Short and Sweet, Two Weeks in Manila 2019

By: Maria Girlie Pascual

 

The good news came in hard and fast. My generous patroness, my classmate from College of the Holy Spirit wanted to fly me to Manila to emcee her 60th birthday celebration at the Club Filipino Membership venue in Greenhills, San Juan Metro Manila. I had exactly two months to decide and because of a family situation, I did not commit until two weeks prior to her party.

On July 3, 2019, I boarded an American Airlines flight to Narita, Japan from O’Hare, then onward to Ninoy Aquino International airport where Jingay Kaimo picked me up before midnight, Thursday, July 4, Manila time. The party was on Saturday, July 6, and everything was a blur from that point on. A whirlwind of invitations ensued from after the party, Fourteen days of breakfasts, lunches and dinners hosted by family, classmates and my core group kept me full and definitely mindful of everything I ate, to make sure I only indulged in delicacies I truly craved, which meant everything that was placed in front of me, I ate. Yes, I pigged out, for lack of a better term, and I have no regrets.

The best “quickie” weekend getaway I had was at the Costa Saltorino in San Juan, Batangas. I gladly accepted the offer to stay there with my best friend Jingay Kaimo, my niece Annika, my sister-in-law Noemi, and my cousin Lou Pascual-Cruz, who brought the transportation, and off we went on all girls’ trip to a resort we will not be likely to forget. And how could we? From the moment we finished the four-hour long drive emerging from a dusty trail of palm fronds and a wild forest, we were amazed to see an oasis of sun-kissed white walls, a sprawling, glass menagerie of about 25,000 square feet of modern architecture that made the surrounding places like dwarfs next to this spacious edifice.

True to its name, Costa Saltorino did evoke visions of the villas lining the volcanic islands of Santorini in Greece which faces the Aegean sea, southeast of Athens. This island. like Costa Saltorino, has white mountaintop residences that stand out against the vivid blue color of the sea. Such was the view from all the bedrooms, the rooftop and the veranda of this magnificent home, and it provided the solitude and rest that I was craving from a hectic schedule for the last two years in Chicago. A night of sumptuous local fare prepared by the staff–sinaing na tulingan ( local Batangas bullet tuna fish cooked for a minimum of 4 hours in a brining method along with kamias, a tart vegetable), inihaw na liempo ( grilled pork belly) and halaan (soup dish made with local mussels) rounded up the menu, and dessert was fried bananas and ice cream. This was only on the first day! The rest of our stay was a food nirvana of tasty Batangas cooking. Special thanks to Ems, the caretaker and chef, her husband Emiliano who was our guide and groundskeeper, Mang Cardio, the gardener and helper, and Ms. Neneth who made all the arrangements for us. Needless to say, without the owners’ special blessing, it would not have been that special trip you can only experience in a five-star resort. It simply put Philippine famous actress Angel Locsin’s resort next door to shame. LOL. Thank you!

Oh, yes, we did manage the 200 steps leading down to the beach facing the West Philippine Sea (formerly China Sea) but struggled to walk back up. Only the promise of Ems’ special dinner got us trekking back to Costa Saltorino, after which we had facials, vodka and female bonding until past midnight. It was well-worth the trip, for sure.

After the Costa Saltorino trip, there was no time for any more out-of-town places, so the next round of invitations for meals, fun events and more classmate time included dancing at the Musica Bar in Greenhills, with the Family Birth Control still at it after 40 years. My, oh my, the lead vocalist in the 70’s was Nonoy Zuniga, but now, original members like Toots Almazan, Ferdy Flores, were still belting out the songs of our youth. Thank you to Ana Tuanio (again) for hosting this event, as well. Of course, if Docboy Pascual, my eldest brother, had his way, it’ll be Alan’s Grill in Quezon City every night, but since the Viridian condo is in Greenhills, and his clinic is at the Cardinal Santos Memorial Hospital, half a mile away, we managed to meet up almost daily at Greenhills and shared meals around the newly-developed entertainment center where the old Unimart Grocery used to be.

Another noteworthy event was watching the hit musical, “Ang Huling El Bimbo”, which featured music from the 90’s band Eraserheads, but even if I was not familiar with their songs, the story-line of high-school friendship, family ties and growing up in the Philippines was enjoyable. The play ended in tragedy, but the well-arranged music and the whole production brought the audience to its feet for great performances from its young cast. The other time I had so much fun was painting my grandson Kenzo with the help of art graduates at the staff friendly Sip N Go gallery in Eastwood. I had a picture of him on my phone, opting to try and paint his likeness on canvas, rather than getting my inspiration from landscapes and nature scenes as my classmates did, All in all, we felt like art geniuses which we attribute to the wine, not to our collective talents. Thank you to classmates Marietta Del Rosario and Elizabeth Kintanar for coming up with this great gathering.

The cherry on top for this trip was the impromptu Spanish cooking class we had with caterer to the stars Arlene Arce, of the Selecta Arce family fame, at Gigi Martin- David’s events place, formerly her family home now called the “Felicidad Mansion” at Baler Street, Old Manila. Arlene painstakingly walked us through time-honored recipes of Lengua Estofado (Braised ox tongue in mushroom sauce), Slow Baked Chicken Iberico from the famous town in Spain, Callos A La Madrilena (slow-cooked tripe in tomato sauce) Beef Salpicao (beef tenderloin cubes in garlic sauce), and the tasty shrimp Gambas (sauteed garlic shrimp in olive oil). What made this pop-up class memorable was Arlene’s humor and outstanding, original cooking pointers, especially her use of canned tomatoes and her love of Knorr mushroom soup for her recipes. Arlene Arce and Gigi Martin-David, thank you and you both rock!

I knew I was leaving soon when I had to look for specific items with the help of my youngest brother AA and his wife, Lynn, in Rue De Vie (Divisoria, mga kaibigan). I just prayed the food items will not be confiscated like “adobong mani”(garlic fried peanuts), cheese pimiento and different varieties of sardines. It all made it back to Chicago.

Seeing my family, my classmates, old friends like Thelma Dumpit and Alou Sanchez Venegas, Docboy’s pals always kept me occupied and busy, while Jovie Galan and Jingay Kaimo took time off to stay with me at the Viridian from the time I arrived until the day I left. Having lived in the United States for most of my adult life, it is exactly this kind of familial ties and close friendships that keep me coming back yearly, if and when I can.

Finally, my 17 days were up and I had to depart on July 21st, two suitcases bulging with food stuff and gifts for my brothers, my son and his wife, my grandson and friends back in Chicago.

I landed in O’Hare still at the height of summer, and Chicago weather matched that of Manila. That in itself was another blessing that I thanked God for, and after a hectic two weeks, coming home was the happy ending to this trip. Special thanks to my family, classmates and friends who took time out from their busy schedules just to see me. I love you and will dream of the next time we will all see each other again, which I hope will not be too long. Enjoy my Manila album, until then, cherish the memories you make, and only keep the ones that make you smile.

At Wildflour Greenhills with my youngest brother AA and Andelyn Pascual and my nephews, nieces

My hosts Arlene Arce of Arce Dairy and Arce Catering, and Gigi Martin David of Felicidad Mansion with my classmates for a welcome party and Spanish cooking demo – thank you!

The Crew of Ana Marie Tuanio’s 60th Birthday (L-R) Dr Rosemarie Manansala, Cristy Soqueno, Moi, Birthday Girl
Ana, Jovie Galan and Jingay Kaimo.

Channeling the beauty contestants’ pictorial at Costa Saltorino

Costa Saltorino hosted the Miss Universe contestants at this very resort last year.

College of the Holy Spirit classmates at Club Filipino Ana Tuanio’s successful 60th celebration.

Fun with my batch mates hosted by Marietta Del Rosario and Elizabeth Kintanar at Sip N Gogh Painting Studio at Eastwood.

My Manila patroness – thank you Ana Marie Tuanio for an unforgettable 2 weeks!

My classmate’s ancestral home now called the Felicidad Mansion Events Place on Baler St QC — meet Gigi Grace Martin-David, the owner.

A nice reunion w the original CPRTV news anchor, now Channel 5 Manila retired reporter Thelma Dumpit.

Ang Huling El Bimbo, the smash hit Musical w music by 90’s band Eraserheads was a wonderful event w my friends Jingay Kaimo, Jovie Galan, Alou Sanchez Venegas and Cathy Gruba.

My despedida with my hosts Dr Rolly and Ana Tuanio and barkada Mariles Ibarra, Lilet Lavinia, Jovie Galan and Jingay Kaimo.

Girl Time at Costa Saltorino.

Living Room view from Costa Saltorino-thank you to Madame Salvy Marino for our awesome stay.

The fantastic Viridian condo in Greenhills San Juan.

Docboy Pascual, Annika, and mom Noemi at Kimpura.

My hosts Dr Rolly and Donya Ana Tuanio 60th Birthday celebrant.

What??? A Shoe Chandelier of course! At Robinson’s Makati

Units are still available – studios are 48 sq meters -prices start at 20 Million Pesos Viridian Tower Greenhills San Juan.

The beautiful Sanctuario De San Jose church a block away from the Viridian.

No, that’s not Coco Martin, it’s Kenneth and Annika Pascual, my nephew and niece.

Awesome view from my two week home at the Viridian -thank you Donya Ana Tuanio.