Revisiting Hong Kong!

I have not been to Hong Kong since the protests began in 2019, and then the pandemic hit. It’s been the longest I haven’t been back. Hong Kong has always been one of my favorite countries to visit because of its food and good shopping finds. And I also happen to like its ease of commute and the fashion vibe.

Fast forward to now and finally their requirements for travel have eased and it now feels fairly safe to revisit. So, what has changed, and what can you look forward to should you plan to visit again?

Food

I don’t know if its been the thing before, but I just discovered that high tea is something that people practice in Hong Kong. The Peninsula is most known for its high tea, but if you’re not interested in queuing up for this, you can make a reservation at The Langham Hong Kong (https://www.buys.hk/the-langham-hk/html/tlhkg-afternoon-tea-checkout-en.html). Their macarons are definitely something to experience.

Sweet on top, savory on the bottom 😍

You can also visit the various cafes. If you’re looking for a cute one with a wide variety of sweet and savory treats, visit Dominique Ansel’s Dang Wei Li (Shop 2 on Ground Floor of H Queen’s, 80 Queen’s Road Central, Central). There are three branches in Hong Kong, but the one that we visited was in Central.

The blooming chocolate drink @dangwenli !

Travel Spots

One of the newest travel destinations in HK is the recently renovated Victoria Peak. It has been over a decade since I’ve last visited, but now, they’ve installed new trams and it got me curious. Going there, you can take the scenic route and cut through the Cheung Kong Park.

Then, once you are up there, you can also enjoy some sweet breads from the Tai Cheong Bakery. They also have a mall now, just in case you still haven’t had your fill of shopping.

The Cheung Kong Park

Last Minute Shopping for Pasalubong

If you’re tired of the usual pasalubong of keychains and magnets, I suggest giving your relatives and friends some delicious egg tart. And not to worry if you’ve been too preoccupied to buy. Just show up a little bit early at the airport and look for King’s Bakery. They have one of the best cheese egg tarts I’ve tasted.

So if you’re like me and you’ve missed Hong Kong, now’s the time to go back =) Happy travels!

Caffe Lilio Ristorante

Liliw, Laguna is probably most known for its 1500’s baroque church and the slippers (tsinelas) shops that line its main road. However, there is one more place that you must visit if you do get the chance to pass through Liliw. Caffe Lilio is an Italian restaurant a few minutes walk from the church. It is located in one of the classic white houses of Liliw.

The interior is decorated with black and white photos against a red brick background, which is reminiscent of a family-style Italian restaurant. As soon as you walk in, you will be greeted by friendly staff who will immediately offer you one of their fresh juices. My favorite was their apple-dalandan blend, which is just the right amount of sweetness and tang. Soon after, you will be served with home-baked focaccia bread with a side of vinaigrette and olive oil.

Their focaccia comes free with your order!

So far, my favorite food here is their salmon with a side of salad and their porchetta on a bed of fluffy mashed potatoes. But I’ve heard from the beef-lovers out there that they are also known for their angus beef dishes.

Artistic plating for my salmon 😍

You can end your meal with some yummy gelato!

Then, after your sumptuous meal, take a walk along the brick roads and enjoy shopping for shoes, slippers, and even more food! I always go home with my bundle of fern (pako) that is perfect for salads, kesong puti and sampaloc!

If you can, go on a weekday and park beside the church to enjoy a safe, socially-distanced visit to Liliw.

Caffe Lilio is located at 4CJP+W66, Liliw, Laguna.

The Beauty of Bridgerton

Ok, I am assuming here that a lot of you (particularly you of the female variety…aka most of my friends) have watched the Bridgerton series on Netflix. Its popularity is evident in the fact that it has been on the Top 10 list for a few weeks now. I’ve also begun to see pictures on Pinterest featuring the Lady Whistledown logo printed on throw pillows and other merch, which I thought was pretty clever =)

https://images.app.goo.gl/BDBDnUjr66Tuxqas7

There are many reasons why I think it has gained a following. For one, the main actor, Regé-Jean Page, who plays the Duke, is piping hot (let’s not try to downplay something that obvious). For another, it is an opulent masterpiece, filled with beautiful colors, gigantic sets, tons and tons of fabric and Les Nereides jewels!

Beautiful pieces by Les Nereides as seen on the Bridgerton series

I am myself am a lover of movies like this having watched Marie Antoinette (the Kirsten Dunst version) because of the pastel colors and costumes.

Still for some, the draw is the intensely romantic scenes (spoiler alert!).

But for me, I think that the main appeal was that when I was watching it, I thought I had stepped into one of my old pocketbooks and had seen it come to life. And this was before I even knew that it actually did come from a pocketbook!

The Original Books from Julia Quinn

Hailing from an all-girls Catholic school, my friends and I would huddle during lunchbreak to talk about our newest favorite romance novel and for a time (it was a very brief time for me), I devoured novels of Judith McNaught like I was going to do a book report on them 😂 And so for me, it was the nostalgia factor that got me hooked on the Brigerton series…and then everything else in between. Post-Corona, I do wonder how all these grand sets will get to be built again because I am definitely up to see more of this series 😊

Shopping in the New Normal

My, how different 2019 was. It was chaotic, yes, but chaos brought about by possibilities. Too many possibilities, if you ask me.

And now, in 2020, the world is chaotic, but one filled with uncertainties. When will this end? When do we get back to normal? When will the vaccine come?

Which is why at this day and age of uncertainty, many have turned to the joys of online shopping for a quick release from this maddening world (myself included, so let’s not judge too quickly here ). I was deep in thought as to why Lazada has replaced IG as my favorite phone app and I realized the following:

1. Online shopping has gifted me with the assurance that something tangible is coming. In a world where we can’t see the end in sight, it is comforting for me to know that “your package has been shipped.”
2. Online shopping has given me something to look forward to at the end of a long day. As I struggle with work conditions (“Am I safe?” “Are we safe?” “Is the bank open today?”), there is a release of endorphins when I find a package waiting for me on my doorstep. My brother-in-law gave me a very good reason for this high. Getting my stuff delivered feels like I’m receiving a gift. Even though it is technically my money, the package is carefully wrapped and in a box. Now doesn’t that qualify as a present?
3. Finally, online shopping gives me that sense of normalcy, even for this one bit of activity. I know I still can’t go out. I know I still can’t mingle with my friends. But I can still smile when I find my favorite crafting tool on sale.

Will online shopping replace the actual thing someday? Personally, I still prefer the cardio I get from regular shopping. But it has proven a worthy substitute to me during these troubling times, and for now, it’s a little pocket of joy that I can cling on to =)

Top 3 Go-To Pain Relief Patches

As I write this article, I am painfully aware that I am sharing more than advice on the best pain relief patches, I am actually divulging my demographic. Yes, I belong to the age group where pain relief patches, liniments and smelly oils are part of regular conversation. Lately, because of too much hand washing (not saying that I’m against it–I’m actually a strong advocate of frequent hand washing in order to beat this pandemic), my hands are not in good shape. I have been a crafter since my grade school days, and combined with copious amounts of typing on the computer, my nerves are fried. The pain has extended to my arms and neck, hence the constant need for these pain relievers. By the way, I’m also either too acidic or allergic to regular muscle relaxants (like Alaxan and Ponstan) so I am wholly dependent on patches for any sort of relief.

So after that loooong intro, let me get down to business. The first patch that I am advocating is the Salonpas patch by Hisamitsu. It’s a Japanese brand that’s been with me since forever. It comes in these cloth-like rectangles that can be placed directly on top of your aching muscles.

I usually use them after a fun run or when I have a stiff neck. What it does is it releases this minty, almost spicy analgesic that is good for about 8 hours of wearing (according to the packaging). The active ingredient in it is methyl salicylate, menthol, Vitamin E and Camphor.  The good news is that if it is really a muscle ache, it activates in a matter of minutes. But if it is any other kind of deep pain, you will not even feel its effect. Plus, the adhesive is so strong that it adheres to hair which makes it very painful to remove. On the other hand, if you want to have a pain relief patch AND a waxing session at the same time, then this is the product to use!

The second patch that I have recently discovered because of this quarantine is the elevated version of the Salonpas. It’s a bigger rectangle coated in a gel-like substance. I noticed that it only contains methyl salicylate and menthol, but that it is effective for 12 hours. Another good thing about it is that apart from covering a bigger area, it doesn’t adhere to hair, so it’s not a pain to remove in the morning. However, if you toss and turn in bed, I can’t assure you that the patch will still be there when you wake up.

Finally, and this one is my current favorite, we have the Tiger Balm Plaster-RD. It has camphor, dementholized mint oil, eucalyptus oil, menthol and capsicum extract.

It doesn’t claim how long its pain relieving action works, but from my experience, I can still feel its effects when I wake up in the morning. Plus, it’s the only one that seems to work on me when I have lower back pain caused by period cramps. It also says that it makes the area feel warm, but from personal experience, it feels more spicy than warm.

All three products actually work, but for me, the only one that gives me enough relief on my lower back is the Tiger Balm Plaster-RD. It is the most expensive of the three, and it is also the one that has the most number of steps for application. But hey, if it helps you sleep at night, then just go head and use it.

I hope this article is helpful in your quest for a literally less painful life!

 

 

Quarantined Titos and Titas of Manila

Strictly speaking, a tito or tita is equivalent to an uncle or an aunt. But for Filipinos, who love to claim consanguinity with even the farthest relative, a tito or tita could mean a close family friend, or practically anyone, if you’re polite enough (or selling something).

But the word tita has evolved even further when followed by “of Manila” to roughly mean “ladies who lunch” or women of a certain age group who hang out to have leisurely meals.

And if you’re from Manila, and from this certain age group, you do wonder in this time of quarantine, what have all the titas of Manila been busy with? And what can you do when all you have is leisurely time?

At this point in time, many have entered the plantita stage, where women turn to the joys of gardening to fill all that time once used to hop from one restaurant to the next. Highlights of the day for these plantitas are finding the most beautiful white and gold pots and ordering  yet another ornamental plant to add to their collection.

Then, there are those that are in their platita stage. They begin collecting painted or patterned plates to make their homemade meals look even more amazing on their IG accounts. I myself am very tempted when I see these beautiful plates, space being the only thing that hinders me from heading to the nearest online store to get my shopping fix.

And finally, there is me. I am in my patchtita stage, where I hoard pain reliever patches to alleviate my sore back, legs, arms and everything else that hurts. Since the quarantine prevents me from getting my regular massages, I’ve had to resort to substitutes just to lesssen my body aches, even just for the night.

But wherever you get your sanity from these days is highly encouraged, be it in plates, plants or even patches.

Stay safe and sane, y’all!

QuarantCook Series: Sweet and Sour Pineapple Garnish

Just as there is an urge to bake when in quarantine, there is also a desire to bottle and preserve food when you’re unsure of the availability of food supplies.

So for the past couple of days (translate: more than one month now), I’ve really been endeavoring to be more economical with my food choices and trying as much as I can not to throw food out.

As a result, I have come up with these QuarantCook recipes!

Just like in my QuarantBake series, I want to define what qualifies as quarantine food:

1. The ingredients that I use must be something I don’t normally use.
2. The other ingredients must be easily available.
3. The food can last a long time in storage.

Having defined this, let us proceed to the recipe.

Bottled Sweet and Sour Pineapple Garnish

This simple, but super yummy recipe is an ode to my love of Thai food, particularly their pineapple dishes. Obviously, it’s hard to get that right now so I’m really happy that I got to discover how to “Thai-ify” my food with this simple garnish.

You Will Need

Pineapple core (this is the hard center of the pineapple, which in the past, I’d just compost because it was too fibrous and hard to bite into)

1 Bell pepper, cored (red is preferred as it adds a pop of color, but works just as well with green and yellow)

3 cloves of garlic

2 tsp. Sugar (or a sugar substitute. I used apple juice the last time I cooked and it tasted just as yummy)

1 cup of water (if you’re using apple juice, you can substitute it for the water)

1 tsp of oil

What to Do

1. Chop the pineapple core into tiny cubes or if you have a food processor, go ahead and use that to get finely chopped pineapple.
2. Cut the bell pepper and the garlic separately into tiny cubes.
3. In a pot, heat up the oil and lightly saute the chopped garlic, just enough to release its smell.
4. Add the bell pepper, the pineapple core and the water (or apple juice).
5. Once the water boils, add the sugar. Skip this part if you’re using apple juice).
6. Let it stay in low heat until the liquid evaporates.
7. Bottle while still hot.

That’s it—our garnish is done.

You can refrigerate this and based on my personal experience, a bottled garnish can last up to 1 month in the ref in cooler temperatures. But if you’re experiencing summer in the Southeast Asia region, I suggest you put in in the freezer when not in use. I say this because our summers are no joke and even stuff in the ref gets moldy quite easily.

You can use this to cook with sweet ham, or add it to fried rice, or with sweet and sour pork.

I hope you have fun using this recipe and let us know how you fared!

Quarantbake Series: Quarantine Cheesecake

WHAT IS QUARANTBAKING?

Hi guys! I realized that in times of a pandemic, my instinct is to panic bake. Yes, I didn’t coin this word, but when I saw it, I realized it is exactly what I am doing. Almost every day, I go down to our pantry, look around and spot previously ignored ingredients and bake.

So, for my dessert to qualify as a quarantbake, it has to satisfy the following conditions:

1. I have very little of it in supply.
2. I have had to substitute something from the original recipe.
3. I used creativity.

Now that I’ve defined what I’m doing, let’s get down to business!

QUARANTINE CHEESCAKE

YOU WILL NEED:

For the CRUST

Any butter-based cookie (in my case, Christmas butter cookies in a tin)

2 tbsp. butter

2 tbsp. sugar

For the FILLING

1 bar cream cheese (the original recipe called for 4 bars)

1 cup sour cream

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup flour

1 cup brown sugar

For the TOPPING

Crushed cookies (again, cookies I just rummaged in the pantry)

WHAT TO DO:

1. To make the crust, you put the cookies in a food processor. You can put the butter and sugar in there as well and mix it all up.
2. Flatten the crust onto a circular pan.
3. To make the filling, put all the wet ingredients in first (cream cheese, sour cream, eggs, vanilla extract). Mix until the cream cheese bar breaks apart).
4. Then add the sugar and mix again.
5. Finally add the flour slowly until all ingredients are incorporated.
6. At this point, you will still have a pretty runny mix, but don’t worry. It will set once it’s baked.
7. Bake in the oven (175 degrees Celsius) for about 20-30 minutes. But It really depends where you’re at. In my tropical country, I could bake stuff in lower heat and still get the same results because it is just so hot. (In the first 10 minutes of baking, I took the pan out and sprinkled the crushed cookies.)

Stick the center with a fork and when it comes out clean, it’s done! Refrigerate because from experience, it tastes so much better when it’s completely cooled.

The upside of this panic baking journey is that my daughter thinks I’m a genius in the kitchen (Hahah! Kids are so easy to please.). But now, she’s thinking of making a game of it and just yanking random stuff from the ref/pantry to see what I’ll do with it.

That’s it! I hope you find joy in baking and a temporary relief from thinking about everything that’s been going on.

Stay home. Stay safe!

5 Mini Tips for a Trip to Japan

Japan is absolutely one of my family’s favorite places to visit. But somehow, no matter how many times we’ve been there, I keep on forgetting minor details that might make traveling to this country a little bit easier.

So for future reference to myself (and to whoever might find this useful), here are 5 things to remember for a trip to Japan.

1. It’s okay to flush toilet paper down the toilet bowl.

For many toilets in the Philippines, you will be reminded NOT to throw tissue paper in the toilet bowl because it might clog the pipes. In Japan however, it is advised that people flush the toilet paper in the bowl because the kind of tissue paper they use easily disintegrates in water. This is also presumably the reason why many restrooms in Japan have tiny trash bins.

2. The plugs are the same in Japan as in the Philippines.

As we do travel quite a bit, we have a supply of different adapters, depending on the country we’re visiting. I can never remember (unless I research) which adapter to bring with me, so it’s a relief that at least in Japan, I don’t need to bring any other adapter as the Philippines uses the same 2-prong flat pin. This also lessens the burden of having to remember one more thing to pack.

3. Royce and other good quality Japanese snacks are sold in the airport.

Surprisingly, Royce chocolates are hard to find in most of the Japanese places I’ve visited. But for last-minute shoppers, don’t panic. All these goodies are available tax free at the airport. Also, in case you have a couple of coins left, there is also a Daiso in the airport to help unburden you =)

4. Always bring your passport when you shop.

Japan makes it so convenient to shop tax free. For big stores (like Uniqlo and Yodabashi), as long as you have your passport with you and spend at least 5000 Yen, you can get your shopping done, tax free =)

5.Always bring a notebook when you travel.

Japan is like Taiwan in the sense that you can collect stamps. Each station has a stamp that has the name of the station and a very nice drawing. It’s an instant souvenir for you, especially if its your first time to visit.

That’s it! Hope you learned something useful today =)

5 Things to Do in El Yu

El Yu or La Union for the older generation (present company included) has become a hot destination for the young and young-at-heart. It’s not the first time I’ve visited it, but during that visit, we were situated in a remote part of La Union, with a very Titas-of-Manila vibe.

But this time around, as I was with a group of younger people, I decided to book at a hostel, where supposedly, a hipper group frequented.

With that experience under my belt, I’d like to present to you my top 5 things to do in El Yu.

1. Book at a hostel. This on its own is an experience. While my first choice was Vessel, a trendy container-van type hostel, it was already fully booked two weeks before our intended stay. We eventually ended up in Flotsam and Jetsam, which was not bad at all. It’s definitely where the party is at, so if you’re a light sleeper and hate noise, this might not be the spot for you. But if you’re like me (I couldn’t care less and conked out almost immediately), it really is a good place to stay in, especially if you’re with a big group.  Plus, it serves free breakfast, which is always a plus for me.
2. Drink coffee at El Union Coffee. It’s my second time in El Union, and if you’re early, it’s the perfect place to hang out and enjoy reading a good book while sipping a hot cup of joe.
3. Eat chicken at Sabong. Again, it wasn’t my first time to eat  here. I had to go back because I really, truly love their flavorful chicken. I think it was really one of the main reasons why I wanted to come back.
4. Check out stone art at Kamay na Bato. This museum is owned by a Korean artist and he carves and paints images on rocks and drift wood. It’s a very Instagrammable place, one that a big group would enjoy. You only need to shell out Php 30 for the environmental fee.
5. Engage in some grape picking. Along the way back, you will stumble into a lot of grape farms. You can pay to buy the grapes you picked, or simply enjoy taking pictures with the grapes hanging from the vine.

A full two-day stay is all the time you need to enjoy these activities. If anything, it gives you a great excuse to get out of Manila, without giving up your creature comforts.