FORTY POINT FIVE DEGREES CELSIUS

the rain is coming down in torrents. the strong wind sets the guava tree into a manic movement against the roof. inside the house, however, it is calm and cozy warm. i lie curled up in a fetal position with my head on nanay's lap. she gently runs her fingers through my hair while singing sa lumang simbahan. her touch and her voice soothe me. i drift off ...

"jenggay ... jenggay." a light stroke on my right arm awakes me. i squint and i see kuya boying beaming. on his hands is a steaming big bowl. "nagluto ng lugaw ang nanay."

WHAT TO DO ON A GLORIOUS SPRING DAY?

ONCE UPON A TIME ...

once upon a time, in a land far far away, there was a damsel-who-was-not-really-in-distress. in fact, she was independent, smart (enough), not bad to look at (as some people attested) and knew exactly what she wanted ... except for the matters of the heart. and because of this, she had been cheated on, lied to and taken for granted. needless to say, she learnt what it was she so desired the hard way. she had almost given up on finding the elusive mr. right.

one day, however, came knight in shining t-shirt … er … armor :-) he was honest and consistent. he expressed his intentions and stuck by them even if it entailed slaying double-headed dragons along the way. most importantly, he understood that damsel wasn’t one to be saved but to be loved. and so, they lived mostly happily ever after …


happy birthday, babykoyski. you’re a true testament to the fact that not all men are scum of the earth ;-)

VISITA IGLESIA ATBP. SA BAVARIA

in the wright residence, it’s the lady of the house that has been put in-charge of researching places to visit and things to do. the easter holidays were no exception.

our good friday excursion included:

1. an hour-and-a-half scenic drive to the south of munich, in the upper bavaria. the words “south” and “upper” don’t seem to go together. it’s quite confusing for the geographically-challenged i.e. me)



2. visit to four quaint, alpine towns namely wies, oberammergau, ettal and linderhof

3. picnic by the river

4. and most importantly, activities relevant to the lenten season


WIES


the rococo church of wies (wieskirche) - pilgrimage church of the scourged saviour; listed as a world heritage site in 1983 by unesco.




it is a lovely church but the style is not my cup of tea. i find it too ornate.



OBERAMMERGAU is famous for its 6-hour passion play performed every 10 years since 1633. during the thirty years war, in the midst of their suffering and death from the plague, the oberammergauers swore that they would perform the "Play of the Suffering, Death and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ" in order to be spared.

an interesting trivia ... according to my sister, there's a philippine version called "Pagtaltal sa Guimaras." it would be good to see both to compare and contrast.



our visit of the passionsspiele theater aroused my interest. peter and i will try to get tickets to the play next year



scenes from the 2000 performance depicted on postcards ... they came free with the theater tour tickets!

farewell to his mother - © Gemeinde Oberammergau



pieta - © Gemeinde Oberammergau



passionsspiele stage



backstage



archangels' costumes




thorny crown



christ's cross



crucifixion scene explained by our guide, sybille; nobody else was around during the tour in english. our own private session woohoo! ;-)



more props and costumes



a "memo" from the city hall to all those who want to audition and participate in the play: let your hair and beard grow long :-) all actors and musicians are locals (or have been residents in oberammergau for at least 20 years)




oberammergau is also renowned for painted houses (lüftlmalerei).




picnic by ammer river; after eating our packed lunch, we went to theater-café for our milchkaffee and apfelstrudel with vanilla sauce, the best one we've had in germany. its pastry was thin and melted in our mouths. the pine nuts also enhanced the taste.



ETTAL IMAGES


the baroque basilica of the benedictine abbey; unfortunately, there was a service going on so i couldn't take any photos :-(




LINDERHOF IMAGES



linderhof palace




linderhof park

ADVENTURES OF THE RECENT PAST – PART 2b

breath-taking boracay

pedro arrived in manila christmas morning – my best present ever. we were boracay-bound the next day. the trip had been planned since march when my brother-in-law, jim and his wife, cleo, visited us in munich. cleo suggested spending the holidays together in the philippines and without batting an eyelash, i blurted boracay. i’d never been to the south actually (shame, shame on me) and so the idea was welcomed with great enthusiasm. so much so that by the end of march, our plane tickets had been reserved and accommodation sorted out by june. (n.b. the south beach diet came about because of my vanity :-D. i promised myself i’d be comfortable to don two-piece swimwear during the trip. i’ll expound on the life-transforming experience in another entry.) unfortunately, in the end, jim and cleo were not able to join us.

scared of getting stuck in the traffic, we allotted more than enough time for our taxi ride to terminal 3. when we were checking in, the cebu pacific staff asked us if we would like to catch the earlier flight. oh, yes please. and so, we did. the plane took off late (customary for cebu pacific?). after an hour, when we were about to descend, the pilot announced the stormy weather. there was a possibility of landing in the nearby airport, kalibo, if the condition didn’t improve. we hovered around for 15 minutes and finally, we landed in caticlan around 3 pm. but our luggage did not. we filled up forms and we were advised to get settled on the island. we were promised to receive a call in the evening. we took a tricycle to go to the jetty port and got on the "bangka" (outrigger boat) for a short, choppy ride. Another 15-minute tricycle ride from the port and we reached our bamboo bungalow luggage-less. we checked in and informed the reception about our plight. someone might call from the airline or deliver our things while we were out having lunch.

it was almost 7 and we still hadn’t heard from cebu pacific. i rang the local office but there was no reply. i was huffing and puffing and cussing. peter, on the other hand, was his usual self … cool as a cucumber. he told me not to worry. and he was right, our bags turned up an hour later.

all's well that ends well.


putting boracay on the map


http://www.bbboracay.com/EN/EN.html


off to boracay island!


view from our balcony


first glimpse of the paradise and our first meal

it was mostly cloudy during our 2-week stay. for a couple of days, though, we were able to witness the lovely sunset.




white beach images:


one of the 'manongs' raking the sand at the break of dawn



peaceful and quiet at the early morn




willy's rock



tree through the rooftop



young boys catching lugworms for bait



curious coiled castings (courtesy of lugworms)





getting ready to watch the sunset



bongo boys performing while the sun was setting



one of the few sunny days we had



pedro's sandy suso's hahaha!



local girls collecting pig feeds; hats off to their parents for instilling the value of hard work and dignity; i was saddened by the sight of numerous young boys and girls begging and harassing tourists for alms. some were apparently 'trained' as noted by my husband.



chica, our hotel staff's pet; puka shells around her collar; very fond of playing catch ... good girl!



if we wanted to get away from the hustle and bustle of boat stations 1 and 2, we'd stroll down south with our books and stay in our safe haven.



THE balut challenge ... ah, the things that i subject my husband to ... good thing the 'warranty period' is over. he can't 'return' me to kuya nonoy anymore :-D




four-hour boat trip: island-hopping, snorkeling, lunch buffet on tambisan beach with "allan b fun tour"; highly-recommended tours company to avoid being overcharged ;-)




"paraw" (native sailboat) sailing




the other side of the island



eating out: the restaurants that particularly pleased our palates were aria (italian), cyma (greek) and café del mar (mediterranean). hobbit house was a big disappointment.



strawberry cheesecake to die for at the aria restaurant (available in classic and mango too)




dinner at friday's boracay on our last day