Banay-Banay Restaurant

     If you happen to be on the road heading south and you're in the vicinity of the towns of Lemery, Lipa, San Jose or Taal and you're getting hungry and it's nearly lunchtime, Banay-Banay restaurant is the perfect rest stop for you.

     Our recent road trip saw our party trailblazing all the way to Banay-Banay with stomachs grumbling. It was nearly three in the afternoon and none of us has had lunch. Thankfully, someone had this bright idea of stopping over to the pink resto with ample parking space at the back.

     The service is fast and turn-over of patrons is just as furious. The cafeteria style dining has loads of viands for the weary and hungry road hog to choose from. Authentic Kilawin (pig's innards marinated in local vinegar) and Batangas style Goto (pig's innards made into a stew), Lumpiang Shanghai (fried Spring rolls), Sinigang na isda sa Miso (Fish Soup in Miso), Calamares among a bevy of meat dishes can be had for a minimal amount.

      Banay-Banay is like Batangas' answer to Everybody's Cafe in San Fernando, Pampanga, or Palaisdaan in Quezon. It's a brilliant concept, really... all the hot meals you want for as little as you can afford. On this particular Sunday that we visited the restaurant, five of us had ordered Kilawin, Lumpiang Shanghai, Goto, Calamares, two orders of Daing na Biya (dried, salted fresh-water fish) steaming hot rice and sodas for refreshment. The bill was a whopping PhP (Pesos) 470.00 or about US$12.00 (try to beat that!)... and they don't even charge for parking... =)

Our Lady of Caysasay

     Our usual Sunday routine was altered a bit when our friend announced, enroute to Quiapo church that we were about to take a road trip to Batangas after mass at the Black Nazarene in Quiapo. So instead of our usual breakfast at Binondo and weekly shopping sprees at 999, 1188 and 168 Malls we found ourselves motoring south to Taal, Batangas.

Heritage Home of the Agoncillo family in Taal, Batangas

     About two-hour's drive from Manila,  the town of Taal which is famous for its balisong ang panutsa (brittle peanut). The Bassilica of Taal, built by the Augustinians, with its massive baroque architecture reigns supreme as its main  landmark. On this particular Sunday that we visited, the church area and a few streets were closed to vehicular traffic due to a period film being shot on location there. Much as I would have liked to re-visit the church, we had to make a few detours and we ended up in the Chapel of Caysasay.

   The Chapel of Our Lady of Caysasay

     A most revered and visited image of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the Our Lady of Caysasay. The image is enshrined in Taal, Batangas (in itself a heritage town). The image is said to be miraculous and is, like every other Marian image found all over the world situated near a source of water. 

The arch marking the miraculous well

The carved image of pine wood is 225 mm tall and as legend has it, was fished out of the Pansipit River by Juan Maningkad (then chieftain of the town) in 1603. The image was brought to Fr. Juan Montoya who entrusted it to Maria Espiritu. The latter then placed it in a precious urn for safekeeping.The image was later ensconced in a special niche high in the church's main altar after it had been clothed with pure gold by Fr. Marcos Anton.  

The venerated image of Lady of Caysasay

         The image, according to legend would habitually disappear from the said niche ad reappear miraculously. On one occasion after its disappearance from the altar, two women Maria Baguhin and Maria Talain who were out gathering firewood and drawing water near a well found the image of our Lady atop a sampaga tree and guarded by a kingfisher locally called casay-casay. The Spaniards mispronounced it as Caysasay which has been retained to this day. 

The well with its miraculous healing waters

     Because the locals believe that the Image of Our Lady of Caysasay refuses to stay still in its niche, it is moved from the Taal Bassilica every Thursday and moved back on Saturday afternoon. Devotees of Taal lovingly refer to her as Birheng Gala (Wandering Virgin). Her feast Days are celebrated on the 8th and 9th of December. Incidentally, the image of Our Lady of Caysasay was canonically crowned on the 8th of December 1954 by Cardinal Fernando Quiroga y Palacios, Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela Valley.

Taal Volcano and Philippine Volcanoes Rugby Team

     The Philippines lies along the Pacific Rim of Fire. Our archipelago lies on tectonic plates that proliferate the eastern side of the country. Along with countries like Japan, Guam and California we experience earthquakes and we have just as many volcanoes dotting our emerald isles.

     Perhaps one of the more renowned volcanoes is Taal Volcano. Situated 30 to 35 kilometers south of Manila, Taal is known as the smallest active volcano in the world... it is also one of the deadliest! Recently, there has been some seismic activity in the caldera prompting PAGASA to issue warnings to residents to take precautions.

     Tagaytay, which offers the best views of Taal Volcano, is a great date place due to its cool temperature and sweeping vistas. Ergo, lots of restaurants, spas and cafes offer a multitude of foods and services for the romantic couples and families on a road trip due to its proximity to Manila.

      In Mandaluyong City, volcanoes of a different kind have stirred a commotion. The Philippine Rugby Volcanoes Team are at the center of controversy being the subjects of a risque ad campaign by a popular clothing brand. For three years now, the team of Filipino half-breeds have been reaping awards in rugby. Yeah, they gained support for their skill and teamwork. However, they gained attention for racy billboards that have featured their traffic-stopping nubile bodies and provocative poses prompting Metro Manila authorities to pull out the tarpaulins from public view. Authorities claim the said billboards are something short of immoral... nay, pornographic...

    Passing motorists have had mixed reactions... Love it or hate it, it's obviously made a difference to drivers while plying EDSA's horrendous traffic at rush hour...

       You be the judge... =)

Mary Magdalene Church- Kawit, Cavite

     Tucked away southwest of Manila in Kawit, Cavite is a small unpretentious Catholic church that is dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene.

      Built in 1638 in wood, the church was then re-constructed in1737 in its present state. This quaint little church is constructed out of coral stones and bricks with exposed beams along the knave and transcept. Its roof was blown off in a typhoon in 1831.

             
     St. Mary Magdalene is situated 800 meters away from the Aguinaldo shrine. It is a fact that General Emilio Aguinaldo was baptized in the church. The records of Aguinaldo's christening is in a glass showcase at the side of the knave.

     There are three life-sized images of the Magdalene in the church. One is at the top of the pediment on the church's facade. The second is on the niche at the retablo on its high altar. The third image is located on the left chapel on the transcept to make her more accessible to her devotees. The church has a serene energy which is so relaxing you can feel your problems fading away...

Manila's K-Pop Invasion

     The Philippines has had so many colonizers...

     First it was the Spaniards. We became a colony when Miguel Lopez de Legaspi landed in Manila in 1571 and Fray Andres de Urdaneta immediately undertook evangelization of the locals. Then there was this British interlude in 1762-1764. The British invaded Manila as an offshoot of England's Seven Years War with France. When that war had ended... the colony was returned to Spain.

      Then just as the Philippine revolution was gaining the upper hand in wrangling independence from Spain, the Americans come into the picture complete with a mock battle with the Spanish armada. For $20M, the entire archipelago was bought by the US government earning the ire and the distrust of the Filipino revolutionaries. After 42 years of US governance as a colony, WWII breaks out when Japan, as an emerging  imperialist power bombs Pearl Harbor. A week after, the Japanese takes the Philippines and entices the nation to join them with the Japan-East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.

     Of course, the US will have none of it... so they retaliate by bombing Hiroshima and Nagasaki with Albert Einstein's atom bomb. Japan surrenders... and in 1945, the Philippines is free of them. Then nation-building takes place until the new republic is born...

      These days, a new kind of invasion's taking place... it was quite weird when TV stations in Manila started airing dubbed versions of Mexican telenovelas in the 80's... after that came the Meteor Garden phenomena and a whole slew of chinovelas... now what? Well, it's K-pop! Not that we mind, the Koreans are so cute and wholesome. All of a sudden, they seem to be everywhere. You see them all over Manila hanging out in coffee shops and malls... in Baguio in their own little community up in the summer capital... even in Hawaii and Los Angeles their presence can be felt...

     Their boy-bands and girl acts have evolved to such a degree that Filipinas screech and scream in those ear-splitting, high-pitched tones it's a dead give-away they've either just seen Rain or Choi Si Won coming out on stage. Animax has a nightly 8 p.m. time-slot geared specifically for K-pop fans. TVN and Arirang have cashed in on the K-Pop invasion as well... what surprises me most is how Filipino fans with nary an understanding of the Korean language sing along with their SuperJunior and 2ne1 idols complete with lyrics and intonation...

     Sarangheyo, everyone!!!!

American Cemetery and Memorial

The Manila American Cemetery and Memorial is located in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City in Metro Manila, Philippines.

The cemetery, 152 acres (0.62 km²) or 615,000 square metres in area, is located on a prominent plateau, visible at a distance from the east, south and west. With a total of 17,206 graves, it is the largest cemetery in the Pacific for U.S. personnel killed during World War II, and also holds war dead from the Philippines and other allied nations. Many of the personnel whose remains are interred or represented were killed in New Guinea, or during the Battle of the Philippines (1941-42) or the Allied recapture of the islands. The headstones are made of marble which are aligned in eleven plots forming a generally circular pattern, set among masses of a wide variety of tropical trees and shrubbery.

The chapel, a tall stone structure enriched with sculpture and mosaic, stands near the center of the cemetery. In front of it on a wide terrace are two large hemicycles with rooms at each end. Twenty-five large mosaic maps in these four rooms recall the achievements of the United States Armed Forces in the Pacific, China, India and Burma. On rectangular Trani limestone piers within the hemicycles are inscribed the names of 36,282 of the Missing who gave their lives in the service of America and who rest in unknown graves. Carved in the floors are the seals of the American states and its territories.

The Memorial is maintained by the American Battle Monuments Commission. The cemetery is open daily to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. except December 25 and January 1.

Mabuhay Guide Candie Cobiao and myself will be conducting a tour of Manila  tomorrow which includes a visit to the American Memorial Cemetery. For inquiries on the services of the Mabuhay Guides, visit our website MabuhayGuides.blogspot.com or call 8962067.

AZKALS: Darlings of Philippine Sports

     Historically, football was never really a crowd-drawing sport in the Philippines...

     BUT NOT UNTIL THE AZKALS CAME ALONG!!!!!

     Composed of a motley bunch of young, hunky, if not all gorgeous Philippine half-breeds, the Azkals have captured the imagination of screaming fans (women and gays alike) as well as certified macho Pinoys who have started to taking to football as an alternative sport to replace basketball (if ever).

     Yesterday's convincing 4-0 win over Sri Lanka at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium proves to all and sundry that the Philippine Azkals are not all beauty and brawn... the team members are made of sterner stuff as well. Hell, yeah! they've got talent to boot (pardon the pun). And they plan to make it to the World Cup to represent the country in a sport that was virtually unsupported until they raised the consciousness of Pinoys that basketball isn't the only team sport there is.

     Never mind that most Pinoy fans don't understand the fine points of the game of football... As long as the Azkals keep scoring, the fans keep cheering them on. I give the Azkals credit not for just good looks... they've raised the bar as far as skill and technique are concerned. I wonder if fans would have shown as much support if the team members weren't as good looking...

     Oh well, move over PBA... the AZKALs are in town!!!