Category Archives: Laguna

Lake Lumot Boats

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Wok Grille

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Wok with flame window grille design

Shrimp Traps

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Spot the tiny shrimps

Fisherman’s Ensemble

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This guy wears a parasol hat on his head and long sleeves shirt, has a Monobloc chair and Styrofoam chest on his bamboo raft, and equiped with three fishing rods. I guess this is an example of a well prepared fisherman on a whole day fishing mission at Lake Lumot.

Sunday Snapshots: Laundry Time

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Washing clothes in the river

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A communal spot in the river for washing clothes

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This communal spot has makeshift sun shield roof

Toog

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Before concrete utility poles like power poles, trunk of the Toog trees were used as they are straight, tall and hard. This I learned by hiking with someone who is a forestry graduate.

Celebratory Chevon

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Last Sunday I hiked through the rainforest of Makiling. Along the trail, I made use of an outhouse toilet at the back of a shack that sells coconuts to hikers. While waiting for my turn, I saw a slaughtered goat waiting to be immersed in a scalding water for dehairing. Then I heard people talking indoors and I’ve come to understand that the kambing is for somebody’s birthday.

Aling Emma

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Aling Emma in her daster

For years I would buy espasol, bibingka, and most frequently the Pinatuyuan sa Gata freshwater shrimps viand from Aling Emma. Her shack of a shop is in Pagsanjan, Laguna along the main highway in the poblacion. One day the shop was gone from the old location. Then, months later I was able to locate her to this new one, still in the poblacion and not that far from the original one. It’s still a shack, which I like. I’m just truly glad that there’s still Aling Emma and her tiny food shop, my favored stop in Laguna.

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Espasol, suman, tikoy, vinegar in soft drinks plastic bottle containers, fish crackers, shing-a-ling, chicharon, etc.

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Assortment of rice cakes and the pinatuyuang hipon sa gata (inside those stypor containers at the upper left side)

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Pickled vegetables

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The gateway to Aling Emma’s shop

Kuhol Eggs

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On returning to Lake Caliraya for a weekend escape from the urban noise (e.g. car engine noise), I noticed plenty of kuhol (snail) egg clusters in plants, tree trunks, boulders, boat dock, and boats this month. So apart from sitting crossed-leg on the dock waiting and watching for the occasional jump of fish in the water, birdwatching sans binoculars, reading Robert Parker’s Spenser novel, and other “doing nothing” activities, I thought about keeping stock photos of kuhol eggs.

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A pair of kuhol picked from the water

Seeing those pink eggs very close while taking pictures, I wondered if there is some kind of pattern in the count of eggs per elongated mass. Right now, I also wonder if the egg adhesive can be used as household adhesive. Seems like the substance can bond on a variety of surfaces and is even water resistant.

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In demand real estate for laying eggs

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I guess any surface will do

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Even on mother-in-laws tongue (plant)

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Perhaps any leaf will do

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Some on boulders

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I wonder if they all laid eggs at the same time in this trunk

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Snail still laying eggs

Sunday Snapshot: Canoe in the Lake

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This man was paddling towards a spot in the lake where he can leave his canoe, put on his mask, and take out his spear gun. I watched him go in the water (from the opposite side) for spearfishing.

Sound of Silence in Lake Caliraya

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Meanwhile, Lake Caliraya provides every little thing that is needed for a quiet break, devoid of man-made sounds and all those unnecessary things one can do away to thrive on earth. Someplace that is somewhere close-by Metro Manila.

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Still waters - perfect for kayaking and spotting birds from one shore to the next while doing so

Some tools for better living are intangible things such as contentment, peaceful inner self, uncomplicated existence in the midst of other human beings, and indifference to money. Other than those, natural surroundings are something tangible that contribute to better living if one spends a great deal of time (in one’s lifetime) on it – wherever that may be, and it can be as near as Lake Caliraya.

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It's not often where one can see the end of the rainbow

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This lakeshore property has no right of way, hence the presence of that barge. I kind of like it this way though

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Resident dog named Bingo, and one of the many birds in the lake

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A place to sleep and read can be something as comfortable as this camper yet none of those unnecessary things in life. Again, I like it this way

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More campers for like-minded individuals who often come here

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Dock for small boats with unintentional greenery on its thatched roof

Hiking Snapshots: Mudspring

Snapshots of the hike towards a mud spring in Makiling forest.

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Starts with a paved road

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About 8 km of roundtrip Mudspring hiking

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Apart from a class group of UP Los Baños students, I've seen foreigners in pairs only and few mountaineers. Hiking isn't a popular pastime among Filipinos in general

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It may appear quiet in the photo but it's not. All kinds of forest critter sounds you'll hear, some unidentified. Sort of forest babel

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Off from the main trail, this one leads to the mud spring

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Mudspring - a boiling mud pool

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A defeated sole in this type of terrain. Not just any sole but always a Nike sole

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Unidentified tree seeds

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Designed to fly and propagate

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One can squeeze in a play or an upper body workout while hiking by doing the Tarzan swing

Proof of Sweetness

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Pakwan in season

Dangling thin cross-section slices of watermelon as visual proof of sweetness.

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Another pakwan stall

Cooking Pot as Plant Pot

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Repurposed cooking pot

Sorbetes in a Motorcycle

In the hilly roads of Mt Makiling where pushing a cart is too laborious for an ambulant vendor, it is but apt for this Arsenio Jr. sorbetes to be peddled around in a motorcycle.

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I like Arsenio Jr sorbetes than those mass produced ice cream brands. It is simply better.

The Library Building

Five years ago, I took these monochrome pictures of the main library of University of the Philippines in Los Baños. This Locsin-designed structure is one of the beautiful reasons to walk around or run in the campus.

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Facade

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Corner view

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Beautiful

Rambutan Colors

Each color represents a variety and the best one says the vendor is the RR, the green-red combination.

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Roadside Edibles

Snail, escargot, mudfish, catfish and frog are the various edibles for sale says the sign. Also a dog.

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Vegetation on Mansonry Structure

Majayjay Church Bell Tower Majayjay Church Door Majayjay Church Wall

Malagonlong Bridge

Malagonlong Bridge

Kaldero

These three large kaldero (vat/cauldron) contained boiled beef shanks (bulalo in South Luzon). In West Visayas, boiled beef shanks is called kansi (with batuan and annatto), while it is known as pochero in Cebu. Whatever version it is of boiled beef in the Philippines, the common cookware is the kaldero.
Kaldero

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