Let's play a game of WHATs

Let's play a game of Whats.  It's very simple.  I've prepared three questions, all inspired by the book Eat Pray Love, beginning with the question word 'What'.  It starts with the very simple question "What's your favorite gelato flavor?".  The next 2 however won't be that easy.  I'll share my views and I hope to hear from you as well.  Let me just warn you in advance that this post has the potential of becoming as long as my previous post After Omphaloskepsis. Life's a Charm, you have been forewarned. (^o^)v  I promise to keep it short and simple though in the spirit of the Italian expression "Parla Come Mangi".

Let's Play! (Continue Reading to play)

What's your favorite Gelato flavor?

I love Gelato!  It's one of my favorite desserts.  Elizabeth Gilbert, author of the book Eat Pray Love, must have loved it too - when she was in Rome she ate Gelato all day long!  My favorite flavors are Pistaccio, Chocolate Mint, and Chili Chocolate!      

Personally, I find the Pistaccio flavored gelatos being offered by gelato shops here in the Philippines not come up to par with the one I tasted back in Rome (2006).  I don't know if it's because of the quality of the ingredients, the originality, or simply because it was the first gelato I tasted.  Regardless, every time Pistaccio is available, I am almost certain I would order it.

Chocolate Mint, on the other hand, is good anywhere in the world (Rome, Australia, Philippines)!  If you want something that would never fail to satisfy your taste buds, order this.  Chocolate and mint just goes very well.  

And if you haven't tried it yet, chocolate also goes very well with chili! (Just don't overdo the chili and make sure the spiciness is well blended into the mixture. Put a dash in your next cup of hot choco, you'll love it.)  And when I was in Greenbelt 5 (Manila) last month, I found Chili Chocolate as one of Gelatissimo's offering.  I wasn't disappointed.  I have yet to find any other gelato shop that carry this flavor.  I'm not sure though if it's a regular offering.  Surprisingly, there's more Gelatissimo outlets in Cebu!  Two to be exact.  One in SM City Cebu and one in Ayala Center.  And not so surprisingly, there's none in Davao.  If you're in Davao, the next best thing would probably be to go to Crepelato in Mayon St.

What do you think?

It was a friend who brought up this topic a few years back and I didn't believe it at all back then.  I was (so naive and was) for bringing a child into this world to allow it to experience LIFE. (Understandably, that was when my life seemed perfect - not too far back) However, as the years progressed, I'm starting to believe it more myself.  Do parents bear children more for selfish reasons - meaning for their own sake - rather than anything else? What do you think?

Elizabeth Gilbert wrote "I think people have children for all manners of reasons - sometimes out of a pure desire to nurture and witness life, sometimes out of an absence of choice, sometimes in order to hold on to a partner or create an heir, sometimes without thinking about it in any particular way.  Not all the reasons to have children are the same, and not all of them are necessarily unselfish.  Not all the reasons not to have children are the same, either, though."

Richard Fish, lawyer played by actor Greg Germann in famous TV series Ally McBeal, had this to say - "Having a child is a selfish thing.  Couples don't walk around wanting to give life.  They say 'we want a child, .. we want, we want."  It's a selfish thing.  Not that it's a good selfish but it's selfish."

What's your WORD?

And finally, we come to the last 'what' question 'What's your word?'.  One of the Italians that Liz met in her travels suggested something like every city and every person having a word.  A city's word is what majority of the people living in that city are thinking about and it supposedly defines that city.  While a person's word is what defines that person - how that person thinks.  And the catch is, for someone to belong - to feel at home - in a particular city, that person has to have the same word as the city.  

Rome's word is supposedly "SEX", the Vatican's is "POWER", Naples' is "FIGHT", New York's is "ACHIEVE", Los Angeles's is "SUCCEED", and Stockholm's is "CONFORM." 

When I was studying in UP Diliman (Quezon City), I would say the word that time inside the campus was "EXCEL."  Although I stayed in Makati City just recently for a month, I still don't have a clue as to what the city's word really is.  It must be because most people actually just go there to work, to shop, or to enjoy.  People from different cities therefore come and go, bringing with them different words in the process .... perhaps "BUSINESS?" / "WORK?" / "VARIETY?" / "LUXURY?" - Let me think about it more.  

In my 3 years in Cebu I would say the word is "IDENTITY."  Cebuanos are a mix culture of different identities from the affluent mestizos to the not-so-underground bisdak society.  What I love about them is their strong sense of identity and their pride as Cebuanos.  And being not afraid to express all that.  

In my 4 years in Sapporo City, or in Japan generally, I would say the word is "CAREFUL" or "RESPECT."  Everybody there seemed to walk while thinking all along not to bump anyone, not to step on anyone's toes, or even simply not to talk or approach anyone you don't know.  Voices even have to be kept at a low volume so as not to disturb anybody who might be nearby.  Would you believe it when I say that one of my Jap colleague refused to recline his airline seat simply because somebody was seated behind him? And did you notice how they can expertly fold their newspaper so as it doesn't invade the space of the passenger seated next to them?  Unbelievable.  The only exceptions to this are probably the Yakuza-like individuals.  

If you ask me, I think Davao's word is "OBEY." (or maybe "ORDERLY")  Most, if not all, Dabawenyos are law-abiding.  Alcohol curfew is strictly followed at 2am.  It is not even uncommon, although becoming rare, to find a jeepney driver who's willing to give way in traffic.  And the epitome of it all is the Kadayawan festival.  Just watch the parade tomorrow and you'll see what I mean.  Street dancing participants are widely spaced out while onlookers are cordoned off way to the side.  It just doesn't have the same feel as the Sinulog festival of Cebu.  It's as if the city is not celebrating a festival at all.  But I do love Davao.

          

Now, I'm conflicted.  I still have yet to find my word but it certainly isn't "OBEY."

And Oh! Happy Kadayawan! And I know I should just have written 3 different posts! hehehe         

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Dolce Vita - The Sweet Life

Coffee is now my best friend.  Getting an average of 6 hours of sleep is not enough for someone like me who has been used to sleeping 10 to 12 hours a day.  So whenever I need a kick in the morning, or before relaxing in the afternoon, I grab my Bodum Coffee Press and whip myself the best tasting Iced Cafe Latte I've ever tasted.  

Learning to whip up your own cup can save you a lot of bucks.  A cup of ice cold coffee already averages at around 100 pesos per cup.  And I find that coffee shops, even the international franchises, tend to be inconsistent in their mixes.  I don't know why but after a few months from opening, blends tend to change and it just ruins coffee time for me.  The recipe for my favorite iced cafe latte is given below. (^o^)/      

Iced Cafe Latte

1 Tbspn Honey
1/2 cup Full cream Milk *
1/4 cup strong coffee **
ice cubes (4 to 6)

Procedure:
Just mix everything in your favorite coffee glass, fill with ice to the brim and enjoy. Add or reduce Honey as desired.

* You can substitute any kind of milk but I personally enjoy the added texture and creaminess provided by full cream milk.

** I use 2 Tbspn of medium to dark roasted coffee beans steeped for 3-4 minutes in 1/2 cup dispenser hot water, using a coffee press.  If you have light roasted beans, you may have to double your coffee beans to achieve a stronger taste.  If you have an espresso maker, you can substitute this with 2 shots of espresso.

When it comes to coffee beans, Royal Kona Coffee of Hawaii tops my list.  The one I tried was the Roy's signature blend which contained 10% Kona Coffee and is medium to dark roasted.  I just finished the last of my beans today and I'm beginning to regret giving away my second pack.  Anybody going to Hawaii anytime soon please buy me some more.  (^o^)/  

In general, I prefer beans which are a mixture of Arabica and Robusta.  Arabica beans give off a great aroma while Robusta beans give you more of that lovely bitter coffee taste.  Regular Nescafe uses all Arabica beans that's why it smells good but lacks taste while Blugre Coffee, a coffee shop here in Davao, uses all Robusta beans.  Mr. Gatchalian, the owner of Blugre, said that Filipinos generally prefer taste over the aroma.  I don't know how true that is considering that Nescafe is probably the best-selling instant coffee here in the Phils.

In solitude or with the company of friends and love ones, coffee is the best.  It's the dolce vita.  Too bad that there are those who have a knack of always picking the wrong time to talk about things and ruin the experience.  

There's an Italian expression that goes "Parla come mangi" which goes to mean that when explaining complicated things it is best to keep it simple and direct just like Italian food.  Yes, surprisingly, Italian food is suppose to be simple and I didn't appreciate it that much when I was in Italy because I was expecting something complicated.  Just like the Truffle-scented Cream Pasta at Mamou (Serendra) - no frills, simple yet bursting with flavor, simply delicious.  That's how Italians love their food. 

Ahhhhhhhhhh! All this talk about food and coffee makes we wanna go back to Rome.  One day.  One Month. One year.  

   

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Identity Crisis @ 31

I've always had issues with my name.  I don't like it that much.  For one, there is the bewildered expression I get from friends when they come to know that I have a different surname than the rest of my family.  It always makes an interesting conversation piece.  A topic that can be personal, which can be good for opening up, without being too personal for me.  However, interesting as it may be, sometimes it just doesn't amuse me.    

And then there's my first name which has been interpreted more than a couple of times.  People in my hometown of Davao City know me as Stephen (stef-en) but I grew up with a nickname of "Pen".  When I moved to Manila to attend university, my name became Stephen (stee-fuhn).  And people began calling me Steph (steef), which was perfectly fine for me as this was the most acceptable pronunciation of my name in the whole Philippines.  Or so I thought, because when I moved to Cebu people found it weird to call me Steph (steef), as for them, this nick is mostly used for girls with a name of Stephanie.  And so variations like "Tep" and "Tebs" arised.  Tep from sTEPhen and Tebs as short for Esteban, which I guess is the Tagalog version of my name. (Worst of all some would call me Phen ("Fen!"), I can't think of anybody who would want to be called that?!)

And the variations didn't stop there.  In Japan people referred to me as su-te-fan which is pronounce as Stefan, the same as that of the great Swedish tennis player Stefan Edberg.  I tried to correct them but it was futile.  Any other pronunciation would require additional syllables which would be awkward to pronounce in Japanese.  And so I settled for this, as this was the most natural for the Japanese and I didn't mind being called the same way as Edberg, a tennis legend in his own right.  And lastly, western friends would refer to me as Steven (stee-vuhn), and would shorten it to Steve, which is the American way and probably the international pronunciation of my name.  

No doubt, all these names have caused their share of confusion.  A college friend once called me up in my uncle's house in Manila and my cousin, who also hails from Davao, answered the phone.  "Hello," my friend asked, "may I talk with stee-fuhn. please." "Ha?," goes my cousin and after a brief pause came to realize that it was for me and says, "Ahh ... si stef-en."  

These all adds to the mystery that is me but what I can't stop pondering is whether if I could have confused myself in the process as well? No doubt, this identity crisis has gotten into me as well.  Tsk tsk tsk.

One good thing I can think of that can be derived from this whole experience is the fact that it would be easy to recognize where and what time in my life I met someone by the way they would call me.  But I guess this is looking at the glass way half-full right?  Or as we engineers would see it, the glass is 50% full!

And so I am planning to internationalize my name soon.  I think the best way to go, especially if my plans push through, would be to use Stephen (stee-vuhn).  What do you think?        

And oh yeah, before I forget, did I mention that I went through 3 different Chinese names as well? This makes me wanna say Vaffanculo! (Just a little Italian a learned today (^o^)v)

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