To eat or not to eat -- that is the question!

For several days, I have been craving for Filipino dishes. The thought of it creates a strong urge to go to a Filipino restaurant that will surely satiate the hungry parasites in my stomach. Fortunately, there is Manila Restaurant here in Perth. It is situated in 1236 Albany Highway, Cannington. Parking space is available for customers. It is open all days of the week from 6pm onwards. In addition, for music lovers, Friday-Sun is allotted for the Karaoke night. So, if you have the singing "prowess" like me....hahaha or if not, you simply possess that so-called oozing confidence or that annebisyosa-like-attitude ... please don't hesitate to share your musicality --- grab the microphone and belt at the top of your lungs like your favourite divas.

Notice the bamboo way of writing the restaurant's name

The restaurant's interior ---tsaka TFC subscriber yan (Nasaan ka Elisa?)

My Mowwddeeellll!!! Tubig pa lang, busog na!

I couldn't help but order the food I used to eat in the Philippines. WARNING: The food is high fat, high protein, high calories, high in everything...hahaha A total cheat day slash pig-out experience.

Here are the food we ordered.

--KINILAW NA ISDA--

( I miss how my father prepare this dish)

-- CHOPSUEY --

(to relieve our guilt of eating "unhealthy food")

-- SISIG --

(The Casa Verde sisig is still the best for me.)

-- LECHON PAKSIW --

(No one beats the lechon paksiw of my father)

-- HALO-HALO --

(Eating halo-halo reminds me of Chowking and Perpings)

If you think, only Filipinos come to dine in here...oopppssss.....Australians are also avid customers. One of the tables was occupied by an Australian Family who was celebrating a birthday....take note no Filipino was with them ....isn't it COOL?

I know I will be eating more of our dishes as soon as I come home. But I will definitely annoy my mother in preparing the delicacies -- biko, sapin-sapin, cuchinta, palitaw, budbod, puto, bingka, moron and cassava. My drinks will be sikwati, buko juice and SPARKLE (haha!).

I will see you soon, Pilipinas kong Mahal.

~*~manelle~*~

SHHhhhhh......

If a word is worth a coin, silence is worth two.

— Hebrew Proverb —-

For several months now, most of the people who knows me are wondering why i rarely talk…. Some give speculations like family problem, love-life issue, workload demands, and the like…. However, I want to say that for 23 years of living I just learned NOW to value SILENCE. Yes you heard me right… I CHOSE TO BE SILENT! Whatever experience that made me to this realization, simply accept my humble decision "I JUST WANT SILENCE". Furthermore, this will lead you to a question… WHY BE SILENT? Well, let me share to you some points about the GIFT OF SILENCE.

1. SILENCE brings serenity to your heart.

For this semester, my work is from Monday to Saturday. I rarely have a chance to spend time alone with myself. I’m not complaining about my workload. It’s just that from Monday to Saturday I’m so engross of talking…talking…talking. Why am i doing a lot of talking??? it’s because my work demands for it and my friends always question me if i’m silent. If i remember it right, it was last august 21 that this realization happened. In silence, i learned to keep a quiet heart. I learned to be more forgiving and to be more understanding.

2. SILENCE allows you to spend time with GOD.

It is only in silence where you can hear the voice of God. If you are too busy or too preoccupied of a lot of things, the tendency is that you least likely give thanks to God. This is the best time to assess and to evaluate your current relationship with Him. Try to ask yourself these questions: Are you close to His heart or are you distant to Him? Were you grateful to His goodness or did you ignore His presence? Silence allows you to grow spiritually in love with God. He talks to you even if you are not talking to Him. God knows when to tap your shoulder, when to hold your hand, when to embrace you and when to touch your heart. He is so wonderful because He knows the right timing for everything.

3. SILENCE heals all wounds.

A friend of mine told me that i don’t either need to explain or seek for explanation. Sometimes there are life events that we don’t understand. Some appears hazy and some seems so vague. Whatever may be the case, just simply accept it. I would testify that if there is silence + acceptance + forgiveness + time, it will lead to the healing of your heart. Life is too short. You don’t have to hold grudges, anger and pain in your heart. This time i learned to let go of feelings that can make me bitter because i know it is not beneficial for my personal growth.

I just hope that you learn something from me. I may not be an expert about living this life but i am a learner who never get weary of venturing to new ideas. If you lose track or if you are confuse….simply sit down, breathe deeply, free your mind of your baggages and pray for silence in your heart.

****REPOST from my old blog ( 08 October 2008 )

~*~manelle~*~

Day Tour to THE PINNACLES

“No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.” – Lin Yutang

06 October 2011 ---Paowee and I decided to head north of Western Australia (WA) to go to "The Pinnacles." We had been browsing brochures, websites and travelling agencies just to find good deals with this trip. Finally, we came up with a decision and .......bravo..... "Booking: 2 Adults --- Confirmed by Graylines Australia.

We waited in Shop 1, Old Perth Port, Barrack Square (departure point) @0745hrs. We stood there for few minutes until we approached one of the men and asked if one of the coach is going to Pinnacles. Then the gentleman, quickly browsed on his list and yey!!! he found my name -- Reserved for 2 Adults.

Exactly 0800hrs, we left the City of Perth. During the trip, there was live commentaries about facts and history of the places we visited. It was a good avenue to get to know better WA. We passed through the town of Guildford where the first courthouse of WA is located. Then a wide array of grapevines was also seen in Swan Valley. I thought we are going to stop for a while and experience wine tasting but end up "disappointed!" The first stop was Caversham Wildlife Park in Ellenbrook, WA.

We had close encounter with koalas, kangaroos and wombats. These animals are very sensitive. For koalas, we were instructed to touch only the body with the back portion of our hand. Their body feels like a soft foamy cotton. We were told also not to touch the leaves because once you touch it, they will no longer eat it. (arteh teh!!!) And this is important --- Koalas are not bears, they are marsupials.

Kangaroo is a national symbol of Australia (AU). You will see its emblem in the currency and other souvenir items. After 2 years in AU, I had a chance to feed and touch them. The male kangaroo is called jack, buck, boomer; females are does, flyers and jills. The young kangaroos are called joey. The collective noun for kangaroos are mob, troop or court. Kangaroos are said to run a speed of 40km/hr. Wow!!! That's the speed limit if you drive along the residential houses here in AU. Just like the koalas, we were only allowed to touch their body on either side of our hand. We were cautioned not to touch the joey because the mothers are very protective. If you don't follow, mind you, you get a peculiar face art from the kick of the mother.

Wombats are another Australian marsupials. They are short-legged, muscular quadrupeds with short, stubby tail. The muscular quadrupeds is due to their burrowing nature. Their teeth are somewhat resemble like the rodents. They are herbivores. And they smell like "pig". You can only touch their body and legs.

Ayan, close up photo!!!!

After Caversham, we headed to the Cervantes. We passed by vast pasturelands. We saw horses, sheep and cows along the way. We had a quick stopover to check on wildflowers.

Did we see wildflowers?? Yes, we did but we don't know their names. We hardly appreciate it because it was like walking along the bushes.

We passed by the windmills in Cervantes.

Around 1300hrs, we arrived at the Lobster Shack in Cervantes. It is the famous source of Rock Lobster in Australia as well as in other countries especially Japan. We had our lunch (thank God!) and a 5-min video about the lobster processing. Unfortunately, we did not see the actual processing of the lobster.

Then a 10-min stopover at Lancelin Beach. I can say that the sand was finer compare to Cottlesloe and Fremantle.

1415hrs -- We arrived at "THE PINNACLES". We had an hour to go around the place. Pinnacles is the home of limestone formation within Nambung National Park. The best season to see Pinnacles is spring from August to October. In this season, you will see wildflowers that starts to bloom. It is best viewed in the morning or late afternoon as the play of lights brings out their colour and features. The moment I stepped on the area, I felt like I was in Egypt (kulang na lang ang pyramids at si Tutankhamun!!)

The next set of photos are the "PASIKLABAN of Paowee and ME". I am Elle and he is Tyra...haha!

Thanks to the beautiful lady who was kind enough to take this photo.

THE BEST SHOTS of PAOWEE

My moment as a MOWWWDELLL. gosh!

Behold! You will see our jump shots ... dugo at pawis to'

After our tour around the Pinnacles, we saw this signage.

ohhhhh!!! too bad we saw it late....tsk tsk tsk :)

At 1600hrs, we arrived at Lancelin Sand Dunes. We had a 4WD adventure. I love the feeling when we hop from one hill to another and then the steepest hill......waaaahhhh!!!! In loud voice I said, "Serious?" Then Paowee called my attention...hahaha Paowee was teasing me that the Chinese man is my father because we have the same reaction. Listening to the Chinese man, weeeehhh, yowwwwwww, ahhhhhhhh .... was totally entertaining.

I thought we won't be having the sand boarding because it was around 1700hrs already. But with my heartfelt and sincere prayer, it was granted....hahaha!!! Eto na....weeeeeh!!!!

The first try was a bit nerve-racking but the second try --- sus, no sweat...yun lang pala!!! hahaha

Before heading home, I convinced Paowee to have a shadow-like,

silhouette effect shot.

We are the shadow MOWDELS!

Indeed, it was a magnificent and splendid experience. The 12-hour day tour was all worth it. I had a marvellous time learning and enjoying every place we visited. Til' the next adventure....Can I hear South of WA???? hahahaha

~*~manelle~*~