Palitaw ( Glutinous rice ball)

My weekend was a busy and exciting one starting my Saturday with a visit to the Consulate to accompany my friend Tet. We were out the whole day of Saturday, exhausting my energy come Sunday. And so again, i have invited Tet over for lunch and a session of Filipino food try-outs!

I am a self-confessed dessert addict! I enjoy eating nonetheless, but I always look forward to the end of a meal just for me to devour on sweet creations a restaurant if we are dining out or a house if we happen to be invited in for a gathering on offer.

This afternoon was no different, early in the morning, my helper and I went to the market for our weekly market shopping. I have already thought of having "palitaw" (it's a filipino dessert/ afternoon snack made from "galapong ". It is then rolled into balls or flattened then drop into a boiling water until it comes floating on the surface and you will know it's already cooked. It will then be rolled into grated coconut then topped with sesame and sugar. Here is Vietnam, i buy the glutinous rice flour from the supermarket and mix it with water. This is very convenient as opposed to the one i'm used to back home. You just have to mix it with water until you get the right, sticky consistency you like and easy to roll between your palms.

(that's the glutinous rice dough being rolled into balls, some choose to flatten it like a disc but we opted for something quirky!)

(it is then dropped into boiling water to cook - "litaw" means "to surface", hence the name of the snack "palitaw")

(to complete the snack, it is rolled into grated coconut, sesame and sugar!)

Pinoy Ingenuity at its best

I can't help but to share this video about how a simple man helped in creating an inventive way of lighting the dark in many houses in his area using recyclable plastic bottles and cheap resources such as water and bleach.

Electricity in the Philippines is one of the highest in Asia and I can truly attest to the fact that with the increasing rate of poverty, people are left with little or no choice of using the electric power especially in remote places.



I really do hope, that this simple act can make the government feel the need for millions of Filipinos to cheap and easily accessible resource such as electricity. Or help improve Mang Solar's solar power initiative come to life and reach many places.

Mabuhay ang Pilipino!

Of pregnancy, birthday and banoffee pie :)

29 weeks along my pregnancy is still doing pretty well (thank God!). I am back at work for a month now and I can say that nothing has changed despite of being and feeling big! It is really nice to hear people asking me everyday how i am feeling and I do not get tired telling them how great i feel and how excited i get as the big day approaches.

I am now 29 weeks and 3 days pregnant to be exact and we are slowly trying to purchase things and whatnots for the baby. So far, most of the newborn essentials are complete and just need to be washed. The wooden cot and the mattress have been delivered yesterday! yay!! Perhaps, i'll start preparing our hospital bags when i enter my 32 weeks. I will start my maternity leave in a month's time and I hope by that time all the necessary preparations (e.g. closet clean-up, small things purchases, hospital bags etc.) are done so i could only focus on the big day!

(That's me and a very good friend Tet after a hearty dinner at home, eagerly anticipating kicks and nudges from the baby girl!)

Today, is my husband's birthday so we had a very,very small dinner at home. This is an extraordinary birthday for him because of the anticipated birth of our little princess. It is a no-fuss dinner with Tet at home over home-cooked meals which i gladly prepared because i know i might not be able to do that for quite a while once the baby arrives. We might try to have post-birthday breakfast tomorrow, for a change!:)

Tet brought in a whole banoffee pie from Jaspas! It's a to die for dessert! We both prefer this version than what we have tried back home. The cream on top is just too nice to ignore and every inch of the pie compliments each other making it a very rich but not too overwhelming dessert!

My weekend started really great and I hope to begin my work week the same way i did today!

Sorry we're closed..

I was supposed to have my glucose tolerance test at FV Hospital this morning. My OB rescheduled me to come today because she wanted me to fast before the test is done. So, 8.30am, i went off with an empty tummy to get this done and over with. I know it would take some time for this test to be performed but I was ready for this "battle". 10minutes later, I arrived at the hospital. It was a very smooth journey since I live around the vicinity but lo and behold, the hospital is surprisingly very quiet! It was like a "ghost town" to me, no security guards or the concierge waiting outside, ready to open the car door for you or welcome you in the hospital! Shoot!! i forgot that today was a public holiday in Vietnam! Today marked the Independence Day of this country. But it didn't matter to me and to my friend since this is a HOSPITAL,it is always "on-duty" like ones back home or perhaps other hospitals around the world. I proceeded to the laboratory since I am scheduled to have a test done, but no Grace, the door is CLOSED!!! So off we went upstairs to see the OB department to try and speak to any staff, but again, no one was around to accommodate a hungry pregnant woman today!! Both Tet and I could not believe this strange realization happening at the moment! We are aware how important this public holiday to all Vietnamese people, but why leave the hospital unmanned? why?!! i just could not fathom that!!

(This is the reception area, normally, 6-8 uniformed staff are available to help any guests, but today, that was not the case. But i am pleased to see that the flower vase was still there and waited for me to arrive.)

(My friend Tet checking the notice board inside the OB department just in case they left a note about closing it in time for the holiday.)

So we've decided to check the emergency section, since it is designed for emergency cases we had hopes that it will be open. And yes, finally, a uniformed man was there and was available to speak to me. Unfortunately, since their laboratory is unavailable (because according to the staff, it is Vietnam's public holiday) they could not give me the service I was supposed to be taking at that time of the day! So there we were amazed at this luck we got, went out to hail a taxi but again, even that ever helpful taxi man was on holiday! Because in Vietnam today marked their Independence Day!

I hope you have had a relaxing Independence Day in Vietnam!