2012 Summer Dance Workshop

May 19 and 20 were red-letter days for students and scholars of the CCP Dance School. This was the day when all the month long intensive dance training was coming to a close and this was their chance to shine as dance artists. The big day was eagerly anticipated by the students and their parents alike. For one brief moment the stage lights shine on thier little aspiring ballerinas and danseurs.

This year's recital is A Garden Tale. As a tribute to former Dance Cirector and good friend  Noordin Jumalon, the ballet was presented in its original libretto with cast of characters taken from Noordin's whacky, witty side. The lead was ably protrayed by two young dancers Luis Cabrera and Denise (can't recall her last name, sorry!)

The rest of the cast was portrayed by both paying students and CCP Dance scholars. All were cutely dressed in their characters of good and evil, sitaw (string beans), yellow bells, butterflies, birds, stars, slimeys, glow worms, mice, etc.

The good thing about it is that the little girls and boys aspiring to become artists someday were all quite comfortable in their performances. Some even hammed it up for an adoring audience. I got good reviews from the costumes we created in so short a time.

The second part was the contemporary and hip-hop classes. For this portion, it was an under the sea adventure theme. The dancers had accessories to protray them as dolphins, starfish, angelfish and jellyfish as well. Two giant whale sharks were constantly flitting about in the audience. The set was a modernized seascape done in white and ably lit in shades of blue.

Finally, for the last portion,  the company took their turn as an inspiration to their younger aspiring dancers. this is what eventually they hope to become. The male ensemble did Lahat ng Araw which is a choreography by Alden Lugnasin. Men in red tiered skirts and huge fans were frolicking about in a seductive fashion. Then came Vision of Fire by Edna Vida Froilan. This fiery piece was punctuated by lots of contractions and pulses from dancers dancing to a highly percussive beat and highlighted by strains from a saxophone.

For the piece de resistance, It was Candice Adea and JM Rodriguez, international ballet awardees both, performing the Don Quixote pas de deux. Candice and JM are set to compete again this week in another dance competition. We wish them well on their new challenges as their aspire for greater ballet heights.

Mesa's Great Meals

May 15th was a special day for our dear friend June Recto. It's his birthday. So he had  a special treat courtesy of Sarita who thought it would be a great idea to go out for dinner at Greenbelt. Originally, it was to be held at Yakimix. but since both of us have had our fill of fresh seafod while we were in Leyte, the next choice was at Mesa Grill in Greenbelt 5.

Mother June, Sarita, Jojo, Fides and myself were present for the dinner. After the usual gift-giving, we started to get hungry on that muggy evening and for starters we had pomelo salad. A tangy mix of pomelo slivers, grated coconut, friend garlic  wrapped in banana leaves and dressed with a vinaigrette laced with coconut milk.

Next came a platter of Pansit Palabok. Glass noodles slathered with a shrimp based sauce and garnished with crispy fried garlic chips, chives, slivers of hard boiled eggs and crushed chicharones. Traditionally, palabok is salty but normally balanced with the juice of calamansi. This platter was well balanced and so yummy.

The next order was for grilled mussels topped with a creamy cheese sauce and some crumbled garlic chips on top. Needless to say, the dish was so good it didn't take five minutes to devour everything on the plate. But that was just for starters anyway... there was more to come...

Bangus belly done bistek style came next. You could feel the milk fish fat melting in your mouth. The onions rings were the perfect foil to the oily sauce it came in. The gravy had a little soy sauce mixed in with calamansi for that added zing to it.

y favorite dish was the baby squid cooked adobo style in its own ink. It was very tender t the bite with lots of garlic flavor thrown in. It was the perfect partner for the fried rice with slivers of mango and shrimp paste.

First time you heard of Two-way Laing? Laing is a traditional Filipino dish from the bicol region that's made out of the edible leaves of yam and slow cooked in coconut milk and spiked with the hot taste of local bird's eye chili. This dish came two ways ( as mentioned) one serving had the coconut milk sauce in it while the other serving was a dried up version.

We had spicy prawns as well. The huge prawns were pan-fried and then added with a red chili-garlic paste on top and garnished with a local variety of sili'ng panigang to it. It had a sweet-spicy taste and aroma that's enticing to the diner.

Crispy Pata was served conveniently without the bones. It takes the labor out of enjoying a fried crispy pork hock dipped in tangy vinegar/spy sauce dip with little fuss and effort. The pata was fried to a crispy golden brown

Then to cap off the dinner we had buko/pandan and Batangas coffee jelly for dessert. While I had Turon served with mango ice cream and wrapped samosa style. It was an evening of fun laughter and good food to celebrate a friend's birthday.

It was just too much fun!

ByeBye, Baybay!

It's been  a decade since I've been to Leyte... maybe less! I remember the first time I was there it was for the National tour of Ballet Philippines of the production of Shoes. . then we intermittently went to Leyte for the Kitefest every summer. So I have no exact recollection of when I was there last.

This summer I was invited by a dear friend to visit Baybay, Leyte. Who was I to refuse? I said yes at the first intstance. We planed in on the 8th of May on a 4a.m. flight on Zest Air. Unfortunately, the return trip was delayed for two hours (but that's another story.) I was with June, his sister Didith and hubby Carlo. 

Photo ops were in order as we passed by the Mac Arthur landing monument. There was no water in the pool so we took the liberty of joining Uncle Douggie for some great shots. Then we motored our way to Baybay which was our final destination. We got there in two hours thanks to the great road network in Leyte. Just recently, Baybay has been elevated into cityhood. So progress was inevitable, although I must say, the city has remained quaint and unique. More importantly, green as ever!

The purpose for going to Leyte was to attend the Nunez Family re-union which was hosted by June's cousin, Bong. We crashed at their home and had a great rest at their bahay kubo that was cool and breezy, ventilation was never a problem. Lucky I brought my mosquito net tent, though. These mosquitoes have a habit of finding me wherever I am. We had to days to laze around prior to the event so we went around my old haunts like VISCA and the seashore. 

A lot has changed since I was there last. There is a new apartelle aside from the hotel which is operated by the university. Another area is the cabanas which rent for P500.00/night. However all the cabanas were occupied by foreign students until June. The venue for the party was at the pavilion near the VISCA swimming pool. So the day before the event, Bong and his sisters and nieces started dressing up the venue which was turned into a barrio fiesta atmosphere.

On the day of the event, the family members started arriving. Registration was very orderly and the appetizers were offered by waitresses who went around providing snacks for the relatives who were milling around bonding with each other. Food was overflowing... so were the drinks. All in all, the event was fun, lasting until late afternoon.

After a fortnight, another re-union was in the offing. It was the APDANS re-union. APDANS is an acronym for Amihan, Poliquit, Diaz, Almeroda, Nunez ans Silao families. You can just imagine how many people were in attendance. Early morning Mass was celebrated as a form of Thanksgiving. Then the families started trooping to the Baybay Elementary school grounds. This re-union was a potluck affair. Each family had their own family recipes which they shared with the other families. One was required to go around and try the fares on the other tables. This was  as much fun as the Nunez re-union. By the sixth day, it was time to head home. 

I had too much fun in Baybay, that it could have been the perfect vacation... Swimming all day, night swimming under the full moon light with lots of siesta and fresh seafood in between. Well. something tells me I'll be back soon... after all... I've been adopted into the clan. That's one for the books!

Taal Crater Lake

I've been to Taal many times. So I was given another rare treat when I was assigned to a tour of the Taal crater Lake with an American guest who wanted to trek and experience the world's smallest (and one of the most active) volcanoes. Who was I to refuse? 

Taal Volcano phto taken from the ferry boat

So at eight a.m. on May's first Friday, we were motoring towards the south to get to the site. I had actually shown the guests around Manila the day before and they were quite impressed. On this particular day, they were in for another experience. The ladies opted to skip the trek and instead have a day of pampering at (no less than) Sonya's Garden just a bit off Tagaytay at Amadeo, Cavite.

Jade vine hanging in one of Sonya's Garden footpaths

It didn't take us long to ge to Tagaytay. Traffic was virtually non-existent on that day. At half past nine, we had reached the junction on the Sta. Rosa route and we had to stop at the Econo Hotel view deck for some photo ops. I gave the guest a brief overview of where we were headed and what was in store for the trekkers.

Sturdy Batangas mountain horse

The ladies wanted to join us to the drop off point in Club Balai Isabel in Talisay, Batangas just so they can see the volcano a little closer as the dock was just a twenty minute boat ride off the lake. As we got into the ferry that would take us to volcano island, the lades were whisked off for they day spa treatments.

Clu Balai Isabel dock on the right

In twenty minutes we were on the island and we waited just a few minutes to mount the horses. Apparently the package included the use of the sturdy local mountain horses. There were the local guides who owned the horses and they held on to the reins. I haven't ridden in 25 years. But hey, it's just like riding a bike. You never forget how it's done. So my guide carried my backpack so he can piggyback on my mount (Alexandra). It was a fun ride! We were on site in twenty minutes... it would've taken longer if we had trekked along the way.

Me on horseback after 20 years

The guest was awed by the experience. He did know how to ride as well but his legs were a bit too long for his stirrups. Guess they don't have as many tall guests... lol! I arrived way ahead as I had better control of the horse's speed. When we reached the top we purchased some Gatorade for the guides. Some walked all the way to the top so that was the least we could do as a gesture of courtesy. Naturally, the drink cost a hundred per bottle as they had to bring them to the island, cool them with ice brought over from the main island and then lugged on horseback to the top of the ridge of crater lake.

Dust heralds the arrival of the guests

The view as always, is spectacular. the lake looks so benign belying the activity going on underneath. The water looked so green and inviting but it has remained sulfuric. Some researchers who dived into the lake discovered their wet suits were bleached when they came up out f the water. Locals are normally alerted when the volcano acts up. But they know well enough to leave the island as soon as the earth starts to rumble under their feet.

View of Taal crater lake from the ridge

All in all, the experience was an eye-opener for the guests. Growing up in a farm, Taal crater's rural life is so far-removed from his. He realized how very fortunate he is to have the material things he now enjoys. By noon we had returned back to the Club Balai dock to wait for the van that would take us to Sonya's Garden. Midway, it had started to rain. 

Private villas in Club Balai Isabel, Talisay Batangas

There was some sort of mix-up over where the guys were to have lunch. We thought it was at the famed Josephine's but apparently the host had already ordered food at Sonya's Garden. When we got there the ladies were already sitting at the table having starters. The ladies looked like a million bucks! They were so well rested and relaxed from all that pampering that they got from the spa staff.

Jade vine flower at Sonya's Garden

 By three p.m. we were returning back to Manila. The guests were so relaxed they slept most of the way. At half past five we were back at Makati Shangri-la as we took the greenfield estates route towards SLEX. Again, no traffic!!! That was one for the books!!!!