Xcited in the Philippines

[Ray]

Ask your GF to give you some of that pink rotten smelling stuff, comes in a jar and the smell is something from another planet to me. Am told it is DELICIOUS, that's good enough for me....I believe 'em. You guys married to Filipinas will know what I'm talking about....you know, the pink, fishy smelly stuff, the one where you need to hold your nose once the top comes off the jar.

Alamang or bagoong.

The wife only eats it once or twice a month, on special occasions... 

[Jeff S]

Are we talking about "shiokara" fermented squid guts? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiokara

Love it!

[leather neck]

Alamang or bagoong.

That one, bagoong, that the name.

Thanks Ray.


Leatherneck

[leather neck]

Jeff,

It is bagoong, if I remember correctly, it to is kind of salty and very fishy smelling

Leatherneck

[xcited]

Day 2 – Final

After our wonderful Jollibee meal, we were ready to leave the SM Mall.  We took a jeepney to the closest spot to my GF’s condo.  The area where we got out looked terribly run down.  There were just small sari sari stores then empty lots with garbage strewn about everywhere.  I was actually shocked because my GF is kind of a clean freak and from everything I could tell, she lived more of a middle class lifestyle. 

We walked about three blocks down then there was a gated entrance to some condos.  It was a very strange transition because the condos were modern and quite nice.  They looked kind of like a big series of apartment building you would see on a major college campus.  The main differences I noticed between condos there and ones in the US were that they were very small and everyone had clothes drying and other items on their small decks.  The outside had been kept very nice with relatively fresh paint and the grounds weren’t overgrown (but certainly not manicured either).  From the outside you could also tell that none of the units had AC and there were always lots of people hanging around outside.

As we approached my GF’s building we ran into one of her neighbors near the front entrance tending to some plants.  She said hello and we all chatted for a little bit.  The whole time she had a big grin on her face and told my GF that she was very happy for her.  The building is about five stories high with very narrow, steep, metal steps.  All the doors are solid metal as well with deadbolts.  She is on the third floor and I found out later that you pay more the lower you are because it isn’t as hot and not as much of a climb.  Because of the cement walls, dim hallway lighting, and metal stairs it felt like we were walking around a prison.  It wasn’t dirty or scary, but just the architecture – function over form and a serious case of minimalism.

I was surprised when we entered her place; actually shocked would be a better term.  She had told me that her place was small, but I had no idea it was this small.  It is 60 sq meters which is just under 200 sq feet (metric measurements mean nothing to me).  Living in this condo is my GF, her sister and three nephews; YES five people in 200 sq feet.  Her sister’s husband is a civil engineer working in the middle east for two years in order to save enough money so they can buy a house when he gets back.  In addition to all the people, they have “stuff” piled from floor to ceiling because not only are her things there, but so is everything her sister and nephews have – there really isn’t mini-storage there.  Now to their credit the place was very clean and obviously well kept.  The washer and LPG fueled cooking burners were out on their small deck (about 3 ft by 6ft maybe).  So there were only a couple of cabinets, toaster oven, and a small fridge actually inside.  They all slept on a bunk bed with my GF and one nephew on the top and her sister with the other two boys on the bottom.

The bathroom is tiny and they don’t have a water heater.  My GF told me that they heat water on the burners in the morning and use that when necessary while showering.  I didn’t get the details of how exactly she does it, but evidently it works.  Everyone there has a big blue jug of water on their counter that they use only for drinking.  The tap water is for the bathroom and can be used in cooking if it is being boiled.  Their local store will deliver the water along with the large bags of rice.  Once again, there was nothing wrong with the place; I was just surprised by how small it was.
   
Another cultural difference I found was when my GF and I had been chatting.  She was very happy and proud to buy her own place and had a friend who lived with her.  Her friend had moved out when she got married, but her best friend had purchased a place one building over so that was great.  Then her friend married the American guy who wound up introducing me to my GF and moved to the US.  My GF told me that she was very happy when her sister and nephews moved in because she was so lonely by herself.  I understand her being lonely, but she has friends all over the complex, works two jobs (teaching then tutoring after school), and is taking classes for her masters degree.  I would think a little time alone would be appreciated.  I would go nuts in a place that small with another person there.  When we were growing up, if my brother and I were put together in a confined area it was time to rumble.  Not that we didn’t like each other, it was just something to do.

So I gave each one of the boys a pack of five Hot Wheels which they really liked and gave her sister an inexpensive purse I had picked up at Target.  My GF gave each one of them a bag full of candy and put some extra in the fridge.  At this point we left her condo area and walked back to where we could pick up a trike.  I am fairly sure that this area doesn’t get a whole lot of foreigners because everyone was looking at me whenever I would walk by.  Once again not in a bad way, but more like an animal at a zoo.  We went back to her Aunt’s place and got the clothes we needed for the next few days (we would be travelling).  The intention was to have dinner with her Aunt and cousins, but by this point I was so exhausted that I was falling asleep while sitting on their couch.  We decided to go back to the hotel.

We didn’t have anywhere else to go, so we went back to the Great Eastern hotel.  My GF said that since the deluxe room was so bad, we would just get the standard room because it couldn’t be any worse.  Did I mention that she is stingy?  We get there and the Standard Room is so much better than when we had the Deluxe Room.  It was clean with a nice AC unit, no smell, and I swear it was the same size.  So it was a good finish to a great day. 



Hope you like it so far.  This was my first time going anywhere in Asia so the cultural differences are all new to me.  I’m sure many of you are very familiar with them, but these are my observations.



Later,

Xcited 

[Ray]

Hey X,

Great observations on the culture shock stuff! I am enjoying your report.

As you have obviously already discovered, the concept of privacy over there is nothing like what we are used to here. And living with a bunch of other people is quite normal. Even having your own bed all to yourself could be considered a luxury over there.

I hope you got the opportunity to try a “tabo shower”… 

Just a note on the metric conversion. 60 square meters is about 646 square feet (still small for 5 people by our standards).

Ray

[Dave H]

Hey X,

Great observations on the culture shock stuff! I am enjoying your report.

As you have obviously already discovered, the concept of privacy over there is nothing like what we are used to here. And living with a bunch of other people is quite normal. Even having your own bed all to yourself could be considered a luxury over there.

Ray

Hey Ray,

"Privacy" is the one thing my wife said she would miss about leaving the US. She said that we would need to have someplace to get away once in awhile, when we live in the Philippines.

Dave

[Dave H]

Alamang or bagoong.

The wife only eats it once or twice a month, on special occasions... 

Hey Ray,

Filipinos eat that stuff on everything! My wife only likes a certain bagoong made in Cebu. She doesn't like ziganid either (little fish lined up in a glass jar). She loves alamang (sauteed shrimp fry) and eats it often. I don't see what the difference is, it all stinks to high heaven! I think 'pungent' is the proper term to describe it's odor!!! I'm getting worried as I am starting to enjoy the smell myself a bit and tasted it the other day...not bad, but a little too salty for my taste.  I keep telling her I think it should go in the ref after it is opened. But she insists on leaving it in the cabinet. I guess the more rotten it smells, the more Filipinos like it!  Does anyone else's lady store alamang or bagoong unrefrigerated?

Dave



Dave

[Dave H]

I hope you got the opportunity to try a “tabo shower”… 

Ray

Hey Ray,

I sure enjoy my purple tabo! Some of the things you can do with a tabo are amazing! 

Dave

I have a funny feeling this 'Tabo Queen' really is a 'QUEEN'!

[Dave H]

Day 2 – Final

Now to their credit the place was very clean and obviously well kept. 

She was very happy and proud to buy her own place

works two jobs (teaching then tutoring after school), and is taking classes for her masters degree. 

My GF said that since the deluxe room was so bad, we would just get the standard room because it couldn’t be any worse.  Did I mention that she is stingy? 

Later,

Xcited 

Hey xcited,

Your girlfriend sure sounds like a keeper to me! Congratulations!

Dave

[Ray]

Does anyone else's lady store alamang or bagoong unrefrigerated?

Yep! The alamang stays in a little jar on the counter or in the cabinet, never refrigerated. I don't think any respectable bacterium would live in that stuff anyway.

Mine only likes the alamang from back home that she brings with her from her trips home. Her sister-in-law makes up her own. She won't eat the stuff sold here in the Filipino stores(?).

[xcited]

Ray & Dave H,
     I didn't get to take a Tabo Shower, but I saw those little buckets with a handle on it in almost EVERY bathroom where we went.  What the heck are they and how are they used there?


Later,

Xcited

[xcited]

Day 3

     We packed up and walked a few blocks away to catch a bus out to Laguna.  The bus was very nice, like a Greyhound, with AC and nice seats.  I still don’t know exactly how they figure out where to catch the buses because it wasn’t a “bus stop” or anything like that.  We just walked to a busy street (but past other busy streets – why didn’t we stop there?) and waved down the bus.  The only odd thing about the ride was that a couple of times the bus pulled over and a street vendor would get in and try to sell their food.  We did buy some quail’s eggs which were very good.  Once there we took a trike to her older sister’s house.  They had the home built and moved in only about three days ago.  It is not 100% finished, but is very nice.  There we met her sister and her two children, her mother, (sister’s) mother-in-law, and brother.  We had a great lunch and talked, but mainly we looked at a number of photo albums.  Her sister’s husband was at work so I didn’t meet him, but saw lots of pictures.  We passed out the gifts and candy and everyone seemed to like them.  They had also gotten me some little gifts – a hat, some dried mango, and local candy.  Their house was very nice with two small bedrooms and one bath.  It was completely made from poured cement and kept cool.  They already have stairs going up to the second level, but they have not built the 2nd floor yet.  They will wait a few years before they do that, but they already use the roof to dry the clothes.

After a while we left her older sister’s home and took a taxi to her younger sister’s home which is about 20-30 minutes away.  Her younger sister was about 8 months pregnant and already has one child.  They are renting a home because they have just begun purchasing a new house.  It is an unusual method, but evidently common over there.  They have bought a house in a new development, but for the first year or so they will be making payments towards the down-payment.  Then the builder will begin construction, her sister will move in and their payments will go towards the mortgage.  So for now they are living in a small house that they rent.  The plan was that we would socialize there for a short time with her sister and brother-in-law; then they had arranged for a car to take us to Tagaytay where we would have dinner together.  My GF and I would get a hotel room then her sister’s family would be driven back to their home (we would pay for the car).  The driver was late and when my GF’s brother-in-law called he claimed that “you never confirmed”, but he said he did and told him when.  Then the excuses started flying.  Obviously, her sister and brother-in-law were angry and a little embarrassed, but it really wasn’t their fault.  We had also been talking with their next door neighbor and then he and his wife volunteered to drive all of us up there.  What a life saver!!!  So they drove us up there (about 45 mins away) and we went to a really nice restaurant called “Josephine’s”.  It was a very high-end place and we had lots of food and drinks.  I think there was a total of eight people there and the bill was less than $70.  I picked up the tab and everyone thanked me, but for that many people it was a real bargain.  Next, we went to the “Days Hotel” which is actually a Days Inn, but they just call it the “Days Hotel”.  Everyone else went home once we checked in, but they all wished us a happy trip.

If you have never been to Tagaytay, I would recommend it.  It is in the hills and the hotel was actually built into the side of a big hill.  The lobby is on the top floor and you get to your room by taking an elevator down.  Each room has its own balcony which looks out on to a “bay” type area.  Since it is an elevated location, the temperature is much more comfortable.  We stayed the night; then the next day we wanted to view the volcano that we could see from the deck.  We were originally going to visit a park where we could get a good view of the volcano (it is actually on its own island so you can’t get that close to it without taking a boat over to the island).  The trike driver told us that he could take us down the hill to an area where we could get a boat ride over to the island where we could take a horse up to see the crater.  We decided to do that.  The ride was long on a winding road to the base of the hills.  Now the fun part begins.


More to come…


Later,

Xcited

[Dave H]

Yep! The alamang stays in a little jar on the counter or in the cabinet, never refrigerated. I don't think any respectable bacterium would live in that stuff anyway.

Hey Ray,

Thanks for clarifying that! 

Mine only likes the alamang from back home that she brings with her from her trips home. Her sister-in-law makes up her own. She won't eat the stuff sold here in the Filipino stores(?).

Same with my wife! She tried a few brands here and didn't like them much. I had to throw them out, since Filipinas don't seem to like throwing away food. For her it is not a superstition, she just doesn't like wasting food. My wife has a new alamang that was highly recommended by a friend that owns a Filipino store. My wife says it is not bad. She ate quite a bit, but it is now gathering dust in the cabinet. I will give it another month before I toss it!  She really prefers a brand that is made in Cebu and she has only found at the grocery store at a Gaisano Mall there. It is hard to bring it back to the States. Bancasi Airport baggage inspectors always pull it out of our baggage and my wife's sister and her husband's bags. Maybe the scent will throw off the bomb sniffing dogs at NAIA.    They say they it may break, but we pack it very well in styrofoam. They let equally noxious Filipino foodstuff pass, including locally available alamang and bagoong. I think I will put it in a different jars next time. They assure us that they will "properly dispose" of the alamang...most likely in their stomachs!  I'm surprised that they don't confiscate my Shamrock otap!   

My wife loves a certain canned corn beef and beef loaf that we can't buy here. I always confuse the brands. We usually buy Palm brand corned beef here. Beef loaf can not be purchased in South Florida anywhere and I haven't found it for sale on the Internet either. We have a supply coming in the next few weeks from the Philippines. We usually bring 20-30 cans at a time. That doesn't last long!!! 

Dave

[Dave H]

Ray & Dave H,
     I didn't get to take a Tabo Shower, but I saw those little buckets with a handle on it in almost EVERY bathroom where we went.  What the heck are they and how are they used there?
Later,

Xcited

Hey xcited,

I will defer that question to Master Ray! I am only a 'holder' of the Purple Tabo. He a Black Tabo Master of the 10th degree, the keeper and sole user the coveted Golden Tabo!

Dave

[Dave H]

Fil-Ams trying to make money from the tabo. Available for less than $1 in the Philippines. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6mjCEI7V_E&feature=related

Fil-Am trying his best to show how to use a tabo to wash your lubot (butt) to the uninitiated. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlkEfkDcEb4

Child learning the art of the tabo to bathe.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvT8UBKD4TI

[Bear]

Xcited!

Did ya ride the little pink horses?  And go to the Zoo with bears and Lions you can actually be stupid enuff to try and pet?  And to to the Palace in the Sky (old Marcos Mansion) and see the dead rats in the putrid swimming pool (not to mention Imelda's shoe closet)?

Dave thanks for posting that information abut Tabo.  I purchased a Super Deluxe Golden Tabo Kit for my whole family!

The Bear Family

[Dave H]

I purchased a Super Deluxe Golden Tabo Kit for my whole family!

The Bear Family

Thanks Bear!

That will help put my kids through college.  The tabos are guaranteed for life. If you have any problems, just contact my incompetent customer service rep, 'Juan Tamad.' He is one of my neighbors. Ask Honey if she knows him. They pronounce it "Ha-wan-ta-mod."  I think Dave Tamad should be my nickname when I'm in the Philippines! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_Tamad

Dave Tamad

[Marshall K]

In Thailand many toilets have a kitchen sink sprayer attached to the water line.  Just give yerself a good hosin'.  My brother calls them a butt douchey and they are a must for the nuclear waste that comes out from the food.
When his wife's youngest son was about 8, my brother walked into the bathroom to see him brushing his teeth and rinsing with the B.D.  I'd have one here, but our water is from a snow fed aquifer.  It might cause you to pucker so much that you couldn't go for a week.

[Ray]

I had to throw them out, since Filipinas don't seem to like throwing away food. For her it is not a superstition, she just doesn't like wasting food.

Bancasi Airport baggage inspectors always pull it out of our baggage and my wife's sister and her husband's bags. Maybe the scent will throw off the bomb sniffing dogs at NAIA.    They say they it may break, but we pack it very well in styrofoam. They let equally noxious Filipino foodstuff pass, including locally available alamang and bagoong. I think I will put it in a different jars next time. They assure us that they will "properly dispose" of the alamang...most likely in their stomachs!  I'm surprised that they don't confiscate my Shamrock otap!   

My wife loves a certain canned corn beef and beef loaf that we can't buy here. I always confuse the brands. We usually buy Palm brand corned beef here. Beef loaf can not be purchased in South Florida anywhere and I haven't found it for sale on the Internet either. We have a supply coming in the next few weeks from the Philippines. We usually bring 20-30 cans at a time. That doesn't last long!!! 

LOL!

Same here Dave. My wife just can not throw any kind of food out, so she let's me do it for her.

Those Filipino baggage inspectors at the airports have been running that racket for some time. My brother-in-law sent me two bottles of Tanduay 1854 15-year-old rum via my wife’s cousin who was returning to the States from a vacation last year. A baggage security inspector at the Mactan Airport in Cebu told her that she wouldn’t be allowed to bring those through customs in the States, which of course is total BS. She stupidly fell for the story and of course handed them over to the inspector because she had nobody else to give them to. Damn the bad luck! That baggage inspector I’m sure had a great drunk that night on MY rum!

When my wife went through baggage security in Cebu earlier this year, they tried to pull the same scam on her and wanted my 3 bottles of Tanduay and 4 bottles of San Miguel Beer. She laughed in their faces and told them that she would worry about that in LA.

Yeah, the wife always brings back a bunch of those little cans of Holiday Beef Loaf, which can’t be found here in the States, and of course a bunch of that stupid polvoron candy, which tastes like chalk… YUK!

I think our wives must be related... 

Ray

[Ray]

Hey xcited,

I will defer that question to Master Ray! I am only a 'holder' of the Purple Tabo. He a Black Tabo Master of the 10th degree, the keeper and sole user the coveted Golden Tabo!

Dave

Haha! I don't have a golden tabo but the wife does.

The price of tabos in the local Filipino supermarket is up to $1.79 now. And baluts are up to $.79, San Miguel is now $7.99 a 6-pack, and Chippy Corn Chips are $.69! I was going to check the price of the frozen Durian but when I opened the freezer door I almost passed out... 

My wife no longer closes the CR door when she takes a dump, but when she goes in there with her tabo, she still shuts it at least half-way... LOL!

[Marshall K]

Yow!  Nasty fish, canned meatlike stuff, chalky candy, not to mention balut and the sugary ketchup spaghetti.  I hope your wives feed you guys better than that!
Add the tabo talk, and I could imagine some guy reading this forum might decide to be looking for a wife in Wichita instead!
Actually, I know that it's a challenge for someone to move to another country, and you want to have the things that make you feel more at home.  In a few months I'll be dealing with the same things.  I hope Yali will be able to find enough familiar products to be able to make a lot of the food I love when I am in China.

[Dave H]

Hey Ray,

I used to buy San Miguel at Sedanos (Hispanic supermarket chain) or the various Filipino sari-sari stores. For some reason, the supplier has stopped delivering it. I need to get a load fast...Hurricane Ike is coming!  A few years ago I bought fresh durian in the Philippines for a few bucks. The last time I checked at the Asian market here, imported frozen durian cost...

[Dave H]

Actually, I know that it's a challenge for someone to move to another country, and you want to have the things that make you feel more at home.  In a few months I'll be dealing with the same things.  I hope Yali will be able to find enough familiar products to be able to make a lot of the food I love when I am in China.

Hey Marshall,

I don't think you will have much problem finding Yali familiar products where you live. There are also plenty of ethnic cook books that suggest suitable alternatives for unavailable products. We just have to be careful that the ASPCA and Peta don't find out! 

Dave

Tastes like fish...no I mean the lady! 

[Dave H]

Are we talking about "shiokara" fermented squid guts? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiokara

Love it!

"Shiokara (å¡©è¾›, Shiokara?) is a food in Japanese cuisine made from various marine animals that consists of small pieces of the animal's meat in a brown viscous paste of the animal's heavily salted, fermented viscera. The raw viscera are mixed with about 10% salt, 30% malted rice, packed in a closed container, and fermented for up to a month. Shiokara is sold in glass or plastic containers.

The flavor is quite strong and is considered something of an acquired taste even for the native Japanese palate. The taste of shiokara lingers in the mouth. One method of enjoying it is to consume the serving at one gulp and to follow it with a shot of straight whisky."

Thanks Jeff!

I think I will take a break from eating for the next few days!

Dave