Aling Taleng's Halo Halo

If you happen to go for a road trip further south of Laguna- to the Pagsanjan-Cavinti road, don't miss a chance to drop by Aling Taleng's Halo-halo. It has been in business since 1933.

Halo Halo goodness!

My husband hails from Cavinti and we have actually passed by Aling Taleng's more than a hundred times over many years.  When we returned to the Philippines in 2013, we noticed that Aling Taleng's usual hole-in-the-corner look is sporting splashes of sunny colors, making it stand out from an otherwise busy small town road. The place is also air-conditioned which is a welcome treat especially during hot and humid seasons in the Philippines.

It is actually more than just a halo halo kiosk, it is a restaurant that serves a full menu of local favorites ranging from all-day breakfast, seafood, chicken cooked different ways, sinful crispy pata, pata tim, lechon kawali and vegetable dishes. They also have the diner-variety faves like fried chicken and burger.

My favorite is the Tortang Patola.  Saw this in the menu and really got curious... I was not disappointed. Minced patola with a perfect coat of golden batter, crisp on the outside but surprisingly tasty for a quite-bland veggie. Whenever we dine at Aling Taleng's, Kyla and I look forward to ordering the Tortang Patola. We also love the Crispy Tilapia and the Butter & Garlic Chicken.

Loved the Tortang Patola

Garlic Fried Chicken

Not to forget the star of the menu -- the halo halo, but of course! The serving is generous with finely shaved ice and topped with a sweetened kundol. I am not a fan of halo halo but I would make an exception for Aling Taleng's. I particularly like finely shaved ice bits, halo halo is not overly sweet and ingredients have generous portions. The sweet kundol topping also worked for me instead of the usual ice cream. Definitely worth a trip!

And oh, you will be delighted to know that they have Wifi too!

The Pahiyas Festival Experience

This post is actually too late for the actual event and too early for the next one....

We wanted to do experience the Pahiyas festival for quite some time and finally, last May 2014 we made it happen!

Pahiyas is a yearly festival set in Lucban, Quezon in honor of San Isidro, the patron saint of good and abundant harvest.  Pahiyas literally means “to decorate”. This is one of the most colorful festivals in the Philippines held every 15^th of May.  Houses and streets are decorated mostly from colorful kiping as well as assorted harvest and food fare.

Lucban is a 2 to 2.5 hour drive from where we live in Laguna, accessed via SLEX and passing by the towns of Los Banos, Bay, Santa Cruz and turning right to the Pagsanjan-Cavinti road. 

Here are few tips to enjoy the Pahiyas Festival:

·         We preferred to come earlier in the day while it is still relatively cooler. Alternatively, you can also go on a late afternoon to early evening. Most homes were designed to have colorful lighting in the evening.

·         It is better to bring your own transportation but be prepared to park it just off the highway junction.

·         Be prepared to walk at least a kilometer or more, from the Lucban junction just off the end of the highway going to the streets where the festivities are held. All modes of transportation are not allowed anymore inside the town’s main streets. You really have to walk!

·         Consequently, wear light, summer-friendly clothing, hat/cap, sun protection and comfortable shoes or slippers.

·         If you forgot to bring a summer-y hat, you can always buy one along the streets of Lucban for a price that is almost a steal! 

·         Don’t expect all the streets of Lucban to be garbed with colorful decorations. Usually, only a select section will be decked every year and each street take their turn year on year. If you have no idea which is the right street to visit, just follow the crowd and you’ll never go wrong.

·         Take time to appreciate the ‘Pahiyas’ of every participating household. I interviewed one home maker and I was told it took them at least one week to decorate. And lots of harvest, patience and creativity.

·         Some houses have a 2^nd floor balcony that overlooks the street. Ask permission from the home owner to allow you to have your picture taken from the balcony itself for a better backdrop. Most home owners will actually oblige. We tried this in at least two houses.

·         I have not tried partaking lunch from a random house, although I heard this is pretty standard expectation during festivals in provinces. The nosy me couldn’t help but notice that most home owners do not necessarily have feast that is open for public. Some houses had videoke but no food.  Net, plan to stop-by somewehere else for lunch.

·         Don’t forget to try street fare especially the Pancit Habhab. Stir-fried egg noodles are served on a banana leaf with a dash of vinegar and you have to eat the pancit straight from the banana leaf without using any fork. Hence the name, habhab. Yep, you get the picture! Habhab-an na!

·         If you are the squeamish kind and need table, chair, airconditioning, the works, drop by at Buddy’s Restaurant for an equally authentic pancit habhab. Parking can be a challenge though. And on the day of the festival itself, be prepared to wait in line.

·         For your pasalubong fare, try the Lucban Longganisa or Broas (Lady Fingers) by the bucket. 

·         Follow the path leading to the Parish church and town plaza where more festivities abound. They also replicated their version of the Higantes (Giants) which was made famous by our very own Angono, Rizal.

Our children are not exposed to town festivals so we took this opportunity for them to experience the fiestang Pilipino.

It is truly more fun (and more colorful) in the Philippines!

Road Trip: Weekend at Sentosa

I did promise to write about Sentosa by end-April but as a pleasant surprise, it came too soon!

I was soooo tired and dead to the world so hubby and I decided to treat the family to a weekend at Sentosa to de-stress.

Sentosa was apparently a former fishing village and part of the island is reclaimed land, beautifully transformed into a themed resort. There are several hotel resorts within Sentosa and you can get packages for accomodations and Universal Studio tour. Shangrila being the famous one (and pricey). I learned that Sentosa is actually divided into several distinct themed areas. We were booked at the Hard Rock Hotel (coz the other hotels were unfamiliar to me, but I found they were ok). Kyla thought it was so cool.

Great details in the Rock Themed Hotel!

Iconic Merlion at the Imbiah Point

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The Lake of Dreams is a Kaleidoscopic Sight to behold at night.

On Day 1, we explored the Imbiah Point where you will find the Tiger Sky Tower, Cable Car, Zip Line Adventure, Luge and Skyride, Songs of the Sea, Butterfly Park and Insect Kingdom, Underwater World and Dolphin Lagoon, Merlion Point, 4D Magix and CineBlast and many others. Exploring this area will need one day already.

Kevin was a bit nervous going into the Cable Car ride esp. when the accelerators are boosted but overall he was fine. I learned that Kyla isn't a bit bothered by heights.

We wanted to try to Luge Ride but apparently kids 6 y/o and above have to ride alone. Which could be quite risky for Kevin so we figured we'll do this another time.

Kyla and I went crazy over the Candilicious Outlet, as in a world-full of candies. Nuff Said.

We saved Day 2 for the Universal Studio tour. The Iconic Universal Studio "Globe" (aka "Your Official Been There Bragging Right" shot) was actually under renovation (!) so a photo wall will have to do. There are five themed areas named after key blockbuster movies from the Universal Studio and the Hollywood and New York lanes littered with shops and food outlets. The park rides are 100% completed by now so its a great time to go. The Cyclone was quite awesome to behold! There are also plenty of themed cafes in every area so fear not, you'll never go hungry!

You can also catch your favorite (or not) characters and celeb lookalikes around the park for photo-op. I was actually hoping to find Marilyn Monroe or Michael Jackson... And dont worry because they have assistants who can take your family pic and ensure that there is smooth queueing.

The grand finale is the Firework show at the Lake Hollywood which I thought was a blast of an ending. There is something about theme parks that touches me. Theme parks remind me of the good ol' days of my childhood when life was simpler and we have the Fiesta Carnival at the Araneta Center in Cubao as the center of our childhood weekend treat. The sights and sounds of the theme park keeps us forever young at heart. I am sure that our children will also someday look back and find these memories locked in their hearts.

For more pictures, find me at Facebook!

X-plore Singapore Series: Jurong Bird Park

Today is a good day to take a breather and visit the Jurong Bird Park. We decided to take the Bird Park as the first destination because it is quite unique to us who were raised in the era of Manila Zoo, Q.C. Wildlife and much later, Ocean Adventure and Zoobic Safari.

"With over 4,600 birds across 380 species, Jurong Bird Park is one of the world's best in the conservation and display of birds in its natrual settings." Its awesome how Singapore is able to create a sanctuary for such different bird species.



Ready for my close-up!



We took the Panorail to have an overview tour of the entire park and later on, we can choose areas where we would like to linger a bit longer. We enjoyed watching the Flamingos and  Pelicans because they were set in their natural settings and you can enjoy watching them swim afloat the lake, unlike the other birds who have to remain in guilded displays. The Hornbills and Toucans are also interesting but quite monochromatic for camera saved for the yellow beak.

The Aviary was also fun and we had a chance to have close encounters with the most colorful birds we've ever seen!  There were also series of shows round the clock in the Ampitheaters. We enjoyed Birds n Buddies the most! You can even experience bird feeding at The Loft!



Photo-Op starts at the entrance

 





Bee-Eaters neatly lined up. Just liked the way Kevin liked 'em.



We lingered at the African Waterfall Aviary.
Kevin loved the rustling water.

The pink Flamingos were a joy to behold.
Kyla was busy snapping a few photos of her own in her Digicam.

Before calling it a day, Kyla even went to buy a replica of Barry (red and blue Parrot) who starred in the show and for Kevin we named his new pet Jurong (Bird of Paradise)!

Date with Kevin

This is actually a subset from Kevin's 10th Birthday.

To make his day special, we had a lunch date at the Mall while they prepare the balloons and gifts for Kevin's birthday dinner later. Kyla obliged to have this as a "Mommy and Kevin day" so she stayed home (it was still a summer vacation) and made us promise to buy her a pasalubong.

We had lunch at his favorite pizza restaurant and bought new toys and clothes. He enjoyed browsing over the cars before selecting one and played with the vinyl balls.

As usual, we had to commute going home but what was fun was that we waited to ride a jeep where we can sit at the front row.

Kevin loved it!

Pasalubong Heaven

We went to hear Good Friday mass at the Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Tagaytay. On our way home, we made sure to stop by Rowena’s. I’ve been to Rowena’s once, going home from Punta Fuego and my friend Zarah was the one who introduced this to us.

Kyla went with me inside the store but not before I took a photo of Kyla beside no less than the store owner herself in front of the store, cheerfully greeting her throngs of customers! She smiled gamely as I took a picture. Rowena’s is a quaint nook with red and white awnings and they now have Rowena’s Café as well!

Rowena’s is literally a universe of pasalubong goodies – sweet, sour, salty and more sweets! Their flagship product are their scrumptious tarts which comes in buko, pineapple, mango and ube. They also have the usual colorful boat tarts as well that comes in variety of flavors.
For me, their best sellers are the Blueberry Cheesecake Tarts, Strawberry Cheesecake Tarts (I’ve bought both) and the Chocolate Mousse Tarts. Each comes in a box of 6.

I also love their Sylvannas! When we went back during Holy Week, it’s been wiped out already! I tried their Buko Pie and although I must admit that my loyalty for Buko Pie is with Lety’s and D’ Originals, I am actually an instant fan!

Going around the store, Kyla and I spotted a whole variety of “munchables” and treats for the sweet-toothed ones which range from the Southern Tagalog delicacies (sweet and spicy tamarind, espasol, okoy, cassava pie, ube, all sorts of pies, nuts and crackers) as well as regional delicacies (piyaya, chicacorn, meringue, chicaron, pastillas, candied fruits, tahong chips, coffee beans to go and bottled juices and honey).

I spotted at the left most side of the shop, they have a few wooden table and chairs for the sprouting Café. I glanced at the menu idly and I saw locally brewed coffee and pasta dishes (my favorite). Next time, we’ll give it a go!

Next time you go to Tagaytay City, make sure you pass by Rowena’s, along Manila-Tagaytay Road for your hoards of pasalubong goodies. If you are heading to Tagaytay, you will find it on the left side of the road. Just make note when you start seeing a few vehicles queueing along a red and white nook. Chances are, you landed at Rowena’s. It’s truly a pasalubong heaven!

View their website at http://rowenas-tarts-tagaytay.com