Binondo: Wai Ying Fastfood serves great dimsum!

Binondo is a food paradise. And Benavidez Street is a treasure trove of restaurants and hole-in-the-wall stores which serve some of the best Chinatown goodies. If you want some cheap but delicious dimsum, troop over to Wai Ying Fastfood!

Everything is great! But since our stomachs could handle only as much, we couldn't pick them all. We had (1) kutchai dumplings, (2) hakaw, (3) thaipao, (4) beancurd roll, (5) beef mami and (6) wanton mami. Even with the black gulaman and almond jelly, our bill was less than PHP500!

Wai Ying actually has another branch in Binondo and one in Tondo (also along Benavidez Street), which is near Metropolitan Hospital. That's were we got to savor these delectable dumplings. Writing this post got me craving for even more dimsum!

Cagayan: Basilica of Our Lady of Piat in Piat, Cagayan

The Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Piat is a major pilgrimage site of Cagayan Valley. I've been to Cagayan Valley several times but not to Piat since it's quite a distance from Tuguegarao City, 41 kilometers to be exact. So when I found out we were visiting during this trip, I immediately obliged.

Every June and July, Piat comes alive with two festivals. From June 23 to 30, the Piat Sambali Festival is held, centered on the sambali, a war dance of the tribes that were united and converted to Christianity through the intercession of the Nuestra Senora de Piat. The festivities don't stop since on July 1 and 2, the feast of Nuestra Señora de Piat is celebrated.

The venerated image is erroneously referred to as Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary (that was the original title) when it is in fact the Nuestra Señora de Visitacion (Our Lady of the Visitation). The Church of Piat became the Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Piat in 1997.

Outside the church is one big flea market where you can find rows of stalls and vendors selling religious images, tobacco and native kakanin among other items you can find in the usual provincial tiangge. You don't see tobacco sold in Manila that way. They're usually in reams, flip top packs or sold by the stick. Don't worry, I still don't smoke. I just wanted to try the tobacco for the fun of it.

The Piat Basilica is actually a great place to sample the local delicacies. Of all the kakanin they sold in the area, the best is the pawa, a kakanin made from ground sticky rice with sweetened ground peanut filling inside. While most vendors sell it for PHP20, I was not quite satisfied with them since they were not freshly-cooked. Later did I find out that the pawa sold in the Piat Basilica are of varying quality. There are some which make it really good and I recommend V. C. Pasinca's Pawa. A pack of this yummy treat costs PHP25. Make sure you also buy it warm to ensure the same heavenly experience I had munching on them.

V. C. Pasinca's Pawa
(0916) 7207180

Part 1: Marian Voyage of Peace in Tuguegarao, Cagayan
Part 2: Cagayan: Callao Cave, Pinacanauan River and Iguig Calvary Hills

Cagayan: Callao Cave, Pinacanauan River and Iguig Calvary Hills

Cagayan is known for its many caves, Callao Cave being the most popular. Many of the caves can be found in the town of Penablanca, which is just a short drive from Tuguegarao City. From the entrance of the Callao Eco-Tourism Zone, it's just a few dozen steps up to Callao Cave

Callao is most known for the natural cathedral in one of its chambers that was converted into a chapel by the locals. The cave actually has seven chambers which you can explore, several with natural openings on top from which the sunlight illuminates the chambers.


Another attraction of the area is the Pinacanauan River which is perfect for a boat trip. There are boats for hire below Callao Cave. There's an area a few minutes by boat from Callao where you can have a picnic. Which is what we did.

And we came prepared with meats and fish to grill. Just make sure, if you do plan to barbeque in the area, to clean up after and not leave any trash. After relaxing a bit and taking a cat nap, we went back to the jump-off point. And just in the nick of time since the moment we got in our vehicle, it started to rain really hard.

An attraction during sundown is the gargantuan flight of bats which leaves the various caves in the area. I was told that the place used to have a several eagles which would feast on the bats as they flew out. That was a regular sight before. But for some reason, when a military camp was constructed and located in the area, the eagles suddenly disappeared. I hope they didn't have a tinola feast!

Anyway, before going back to Tuguegarao, the group decided to visit one of the Marian images which was housed in the Iguig Chuch as part of the Marian Voyage of Peace. Of course, the major attration of the town is the Iguig Calvary Hills, life-size tableaus from the Stations of the Cross scattered behind the centuires-old church building. Notice the flying buttressess behind the church, a good example of earthquake Baroque architecture.

After resting a bit, I decided to try out the local Pancit Batil-Patung for merienda. For dinner, we were served Pancit Cabagan.

Part 1: Marian Voyage of Peace in Tuguegarao, Cagayan
Part 3: Basilica of Our Lady of Piat in Piat, Cagayan

Manila: Corner Tree Cafe, best vegetarian restaurant in Makati

Corner Tree Cafe in Jupiter Street was an eye-opener for me to the world of vegetarian food. I've always thought vegetarian food was mostly composed of vegetables and everything bland. But that's changed going through their selection of vegetarian dishes.

For starters, I got the Corner Tree Starter Plate (1) which is basically dukka and white bean hummus, a personal favorite of mine. It's the first time I tried dukka, an Egyptian snack made of spices and ground nuts and served with extra virgin olive oil and chunks of whole wheat bread.

On their soup menu was something new, Spinach and Pechay Chowder (3) which is basically pureed leafy greens and potatoes with a dollop of organic yogurt on top. This was really good if I may say.

For my main course, I got two dishes. The first was North African Vegetable Stew (2) which is stew infused with saffron and Moroccan spices served over couscous topped with almonds and fresh coriander. On the side, they also serve some spicy harissa (the Moroccan version of hot sauce) and greens.

But my personal favorite is the Baked Tofu Walnut Burger, simply unbelievable! It's a burger patty made of baked tofu and walnuts of course, served in a whole wheat bun with mint yogurt sauce, with sweet potato fries and mayo on the side.

Although I wasn't able to try it, another best seller is the Kare-kareng Gulay which is served with organic red rice and you guessed it, vegetarian bagoong! Another must try is the Spaghettini with Brocolli and Pine Nuts. Vegans can omit parmesan cheese.

Corner Tree Café
150 Jupiter Street, Bel-Air Village, Makati
(02) 8970295 / (0917) 8481004

Top vegetarian restaurants in the Philippines

The top 10 vegetarian restaurants in the Philippines were named by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). Four of the restaurants in the list are in Metro Manila, two in Baguio, and one each in Batangas, Boracay, and Palawan. Vegetarian food and restaurants will be another series in my blog. So watch out for it. Anyway, here's the list:

Corner Tree Café
150 Jupiter Street, Bel-Air Village, Makati
(02) 8970295 / (0917) 8481004

Greens Café and Restaurant
92 Scout Castor St., Quezon City
(02) 4154796 / 3762781

Daily Veggie N' Café
540 Banawe Street, Quezon City
(02) 7118209 / 7113214

Bodhi (also known as Evegreen)
SM Cubao, SM North EDSA, SM Megamall
SM South Mall, SM City Manila, SM Makati

Outside Metro Manila

Bliss Café
Hotel Elizabeth, Gibraltar Street corner J Felipe, Baguio City
(074) 6190367 / 09178464729

Azotea Greens
Second Floor, La Azotea Building, Session R, Baguio City

Hapilife Healthy Food Corner
8 Corpuz St., West Tapinac, Olongapo City
(0921) 8720258 / (047) 6110249

Ima's Gulay Bar
46 Fernandez Street, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan
(0920) 5333210

Mandala Spa
Boracay Island, Malay, Aklan
(036) 2885858

The Farm
119 Barangay Tipakan, San Benito, Batangas
(02) 696-3795

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