Welcome The Year of the Ox!

So where were you last night at the celebration of the first day of the Year of the Ox? We were invited to a dinner at the Summer Palace, where the highlight of the evening was a Dragon and Lion dance performance by the Philippine Ling Nam Athletic Federation.





By 8:30 PM drums started to beat, fireworks were set and everyone gathered at the lobby where 5 lions were dancing and a dragon was chasing a fireball.


According to Wikipedia, and my Chinese friend, we were seeing a Chinese southern lion dance, which is said to be symbolic and is usually performed as a ceremony to exorcise evil spirits and to summon luck and fortune. "The southern lion exhibits a wide variety of colour and has a distinctive head with large eyes, a mirror on the forehead, and a single horn at center of the head. The lion dance also symbolises the myth of the Chinese new year. The Lion dance is often confused with the Chinese Dragon Dance, which features a team of around ten or more dancers. The Lion Dance usually consists of two people."






The Philippine Ling Nam troupe is well-known and they make sure to adhere to the old customs. For instance, lion dancers would first visit the temple before they make their way to the store front of businesses. The business would tie a red envelope filled with money (ang pao) to a head of lettuce and hang it high above the front door.



The lion will approach the lettuce like a curious cat, consume the lettuce and spit out the leaves but not the money.




The lion dance is supposed to bring good luck and fortune to the business and the dancers receive the money as reward. The tradition becomes a mutual transaction. At the Shang (and in our office) we saw that lettuce/pechay and oranges tied in the ang pao. These were used to create pseudo barriers and challenges.




The Philippine Ling Nam troupe is composed of young boys and girls, who interchangeably beat the drums and do the dance, presumably ranked according to their performance and experience. Each lion is guided by one student,as the lion makes its way across the narrow halls, in between tables and maneuvering amongst the sea of people who wanted to have their picture taken with them.



The lion dancers, the white and pink lions were playfully eating the oranges, and after they spit out orange peels, re-arranged the stack of oranges to form the symbol of gold, signifying that in exchange for the ang pao given by the Shang, more wealth will come their way.










Of course, while at Summer Palace, one can only expect the best Chinese dishes.








Can I just tell you what the menu was?




Fried shanghai dumplings
Steamed pork siomai with shrimps
Fried mango shrimp rolls
Whole suckling pig







Shark's fin soup with crabmeat
Fried king prawn balls coated with cornflakes





Braised fookien rice
Beef tenderloin with black pepper sauce
Chopped piglets
Fried efu noodles with straw mushrooms, kuchay and scallops
Soft shell crabs with oatmeals




And for dessert--


Chilled lemon grass jelly with sherbet
Fried tikoy with taro potatoes
Sweet potato pastries




I kid you not. Here is the menu as proof.


























But then again, I know you believe me.

XOXO,

A


Thanks S1! That was indeed, a meal to remember.

Paris, France

Cie is in France and while there, visited 91 Rue De Paris for a lovely purchase.

If I Were Nicki

If I were xxx lbs lighter, and a hundred times richer, I'd wear this tomorrow.




For accessories, maybe a cameo chain necklace





or a bib necklace.





When it's hot and humid, maybe I'd wear this one instead






For summer I'd wear this swimsuit














-but finish the look with these.










For evening wear, with socials and cocktails, I'd love this LBD rendition.









Maybe one accessory.














And killer shoes.













In the meantime, maybe just the shoes?
Imitation pa ha-ha.

Happy weekend, everyone!

Zero Fare Alert: Where Would You Want to Go?

Cebu Pacific's zero fare alert is out. Book now til Jan 22 for low fares in Asia. When I received the alert, I had only one question in mind: where do I want to go?

a. Hongkong (Ime and L want to do Disneyland, I've been to Tokyo Disneyland twice, but not yet in HK)
b. Cambodia (This will be a photography tour with L. Marco said the time to travel is Feb when it’s not too hot to see the ruins)
c. Bangkok – as the girls want to shop


There will be 10 long holidays in 2009, so if you want to book these dates, subscribe to the alert. Thank God for cheap airfare. If this is possible from Asia to Europe, I'd book my way now to Paris, Cie!

1. April 4-6: Three-day weekend before the Easter break- April . The observance of Araw ng Kagitingan (Day of Valor) on April 9 (Thursday) was moved to the nearest Monday which is April 6. This will be followed by the Easter holidays from April 9 (Maundy Thursday) until April 12 (Easter Sunday).

2. May 1-3 : Labor Day is a friday - May 1 (Friday)

3. Independence Day - June 12 (Friday)

4. Ninoy Aquino Day - August 21 (Friday)

5. National Heroes Day - August 31 (Monday)

6. Bonifacio Day - November 30 (Monday)

7. Christmas Day - December 25 (Friday); and,

8. Rizal Day - December 30 (Wednesday).

9. All Saints Day - November 1 (Sunday) and All Soul's Day - November 2 (Monday);

10. New Year's Eve - December 31 (Thursday).

Benjamin Button vs Slumdog Millionaire

One movie is made from an American perspective (from a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald), the other, from a British production house, based on an Indian original book (Q & A by Vikas Swarup). One is a product of the Hollywood machine: the original plot tweaked to fit a better, generally more acceptable storyline that would guarantee box-office success. The other, a collaborative effort between the Indians and the British, tells a story from a fresh perspective. I watched these two on the same day, and originally thought I'd like The Curious Case of Benjamin Button better, but no, I was drawn to the one who showed a better way of telling a story.

At first there was so much buzz about Brad Pitt's acting and the digital aging created the desired effect, the drama to the story. I was also looking if Cate Blanchett would act differently this time, her presence and voice usually so strong it becomes the same portrayal of a powerful character. The pace, the storytelling, the scenes were dramatic and what one would expect to see from a good film. I had trouble trying to compare this with Slumdog Millionaire but in the end I did not know where Slumdog's storytelling would lead me, and that left me anticipating the next scenes. The plot had all the ingredients to a third-world everyday story, in fact, like a Pinoy's where there is poverty, slums, streetchildren (think Yagit), syndicate (reminiscent of the plots of any Lito Lapid or FPJ movie), even dancing (ala Bollywood, Regal Film's teen movies or movies by Marya would have dance numbers as the credits roll up), mass following for a popular TV game show or a contest (just imagine the empty streets when Pacman fights), the kontrabida character who is kulot and has thick eyebrows (Salim). The only things missing are the sampalan and sabunutan. And that is the huge difference. The story unfolds with each question Jamal Malik answers in his quest for a million, and the story builds up slowly. You thought you won't get past through the slum scene when the aerial shot of the slums is shown, but it ends in laughter with Jamal getting the autograph of his idol, fully covered in shit. Those scenes in fact, from their childhood are haunting because you can see the joy in the children's faces as they play with other kids, getting in trouble with the local police, not really fully aware of the plight they are born into.

Watch the movie and take the journey with Jamal. The journey would take you to sadness, anger, anticipation, and in between, a good dose of hearty laughter. You would be elated at this new way of telling a story so familiar it can be ours. A story that captivated millions and has reaped many awards.

Europe

My good friend C is leaving for Europe today. France, Austria and London.
She is of course, buying her Louis Vuitton in France.

Waah! Buti pa ang topshop jacket ko makarating dun..

First 2009 Purchases

Just when I thought I am utterly, hopelessly lost in the world of television (I am hooked and feel like a dummy gazing at the abyss; I could not turn my back sometimes, especially with the likes of shows like TMZ which is really pointless), I find myself in Fully Booked the other day, and my choice of books are all, surprise, surprise, under the COOKERY section.

JAIME OLIVER's KITCHEN








AMY BESA AND ROMY DOROTAN's MEMORIES OF PHILIPPINE KITCHEN
Photos by Neil Oshima










Anthony Bourdain's KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL











Here is a list of The New York Times's 10 Best Books of the year (unranked):

1. Toni Morrison's A Mercy
2. 2666: A Novel by Roberto Bolano
3. Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
4. The Forever War by Dexter Filkins
5. Netherland: A Novel by Joseph O'Neill
6. The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How The War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals by Jane Mayer
7. Nothing to Be Frightened Of by Julian Barnes
8. Dangerous Laughter: Thirteen Stories by Steven Millhauser
9. The World Is What It Is: The Authorized Biography of V. S. Naipaul by Patrick French
10. This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War by Drew Gilpin Faust

You can also see the Times's full list of 100 Notable Books from 2008 and compare this with amazon's listing at www.amazon.com