Paladosdos: Bulusan's Original Snack Treat

Bulusan's paladosdos photo from pamughaton.

If I have to pick a recipe typical of Bulusan, I will choose Paladosdos.  The name itself is Bulusanon though the origin is unknown. The ingredients are all local and are always available. The recipe is simple but will entail effort in the preparation of the raw materials such as grating of cassava and coconut milk preparation.

When cooked the effort however is worth it from the texture to the flavor. The cassava minute balls are a joy to chew with its gelatinous texture and the coconut milk all adds up to enrich the carb balls to just the right blend of coco nuttiness.

In my book paladosdos is synonymous to Bulusan--a home coming food for every Bulusanon living away from home.

For a complete how-to-prepare-paladosdos the authentic Bulusanon way, a visit at Pamughaton is a must.


Photo credit: Pamughaton

Bulusan, Sorsogon, Philippines

Snail mail in the time of email

Christmas card for 2012 received via snail mail.

Even for a rural town like Bulusan a mailed Christmas card is not common these days. So, it was really a blast-from-the-past-feeling receiving one this Christmas season.

And the snail mailing method was not the only surprise part. The content of the card itself is purely Bulusanon including the photo of the local 'binamban', a cassava suman-like delicacy.

Capturing the feeling of receiving and opening an actual Christmas card is in itself a Christmas present to the recipient made more valuable by its novelty.

Bulusan has a fairly strong internet connection and snail mail is seldom used except for some official and legal notices.


Photo: Alma P. Gamil
Bulusan, Sorsogon, Philippines

Shadow play on a sunny day

This is the azotea where I usually spend my gazing time. In front of it is the view of Mount Bulusan where Volcano gazing is almost a default activity and at the side is the bathroom window where the view of the Pacific Ocean's sunrise is still spectacular though seen at a distance with roofs of poblacion's houses slightly obstructing the view. Gazing at the night sky with the moon at its peak also cannot be missed here for reason that I have to walk from my bed room to reach the comfort room located here at the rear part beside the azotea.

For now it is not high noon yet and the shadows are also vying for my attention. The neat clear lines and silhouettes definitely are inviting.

Photo: Alma P. Gamil
Bulusan, Sorsogon, Philippines

Prayer for the New Year

Blessed Mother's image from Bulusan, Sorsogon (photo by Alma P. Gamil)

Tuesday, 1st January 2013

May the Virgin Mary, whom today we venerate with the title of Mother of God, help us to contemplate the face of Jesus, the Prince of Peace. May she sustain us and accompany us in this New Year: and may she obtain for us and for the whole world the gift of peace. Amen!

© Copyright 2013 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana


 

A Blessing Poem for My New Year

may a flock of colours,
indigo, red, green,
and azure blue
come to awaken in you
a meadow of delight.

-- from Echoes of Memory, by John O'Donohue

Photo: Pamughaton.net
Bulusan, Sorsogon, Philippines

Meditation for the New Year

The Inner History of a Day
By John O'Donohue(1954 - 2008)

No one knew the name of this day;Born quietly from deepest night,It hid its face in light,Demanded nothing for itself,Opened out to offer each of usA field of brightness that traveled ahead,Providing in time, ground to hold our footstepsAnd the light of thought to show the way.The mind of the day draws no attention;It dwells within the silence with eleganceTo create a space for all our words,Drawing us to listen inward and outward.We seldom notice how each day is a holy placeWhere the eucharist of the ordinary happens,Transforming our broken fragmentsInto an eternal continuity that keeps us.Somewhere in us a dignity presidesThat is more gracious than the smallnessThat fuels us with fear and force,A dignity that trusts the form a day takes.So at the end of this day, we give thanksFor
being betrothed to the unknownAnd for the secret workThrough which the mind of the dayAnd wisdom of the soul become one.

-- from To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings, by John O'Donohue



Photo: Pamughaton.net
Bulusan, Sorsogon, Philippines

Karagumoy accent for Bulusan's Belen

There is no doubt that karagumoy runs across the gamut of Bulusan's rural life for centuries. From mats to hats to bay-ongs (bags/baskets) karagumoy rules. Karagumoy hat making is in fact one of the major and the most widely spread occupations in Bulusan next to fishing and farming. It is a big part in the town's cultural heritage as documented in several articles in http://pamughaton.wordpress.com/ a purely Bulusanon website.


Karagumoy hats could be seen  all over Bulusan town on a sunny day. Hundreds of it drying under the sun by the roads, backyards of rural homes and even along the beaches of coastal villages.


However, it is only this Christmas of 2012 that a karagumoy hat and a banig (mat) provided a distinctly Bulusanon touch to the image of the Nativity (Belen). "The nipa hut concept of the Nativity is already a very common theme," says Father Fulay. "We wanted to make it more unique and typical of the place--what is identifiable to Bulusan." he adds during my afternoon visit to his parish to personally document the setting-up of the indigenous Nativity tableau.


Father Edu Fulay is the present Saint James the Greater Parish Priest. He suggested to his parishioners to utilize indigenous materials and crafts for this year's Belen to highlight what is distinctly Bulusanon. The design concept is his he added when asked about who did the design of the one-of-a-kind Belen.



Photos:  Alma P. Gamil

Bulusan, Sorsogon, Philippines