childhood memories

when i was 7 years old, i spent june-december in the philippines with my mom, brother, and all of our family in mandaluyong. it was my first time in the philippines and to me, a really important experience in my childhood. being in the philippines as an adult 14 years later makes me look at things much differently. i see the poverty and the hearts of the people in a new light.

but somethings are exactly the same, and i couldn't be happier:
1. getting fresh buko (coconut). they chop it off for you and you can drink the juice fresh from the fruit. i hate brown coconut in america, but buko is so delicious.

2. jollibee. the largest filipino fast food chain. along with burgers, they also sell fried chicken, rice, and filipino spaghetti. this was daniel's first encounter with them.

3/4. riding the tricycle. it's a motorcycle with a little carrier thing attached to it and you ride inside. they get you where you want in the neighborhood for just 7 pesos.

5. stik-o chocolate wafer thingies and ube ice cream. some of my favorite filipino desserts. my aunt used to have a little sari-sari store in front of her house where she sold tons of candy, soda, soap, and a lot of random stuff. the stik-o's were my favorite. and ube (taro) ice cream is delicious. it's also extra cool because it's purple.

6. soda in a plastic bag. in the sari-sari store, my aunt also sold soda. in order to make sure that she got the recycling money back, she kept the glass bottles and put the soda in a plastic bag with a straw. maybe it's just nostalgia, but it's my favorite way to drink soda now.