Memories of Naga

My memories of my mother’s hometown are nil.  What can you remember as a 5-year old?  Pictures of “caretelas” or horse-drawn carriages dance in my head.  I remember always being scared having to ride one of them. But, for the life of me, I can’t remember why I was so afraid. 

 We would visit my grandmother during Holy Week.  I dreaded that. Not the visiting part but the part where I had to witness the Holy Week traditions of the town.  The “penitensya” is where men inflict wounds on themselves, and some even go as far as actually being crucified as a reenactment of Christ’s suffering from Gethsemane to the cross.  Men striking their backs with wooden sticks until blood oozed and flesh is coming out is not a pretty picture for any child.

 

Oh but there's an upside to all of this... food! It was in Naga where I tasted my first  Bicol express. Bicolanos are known for this hot and spicy stew of pork cooked in coconut milk, shrimp paste or "bagoong alamang", chopped long green chillil and "siling labuyo" or bird's eye chili. There's something about coconut milk and chili that brings warmth (literally and figuratively) and comfort to my tummy.

 

 Since my family loves putting chili in practically everything they eat, I made a similar version of this one time. I took away the pork and just used finely chopped long green chili or "siling pang sigang", boiled it in bagoong alamag and coconut milk till the milk dried out and was replaced with coconut oil. I stored it in glass jars and refrigerated them in the hopes that it would last a while. Tsk... of course that never happened. Hahahaha.... 

More food in coconut milk next time!

Traveling to Naga

Traveling to Naga, Camarines Sur, my mother's home town, was a whole other experience. Trains were the way to travel then. A first class ticket allowed you to sit in a  cloth-covered couch where you could lie and stretch your legs. When it was mealtime, a huge folding table would be lifted from the side by a waiter before he served dinner. Dinner would consist of fried chicken, chopsuey and corn soup (a first class meal in those days) and a glass of soda. But to me, the piece de resistance was dessert. I wouldn't have the usual scoop of ice cream. I'd ask for espasol. Yes you heard me, espasol - that gooey, oh so sweet, coconut milky treat that tickeld my taste buds... the simple joys of a 5-year old girl.

 

I would literally devour this delicacy until someone stopped me. I always associated this sweet confection with Bicol and it was only just recently did I realize that it was a product of Laguna. Maybe because, at that time, I would only have this on a train on our way to Naga. I tried making this once, unsuccessfully I might add, and that was the last time. It was too complicated. I hold anyone who could make this in high regard.  

If you're bold enough to try it, here's the recipe:

Boil the malagkit.

Place sugar, anise seeds and coconut milk in a saucepan; let boil until thick.

Add toasted shredded coconut and cook for 3 minutes.

Add boiled malagkit, stir and cook until thick.

Remove from fire and add 3 cups toasted rice flour.

Mix with a wooden spoon and pass through a cornmeal grinder.

Divide into 2 parts and roll (about 2-1/2-inch in diameter). using the rest of the

rice flour for rolling.

Slice into 1/2-inch thick pieces.

  

I've always loved to travel. But it wasn't the sights that caught my fancy. It was the food. But of course, isn't it obvious? hahahaha... 

I would travel to Batangas as a kid to visit my grandparents. We would drop all the lansones we could, straight from the tree into the opened baggage compartment of our car, ants and all!

We would devour the sweetest mangoes.

 But what excited me most was gathering fresh eggs from the chicken coop and have my lola fry them in a big kawali over a wood-burning stove. Eggs with pan de sal and kapeng barako would be our merienda. That, was the Batangas way of life that I loved so much. Simple farm living, all fresh food.

A while back, someone close read some promotional articles I wrote almost a decade ago for the company I was working for. She said she like my style. It was conversational which made for easy reading and suggested I blog. The thought never entered my mind. I always joked about writing a book someday but never really thought of myself as a writer. Now that I'm kinda retired, hmmmm... maybe this is something I could do. Nothing to lose I always say, so here goes.