making new friends.

meet my three new friends.

to some, they could very well represent the three wise men, but since christmas is far off, let's just stick to their real names - mr. warsteiner, mr. erdinger, and mr. san miguel.

while grocery shopping at rustan's fresh in the powerplant mall, i discovered that they carry the two german brands in the photo below. having tasted two beer variants during my trip to bavaria, i was excited by the thought of having authentic german beer available in local groceries.

i surprised myself by purchasing both mr. warsteiner and mr. erdinger, particularly because i considered myself more of a cocktail girl as opposed to the beer-drinking type.

some basic education on the warsteiner premium verum:

• "a Pilsener with a smooth, full bodied taste and a refreshing finish with no aftertaste" (united nations of beer)
  
• "those of you who have a weak bladder, don't drink it, for Warsteiner beer will send you to the toilet many, many times" (united nations of beer)
  
• "any drinker of Bud, Coors, or Miller would certainly enjoy this beer" (epinions)
  

the inexperienced beer drinker in me thought this was a pretty strong beer. it's more of a "man beer", if you know what i'm saying.

and for the erdinger weiss bier:

• "It is not too overpowering in flavour, but at the same time has a rich and unique taste"
  
• "Very crisp and refreshing - the ultimate beer for a hot day." (oxford bottled beer database)
• "Erdinger for lunch makes me strong, like bull." (oxford bottled beer database)

i definitely prefer the erdinger over the warsteiner. it's a lot easier to handle for first-time adventurers. i'm drinking it as i type this, and i must say that it's a great companion for unwinding into the night.

on a sidenote, san miguel has released its oktoberfest edition of the well-loved pale pilsen (i doubt if the taste is any different from the normal edition). i got a taste of this last night on a free ride at the bubba gump bar courtesy of a friend's brother. now i know why it's so popular.

but i'd still go for margaritas over beer, of course.

baker's fair at rockwell.

last weekend, i had a sudden craving for russian cookies, which can only be found at the baker's dozen -- a mini fair for cakes and pastries held at the powerplant mall in rockwell.

baker's dozen features a number of home-based bakers known for their classy and creative renditions of well-loved goodies such as caramel chocolate cakes, truffles, cheesecakes, cupcakes, cream puffs, pastillas, empanadas, and so on.

one of the good things about the fair is that each of the stalls offer samples for people to taste. this really is an effective marketing strategy because not only did i buy more russian cookies than i initially planned, but i also bought more cream puffs than i can eat.

in photo above : small pack of russian cookies (php280), mini window sampler box (php90)


in photo above : box of 6 classic cream puffs from puff mommy (php150)

the baker's fair treats are perfect for entertaining guests over coffee or tea. since the products aren't widely commercialized, you'll surely impress them with your delicious finds.

dear j., about last night...

also known as "why i want to celebrate the first five years in a special way on 2010"

because i think you're great...

and because i still really really really like you


and because i'm still really really really happy


even after all this time, and after everything that has happened.

(photos above from jess lorraine)

and also because i think anyone can do a year, or two years, or three years, or four, but there's something about the exactness of five years (and every five years, in that regard) that deserves to be celebrated.

so if you're still as happy as i am by the time we hit 5 years, please come away with me to some remote country where we can both be foreigners excited to uncover new adventures.

otherwise...

well...

i don't know. i guess i'll celebrate alone :-S

back to school.

i've decided to go back to school in order to fill up my weekends in a productive way. the thought of classrooms and new friends and funky new school things has got me very very excited.

classes start on september 5 at the goethe institut, located at leviste street in salcedo village, makati.

i enrolled for the german a1.2 course, which is supposed to be a little bit more advanced than the "tourist german" which made up most of german a1.1.

the good thing about studying a language course at the goethe institute is that you receive official certification to prove your german skills. this could come in handy for visa application and/or job qualification.

anyway, i already bought my assigned textbooks. so sooooo excited :-)

the institute actually changed the required textbooks since 2007 (when i graduated from the first german course), which means i'd have to pre-study five chapters of schritte int'l 1 before i go to class. the pages are colorful and the dialogues seem easy, so i think it'll be fun.

funny, less than a year into being a professional, i am already itching to be a student again. hello, homework and exams!

saturday coffee.

(posting late)

i've been living in this neighbourhood for almost two months, and have been well aware of the locations of various cafes within walking distance from my apartment. after spending a solitary saturday holed up in my room, i decided to swing by a nearby starbucks to take part in the lovely coffee shop ambiance.

of course, i could've made myself a cup of hazelnut coffee, put on some billie holiday, and simply brought the ambiance into my own livingroom. actually, i would've preferred doing that 8 out of 10 days. somehow, tonight, i needed the hustle and bustle of an actual cafe. i needed to watch people and make up stories about why they are here at this particular time and day. i needed to listen to the music they're playing and decide that i want it for my own collection. i needed...

to get out, basically.

anyway, tonight the house is not packed. there is a group of muslim women wearing their traditional attire happily chatting away in some foreign language. the best table is occupied by a couple happily nestled in each other's arms. a miscellany of other characters are scattered around the small place. i, however, am lucky enough to get what they call the "conference area" which is actually just a medium-length table with two library lamps in a secluded area of the cafe. one side of me feels like a student studying for a big exam. the other part of me feels like a sophisticated city rat who has chosen caramel macchiato and a good book over a party at some nightclub.

i think i'll swing by here more often and maybe get to know the baristas well enough for them to have my preferred order ready by the time i arrive.

monday jazzy blues.

after the wildness of last friday night's cocktail-turned-vodka-shooters party, i welcomed the laziness of working from home on a monday. in the evening, i tried out something i learned from jürgen when i visited him in regensburg.

how to detoxify a monday.

light a few tealight candles.


switch the fluorescent lights off.


find a cozy nook at home.


switch on some slow jazz music.


invite someone special to share the night with.


let the candles do their magic.

midweek holiday.

it's a special holiday in the philippines today to honor former president corazon aquino. no work and a lot of rain makes it a perfect day to stay indoors and be lazy.

i decided to begin this midweek holiday by doing something i've never done before -- making hand-squeezed lemon juice!

got myself a bunch of lemons the other day. six pieces for around php120 at s&r.


a trick i learned from watching cooking shows years and years ago is to roll the lemons around in a chopping board before halving them. this is to get more juice out.


i wasn't quite sure how much juice two whole lemons would yield.

notice that the citrus juicer i bought is the manual type. even if there was a cheap electric juicer, i thought it would feel more fulfilling to say "i made hand-squeezed fresh lemon juice" as opposed to just popping them into the machine and getting instant results.

okay, two lemons don't hold that much juice. this is all i got after squeezing.

i need at least 4 fluid ounces of lemon juice to make one serving of blue lagoon. i guess it's back to the squeezer for me.

but this quick experience made me feel like a real country girl ;-)

the bartender.

i have no experience mixing cocktails, so i'm not sure why suddenly, i am very excited about creating them in the comfort of my little kitchen.

naturally, i stocked up on the basic ingredients...

back (l-r) : triple sec, smirnoff vodka, grenadine syrup
front (l-r) : blue curacao, gold tequila, antonov vodka, lime juice


i bought a lot of vodka, wanting to experiment on at least 6 different vodka-based cocktails on friday (each guest can try one kind)


something interesting i found out today --although vodka is widely attributed to russia, it was actually first discovered in poland. "antonov" sounds russian enough, but it is actually distilled by a local company, ginebra san miguel.


now, i do not consider myself a heavy drinker but i would consider collecting empty liquor bottles if only for the very artistic labels.

here's an easy but stylish vodka recipe - the CAPE CODDER.
- half-fill a tall glass with ice cubes
- add 2 ounces of vodka
- add 5 ounces of cranberry juice
- decorate with a slice of lemon and serve with a straw =)

i now have a mini-bar in my kitchen, next to the hardly-used coffee cups.


did i mention that i also have margarita and rock glasses, along with a cocktail shaker? do i look like a pro or what? :P

i have a few days to perfect my bartending skills until friday.

twice the fun.

who says mondays have to be dull? my monday was particularly surreal.

in an effort to prepare myself for the much-anticipated cocktail party that i'll be hosting at my place on friday, i drove to s&r to grab a few party supplies.

today's shopping list:

• blender (for cocktail making)
• old-fashioned glasses
• ice bucket
  
• chips
• liquor (vodka, white rum, tequila)

here's where the strange part begins...

meet my blender


meet my OTHER blender


that's right. by the end of the day, i ended up with two.

you can call it a matter of carelessness, really.

i was so excited to make myself a nice peach slushie upon arriving home from alabang. when i took the first blender out of the box, i noticed two huge cracks along its sides. needless to say, everything i blend would've spilled right through the cracks.

it would've been easy enough to have the blender replaced at any s&r branch but stupid little me threw out the receipt even before i got to open the blender box. grosse scheisse.

therefore, i had no choice but to buy another one.

it's a good thing that these are pretty cheap blenders (just around php400 each). i'm not quite sure what to do with the damaged set, though. i've thought about donating it to the beggars who come knocking at car windows but i'm struggling to see what good it would do them.