Every city has its own little stories. And every city has its own version of everything... from longanisa, halo-halo, suman and the center of my attention nowadays the puto bumbong and bibingka. Here in the Philippines, especially the ‘ber’ months it is almost typical to find every street with stalls selling the famous delicacies. No not isaw and adidas, that’s another story, and if you’re from Sta.Rosa, Laguna I’ll hang you at the plaza if you haven’t checked out or at least heard of the kakanins that they sell there. Being the pure bred Sta.Rosa kid that I am, my childhood memories were filled with trips to Chato’s for their halo halo and pancit palabok , Holy's siomai and qwek qwek, Mang Bok’s home made ice cream and yes, vivid memories of smoke and the smell of rice brought about by the cooking of the bibingka at the plaza.
Nothing beats a lovely night eating bibingka and puto bumbong..the mere thought of waiting at the stall for them to cook and enjoying the night sky, looking around the city, amidst twinkling Christmas lights and the sound of the jeepney passing by, the calm December breeze completing the quietness of the night..ahh simple joys.
BUT( disclaimer)
I love afternoon walks better! And if given a chance I would have visited the plaza around 3 or 4pm, the time when the stalls are usually set up… and hopefully insane-free! As of this writing, I’m still catching my breath! My mom and I were just waiting for the puto bumbong ‘coz the vendor is still wrapping it in the banana leaf..and all of a sudden, bam, there she was..a crazy lady(as in crazy coo coo) walked near us and shouted and cursed at us! Embarrassed and scared at the same time we ran at the car..waiting for her to go away. Even the tinderas got scared! Saying it was the first time that the crazy lady shouted and acted that way (hmmm was she mad at us? Tsk conspiracy theory hehe). Yes, we still ate the bibingka and puto bumbong, no crazy woman can dampen our spirits err our appetite for that matter! Good thing I’m done taking pictures! Crazy girl, hmm! Grrr. Thanks mom for joining me hehe(my number one fan) and dad, for driving us there:)
For my I.S. friends *haha* here's an FYI
The bibingka (rice cake) is made from galapong and usually topped with itlog na maalat( salted egg) and kesong puti (white cheese).. It’s cooked with live coals from top and underneath.
The puto bumbong on the other hand is glutinous rice added with purple food coloring and is cooked in a steamer cooker thingie:)...both are best served with niyog(grated coconut and sugar)i forgot to put some though *hehe*
Hmm looking back, i'm thankful for those memories(yeah including that recent one!) and i'm thankful for this city that made those memories possible..I love the idea that I have these to go home to on a bad weather.When your mind is loaded with different things and ideas.. Really, there's no place like home eekk!
P.S. P.S. P.S. P.S. P.S. P.S
This post is dedicated to my friends at englishforums( hey guys there’s more than pizza meets the eye) hehe..WOW Philippines!
And to my friend Nanette (a.k.a noity woity) who’s now based in Bahrain(on a good day hehe) and is salivating for these yummy treats*:)*
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