Litratong Pinoy: Kahel (orange)

Isa sa aking mga paboritong pagkain ay ang "california maki" na may kasamang sawsawan na toyo at wasabi. Ang sarap! Tuwing nalulungkot ako, ito ang aking pampasaya lalo na kung libre galing sa aking mahal!

Just For Fun

I don't feel good today so i took the day off :-) and the best way to spend the day aside from going back to sleep is to browse the net, read blogs and drool over the foods that I miss so much and dream that once I'll get my vacation leave, i will eat a lot hehehe!

So, just for fun and just to have an update in my blog (super lazy to write my thoughts hehe), i saw this series of Q&A...

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? nope.
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? last night
3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? sometimes
4. What is your favorite lunch meal? nothing in particular as long as it's yummy
5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? none yet, ain't married yet
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Definitely
7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Not much
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? huh?!
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? I want to.
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Corn flakes
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? nope
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Yes
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Cafe Gelato's Pistaccio, ferrero
14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Their outfit and scent
15. RED OR PINK? Pink!
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF? My arms!
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? JC
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? Not really
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Im wearing a house dress right now
20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Spaghetti filipino style that i cooked last night
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? mix choice from Honey's selections
22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? blue
23. FAVORITE SMELLS? Perry Ellis
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Honey
25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? No one actually sent this to me, but I lurk the blog where I got this questionnaire.
26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Basketball,badminton
27. HAIR COLOR? black
28. EYE COLOR? black
29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? nope
30. FAVORITE FOOD? tocino
31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy endings
32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Mamma Mia while flying via SQ
33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? im wearing a brown house dress right now
34. SUMMER OR WINTER? Dhaka Winter, i find it so pleasant
35. HUGS OR KISSES? Both!
36. FAVORITE DESSERT? sans rival cake
37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? have no idea
38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? have no idea as well
39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? On Chesil Beach
40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? don't have a mouse, i'm using a laptop
41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT? The Game Plan
42. FAVORITE SOUND? sound of flowing water
43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? beatles
44. WHAT IS THE FURTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Kolkata, India
45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? writing? designing?
46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Vigan Ilocos Sur, Philippines
47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK? everyone who wants to share more about themselves

Be Thankful

Saw this poem while browsing some blogs.

Im thankful for my family, friends and my work...in everything that i have now... and a lot more :-)


BE THANKFUL

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire.
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?
Be thankful when you don't know something,
for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations,
because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for each new challenge,
because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes.
They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you're tired and weary,
because it means you've made a difference.

It's easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who
are also thankful for the setbacks.
Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,
and they can become your blessings.

- Author Unknown

HOLIDAYS IN DHAKA

my little christmas tree, with little santa claus and his harley davidson ride

Christmas is a much celebrated day in the Philippines and in my family, thus celebrating Christmas for the first time without anyone from my family and in a hardcore Muslim country was totally a different experience.

Christmas tree @ a friend's house, Bamboo Shoot, Nando's

The day passed like just any ordinary day. There are few Christmas trimmings in the shops and there is no Christmas rush. No gift giving and no giddy feeling of Christmas time. It was just simply an ordinary day, with the slightest happiness that I feel with the thought that I’m going to celebrate Christmas with friends. There are lot of things that I missed so much last Holiday, the Simbang Gabi even if I never completed one, my family even if ours is far from perfect family, the simple and festive non-stop eat-all-you-can Noche Buena & Christmas lunches /snacks with friends and relatives, the last minute shopping, and the fireworks display on New Year’s Eve. Really, there is no place like home….


But since I can’t do anything with the situation, (I can’t leave the country coz I just got my Visa and passport last week), I have to do with what I have. I may not have the simple and festive Noche Buena that I’m used to, but I can adapt or try other traditions and share my own traditions too. And what is Christmas without “sweet ham” right? It’s not readily available here as pork is not available in groceries or any public market. So, I search the recipe for sweet ham and did it myself. And the verdict: it looks like ham and it tasted like ham.

small gathering after the Christmas Eve Mass

I attended Christmas Eve Mass at Banani and meet some friends there. After the mass, there was a small gathering at the church yard. Cakes, breads, drinks and other pica-pica are served. There are lots of Filipinos there too, and even the Ambassadress was there. Too bad I wasn’t able to take more pictures of the little gathering. One thing I noticed here is that I feel so safe and at home whenever I’m at the Church grounds. Everyone seems to be so friendly, maybe because it’s a small community that’s why people almost knew everyone, similar to private subdivisions in the Philippines.

After eating some cakes and saying “hellos” and greeting friends, we went home and have some simple Christmas dinner Bangladeshi style, and again, I forgot to take pictures. And drank some tequila which made me a little tipsy. I received a black saree, a jewelry set and a box of chocolates as a gift, yihii! The following day, we ate the sweet ham that I made, it was okay and it can pass as the commercial ones hehehe!


After Christmas, I am so busy with the DITF 2009 set up already, that I have to literally celebrate New Year’s Eve at the DITF Grounds with my staff and colleague since the following day will be the opening of the fair.
New Year’s Eve celebration here means going to the clubs and restaurants and other sponsored parties at the hotel and elsewhere. There are no funfair, no fireworks, none at all. But it was okay anyway, I’m just so glad that I was able to finish the set up on time and well, we received good comments about it (another entry for this).


January 1, of course is a working day, but I was able to spend the day with friends again and on the following weekend. I thank God for all this wonderful friends… Another year ahead, praying that this will be another fruitful one. Happy New Year everyone!

Marriage (Kid's Point of View)

I saw this in the net and it so funny. Marriage in the KId's Point of View.

How do you decide who to marry?
You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming.
– Alan, age 10

No person really decides before they grow up who they’re going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you’re stuck with.
– Kristen, age 10

What is the right age to get married?
Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then.
– Camille, age 10

How can a stranger tell if two people are married?
You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids.
– Derrick, age 8

What do you think your Mum and Dad have in common?
Both don’t want any more kids.
– Lori, age 8

What do most people do on a date?
Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough.
– Lynnette, age 8

On the first date, they just tell each other lies and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date.
– Martin, age 10

What would you do on a first date that was turning sour?
I’d run home and play dead. The next day I would call all the newspapers and make sure they wrote about me in all the dead columns.
– Craig, age 9

When is it okay to kiss someone?
When they’re rich.
– Pam, age 7

The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn’t want to mess with that.
- - Curt, age 7

The rule goes like this: If you kiss someone, then you should marry them and have kids with them. It’s the right thing to do.
– Howard, age 8

Is it better to be single or married?
It’s better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to clean up after them. — Anita, age 9

How would the world be different if people didn’t marry?
There sure would be a lot of kids to explain, wouldn’t there?
– Kelvin, age 8

How would you make a marriage work?
Tell your wife that she looks pretty, even if she looks like a truck.
– Ricky, age 10

Eid and a Cake

It’s another Eid holiday here, Eid al-Adha also referred as “cow cutting eid”. This is the Eid where a family will sacrifice a cow, a goat or camel. They divide the meat amongst themselves, their relatives, friends and they give a portion of it to the poor people too. So, before the Eid day, you will see cows, goats being sold along the streets. And since it is Eid, the office gave a week long holiday plus the weekend, a total of 9 days, too bad I don’t have my visa and passport yet, so I wasn’t able to go out of the country and spend the holidays somewhere else.

Since it’s holiday, and even if I’m trying hard to diet and lose weight, I decided to give in to my craving of eating a “sans rival cake” which is not available here, by baking the cake myself. I searched the recipe from the net and read some reviews also from those who tried baking it themselves, and even Marketman find it's a torture to bake the cake. With the recipe at hand, the ingredients prepared, I braved myself in baking my first cake.


I boiled the syrup and at the same time melting the butter, which I should have not melted in the first place. Well, it's my first time to bake a cake so I thought the butter should be melted :-). I run out of the required amounts of chopped cashew nuts, so I just mixed it with almond nuts and another nuts, is that a walnut? And the egg yolks that should be beaten until creamy, well, I'm using only a hand mixer and it was a torture holding it for an hour just to make the eggs creamy. I got tired and the eggs are not that creamy, maybe because I melted the butter? Halfway at baking the meringue, I got scared that it will explode inside the electric oven since it just kept on rising and rising and rising. But after it was done baking, it stop rising and went back to its normal height.

And, because I don't have more than 1 Pyrex, I decided to bake all the mixture in one and just thought of slicing them when it's done baking. Only to find out that slicing this meringue is "sticky and a tough job".

So, instead of 4 layers, I was able to slice it only into three and its not perfect. I filled it with the "watery butter cream" and sprinkled it with lots of nuts and put it in the freeze, with lots of hope that this will turn out okay.



And the verdict: it is PERFECT! Just the right sweetness for me, not too sweet which will make you stop finishing a slice and not too bland that will make you guess what kind of a cake it is. The crunchiness is perfectly chewy, I love it! I just can't believe that my first attempt to bake a cake was almost perfect, almost because I didn't perfected the butter cream and the layers. But anyhoo, this is still one perfect cake for me and to share with special friends.

What Happened The You were Born

In 1980 (the year you were born)

Jimmy Carter is president of the US President Carter announces punitive measures and embargoes against the USSR in retaliation for the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan Mount St. Helens in Washington state erupts in a violent blast estimated to be 500 times as powerful as the Hiroshima atomic bomb Ronald Reagan is elected the 40th US president in a sweeping victory US Representative Michael O. Myers is expelled from the House for his role in the Abscam scandal Hewlett-Packard announces release of its first personal computer Microsoft announces their version of UNIX, Xenix Christina Ricci, Chelsea Clinton, Venus Williams, Jessica Simpson, Macaulay Culkin, and Jake Gyllenhaal are born Philadelphia Phllies win the World Series Pittsburgh Steelers win Superbowl XIV New York Islanders win the Stanley Cup The Empire Strikes Back is the top grossing film "Lady" by Kenny Rogers spends the most time at the top of the US charts U.S. viewers get caught up in the "Who Shot J.R.?" cliff hanger on the soap opera series, Dallas, which is solved on a November 21 episode, drawing a record numbers of viewers

What Happened the Year You Were Born?