Constantly scribbling from Manila to Amsterdam
Tala is 10 months old! She looks as surprised as I feel. Is she really just two months shy of a year old?
Lots of new things this month: some good (her first four teeth popping out on Christmas Day) and not-so-good (high-pitched shrieking, getting used to feeding her three solid meals a day).
The best thing about the last month is that she spent most of it back home, in the Philippines. She may not remember her first visit home, but I always will.
To love, laughter, food, friends, discovery, adventure, surprise, wanderlust, change, forgiveness, opportunity, choice, commitment, and all the things that made 2013 worth it. May they reappear in new, surprising and amazing forms in the coming year.
Let’s drink to that!
Frozen margaritas on the beach at sunset are always a good way to end any trip. It exactly how Marlon and I ended our adults-only trip since Tala was born, the details (and gorgeous pictures) of which I will most definitely share with you when we return to normalcy.
With my wishes for an amazing 2014, I raise a sunset margarita to all of you. Cheers to the New Year!
Over the weekend, a number of Filipino organizations came together to organize Bangon Pinoy!, a prayer service and fundraising event for the survivors of Super Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda.
It reminded me of all the Pinoy gatherings from my Glee Club tours, when we were hosted by Filipino communities in Europe. It wouldn’t be a Pinoy event without lots of food (the arroz caldo and Spanish bread alone were worth coming for!)…
… lots of singing, and lots of people. Celeste Legaspi’s Isang Mundo, Isang Awit (sing it with me: “Je t’aime, te amo, I love you!”) also inevitably becomes part of the default soundtrack for these things.
It was Marlon’s and my first time to go to a Filipino community gathering since we moved to Amsterdam. There are over 17,000 Filipinos in the Netherlands, but majority of them don’t live in Amsterdam. The Filipino population in the Netherlands is dispersed pretty widely, with the larger communities being situated in the nearby cities of Amstelveen, Hoofddorp, and Den Haag, where the embassy is.
As you can see from her somewhat bewildered expression, it was also Tala’s first time to experience Filipino levels of noise! I think I need to let my inner fag hag out more often at home to prepare her for our trip to Manila this Christmas.
And it was Tala’s first time to meet a little Pinay just like her. They even look alike! Her new friend’s name is… wait for it… Tara.
Here in Holland, Filipinos aren’t the only ones working to bring aid to the survivors of Haiyan. The Netherlands’ response to the Philippines’ cry for help has been swift and decisive. Here are some of the things our Dutch friends have done to bring relief to those most in need.
Dear readers, I’m postponing my post on the reader survey and giveaway winners to make this short announcement.
Thank you to everyone who asked about my family in the Philippines; they are safe and sound, and live far away from the worst hit areas. Although I’m far from home, I monitored the news as super typhoon Yolanda (known internationally as Haiyan) destroyed the Visayas last Friday.
The reports of death and devastation that began to trickle in over the weekend were heartbreaking, and they’re not over yet. I can’t even begin to imagine how the people of Panay, Samar, Leyte and the other afflicted areas can begin to rebuild their lives.
The Philippine Disaster Recovery Foundation (PDRF), formed by private corporations and NGOs after Typhoon Ondoy in 2009, accepts donations for the rebuilding of Bohol, Cebu and Zamboanga via its Brick by Brick campaign online.
Gawad Kalinga accepts donations online for its Operation Walang Iwanan.
These are only a few of the many options for aid; I’ve chosen organizations that Marlon and I support, and that accept online donations. It’s also important to me that any help I give, or ask others to give, reach the people for whom they were intended; these are organizations that I trust (wala akong tiwala sa mga kurakot, sorry!) to make sure help gets through.
This article from Rappler and this one from CNN list more organizations mobilizing resources for the victims of Yolanda.
Pinoy friends, I hope you and your loved ones are safe. Bangon, Pilipinas!
By the time I flew home for the holidays, I was tired of piling on ten million layers before going out. So I was looking forward to wearing my “real” clothes (which is how I think of my summer clothes) and feeling like myself again for three weeks.
What I loved about dressing for pregnancy in the tropics:
What I didn’t love:
All that aside, what I loved most about dressing for the heat was getting to dig out some of my favorite outfits from storage—like the printed vintage shirtdress I hadn’t seen since August…
and being able to wear my normal, non-maternity clothes… even in my third trimester.
Disaster struck when I returned to Amsterdam from Manila: my entire hard drive crashed. I last backed up right after learning I was pregnant, which means all my digital keepsakes from my entire pregnancy—ultrasounds, weekly belly photos, videos—except for what’s on this blog, are gone. I don’t want to think too much about it, it hurts my heart.
Thank heavens for small blessings. While trying to piece together what little I had left, I discovered the pictures from our fifth wedding anniversary still in my SD card. Marlon and I like to celebrate anniversaries at the beach, but I couldn’t bear another flight on top of two long-haul ones between Manila and Amsterdam. So this year, we opted for a weekend staycation at the Sofitel Manila, which we’ve never been to and had an appealing resort-in-the-city feel.
I’m so glad I still have pictures to remember this wonderful weekend: breakfast in bed, with a side of something special…
which turned into lazy afternoons (we had two!) by Sofitel’s gorgeous pool, lined with tall coconut trees and directly facing Manila Bay.
It’s the first brunch post of the year! So I thought I’d do something a little special and take you to one of my favorite brunch spots, which I can only visit once a year when I’m back home in the Philippines. And that is Breakfast at Antonio’s in Tagaytay.
Tagaytay was always my family’s halfway point during frequent weekend drives to the beach—Puerto Azul in Cavite, and when that went downhill, White Sands in Nasugbu. Five years ago, Marlon and I were married there. It’s now way more developed than I remember (and more than I’d like), but for a weekend activity, a long leisurely drive to Tagaytay never gets old… not when what awaits you is a fresher, cooler climate and a beautiful view.
This classic panorama of Taal Volcano—a lake within a volcano within a lake within a volcano—is exactly the view from Breakfast at Antonio’s backyard.
The younger sibling of Antonio’s, one of the Philippines’ best restaurants and a yearly pick for The Miele Guide’s 20 Best Restaurants in Asia, Breakfast at Antonio’s serves all-day breakfast in a setting that reminds me of a weekend resthouse.
It could belong to someone you know: an older friend, maybe an relative. That is, if you have relatives who are really… successful (read: rich).
Too many years of pre-Christmas chaos led me to expect that Manila would be crazy, jam-packed and debilitated by traffic. But I was pleasantly surprised. It seems we arrived home at just the right time, or maybe everyone did their shopping early this year. Maybe it was because Christmas was on a Tuesday, giving everyone a much-needed weekend to get things done.
Whatever the reason, I found the Makati commercial/business district surprisingly quiet on the Sunday before Christmas. And that was actually nice.
After living in a city where very few buildings are over 4 stories, Makati’s towering, densely packed skyscrapers are almost a strange sight. I’m not used to them anymore.
Neither am I used to such insistent brightness, or spending so much time in malls…
… or being confronted with such urban density. For example, Makati’s population of approximately 530,000 (about 2/3 of Amsterdam’s population) is squeezed into a city roughly 10% the size of Amsterdam. This is why people who whine about how crowded Amsterdam is always get a blank look from me.
But hey, I’m not complaining. I’m not used to swimming outdoors at 6pm on a December evening, either. But it doesn’t mean I didn’t relish it.
And when the city rolled out its one of its famous sunsets, this slice of quiet time became even more precious. This, I miss.
Did you manage to find a pocket of quiet time this holiday season? It feels wonderful, doesn’t it?
When Marlon and I first started dating, we were 22 year-olds whose typical date was a movie and dinner at Greenbelt 3, then newly renovated and thus the trendy place to be. One of our dinner favorites was Sentro 1771, which we revisited last week after catching The Hobbit at Greenbelt.
I *love* Sentro. I can’t believe it’s now going on 10 years old!
After almost two years of living in Amsterdam, it now strikes me as a bit strange to find an excellent restaurant in a mall. You’d be hard-pressed to find a mall in Europe, much less a decent restaurant inside one; it seems the rule of thumb is, the further away from a commercial establishment, the better the chance of a good meal. But Pinoy culture is different: the mall is the place to be. Thus some of the best, most loved restaurants are in malls.
Like Sentro. I’m pleased to find that the food—classic Filipino favorites with a modern twist—is still as good as it was when it first opened 10 years ago. That deserves major props!
I think it’s hard to make Filipino food (which is generally brown and messy) look pretty, but Sentro did a great job with these Smoked Fish Spring Rolls, a nice spin on the usual fresh rice paper spring roll.
Our favorite dish, Corned Beef Sinigang (beef short ribs in tamarind broth), is still as good as ever. And they still bring a small tasting cup of broth to your table, so you can adjust the sourness and spice to your preference. I’ve always thought it’s a great way to bring the feel of a home-cooked meal to a restaurant setting—after all, everyone makes their sinigang (and similar traditional dishes) just a little bit differently from everyone else.
Sentro’s coffee pie is one of my all-time favorite desserts, and a real must-have. This tiny slice combines a rich, dense coffee mousse with a moist but crunchy chocolate-cashew crust.
Sentro is really generous with the brewed coffee! Marlon couldn’t finish his mug (and what a lovely mug it is, too). I love that coffee is served with muscovado sugar.
For a restaurant that’s been around for 10 years, Sentro is doing spectacularly. It still has that modern Filipino look (love these lamps and all the warm wood), and more importantly, food that’s consistently delicious. So glad I got to revisit this Filipino fave!
It’s hard to continue with the rest of my Iceland posts when Manila is under siege from the rain.
Apocalyptic panorama by Adrian Dungo, via Facebook
With 172 mm of actual rainfall and no letup seen until Thursday, home is the focus of my thoughts and prayers. My social media feeds are filled with photos of flooded streets, calls for rescue, and stories that seem all too familiar. (Have we really learned nothing from Ondoy? It seems prediction systems are better and response times are faster now, but not by much.) It doesn’t seem appropriate to be all chipper and colorful on the blogosphere while all this is happening—much like it seems inconsiderate to order in for food and send the poor delivery boys out in this madness! People, please.
I may be far away but the power of social media makes this feel immediate. While I’m thankful my family and close friends are safe and dry, there are many thousands who are not. If you’re back home, here’s how to help. And if you’re back home, I’m thinking of you. Please stay safe and take care.
I will continue with the last of the Iceland posts (Reykjavik and the Blue Lagoon) on Thursday. Till then, please say a prayer for Manila.
