Fill you in

11:27 pm, Sunday. April 10 2011.

I just got into Manhattan, at a friend’s place in 50th street; it’s on the 25th floor with a ridiculous view of the city. I can’t believe school is starting this week! Right now though I can only fill you in on what went on for the last two days because I’ve only been here for that long. My flight came from Manila to Hong Kong then from Hong Kong, it’s a 15 hour flight to JFK Airport. When I got to Hong Kong, I had to hit the ground running (literally) because my flight from Manila was delayed (thank you Cathay Pacific) so I had to run down three walkalators to gate 21 to catch my next flight. I was initially planning on making a blog entry as I would have waited in Hong Kong but apparently, my airline did not allow me that much time privilege. Customs and immigration took so long and I was worrying about what they might ask me. But everything went well; they were so nice and didn’t really think of me as a threat to the American border. LOL. Heidi picked me up from the airport which was by the way, a 7 hour drive from where she lives – I am eternally grateful! Come Sunday and a few wrong navigational turns later, we found ourselves at a Free Methodist church in Brooklyn called Living Hope. Everyone was so nice and friendly; I could definitely see myself going there regularly on Sundays.I just have to figure out how to get there from Manhattan.

I didn't expect it to be this cold, I am not complaining though – I kind of like the cold. They did tell me that the weather’s gonna get better as the season progresses to spring and summer. So I will be OK – for spring and summer at least. In the meantime, I will be dating this city like crazy. New york and I will spend every single day together for the next 8 months or so, holding hands, getting around the subway, meeting weird people on the streets until both of us barf from excessive togetherness (LOL, I know right?). And just as a stalker is obsessed with her prey, I will be just as insatiable.

I have a school orientation at 3pm on Monday at Trump Tower, Thankfully it’s only a couple of blocks from where I am staying. I hope I survive it. I will surely blog about it, so you better check on my site every now and then for updates (demanding e noh?).

the view outside the window. nyc at night.

good morning west side!

please keep me in your prayers :)

love,

april

Food City: Dining with Chef Tatung

I have been very excited about this restaurant since the day I discovered it! I instantly urged my food buddies (AL & Robert) to check this one out. They were both equally enticed by how I described Chef Tatung’s private dining experience and we came up with a better idea! We decided to make it more interesting by holding Al’s birthday blow out and my going away treat in the same night and have the whole gang join us! It’s a different turn for us since we usually dine at places within the popular central district (e.g. Greenbelt, Serendra, etc.) – it has only been, just recently that we opt to try the hush-hush places like this for instance. I am going to cut to the chase – first impressions?

the place is tucked around a corner along Matipid street. When I first saw it, I got chills.

the ambiance was very intimate and cozy, perfect for a romantic night out. They seated us alfresco side - just the way we wanted. Our table setting was put together so elegantly with the candle lights and champagne glasses, the works! they could not have been more thoughtful.

one of the most attracting features at Chef Tatung's would be the menu. for only a minimum of PhP500, you get an appetizer, a salad, the main course and (drum role please) a dessert! Very interestingly as well, the menu varies weekly depending on the Chef's mood. So you always get something different every time! That night Chef Tatung was incorporating an Asian flair to our dishes -so oriental!

As we waited, we were served with a delightful basket of freshly made bread by the Chef himself.

staying true to the Asian theme, we all started off enjoying a bowl of warm tom yam kung. The flavors were spot on, it kind of transported me back to Thailand!

Our salad was conveniently packaged by virtue of the Lumpiang Ubod - very Filipino eh? I personally have difficulty eating large servings of Lumpiang Ubod, I couldn't really finish even regular portions of it. This part was a bit of a "humm-hah", nothing out of the ordinary. Well, except maybe for the bits of shrimp I found in each bite.

I had the pan glazed pork chop for the main course, it was very tender and savory. It was comfort in each bite, if I could say so for myself. the combination of the pork and the sauce with the mashed potato on the side was very satisfying, I ate everything on my plate this time. I was probably compensating for the lumpiang ubod. LOL.

the Birthday girl AL went for the fish option, the maya-maya. It was a lovely plate of pasta topped with servings of the maya-maya fish. According to her though, there was nothing special in her plate. As she would put it, it was "OK LANG". For the record, Al is very hard to please when it comes to food - that in itself is a disclaimer for future reference.

my good friend JE tried the Nasi Goreng topped with fried egg served with stuffed chicken leg and pickled vegetables.We were joking him that he just ordered chicksilog (chicken and itlog) at a private dining restaurant. When asked if it was good, he as well said "OK LANG", he liked the stuffed chicken leg but could not say the same with the Nasi goreng . Khryss and Robert said the rice is something they've tasted at a Chinese restaurant, being that both of them are Chinese -I guess you have to have an acquired taste to appreciate it.

the pricy option would be the premium steer midloin grass fed beef steak with balsamic syrup - phew! that was a mouth full. when I grabbed a bite of it from Robert's plate, I thought it was a tad bit too sweet than the pork chops. Robert disagreed, she said the pork was too sweet. Either way, the steak was tender and savory just the way Robert likes it(I still preferred my pork chops over her beef steak).

At long last! DESSERT!! The Chef served us his interpretation of cassava cake. I was expecting a traditional slice on a plate but surely, this was far more exciting. It was really good! everyone was exclaiming, "Ang tamis, SARAAP!". If you know our gang,a dessert never fails to make us swoon. So as long as it's sweet, we're good!

smiley face!

the group with Chef Tatung himself, it was a delightFULL night indeed. Overall, the food was OK and the whole experience was very charming and different. I would say it was a good value for our money, everyone should try a private dining experience like this at least once in their lifetime (or from time to time even!).

The 411 on Chef Tatung's Private Dining:

address: 17 Matipid St., Sikatuna Village, Quezon City

RESERVATION is a must, contact them through: +632 352-6121

Or through facebook, type in: Chef tatung

Japan and all that's left

This is a sample satellite picture of the damage brought about by the tsunami in Japan.

please view the complete article of pictures via this link: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/03/13/world/asia/satellite-photos-japan-before-and-after-tsunami.html?ref=asia

I’ve been sitting here organizing my thoughts on which stories to share and blog about. I’ve realized that I’ve not been very sensitive to the real issues commencing around the globe; and neglecting the cloud that’s hovering over Asia, more specifically, JAPAN. It was on March 11, 2011 – my last day at work. I was running around the office (like a chicken with no head) organizing the food my coworkers and myself prepared for everyone in the building – never thought despidida parties could be so stressful! After feeding the hungry savages, I got a chance to check my email. And there on my yahoo page, a frightening headline about the earthquake in Japan and the horrendous tsunami that came after. My ears momentarily deafened the rave inside the office and I could hear my deep breath mouthing the words: “OH NO” in silence. It was difficult; I could hear the people crying for the loss of loved ones, the tsunami tarnishing everything in its path and the sound of despair that comes with it. I was brought back to when “Ondoy” plagued the Philippines without warning; But this – this was far beyond anything like a super typhoon. Nothing could have prepared them for the earthquake, let alone a tsunami!

I am aware that Japan and the Philippines have had their share of divergence in the past. Most Filipinos even tend to dislike the Japanese simply because of how they treated our ancestors. I must say, the darkest and grimmest parts of our history would be the time when the Japanese invaded the land. A lot of deaths took place and not to mention a swarm of suffering and injustice all across the country. And just recently, a video surfaced on the web showing hundreds of Japanese local fishermen slaughtering poor and helpless dolphins by the shore. It was an awful sight to see people butchering each dolphin alongside the whole stretch of sand with which turning the sea into a deep murky red.

However atrocious all these things may seem to be, I cannot and will not put myself to judge their country no matter how harshly they’ve treated ours in the past. There is a lot of opinion going around the web about how the nation (Japan) so rightfully deserves what is happening to them because of the many human (and animal) deaths they’ve caused – I just think that is downright hypocrisy! Our country and even we individually, in one way or another, have caused suffering towards someone or something. Who are we to say that they should suffer because of their sins when we are just as sinful as they are? Are we that blameless to point a finger towards a nation that suffered enough death and hardship?

Come on people, don’t be so thick. Blaming other people won’t do any justice to us, or even to the slaughtered animals. Let the man without sin cast the first stone.

let us all continue to remember Japan in our prayers.

I love Sara B!

Sara Bareilles is one of the (very) few artists nowadays that actually has talent. i was so excited when her follow up single, uncharted, went out! She has an amazing way of writing about things that I wish I could put into writing myself. Her songs are very relatable and at the same time, very unique and fresh - Something that real artists now try so hard to bring about in their songs. I love the effortless flamboyance in everything that she does with her songs. Truly spectacular! What can I say? I’m smitten.

And so are these people:

I am actually on my way out to grab a copy of her album, kaleidoscope heart. you should too!

date me

YESSS! Date me! I am officially starting off the week as a WORK-FREE citizen! And by work-free I mean UNEMPLOYED. I used to think being unemployed was pathetic. In actual fact, however, when I got a job I thought I was even more pathetic than I was before! HAHA. Of course, I’m kidding! I’ve grown to love my job. As a matter of fact, I’ve hoped for it long before it was handed to me by the CEO himself. After 2 months of being his executive assistant, I pretty much had a handle on things. I was actually good at my job. I sort of instantly saw myself mirroring Andy Sachs in The Devil wears Prada movie minus the Evil bitch boss, Miranda Priestly, of course. Getting coffee, calling people, memorizing faces of VIPs, and yes, the occasional late calls are what constitute the job of an E.A. - but it is with fervor when I say to you, I loved every minute of it. At the very end of the movie when Andy decided to follow her dream and pursue writing, that as well comes in parallel to where I am now. If you haven’t seen this movie (very odd if you haven’t) you should go watch it on your spare time.By the way, these are just pictures I took during the week. I apologize for the very low resolution; I was only armed with a cell phone – enjoy!

a flower got stuck on my car's rear end

Robee got me a Reese's CUP from SG!

Al's early morning birthday surprise!

the new Starbucks logo is - UGLY. sorry.

say hello to vanilla,
butter and sugar

Andy is different - she has 
this gorgeous guy, i don't.. anymore.

dreams (do) exist

OK, I truly do apologize for keeping you on your toes as you must have waited patiently for my next post. I’ve been, apparently, on hiatus for quite some time now and I can’t apologize enough for keeping you waiting for so long. (LOL) to start off, I’ve been recently employed to an Insurance company in QC in over a month ago (thus explaining my long absence) and have been busy figuring out how to go about with my “New York”. You’ll be glad to know that I just received my confirmation of enrollment to the European School of Economics in Manhattan, New York for the semester opening this spring of 2011. Pretty neat huh? However, I’m still half way to getting things done with my visa and whatnot. So, I am still keeping my fingers crossed.

Right now, I’m trying to recuperate from some “heart” problems lately. Let’s just say I got too carried away with my emotions that ultimately led to my demise. Things are just the way they are and you just have to, as we all know, let go and let God. As much as I want to disclose to you the many chapters of what went on for the last 8 months or so, I believe that there are certain things better left unsaid.. Untouched.. And most times, unvisited. All I know is that right now, at this very moment, however vague and raw, I know I am heading somewhere. God is leading me somewhere. I just hope and pray its New York. I just have a few more things I’d like to add, for all you dreamers out there: IT IS NEVER TOO LATE. However old, young, able, unable, broken or unbroken (etc.) you may be, Dreams will always linger in your thoughts; Like a parasitic ailment that can only be saturated by one, simple, yet seemingly difficult first step: TRYING. A lot of my friends, including myself, fall short in this very simple rule. Easier said than done? OF COURSE! But will that excuse stop you from actually getting things started? OF COURSE NOT. Anyway..I think it’s safe to say that I mustered the guts to face it head on and head first (literally). BUT HEY! Here I am, ALIVE and still dreaming. The only difference is, I believe it. And any time soon (very soon I hope), I will be living in it. “Believe” in your dreams and pretty soon, you’ll “be living” inside it. Therefore, it stops being just a dream. More so, it starts to exist.

Trump Tower, New York

im an english man

This song has been protruding in my ear for the longest time. It’s not that I hear it all the time; it’s just that I seem to have a fetish for sting’s very seductive and subdued airy vocal chords. The jazz doesn’t hurt either. I find it very interesting how people hum to a beat or a symphony even when there is complete silence. Especially when you’re cooped up in a room or a car all by yourself. Humming and sounding like hopeless dork complete with “Diva-like” hand gestures - Not that I have done all of these sorts of humiliating stints, I assure you I am not speaking in terms of experience. I made myself believe that liking a song has to do with how one relates to the song in a more personal manner. So yeah, I guess I do like this song for more reasons than one. First being I love sting. And, secondly, I happen to feel like a legal alien living in manila. Korny. I know. Can’t help it, the song compels me. (wehweh) lol

“Wooaoh, I’m an alien, I’m a legal alien, I’m an English man in”

(I’m crossing my fingers for you)

New York.