrow, for I have seen yesterday and I love today.” - William Allen White

IN MEMORIAM

In memory of those who have gone ahead of us.


Note to Estan: This is the Hydrangea sp. It is grown in Tagayatay as well. The really good ones (deeper hue) are imported from Bangkok. In Luzon, they call it the Milflores.

PASALUBONG: DURIAN! DURIAN! DURIAN!

B.C., who just returned from a trip to the Western Visayas, gifted me with some of the best things one can possibly ask in life. Ha ha, that was pure exaggeration, of course, but being Davao born, there is no way I'd turn down anything that has to do with the king of all fruits - the durian. But these durian products come with a clincher - they come from Negros Occidental, home to the majestic Mount Kanlaon. These products are from the farms of the Eduardo Cojuangco Jr., Hacienda Candelaria (which is racked by labor issues and exploitation, but that's another story) and produced by Reliance Core, Inc. in the town of San Enrique.


Durian in a bottle. Now, there's no more reason not to bring this king of fruits anywhere now that the smell has been hermetically sealed in a easy-to-carry bottle. For the longest time, the actual fruit has been banned in public vehicles and hotels.

O.M.G. I have always been a fan of durian. We used to have durian every now and then when it was in season during my childhood days in Davao. The air then would be filled with the characteristic pungency that has made durian both loved and hated by many Filipinos. The newest variety, a mix of the Davao and Thai varieties, already has no smell but has the same great taste. I still prefer the Davao variety because although it is not as meaty as its Thai counterpart, it tastes so much better. As for this bottled version, try not to use it as bread jam. Pointless. Scoop it out and eat it as it is. It's soooo good, I swear.

Chips galore. For those who want to eat durian but cannot afford to lug around the bottle, there's the chips version. I can only imagine how many seeds it took to make one bag of chips considering that the meat isn't that much.

These have faint nutty tones and the durian flavor is just somewhat subtle. If blindfolded, you wouldn't guess you're eating dried durian fruit.

ECJ Farms
Reliance Core Co., Inc.

Hacienda Candelaria, San Enrique

Negros Occidental

Tel. Nos. (034) 460.3186

AYALA MUSEUM (MAKATI CITY)

Had a chance to finally visit the new home of the Ayala Museum. I have visited it a lot of times when it was still in its old building, which was designed by National Artist for Architecture Leandro Locsin. The new modernist building is also designed by Locsin's Leandro V. Locsin Partners headed by his son, Leandro Jr. This is located behind Landmark and a few metres away from the circular church building at Greenbelt Park.


Beside the museum building is a sea of green arranged in the style of an Asian garden with lots of bamboo and water elements. The huge capiz lamps are very Asian, if not totally Filipino. I think it's very nice to stage a show here or perhaps a formal dinner whenever the museum has special events. You must visit this area if you are able. You will love it!


There is a pedestrian overpass from the CBD area that snakes its way along the side of the museum. At one point, it even "enters" the musem, but the walls are covered in glass. This allows people to have a glimpse of what's inside without having to walk in, but really, the idea is to attract visitors. Entrance is so affordable at PHP 150/person but foreigners are charged PHP 300. Museum memberships are also available and exciting privileges await the applicants.


The M Cafe (Museum Cafe) is located at the ground floor across the main entrance. It boasts of an impressive menu and a dining area of a streamlined setting of white and earth colors, complemented by Filipino-designed embellishments.

The al fresco area of M Cafe.

Posters here show what's up in the museum for the current month. Several exhibits are permanent like those shown here. There's a sprinkling of Amorsolos, Damian Domingos, Lunas and, of course, Zobels. However, the collection is so small that you might end up wanting for more which I think is good because you will be forced to visit other museums as well.

If you want to drown in Luna, for example, one only need to proceed to the National Museum's Gallery of the Masters in Manila to see an entire hall of Lunas, plus the chance to see the staggeringly huge, breathtaking, and gold-winning Spoliarium. There are also Amorsolos in the next building, the National Museum's Museum of the Filipino People where the loot from the sunken galleon, San Diego, are also kept. Entrance fee to the National Museum is just PHP 100 (but this was like several years ago).

Is the Ayala Musuem worth visiting? Definitely yes, especially for its 60 dioramas depicting several turning points in Philippine history. Everything is handcrafted, by the way (how else?). These dioramas used to be in the old building and were developed during the curatorship of Carlos Quirino. There is a special section on the People Power of 1986, but the video room is so cramped it can only fit 20 people at one time during which half may actually lose interest in the show altogether because of the small space.

There's something wrong in the way the dioramas are presented in that the dates of two display windows were interchanged (the AD came before the BC; a slight oversight). Also, aside from the dates and the description of the event being depicted and the occassional quotations from old books (which are a pain to read especially if you are tall and the dim lights are of no help at all), there is nothing else to help foreigners and locals alike to recall the importance of such "turning points" in our history. At least a statement on their significance could be added in the future.

Don't get me wrong. I love my history, but not everyone feels the same. We can help change that mindset by making things easier to understand and appreciate, especially for the young ones who don't even remember People Power or appreciate the significance of the arrest of Aguinaldo, the execution of Rizal, etc.

Also, there is a sort of "boat of the month" gimik at the model galleons area in which light is flashed on one galleon and none on the rest of the collection. I think there is no more need for this because for many first-time visitors, their visit may also be their last. This will rob them of the chance to appreciate the entire collection, fabulous as it already is.

HOT TIP. For first-time visitors, brush up on your local history before visiting so you don't come out more bewildered than when you came in.

Ayala Museum
Makati Avenue cor. De La Rosa Street
Greenbelt Park, Ayala Center
Makati City 1224
PHILIPPINES

PHONE: +632.757.7117 to 21
FAX: +632.757.ARTS (2787) / +632.757.3588
EMAIL: museum_inquiry@ayalamuseum.org