Enjoying Halohalo in Bohol

In (warm) summer afternoons, who can resist the halo halo? Wikipedia defines halohalo as "a popular Filipino dessert that is a mixture of shaved ice and evaporated milk to which are added various boiled sweet beans and fruits, and served in a tall glass or bowl." But my favorite halo halo in Bohol, for quite a number of years now does not have those boiled sweet beans. It does not even have ube haleya or leche flan. It's just tons of diced fresh fruits interspersed with shaved ice, bathed in milk and topped with your favorite flavour of ice cream.

For several years now, nothing comes best to me than Garden Cafe's halohalo. The restaurant, run by the IDEA Philippines, an NGO working for the welfare of deaf-mute, is located right next to the St. Joseph Cathedral in Tagbilaran City. It has been renovated and "re-themed" since it opened more or less 20 years ago, but the friendly service, and the halohalo still remains the same and to my liking.

However, it seems like Garden Cafe will face a competition this year for the best halohalo in town. My wife and I tried the Buzz Cafe's halohalo and it was a blast. (The cafe is located at Island City Mall.) Buko strips mixed with fresh mango, banana, watermelon, and avocado cubes lined the bottom of the bowl where the halo-halo was served. A generous stream of milk made the shaved ice float and home-made malunggay ice cream completed the very tempting dessert.

The price was almost twice what you will pay at Garden Cafe, but I really didn't mind. In the next few days, I need to make up my mind.

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White sands of Candabong, Anda, Bohol

No doubt it was the highlight of our vacation in Bohol. Last December 30, we trooped from the mountains of Sudlon, Alicia, Bohol, where my wife hails, to the enchanting white sands of Candabong, Anda, a nearby town, for a cool Rizal Day splash. The beach was public. We paid absolutely nothing to get in. The sand was creamy white and not artificial, unlike those in other private resorts in the province. At the farthest end of the semi-oval stretch of white sand is a small rock/island shaped like a soldier's helmet. Along the shore were lines of boats and huts lying idly, as if time has stopped in that corner of the world. When we arrived (at around 9am) there was nobody there. We had the whole place to ourselves. When my 5-year old son saw the place, he smiled all the way up to his ears. Then he plunged and spent the whole day on the water. A few other groups arrived later, but there was still plenty of space run around. In fact, there was plenty of space to do our barbecue and some...

A pilgrimage to the Baclayon Church

Sometimes, when we are too close to something, we fail to see its beauty. This is probably the reason why there are still many Boholanos, especially those living at the coastal areas, who have yet to visit the viewing deck of the Chocolate Hills in Carmen, Bohol, or even the new one in Sagbayan, Bohol. Because we know it is just nearby, we sort of miss out on how extraordinary the thing is. It is exactly the same with the Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in Baclayon, Bohol, the second oldest stone Church in the Philippines. I don't think many really appreciate its place in the history of our country. Baclayon is a municipality which is 6 kilometers east of Tagbilaran City. It is Bohol's oldest municipality and the mother of 3 other municipalities, namely, Alburquerqe, Balilihan and Sikatuna. In Cebuano, "baclayon" means the distance that one needs to walk. This is probably the reason why the town was so named as it is located at the coast of Bohol sever...

List of Bohol Town Fiestas

They say that the island of Bohol sinks about an inch in May due to the thousands of Bol-anons who come home to attend the many town and barrio fiestas celebrated during the month. You can almost feel this once you disembark from those overloaded ships docking at the Tagbilaran Port in May. Fiestas in Bohol are occasions of great joy and merry-making, as well as lots of free food. Almost every household in town or in the barrio is on a welcome mode and, yes, you can literally go to any house, even if you do not know the owner, and eat your heart out. Experience this to believe. The following is a list of Bohol town fiestas in chronological order and with their corresponding patron saints. January 16 - Cortes - Santo Niño January 16 - Pres. Garcia - Holy Child January 16 - Valencia Sr. - Santo Niño January 17 - Carmen Saint - Anthony de Abbot January 29 - Ubay - Holy Child Last Saturday of January - Getafe - Holy Infant February 11 - Dagohoy - Our Lady of Lourdes April 27 - Corella - N...

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