It was my first time at the U.P. Ayala Techno Hub in Quezon City. Walking around and looking at the shops in the complex I can't help but tell Mamu “Finally, progress comes to Commonwealth!” It was Mamu’s second time there so she wasn’t as impressed, she was just excited to reach Razon’s of Guagua for her favorite halo-halo.
We ordered halo-halo, Pancit Luglug and silvanas. As usual, Razon’s halo-halo is great especially on that hot afternoon. It only has three ingredients, sweetened banana, macapuno and leche flan. I remember hearing someone said it was the ultimate minimalist halo-halo. All the ingredients are cooked just right. But for me, the best thing about Razon’s halo-halo is the ice. It’s just so fine that it absorbs the creaminess of the milk. Mamu and I have different theories on how they make their ice, the best we came up with is that they freeze milk instead of water so it’s actually iced milk! Then they use an ice shaver. The Ate Mhady (one of Mamu’s berks) said that she thinks they combine crushed ice and milk then put it in a blender. Hmmm…another possibility we never thought of. But whatever it is, Razon’s halo-halo is the creamiest I've had. If there’s one complaint though, I wish it had more leche flan, but apart from that, it is simply, in the words of Alton Brown, good eats!
Moving on (enough praises for the halo-halo), the Pansit Luglug was a bit salty even after two calamansi slices and it seems to have gotten smaller since the last time I was at Razon’s (I forgot what branch). The silvanas was prepared just the way I like it, chewy, creamy and buttery. I’m really glad that there’s a Razon’s of Guagua here in Commonwealth.
Mamu was happily chatting with her berks so I excused myself to check out the Techno Hub complex. There's the requisite coffee shops where a lot of call center employees were hanging out. Some of the restaurants in the complex are Le Ching, Red Kimono, Mister Kebab, Flapjack, Ral’s (a Filipino Resto) and a Mini-Stop. I was excited to see a soon to open banner of the Kanin Club.
I went inside a Mac store whose name escapes me now to check out the Macbook Pro 13 inches. But the saleslady told me that it was out of stock and they didn’t have a demo unit. So up to now, I still haven’t seen this new Apple laptop.
I was trying to take a good shot of the U.P. Ayala Techno Hub façade when the security guard told me that taking pictures of the buildings in the complex (façade included) was not allowed. Good thing I was able to take pictures earlier!
I returned to Razon’s and found a basket of San Nicholas. These are handmade cookies from Pampanga. I’ve always been curious how these cookies taste like ever since I saw a feature on TV on how it is made. I took a bite, it tasted like a more delicate uraro, nothing special, but I’m not much of a cookie person (except for chocolate chips) so I'm really no expert.
Seeing the crowd gathering outside Razon’s we realized that we’ve been there for more than two hours. Maybe these people also wanted a taste of Razon’s halo-halo. So we left and walked around for a while, Mamu and her berks also wanted to see the other shops. Ate Encar said that the complex looks better at night when all the buildings and shops are all lit up.
Note to self: Mamu and I should definitely come back after sundown.
Henry cancelled our scheduled lunch last Saturday so I just tagged along Mamu and her friends (Ate Mhady, Ate Vicky and Ate Encar and yes, they all call each other Ate), who I fondly call “the Berks”. They were going to the Divine Marcy Shrine in Marilao, Bulacan for a desert. What’s a desert? It’s a prayer with nature and according to Mamu “a time of retreat dedicated to God in silence, solitude and penance”. She told me that I’m most welcome to join them on the condition that I join the desert and bring my own bible, which I did. I also brought along my Haruki Murakami, just in case.
We left the house at 6 o'clock in the morning, without breakfast because Mamu said that fasting is a requisite for a desert. When I told her that I was really hungry, she begrudgingly agreed to let me have a slice of bread. I told myself that I’ll just get coffee along the way, coffee is liquid after all, not a violation of Mamu’s fast. My eyes lit up as soon as I saw the Starbuck’s logo at NLEX, but our driver Ate Encar looked like she had no intentions of stopping and she did not. I just looked at the green mermaid longingly as it became smaller and smaller until it was just a tiny dot.
We were about five minutes away from the Divine Mercy Shrine when a jeepney at the opposite side of the road zoomed out of nowhere (we were in a blind curve). The driver was trying to overtake another jeepney, I think they were having some kind of argument. The particular street where all this was happening is very narrow and the jeepney was literally inches away from us. Seeing the jeepney speeding towards us, everyone was in shock, no one was able to speak. I was just staring at the oncoming vehicle bracing myself for a head-on collision. Thanks to the expert maneuvering of Ate Encar, we avoided the jeepney at the same time avoided colliding into a nearby wall.
After a minute or two we found our voices, we couldn’t believe that we escaped that near collision unscathed. Ate Encar said that she was so shocked she felt like she was not the one driving at all. In fact, she missed the turn to going to the Divine Mercy Shrine and for about a minute or two she was driving aimlessly trying to absorb what happened. All of Mamu’s berks agreed that it was a miracle.
When we arrived at the Divine Mercy Shrine, the “berks” scouted for an ideal place for the desert. We went to the Rosary Hill, but since it rained the previous night everything was wet and muddy plus a crowd was slowly gathering around the shrine. They just decided to do the desert in a place of their own choosing. Everybody agreed to meet up in front of the Adoration Chapel at 10 o’clock, it was just seven-thirty. Looks like it was going to be a long desert.
I walked around, taking pictures here and there until I found a silent little nook at the basement of the church. I prayed and concentrated, trying really hard to be one with nature. I opened my bible, read a few pages but it was just random passages that I simply cannot relate to. I tried again, but still I’m not one with nature. I told myself maybe my connection with God was just choppy that day that’s why I had a hard time connecting. After about an hour of trying, I finally gave up and pulled out my copy of the Wind Up Bird Chronicle.
I was enjoying Murakami when I noticed that more people were now invading my private reading nook. I looked around a noticed that some were in front of the images deep I prayer, some were wiping the images with their towels, others were just plain noisy. I also saw people gathering in a well outside the grotto with them empty water gallon containers which they were trying to fill up with water from a faucet of the well. I remember thinking “what are these people up to?” I went back to my book but the noise was just plain distracting even with an MP3 plugged to my ear.
Deciding it was time to end my time of contemplation I walked around the shrine taking pictures here and there, I looked at my watch and it was 9:30. I was in the souvenir shop when I smelled fried garlic. My stomach was rumbling as if to say, a slice of bread is not breakfast. I followed the aroma and it led me here…
I entered the food court and zeroed in on the food. I saw bowls of lugaw, quail egg kwek-kwek, suman, tokwa’t baboy and an assortment of sweets (pastillas, yema and polvoron). Should I eat without telling Mamu and her berks or should I wait for them? The lugaw was calling me. But in the end I decided to wait for Mamu and the others.
I found Mamu and Ate Mhady in front of the Adoration Chapel. I told them about the food, the food and the food. But they didn’t seem to hear me. Finally when our little group was back together, I told them again about the food. Again, my ramblings seem to fall on deaf ears. They were really serious with their fast.
There was a mass scheduled at 10:30 so we proceeded to the chapel. I asked Mamu why we had to be there early, she told me that the church will be packed and we might not be able to get seats because we will be attending a healing mass which usually lasts for an hour and a half to two hours. As soon as we found a seat I told her that I’m going to the food court.
It was a self-service food court/cafeteria so I grabbed a tray and ordered a bowl of lugaw with a sprinkling of fried garlic and spring onions, a platter of quail egg kwek-kwek, suman, pastillas and a Coke in can. I was standing in front of the cashier when she announced that my total bill is sixty five pesos (65.00). I looked at her and at my fully loaded tray thinking that there must be some mistake. So I asked again “magkano?” and she replied with a little irritation “65 po lahat”.
As soon as I found an empty table I looked at the bill and saw that the most expensive thing on my tray was the Coke in can at thirty pesos!
The steaming hot lugaw was surprisingly tasty for its price. It needed a bit of calamansi, unfortunately they don’t have this, for 8 pesos a bowl, I can’t complain. The quail eggs are bit oily and cold but I like quail eggs and again for the price, there’s really nothing to complain about. I was surprised with the suman, it was cooked perfectly with coconut meat and latik, soft and not too sweet, an honest to goodness treat at ten pesos! The pastillas tasted like chalk, but you can’t win ‘em all.
True enough the mass lasted for about an hour and a half. But I was full so I didn’t mind.
I was surprised after the final blessing when almost everyone trooped to the altar. I turned to Mamu, she told me that this was the healing part of the mass or the anointing of the sick. In a sarcastic tone, I told her “are they all about to die?” She patiently explained, as if I am a five year old, that healing meant physical, spiritual and emotional. I joined the line to complete my Divine Mercy experience. Seeing the priests putting oil on everyone’s forehead, I somehow feared that it would be some rancid smelling coconut oil but it turned to be a floral scented oil.
Mamu and her berks went to the canteen after the mass, this made me think that I suffered from low EQ. They were also pleasantly surprised with the prices.
Before leaving the Divine Mercy Shrine they all pulled out plastic containers and fill it up with water from the faucets around the wells. They told me that it comes from a miraculous spring and it has healing powers. Again, to complete the experience I helped fill up their containers.
On the way home, the conversation turned to our near accident, it was their (Mamu and her berks) theory that maybe the reason why we were saved was because the Lord knew we were going to the Divine Mercy Shrine, have a desert and pray to Him. Silently I was thinking, adrenaline rush or miracle? I guess it really is a question of faith.
It was my first time at the U.P. Ayala Techno Hub in Quezon City. Walking around and looking at the shops in the complex I can't help but tell Mamu “Finally, progress comes to Commonwealth!” It was Mamu’s second time there so she wasn’t as impressed, she was just excited to reach Razon’s of Guagua for her favorite halo-halo.
We ordered halo-halo, Pancit Luglug and silvanas. As usual, Razon’s halo-halo is great especially on that hot afternoon. It only has three ingredients, sweetened banana, macapuno and leche flan. I remember hearing someone said it was the ultimate minimalist halo-halo. All the ingredients are cooked just right. But for me, the best thing about Razon’s halo-halo is the ice. It’s just so fine that it absorbs the creaminess of the milk. Mamu and I have different theories on how they make their ice, the best we came up with is that they freeze milk instead of water so it’s actually iced milk! Then they use an ice shaver. The Ate Mhady (one of Mamu’s berks) said that she thinks they combine crushed ice and milk then put it in a blender. Hmmm…another possibility we never thought of. But whatever it is, Razon’s halo-halo is the creamiest I've had. If there’s one complaint though, I wish it had more leche flan, but apart from that, it is simply, in the words of Alton Brown, good eats!
Moving on (enough praises for the halo-halo), the Pansit Luglug was a bit salty even after two calamansi slices and it seems to have gotten smaller since the last time I was at Razon’s (I forgot what branch). The silvanas was prepared just the way I like it, chewy, creamy and buttery. I’m really glad that there’s a Razon’s of Guagua here in Commonwealth. 
Mamu was happily chatting with her berks so I excused myself to check out the Techno Hub complex. There's the requisite coffee shops where a lot of call center employees were hanging out. Some of the restaurants in the complex are Le Ching, Red Kimono, Mister Kebab, Flapjack, Ral’s (a Filipino Resto) and a Mini-Stop. I was excited to see a soon to open banner of the Kanin Club.
I went inside a Mac store whose name escapes me now to check out the Macbook Pro 13 inches. But the saleslady told me that it was out of stock and they didn’t have a demo unit. So up to now, I still haven’t seen this new Apple laptop.
Seeing the crowd gathering outside Razon’s we realized that we’ve been there for more than two hours. Maybe these people also wanted a taste of Razon’s halo-halo. So we left and walked around for a while, Mamu and her berks also wanted to see the other shops. Ate Encar said that the complex looks better at night when all the buildings and shops are all lit up. 
