Ranked

I posted a photo of The Columns Ayala last month, taken from the sidewalk across the road. The best view I've seen of this three-tower condominium so far is from Gil Puyat Avenue going to Makati from Manila.

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I'm sorry for disappearing yet again. Several things have come up and I don't have much time for myself. I'm just posting this then going off again. Hopefully, things would have settled by the middle of this week so I can relax a bit again. I miss my favorite DPs and blogs!

Elevated circle

Aside from Claret School, the Claretian Missionaries also have one parish in Quezon City: the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish. The school and the church are beside each other. In fact, before the church was built, Masses for the community were held in the school's small chapel. I can't find any information about the church, but I remember (somewhat vaguely because I was still a kid then) that when it was constructed in the 1970s, the elevated, circular design was considered unique and people who saw it invariably went ooh-ing and ahh-ing. The church is still a work-in-progress after all these years, probably because construction expenses are paid for only by donations. The ground floor has the parish office and several chapels for holding wakes.

Claret

Claret School of Quezon City is a private school founded in 1967 and managed by the Claretian Missionaries of the Congregation of the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. It is named after its patron saint and the founder of the congregation, St. Anthony Mary Claret. It has a preschool, grade school and high school. Except for 3 to 4 year-old girls accepted in the preschool, Claret School is exclusively for boys. Actually, most private elementary and secondary schools in Metro Manila are either for girls only or for boys only. Most of them are run by religious congregations too.

Italasian

Back in November, I posted a photo of the interior of the Italian franchise restaurant Italianni's. As far as we can tell, the cooking is authentic Italian. However, we are in Asia after all and I don't think there's any chef worth his salt who can resist using local ingredients for long. So Italianni's offers special dishes that are not part of their regular menu and are available only for a few months. I liked the Grilled Squid Salad I had with my sister so much that when my husband and I ate there just before New Year, I ordered it again. Mixed greens with grilled squid, fruits and almond slices with a creamy citrus dressing. The fruits included Mandarin orange segments and whole longan.

Stop and shop

Wherever there is a busy transportation stop in Metro Manila, there are sure to be sidewalk vendors. The corner of Taft Avenue and Pedro Gil Street in the City of Manila has a light rail station, buses and jeepneys ply Taft, and Pedro Gil is a jeepney route. The vendors in this particular corner were selling peanuts and kikiam, slippers, sunglasses, and cellphone replacement covers, cases and chargers. And yes, Taft Avenue is named after William Howard Taft, the 27th president of the United States, who was the first civil governor of the Philippines (1901–1903) after the Spanish American War.

Blue glass

We pass by the UnionBank Plaza Building in the Ortigas Center of Pasig City once a month or so especially when we're on our way to one of the malls in the area. I never took notice of it because its street-level entrance and facade looks like any other building. It was only when we were at the Ortigas Home Depot several large blocks away that I saw what it really looked like. I love the sapphire blue glass but what is that thing on top?

Visit the Sky Watch Friday home page and tour the skies of our beautiful world.

Our Lady of the Remedies

From the 1937 marker on the Malate Church in the City of Manila, imprinted with the seal of the Historical Research and Markers Committee:

This section of the city dates back to 1588. The Titular Patroness of this church is Nuestra Señora de los Remedios, whose statue was brought from Spain in 1624 by Rev. Juan Guevara, O.S.A. The British landed their troops near these shores in 1762 and used the church of Malate for protection for their rear-guard in the capture of Manila. This church was greatly damaged by the earthquake of June 3, 1863 and was rebuilt by Rev. Francisco Cuadrado, O.S.A. The parish has been under the successive administration of the Augustinians, the secular clergy, the Redemptorists, and the Columbans.

Including the kitchen sink

The all-in-one-roof builders center is a relatively new phenomenon in Metro Manila. These large, clean, well-lit, warehouse-type structures started appearing only within the past decade. In the past, lumber, pipes, paint, nails and other construction materials could only be bought from dark, dingy hardware stores which only accepted cash. Then you had to go to other—and separate—shops for tiles, bathroom fixtures, cabinetry, and lighting fixtures. Of course, these centers don't house all available choices nor cover all needs—the Ortigas Home Depot didn't have long-span aluminum roofing, gutters, downspouts or upholstery fabric—but they do make life so much easier for busy homeowners.

A ring and a ball

That's pretty much all you need to shoot hoops, which probably explains the popularity of basketball in the Philippines. It can't be the chance to make it big internationally, not yet anyway—most Filipinos just don't have the genes for it. Almost every neighborhood in the country has a basketball court, even if it's just poured concrete.

They deliver

A house in our neighborhood. I have no idea why they're displaying banners of Shakey's Pizza and Jollibee on their fence. My guess is the family who lives there owns the franchise of the nearest branches.

Find more Odd Shots—or post your own—at Katney's Kaboodle.

Oh, my poor heart

Most Filipino gatherings will not start out right without the yummy, heart attack-inducing chicharon (or tsitsaron, since the Filipino alphabet doesn't have the letter C): deep-fried, crunchy pork rind. It is usually served to guests while they're waiting for the food to be brought out to the buffet. Chicharon is available all over the Philippines, but in Metro Manila, the best is probably Lapid's Freshly Popped Chicharon. The skin is so evenly popped and airy, you won't encounter a single tough spot. I think they only have two stores in the entire metro, however, so it's not easy to get. Chicharon comes in two varieties: skin only (the kind in the photo) or may laman, with meat, though the 'meat' is really fat, which becomes crunchy-creamy in the process of deep-frying. Chicharon is best eaten quickly dipped in vinegar, with or without black pepper, chili peppers or garlic. The vinegar mix of Lapid's is so popular they've already packaged it. Chicharon is also very popular as pulutan. I can't think of an exact English translation except for 'bar chow'—you know, the food you munch on while drinking liquor.

If you don't know the words…

Karaoke is big business in the Philippines, especially the videoke or KTV (karaoke television) type. Upscale karaoke boxes with restaurants and bars will serve you in your private room. Even the lowliest bars have karaoke—and I've discovered that coin-operated machines still exist here. Gather a large Filipino family together and, aside from tons of food, chances are good that at least one will have brought a karaoke system. The most popular nowadays is the karaoke microphone, or Magic Sing, as we call it. The microphone has a chip which contains the songs and videos, and you just connect it to a TV. The controls are on the microphone too. The less expensive alternative, especially if you already have a video player, is to buy a regular microphone and VCDs or DVDs of karaoke songs. The problem with this is you can't change the pitch or tempo, so many prefer the Magic Sing even if they have to save up for it.

When will they get banned?!

No, it's not fog or mist or some such romantic image. It's smoke from all the firecrackers and fireworks set off on New Year's Eve in our neighborhood. I took this from our gate looking down our street at 1:00 a.m. of January 1. According to this morning's papers, two died and 346 were injured because of firecrackers and stray bullets. I think that's in Metro Manila alone and of course it doesn't count the minor injuries that didn't have to be brought to hospital emergency rooms. The Department of Health says that's already a 'significant reduction' from years past. I guess I have to agree. The explosions lasted only ten minutes this year—I remember a time when they lasted for a full hour—and by the time I got up in the morning, the smoke had completely dissipated.

Dear to my heart

THEME DAY: BEST PHOTO OF THE YEAR 2008 • For many and varied reasons, the Ateneo Church of the Gesù is dear to my heart, so it's not surprising that my favorite photo of the year would be of that church. I can't say it was my best for the year, but the night shot of the church which I posted on June 16 is definitely my favorite, again for varied reasons. Instead of reposting it however, here is another night shot of the church, the trees in front of it decorated with hanging lights for Christmas and with cycling colored spotlights for the first Festival of Ateneo Music on December 7. I was trying to take a photo before the concert with my quite unstable arms when an alumnus of the school saw me. Being a serious amateur photographer, he came prepared with a tripod which he insisted I use. Thank you, Bryan, wherever you are. If it weren't for your kindness, I wouldn't have this beautiful photograph of my beloved church.

Click on the thumbnail to view my original post and read the history of the church.

The best of the best! This is going to be one great tour around the world! Click here to view thumbnails for all participants.