Foot and Fire

Dress the Duck,  rub with salt and generous cracked peppercorn and rub tablespoons of pesto. In a pan, put enough canola oil just to fry to crispiness the skin of the duck. Remove from pan and transfer to baking tin, add more pesto and bake 350F for 30 minutes or meat is until tender

I believe that every last-minute booking is always made here at the Campomanes Bay area. That is because the White Beach area located at Punta Ballo, Barangay 4, Sipalay City is always fully booked given that they the resorts there are with their own websites. Also, this is a little farther from the city proper. But since all good things resulted from our last-minute decision to go, I consider our stay at the underrated Campomanes Bay area a blessing in disguise. We don't need noise or Red Horse to while the night anyway... While the Eco-port is the first unsightly view that welcomes you, the island from left to right can never bore you. On the right is the stairs leading cave where the spring water of the community comes from and the marine sanctuary below is located. One can watch the sunrise and sunset with the sound of the cicadas as background. Isn't that amazing? *** Floating house for the Bantay Dagat and Visitors as well. *** The woman doing her l...

50 pcs. chili peppers 50 pcs. lumpia wrappers 1 canned tuna (in oil, flakes or chunks) 200g bread crumbs 230g grated cheese salt and pepper (optional) oil for frying *** STEP 1; Deseed the chili peppers one by one. Don't forget to wear gloves... *** STEP TWO: Mix the tuna, bread crumbs and cheese  and season with salt and pepper and set aside in a bowl. *** STEP THREE: Stuff each chili pepper with the mixture. *** STEP FOUR: Wrap with the twig out or remove the twig for presentation  or remove the twig and wrap the whole pepper. *** STEP FIVE: Deep fry in canola oil. Serve hot and crispy! 

We ended our day tour at the old Spanish house located at the end of the island of Gigantes Norte. It was a sight during sunset given the ambient light given off by the sun and the rustic paint and structure of the old house. It withstood the test of time because it is made of cement mixed with shells found in the locality and eggs, just like how old Catholic churches were made then. *** I mentioned we enjoyed the ambient light of the sunset..  Here are what we took during our brief visit: *** The lighthouse is a recent one and it is said to be Japanese-funded. *** ***  And Kodjack, our tour-guide and water-fetcher, becomes an instant photographer... Just check this out: *** *** Ah, the view.... *** *** And please don't forget to buy trinkets for souvenirs from these lads: *** *** Check out how Gigantes got its name here.. And my other blog posts on Gigantes here. .. Don't forget ...

Our group had a grand time sampling the trail going up the cave and partly towards the opening. We did not move forward anymore than the first touch base because we were not properly dressed for spelunking as we were dripping wet with saltwater after the day's Island hopping. Nevertheless, we enjoyed the introduction to this Bakwitan Cave, so-called because it is used as evacuation place for families from lowland during the past typhoons and this cave saved many lives.  Please check out the allure of this cave. There are sporadic live rocks that still have the potential to grow. Also, as in any other caves which are not regulated, there are occasional graffittis on the cave walls...  Jun "The Cavekeeper," our cave tour guide, is trained regarding caves by the Department of Tourism and he displayed some wisdom regarding taking care of the Bakwitan Cave. *** A makeshift bed used by the cave's temporary resident in the past. *** ...

Scallops may be a delicacy among cityfolks, it is a daily fare for the folks of Isla Gigantes in carles, Iloilo. We were served scallops each meal ranging from scallops in oyster sauce, scallops in tomato sauce, scallops in chop suey and we just missed the baked scallops topped with cheese and garlic! If it is P600 a kilo in the city, it can almost be free in Gigantes. So, if you are the type who rares for seafoods, Isla Gigantes offers you the freshest catch of the day from crabs, shrimp, fish and squids. They also serve the rare Wasay-wasay, a mollusk that resembles the oyster but its shell casing is shaped like an axe, hence the local name. ***  Wasay-wasay *** The shell casing is shaped by nature like an axe, hence, the name Wasay-wasay. *** Scallops with shrimp in tomato sauce. *** Squid. *** *** Fish *** *** In the island of Gigantes Norte, they have the so-called Scallops Mountain, a huge...

A gold earring.  The report also shows that the large bent tube gold earring was found on what was once the right ear of a male burial. A similar example is found in the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Gold Collection taken from Surigao and is dated to the 14th up to the 16th century. “Boljoon is rich in heritage now because it is the only town that has evidence to show pre-Hispanic times,” remarked University of San Carlos'  Jose Eleazar Bersales, head of the excavation project.   The excavation report shows that their finds came from the Pre-Spanish (1550-1650) and Early Spanish (1700s-1800s) periods.  Bersales  further said that it is the first time that an earring was found on a male, that a ceramic bowl has Chinese characters as part of its design, and that it is first evidence throughout Cebu of a pre-Hispanic times. The Burials  A total of nine burials in various states of internment were uncovered at a depth of 60-70 cm. This brings to a ...