crumb trails

One of crumb trails earliest entries was about a place in Marikina. Among the cities in Metro Manila, Marikina has become one of the most progressive. But what sets it aside from other cities is its cleanliness. The discipline of its citizens is also exceptional. But apart from these, there’s a lot more to discover in Marikina. And one of them is Pan de Amerika (PDA).

Pan de Amerikana embodies quality dining experience. The concept of the restaurant is meant to make every diner feel at ease. The ambiance is a fusion of European, Asian and Filipiniana that blended well together, creating a homey environment and a perfect garden set up. Unlike other concept dining places, Pan de Amerikana is not restrictive. Guests are free to wander around while waiting for their food to be served and linger some more after they have finished eating. And speaking of food, the restaurant serves authentic Marikina dishes and other Filipino foods. Marikina boasts of its Everlasting and Waknatoy. Everlasting is similar to embotido but it is placed and cooked in a “llanera.” It is named as such because it in the olden days, this dish is ever present in festivities and gatherings. Waknatoy on the other hand is like menudo. And like everlasting, it is also always on the table of almost every family gathering. The Chinese settlers in Marikina during that time would always complain and say, “Ito na naman? Wak na `toy!” (This dish again? No, not this dish again!). Other notable dishes in Pan de Amerikana are the Ilocano sarabasab, Bicolano express-laing, Cebuano sinugba and sisig rice. But the taste of these foods is not the only reason to dine at Pan de Amerikana. With a very nice ambiance, you’ll be surprised at how affordable their meals are.

Some of the things to look forward to at Pan de Amerikana

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Let’s face it. In our country, visiting museums is not part of our culture. We don’t bother to go, unless you’re a student and your teacher or professor required you to visit a certain museum in a certain place.

I may be wrong, but most people think that museums are meant solely for the well-off members of the society, an activity only the rich people can afford and enjoy. That is a HUGE misconception. If you can afford buying tokens for a videoke machine (don’t shoot me, I have nothing against karaoke singing. I’m Pinoy, so I like it, too), you definitely can afford museum entrance fees. Some of them do not even charge a dime!

You see, museums are there for you — for you to learn more about your community, your country, a religion, a new technology, history, etc. Spending time in a museum somehow changes, in a positive way, your view yourself as part the society. Sometimes you can find the missing aspects of your life. It can be fun, only when you start appreciating what you see there. You can even say, museums rock!

It had been a little while since I’ve been to one. This year I plan to visit as many as I can (that’s the GRAND plan!). And since I’m based in Metro Manila, I’ll start here. I’ve made a list of the museums here and grouped them by locality. There are a lot! You might want to visit them also. Or join me!

Here goes my list with a few basic details:

City of Manila
Museo Pambata (Ermita)
Museum Hours:
Sunday 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Tuesday-Saturday 8:00 am-5:00 pm (Aug - March), 9:00 am-5:00 pm (April-July)
Admission: Php 100 (children & adults), Free/discounted for Manila residents (bring ID); Free for museum workers and teachers (bring ID); Free for street children, infants

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I belong to a family whose members are mostly (humbly speaking) gifted in the arts. I have an aunt who’d been scrap-booking long before scrapbooks became a fad, makes letter cut-outs without using whatever kind of pattern, creates paper mosaics, and does her own greeting cards. As a young man, my dad worked as an illustrator for Tagalog Komiks, now he’s into photography. My sister showed, at an early, her artistic talent, hence, she took up fine arts in college. Recently, I discovered that a cousin is starting to make a name in photography in Singapore.

Being surrounded by these people, I’ve learned to appreciate the arts at an early age. I’ve learned to open my eyes and somehow see beyond a picture or painting. Most of all, I got to try my hands at painting/drawing! Here, take a look at some of my pencil drawings:

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