Shanghai welcomed me with an awful whiff of what smelled like the sum total of all smog, fumes, and toxic waste, as I stepped down from the plane to the shuttle that brought passengers to the arrival section of the sprawling Pudong International Airport. Nothing and no one prepared me for that smell.

“Welcome to China!” I told myself, as if to scold it for forgetting that I arrived in one of the most air-polluted countries in the world. Air pollution is undeniable in Shanghai because it is visible—no blue skies on a summer, gloomy even at midday, as if the city is under a perpetual overcast. I forgot about air pollution when I looked out to the streets from the car, admiring the urban planning that gave birth to this metropolis, which seemed to me like Sim City come alive.

And the spectacular view of Shanghai from my room in Pudong Shangri-La Hotel makes it almost impossible to believe that this city was once a vast rice field and fishing village. Today, Shanghai is China’s bustling showcase as the world’s new economic superpower, dressed up for the role with glitzy, some gaudy, 21st century skyscrapers.

[caption id="attachment_290" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Sim City come alive"][/caption]

Shanghai on a Sunday 
The view from the ground is no different, only noisier. Beside the hotel is the Super Brand Mall, the city’s biggest, which was overcrowded on a Sunday. Close by is the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, tallest of its kind in Asia, which looks like a rocket ship when lit up at night.

Also not far away is The Bund, the riverfront with spacious walkway for viewing the Huangpu River separating Pudong, the new city, and Yuyuan, the old city. The Bund was teeming with locals and tourists from Chinese provinces, their noise a striking contrast to the serene, almost languid, sunset view that I enjoyed nonetheless.

At sundown, I crossed over to Yuyuan side, which was more appealing to me than Pudong because of the neoclassical historic buildings, some of which were transformed into posh bars and restaurants. The façade of the buildings at the riverfront are lit up at night, transforming the road stretch into a picturesque European promenade, which is perhaps why Shanghai is known as “the Paris of the East.”

Across the river is the view of Pudong at nightfall, with its imperial space-age skyline and towering buildings turned into gigantic neon-lit billboards. Watching Pudong’s gleam and glamour long enough from across the river, I was convinced that China is really at it to wow the world.

Where old meets new
And wowing the world for Shanghai means showing the fusion of old and new. The Yuyuan Gardens, for example, is a 400-year-old garden sitting on a five-acre land with rock gardens, dragon-lined walls, zigzagging bridges, and pavilions housing cultural relics and antiques, among others. Yet it also has a modern bazaar selling overpriced traditional Chinese products, alongside Starbucks café.

The iconic 88-storey Jin Mao Tower at the center of Pudong’s financial district is the world’s fifth tallest building that looks contemporary through and through, but a closer look at its structural design reveals a seamless combination of Chinese architecture and a Gothic influence, taking inspiration from the tiered pagoda. The elevator took me to the 88th floor from the ground in about 40 seconds, a short wait for the opportunity to see an amazing panoramic view of Shanghai at night and a bird’s-eye view of the lobby of Grand Hyatt Shanghai, the world’s tallest five-star hotel. Close to Jin Mao Tower is the Shanghai World Financial Center, which then was completing construction and now the third tallest building in the world.

Another must-visit in Shanghai is the Xintiandi district, once a rundown neighborhood of traditional Shanghainese houses called “Shikumen,” that’s now a hotspot for the latest in Western and Asian food and entertainment, popular among fashionable Chinese yuppies and foreign expatriates. It is historic for being the venue of the first meeting of the Chinese Communist Party led by Mao Zedong. How tastefully the ultra-modern interiors of the upscale bars, restaurants, and boutiques are blended with the old stone house exterior of red bricks and terracotta roofs makes Xintiandi the perfect symbol of communism and capitalism combined in Shanghai.

I went to the Liuligongfang crystal museum within Xintiandi’s vicinity and marveled at the exquisite, almost poetic, glassware sculptures from ancient China, dating as far back as 476 BC, and some from Europe—none of which I can afford to buy and take home. The building exterior is a glowing piece of art made of 12,000 individually made glass bricks with blue backlights—an attention-grabbing façade that’s so much like how Shanghai appears to the rest of the world.

At home with contradictions
The night before my flight to the next destination, I was brought to Bar Rouge, one of Shanghai’s most popular upscale bars with French-Chinese contemporary art deco, complete with chandeliered booths, flaming glasses of champagne, chill and dance music, and stylish partygoers. The bar feels like a little Shanghai in itself—a bit self-indulgent, ostentatious, either you like it or you don’t.

I stepped out to the bar’s roof terrace and took my last sweeping view of Shanghai skyline—imposing with all its glitter and gloss against an infinite backdrop of sullen darkness. What a fitting spectacle, I thought, to affirm what I first felt about this city: at home with contradictions—tradition and modern, communism and capitalism, glitzy and gaudy, natural and contrived, old and new—and milking them for all their worth, whether the world agrees or not.

On April 17, which also happens to be my birthday, we were on our honeymoon, in Mérida, Yucatan, and spending the day with Chef David Sterling at Los Dos Cooking School. The full week's adventures are chronicled on our travel blog, but I felt that the experience at Los Dos deserved a post on this blog, as well.

Los Dos was 95 percent of the reason we included Mérida in our trip. The cooking school has been featured in Condé Nast Traveler, Travel & Leisure, and Gourmet, but we first heard about it on a television episode of Rick Bayless' Mexico: One Plate at a Time.

Chef David Sterling might be a gringo from Oklahoma, but he knows his stuff when it comes to Yucatecan cuisine and history. Our favorite way to "get" the culture of any place we visit is through its food, and Los Dos is the place to go to learn about Yucatecan food.

Our morning started with breakfast at the school. We met a couple from the Netherlands (she was Portuguese, he was German) and two New Yorkers, one who owned a bed and breakfast in Mérida. After introductions, the history lesson began.

The most important thing to know, said Chef Sterling, is that there is a difference between Mexican and Yucatecan food. Yucatecans will say, "Let's go have some Mexican food." Yucatecan cuisine is a fusion of native Mayan food with European influences. In traditional Yucatecan cuisine, there are no enchiladas, jalapeños, or many of the other foods with which we're familiar. You can bet it's still spicy, though. Yucatecans use the habanero, an extremely hot pepper believed to originally have been taken to the peninsula from Cuba. I tried the habanero salsa (I'm Texan, dammit. I had to represent!), but I don't feel the need to do so again any time soon.

That morning we learned about everything from Mayan farming to the origins of chocolate to the history of local spices and how Christopher Columbus misnamed spices, such as calling allspice "big pepper." Chef Sterling recommended three books: Spice, The True History of Chocolate, and America's First Cuisines.

Mercado
Next we gathered our things and headed out to the mercado to buy the groceries for the recipes we were to cook. Guidebooks describe this market as "Mexico with no holds barred; not some sanitized gringo version of a Mexican artisan's market, so be prepared." Chef Sterling gave us fair warning that if we got lost, he would never see us again. Keep up with the group. Check.

Mérida's municipal market is a vast, noisy affair. You'll find clothes, shoes, art, hardware, stoves, hammocks, rope, jewelry, vegetables and produce, meat, chicken and even live birds. There's a section I tried to ignore that Chef Sterling said, "blurs the line between food and pet." The produce sections were full of unusual varieties of squash, fruits, and spices. My favorite new find was chaya, which is similar to kale or spinach, but with two to three times more nutritional content.

Back to Los Dos
After making it out of the market alive, we had two taxis waiting to take us back to Los Dos. We spent the afternoon making tortillas, Pollo Pibil, Arroz Verde, and my favorite Los Dos recipe, Crema de Cilantro. Crema de Cilantro is essentially a leek and potato soup, a recipe that's thousands of years old, but a relatively new addition to Yucatecan cuisine. Chef Sterling's recipe has been "Mexicanized" by adding squash for texture and taste, serrano chiles for heat, and cilantro for fresh, aromatic flavor. We ate it hot, but it is supposed to be just as delicious when served chilled.

While everything finished cooking, Chef Sterling invited us to have a cerveza and put our feet in the pool. Half an hour later we came inside for a big, satisfying Yucatecan meal.

Crema de Cilantro

• 1 lb. calabaza (pattypan squash or zucchini), stems removed and cubed
• 1 large potato, peeled and cubed
• 8 cups chicken stock (I use vegetable stock.)
• 2 large leeks, chopped, including about 1 inch of green (Substitute: 3-4 large spring onions, or a mix of onions and leeks)
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 chiles serranos, roasted, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 cups cilantro, rinsed, finely chopped and firmly packed
• 1/2 cup Mexican crema (Substitute: créme fraîche, plain yogurt, or sour cream)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• One recipe Totopos
• 10 squash blossoms (optional), cleaned
• 4 Tbs. cilantro, rinsed and finely chopped

STEP 1: IN A LARGE SAUCEPAN CONTAINING THE STOCK, cook the cubes of squash and potatoes for approximately 20 minutes, or until vegetables are very tender.

STEP 2: MEANWHILE, IN A LARGE SKILLET, sauté the leeks, garlic and chiles in the butter until the leeks are translucent. Add to the potato/squash mixture; stir and continue cooking, returning to a simmer, approximately five minutes. Using a handheld immersible blender, purée the ingredients until fine. Add the cilantro and purée again as above to incorporate all ingredients. Add crema and purée one last time until thoroughly blended. Check for seasonings.

STEP 3: TO SERVE, ladle hot soup into warmed bowls. In the center of each serving, float a few of the totopos on top of the soup. Then float one squash blossom per bowl on top of the strips. Sprinkle finely chopped cilantro over the entire bowl including the rim.

More Photos at Los Dos

This scenery is exist in the midle east country, Uzbekistan. It is near the small town of Darvaz. Locals call it ‘The Door to Hell’.

It started 35 years ago, while Geologists were drilling for gas, when they found a large ravine under ground.

Nobody dare to get down to the ravine since it’s filled full of poisonous gas.

To avoid the gas from coming out and soil the earth, they ignited the gas expecting it to burn out of the poisonous gas.

But the fire is still on, until now. It’s been 35 years this hole has never stop burning, even for while.

Bella Vista Ranch was not our only culinary adventure last weekend. After we packed up the bottles of wine and olive oil, we were on the hunt for a place to eat lunch. In the heart of Barbecue Country, bordering on Chicken-Fried Steakville, I was a bit worried about what we might find. I'm what Merriam-Webster Collegiate dictionary calls a pescatarian, meaning the only meat I eat is fish. They just added the word this year, in fact, but I've been eating this way long before Merriam-Webster recognized it (about three years).

I was pleasantly surprised by The Leaning Pear Café & Eatery, right off of River Road. There were a few things on the menu for a selective eater like me, but everyone else found something to their liking, as well. Luis had the Slow-Braised Cuban Style Pulled Pork Sandwich, which consisted of sweet relish, provolone, and spicy mustard sandwiched between two slices of grilled ciabatta bread. After eying the Caprese Panini, the Leaning Pear House Salad won out. It combined two of my favorite ingredients, pear and goat cheese, with spiced pecans and a shallot vinaigrette. Delicious, but I wouldn't have minded a bit more pear in the salad. Then again, I really do love pears. Dessert was locally-made chocolate cake for Luis, my mom, and me, and a gorgeous strawberry shortcake for dad. The four of us washed it all down with the tropical iced tea.

With a focus on seasonal, fresh, and local food, The Leaning Pear blends a bit of Hill Country with a bit of Italy. We give The Leaning Pear four thumbs up (our thumbs plus my parents' thumbs) and plan to return when we next find ourselves in Wimberley. After all, I still need to try that Caprese Panini.

One of our favorite, most-used Italian cookbooks is Jamie's Italy. This cookbook features many of the same meals we ate while in Italy (the pappa al pomodoro will change your life). You might be familiar with the chef, Jamie Oliver, who is also called The Naked Chef because he "strips" back to the essentials.

Again and again in the book, Jamie stresses that you need the best tomatoes, the freshest ingredients. He calls for fresh olive oil, as well. This presented a problem because most olive oil is imported, with a span of 14 to 17 months between the time it's pressed and the time it arrives on the shelf. The oil is already old when it hits the supermarket, and most of the flavors and the healthful polyphenols (antioxidents) are long gone.

Imagine our excitement when a Google search for "olive oil" and "Texas" brought up Bella Vista Ranch, home to First Texas Olive Oil Company, a commercially-producing olive orchard in Wimberley, Texas!

There's what in my olive oil?

Last weekend, Luis, my parents, and I piled into the Jeep and drove one and a half hours through the Hill Country to Bella Vista Ranch. During the noon tour, we found out that the problem with the shelf life of oil was only the tip of the iceberg. To make matters worse, Jack Dougherty, our tour guide and the man behind the olives, let us in on some disheartening news.

• 95 percent or more of our olive oil is imported from Italy, but 96 percent of olive oil produced in Italy stays in Italy.
• Spain produces the most olive oil, but they sell it to Italy to be bottled under an Italian label. (How's that for marketing strategy?)
• Olive oil is one of the most adulterated European exports. In other words, our bottles of olive oil contain various mixtures of grapeseed oil, hazelnut oil, and/or sunflower oil.

Boo. So what are a couple of cooks to do? Move to Italy? (Yes, please.) But until then, stock up on local oil, of course!

The tour and tasting

Jack led us on a tour of the ranch, starting with the olive trees. We learned about how the Blue Norther freezes kill the trees, and there's not much to be done about it. Jack says during times like that, you have to be a praying man or a drinking man, and since he bottles his own wine, he doesn't need to pray.

In the tasting room, we sampled the Alfresco Extra Virgin Olive Oil, a grassy oil with initial green notes and a peppery finish at the back of the tongue. (The reason restaurants add pepper to their dipping oil is because the oil has lost the pepper flavor.) We also tasted the Alfresco Blood Orange Oil, an oil custom-blended for First Texas Olive Oil. To create the oil, blood oranges and olives are pressed together, resulting in a sweet, intense orange flavor that's great for using in salad dressings, on fish, or anywhere you might use citrus rind.

A couple of other tips about cooking with olive oil:

• The good stuff (extra virgin) will create a lot of smoke when you fry with it. Jack tells us that the smoke is all of the healthful benefits burning away. Save the extra virgin for dressings, dips, and drizzling on top of food. Use the less-expensive stuff to sauté or fry.
• Olive oil is best when used eight to nine months after it has been bottled. After opening the bottle, use within 80 to 120 days.

The tour at Bella Vista also includes a wine tasting. Bella Vista Cellars buys locally-grown grapes and presses them into Italian-varietal wines, such as Tejanti (Texas Chianti). Be sure to try the Blackberry Wine, too, which is made from blackberries grown on Bella Vista Ranch. It's fruity without being too sweet; perfect as an apéritif (a before-dinner drink to stimulate the appetite) or a dessert wine.

Bella Vista Ranch ships orders from their online store. Tours are conducted on Saturdays and Sundays and run $10 for both the wine and olive oil tasting. Visit their site for directions and more information.

[caption id="attachment_18" align="alignleft" width="302" caption=" See what i mean?"][/caption]

Vigil

Well, It is a kind of vigil that I have kept for the past couple of days waiting to catch the controllers of the Berlin Transport Corporation (BVG) in action. But not even for once have I succeeded. It would have been wonderful pictorial news: some smart fellow being questioned, shoved and restrained, or even arrested; and who knows may be by sheer happenstance I am able to feed my camera lens with such breakfast news- some sober looking person paying the dreaded 40 Euros fine for being in possession of an expired train ticket or having none at all while sitting pretty in one of the coaches. But when I look into the glassed BVD monitor posts either at the Gesundbrunnen or Olsoer train station, I almost can't find the controllers or they just sit there as if they do not care about possible defaulting users. On a closer look most times, I find three empty seats out of four! May be the guards whom the empty seats belong are monitoring passengers on the platforms. Where are the BVG controllers? Again and again, I ask this question.

The "Missing" Baffle gate

And now this! I have also been pleasantly surprised about the absence of turnstiles at the train stations. Apart from the Americas and Asia, earlier experiences in other European countries remind one of those baffle gates that seem to be saying "behave yourself; have your train tickets ready for the screening machine". After ten days here and yet to encounter a random check by any BVG compliance official, it is tempting to ask:"Is Germany out of Europe's system? But as we all know, it isn't! Which was why an administrative staff at the InWEnt institute where I am having this weblog experience, volunteered telling me that I might be confronted by the turnstiles in another region or city say like Hamburg? Why? I asked. And he says "You know every city or region has its own regulations. Here in Germany, they (the Landers) are allowed to do things the way they feel is best for them..."

This might be a shade of the practical face of the German federation at play, but I know of a fact that in a place like Nigeria or some other corners of the earth, the absence of such baffle gates at a public utility is an invitation to headlong abuse. Well, how are we to know whether clever Germans aren't doing the same thing when we do not get to see the regular random checks for tickets by the BVG controllers. Or what do you think?

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Dead Sea, Maldives, Seychelles, Petra, Bora Bora, Red Sea, Spain, Egypt, Barbado, more to be posted...

What is your list of place you want to see? 

So off I went to Hacienda Escudero in San Pablo, Batangas yesterday with fellow proletariats. We arrived at the place greeted by a vast plantation of coconut trees, and being a buko fan, I almost jumped off the van to get myself some fresh buko juice. Then I realized I was role-playing a haciendero, who perhaps wouldn’t climb a coconut tree, and so I restrained myself; I controlled the timawa in me.

Hacienda Escudero reception area 

Women in Filipiniana attire greeted us at the reception and gave us a cup of cold sago’t gulaman each. It was a sweet foretaste of good things to come.

 Aera Foundation Museum 

First stop was the Aera Museum housed in an old chapel. The combination is eerie enough, but wait until you get inside: a claustrophobic showcase of religious icons, preserved animals from insects to leopards, black and white photographs, antique wares, replica of Jose Rizal’s merit cards in Ateneo, period costumes from the bahag to baro’t saya, even the inaugural attire of Philippine presidents from Emilio Aguinaldo to Joseph Estrada. There’s literally too many to see for a small museum, where picture-taking is prohibited. 

Lola Charing's Playground 

Outside the museum, on its right, is Lola Charing’s Playground. I didn’t ask who Lola Charing is; I’m sure she isn’t as trivial as her name. The playground is not only small, but it also looks sad. And sad-looking playgrounds mean no kid had been there, played there, for a long time. Even the kid in me felt something strange about the playground. 

Escudero Mansion 

A few steps away from the museum is the private residence of the Escudero family, which is off limits to guests. I took the photos from outside the gate like a paparazzi.

 Carabao Cart Ride

Next adventure was a Carabao cart ride from the museum to the resort area. Our carabao was Mutya, who showed prima donna instinct by having us wait for her as she takes a quick dip in her jacuzzi. We were all sweaty and dying from the scorching heat of the sun and there she was, wet look and all, walking sexily towards her cart; didn’t smile, didn’t even say her mooo. Oh I forget, do carabaos mooo? Anyway, the ride was enjoyable because we were serenaded with folk songs throughout the short trip. 

Lunch at the foot of Labasin Falls 

Then we ate buffet lunch at the foot of the man-made falls, which at first glance, looks like an avalanche of fine sand. I liked the experience because it was unique: you have cold water rushing through your feet while you eat your inihaw and pansit. And of course, I ordered fresh buko juice like a haciendero would have it.

Pinoy lunch buffett 

After your meal you can stroll around the resort, and most likely you will meet the chatty Tita Rona and this animal (they have no relationship with each other):

 Iguana

Daytrip cottages 

You can also take a dip in one of the pools, two of which are designed for children.

 Main swimming pool

Kiddie pool 

The most enjoyable experience was the bamboo rafting at the Lawa ng Labasin, where you could also do fishing for a fee. The tranquil waters made the rafting easy; the lush green trees and the sound of chirping birds added the perfect touch to the experience. You really feel far away from the toxic life in the city.

 Lawa ng Labasin

Bamboo rafting 

Hacienda Escudero is a good place to experience the hacienda lifestyle, although some facilities (like the shower rooms) stand some improvement. Prices at the Coconut Pavillion could feel like a rip off for timawas like me, especially for a 70-peso tuna sandwich that’s really just a pair of malnourished slice bread cut into two to look hefty. Good thing I ordered for myself pork tocino with rice and two sunny side up; at 150 pesos it was enough to satisfy the obrero in me---for snacks. :)

Role-playing a haciendero on Labor Day did nothing to change my perspective and attitude on the great divide in this country between the rich and the poor; I still believe it's a bitter third-world reality no protest can change. But the experience did make me understand what it is I really want from working hard: to deserve the good life I want to live.

It's been almost a month since I went to the SM Science Discovery Center at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City, but it's only now that I decided to blog about my unpleasant experience because I thought I'd forget about it. But I couldn't. The sentiment got stuck in me like a clingy, oversized booger---a little more effort is needed to get it out of my system.

And to expedite my permanent separation from the unpleasant experience, I'm listing down my top 3 discoveries as a result of visiting the SM Science Discovery Center.

Discovery 1: Walk-in visitors must come with their own tour guides. Throughout the tour, not a single guide attended to us. In the earthquake section, no attendant was in sight to help us experience the simulation. We had to wait for the preschool kids (who were there on scheduled field trip) to enter the room before an attendant activated the machine. Then we discovered the wait wasn't worth it.

In the Virtual Reef section, we had to come back three times to be able to speak with Mr. T, the talking Titan fish. The first time we went inside, the attendant walked out of the booth and chatted with another attendant, despite seeing us foolishly standing before the monitor waiting for Mr. T to appear. Our second attempt was no different; the attendant simply ignored us. The last attempt was successful only because there were children in the room. We finally heard Mr. T talk, which led me to my second discovery.

Discovery 2: Dory is still the most amusing talking fish. Hearing Mr. T talk was painful because he struggled with his English, his diction was awful, and his regional accent was too obvious it diminished the animated character's charm. I couldn't even stand the way he responded to the questions so I stepped out of the room and proceeded to the City Science section where an attendant was discussing the world's tallest buildings to children.

Then I heard him say: "...is considered one of the tallest buildings in the world because it has over a hundred floor. It has over a hundred floor." A hundred floor? So is this like Pangasinan's Hundred Island?

Discovery 3: Never settle for the second choice. My colleagues and I were supposed to check out Ocean Park, but we were one day ahead of its public opening. Disappointed, we went to the SM Science Discovery Center, which seemed the logical second choice. We were very wrong.

The Spaceship Earth wasn't working; the environmental video projection was so blurry I tuned out after five frames. Some parts of the Transportation section were too dark we assumed they're off limits to visitors. The Robot, Inc. section looks like a badly lit warehouse with old, defective robots.  The Lego Mindstorms Robotics Center, which I was most excited to visit because I'd be able to program my own robot, was closed.

The only saving grace of the trip was the Grossology section and the 3D planetarium show "The Search for Life: Are We Alone?" narrated by Harrison Ford. But even these two sections and Harrison Ford's voice couldn't dissuade me from believing that SM Science Discovery Center is overpriced and overrated.

I'll surely get some flak for saying this because most of the online accounts I've read about the Center are positive, complete with charming pictures (I only used my Nokia phone). Some might accuse me of nitpicking; label my experience as an isolated case. But really, what will SM Science Discovery Center gain from hearing all good, but not knowing how to be better?

Wer gerne in Canada unterwegs ist, der sollte sich ein wenig Zeit für die Seite Wings over Canada www.wingsovercanada.ca nehmen. John Lovelace (natürlich selbst Pilot), Tim Luck, Lisa Van Reeuwyk, Devin Lund, Melinda Friedman und Darren Adam (u. a.) haben wirklich einige interessante Artikel und Themen rund um die Fliegerei in Canada zusammengetragen.

... hier ein kleiner Auszug der Themen: Flight Tests, Canadian Ghost Towns, Survival, Aviation Humour, Dispatches from the Field, Photo Gallery, Video, Travel Places, Images of Canada... und und und.

Viele Stunden des Stöberns sind garantiert und viele neue Ideen für Onlineflüge werden daraus entstehen.

Enjoy!

The drizzle that welcomed my arrival in Ho Chi Minh City failed to drowse my anticipation to finally experience Vietnam beyond the few printed accounts I've read about it. Those few accounts had convinced me to put Vietnam in my top 3 must-visit countries in Southeast Asia, and so arriving in the city was all that mattered to me, despite the overcast sky that looked as if there was more rain to come.

Surprisingly, the drizzle stopped on my way from the airport to Sheraton Hotel, which to me is one of the best locations in the city as everything you have to visit in Ho Chi Minh is just a stone's throw away. Sheraton, however, is relatively pricey compared with the backpacker hotels in the area. And indeed, backpacking tourists are everywhere in the city; their numbers easily convinced me that the Philippines has truly been overtaken by Vietnam in terms of tourist arrivals. 

I don't wonder why. Ho Chi Minh is as real as it gets. It doesn't pretend to be cosmopolitan albeit it's Vietnam's largest city and economic capital. Neither does it present itself to be the fusion of all great and good about Asia, although it's Vietnam's cultural trendsetter with a rich history to boot. The city welcomes its guests as it is---a socialist metropolis that wears its French influence through colonial architecture in its historic buildings.

Notre Dame Cathedral

Take the Notre Dame Cathedral for example, which as a Catholic seemed the logical first stop for me. The red bricks that cover the two 40-meter high square towers add more elegance to its neo-Romanesque architecture, a motif that, in many Philippine churches, is combined with Byzantine and Renaissance designs, such as the Manila Cathedral.

People's Committee Building

The Central Post Office building near the Cathedral is also a showcase of French colonial architecture; same is true for the People's Committee building which, with its elaborate facade, manicured garden, and imposing statue of Communist leader Ho Chi Minh at the forefront, makes it the most prominent and most photographed landmark in the city.

Opera House

A few steps away from the People's Committee building is the Opera House, which is also a fascinating sight. I suggest you visit it at sundown when its facade is lit up with different colors, adding a contemporary touch to its dated architecture. Right in front of it is a small park where locals, with their children, come as they are---casual and laid-back, some even look unkempt, but all seemingly comfortable with foreigners around.

Indeed, Vietnamese aren't self-conscious. They've grown accustomed to tourists that they've made the guests their own tourist attraction: some locals would sit on street gutters at night---some in their pajamas---to watch different nationalities walk past them, offering their friendly, sometimes sheepish, smiles that make the unfamiliar place anything but intimidating and the experience far more welcoming.

In the morning, they gather in groups at roadside teashops, sitting on small chairs around a small table and enjoying their morning tea like it's a morning ritual, oblivious to the noise and distraction from throngs of motorcycles that sprint through one-way streets.

And motorcycles are the king of the road in Ho Chi Minh, small wonder it's been tagged the "capital of motorbikes." Even women, some in chic attire, ride their motorcycles still looking prim and proper with their backs straight up and their clothes spotless. Beware, though, because---male or female---many motorcycle drivers in Ho Chi Minh don't follow traffic rules. They drive up the wrong one-way streets, beat the red light, and don't stop for crossing pedestrians, making crossing streets quite a risk to the fainthearted. But isn't this like Manila? haha! :)

An interesting detour from experiencing modern day Ho Chi Minh is a visit to the War Remnants Museum where artillery pieces and heartrending photos of war victims are on display. Most striking to me were life-size model cages used to house Viet Cong prisoners and the guillotine used to behead them. This section of the museum is eeriest and most depressing, but rightly so, if only to remind every visitor that wars are really never glorious.

War Remnants Museum

The change of name from Museum of Chinese and American War Crimes to War Remnants Museum to avoid insulting foreign tourists is only one reflection of social change in Vietnam since it took "Doi Moi" (renovation, reconstruction), the period of rapid economic and political changes in the 1980s and 1990s, opening up opportunities for private enterprises, in the process boosting its economy and paving the way for the phenomenal rise in tourist arrivals.

On my last night in Ho Chi Minh, I was treated to a "dampa-style" dinner of fresh seafood, veggies, pho (pronounced 'fuh'), and some authentic Vietnamese dishes, and oh boy, did I enjoy it, with free live a capella music courtesy of a group of Vietnamese yuppies at a nearby table enjoying a round of beer after a hard day's work. Outside, the entire roadstretch is teeming with locals and tourists, drinking and eating to their hearts' content against the backdrop of new towering buildings and many others still under construction---an indication that, perhaps, the best is yet to come for this unpretentious city with unpretentious people.

before i start, this is just a selection of some of the steepest streets on earth. i’m sure i’ve probably missed out a few corkers. let me know and i’ll maybe add them. also, to explain the grade percentage: as an example, a road with a 30% grade would rise 30 feet in height for every 100 feet travelled horizontally.

1. canton avenue, pittsburgh, united states - grade = 37%

officially not the steepest street in the world, canton avenue is actually steeper than the current world record holder, baldwin street in new zealand. for that very good reason alone i’m sticking it at the top.

it’s not a very long road but if you check out the cyclist’s face in the photo below you’ll see that it’s definitely long enough.

2. baldwin street, dunedin, new zealand - grade = 35%

the current world record holder of ’steepest street in the world’, baldwin street is famous for its slope. it was previously thought that the road’s gradient hit 38% near the top but that was apparently a mistake.

if handbrakes could sob there’d be a stream of tears running down the road in the photo below.

the clip below consists of a pretty annoying guy on a segway attempting to ride up the slope. unfortunately he makes it.

3. eldred street, los angeles, united states - grade = 33.3%

the guy in the photo below looks thoroughly depressed and you can’t blame him. he lives in los angeles. add to that equation the fact that he lives on the steepest street in the city and you’ve got a recipe for disaster.

there’s a los angeles times article about the street here.

4. fargo street, los angeles, united states - grade = 32%

fargo street in 1930…

once a year around 90 mentalists gather at the base of fargo street in los angeles for the fargo street hill climb. they then attempt to scale the hill on a bicycle as many times as humanly possible in a day.

this year the winner was a guy called steve gilmore and he managed it 92 times, in the process climbing around 14′000ft in only 15 miles.

watch this clip and feel the pain…

sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Friends, here is a web site where you can Play with a picture, and view whole picture by turning your Mouse. You can feel and imagine yourself at that spot. Really a cool image, see with your own eye the scenario.
Here are some screenshots I have taken from the site.

How To Use website :-

1.Click the link WH Tour or Click here http://www.world-heritage-tour.org/asia/np/sagarmatha/map.html (Here you can chose which Mountain you want to view.)

2.Click the mouse or Press Spacebar or Enter.

3. Then Press and Hold your mouse and turn which direction you want to see.

If you like to see more screen shots then go inside the upper link.

The view from the roof of my factory in an industrial area
at Narayanganj where i work.

The inside-view of our office.

The only vivid memory I have of Sinulog (it's vivid only because it sounds more and more ridiculous every time I remember it) was being asked to play the role of Sto. Nino in one of the floats for the street parade. If I were to make my toddler photos the basis for people's reaction, then people would probably find me adorable as Sto. Nino. Haha! 

Now at 27, and having lost all my innocence, imagining myself wearing a sequined Sto. Nino dress with a gold crown on my head, a globe in my left hand, and a scepter in my right, and smiling and waving  to the crowd like I was giving them my blessing, is an imagery too outrageous and contemptible to think of that I am eternally grateful to my parents for declining the invitation. Enough of this.

My second visit to Cebu, again on work assignment, took me to Shangri-La Mactan. Early morning of my second day, I had the entire stretch of the beach to myself and I absolutely enjoyed the privilege. Waking up at 6 a.m., which is almost impossible for me to do in Manila, was all worth the effort.

The best meal I had in all my five-day in Cebu was the dinner at Abaca, a boutique resort and restaurant that's a few minutes away from Shangri-la Mactan and owned by American chef Jason Hyatt, whom our group met together with his Labrador named Lola (American accent, please, haha!)

Abaca is only two years old and only serves dinner but it's become a must-visit in Cebu, favorited by many, including expats, who have tried its California Meditteranean cuisine cooked by Jason himself and sous chef Melissa Cannons from Canada.

Abaca main dining area

Abaca deck area at dusk time

Abaca's Anggus beef rib-eye steak is to die for; it's the best steak I've had so far. I also loved its wood oven roasted chicken, braised veal served with wild mushrooms, and wood fired Pacific sea bass with cherry tomatoes. I also enjoyed the grilled vegetable pizza with thin crust and the Abaca antipasto with artisan cheeses which they served earlier during cocktails.

Even before I finished my serving of Abaca's dessert platter of goodies plus different flavors of homemade ice cream and sorbets, I've already conceded to its much-hyped about reputation as the finest meal in Cebu which I've heard about before.

I don't know why but after coming back from Cebu, I felt so invigorated. It always feels this way after every visit, whether it be just an overnight stay or a month-long vacation. Drowned in all the noise, the stress, the frustrations, and even in the impatience of Manila, I feel as if Cebu breathes some new life into me and I am fully alive again.  Perhaps this is what some people meant when they say that there's nothing like coming home to one's birthplace, to go back to one's beginning, fleeting though it may be.

More than the thought of spirits coming home with us, I was thrilled with the opportunity of having the perya experience again. The last time I did was years back and I couldn't even remember where.

Here are Nokia camshots of my perya experience:

Have it all. From toy planes to kitchen wares, a perya almost has it all.

A motorcycle is the grand prize in the popular bingo game, no wonder it's one of the most crowded spots in the perya.

The horror train usually turns out hilarious than scary. Trust me, I tried it twice before :)

The Octopus ride is perhaps the all-time box office hit.

Family affair. For some Pinoys, going to a perya is family bonding time. But kids are too young -- and sometimes too sleepy -- to realize this.

Harvest queen. A mother gathers her children while she accounts for what remains of her coins and what she has already won.

They call this game hagis piso which is literally what it says. You win a prize if your coin lands within any of the color boxes.

Another version of hagis piso, but in this game, you roll a ball and if it lands within the color box you bet on, you win a prize. My mom played this game and won a pack of biscuits and a softdrink litro. You can bet we had midnight snack inside the car. Haha!

I was surprised to see that a videoke is already part of the perya experience. There were in fact three videoke booths, all full. The moment a guy started belting out "My Way," I called it a night and told my family it was time to go. The guy's voice was loud enough to drive bad spirits away so they no longer follow us home. Hahaha! :)

It's the most favorite place of mine. Wish you enjoy!!