Lambanog (Poor man's drink)

Lambanog (coined as the poor man’s drink) is a popular wine in the Philippines that is made from coconut. It is popular because of its potency level that is 80-90 proof. It is like drinking a wine of the demon that marks in your throat. The commercially available Lambanog has a lower proof content that has only a potency level of 40-60 percent proof and has different flavor to attract young adults.


Before it is popular in the town of Quezon Province, Philippines but became popular nationwide as the days went by.   The knowledge of Lambanog making has been passed from generation to generation by the Filipino coconut planters.  Usually a group of people sit in circular position called tagayan. One member is playing the guitar and the others may sing song. A table is in the center with the bottle of Lambanog and a glass that is being passed from person to person to drink the wine.


It is made out of coconut sap, cooked and fermented resulting in Tuba. Tube is then distilled to make a Lambanog.


Lambanog is a symbol of Philippine as this is only available here in the Philippines.  

Bagiuo City (Summer Capital of the Philippines)

The chilly weather, the smell of pine trees and the overall feeling of spirituality define Baguio’s appeal. 

Bagiuo City (with 250,000 population ) is located in the northern part of Luzon. It is called the summer capital of the Philippines because of low temperature; even in summer it seems not affected by the temperature. Also called the City of Pines. 

Indigenous people like Igorot can be found here, they live in mountain part of Benguet but because of modernization, some of them went down the mountain to entertain what modern city can offer. Some visitors would take photographs of Igorot while in the area. They also make useful handcrafts. 

The city is the site of the Philippine Military Academy, the University of Baguio (1948), and Saint Louis University (1911). 

Baguio was designed in 1905 by the American architect Daniel H. Burnham. To honor him, a famous park is named after him the Burnham Park.

Adobo

Adobo is a popular Filipino dish that involves meat (chicken/ pork) or seafood (squid/ fish) or even vegetables (kangkong/ orka/ eggplant). It is usually marinated for 24 fours in soy sauce and vinegar together with garlic and some other ingredients. And simmered in a small cooking oil until it turns brown.

The name is originally from the Spanish colonizer of the Philippines. Abodo which means seasoning or marinade in Spanish. Although this dish is similar with the other dish abroad still it has the unique flavor that makes it original in the Philippines.

This food is common in all classes of people in the country, from the poor to the elite are eating this food. A stop at the carinderia or a big time restaurant you can easily find Adobo in their menu. There are also variations in cooking this food. A good feature of this dish is that it has a long shelf life and does not need refrigeration as the primary ingredient (vinegar) stops the growing of bacteria in the food.

TULAY MOSQUE

Tulay Mosque (Masjid Tulay in Tausug) – is a place for all Muslim worshippers in the Jolo, Sulu. Located at the heart of the town, its magnificence is clear as it greets every people passing by. This building remains after a vast fire in Jolo in the past, destroying all other building it touches. But due to Allah’s miracle, this place was the one last standing.

In May 2009, a new mosque was open to the public as the oldest building in Jolo was renovated. Cost millions of pesos originally its budget came from donations of Muslims all around the world. But during its construction they were people speculating of the possible corruption happening because its stoppage many times. 

The mosque can accumulate more than a thousand of Muslims who come to praise Allah. Usually this mosque is full of people every Friday as Muslims come to clean themselves from all the sins they committed during the week. 

This mosque also houses a Madrasa (Islam School) where children and adults learn to read, write and speak Islam.

The Giant Lantern Festival

Every December one place in the Philippines shines the brightest. In the City of San Fernando in Pampanga is a sight to catch because of the big lanterns being displayed. Few of these are in for competition as they compete with one other on which lantern is the best.

The origin of Giant Lantern Festival is simple, before during the 9 nine days simbang gabi (December 16-24), residents of every barangay in San Fernando bring small lanterns on their way to the church to light their way. Few years later, the small lanterns evolved to big lanterns as the people from the barangay tend to compete with each other.

Pampanga resident’s creativity in lantern making gradually developed. The mix of colored plastic, bulbs, and metals produced many lanterns. These lanterns exhibit interplay of bright colors in different designs.

Tips for short distance travel.

01.  Bring bag that is comfortable like a backpack that is easy to carry and light. It can keep your all important items intact. Bring only those necessary to you. 
02.  T-shirts and short pants are the best in your rugged lifestyle.  They are comfortable and not hot when used. Consider using light color for your shirts because it does not absorb heat.
03.   Basic gadgets like cell phone for easily communication, camera for capturing nice views, watch to tell time and other gaming device that will entertain you are bored during your travel.
04.  Rubber shoes for easy navigation of the roads and hat provide heat protection.
05.  Books and other reading materials make you ponder on things to be done or provide suggestions on how to live a good life. Books also help you consume time especially if it takes long hours to get to your destinations.
06.  Don’t flood yourself with junk food. This will make you sick. Some junk foods are high in cholesterol or salt. So if you don’t want to feel sick, eat only one to two packs.
07.  Tablet like bonamine (generic name - Meclizine) helps you prevent motion sickness. Drink this tablet one hour before you travel and you’re good to go.
08.  A Jug or container use for water or any soft drinks or coffee will help you dehydrate during your trip. 
09.  If it’s your first time going to this place it is best to bring map. Print a copy of a map in the internet or you can buy in a nearby store. This will give quick information regarding the place and the road you should take.
10.  Don’t forget to bring cash, and ATM card. 

Why one should travel to the Philippines?

I will list some of the interesting reasons for you to travel here in my home country.

01.  Philippines has lot of things to offer, from its most adorable natural landscapes to modern buildings are all located here. When you say natural landscape it means god creations without the need of human intervention.  The Philippines is in deed blessed with many god creations that are not only nice to look at, but can only be found here in Philippines.

02.  It is the hometown of famous people like Manny Pacquiao- the only boxer with eight divisions world title, Charice- a cast of Glee, Apl de ap- a member of Black eye Peas, Arnel Pineda- the lead singer of the Band Journey and several others.

03.   Famous of its beaches, the leading example is the Island of Boracay, it is the foreigners and Filipinos favorite destination in the country. Aside from its white sand beach, you can also enjoy other sports activities like Jet Ski, scuba diving and many others.

04.   Tarsier- is the smallest monkey in the world, can only be found in the Province of Bohol. It just the size of your palm, but is cute and adorable because of its shy type personality. 

05.  The entire towns in the Philippines have fiestas commemorating their own Saints. So every month you can except to be invited by the people in your neighboring town to eat. Maskara (Mask) festival is one the famous, celebrated in Bacolod City in Visayas.

06.  The food is awesome. Try to taste Adobo- a favorite dish by Filipinos. Adobo taste like the mixture of soy sauce and vinegar with other ingredients. Some other dishes are Pinakbet, Tinola, and others. 

07.   Filipinos are known for their hospitality, so when you are a foreigner here, you can expect that every person you meet will be smiling at you and always willing to help you when you are troubled.

08.  Mangoes, Durian, Mangosteen are some of the fruits that can only be found here. Next time you visit. Try to taste one of these fruits. Like durian, it has a strong smell but very delicious.

09.   Don’t you know that we have many surfing sites here mainly because Philippines is facing the Pacific ocean. Like Siargao, Aurora in Luzon, and many others.

10.  Philippines is the only Catholic in South-east Asia. You can even witness dramatization of the life of Jesus, where men who portray Jesus are being crucified in reality.

Zamboanga City

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Known as the Melting pot of Southern Philippines, Zamboanga City is the capital of Zamboanga del Sur. The name Zamboanga is derived from the Malay word jambangan, which means “place of flowers”—a reference to the orchids and other exotic plant life proliferating in the area. The white-sand beaches and moderate climate of Zamboanga make it a popular tourist destination.  This city is a home to some people speaking Chavacano, a local dialect mixed with Spanish language. They say that when Spanish explorers came, some of them married locals in Zamboanga making the locals very knowledgeable of the Spanish language.

The city’s Spanish heritage can be seen in its many fine examples of architecture, including Fort Pilar, built in the 17th century to guard the Christian populace against attacks by the Moros. 


Vast sea located in this place makes it very abundant to sea foods like crabs, squids, lobsters, shrimps, mantas, sea urchins and others are just some of the examples.

pilipinas kay ganda

The recent controversy involving Department of Tourism of the Philippines was launching of its slogan. The slogan’s main purpose is to promote Philippines as a tourist destination.
Before the slogan was WOW Philippines as conceptualize by Sen. Dick Gordon. Now under the new administration of President Noynoy Aquino, they launch “Pilipinas kay ganda”, or Philippines so beautiful in Filipino. Many people reacted to this slogan, they said why they pick a Filipino slogan when the target are foreigners, the foreigners will not understand even one word of the slogan and later on found out that it was copied from the slogan of Poland. The Philippine government spent 8 Million in launching the slogan, which is very unacceptable to many Filipinos because of little budget allocation to the different departments. This controversy caused the resignation of the under secretary of DOT because he said he is the one who made it.
There are many projects that government should do, and making this fault is unacceptable because of the small budget that government has in providing the people’s need. They should have thought of it first before spending that big amount for nothing.