When I first arrived in Japan, one of my first reactions was, “A hundred pesos for a cup of rice?!” When I left the Philippines, a cup of rice only cost around ten pesos. Five, in fact, if you knew where to go. I wasn't planning on paying ten times more than what I was used to! But such was the pricing in Tokyo that, during my first year there, I refused to eat at restaurants and satisfied myself with buying food from the supermarket if I didn't want to cook.
The experience was quite interesting, actually.
First, let's talk about drinks. In Japan, when they say “iced tea,” they mean, “iced tea.” As in Oolong tea... with ice. The most widely-ingested drink in Japan is tea, and the Japanese people drink it hot or cold.
People in Japan drank tea like water. Everywhere you go, you'd see people bringing pet bottles of tea. And the tea came in a variety of types. There was Jasmine tea, Oolong tea, Sencha, afternoon tea, lemon tea, green tea, milk tea, and many others. And then milk tea would have sub-varieties such as Earl Grey milk tea, Royal milk tea, green tea latte, and several others. And green tea also had sub-classifications of Maccha or the dessert green tea, Midoricha, which looked more like the Chinese green tea, and a mixture of both.
I was a coffee drinker back home but, before the end of the year, I was a fan of the Maccha and the milk teas.
Moving on to food, if I wanted it really cheap, I bought onigiri: triangular clods of rice wrapped in pieces of nori (dried seaweed). Onigiri comes with different fillings like beef, salmon and chicken. My personal favorite was tuna. The filling tasted somewhat like tuna sandwich minus the pickle relish. Not all fillings may be enjoyable to non-Japanese, though, so be careful when choosing. Once, I got an onigiri at random, thinking I was okay with any filling. I bought what turned out to be a plum-filled onigiri. It was very very sour.
Raising my budget a bit, I tried buying set meals. Supermarkets in Tokyo sell meals in plastic bento boxes. Some of those boxes contained the familiar tempura shrimps and teriyaki chicken, but others seemed to be rice meals with tofu, just tofu with a bit of sauce. No meat! I also found out that one of their viands that I thought was a breaded pork patty was actually made of mashed potatoes. Talk about an all-carb diet!
Mabo Tofu and the all-potato Koroke are very much part of everyday Japanese fare, I found out later. Though I never really learned to appreciate lunch of rice with only tofu or potatoes, I did form a fondness for other types of... unusual Japanese dishes.
Another type of meal the plastic bentos carried consisted of rice topped with bits of dried seaweed, chopped up pieces of scrambled eggs (sweet, by the way), flaked smoked salmon, and raw salmon eggs. As I looked at it, I couldn't help but think how strange the dish was. The thought of spooning in mouthfuls of those raw pea-sized eggs gave me goosebumps. The thin transparent shell of the eggs hid nothing of the creature forming within.
I bought one of these bentos later on. Strange as the combination might sound, I liked it. The nori gave it texture. The flaked salmon and sweet eggs gave it flavor. And the breaking of salmon eggs inside one's mouth made it a truly unique culinary experience I don't think I ever had in any other country. Just a note, though, this dish is eaten cold. The last time I heated it, the salmon eggs burst all over the insides of my microwave.
Now for the dessert. I usually used my homesickness to justify my buying cakes all the time. Japanese supermarkets sold dessert cups, and cakes by the slice. And they were no ordinary desserts. They were strawberry shortcakes, chocolate cakes, chocolate mousse, coffee jelly with cream, pumpkin jelly, chocolate pudding, and a selection of other mouth-watering goodies. And they were as delicious as they were beautiful to behold.
There were also Japanese sweets they usually sold in twos or threes. They were round sweets. Some were covered in brown powder, presumably made of wheat. Others were covered in sesame seeds, others in green tea powder, and still others skewered on sticks with sauce poured on top of them. And in spring, they even had a kind that was sakura-pink with a piece of leaf wrapped under the ball. Do not be deceived, however. The bean paste-filled balls taste more or less the same. Still, they were rather pretty to look at.
After a year, I got tired of converting the prices to peso and went on to eat at fancy restaurants in the Shibuya and Roppongi areas of Tokyo. But my experiences with Supermarket food taught me that one need not splurge on expensive restaurants to know the food culture of a country. After all, even Japanese people don't eat out all the time.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Spring in Japan
Ah, Japan: the home of sushi, geisha, and giant robots. It was the beginning of spring when I first arrived Tokyo, and I must admit, I'd had quite a number of surprises in the beginning of my stay there. There was my amazement at seeing young people dress up like vampires and baby dolls and converging in front of a shrine. There was also my astonishment at finding out there were such things as fetish cafés there where the waitresses were dressed up as French maids! But one of the more pleasant surprises I had was seeing how truly beautiful nature was in Japan.
It was some time during the first week of April when some friends took me to Yoyogi Park, a huge garden in the Shinjuku-Shibuya area of Tokyo, for what they called a “Hanami.” The word literally means, “see flowers,” particularly, a small five-petaled flower called Sakura.
Sakura, or Cherry Blossoms, bloom only once, and stay in bloom for only a few days, in the beginning of spring. I was lucky enough to arrive in time for that.
When we arrived Yoyogi Park, the Sakura trees were filled pink with flowers. There were no leaves. Only unadulterated beautiful light pink. And when the wind blew, the blossoms fell from the trees like pink snow. It was exactly like the calendar pictures and comic book illustrations I'd seen of Cherry Blossoms. Even more breathtaking, in fact, because I could actually touch the lovely flowers.
We spread a mat under one of the trees and had a picnic of sandwiches, chips and bottled tea... as did hundreds of other visitors spread out all over the park. We had a wonderful time eating, talking and admiring the celebrated blooms when I noticed some black spots on the Sakura trees.
Crows. Swarms of them. And there was something unsettling about seeing ominous black birds perched on harmless pink trees. Especially when one popular Japanese comic book claimed the reason why Sakura was pink was because the tree sipped the blood of a corpse beneath its roots, thus coloring what should have been white flowers. We got used to them after a while, though. They had to be frightened away or the chicken-sized scavengers would take our food. Crows are the Japanese equivalent of our alley cats. They would perch above and watch you eat or take your trash out. Then as soon as you release your garbage, they would swoop down and tear through it.
After we had eaten, some of my friends decided to go off and play badminton. I was contented where I was so, I declined, sat back and took in more of the view. Several of the locals were playing badminton, too. But most of them continued to sit on their mats and drink. I saw a beer can in the hand of almost every member of each group in the park. This reminded me that alcohol was an integral part of a Japanese celebration. Food is good, but no party is a party without beer or sake.
Speaking of food, there's actually more to Japanese cuisine than just sushi and tempura. Like most developed cities, Tokyo has its share of store-bought prepared food. Looking about the park, I saw that the locals brought along plastic bento boxes containing food they had bought from the supermarket. (We were cheapskates. We prepared our own sandwiches.) Their food looked really tempting. There was rice topped with bits of dried seaweeds and sesame seeds. They had viands of tempura, teriyaki chicken or some breaded patty. And of course, they had colorful side dishes made from radish, lotus roots, and several other vegetables.
One thing I can say about Japanese cuisine (and almost anything Japanese, actually), is that they're very well-prepared. A bento box, even one from the supermarket, will always be garnished. There will always be this elegant play of texture and color. And just as the Japanese scenery in spring, it will always be physically designed to take one's breath away.
The cawing of the crows signaled the sunset. Our Hanami had come to an end. No doubt the locals would be off to continue their celebration with harder drinks somewhere in the bars of Shibuya. As we packed our things to leave, I couldn’t help but take one last look at the trees we had come all this way to admire. The flowers were half gone now, blown away by the cold spring wind.
I saw the Sakura bloom twice more after that. And even then, I couldn’t help but admire the small short-lived flowers. To my mind, the picture they created was perfect. The flowers in their numbers set against the clear blue sky were magnificent, while their delicate pink color and the crows that perched on their branches hinted at an underlying darkness. The scene they created was one of tranquility, of vulnerability, and of a sad and strangely Gothic type of beauty that makes memories of them ones I shall treasure in my heart forever.
The Quest of Morning Rush
People usually take the morning rush hour for granted. Most people think it’s just there, nothing significant, nothing interesting. I beg to disagree.
I am the eldest of five. My current occupation requires me to take three different modes of transportation to reach my office. I am a Morning Knight.
I’m not saying I like the morning rush. It’s horrible. Once you arrive work, you look harassed and smell like you’ve been working the whole day, when all you did was leave your house to get to the office. But the morning rush is a daily quest that we all have to take. It is not an easy quest, and my fellow Morning Knights will agree to that.
You do not agree? Perhaps you are not a Morning Knight. I hear there is such a thing as flexible schedules now, and one can leave at a less crowded time. Let me relate to you what we, Morning Knights, have to go through, then, when we leave our homes to take on the Quest of Morning Rush.
Our day begins at sunrise; for some of us, even before. Everything starts with a tone, a high pitched beeping that pierces deep into one's slumber and attempts to draw one out of it. Then the tone stops. Then it starts again. Then a new tone starts and joins in, possibly one with a tune, this time. Then another one, crying S. O. S., joins in, too. And thus is the Medley of Alarms. For Knights like me, who have four schooling siblings, the experience is not a pleasant one, for each of us has his or her own alarm. It is a torture to the ears, much like the screaming of harpies. But it is not the real enemy. The real enemy, the first enemy Knights have to battle in their Quest, is the spirit, Hypnos.
Hypnos is the Spirit of Sleep. And he will lull you. Oh, how sweet his voice sounds. He is like a lover, serenading you, beckoning you to give in to him and his power. And I’m sure you have tasted his magnificently sweet power. But on this Quest, he is your enemy, and you must not give in to him. Hear, instead the Medley of Alarms. It is your friend on this first task of your Quest, and that is to break away from the Spell of Hypnos.
Once Knights have broken free of Sleep, they move on to their next task. Some knights have to take a three-wheeled vehicle to get to where they have to be for the second task. I do. Tricycle rides are not much of a problem to me. The only thing you can do is to wait for them. And when they arrive, you hold on.
The second task is a test of timing and speed. People call this task ‘Taking the Jeep’. For me, it is one of the worst tasks in the Quest of Morning Rush. For some people, it may be easy. But for the Knights from my little village, it is a challenge, considering that there are so many Knights, and so little of those wild creatures called Jeeps in the morning. For this task, a Knight must have good eyesight, a strong sense of timing, agility, determination, and the ability to hold on. Strong eyesight: you must see the sign on the Jeep from afar, to know if this Jeep is the kind you have to ride. Timing: you must time yourself to be able to get on during that few seconds that the Jeep slows down. Agility: You’re not the only one who wants the Jeep, so move fast! Determination: You might not finish the Quest on time. The Jeep can only hold so much. Some of you are bound to let go of the Jeep and wait for the next one. You’re not one of them. Believe me, this part is hard. I got hit by an umbrella once. But everything’s fair in this Quest. You can’t blame the woman for not attending to the other end of the umbrella while she wrestled her way into the Jeep. And well, sometimes, you can’t get in; you just have to hold on!
Ah, the third and final task is a tough one. We, Knights, call it ‘The Crush’. This is a test of endurance, and your ability to breathe in small spaces. Your enemy is a long snake-like monster called the Train. Many people battle the monster in the morning. You have to queue to get to it. Oh, the wait could take a very long time. And once you get to the platform, you have to position yourself in places where the Train’s mouths will open. And sometimes, the Train’s mouth would not fall directly in front of where it should. And the Train Driver would have to slowly make little adjustments to move the Train’s mouth to the right part of the platform. And the commuters would also make little penguin steps to keep in step with the train. All part of the Quest, I assure you.
When the Train’s mouths open, you have to push! You want to wait for a less crowded Train? You’ll never finish the Quest in time. So, push yourself in. But know that everybody else behind you will be doing the same thing. As more and more people push themselves into the Train, the less and less breathing space you’ll have; thus the term. So, position yourself. It’s all about positioning. Once you’re in, there’s nothing else to do now but wait, and make sure you don’t suffocate in the belly of the snake.
But wait! There are actually other things to survive through, too, in the belly of the snake. Of course you’ve got theft and sexual harassment. There’s entrapment, when you’re pushed against the door with a man taller than you looming before you with his arm pushing at the door above you, and you can smell his underarm and sweat but you can’t escape it because the train is too packed for you to move anywhere. And there’s also embarrassment, if you’re the man looming over with the underarm stink, and you can see how this tortures the little person under you.
And what happens when you push? Once the door opens again, you pop. And I’m not exaggerating. You will actually see people popping out of the Train when you reach a station, because you have to push your way through the wall of people near the Train’s mouth, then pop! You’re out.
And once you’ve survived ‘The Crush’, you know the Quest is over. Familiar? I wouldn’t be surprised. So, the next time you get to school or the office, give yourself a pat on the back and hold yourself in high regard. For, even before you’ve conquered the other Quests of the day, you know that you’ve completed the Quest of Morning Rush. And this is something you should be proud of.
I am the eldest of five. My current occupation requires me to take three different modes of transportation to reach my office. I am a Morning Knight.
I’m not saying I like the morning rush. It’s horrible. Once you arrive work, you look harassed and smell like you’ve been working the whole day, when all you did was leave your house to get to the office. But the morning rush is a daily quest that we all have to take. It is not an easy quest, and my fellow Morning Knights will agree to that.
You do not agree? Perhaps you are not a Morning Knight. I hear there is such a thing as flexible schedules now, and one can leave at a less crowded time. Let me relate to you what we, Morning Knights, have to go through, then, when we leave our homes to take on the Quest of Morning Rush.
Our day begins at sunrise; for some of us, even before. Everything starts with a tone, a high pitched beeping that pierces deep into one's slumber and attempts to draw one out of it. Then the tone stops. Then it starts again. Then a new tone starts and joins in, possibly one with a tune, this time. Then another one, crying S. O. S., joins in, too. And thus is the Medley of Alarms. For Knights like me, who have four schooling siblings, the experience is not a pleasant one, for each of us has his or her own alarm. It is a torture to the ears, much like the screaming of harpies. But it is not the real enemy. The real enemy, the first enemy Knights have to battle in their Quest, is the spirit, Hypnos.
Hypnos is the Spirit of Sleep. And he will lull you. Oh, how sweet his voice sounds. He is like a lover, serenading you, beckoning you to give in to him and his power. And I’m sure you have tasted his magnificently sweet power. But on this Quest, he is your enemy, and you must not give in to him. Hear, instead the Medley of Alarms. It is your friend on this first task of your Quest, and that is to break away from the Spell of Hypnos.
Once Knights have broken free of Sleep, they move on to their next task. Some knights have to take a three-wheeled vehicle to get to where they have to be for the second task. I do. Tricycle rides are not much of a problem to me. The only thing you can do is to wait for them. And when they arrive, you hold on.
The second task is a test of timing and speed. People call this task ‘Taking the Jeep’. For me, it is one of the worst tasks in the Quest of Morning Rush. For some people, it may be easy. But for the Knights from my little village, it is a challenge, considering that there are so many Knights, and so little of those wild creatures called Jeeps in the morning. For this task, a Knight must have good eyesight, a strong sense of timing, agility, determination, and the ability to hold on. Strong eyesight: you must see the sign on the Jeep from afar, to know if this Jeep is the kind you have to ride. Timing: you must time yourself to be able to get on during that few seconds that the Jeep slows down. Agility: You’re not the only one who wants the Jeep, so move fast! Determination: You might not finish the Quest on time. The Jeep can only hold so much. Some of you are bound to let go of the Jeep and wait for the next one. You’re not one of them. Believe me, this part is hard. I got hit by an umbrella once. But everything’s fair in this Quest. You can’t blame the woman for not attending to the other end of the umbrella while she wrestled her way into the Jeep. And well, sometimes, you can’t get in; you just have to hold on!
Ah, the third and final task is a tough one. We, Knights, call it ‘The Crush’. This is a test of endurance, and your ability to breathe in small spaces. Your enemy is a long snake-like monster called the Train. Many people battle the monster in the morning. You have to queue to get to it. Oh, the wait could take a very long time. And once you get to the platform, you have to position yourself in places where the Train’s mouths will open. And sometimes, the Train’s mouth would not fall directly in front of where it should. And the Train Driver would have to slowly make little adjustments to move the Train’s mouth to the right part of the platform. And the commuters would also make little penguin steps to keep in step with the train. All part of the Quest, I assure you.
When the Train’s mouths open, you have to push! You want to wait for a less crowded Train? You’ll never finish the Quest in time. So, push yourself in. But know that everybody else behind you will be doing the same thing. As more and more people push themselves into the Train, the less and less breathing space you’ll have; thus the term. So, position yourself. It’s all about positioning. Once you’re in, there’s nothing else to do now but wait, and make sure you don’t suffocate in the belly of the snake.
But wait! There are actually other things to survive through, too, in the belly of the snake. Of course you’ve got theft and sexual harassment. There’s entrapment, when you’re pushed against the door with a man taller than you looming before you with his arm pushing at the door above you, and you can smell his underarm and sweat but you can’t escape it because the train is too packed for you to move anywhere. And there’s also embarrassment, if you’re the man looming over with the underarm stink, and you can see how this tortures the little person under you.
And what happens when you push? Once the door opens again, you pop. And I’m not exaggerating. You will actually see people popping out of the Train when you reach a station, because you have to push your way through the wall of people near the Train’s mouth, then pop! You’re out.
And once you’ve survived ‘The Crush’, you know the Quest is over. Familiar? I wouldn’t be surprised. So, the next time you get to school or the office, give yourself a pat on the back and hold yourself in high regard. For, even before you’ve conquered the other Quests of the day, you know that you’ve completed the Quest of Morning Rush. And this is something you should be proud of.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
At the Port of Galera
Hmm... So this is Puerto Galera.
On April 4, 2008, my family went on a company-sponsored outing to Puerto Galera. It had been a company tradition at Shimizu Co., the company my father works in, to take all of its staff and their families outing once a year. This year, my Dad decided to go, and us along with him. It took about three hours to reach Batangas by bus, then about an hour by boat (Montenegro Lines, one of Shimizu Co.'s biggest clients) to Puerto Galera.
We had the afternoon of Friday to ourselves. My family spent it either reading, sleeping, and commenting on the tackiness of the curtains.
We had games the next day with the company's employees. What I really enjoyed, though, was pizza there. The pizza was good. There was an Italian restaurant near our cottage. It was owned by an Italian dude and his Filipina wife, who used to be his maid (talk about Cinderella story :-) ! )
The scenery was breathtaking. Beautiful beach, beautiful sky, beautiful white sand. Just look at the pictures. They're not photoshopped. The shades of blue and green were really that deep. Beautiful. Plus the rocks on the beach... many of them were marble! Maita said Romblon was nearby. That was another thing I enjoyed: walking on the shore and picking up marble.
It was nice spending the afternoon walking along the beach, picking up stones, and just taking it easy. I even made a sand sculpture of a face.
On April 4, 2008, my family went on a company-sponsored outing to Puerto Galera. It had been a company tradition at Shimizu Co., the company my father works in, to take all of its staff and their families outing once a year. This year, my Dad decided to go, and us along with him. It took about three hours to reach Batangas by bus, then about an hour by boat (Montenegro Lines, one of Shimizu Co.'s biggest clients) to Puerto Galera.
We had the afternoon of Friday to ourselves. My family spent it either reading, sleeping, and commenting on the tackiness of the curtains.
We had games the next day with the company's employees. What I really enjoyed, though, was pizza there. The pizza was good. There was an Italian restaurant near our cottage. It was owned by an Italian dude and his Filipina wife, who used to be his maid (talk about Cinderella story :-) ! )The scenery was breathtaking. Beautiful beach, beautiful sky, beautiful white sand. Just look at the pictures. They're not photoshopped. The shades of blue and green were really that deep. Beautiful. Plus the rocks on the beach... many of them were marble! Maita said Romblon was nearby. That was another thing I enjoyed: walking on the shore and picking up marble.
It was nice spending the afternoon walking along the beach, picking up stones, and just taking it easy. I even made a sand sculpture of a face.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Tickets and Travel
I seem to be traveling a whole lot this year. I was in Davao when I started the year. But then I didn't really count that as traveling since Davao is my hometown. Then again, I've just arrived from a trip to Baguio, and tomorrow, I'm off to Puerto Galera! Baguio was business. I was introducing Talecraft to the University of Baguio. Puerto is pleasure, a weekend trip with the whole family.
Then next Thursday, April 10, I'm going to Vietnam with my two sisters. Jade has classes. Pat has other plans. Mom wanted to go, actually. Well, not with us but all of her sisters are going to Hanoi on the 17th, and she wanted to go, too. But dear Daddy, ever so practical and forever wanting Mom by his side, said she had already been there last year and there was no need for her to go there again this year.
I also have a free round-trip ticket to anywhere in the Philippines from Cebu Pacific. Speaking of which, I have to book before the end of the month, and I still don't know where I want to go. Hmm... Maybe Cebu. I do need to check how my decks are doing there.
Anyway, so that's my past and planned travels so far, and I'll most likely be in Davao again this December for a family reunion.
Speaking of trips and tickets, my Dad, my brother and I just arrived last night from our overnight Baguio trip, when my Mom met us complaining her back hurt. For the details on why her back hurt, check out my sister, Maita's Blog.
"Dad, my back hurts," Mom says.
"Ah, come here," Dad replies. "I know how to make the pain go away."
And he hands Mom a sheet of paper.
Mom takes it and reads it, still pouting a little. Then my Mom's face lights up. "It's an e-ticket to Hanoi!"
Turns out, Dad had already bought a ticket last month for Mom so she could join her sisters in Hanoi. All the talk about her not needing to go there again was just a front so that when he gave her the ticket, it would be a surprise.
Then next Thursday, April 10, I'm going to Vietnam with my two sisters. Jade has classes. Pat has other plans. Mom wanted to go, actually. Well, not with us but all of her sisters are going to Hanoi on the 17th, and she wanted to go, too. But dear Daddy, ever so practical and forever wanting Mom by his side, said she had already been there last year and there was no need for her to go there again this year.
I also have a free round-trip ticket to anywhere in the Philippines from Cebu Pacific. Speaking of which, I have to book before the end of the month, and I still don't know where I want to go. Hmm... Maybe Cebu. I do need to check how my decks are doing there.
Anyway, so that's my past and planned travels so far, and I'll most likely be in Davao again this December for a family reunion.
Speaking of trips and tickets, my Dad, my brother and I just arrived last night from our overnight Baguio trip, when my Mom met us complaining her back hurt. For the details on why her back hurt, check out my sister, Maita's Blog.
"Dad, my back hurts," Mom says.
"Ah, come here," Dad replies. "I know how to make the pain go away."
And he hands Mom a sheet of paper.
Mom takes it and reads it, still pouting a little. Then my Mom's face lights up. "It's an e-ticket to Hanoi!"
Turns out, Dad had already bought a ticket last month for Mom so she could join her sisters in Hanoi. All the talk about her not needing to go there again was just a front so that when he gave her the ticket, it would be a surprise.
Tickets and Travel
I seem to be traveling a whole lot this year. I was in Davao when I started the year. But then I didn't really count that as traveling since Davao is my hometown. Then again, I've just arrived from a trip to Baguio, and tomorrow, I'm off to Puerto Galera! Baguio was business. I was introducing Talecraft to the University of Baguio. Puerto is pleasure, a weekend trip with the whole family.
Then next Thursday, April 10, I'm going to Vietnam with my two sisters. Jade has classes. Pat has other plans. Mom wanted to go, actually. Well, not with us but all of her sisters are going to Hanoi on the 17th, and she wanted to go, too. But dear Daddy, ever so practical and forever wanting Mom by his side, said she had already been there last year and there was no need for her to go there again this year.
I also have a free round-trip ticket to anywhere in the Philippines from Cebu Pacific. Speaking of which, I have to book before the end of the month, and I still don't know where I want to go. Hmm... Maybe Cebu. I do need to check how my decks are doing there.
Anyway, so that's my past and planned travels so far, and I'll most likely be in Davao again this December for a family reunion.
Speaking of trips and tickets, my Dad, my brother and I just arrived last night from our overnight Baguio trip, when my Mom met us complaining her back hurt. For the details on why her back hurt, check out my sister, Maita's Blog.
"Dad, my back hurts," Mom says.
"Ah, come here," Dad replies. "I know how to make the pain go away."
And he hands Mom a sheet of paper.
Mom takes it and reads it, still pouting a little. Then my Mom's face lights up. "It's an e-ticket to Hanoi!"
Turns out, Dad had already bought a ticket last month for Mom so she could join her sisters in Hanoi. All the talk about her not needing to go there again was just a front so that when he gave her the ticket, it would be a surprise.
Then next Thursday, April 10, I'm going to Vietnam with my two sisters. Jade has classes. Pat has other plans. Mom wanted to go, actually. Well, not with us but all of her sisters are going to Hanoi on the 17th, and she wanted to go, too. But dear Daddy, ever so practical and forever wanting Mom by his side, said she had already been there last year and there was no need for her to go there again this year.
I also have a free round-trip ticket to anywhere in the Philippines from Cebu Pacific. Speaking of which, I have to book before the end of the month, and I still don't know where I want to go. Hmm... Maybe Cebu. I do need to check how my decks are doing there.
Anyway, so that's my past and planned travels so far, and I'll most likely be in Davao again this December for a family reunion.
Speaking of trips and tickets, my Dad, my brother and I just arrived last night from our overnight Baguio trip, when my Mom met us complaining her back hurt. For the details on why her back hurt, check out my sister, Maita's Blog.
"Dad, my back hurts," Mom says.
"Ah, come here," Dad replies. "I know how to make the pain go away."
And he hands Mom a sheet of paper.
Mom takes it and reads it, still pouting a little. Then my Mom's face lights up. "It's an e-ticket to Hanoi!"
Turns out, Dad had already bought a ticket last month for Mom so she could join her sisters in Hanoi. All the talk about her not needing to go there again was just a front so that when he gave her the ticket, it would be a surprise.
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