What's Up Readers?
Before going to PI, I printed a Free 5-Day Trial Pass for Fitness First gym club. Originally, I planned on using this voucher to continue my training for the Run for Pasig River race, but I ran out of time in purchasing a runner's bib ( essential to enter the race :( ... but it's okay; I have to move on and deal with the present situation.
So I got a month's pass to try out Fitness First. So far, I'm not disappointed. I'm enjoying all the dance/aerobic classes they offer, such as Retro [jazz choreography], Body Jam [club/techno/ballroom], Hip Hop, and Steps [precursor of Dance, Dance, Revolution]. They also have weights ( free and machines ), which I've yet to try.
I'm just amazed that Filipinos of different ages attend these classes showing how prevalent dancing is in the culture. I've seen grandmas doing locking and popping moves, and middle-aged dudes swiveling their hips in Latin dances. Rather than listening to naysayers about the "do's and don'ts" of a certain age, these people listen to what they're feeling ( physically and mentally ), so if they're up for the challenge and their bones say okay, why not?
Since I'm here, why not try Yoga [again]? I attended the "Gentle Flow" class, and let me tell you, the only gentle part was near the end! The yogi teacher told us to focus on the present moment. It was sort of weird, I noticed sweat trickling at my side ( the oblique section? ), then later, when we had to lay down, she said to count ones breath and feel ones chest rise and fall. I was so focused on the moment that I fell asleep. I didn't think about the consequence of taking a nap. Luckily I woke up before class ended.
So it's not only what exercise you do to stay healthy, it's also what you eat. After attending 3 hours of dance classes, I was famished. I went to Fitness First's snack bar, and ordered the Nutty Oat shake (banana, peanut butter, and oatmeal bits with Whey powder). Other times, I tried the Merry Melon Soy Drink, the Apple and Cucumber Juice, and the Mango Mania (mango, papaya, and pineapple).
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
"Soul" food
Hola Readers,
The family and I gathered around the TV watching the Buzz while having a snack/merienda 1 hour before dinner.
My aunt saw a 1.5 inch cockroach near my sleeping cousin. Under other circumstances, she'd kill the bug, but instead, she lightly brushed the bug away. The cockroach can be a manifestation of the sleeper's spirit traveling the unconscious world of dreams.
A story from Ha'waii may help explain this concept. Basically, it's not good to disturb a sleeping person because when a person sleeps his soul leaves his body. If the soul doesn't return to his body before waking, then the person will awake without his sense of self and his mental stability ( making him a crazies ).
This is not just a superstition. It happened to my cousin in high school. My aunt's eldest son got sick. In the hospital, he was throwing up and hallucinating.
One day, my aunt's niece came home. She went upstairs and saw my aunt's eldest son sitting on the bed with his back on the wall and fronting a spaced-out expression. She told her mother that she saw him. "That can't be, your cousin and aunt are in the hospital," her mother said. They searched the house again, but they couldn't find him; the person she saw was just an apparition.
It was scary for a moment, then we all laughed as we finished off our merienda ( macaroni shell with chicken bits in creamy broth ). My aunt continued to joke: "I'm visiting a relative so I'll be out; if you see me here tomorrow night, that's just my spirit wandering ;)"
My aunt, part of the 95% Catholics living in PI, believes in guardian angels. She is a 2nd mother to me; she also helped raised my brother and me while my parents worked abroad.
The family and I gathered around the TV watching the Buzz while having a snack/merienda 1 hour before dinner.
My aunt saw a 1.5 inch cockroach near my sleeping cousin. Under other circumstances, she'd kill the bug, but instead, she lightly brushed the bug away. The cockroach can be a manifestation of the sleeper's spirit traveling the unconscious world of dreams.
A story from Ha'waii may help explain this concept. Basically, it's not good to disturb a sleeping person because when a person sleeps his soul leaves his body. If the soul doesn't return to his body before waking, then the person will awake without his sense of self and his mental stability ( making him a crazies ).
This is not just a superstition. It happened to my cousin in high school. My aunt's eldest son got sick. In the hospital, he was throwing up and hallucinating.
One day, my aunt's niece came home. She went upstairs and saw my aunt's eldest son sitting on the bed with his back on the wall and fronting a spaced-out expression. She told her mother that she saw him. "That can't be, your cousin and aunt are in the hospital," her mother said. They searched the house again, but they couldn't find him; the person she saw was just an apparition.
It was scary for a moment, then we all laughed as we finished off our merienda ( macaroni shell with chicken bits in creamy broth ). My aunt continued to joke: "I'm visiting a relative so I'll be out; if you see me here tomorrow night, that's just my spirit wandering ;)"
My aunt, part of the 95% Catholics living in PI, believes in guardian angels. She is a 2nd mother to me; she also helped raised my brother and me while my parents worked abroad.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Bread: a benchstone of economy
Hello Readers,
In the Philippines, a common breakfast item is Pandisal ( bread/roll ). There's at least a bakery in every neighborhood or within the vicinity that sells them fresh every morning. You can eat them plain or with a type of spread ( butter and sugar [my fave], peanut butter, queso, etc. ). Lately, I've noticed that they've shrank in size. Does size matter in the bread world?
"Pandisal." If you break it down to its Latin roots, you'll get "Pan - di - Sal", which is roughly translated to "Bread - of/from - Salt". Salt is used in pandisal to help make it rise. Salt in ancient Roman times was a valued commodity, which added flavor and preserved food. According to my high school Latin teacher, Salt ( blocks of salt ) was used as a form of payment to soldiers. Hence the word "SALary ( salary = money/exchange = economy ).
When we were little, we'd eat pandisal along with our taho. I remember them being as long as 3 inches; now they are only 1 inches. Ingredients are more expensive nowadays. My cousin told me that prices in ingredients, especially in sugar and flour, recently rose in the Philippines. Regardless of size, pandisals are still delicious!
In the Philippines, a common breakfast item is Pandisal ( bread/roll ). There's at least a bakery in every neighborhood or within the vicinity that sells them fresh every morning. You can eat them plain or with a type of spread ( butter and sugar [my fave], peanut butter, queso, etc. ). Lately, I've noticed that they've shrank in size. Does size matter in the bread world?
"Pandisal." If you break it down to its Latin roots, you'll get "Pan - di - Sal", which is roughly translated to "Bread - of/from - Salt". Salt is used in pandisal to help make it rise. Salt in ancient Roman times was a valued commodity, which added flavor and preserved food. According to my high school Latin teacher, Salt ( blocks of salt ) was used as a form of payment to soldiers. Hence the word "SALary ( salary = money/exchange = economy ).
When we were little, we'd eat pandisal along with our taho. I remember them being as long as 3 inches; now they are only 1 inches. Ingredients are more expensive nowadays. My cousin told me that prices in ingredients, especially in sugar and flour, recently rose in the Philippines. Regardless of size, pandisals are still delicious!
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Midnight Snack ( Part 2: the reMIX )
Kamusta Readers,
So the Midnight Snack lasted the whole weekend. I guess the transition lasted longer than expected. So far my eating ritual consisted of at least a taho. On Saturday morning, I had champorado ( chocolate rice ). For lunch, I had macaroni salad, rice, fried fish, and soup with string beans sautéed in coconut milk. For dinner, we ate in SM Mall of Asia’s Tapa King: soup, rice, sunny-side eggs, and pork ( sweet, sweet and spicy, and bacon-style ). For dessert, I had Sagot Gulaman ( bubble pearls, solid gelatin, and brown sugar syrup mixed in cold water ).
On Sunday, I had taho for breakfast ( what a surprise? ) with iced ovaltine. For lunch, we had Tinola ( Native chicken, chicken liver, green papaya, and gabi leaves in a broth ) and rice. We had merienda/early dinner which consisted of shell pasta in a creamy broth.
For dessert, we went to Chowking. We ordered halo-halo, literally translated to “Mix-mix”. This concoction includes gelatin, sago, red beans, ube, leche flan, kidney beans, ube ice cream, buko (coconut shreds), rice crispy, sweetened banana, jack fruit, and more. Mixed all these ingredients with evaporated milk in finely crushed ice, and you get halo-halo.
While we waited for our order, we started talking about weight lose and gain. One of my cousins recently got her braces. Her teeth are sensitive so for the past month, her diet was limited to soft and liquid-based food, such as soup, lugaw ( porridge ) and oatmeal. Needless to say, she often lost her appetite.
My other cousin remembered the time he put on the pounds due to his work. The graveyard shift made him tired. He basically worked, ate, and slept (repeat for a whole year ). His free time was spent in sedentary activities, such as computer games, internet surfing, and watching movies. Because of his fatigue, he resorted in exorbitant amount of food ( mostly junk/processed food ) for energy. He didn’t know that his body was operating in emergency mode, storing more fat to counter his dwindling energy.
Finally our halo-halo arrived. It was gone in a jiffy! Gym training resumes Monday: will I make it or will the “snacking” catch up?
So the Midnight Snack lasted the whole weekend. I guess the transition lasted longer than expected. So far my eating ritual consisted of at least a taho. On Saturday morning, I had champorado ( chocolate rice ). For lunch, I had macaroni salad, rice, fried fish, and soup with string beans sautéed in coconut milk. For dinner, we ate in SM Mall of Asia’s Tapa King: soup, rice, sunny-side eggs, and pork ( sweet, sweet and spicy, and bacon-style ). For dessert, I had Sagot Gulaman ( bubble pearls, solid gelatin, and brown sugar syrup mixed in cold water ).
On Sunday, I had taho for breakfast ( what a surprise? ) with iced ovaltine. For lunch, we had Tinola ( Native chicken, chicken liver, green papaya, and gabi leaves in a broth ) and rice. We had merienda/early dinner which consisted of shell pasta in a creamy broth.
For dessert, we went to Chowking. We ordered halo-halo, literally translated to “Mix-mix”. This concoction includes gelatin, sago, red beans, ube, leche flan, kidney beans, ube ice cream, buko (coconut shreds), rice crispy, sweetened banana, jack fruit, and more. Mixed all these ingredients with evaporated milk in finely crushed ice, and you get halo-halo.
While we waited for our order, we started talking about weight lose and gain. One of my cousins recently got her braces. Her teeth are sensitive so for the past month, her diet was limited to soft and liquid-based food, such as soup, lugaw ( porridge ) and oatmeal. Needless to say, she often lost her appetite.
My other cousin remembered the time he put on the pounds due to his work. The graveyard shift made him tired. He basically worked, ate, and slept (repeat for a whole year ). His free time was spent in sedentary activities, such as computer games, internet surfing, and watching movies. Because of his fatigue, he resorted in exorbitant amount of food ( mostly junk/processed food ) for energy. He didn’t know that his body was operating in emergency mode, storing more fat to counter his dwindling energy.
Finally our halo-halo arrived. It was gone in a jiffy! Gym training resumes Monday: will I make it or will the “snacking” catch up?
 |
| If Philippines is a desert, it'll be a halo-halo with its mix of ingredients from the various eastern and western influences. |
Midnight Snack ( Part 1 )
Hey Readers,
Off the airplane. At first breezy cool from post rain. Waiting for a ride, smoke rising from cigarettes, humidity rising. People texting and hollering, name cards in the air. Sticky shirt. I arrived in my aunt’s house past 12 am. Food on the table, TV on: fried eggroll ( lumpia shanghai ), rice, fresh eggroll stuffing ( shanghai sariwa ), and ube bean cake. My first thought “carbs after midnight – omg”. However weariness settled, sustenance needed especially after more than 12 hours of trip time. Compromise found – it was decided that today was going to be “cheat day”.
Good thing there’s 24 hours in a day. Before taking a 3 hour nap, I ate an apple. I woke up surprisingly early at 5:30 am. I ate 3 cups of taho ( sweet silk soy [pre-tofu] ), 3-in-1 instant coffee, and pandisal ( bread with butter or peanut butter spread ).
For lunch I had a repeat of the midnight breakfast plus baby bananas ( aka senioritas, which are always in season rain or shine ), another apple, and vitamins. Then off to SM Southmall with my cousin to inquire about the gym, to exchange money, and to go window shopping ( omg, there’s so much shopping to do: oh budget ).
Dinner was in Jollibee ( like McDonalds ). I ordered a jolly spaghetti with yum ( a burger with mixed ketchup and mayonnaise dressing ); my cousin got a jolly spaghetti with fried chicken. For drinks, we had RC-Cola. We chit chatted about the evils of starch, processed food ( irony? ), and street food, such as balot ( 15 days old unhatched duckling ), addidas ( chicken feet fraught with muscle, fat, and tendons ), and bituka ng manok ( chicken guts ). Yummy?!
Off the airplane. At first breezy cool from post rain. Waiting for a ride, smoke rising from cigarettes, humidity rising. People texting and hollering, name cards in the air. Sticky shirt. I arrived in my aunt’s house past 12 am. Food on the table, TV on: fried eggroll ( lumpia shanghai ), rice, fresh eggroll stuffing ( shanghai sariwa ), and ube bean cake. My first thought “carbs after midnight – omg”. However weariness settled, sustenance needed especially after more than 12 hours of trip time. Compromise found – it was decided that today was going to be “cheat day”.
Good thing there’s 24 hours in a day. Before taking a 3 hour nap, I ate an apple. I woke up surprisingly early at 5:30 am. I ate 3 cups of taho ( sweet silk soy [pre-tofu] ), 3-in-1 instant coffee, and pandisal ( bread with butter or peanut butter spread ).
For lunch I had a repeat of the midnight breakfast plus baby bananas ( aka senioritas, which are always in season rain or shine ), another apple, and vitamins. Then off to SM Southmall with my cousin to inquire about the gym, to exchange money, and to go window shopping ( omg, there’s so much shopping to do: oh budget ).
Dinner was in Jollibee ( like McDonalds ). I ordered a jolly spaghetti with yum ( a burger with mixed ketchup and mayonnaise dressing ); my cousin got a jolly spaghetti with fried chicken. For drinks, we had RC-Cola. We chit chatted about the evils of starch, processed food ( irony? ), and street food, such as balot ( 15 days old unhatched duckling ), addidas ( chicken feet fraught with muscle, fat, and tendons ), and bituka ng manok ( chicken guts ). Yummy?!
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