I survived the Guam shopathon

view from Two Lovers' Point

Wanderlust had gotten the better of me that before I knew it I had overbooked myself for the month of February with a trip planned every weekend. It all started with a journey to the north (Ilocos), a day trip to Clark for the hot-air balloon festival the weekend after, followed by an overnight tour of Corregidor with Carlos (will write about this very soon!), and then that lovely long weekend in Bohol. As if that wasn't dizzying enough, I threw in yet another destination, this time to Guam, for the last weekend.

It might sound crazy to some, and yes a schedule like that can be quite exhausting. But if you're like me and you get energized on the road instead of on the couch, you'll understand why I do this to myself. I'm usually tired at the end of a trip, but it's a happy tired. Travel is my drug and I'm hopelessly addicted! So when I found out about PAL's $98 (exclusive of taxes) promo for Guam, slave as I am to my addiction, I took a hit and went for the ride. :)

Our group of six arrived in Agana, the capital of the island territory of Guam, at the ungodly hour of 5:00 am. But that was no problem, we had it all planned. We would dump our luggage at the hotel lobby then proceed to the 24-hour K-Mart where we kicked off our weekend of hard-core shopping. Oh yes, two full days of tax-free shopping, and we shopped like we've never shopped before and until I got blisters on the balls of both my feet (my mistake for wearing flip-flops instead of trainers!). If you know me well, you'll know I have a very short attention span for shopping unless it involves a local food market or local arts and crafts, so this will come as a shock to you. But for someone as - ahem! ;) -voluptuous as I am who is seriously deprived of off-the-rack shopping in the Philippines, or anywhere in Asia for that matter, where everything is made for the teeny-tiny Asian body, it was much needed retail therapy!

Guam Premium Outlets

After Kmart, we had breakfast at Shirley's Coffee Shop, the diner beside our hotel (recommended by Santos) that serves up hefty Chamorro, American and Asian comfort food. It's a daunting task perusing their large menu and faced with so many choices such as steaks, scrambles and omelettes, french toasts and waffles, porkchops, curries, yakisobas, country fried chicken, salmon fillets, English muffins, grilled seafood, sweet and sour pork and other Chinese stir-fries. Evetually I settled for the Chamorro sausage with eggs, Shirley's award-winning fried rice and some nice fluffy pancakes. The servings were huge but shopping can sure make you hungry. The Chamorro sausages were delicious! They were served sliced and fried to perfection, hot and spicy, just how I like 'em. The fried rice came chockful of diced ham, carrots, green onions and egg, and really was a meal on it's own. We washed it all down with an obscene amount of coffee. We enjoyed Shirley's so much for our first meal, that we chose it for our last meal too.

two lovers at Two Lover's point :)

Fueled with that power breakfast and with caffeine finally in our system, we checked in quickly at the hotel before setting out for more shopping. A couple of my friends stayed at The Marriott while the rest of us chose the Hotel Santa Fe in Tamuning, a rose-colored adobe-style boutique hotel situated on Hagatna Bay. The rooms were cheerful and sunny and the beds were comfortable. I was happy. The hotel's restaurant, The Grille, is around the back by the beach. It looked like a lovely place for a sunset cocktail and some beach BBQ. Unfortunately, we never had a chance to enjoy this little pleasure.

Getting around Agana is a breeze with the Lam Lam Trolley system of four color-coded courses that make regularly scheduled runs to most shopping centers, hotels and tourist spots. We bought the 7-day unlimited pass which is a better value at $10 compared to 2 one-day passes at $6 each. We spent the rest of the day at the Guam Premier Outlets or GPO, that housed stores such as Ross, Anne Klein, BCBG, Payless Shoe Source, Nine West, Nike Sports, Guess & Levi's. So we hopped-on and hopped-off the open-air trolleys conveniently, unloading bags at the hotel just 5 minutes away and going back for more. They just make it too easy for you to spend your money here!

symbols of eternal love on Two Lovers' Point

For dinner we went with another recommendation by Santos - the Jamaican Grill - for some jerk BBQ. We were joined by an old friend I hadn't seen since he moved away after high schoool and his friend (who turned out to be a former actor in the Philippines), both now residents of Guam. We shared the huge family platter of Kingston Jerk chicken and a slab of Boston Beach ribs served over a mountain of Jamaican rice with salad on the side. The restaurant had a festive ambience that pulsated to reggae beats and appeared to be very popular for families. The meat was juicy and moist and we dug in until there was nothing left but squeaky clean bones on our plates.

Tumon's entertainment and shopping strip

We kicked off the next day with a massive brunch at Denny's before hitting the outlets one more time. There were some exchanges that needed to be made and last-minute purchases before we could make our way to Macy's at the Micronesia Mall which had an ongoing sale. In Macy's, I spent a good amount of time drooling over the Martha Stewart kitchen and dining collection but didn't buy much. I had to be practical since we still had some sight-seeing to do after Macy's and a baggage allowance to be watchful of. But I did buy some small items which I couldn't resist. :)

And finally, we headed out to our one and only tourist attraction on this trip, the Two Lovers Point. We arrived shortly before sunset. Two Lovers' Point is the island's most visited landmark and it is from here, 378 feet above sea level, that you are presented with a panoramic view of Tumon and the west central coast of the island. The legend tells of the beautiful daughter of a Spanish aristocrat and a young Chamorro warrior who fell in love but were forbidden to be together in this world; so off this cliff they leaped to their death so they could be together in eternity. Sigh, I love these tragic/romantic tales. The romance was not lost on the others. On the wire fence that surrounded both upper and lower decks are hundreds of locks left by couples as a symbol of their eternal love. Seeing them shine in the golden glow of the sun's remaining rays, I couldn't help but smile.

We took the last trolley out from Two Lovers Point to DFS Galleria, where we literally breezed through the high-end stores. DFS is located right across The Plaza where you can find more exclusive brands, on Tumon's most happening road known as Hotel Row. It is reminiscent of the Vegas Strip complete with Vegas-style magic shows, clubs, and restaurants. We had wanted to eat at Sam Choy's but after hearing mass at the chuch in Tamuning, we were too lazy to head back there. We opted instead for, you guessed it!, more shopping. This time for goodies at the grocery near our hotel. It was here that I decided to be true to my Pinoy heritage and purchase a balikbayan box (large cardboard box Filipinos usually use to ship gifts home to their families) because I had a serious space problems. However, the box only gave me more reason to buy more since I now had more space. What I failed to consider was how the heck we were going to lug everything back to hotel a few blocks away. The bags were heavy and no taxis would come take us because it was too near. Fortunately, I have strong friends who were kind enough to suffer along with me! Thanks, guys! :)

So that was my Guam experience in a nutshell. Sorely lacking in attractions and experiences other than shopping that it fit in one post. heehee. But I loved it, I loved everything I bought and I loved Guam. I think I may even love it enough to live there. It's got the best of both worlds: island lifestyle and urban living. It is a unique amalgam of western and chamorro culture with a generous sprinkling of Filipino flavor. It felt a little strange being on an island in Micronesia, paying in $US but conversing mostly in Filipino.

I'm definitely not done with Guam. That was a sneak preview at most. A good friend of mine is returning to Guam for good sometime in May. She's currently packing up her stuff in Arizona to move back to the place she has called home since she moved there straight after college. I'd let her take me to her favorite places, it would be so nice to see Guam through her eyes. And hopefully that time, I can finally meet Santos and thank her in person for the lovely presents she left at my hotel lobby! :)

Hotel Santa Fe, 132 Lagoon Drive, Tamuning; Tel. # (671) 647-8855
Shirley's Coffee Shop, Tamuning; Tel. # (671)646-2288
Jamaican Grill, Tumon; Tel # (671)647-3000/4000
Lam Lam Tours; Tel. # (649)5314/5; (brochures available at your hotel lobby)

WS #34: Bangkero

This shot of the lone fisherman/boatman (bangkero) was taken last Saturday at a beach in Batangas. For WS #34, I was deciding between this photo and a photo of the 'floating ice cream' man (he has his cooler propped on an inner tube!) but chose this because I thought it had more drama. :)

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Other reasons to visit Bohol

Aside from the churches and ancestral houses, there are of course other reasons to visit Bohol. Here they are, in no particular order:

The Chocolate Hills : No visit to Bohol would be complete without seeing this peculiar landscape that has been declared a National Geologic Monument. Our hike up a couple hundred steps to the viewing platform is rewarded with a view unlike any I've ever seen before. Some hills were pointy and conical and some were rounded but they all appeared to be of the same size. They looked like scoops of matcha or green tea ice cream garnished with sprigs of mint and parsley. Actually more like pistacchio. Two of my favorite flavors! I pictured it in the summer when the hills dried up and turned brown like chocolate (hence the name). B & I watched in amusement as on-site photographers directed tourists in funny poses over the hills, making them jump high on command while straddling a broom so it looked like they were witches flying over the hills. One could also choose to 'surf' over the hills, or shoot an arrow like cupid. Make sure you check out the photo samples on display, they're a riot!

The hills, over 1,200 of them spread over 50 sq km. across several towns, continue to puzzle geologists and there are a number of theories regarding it's formation (see under Origin here). But like a magician who never reveals his secrets, Mother Nature likes to keep us mystified.

The Tarsiers:

Aww the tariers, such adorable little primates. Seeing them for the first time was actually a bittersweet experience for me. On our way back from the Chocolate Hills, our driver pulled up in front of a small shack at the side of the road, "to see the tarsiers", he said. We followed him inside past the souvenir shop to what looked like a tiny greenhouse. There was a small crowd milling about and peering into the trees and plants, snapping away with their cameras. It didn't take me long to realize that this was it, and I was already surrounded by the tiny creatures. So I searched the bushes until I found one, and there it was snuggled on a branch, eyes half-closed. It was the cutest thing ever! It couldn't have been much bigger than my hand. I saw about 10 more. All teeny-tiny, furry, big-eyed precious little things. They had frog-like fingers and heads that could freakishly swivel 180 deg! I took photos as B fed one a skewerd bug that was promptly snatched and stuffed into a tiny mouth - crunch, crunch.

But the cuteness stopped there. Nothing else about this scenario amused me much. In fact, I felt a flood of sadness for these sweet things held captive away from their natural habitat. As a carefree kid I kept all sorts of animals at home: parrots, fish, rabbits, mice, hamsters, hens, name it. But I have long since disposed of the fish tank and bird cage. But this wasn't just about animals in capitivity for our amusement (I can even tolerate this when it's for educational/ research purposes), but tarsiers are nocturnal animals. If they're 'working' like this during the day, when do they sleep? :( I really hope they're cared for well over there. Otherwise, tarsier viewing should be limited to the Tarsier Sanctuary in Corella which is under the auspices of the Philippine Tarsier Foundation.

Alona Beach

I know I said this particular trip to Bohol wasn't about it's islands or beaches but we couldn't resist. We couldn't have chosen a better place to have dinner after a long day on the road. Alona beach at twilight was like a salve to my senses. It is a beautiful stretch of beach lined with resorts and restaurants sans the maddening crowds that usually plague more popular beaches in the country. B & I wound down with a nice barefoot stroll before settling down at the Coco Vida restaurant for a lovely seafood dinner. We picked some fresh fish, prawns, corn and fruit which they prepared according to our preference while we waited, enjoying the live Americana folk music from a local trio. The food was more than we could normally consume, but it was great and we managed, washing it all down with a couple of beers. Ahh...I'm definitely coming back and staying here next time!

And speaking of food:

Bohol has it's share of culinary delights. One of my most memorable meals aside from the seafood dinner in Alona beach were the turo-turo (literally point-point) style lunch we had in a carinderia (eatery) outside the Loboc church. I can't remember what everything was called but it was all delicious. We sampled and took home local delicacies such as calamay hati- a sticky sweet concoction made with coconut milk, sugar, and ground sticky rice sold in smooth coconut shells; peanut kisses - very addicting cookies (shaped like Hershey's kisses hence the name) made with peanut and eggwhite; Bohol torta - a sweet cake; ube kinampay (purple yam) - which I found to be lumpier, and not as sweet or creamy as Baguio's Good Shepherd ube which I have a fierce love for but it was pretty good, the puto-maya is not unique to Bohol but it was special because it was sold to me by these adorable kids outside the Albuquerque church, puto-maya is sticky rice boiled with sugar and coconut.

Top row: native chicken & longganiza, kalamay, tsokolate tablea
Middle row: carinderia-style lunch in Loboc, Bohol torta, puto-maya
Bottom row: ube kinampay, fresh seafood on Alona beach, ube

And then there's Osang's broas. These are by far the best broas (ladyfingers) I've ever had. They are super crisp and light, almost feathery, melt-in-your-mouth heaven! I was thrilled to no end that you could watch them make the broas right there. There were only four women at work in the small bakery. I watched as the mixture was piped onto sheets of tin, baked by charcoal in a clay oven, and then scraped off the sheets and turned over on a grill to crisp and cool before being packed into brown paper bags. A very uncomplicated process using conventional baking equipment and methods. The entire place of course smelled of butter and sugar and all that bakey aroma I wanted to bottle up. I bought as much as I could manage to hand-carry in the plane (you don't want to crush these delicate things in your check-in luggage!). They were still warm from the oven when they were handed to me and I handled the bag like a first-time mother would a frail newborn baby.

The Buzz Cafe

I thought it would be charming to stay at the Bohol Bee Farm on Panglao Island. But that was before the unfortunate incident at the Great Wall of China. Bees don't like me. Considering how much honey I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Maybe that bee in China is some kind of vigilante bee like Barry (Seinfeld's character) from the Bee Movie, but I wasn't taking any chances and decided to just visit the place for a meal and to buy some of their products instead of sleeping there. Unfortunately, we didn't even have time for a quick visit.

Upon realizing that we had some time to kill before heading to the airport on our last day, we opted to spend it at the Island City Mall in Tagbilaran. B & I both saw it at the same time - the sign for The Buzz Cafe of the Bohol Bee Farm. Yay!! I was going to have my honey and my chance to sample their food after all. The cafe is a sunny and charming country farmhouse style affair where you can also buy the farm's products such as honey, of course, home-baked bread, spreads, pure honeybee pollen, bee propolis, and their famous muffins (loved the corn and pumpkin the best but the cheese and carrot were great too). For merienda (afternoon snack), I ordered the kamote (sweet potato) fries with latik (caramel-like coconut milk sauce). It was delicious! I paired this with their signature corn coffee specially-brewed from roasted corn.

The locals. They Boholanos are a charming bunch. They have a deep sense of pride in their heritage, a trait I admire greatly, so they are more than happy to show you around and tell you tales. Everyone we met was warm and friendly and very down-to-earth. They remind me of the Dumaguetenos in many ways. :)

And on that note, I conclude my Bohol series. I will be posting a part two should i return in September for my friends' wedding (fingers crossed!). :)

Treasures of the past

Just as with old churches, I am equally fascinated and doubly charmed by old houses. It pleases me even further when they are still inhabited by descendants of the original owners and not converted into a government office or restaurant or what-have-you. I still think about all those gorgeous ancestral homes in Silay (Negros Occ.) and how much I regret not setting aside time from work to venture beyond some of those iron gates, managing only to admire them from across the road or through the car’s dusty window.

So to say that exploring the ancestral homes in Bohol was a treat for me would be a gross understatement. It was quite the honor. When you cross the threshold of an ancestral home, you are never just a tourist satisfying a curiosity. You are, above all, a guest of the family and of their forefathers.

We learned much of what we know about the BAHANDI or Baclayon Ancestral Homes Association from our lovely hosts at the Mendez Homestay, but also from a lady we met who operates a homestay of her own. It was in her living room where she recounted how the ancestral homes along the main highway were threatened by demolition due to a road-widening project. So in 2002 the BAHANDI (bahandi is actually Visayan for treasure or inheritance) was founded to protect these homes. Thanks to their tireless efforts, not only were the beautiful houses spared from the wrecking ball, but so was the cultural heritage of Baclayon. Today the BAHANDI continues to organize local cultural events, support locals engaged in traditional arts and crafts, conduct educational campaigns on culture and history in schools, and advocate the preservation of historic buildings.

Everything in the house tells a story. Even the width of the hardwood floor planks reveals the wealth of the family (the wider, the wealthier). But best of all are the stories you weave together from the personal mementoes left behind by generations past: the frayed baros carelessly hung on the walls; the worn piano keys and chess sets; framed portraits and sepia-toned photographs, rickety furniture you wouldn’t dare sit on; gorgeous aparadors next to canopied beds, doilies underneath antique porcelain figurines; religious icons that came in sizes smaller than my thumb to taller than my 6 ft. dad; books that threatened to trigger my allergies if I so much as lay a finger on them; vintage green and amber glass bottles, chipped clay pieces, walking canes and other odds and ends.

Most of the houses are of typical bahay-na-bato design, with the use of stone limited to the lower level for the foundation. The upper levels are built using wood, bamboo and other native materials. A staircase (a showcase in itself) leads you up to the large and airy main room with high ceilings. This is the most important part of the house serving as both dining and living area, and from where large doors lead into the bedrooms and the kitchen. Window sills with sliding capiz & wood shutters make up most of the upper level facade with shuttered ventanillas (smaller windows) just below it decorated in pretty iron grillwork.

I appreciated the quiet grandeur of these stately homes; devoid of the lavishness that most ancestral houses elsewhere display. But I appreciated even more the respect the locals have of the gifts of the past and the pains they've taken to preserve them. With the mass development of suburbs all over the country boasting of modern and western designs, I take comfort in knowing that houses like these which make up our national identity are fiercely protected.

So here are the Baclayon ancestral homes we had the pleasure of visiting. The information I'm providing here is taken from chats with members of the family supported by facts found in the BAHANDI 2008 calendar. Each house is as unique as the stories they tell. Instead of trying to describe each one in detail (I'd have to dedicate a whole post per house if I did), I'll let the pictures do the talking, in the hopes that you are treated to an enticing sneak preview at the very least.

1. The Malon House is currently the home of 6th generation Malon family and was the site of many political meetings between former Pres. Carlos Garcia and Juan Malon who was then working at the municipal hall. It was originally T-shaped and built in the late 19th century, but the wing that extended into the sea was destroyed by a typhoon in 1968. The house had a large and sunny living room where I found amidst the timeworn sundries, chocolate tablea covered in dried leaves. Not a stranger to the delights of homemade tablea from the provinces, I asked if they were for sale and bought some to take home. It was a week later during a beach trip with friends that I used them up to make hot chocolate for everyone at breakfast and wished that I had bought more. (Poblacion; 2 Fan Rooms, 3 Beds at P600 per person. Contact: Ms. Cecile Camba 038-5409514 / 0910-3387033)

2. The Villamor House is one of the oldest ancestral houses in Baclayon, built by a trader, Ciriaco Villamor, in the late 19th century. The family lives in the Mangrove House (below) next door so the Villamor House serves mainly as a museum and homestay. From the kitchen window is a nice view of the mangroves and the Mangrove house. (Baliaut, Poblacion; 1 fan room/2 beds at P600 per person; Contact: Ms. Telly Ocampo 038-5409030 / 0920-2097558)

3. The Mangrove House is so called because the rear part of the house is built on stilts and is nestled in the mangroves. It is there in that hut above the murky waters where all BAHANDI meetings are conducted. To get to the hut on stilts, you pass through one of the most charming native kitchen I have ever seen (see bottom row of collage). (Baliaut, Poblacion; 1 Fan room/3 Beds at P500 per person; Contact: Ms. Telly Ocampo 038-5409030 / 0920-2097558)

4. The Luza House is a large turn-of-the-century home of influential local merchant Fortunato Luza and his wife Maria Ginete. It is currently the home of Boholano artist Lutgardo Labad (who I spied outside in his garden) and where one goes to buy the famous Mama Nena's La Boholana Ube Kinampay. To be honest, it was the ube we were there for. We weren't planning to see any more houses that day, but when we emerged from the Luza's garage with our ube loot, the sweet-looking lady of the house called out to us from where she sat at an upstairs window. She invited us in for a quick look-see and who were we to decline. Unlike the other houses which were situated along the water's edge, this one was across the street and so the view from the second floor was the sea. I imagined that husband and wife spent hours sipping their coffee at that table by the window. (Poblacion, 2 fan rooms/3 beds; P600 per person; Contact: Mr. Gardy Labad 038-5409464 / 0916-3611786)

This last house, though not located in Baclayon and hence not part of the BAHANDI, is probably the most famous of all. It is the Clarin Ancestral Home in the town of Loay, not far from Tagbilaran City and en route to the Chocolate Hills. It was built in 1840 and was the home of Don Aniceto Velez Clarin, Bohol's first governor and his son Jose Clarin who was a former Senate president. The Clarin home was declared a heritage site by the National Historical Institute and is a must for visitors to the island. At the lower level is a coffee shop that extends to a peaceful garden, a perfect place to take a break from all the sight-seeing.

I've included the contact information for these homes should you be braver than I am (I'm a scaredy cat with an overactive imagination!) and would like to experience living in an ancestral home. If you'd like a list of the other homestays and their contact details, send me an email and I'll be happy to send it to you. :)

WS #33: Mini World Cup Final Score

The Finals scoreboard for Manila World Cup 2008. Africa wins the cup two years in a row,
while Spain earns a deserving spot in 2nd place.

It was that time of year again, Mini World Cup time! A two-day football (soccer) event that's been in our family tradition for almost two decades now I think. Many countries are represented by their own nationals, with some inevitable imports, in a friendly and exciting tournament at the Nomad Sports Club. Although we have friends in other teams (such as Philippines and USA) it is Spain we come to root for because it's made up of friends and some relatives and was always my brother's team .

The games are always so much fun regardless of outcome. The days end with drinks, and the party is kicked up a notch at the end of the 2nd day after the awarding ceremonies when national boundaries are cast aside. And while our team didn't make it to first place (Africa truly deserved that honor!), they played with all their might and had a blast doing it. And at the end of the day, isn't that all that matters? :)

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