A Bag of Beans

We were in Tagaytay yesterday. It was a holiday and we needed to buy some stuff from Ilog Maria. We also wanted to take some pictures to practice Boyet's photography and for ikee's Triond account. Well, that's really next to the fact that we love going to Tagaytay whenever we can.

One of the things we like doing there is having coffee at the Bag of Beans Restaurant along the main road. It had been some time since we last went there so we thought this time we should. What is visible from the road looks like a rustic cottage. But below that structure is a beautiful garden with 2 large dining areas a few tables with umbrellas and about 2 or 3 covered tables. Covered because it actually is housed in huts with open sides.

When we got to the take out area by the road, it smelled like bread. True enough, I saw some loafs beside the counter and the sales girls said they were raisin bread freshly baked that they were still hot. The bread lovers that we are, we naturally ordered it with the instruction to cut it in half. One half would be sliced and served and the other half to be taken home.

I had ordered hot native chocolate but wanted to order a meat pie which the resto is famous for. Boyet got coffee while ikee ordered some iced tea and a pineapple pie. They had wanted to get the apple pie but I reminded them that we already bought one whole apple pie from Good Shepherd. When our orders came, the bread stood out because it was really really fresh, and the raisins overflowing at the sides. It tasted better that it had looked. Not too sweet with just a hint of cinnamon.

Almost halfway through the meal, I still wanted my meat pie. Boyet said I should just order it so I did. The steak and gravy meat pie was as superb as I can remember it. Crust is flaky, and the filling is flavorful. Yummy!

Next time you're in Tagaytay, drop by their place. It's really a treat to go there.

Returning to The Walled City - Intramuros, Manila

The last time was in 2003, when my cousin Erin was around and we showed her the place. Luckily, that wasn't my first time in Intramuros but it seemed all new to me because the first time I went there it was nighttime and there were some bands playing some tunes over near the ruins of a church.

This time we went there to walk around the area with our guest, VirtualTourist.com member Barbskie who has been living in Switzerland for the past oh, 20 years or so. The rustic charm of the walled city is still evident. Some areas had been restored while others still stood where it was 400 years ago. Like the San Agustin Church. Nothing much has changed. Although what really caught my eye, which I didn't notice before, were the chinese figures (in the likeness of dogs) that were made to stay under the idols in the facade. there, of course, was the contrast of the Spanish and Chinese cultures. The european touch is more simple and predictable while the asian - as mysterious, alive and invigorating.

There was the Manila Cathedral where several weddings were being held literally one after the other. It's rather costly to get married there these days and I heard that if you would like to tie the knot there, you'd have to book it 1 year in advance. 1 year?! Facing the cathedral was a statue of King Carlos (I think that's what his name is) who had sent vaccines to the Philippines. Good guy? I wouldn't be so certain. Maybe so to deserve a monument. The Spaniards may have wrought havoc in our land but they did do some good things too.

As we walked along, coming from the ruins of a church, I noticed a lone brick window of a dimly lit room. It looked really old and I couldn't be certain whether it was made to look that way or it has really stood the test of time. Anyway, it did catch my fancy so I figured it was worth having a creative shot of it. I tweaked the settings of my camera (it is one of those point and shoot cams with some manual settings on it), positioned myself right in front of it and took the shot. As the flash came on, a voice emanated from that dark room... it was a man, in his underwear, his back facing me! Apparently, he was startled by my intrusion and got up from where he was. I was surprised too and got a little scared, that I ran toward my companions who were about 100 meters away from where I was standing. They had a laugh when I told them what just happened.

We didn't have the time to go to Fort Santiago because the guys wanted to watch the sunset at Manila Bay. After all, that, according to some, is one of the most picturesque in Manila.

Intramuros is still beautiful and would be a perfect venue for a Filipiniana wedding. Well, you might be wondering about the Manila Bay sunset - we were late!

Hong Kong Science Museum - A Must See!

You want to know where to go in Hong Kong - that high tech city, with high tech facilities and high tech things around. Naturally, you gotta go to a high tech museum. hehehe



But kidding aside, one should not miss the Hong Kong Science Museum as it is something for old and young people. It is full of exhibits most of which are interactive and unlike the ones normally seen in a science museum. It covers paleontology, anatomy, physics, chemistry, electromagnetism, computers, telecommunications, solar energy, etc. What I liked the most there was the TV studio where they created a real life studio (a small one of course) and the visitor is able to make a TV show where he operates the buttons behind the scene and another visitor acts as the newsman. There's a TV where the show is broadcasted and the effects we see such as rainfall or snow are shown.


The science museum is right in front of the museum of history. The entrance fee is 25 HKD per person but it is free on wednesdays.

Lively Macau!

We were in transit in Macau twice before we finally stayed overnight. First was on our way to Hong Kong and the next was when we were going to Zhuhai, China. It is spring time in all three places but the weather was best in Macau. It was cool and had some fog even during the daytime. Perfect for walking.

There were a lot of things to see in Macau, contrary to what I was told by my friends. And unlike how I had pictured it, Macau is pretty much a city as Hong Kong. The place is as alive in the morning as it is at night in comparison to Las Vegas where it is sleepy during the daytime. Also, unlike Las Vegas where gambling is everywhere with slot machines found even in the remotest place, Macau's gambling spots are confined to the Casinos.

We checked in at the Metropark Hotel at Rua de Pequin. But, since the check in time was at 3 pm, we left our luggage with them and went around the place first. Our first meal was at 3 pm (again!) at the Artica Trattoria, a european (Italian I believe) restaurant in the vicinity of MGM Hotel. They had really nice pizza and pasta. Most of the staff were Filipinos who made us feel comfy. We got some tips on how to go around from them and they've been pretty helpful.

Next we went to the Leal Senado which was so full of tourists and proceeded to the St. Paul Ruins. Just beside the ruins were the Mount Fortress and the Macau Museum. Museum was closed at that time because they were renovating but we were told that they'd be open by April 15. too bad as we'd be back in the Philippines by then.

We did some window shopping near Leal Senado after that because we intended to look for the cheapest wares and purchase them the following day. But going back there did not happen as the following day we went to the Dr. Sun Yat Sen Park, then to lunch at Dom Galo. After lunch, we had a tour of the casinos which included the MGM, the venetian and Starworld.

The taxis were hard to find at certain places and times. As I recall, there were at least 3 times when we had to wait an average of 40 minutes to get one. The worst was that we had to walk so far to find a cab too. And it was rather hard to follow the map I had as it did not indicate which parts had tunnels and were impossible to walk on.

The trip ended there. 8 days in all three places (Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai) were not enough to see the sites. Perhaps another trip in the future would be longer? Impossible!

The Hong Kong Story and the Museum of History

On our first day in Hong Kong (April 6), we had lagged behind our schedule. Having arrived at 3 am from Macau, we had slept through practically the whole morning. I had scheduled for us to visit 2 museums on that day but we only had time to go to 1. Naturally, we chose to go where there would be a guided tour and one which would serve our main purpose for the trip - The Hong Kong Museum of History. There were only 2 days in a week that the museum had guided tours which were on saturdays and sundays and we couldn't pass it up.

My family wasn't so excited to go at first. What would we see there? Bones and relics? These weren't the kind of things you'd like to view on a holiday right? But the museum was far from just that and so far among all of the museums I have seen, it is by far among the best ones. The exhibit area was a wide, 3-storey building. The management had taken pains to paying attention to the minutest detail. The airconditioning was perfect, the lights went on a cycle of dim to bright to dim again. This, according to our guide, is because they had wanted to recreate a whole day for the visitor. The reception area is not so impressive as it was large and dim with just a single counter where a lady receptionist was to attend to visitor questions. From there, we went down to the basement. The museum observed a one way flow of traffic such that all exhibits will lead you to the exit.

The exhibits went from the prehistoric period, to the geological compositions of HK, to the time of the british occupation up until the reunification of China. There were at least 3 movies which were all free. Our guide, Eric, told us stories at each stop we made. The exhibits were fantastic. One of my favorites is that of a remake of a chinese village where a wedding was going to take place. According to their tradition, the bride is not allowed to see her groom until after the wedding. She would have to be fully covered lest some spirits play tricks on her and cause her to get ill, crazy or even die. Neither is she allowed to touch the ground before they are wed. Instead, she has to be carried on the matchmaker's back the whole time. Tough job huh? The matchmaker plays a vital role in every girl's wedding just like in Mulan. The matchmaker's job starts when she chooses among the girls who is worthy of being a bride. Then, she looks for a suitable husband for her. After that, she has to be in the wedding, attend to the bride until after they are wed. They didn't hear how much events planners are paid these days. hehehe

The museum had 3 floors and each floor had several themes. I had only alloted 4 hours for that visit. It turned out that it was so beautiful that the 4 hours was not enough. 6 hours wasn't either but we had to cut short the trip because they had to close the museum already.