Tag Archives: manila

A Japanese Tea Ceremony

Posted on 25 March 2012 by sheg4184

This week I witnessed a Japanese Tea Ceremony hosted by the Urasenke Manila Association at the Filipino Heritage Library. It was a fascinating, absorbing occasion, and one I felt honoured to attend. Tea first arrived in Japan from China in … Continue reading →

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Living in a Bubble

Posted on 28 January 2012 by sheg4184

We were asked to write a piece for the ANZA News on where we lived in Manila and why. It was a good excuse to consider and re-assess… When  we first flew into Manila, a realtor took us around Makati … Continue reading →

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Prestige Wines at the Peninsula

Posted on 27 November 2011 by sheg4184

Craggy Range Winery is ‘a sometimes contradictory combination of tradition and innovation…art and technology’ ‘My God! I’ve bought a desert!’ David Peabody laughs as he remembers his father’s initial response to the blind purchase of 110 hectares of old riverbed … Continue reading →

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A Tropical Christmas

Posted on 15 November 2011 by sheg4184

Is it a little early for Christmas tales? Not in Manila, where the scent of Christmas has been in the air since late September. My guidebook says Filipinos pride themselves on having the longest Christmas in the world, and so … Continue reading →

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Manila: City of Contrasts

Posted on 5 November 2011 by sheg4184

An oxymoron is something that consists of incongruous, disparate or contradictory elements. For me, the word oxymoron describes Manila perfectly. And the first jarring disparity struck me almost the minute I stepped off the plane at Ninoy Aquino International Airport: … Continue reading →

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Jamming at the Fruit Garden

Posted on 4 November 2011 by sheg4184

“The rule is: jam tomorrow and jam yesterday, but never jam today” So says the White Queen to Alice in Lewis Carroll’s ‘Through the Looking Glass’ For those of us who like jam every day, I would like to introduce … Continue reading →

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Who Will Buy?

Posted on 25 October 2011 by sheg4184

The Flowers All the names I know from nurse: Gardener’s garters, Shepherd’s purse, Bachelor’s buttons, Lady’s smock, And the Lady Hollyhock… by Robert Louis Stevenson Well, we didn’t find Lady’s Smock or Hollyhocks, but then the Dangwa market is a … Continue reading →

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Volcanoes in Salcedo!

Posted on 20 October 2011 by sheg4184

Once upon a time, an Aussie wandered east to California, to train as a chocolatier. Returning to Sydney some time later, he launched a range of chocolate dipped fruit, fresh, dried and glace. He dubbed them Naughty Fruits and supplied … Continue reading →

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Sailing across Lake Ta’al

Posted on 12 October 2011 by sheg4184

As a relative newcomer to Manila, I have been trawling the guide books and the memories of long term residents for good day or weekend trips out of Manila.  I quickly discovered that Tagatay and Lake Ta’al tend to be … Continue reading →

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Housekeeping in Tondo

Posted on 9 October 2011 by sheg4184

Brigada Eskwala is an initiative designed by the Philippine Department of Education (DepEd) and organized by the Head teachers, to clean up and refurbish schools for the beginning of the school year. As part of a nationwide effort to raise … Continue reading →

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