WATCH: This Shih-Tzu dog has an issue with having a rabbit in the house.
Pets are popular in The Philippines, and, like everywhere else, dogs and cats are the norm, but sometimes, there's the occasional rabbit, now that rabbit breeders are growing in number. Rabbits are still generally regarded as pets, though, unlike cats and dogs, they are usually kept in pens since they like to chew on things, especially furniture. It's probably best since dogs, like this Shih-Tzu, doesn't appear to like having a rabbit in the house. Who knows what she's thinking?
Shih-Tzu's are known for their attitude, even towards their owner, so they might get a little jealous if there's another pet around and rabbits don't seem to appeal to them, or maybe they do like them for another reason? Shih-Tzus are small and given enough time, this rabbit in the video will likely outgrow this dog. Whether dogs and rabbits get along, it's best to give them both good homes. They're always great pets and companions for us humans.
WATCH: 6-year-old kid tests an infrared foot massager by Hinano.
Many people have all kinds of physical complaints these days, especially involving their feet. The population is aging and more people are feeling the aches and pains associated with getting older. In the Philippines there are lots of devices being sold out there that supposedly help in encouraging blood circulation and easing pain associated with a number of ailments like arthritis, but it's hard to know which ones are safe or do the job. Unknown brands abound and there's no assurance when it comes to quality and reliability.
The device featured here is an old Hinano electric infrared feet massager and the video shows a 6-year-old child testing it. Basically, the device vibrates for a number of minutes (5 minutes in this case) and this produces a massaging effect by shaking the feet and gives the sensation that pins are pricking their underside (simulating acupuncture and accupressure). The user also has the option of adding heat to the mix. This model has eight (8) "H" levels and the speed is variable. When the heat is turned on, yellow lights flicker like fire under the feet. They're harmless and only produces a warming effect. Regardless of the setting though, there isn't any perceptible change in warmth, but this could be because the feet are being shaken too much for the user to notice.
Using the Hinano infrared foot massager will leave your feet shaken and you will feel a strange tingling sensation for a while. It could be helpful to seniors experiencing joint pain in their feet but it's still best to consult a doctor first if you intend to use this when you know you have a condition which might be directly affected.
WATCH: 800-meter over-the sea fantastic zip line of Puerto Princesa Palawan!
There are lots to do in Palawan and when in the capital, Puerto Princesa, there's one trip a tourist should not miss - the St. Paul Subterranean (Underground) River tour. Because it's a trip that's world famous, there's a waiting time of a few hours. To while away the time, you will be given the option by your tour guide to either ride the 800-meter long zip line or take a boat and row among the mangroves that grow near the protected Manlipien Beach area. Most of the adventurous ones choose the zip line. It's a long ride and takes you over the waters of the Sulu Sea like the wings of a bird. To get there, you will take a short hike along a primeval beach, then go up the side of a mountain thickly covered by an ancient forest. At the top, there's a zip line platform where you will be treated to an amazing view of the shore, the sea, and distant mountains!
This zip line isn't scary at all, though the thought of hanging by a cable for short of a minute (my estimate) can give you butterflies in your stomach. Once you're there (hike up the mountain in a dense primeval forest) and you soak in the awesome view and see kids as young as seven taking the ride, then whatever apprehension you might have would likely dissipate with the wind. It's not everyday that you get to ride an 800-meter zip line over water, so when you do get the chance to visit the Underground River of Puerto Princesa Palawan in The Philippines, do so. You will feel alive and if you're lucky, have a zen-like experience. Oh, and there's also a treat on the tiny island below, which is your destination. It's a very primordial island with layered rock formations that are probably more than 20 million years old, if you would consider the gelogical history of the area.
WATCH: Giant Christmas Toys Holiday Season mall display by Robinsons Magnolia.
The Christmas season starts early and ends late in The Philippines. Come August, malls start playing Christmas carols much to the surprise of westerners, who always wonder why. That's understandable, but it's not really practiced in households. Filipino families do not play Christmas songs in their houses in August; only the malls do. Why do malls do this? Well, there's a saying that Christmas songs put people in a festive mood and more likely to make a purchase. Whether that's really true is debatable but the fact is that malls in the Philippines like SM, Robinsons, and Gaisano do spend a lot of money for Christmas, and if they start playing holiday season music as early as August, then it's a long season indeed with lots of potential revenue for commercial establishments.
The video here shows one of the Christmas holiday season giant toys "animatronic" displays of Robinsons Magnolia along Aurora Boulevard in New Manila, Quezon City. It's right in front of the old building which used to house the German Cultural Center or Goethe Institute (a building which has seen better days at the time of this writing). The Aurora boulevard frontage of the Robinsons Magnolia mall is pretty cramped, but that's where the Christmas display is usually installed.
The Robinsons Magnolia mall is where the old Magnolia Ice Cream building used to be. It had a playground in the front lawn and children used to point to it from jeepneys and the LRT trains that passed above, but it was never really openly accessible to them, unfortunately. Nevertheless, it was a landmark until it changed to Nestle and eventually became a mall. So that's basically the simple history of the place.
WATCH: The MoKja! Korean Buffet & Restaurant Quezon City, PH tourist experience.
Maginhawa Street of Quezon City in the Philippines has become a kind of food mecca where residents and tourists alike get to treat themselves to restaurants which serve local Filipino and international cuisine. There's so many to choose from and since there has been a level of cultural influence from Koreans who've chosen to make the city their second home, there have also been a boom in Korean food restaurants. One of the popular ones include MoKja!, which is a buffet and barbecue restaurant at the 3rd flr. of 80 Maginhawa Street, Teachers Village, Quezon City 1101, Philippines.
"Mokja" is Korean for "let's eat" and this vibe is definitely present when you enter. It's quaint, small, and cozy, so if you're not early, you might have to wait at least a half hour or so before you can be seated. Diners have a maximum time of two hours to eat, so there could be some stomachs grumbling waiting in line to get filled when you get there. By the time you get seated, you might already have the sweet smell of bulgogi beef meat on your clothes since the frying smoke that fills the place can really cling on you. The gold-painted exhaust tubes which hang from the ceiling like some high-tech anime tech gear don't help much to suck out the smoke from the room, although they definitely contribute to the feel of the whole place which seems to be popular with people in their twenties.
MoKja! is really the kind of Korean restaurant where the food becomes part of how friends, co-workers, or family get together over a good meal. If you're a tourist in Quezon City thinking of treating a few friends in a fun restaurant, then MoKja! is a good choice. Just be prepared to wait until you get seated if there's a crowd and also be ready to eat lots of meat. Sure, you can mix your own salad at the buffet table, but that's just secondary to the meat.
WATCH: Armored starfish of Starfish Island, Puerto Princesa, Palawan, PH.
In Puerto Princesa, there is an island where starfishes abound. It supposedly has the most starfishes anywhere in the province of Palawan. It's called, not surprisingly, Starfish Island. It sits among other islands, just as colorfully named, in Honda Bay. Despite the name of this body of water, tourists won't find any motorcycles or cars floating in it. It's name likely originated from the Spanish phrase for deep bay, bahia profunda. Other people might have other origin stories for the name. You can choose what you want to believe.
It's a bit of a mystery why there are lots of starfishes on Starfish Island, but you have to bet there are plenty of food there for them to eat. The starfish in the video is a type of armored starfish. They have knobs on top, they feel hard to the touch, and for some tourists, they would appear to be dead, although, if they would just take the time to look at the underside, they will see the tiny tentacles that line the midsection of their arms
WATCH a fruit shake being made with a fruit blender at a fruit shake refreshment stand.
If you're going on a trip to visit the Underground River of Puerto Princesa, Palawan, you'd likely be given the choice of a side trip between the 800-meter zip line and mangrove forest paddle boat ride. One can make your heart race in anticipation (not for the faint-hearted) and the other can lull you to dreamland. What's common for both is that these rides can make any tourist thirsty and hot, because after a few hours of being under the sun, well, let's just say you'd be in desperate need of cooling liquid refreshments.
So once you've screamed your heart out zipping over the sea hanging from a cable or tested the limits of your patience while languidly floating through mangroves, the most obvious thing to do is to buy some refreshments and waiting for tourists with parched throats at the beach, are a number of colorful fruit stands, ready to serve you a cold fruitshake or two, like the one in the video. There's no lack of refreshing drinks in Puerto Princesa, because with all the tourist spots that one can visit, they're really a necessity.
VIDEO: Beach sand play in Real, Quezon, The Philippines (Madz and Cools Resort)
The Philippines is made up of over 7,000 islands and beach life is a way of life for most Filipinos. Every summer, families from all over the country flock to popular beaches in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Most would have already heard about Boracay Island and El Nido in Palawan, but there are other places, like Real in Quezon province, which offer more humble environs which locals would still find enjoyable.
This video was taken at the Madz and Cools resort along the Famy-Real-Infanta Road. It's a private resort house which can be booked, when available, for special family and other small-scale gatherings. As of this writing, the resort isn't even on Google Maps. The beach sand is grey with an underlying bluish-green clay layer, so it's not really for building sand castles. Also, there are plenty of old coral rock formations which do not contribute to much of a beachfront and can make swimming a tricky business. Still, in spite of the limitations, this beach can still offer perks such as spectacular sunsets, great seafood and a great bonding place for the family.
WATCH THE VIDEO TO SEE THE MIMOSA PUDICA "SHY" PLANT IN ACTION.
The Mimosa Pudica plant is common in the Philippines and every young child almost always gets an introduction to them courtesy of their parents or older friend by showing how the leaves fold or shy away from being touched. It's sometimes called the Touch-Me-Not plant and it's ironic that people despite it's name, never tire of touching it's compound leaves to see them fold.
In the video, a child learns how the plants react to touch by folding up (leaves and stems). It's a great way to teach children about plants and nature in general since Mimosa plants can be found almost anywhere there are fields and by the roadside. They can even be planted in a pot of soil so that they can be admired by children at home - sort of a pet plant. Here you can order Mimosa pudica seeds that you can plant in the comfort of your own home.
WATCH THE VIDEO. SEE WHAT YOU CAN BUY AT THE STRAWBERRY FARM
One of the often-visited tourist spots in the mountain province of La Trinidad, Benguet in The Philippines is the Strawberry Farm. There you can pay to harvest strawberries just like the locals. But if baking under the hot high-altitude sun isn't your cup of tea, then you can check out the market stalls that sell souvenirs and stuff you won't easily find anywhere else, like snake liquor and phallic ashtrays. Of course there are the ever-present strawberries.
If you will be buying raw strawberries, make sure that you get those that are not yet ripe so they can last a few days. They rot quickly and if you do not consume them on time, you'd end up with a lot of moldy lumps you wouldn't even care to look at. If you'll be traveling more after your visit, and would still like to buy souvenir strawberries, then get the jams and preserves.
To have an idea of what you can expect to buy there, watch the video (taken in 2016). Just pause it when you see something interesting so you can get a good look at the item.
WATCH THE VIDEO AND EXPERIENCE THE PUERTO PRINCESA BAYWALK.
Puerto Princesa, Palawan is a city known for being a city in a forest, but its also famous for its seafood and the Baywalk, near the docks, is where you can get your fill of local seafood fare to your satisfaction.
There are stalls that sell seafood from one end to the next and if you don't know what you're looking for, you might have a hard time choosing what to order. If the vendors see your confusion, though, they might offer you the delicacy that Puerto Princesa is famous for, the tamilok mollusk, also called a woodworm (although it's NOT A WORM) It's found inside decaying wood along the beaches, especially where there are mangrove forests. Locals swear it's tasty like oysters, perhaps even more so. It might not be for everyone, but if you do happen to be on a trip to Puerto Princesa, do check out the Baywalk and order some tamilok. You won't find it as readily available in Metro Manila so don't miss the opportunity.
