Where does the best Lambanog come from?

There is an ongoing debate that still rages today among the Lambanog drinkers of Southern Tagalog. This has waged on since the invention of the drink and probably will keep on going till all the coconut trees are cut in the region. Where does the best Lambanog come from?

Many proponents would support the premise that Lambanog from San Juan, Batangas is the best and they would stake their lives and honor to prove this point.

Personally I prefer the Wakas, Tayabas variety of Lambanog. It has a less bitter taste than the batangueno drink which is due to the milder clime of Wakas, Tayabas compared to the hot and harsh environment of San Juan, Batangas. It is colloquially known as "Chivas Wakas".

I believe my townsfolk and clansmen of San Juan, Batangas wil disown me after they read this post but hey I will stand up for what I think is right. :)

For more information click on http://tayabas.ph/.

City of Tayabas turns a new Page (web)

If you find wikipedia’s entry of the City of Tayabas sparse a for you needs you can aptly go to the City’s web page located at http://tayabas.ph/. It contains information such travel destinations, hotels, restaurants, food & drinks, events and other pertinent information about the City of Tayabas.

It has more detailed information than the entry in wikipedia and has a less wikish look. Try and visit it sometime if ever you need to find information about the City of Tayabas

Runescape sets a record

Guinness World Book of Records officially recognizes Runescape as the largest free MMO and the second largest MMO. There are about a million paying members and about five million free account users and since Runescape those not separate players per server it is possible though not plausible to meet them all.
Many changes were applied since I started playing but IMO these changes are for the best in order to avoid an imbalance game economy and discourage cheater though the said same changes have eliminated some of the features that I hated and loved (hated: PVP ambushes, loved: pricing way too low or high).
Runescape does not require the latest CPU or is not a memory hog but having a good PC does help in game play and factor in a fast internet connection however these are not necessary unless you are an ultracompetitive player.
This is not a game for eye candy or jump-whilst-I-chop-your-head-with-a-twisting-slash lovers but this is for people who likes to plan ahead and live in a semi real world.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/runescape-recognised-as-world-s-largest-free-mmorpg

Cuisine of Quezon

Cuisine of Quezon is not as rich as say the other provinces but it can hold its own it taste of rather than in quantity of dishes.

The most famous amongst Quezon’s dishes are pancit habhab (the act of eating directly from a plate or leaf without using one’s hands or utensils) also know as pancit Lucban, longganisang lucban and the colorful yet tasteless kiping which is basically rice flour colored and formed using a leaf as a mold.

Lucena and Tayabas (there isa a debated who started which first) has its lechong lugaw which is a lugaw topped with lechon and adobong lechon.

Then there is Lambanog which is common in coconut growing provinces such as Batangas and Quezon and another beverage is Nipa wine aka tuba ng sasa which is basically fermented nipa sap.

Lucena also has its love affair with noodles like Lomi and its famous Chami which right now I am missing terribly.

Lucban’s Sausage aka Longganisang Lucban

Longganisang Lucban is a sausage native to the Quezon Province in the Philippines and as it is named probably originated in Lucban, Quezon. The recipe is designed for a long shelf life and basically the sausage is self contatined since you don’t need oil to cook it.

The commonly this sausage is manufactured lovingly in the towns of Sariaya, Tayabas, Lucena and Lucban in either backyard industries or large scale operations.

The usual recipe would be like this , do keep in mind recipe varies from household to household

1 kg of cubed (as opposed to chopped or ground) pork with fat.

¼ cup of oregano extract (can be more or less depending on taste)

1 teaspoon of paprika

1 teaspoon of salt

1 cup of chopped garlic (acts as the preservative)

Sausage casing (pork intestines preferred)

How to cook

Get a pan place the sausages in it and add water till the sausages are half covered. Boil the sausages and prick them so that the casings won’t explode. Cook till the water is all evaporated and what remains is the oil from the sausage.

Longganisang Lucban is best eaten hot either in itself as a viand or part of the infamous longsilog(longganisa, sinangag at itlog). Some prefer to dip it in vinegar with garlic though my personal preference is to dip it in brown sugar.

Personal memories of 9/11

It was between 8 PM and 9Pm then Philippine time and I just came from teaching a class and was walking home when a friend texted me to look at the TV and I was thinking it could just be another one of those useless show in the Philippines.

When I reached home my mother was watching TV and I saw a view of the twin towers from the water. One of the towers was burning and I was in shocked. I’ve always dreamed of going to the World Trade Center since I was a small boy and this bastion of my aspiration was burning. I keep my cool since I remembered that the tower had survived a bomb attack during the 90’s and I did not expect anything worse than a couple of burned floors.

I asked the people in my house what happened and they replied that a plane collided with the building and before that statement was finished another airplane collided with the building. As shocked as I was I watched the entire proceeding until one of the buildings collapsed.

I knew then that the world we live in would never be the same again.

Dreaming of Lucena’s Chami

The reason I hate travel is because of noodles. Don’t get me wrong I love noodles (pancit) but I want it cooked the Lucena way.

Chami is like lomi with less broth and it is cooked stirred fried and has become a signature dish of areas near Lucena city such as Tayabas, Sariaya and Pagbilao.The noodles used are fresh egg noodles and usually pork or chicken stock is used to flavor it during cooking.

I won’t get into its origin and how it is cooked because there are hundreds way to cook just like Adobo, every household have their own way of cooking it.

It is a shame that wikipedia has an entry for Lomi but none for Chami. Hope somebody updates wikipedia soon