(WARNING: If you're a big fan of piggies...live piggies...you might not want to read this. I have spared you some of the more vivid descriptions of the food part of the celebration but if you don't like pictures of animal heads on sticks, this might not be the post for you. Consider yourself warned.)
And this is why I think I'm gonna love it here. Leave it to our wacky country hosts to spin an otherwise solemn liturgical celebration into a rip roarin', eatin', and drinkin' parade party.
Traditionally, St. John's Day (always on June 24) is observed throughout the country with some sort of water dousing ritual. In Balayan, they take it to the extreme. You have not been "blessed", if you haven't been soaked with freezing cold water apparently. Turns out we were blessed.....A LOT. It's basically a free for all water fight, pitting the parade participants against the spectators and NO ONE IS SAFE. Grandmas, babies, old men with canes - all were victims AND perps! It was a freakin' hoot!
What's with the dressed up pigs you ask? Well, believe it or not, there's an explanation for that too! The pig is a cornerstone of any Filipino festival, tradition, or large gathering -- it seems that it ain't a party until porky shows up. Parada ng Lechon is an opportunity to showcase the piggies and basically give thanks for the bounty of crunchy succulent goody they always bestow. Or at least, that's what I got out of it. So, the Balayan townspeople (local businesses mainly) dress up their pig mascot in a slew of different outfits, parade it through town, and then have a huge feast at the end. The pigs are often torn to shreds by the end of the parade. I am told that parade goers of years gone by would "steal" pieces of the pig while in route to their destination and that the vendors would protect their pigs with barbed wire etc. These days, it appears, sharing is caring. We had several "floats" rip off pieces of pig and try to hand them to us. I graciously bowed out because, well, I don't know there's something not terribly appetizing about a soggy pig, half eaten by strangers. Call me crazy...
Before we really knew what we were getting into
Everyone has the day off to celebrate St. John's day - even students.
Next time we'll bring an obscene-sized super soaker but for 2013, all we had were plastic buckets and cans of beer.
But when the buckets are filled with ice cold water, it's somehow still a "win".
As has been the case on a daily basis, the locals were FASCINATED by Z. This kid dumped a bucket of water on his head and then did an impression of M.J.
Never one to be left out, I begged the M.J. impersonator to get in a pic with me. He of course, poured water down the back of my shirt while doing so which I think is a fair trade, you?
These kids KNOW when a picture is being taken. This was on our way out and look at them! It's like they're doing a teenage version of see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.
Iron Man piggy
Wonderwoman Piggy - pretty sure those are authentic pigs feet she has for hands. The plastic wrapping over her head isn't meant to be morbid by the way. There's just so much water flying around that parade participants wrap their pigs in plastic to protect them. Maybe that seems silly to you or me but not to folks who eat every part of the pig. They waste NOTHING and I'm sure Wonderwoman's pretty little face went to a good digestive cause later in the day.
A ridiculously cute moment. Probably one of my favorite pictures....ever.
And in case you didn't think the party was really bumpin, check this out (and we weren't even on the main parade route). All this and we're told this year's celebration was tame by comparison. Apparently when the holiday falls on the weekend, it's a party that could hang with Mardi Gras.
Last year was a VERY busy year for us so you'll, I hope, forgive that I am just getting around to posting some 2012 tidbits. Some things I'm sure I'll never get around to but there's at least one thing that I have to spread the word about or I won't be able to live with myself. See, last May, husbear and I rented an RV (we'll call her "Bessie") and drove a sorta upside down horseshoe through Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico then through Texas, Arkansas and Tennessee to get back to Northern Virginia. It was a fantastic trip and I'm so so glad we did it. I hope to share more of our adventures in the NO SHIT wild wild west but first and foremost, I need to let you in on a little secret.
Should you ever be in the neighborhood (and trust me, you won't ever be....so just drive there on purpose ok?), you should stop by this little museum/curio/roadside attraction/junkyard/all around awesome venue: THE TINKERTOWN MUSEUM. It was the ONE damn thing I really wanted to do on this roadtrip that didn't involve majestic scenery, hiking until we were purple in the face, or eating BBQ (we did all that too and yes....it was equally awesome). Er...maybe not equally. Because if you're me, the Tinkertown Museum pretty much epitomizes everything that is right and good in the world of road trips.
A sign found in Tinkertown that puts into words why RVing is still so popular and why we did this instead of a European vacation.
My husband had a moment's hesitation where he almost insisted we keep driving because we we needed to "start covering some ground" but a quick look at my face and I think he knew it was a fight he ever had a chance of winning. In any case, he did right by me and indulged my inner child (thank you dear) by stopping at this relic.
There have been many articles written and interviews given about this place so I won't bore you with the history. If you want to know more, you can do so by clicking here, here, or here.
And here's a video of Tinkertown with possibly the worst flute music I've ever heard:
What I will say is that almost everything in Tinkertown was MADE BY HAND over a 40 year period by one guy, Ross Ward (the dearly departed).
I think, in my case, I'll just let the pictures tell the story. Here are just a few snapshots from the museum that was made "while you were watching TV"....
I can't remember how much we paid to get into the museum but it was worth every damn penny so cough that shit up if you find yourself in Sandia, NM.
Wish this picture did justice to the scale of the place and the work that went in. I mean, one guy carved ALL that stuff! Sorry, I know it's a crap picture - I was TOO excited!
Even Mary Poppins makes a visit. How very superkalifragilisticexpialidocious!
PBR me ASAP
This was one of my favorites though I can't say I understand it. The Rusty Wyer Band is jamming out (you can see the whole band here) but what's that scary little ol' lady doin? I don't know but it makes a great photo op.
Seriously? How freakin' cool is that?? Who needs to drive all the way to Tombstone when you can have THIS experience at Tinkertown? Um...no one.
This is one of the many "automated" displays. There's a little switch you can turn that makes the chicken run away from the chef. If you look close, you can see the chicken there....and the chef running after him with a meat cleaver. Can you imagine? The chicken alone must have taken him a full day to carve. Crazy when you think about it!
This one makes me think he may have had a wee carving....problem/addiction.
Forgive the poor picture quality but this was pretty neat too. He did a scaled Big Top circus and up top were real photos of circus performers.
The deets: Tinkertown is open from April 1st through October 31st, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., 7 days a week -- last admission sold at 5:30 pm
And one more thing, I think I have to thank my parents for instilling in me the ability to appreciate things like this. This place truly is a simple pleasure in a complex world and I'm glad we went just a little bit out of our way to visit. The dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point in Utah was another great example of this but I guess that's a story for another day. Anyway, thanks to mom and dad for all the quirky road trips - makes you appreciate the little things.
Today and most of yesterday, I was weighing my blogging options. There are two issues I'm inclined to write about. One is poverty in Manila, a subject I'm fairly certain I will come back to time and time again. The other was the laugh out loud trip home Zach and I had in traffic yesterday. Then I realized, oddly enough, in this case I can write about both because they are related
My very brave and adventurous husband has rented a little Honda something or other to get around town until our car arrives. Needless to say, I am NOT feeling quite so brave as yet and am starting to feel pretty sure that I will drive little, if ever, in this town. There are a number of reasons for this, many of which have to do with the fact that it is easier (and real real cheap) to get from our home to most places and quite honestly, I'm more than happy to cough up a little $$ to save some sanity. But, Z is a red blooded American who does not intend to rely on someone else to get him around so I will dutifully support this caveman tendency (insert chest thumping, grunting, and honking).
Unfortunately for Zach, all his prior training in the driving department is 100% moot in Manila. There are no rules, save for some color law that restricts who can drive on Wednesdays (I'm not kidding, this is a law and yes, THAT is how bad the pollution is). Other than that, however, it seems to me that anything goes. Crosswalks are for sissies and lines on the road that would otherwise be interpreted as pedestrian right of ways, are apparently directing traffic to speed up and aim directly for the blonde woman with the weird looking hot dog. There are no lanes, no signals (but hey, that's pretty much like home sweet NoVa so not much to adjust to), and no enforced speed limits. Honking is constant and like crosswalks, is left to interpretation. One or two honks is a cabbie looking to get you to hop in his cab (where he will have probably turned the meter off and forgotten his way around Manila) and three honks is most likely a HUGE bus that is stopping in the middle of the road or making a uturn from the far right lane. Stop lights are negotiable but if there is movement, it's best to just go along...red light or not. Here's an overhead video someone took. There are LOTS of photos out there and probably twice as many blogs written about the traffic in Manila so I KNOW I'm being redundant. Having said that, take a looky loo at this video and try and tell me you wouldn't also be inspired to say something about it:
I'm starting to think I might not get to the poverty thing afterall. It probably deserves a more dedicated posting anyhow.
So, on with the show....
The Jeepneys. So many blogs and posters and rants have been dedicated to the jeepneys that I probably don't even need to waste my breath. They are FASCINATING though and have both this odd historical mystique yet remain freaking annoying as all get out. They're loud, dirty, emit more soot than anything I've ever seen that didn't produce coal, and are the absolute WORST about following any sort of traffic law or pattern. People are crammed in and like, the buses, get off the Jeepneys in the middle of traffic. I may have to update this with a video someday. I've seen so many near death experiences in two days, words don't do it justice. There are also these tricycle, sidecar like contraptions that I swear are like clown cars. You've never seen so many people cram into one ...er...moving thingamajig.
But what really gets me are the street vendors. I don't know that street vendors really describes it right. They're more like traffic vendors. These folks are walking in the middle of all this madness trying to sell stuff and in some cases, services. I tried to take a few pics but it really doesn't translate. There were men selling peanuts in the middle of a main thoroughfare. I'm not talking about a 20 mph side street. This was THE main road in Manila and though traffic was wall to wall, there were motorcycles and cars speeding in every direction. It seems insane that someone would risk life and limb to try and sell a few peanuts but I guess that's where the poverty and humor in this story overlap. They do what they have to do to survive and in this guy's case, it was selling dirty peanuts. I'm not exaggerating there. They were DIRTY. Everything that lines the main roads in Manila is coated with a thick layer of soot (or what looks like soot anyway) and it pretty much stays like that until monsoon season when the rain comes and washes it all away. Needless to say, peanuts are not spared this indecency and most of his product was the same color as the side of the buildings that lined the road. I guess technically, you don't eat the outside but still....well, you get the point. You get the point and I don't want to think about it anymore.
There's also a man (or several men) who sharpen knives while you wait for the lights to turn green or for traffic to start moving again. I haven't seen them yet but I'll be keeping an eye out ... and a knife handy. :) There are people who sell tiny tiny cut up t-shirts (I guess to clean with??), chargers, dusters, brooms, Filipino flags and trashcans. I am not making fun - just fascinated by the wares and the thought process behind picking the products to sell on the streets. Car charges I totally get. Even the tiny tiny cut up shirts I can understand because who hasn't spilled a diet coke in their console and wished they had anything ... absolutely anything...to clean it up with? But full size brooms, trash cans, and flags? I am not following the logic. Then again, I've only been here 5 days - maybe it'll all be clear in a few more weeks.
Oh - and there's pagpag and balut....don't get me started. Look it up. Mine is not the first jaw to have dropped at the sight of these things....
Shall I start with a quick hello? I feel that's fair after OVER A YEAR LONG absence. So, Hi Howdy Hola but most importantly, MABUHAY! Why Mabuhay? Because my friends, "Mabuhay" is the tagalog greeting and in case you're wondering what tagalog is (as I was), it's one of the (many) languages spoken in the Philippines, primarily Manila and surrounding areas. But still, why should you care? Well, in truth, maybe you shouldn't. YOU aren't the one moving to the Philippines in less than a week ..... but WE are! :)
So, MABUHAY!
A new member of our family will be moving with us. You heard that right, we have a new child. She is shiny and grand and requires constant attention. She is still a newborn but seems to be learning the ropes quickly. Sorry Mom, she does not have a heartbeat, curly hair, or my eyes. "She" is our Gaggia Academia Espresso Machine and probably the most important thing that's happened in our lives since we adopted Cassie. Here she is - feel free to gasp, exhale, ooh-ah...whatever you need to do....
Ok Ok - that's not really our girl. But this is...
And boy does she turn some heads when she does her little coffee dances. I mean, look at this purty concoction she put together when my sister came to visit:
Really - she is the most thoughtful "child" we have....sorry Cassie.
If you're in the market for an espresso machine, you can't go wrong with this baby. She'll make espressos, coffees (long or short), caps, lattes, and the list goes on. You can get all hands on with her or simply set her up to be responsive at the touch of a button. Easy breezy. She ain't cheap but she's worth it AND it's true what they say, she does get better with age. Seriously, the thing gets smarter then more coffee you make.
Sadly, Lady Gaggia is on her merry way to Manila and we probably won't see her...or her wonderful caffeinated brews .... for several months. We will try to endure but no doubt will suffer some pangs along the way.....and headaches.
There are a lot of things I miss right now. I miss my family, my friends, my dog, excessive cable channels, cooking, target, and the list goes on. But I also miss being a girl. My mom was kind enough to send my boots in the mail and I loove having the little splash of color out here in the desert but what I really miss, is being a freakin' girl. And part of being a girl??? Flowery, colorful, ridiculously beautiful and extravagant....high heels!!! I bought a phenomenal pair of Rene Caovilla's while we were in Vegas and I can NOT wait for an excuse to wear them. So keep them safe dear mother in law and keep that daughter of yours at bay....cause I WILL BE BACK!!!!!!
Forgive the haphazard photo....we were in Vegas after all. I couldn't be bothered to rebuckle (fine motor movement would have been required). And I guess I couldn't take a moment to find a proper back drop....sigh...
But OHHHH!!! They still sparkle
Rene Caovilla's shoes are seriously like a work of art. If it's not the sparkly soles, it's the flowery and delicate adornments.
SO I say this....if I die, bury me in sparkly things. And for goodness sake, if you cremate me...don't burn the shoes!!!!
After three long months in Iraq, hubs and I decided to spend our first R&R visiting family with a sprinkle of Vegas for good measure. Though I initially planned to lug Cassie along throughout, I decided she would probably be better off not stuffed under the seat in front of me for 5 flights. If the logistics had just been a little better (read: had Vegas not been the stopover in the middle), it would have been great to have her along but it just didn't seem like the right thing to do. Sadly, that meant a teary goodbye in Richmond before we headed off to Vegas. Thankfully, my mother in law had given us some great pics of Cassie and one, in particular, that was just perfect for travel. It's an embarrassing little photo of Cassie looking completely humiliated in some kind of bow contraption. In an effort to make myself feel better, I "pretended" Cassie traveled with us to Vegas with onward travel to Texas. What follows is a brief catalog of her adventures:
OR...there's a circus in Baghdad. Yeah, that's what I meant to say.
In all seriousness, I thought this was pretty cool. It's the first time the circus has come to town in Baghdad since probably 2003 or so. I'm not a huge fan of the circus anymore but I was when I was a kid. I loved loved loved the clowns and for a while I collected all sorts of clown figurines. That is, until I read and later saw the movie, "It". Needless to stay, that put the breaks on my appreciation of the circus. Having said that, going to the circus ought the be an inalienable right as a child. It seems really sad that all the violence here has kept the children from being able to enjoy the bright lights and pageantry of a three ring circus.
It's heartwarming to hear that they've brought it back even though, apparently, they are still waiting for the animals to clear security at the airport (seriously). The show did go on though with acrobats and magic and other....circusy things so I thought I'd share a few of the photos that I found.
So this is what I heard on the way home from work tonight. Apparently, they're all over Iraq but until I laid eyes on the little guys, I thought the ruckus belonged to a herd of angry cats. Seriously strange sound. I've heard coyotes and wolves but this was a new one on me. I definitely wasn't prepared for the noise to belong to a dog lookin' thing. According to all of the super lame research I've done tonight, they aren't scared of people and are known to carry rabies. Glad I got all my shots. Too bad about Z :( Guess I'll have to put him out of his misery if he starts foaming at the mouth.
"Some folks look at me and see a certain swagger, which in Texas is called walking." -George W. Bush
My mom will be a tad irked that I used a G-Dubb quote but it was so appropriate, I couldn't resist.
I heart Texas, it's pretty obvious. And even though my fanaticism has waned somewhat over the last few years (only because I have someone to keep me company now and I don't spend ALL my hours thinking about all my loved ones back home), I still am pretty loony about the Lone Star State.
I've been thinking a lot about home lately. Not so much because I miss all my peeps there (although I really do) but because the climate here is remarkably similar to Texas. That got me to thinking about all of the things I love about Texas and since I am incredibly vain, I thought you might care...whoever you are...
So, here, in no particular order are a few things that remind me of my very favorite State:
Texas country music. Yes, there IS a difference!
Bluebonnets, I'm glad there's a law against picking them dammit!
Our CHAMPIONS!!! The Dallas Mavericks! What a great season!!
Armadillos. This dearly departed Armadillo's name is Earl Wyatt ArmeDadillo. Cassie loves him..so should you!
