What’s in Naga? Answer: Banana Cue and Kamote Cue

Have you ever lusted for some old-time ‘comfort street food’? Well I have, when I was in Cebu in October this year. My taste buds were desperately yearning for a stick of fried banana cue (caramelized banana) and some fried kamote cue (caramelized sweet potato) as well, but how come these street delicacies were nowhere to be found in the city?


I am honestly fearing the (imminent?) banana cue sold on the streets tradition extinction so kindly pass this on to all the ‘manangs’ and ‘alings’ out there... please, please, please... do not tire from deep frying these yummy caramelized treats at corner streets and at sari-sari stores. As for you, the local Filipino consumer: Buy Filipino! Buy banana cue, buy kamote cue and help preserve Filipino street food culture.

And because I was still craving, we all hopped in the car and went to Naga, just to buy banana and kamote cues. Yipee!

I took a few fotos of the environs there as well, see them below. The rest of the fotos are all here: Naga, Cebu - Philippines


Banana Cue street vendor.


Kamote Cues, YUMMY.


Tricycad drivers and three little boys in a tricycad.


Market scene in Naga, Cebu.


Naga Catholic Church and the old Naga City Hall (there is a brand spanking new modern and big city hall building at the back).


Oil tanker ships along Naga coast and a woman bathing on the rocky coast.


Siomai stands on Naga boulevard seems to be more popular than banana or kamote cues. Next foto, English translation: Do not pee here.

Blossoms

Close up of yucca blossoms

The ‘Hoogtepunten’ or the Blue Route

Last September Dutchman and I did a 12-kilometre hike in Doorn, in Kaapse Bossen which is part of the Utrechtse Heuvelrug forest.



We went to our current favourite starting point, the Heleneheuvel, and this time we took the Blue Route or the Hoogtepunten Route (which means: highlights). We liked this route because we walked on different types of terrain through the forest and across the plains, and we saw a variety of scenery.



Normally it takes 3 hours to finish this route but we did it in 2 hours and 15 minutes. We barely stopped to rest, although we slackened our walk in between inorder to take fotos and appreciate nature’s beauty around us. Because of this my knees were slighting a bit. Lesson learned, take some rest at least after an hour of non-stop walking.



At the end of the hike we had pancakes, scone with jam and clotted cream and fresh mint tea at the Heleneheuvel Chalet. Dutchman had pancakes while I chose to try their home-made scone which was delicious paired with the clotted cream. It was quite timely as by the time we sat down at the terrace of the chalet and ordered our food, it started to rain. We had to quickly move indoors.



Anyway, I now have a very good reason to come back to this place. Enjoy their scone and clotted cream once again and do the Brown Route or Hoog Moersbergen Route. In other words, the 14-kilometre hike =)



The route we took was supposed to be a 3-hour hike.



Stiltegebied means Quiet Territory.



These looked like lean fir trees and the beetle, always fighting for his life.



Pretty house in the forest. Not sure if I would feel safe living in the forest. I always hear about scary stories, as simple as thieves visiting at night!



We came across a field with a children's playground and saw droopy mushrooms.



This is the view from the Helenaheuvel Chalet. Very relaxing.



Cheese and ham pancake and a scone with jam and clotted cream.



The chalet and its terrace. The Heleneheuvel chalet is located in the middle of the forest (Kaapse Bossen).



Walking Period: September

Destination: Doorn (Utrechtse Heuvelrug - Utrecht), The Netherlands

Myrtle Beach State Park~The Beach

So far we can tell there are many touristy things to do here. Things like mini-golf, entertainment shows, shopping and lots of places to eat. None of those things are the reason we came here though. We came here for this reason:



Or to be more specific, we came here for this reason:



We drove to the Myrtle Beach State Park to visit the beach. There is a great park complete with a full service campground and fishing pier here. You can see some of the park here:



I mostly wanted to focus on the surf and sand today. So the other parts will just have to wait. Don't tell Ava we came here without her. The beaches are pet friendly here, so I'm sure we will bring her before we leave the area.





Ahhhh....I can feel my shoulders relaxing already.



Living the life in South Carolina!

Harris Hill in Elmira New York

Aric and I went with Nathan to help him work today, so I was able to see more of this area. It is just beautiful here. Here is a waterfall on the side of the road:

And Aric getting close to the action:

We drove all around the area, finishing up with stopping at a park. Nathan was looking for something on the GPS, so I got out to look around at the Rails to Trails bike path there. There was a gentlemen standing there looking at the lake. He seemed so sad, with the kind of heavy grief that is normally from losing a loved one. I told Nathan I wanted to go and just hug him and when I said that, he looked over and waved like he felt our love. It was so neat.



After that, we headed to Harris Hill, in Elmira. We had a client there, so we visited him first. Then we went up the hill to the Soaring Center Museum which was closed. There was an overlook there that was really wonderful. We sat in one of the swings there and watched the sunset.

Living the life in New York!

The Ebb and Flow of the Tide...

On my first visit to the Schoodic Peninsula, when the tide had been low, we had noticed a little house along an inlet that had a dock on stilts. We had driven past it before we realized what we had seen. On the 17th when we left Acadia National Park and headed 'down east' I stopped and photographed that little house. I would go by it on two more occasions, when the tide was at different levels. I guess you could say I was a little fascinated by the tides and how different it looked under the various conditions. If you ever get there, this little spot is on the right side of the road, just as you exit the National Park on the Schoodic Peninsula.






At high tide, or thereabouts. 12:43 pm on September 17th.




Not quite low tide, at 10:48 am on September 21st. It was a cloudy, rather dreary day.






At low tide. 3:14 pm September 27th.

Ladies and Diamond Frames

Lots of ladies ride diamond frame bicycles, even in a skirt. The lovely Charlotte of Chic Cyclist and the good women of Bike Skirt are just some examples. Recently, I tried riding diamond frames for the first time in my life.

Here is the Co-Habitant's vintage Raleigh. I had to wear platform shoes, because I can't otherwise clear the top tube of his 24" bike.

And here is an Origin8 Cykel, which I tried at the Bike Stop in Arlington, Mass. This time the frame was just the right size, though those super-wide handlebars took some getting used to.

My feelings about diamond frames are mixed. While cycling, I actually find them very comfortable: The horizontal tube helps me feel balanced and in control of the bicycle. But by golly, I don't understand how to mount and dismount gracefully. The Co-Habitant swings his leg over the back in one fluid ballet-like motion, but I seem to be incapable of executing this maneuver without faltering. Plus, in a skirt this can't be done without hiking it up first.

I've tried leaning the bicycle over toward me until the frame is low enough to step over, but that does not seem right either. Ladies, how do you do it? And when you're wearing a skirt?

UPDATE: The graceful Charlotte of Chic Cyclist has now posted a photo-tutorial showing how she rides her diamond frame in a miniskirt. Enjoy!