Pahiyas Festival 2012

In honor of San Isidro Labrador, it was a tradition to celebrate the Pahiyas Festival here in the town of Lucban every 15th of May. This is the way the farmers give thanks for the bountiful harvest by displaying colourful rice wafers, fruits, vegetables and handicrafts decorating every house in town.

It was my first time to join a festival celebration in Lucban and was so glad to get to see and feel the warmth of the locals here.

What can you expect during the event? 

1. Food; Of course it's everywhere, they expect number of visitors so you can either eat in any local stores or sidewalk. Or look for your friends house to invite yourself in. For us, hindi namin nahanap yung house ng office-mate namin so we stick to our plan to eat around the area.

Kiping is made from grind rice that was brilliantly colored for main decorations.
Pwede ring i-ihaw para kainin. 

The famous longganisa ng Lucban

And, pansit Habhab - this is 10php per serving. 

Pwede ring pamaypay - :D pero nakapila to para ihawin.

Fried Kiping topped with sugar, mas bet ko toh kaso si ate natalsikan ako ng mantika. :p

2. The Lucban Church; It is devoted to town’s patron saint, San Isidro Labrador and this church is said to be almost 400 years old.

We should not forget to include visiting the Church to give thanks

The beautiful structure of the church outside.

3. Parades; You can see marching bands, ladies wearing colorful costumes/Filipiniana made of native materials, floats and farmers with their Carabaos in costumes.

4. Street Party; We also saw a group of environmental activist singing in the street. They caught our attention because of the Reggae theme of their band and the singer sang well. Hindi namin napansin nag cause na siya ng isang malaking party-party sa initan. Even the foreigners joined the party. Asteeg at ang saya lang!

Haribon haribon...

Instant dance floor sa initan, angsaya! 

Don't get near the mic or else you'll get to sing too.

5. Souvenirs; Of course don’t go home without buying something for pasalubong.

Meet Sol, my travel buddy for this trip (Actually may isa pa pero camera shy)

Na-aalala nyo pa ba toh nung mga kabataan natin? :p

And of course the main attraction are the houses of the locals in Lucban. This is the reason why tourist go to the town every 15th of May. 

It rained for a while pero uminit na ng tanghali. 

Tutubing Okra :p

Locals are kind enough to let you take pictures anywhere you want. 

You can go inside the house to take a picture by the window

Ang daming tao

Iniisip ko parin kung anong hayop or insekto ang gusto nilang i-achieve dito :p 

This is my favorite! Puro luya yan, infairness... 

Pacute lang... Pumila pa ako makapag pa picture lang.

The tallest house we saw :p

After lunch we went to Liliw to check for some slippers and shoes and had a short visit to Nagcarlan Underground cemetery. The day was such a tiring but colorful day for me! We haven't got to know the winner of the event. :p

How to go to Lucban from the South:

Since I am from South, the easiest way for me is from Pagsanjan/Sta. Cruz Laguna.

From the Alabang Terminal, you can ride an air-conditioned van/bus going to Pagsanjan/Sta. Cruz.  Then from the Town Plaza, ride a jeep going to Lucban. You can also join a group tour to get the comfort of not worrying for the transportation especially if you have seniors or kids with you.  Btw, expect for a long walk as the main road was closed for the event.

I hope to visit the next Festival and get to see Kamay ni Hesus next time. 

Hanging out at Bonifacio High Street & Food Tripping at Mercato Centrale

It was Friday night that hal and I decided to visit ROX to check some outdoor stuff. Our window shopping turned out food tripping and hanging around high street.

I am super ready for summer heat pero biglang umulan, panira lang ng trip pero tumigil nmn agad.
ROX at the back.

After the rain; we saw more people outside

On our way to Market Market, palipas oras lang

Did I mention na walking distance lang siya from our office, so kahit sa 1 hour break pumupuslit.

After ROX we walked around the area to find place to eat, we are trying to wait for Mercato Centrale to open so we just took pictures.

Taken with improvised tripod, My camera na nakapatong sa bato, naka alalay yung I-phone ni hal.
Sosyal ang cam ko eh. :D

Attempt, galing ni hal mag set ng tripod.

Blurry effect, walang tripod at pasmadong kamay lang, havey naman ang result. 

Ganyan din ako na amaze sa simula, di kasi ako nakakita ng fountain nung bata pa ako :p

May shot ako on the middle pero parang dinikit lang ako so panira lang.

The fog like is actually the mist from the fountain; I guess they added that for that effect.

Thank you to hal and to our improvised tripod :D

Uy hal aminin mo nag enjoy ka din sa fountain. Haha!

So finally after the long wait we went to Mercato for food trip. Actually di na kami nakatiis so we ate at Market Market muna. I really tried my best not to eat to save my tummy at Mercato. It’s really part of my plan to go there, hal’s plan is ROX only. So he kept on mocking me that it’s only my idea and showing that he’s not interested anymore (because of boredom of waiting) but then he ended up liking what we eat. Aayaw ayaw pa.

Uy tara na dami food, ikutin na natin!

Ihaw-ihaw all around

Fruits and juices area

Dim sum and more

and more dim sums...

Cookies and desserts

Different Paella's

And our pick; after a few rounds of selecting which food to eat. Which we really recommend!

Paki basa nalang for the description, promise masarap siya!

Try Blue Cheese and Pomodoro, yum yum!

It's a closed pizza but with a softer dough. I love the crust and the sauce and the seasonings. We had it for 120php.

Next is the soup... Clam Chowder is a good pick too!

Na intriga sa tinapay :p

Super heavy because of the stuffs inside but super flavorful. Sulit for 70php Sayang at medyo di na kami nakapag try ng iba pa.

But then kahit busog na and out of pagiging intrigera sa lasa ng Mochiko, I gave it a try. I quote Kate here dahil epekto ata toh ng kakatabi sa office sa isang food blogger na si Kate.

Here's what it looks like sa loob.

So what can I say, hmmnn hindi ata ako fan nito or mali yung napili kong flavor.  Sorry na sa Mochiko fan. The outer coating is like rubbery feel of Tikoy; hal even mentioned that it tastes like Play-do haha! And ice cream inside. You need to wait for the outer coating to de-froze a bit then you can bite it in. I guess mas masarap yung yogurt flavor.

For those who haven't been here, you can check their site for more details. Para sa aming kapit bahay lang ito; tara food trip na! 

http://www.mercatocentrale.ph/

http://www.bonifaciohighstreet.com/

Summer Splash at Splash Island

I made a promise to my niece Yana to treat her this summer. I asked her where she would like to go and I gave several places to choose. Then by her request she wanted to go to Splash Island.

Located at Southwoods Ecocentrum in Binan, Laguna, it is just 30-40 mins away from our place. We rented a locker to keep our things safe since nobody will be left to look after our stuffs. There are an open tables and chairs for free but you can rent your own cottage if you want though. For those who will spend more time in the water, no need to rent as you need the whole day to try all rides. You need to check the schedule of each rides and fall in line so you can be the first to try.

It’s my 3rd time to visit this place and I already expect a tiring day for all of us. Splash Island is a water park with fun slides and other attractions. Yana did try all rides that day, she’s hesitant at first but after giving a try, she even asked for more, ang lakas lang ng loob!

Yana (lower left) and her favorite shot, enjoy na enjoy lang sa Balsa River.

There are lots of rides that you must try; we had a super sulit Splash day. For those who like summer adventure and if you are just near the area, this place is good especially for kids.

Btw, you can use your old ticket also for the Balik Promo. Know more about Splash Isand here.

Next time ulit Yana! Muah! :D