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Published: August 8th 2007
Makati Supermart Alabang
We have no bananas todaaaaaay!!!It is Saturday morning and I descend the stairs and find Jamie, Vit, and my mom almost finished with breakfast. I sit down and enjoy another Filipino breakfast, the new addition being chicken vienna sausages. Leroy joins us within a few minutes, and we spend some time telling stories of Boracay and asking Vit how the last few days have been. Her mother is improving, and that is good news. Then, Jamie, Leroy and I go to Jamie’s office, where he heads the video department. The office is half-staffed, so I reprimand Jamie for making his employees work on Saturday! But then again, he’s in too. He sets us up so we can connect to the internet and do unpleasant things like pay bills online. But first, he plays us some videos he directed, including one of Lea Salonga’s music videos. For those who don’t know, Lea Salonga is a very famous Filipina singer and Tony award winner. She is the singing voice of Jasmine and Mulan from the Disney movies Aladdin and Mulan, respectively. She also starred as Kim in the Broadway production of Miss Saigon and played Eponine in Les Miserables. She is back in New York
Makati Supermart Alabang
See, Melissa, this is a, umm, it's an... We think that it might be a green mango. starring as Fantine in Les Miserables. Once settled in, Leroy and I basically try to clean up house and get some work done. Nothing exciting to tell here. Even on vacation, that life we temporarily left in the U.S. trucks on. Thankfully, an email from STA telling me that our Vietnam package is done and ticketed brings me back to vacay mode. I print out the itinerary and savor the details of our upcoming adventure.
Please, Give Me a Salad! As the lunch hour approaches, my mom and I argue over where to go for lunch. She wants to go to a restaurant called Red Crab and I am begging for salad. I need vegetables! Something fresh! That, and mom has had crab once already this week and I’m trying to get her to be a little less self-indulgent. She is afraid to eat raw vegetables in the Philippines because of one episode of gastroenteritis when she visited in 1993. I figure it’s been 14 years since then and many things have improved in the Philippines, and that a place like California Pizza Kitchen is pretty safe. There’s no way to avoid an encounter with traveler’s diarrhea, but she’s
Makati Supermart Alabang
Leroy keeps saying "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree," and to taunt me, my mom is chasing me with an apple as I run away. been using ice cubes, so it’s not like she’s been particularly prudent. Leroy and I, of course, could never be called prudent when it comes to seafood. Didn’t we just eat sushi here last week? It was delish and totally safe. I convince my mom that her fears were keeping her on a high sodium and low fiber diet; finally she said, “I’m convinced, I’m convinced!” Yay, salad time!!! We had a great lunch with Jamie and Vit, one of the healthier ones we’ve had here. My body thanks me for finally eating something green and crunchy.
Supermarket Frenzy at Makati Supermart Alabang Xandra and the rest of the Las Brisas crew that is taking the boat back from Boracay will arrive midday, and since it is Linus’ last day here, we have planned a family dinner at Jamie’s house. Although we’ll be ordering most of the dishes from a local restaurant, we hit the supermarket to get fruits and additional ingredients. Jamie wants to fry queso de bola (a hard parmesan-like cheese that is packaged in red wax so it looks like a red ball, hence the name) in olive oil. Sounds like an artery-clogging weapon, but I’m
Who needs a shopping cart...
when you've got one of these? I hope she doesn't buy milk or eggs... sure it’ll be sinfully delicious. My mom is on a mad search for siriguelas, another tropical fruit. She’s been obsessing about it the whole trip. I’ve heard her say, “We have to get siriguelas” at least eight times in the last two days. We also make sure to get Leroy some Boy Bawang and to get calamansi to mix with vodka later tonight. The supermarket visit should have been quick, but I forgot to factor in the mom factor. She loves anything that has the color lavender, and Filipino supermarkets are full of little plastic containers in every shape, size, and color. She went nuts. I wasn’t sure we could pry her away from the aisles. Finally, I reminded her that Leroy was to meet Oliver to go play basketball at 3pm, so we had to go. Phew!
Leroy Goes Off to be MVP, and the Ladies Chill Out Before Dinner I can’t believe Leroy is going to play basketball in this hot and humid weather. I start sweating as soon as I move one finger. I ask him not to yell at anyone too harshly since these are Oliver’s friends he’ll be playing with and I know how
he can get with basketball! Then, of course, I ask him to dunk one for me. Once Oli arrives to drop off Xandra and Tita Reena, they are off to the courts. We ladies, on the other hand, spend the afternoon chatting and snacking. Terran gets in the swimming pool to play with his godfather Jamie. It is a wonderful lazy afternoon spent with family. I pour some of the remaining Australian red wine, and we sip and catch up. My mom has her purple iPod and speakers set up and is playing music from the 60s - Beatles, Apo Hiking Society, and other folksy bands. She used to play this when I was a kid, so I know all the songs, but I am dying for something a little bit more upbeat. I bust out Leroy’s laptop and play some of our Carnaval music (yeah, Jak, it’s enough to make you go crazy! Te-te-te-te-te-te-te-te!). Terran loves it and dances along, calling it “Ninang Meme’s party song.” The BF (name of the subdivision where I grew up and where my Tito Raffy and his family all still live) crew arrives and Sam’s first request is a copy of the Te-te-te
Makati Supermart Alabang
Waiting outside for Jamie's driver to pick us up. It's HOT! song. Haha! I got another one hooked. The only thing is to get these songs on my mom’s iPod so we can blast it a bit! Linus and his party arrive, and all that’s left is to get the food ready. We are having dinner outside, in the common area of the subdivision near the swimming pool.
The Pinoy Experience: Dinner and Magic Sing If there’s one thing Filipinos love to do, it’s eat. Or haven’t you noticed? Dinner is mostly fish and other seafood and vegetables, which we are all thankful for. There are at least three pescatarians in the group, and that tends to skew the menu. Leroy and Oliver are not back yet, and I have a time trying to save certain dishes for Leroy. There is also a mango cake that is about a foot tall, so it wasn’t all good for you. Right after dinner, Linus gives us a slide show of Baba singing to win back the Ten Peso Bill. Leroy and Oliver arrive in the middle of this and head outside to dinner. This is how I ended up missing the ceremonial passing of the Ten Peso Bill. Both Xandra and I
Terran and Ninong Kaka
I'm not sure Terran likes water... went outside to attend to our men’s stomachs, and the ceremony took place (must have taken all of three seconds). No worries, someone took a photo.
The second thing Filipinos like to do is sing. Now, there is only one true singer on my mom’s side of the family, and that is Tito Raffy. He has a deep voice and a penchant for country songs, as I recall from our Minus One days. My dad’s side of the family is full of singers, so I’m used to lip synching, lest I ruin their production. Linus is pretty good, he can do more than hold a tune. Filipinos are known for singing, being the entertainers of Asia, but unlike other Pinoy families, we have a couple of stars (Tito Raffy and Ninonne), but the rest are kinda tone deaf (no offense, family!). But it doesn’t mean we won’t sing!!! So, Jamie busts out his Magic Sing microphone (called Magic Mike in the U.S., right, Bett?). Linus has just an hour or so before he has to leave for the airport, and he wants to get his sing on before leaving. He is famous for a rendition of Aha’s Take On
Me that he did at my best friend Bettina’s house over Christmas several years ago, and of course, Like a Virgin.. He gets a 93 (out of 100) rating on his first song, a 97 for Take On Me, and a whopping 98 for Johnny B. Goode. Linus left for the airport right after setting that high score, leaving us with a whole night to rise to the challenge. I’ll warn you right now, his score was not to be beat, no matter how hard we tried. I think Jamie got a 96 at one point, but that was it. The key to scoring is to sing the words loud in time to the changing font color of the lyrics on the TV screen - even if that’s not how the song goes! And, it’s very common and quite hilarious for the lyrics to be wrong. This can be confusing for people who actually know the song well. I hit a high of 94 for Killing Me Softly, which just beats my mom’s Kookaburra rendition which got her a 93. The night is loads of family fun, although the neighbors might hate us.
Croaking Voices and a Late Night Hubad Hubad
This is right before he becomes a bomba star and runs through Jamie's house buck naked. Ride to Marilena Gardens
Nearing midnight, we decide we have to call it a night. Jamie goes back to work on Monday, so Leroy and I are going to pack up all our stuff and move to Xandra’s house where my mom is staying. Tita Reena lives there too. With my mom and Xandra available throughout the week and Terran around, we won’t be alone and will have options for transport. See, the thing is, in other countries, I have no problem taking all kinds of buses, trains, subways, and cabs - even decrepit ascensores - to get to where I need to be. I think Leroy and I are way more fearless when abroad. But the Philippines is the motherland, and here, my family wants to make sure we are taken care of. Linus stayed at a hotel and took cabs the entire time because he wanted the freedom to leave whenever and not have to wait for a ride or for ten other people to get ready. I could do the same, but I like being with the family and I don’t mind not wasting my money on cab rides. Plus, sponsorship! My mom and her siblings tend
Show me more pictures...
To grow up in the digital age is other level... to pay for us when we go out to eat, so it’s a bonus (*sheepish grin*). Hey, I’m still a med student with loans and no income! Leroy and I pile into Oli’s Adventure SUV with our luggage. Not surprisingly, my mom, who has stayed with us at Jamie’s for two days and was only supposed to bring stuff for Boracay, has more luggage than Leroy and me. With seven adults and one kid in tow, the Adventure takes us to Xandra’s house at Marilena Gardens.
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Linus
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Just how much Take on Me can anyone take?
By the way, Terran was showing me how to use the phone.