Yikes. You're a harder dude than me then.
Chicken intestine sounds rather Stone Age....
I almost vomit when I smell those aged chicken eggs with the developed foetus inside.
Here ya go guys. Enjoy.
Why are y'all maligning my beloved balut?!
Here's a near perfect pic of one that I had some months ago.
Re: pork sisig, I like it but don't eat much of it nowadays (genetic/ health reasons).
@sabang - there are chicken & tofu versions of sisig in restos nowadays. I sometimes cook one of the two or mixed (chicken-tofu sisig).
@Norton - there are monkeys (and bats) in the mountains near Subic, so it's possible that the restos/ bars there (in olden days) served monkey meat. Or they could be pulling your (soldiers') leg. Kudos to you for winning balut-eating contests!
Cheers all.
Mang Inasal is one of of our favourite fast foods restaurants.
They make a great Halo-halo as well.
Mang Inasal | Come For the Chicken, and Stay for the Halo-Halo at Mang Inasal
The wife brought Mang home the other day for me to try. It's pretty good and their sisig is delicious.
We got our first shot of Moderna today. We were at a mall picking up my glasses and asked what's up to the vaccination people there. They said fill out a form, we sat down and a lady walked between two rows of people pushing a shopping cart with her kit injecting people. No online registration or anything, no hassle about me being a foreigner or any of that BS. We go back in 28 days.
"I was a good student. I comprehend very well, OK, better than I think almost anybody," - President Trump comparing his legal knowledge to a Federal judge.
Balut is right up there with durian on the "Fuck No" scale....and durian would knock the stink off a skunk.
^^Good deal. Was wondering how folks were faring in the provinces. And Moderna too.
One might be forgiven for thinking Thailand is an organisatonal basket case even in comparison to the Philippines.
I rather like dried durian, it kind of is close to dried banana in taste.
Or someone very high is pushing Astra and limiting access to other vaccines. Money drives most decisions in Thailand, IMO.
Today we had our choice of sinovac, phizer or moderna. Everyone there was in the Moderna line for their first shot. I didn't see anyone getting phizer for their first shot. Lots of people were coming in for sinovac, jab 2.
Personally I think Thailand might just be struggling a little more with its status in the world than the Philippines is.
So many Filipinos have travelled overseas to work over the last 40 years, and that may have broken down prejudice against the big noses.
My two months here have left me believing that it's still flourishing in Thailand.
I'm not bugged about it but I was at immigration today with my wife.
Oh man.
Maybe more tomorrow.
I'm still processing.
Here's a video of the vaccination process where we first lived when we moved here, in Fortune Town...
^hey topper, what happened to your dream of being a YT celebrity in PH?
Good thing there's Asia @ night! (who doesn't know how to pronounce Bacolod properly, despite living there for many years!)
P. S. After you've had your 2nd dose, go to the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) website to apply for the yellow vax card. That card is recognized for international travel. There's usually a long queue for the online appointment since you'll be competing (for slots) with OFWs who need it for working abroad.
Last edited by katie23; 06-10-2021 at 07:48 AM. Reason: Yellow card info
I've found there's great benefit in anonymity....besides the world already has its fill of youtubers. If I did anything, it would probably be a blog.
It's the same in Thailand...I've met several long term expats who pronounced the city "PaTAYya" rather than its Thai pronunciation.
There's a Bureau of Quarantine? As far as the online appointment stuff, most places allow walk ins from my personal experience, at least here. I'll have my dearest ask about it on the facebook FTIGN (Filipino Talk/Information/Gossip Network) my wife is a part of.
Thanks again, Katie!
Ah...there's not an Bureau of Quarantine here in BCD yet....
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) | Bureau of Quarantine
^that's the "benefit" of living in the province, topper. The news did say (around 2 months ago) that BOQ will open more offices in the provinces. Question is, when?
There's no walk-in for this ICV (yellow card) - you really must have an online appointment. That's because hundreds (maybe thousands) of OFWs are applying for it. You'll upload your docs then get a schedule. From the grapevine, the nearest schedule is 6 weeks away. I saw in the news (24 oras from GMA 7 network) that there are long lines for it in the Main BOQ office in Port Area, Manila.
When my 2nd dose is done, I'll apply for it and get it at their branch in Mall of Asia (and have a shopping side trip, lol).
The PH govt has also rolled out vaxcertph, but at present it's only available for residents of NCR (National Capital Region or Metro Manila), Region 3 and Region 4A (Calabarzon). Region 3 and 4A are the regions adjacent to Manila. Davis and I live in Region 4A.
Other regions will have to wait (another "benefit" of province life, heh). Just accept that things move slowly in PH.
Re: the ICV, as stated in the website, not everyone needs to get it - depends on your destination country. But I will be getting it as a "just in case" and it will give me more options re: countries to travel to in future.
Re: documents in PH, I've heard that passport appointments are also very hard to get by. Earliest appointment showing up on the site is for February! My passport is still valid, so not a current problem.
I've heard that for OFWs who have the papers to prove that they need to travel urgently, they can walk-in at DFA passport-giving offices.
Cheers!
Edit: if you live near an SM mall, this should be helpful :
SM Supermalls to open VAXCertPH booths nationwide
Last edited by katie23; 07-10-2021 at 09:24 AM. Reason: Vax cert ph
Thanks Katie, I don't think anyone in the PI is too far from an SM mall...
Our passports are good I think, I know mine is till 2029, the wife got hers renewed just before we left Thailand.
We're going to do the "just in case" stuff as well, you never know what you'll need so we plan to get all of the documentation we can. We were thinking of going to Thailand around Christmas, but now we're thinking maybe the end of February. Hopefully by then most of this stuff will be sorted out.
If you come across any of the jalapeno spam, let me know and I send you some money to ship me some.
You'd be surprised. I once travelled (with friends) around 3-4 hours just to get to SM Iloilo city. I spent the holidays in Antique province (pronounced An-TEE-keh, the Spanish/ Filipino way). I stayed with a friend and joined her family for a day trip to SM Iloilo. There's no SM in Antique province yet (that I know of). My friend's hometown is a 1-bank, 1-ATM town. No Jollibee, McD or 7/11. One Alfamart, I think (that was an improvement).
I've visited her town twice. First time I visited, there was no ATM and we had to travel 1 hour by jeepney to San Jose city where the ATMs & banks are located. On my 2nd visit, the 1 bank had put up an ATM. Hooray!
Re: vax cards, if you have foreign friends or if you're a member of an expat forum, tell them about the ICV yellow card & vaxcertph, especially if they plan to travel next year.
Re: SPAM, no I haven't seen the jalapeņo or cheese flavor. I've just encountered the original, lite, less sodium & turkey flavors. Even in S&R (the Costco equivalent here), they don't sell those SPAM exotic variants. A pity.
When/ if I go to Manila for shopping or errands, I'll look for exotic SPAM versions. Now the SPAM Viking song is ringing in my head - lovely SPAM, wonderful SPAM!
^ I'll be staying in Antique for a few months when this Covid sorts itself out a bit- Sibalom, nearest airport San Jose.
Of course it's Panay, so Boracay and several other more appealing offshore cays and atolls are part of the plan.
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