Choices

"A cup of tea is a cup of peace."

~Sen Sōshitsu XVI, 16th tea master of the Urasenke family

We finally have TWG Tea Salons in Manila. Those mostly yellow cans on the walls, reflected on the large mirrors of the dining area, are just a few of the more-than-a-thousand tea varieties available at the shops. To be honest, I find the food too expensive (though I've finally satisfied my curiosity about scones), but I'm just very happy that I finally have a place to go to for some good loose leaf tea. And as long as one doesn't buy their fancy cans, the cost of TWG's teas won't break the bank.
 

Weaving life

"We all have our own life to pursue, our own kind of dream to be weaving, and we all have the power to make wishes come true, as long as we keep believing."

~Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888), American novelist

On display at the 3rd floor of Greenbelt 5 mall are the gorgeous nito vine baskets of the indigenous Iraya Mangyan of the island province of Mindoro. The Ayala Foundation has committed to providing education and skills training to a community of Iraya Mangyan in the town of Puerto Galera, a popular beach and diving destination. Part of their commitment is to revive the traditional art of weaving beautiful and functional baskets made of nito (Lygodium circinatum), a forest vine. Sales of the baskets go directly to the families who weave them.

You can learn more about—and support—the Ayala Foundation's Iraya Mangyan Project here.

High street

"Unlike a fountain that circulates the same water in an enclosed, perpetually recycling system, a human being circulates thoughts in an unlimited reservoir of self. Don't limit yourself to being a mere fountain when you contain an ocean."

~Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration

The stores of the shopping and dining arcade that is Bonifacio High Street all open up into a park that runs the entire length of this unique mall. The park has fountains, playgrounds and sculptures, and is also pet-friendly. The Old Navy store at the corner is the first in the Philippines and only opened in March.

Leg godt

"As long as Lego bricks have been in existence,
the soles of fathers' feet have been in danger."

~Jonathan Bender, author of LEGO: A Love Story

Darth Vader welcomes customers to the Lego® store in Bonifacio High Street. Unfortunately, it was difficult taking his photo because everything was reflecting off his dark suit. I didn't realize he got photobombed by the lady beside me until I downloaded the photo.

And just a random thought: It must be awesome to be able to write down one's job as "Lego Master Model Builder."

Cake topper

"Did you ever get the feeling that the world was a tuxedo and you were a pair of brown shoes?"

~George Gobel (1919–1991), American comedian

Cakes decorated with French macarons—very original, I thought. Then I noticed the shoe cake toppers and realized I wasn't looking at the display of a bakeshop at all. It's a shoe store called the French Sole by Jane Winkworth.

Book art

"A room without books is like a body without a soul."

~Cicero

The mural inside Fully Booked in Bonifacio High Street is painted on a stack of books two stories high.

See murals from around the world in Monday Mural.

Clothed in many colors

Adults who bring children to The Manila Collectible Co. can keep their little hands busy in this corner where they can paint some clay pots. The store also carries products for children, including stuffed toys of Philippine animals like the carabao and tarsier. I just love the sarimanok separating the children's corner from the rest of the store. The sarimanok is a legendary bird of many colors which originated from the Maranao people of Mindanao.

To go

Of course, one can't have a Filipino gift shop without food. The Manila Collectible Co. has gathered together a good array of food products from all over the Philippines. Dried fruit, jams and preserves, biscuits, chocolate, teas and infusions, coffee, fruit wines, vinegar—all made locally from local produce.

Choose your style

I don't think yesterday's mural was for sale, but there are many paintings by young and upcoming artists to choose from at The Manila Collectible Co.

Cultural Appreciation 101

The mural at the entrance of The Manila Collectible Co. is symbolic of the store's mission to promote the best of the Philippines' indigenous creative industry. The painting is titled "Icon" and was conceptualized by Charisse Aquino-Tugade, the founder of the company, and a long-time writer and host for the Living Asia Channel. It was executed, however, by the Kulisap Group of Artists of the Eulogio "Amang" Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology (EARIST). The left side features representations of the Philippines' many indigenous ethno-linguistic groups, and the right side features important cultural landmarks and treasures.

See murals from around the world in Monday Mural.

Woven dreams

T'nalak are woven dreams. T'boli women weave them, keen eyes and hands working together to judge lengths, to transfer patterns from memory to loom. T'nalak is made of the whitest abaca fibers connected end to end with the smallest possible knots and dyed red and blackest brown. Its patterns are handed from mother to daughter, or bestowed on the weaver in dreams by Fu Dalu, the spirit of the abaca. It is a product as much of quietness of spirit as it is of skill, for not all women weave, and not all weavers dream.

~ from the chapter "What is T'nalak?" by Maria Elena P. Paterno in the book "Dreamweavers"

T'nalak (in the foreground) and other indigenous hand-woven fabrics and clothes are also available at The Manila Collectible Co.

Natural fiber

The Manila Collectible Co. is a four month old store in historic Intramuros which showcases products from artists and artisans all over the Philippines. All the products they carry are handmade and neatly displayed according to category in the store. These are the shelves of handwoven bags and baskets. We bought an enormous, soft tikog bag large enough to serve as luggage for our next road trip.

Half the sky

In 1973, the previously all-male Ateneo de Manila University accepted its first women students. 127 enrolled as freshmen, and 35 transferees were accepted in the upper years. It was a tough road to get to that point, with both the student council and the administration against it as late as 1968. The year-long commemoration of coeducation in the university is titled "40 Years, Half the Sky," after the Chinese proverb which says that "Women hold up half the sky." The young female students of Ateneo now take their presence in the university for granted; many of them don't even know what "coeducation" means. I hope that the commemoration helps them understand the issues back then, and how many women and girls all over the world continue to struggle with disempowerment, oppression and violence.

One-stop wedding shop

The Wedding Lounge (see previous post) is a boutique which gathers all the services one needs for a wedding—or any large party, for that matter. Invitations, gowns, jewelry, cakes, flowers, photographers, videographers, makeup, chocolates… about the only thing you need to provide yourself is a bride or a groom.

Tiny icy panes

CITY DAILY PHOTO THEME DAY: STREET LAMPS • The street lamp in front of The Wedding Lounge is probably part of the design of the RFM Corporate Center building, where it is located. It seems too low and too small—more decorative than utilitarian—to have been placed there by the city of Mandaluyong. Unless that little lamp is fitted with a very strong light bulb.

Wasted trip

When it comes to fashion, I try to buy local brands as much as possible. Many of the shirts and blouses I use at work are from Folded&Hung, so I finally visited their outlet store along Quezon Avenue. I was disappointed in the selection, though; most of the items on sale at the store were the casual stuff like jeans, tees and sport shirts. Oh well.

Junior's

Ever since I can remember, there's been a sari-sari (variety) store in this corner in our neighborhood. The glass cases and steel shutters date back to my childhood too. About the only thing different about it is all the banners advertising prepaid cellphone load. The store used to be called Junior's. I don't know if that is still its name or if it's owned by the same family, but I still refer to it as Junior's until now.

Junior

Back in 2010, I posted a photo of our little neighborhood grocery, named Eunilaine. It closed in December, ostensibly for renovations, and announced that it would reopen on January 15. That date came and went, but the grocery didn't open. It finally did last month, but under a completely different name. Puregold is one of the Philippines' largest grocery chains, with 156 stores under three names. It bought all 15 Eunilaine and Grocer-E stores, closing the deal on January 15.

Chinese Ho-land in Manila

If you ever find yourself in Binondo, Manila's Chinatown, and see this sign for Ho-land Chinese Delicacies, run inside and grab a pack of freshly-baked hopia, flaky puff pastry filled with a sweet mung bean paste. It's delicious.

Too many choices

It started as an occasional bazaar, but the huge Greenhills tiangge is now almost all-year-round, and airconditioned too. It's the breaks that are now occasional, so some stalls can be changed to reflect the season (like Christmas or school opening). This is just one corridor of the bazaar, which regularly has sections for shoes, clothes, jewelry, and home accessories. The tiangge is now celebrating the Chinese Lunar New Year, and the special section (which I wasn't able to take a photo of, unfortunately) included Chinese delicacies, and all manner of figurines and charms meant to bring luck during this Year of the Water Snake.