Second Family

I have several second families, one of them is Jing's family.  

They have adopted me a long, long time ago.

Bo, brother of Jing, invited me to join them for dinner at Fely J's.....

.... At Uptown Mall, BGC.

It was Tita Jit's and Ryan's Despedida dinner.

We ordered ....

Crispy Pata

Kare-Kare

Pork Adobo Ribs

Gising Gising

Ginataang Gulay

Sans Rival

And Sikreto ni Maria.

Layered Suman at Manga!

James is a young man now! 

He is Jing's son, so tall and good looking! He just graduated from Grade 6.

Last week, Tita Jit and I went to Farmers and bought crabs.  

She cooked Curry Crab for Jing and family.

She also cooked the Paksiw na Rico's Lechon.

Thai style Pancit Bihon

I am so blessed I have a lot of family friends who treat me like I am one of their own.

Thank you so much!

Cornick in Binondo

There is a cornick vendor in Binondo along Quintin Paredes St. across RCBC.

I had to line up for 15-20 minutes at noon under the scorching sun!  A lot of people were lining up, as well.  Mayette would often buy several kilos to send to her brother in L.A.

When I got home, I put it in the canister and hid it from everybody!

The next day, I decided to add more salt and vetsin.  I started shaking the canister when.....

The lid flew off together with 1/4 of my stash!

I wanted to pick up the cornick from the floor but Hermie said not to because the floor was dirty.

You should have seen the look on my face! Like somebody pricked the balloon I was holding.

I still had other "stash", though.  I bought Hopia Baboy Condol and pan de sal from Wan Kee. ( I already ate several pieces before taking the pic.)

Corona Chinese sausage from Bee Tin grocery on Ongpin St.

Cua Pao buns from Salazar Bakery.

Chay Sim leaves.  I hope I get to cook it before it wilts! I am always out and have no time to cook.

I had brunch with Tita Jit, Ryan, Jing and Sherman at Ling Nam Noodle Factory earlier in the day.

They all ordered Beef Mami.

It was too hot for me to eat Mami so my orders were....

Tai Pao and Sio Mai!

I bought Pancit Canton Noodles

And.... Wanton Wrapper.

I stayed on in Binondo because I wanted to buy something in 168.

Remember how much I love siomai?

I ate siomai again at King Chef!

Plus chicken feet and.....

My favorite Sesame Prawn Roll!

It was a fruitful day in Chinatown.  I want to buy cornick again! But it is just too hot to travel for food at this time of the year.

Lotus Pod

Tita Jit was invited by her friend, Che Che, to Lotus Pod at Bay, Laguna.  Ryan, Mona, Jing and I tagged along.

It is an organic farm which grows fruits and vegetables.

Edible flowers!

It also has a cottage with massage tables, jacuzzi, hot tub and a plunge pool.

Hahahahaha Funny! Jing and I used the washroom and were so paranoid someone might see us while doing our business because when you are sitting on the throne.... This is your view.....

 Of course, there was a curtain but Jing could not go near it because there was a bee!

You can read more about it at :

Lotus Pod

I loved our picnic lunch under the tree! We opted to eat al fresco.

The tilapia came from the pond and was grilled immediately! I'm still dreaming about it!

The native ensalada with grilled okra and eggplant, tomatoes, onions drizzled with calamansi juice.

Chicken Adobo

Shrimp Curry

Inihaw na liempo.

Fried Turon

Jasmine Rice

I loved the outdoor kitchen!

If I am the type of person who gets envious.... Then I would be green with envy!

The air conditioned dining room.

Sometimes, it is refreshing just to go to the country to appreciate nature and relax.

I am a city girl so a trip to a farm is a complete change of scenery for me....A lovely scenery.

In fact.... I think the country air made me look more beautiful!  

Indulge me please. I have not seen my set of dimples in a long, long time.

Thank you so much, Mrs. Lazaro, for inviting Tita Jit and through her, we were able to enjoy your beautiful Lotus Pod!