MEDIUM RARE
Jullie Y. Daza
Once again, Boracay and Palawan are on top of the world as its most beautiful spots, and that’s according to international travelers and readers polled by Condé Nast Traveler magazine.
If Shangri-la Hotel in Boracay and El Nido in Palawan are the two islands’ prettiest gems, tourists and locals alike would vote for Cebu, with its infinity of beaches, for third spot: Cebu the queen city of the South.
Where does that leave Manila, the capital city? Since Makati became the premier city of Metro Manila, Manila lost some of its luster, forcing the smart tourist guide to limit his coverage of the city to Intramuros, Manila Hotel, Chinatown, and that stretch of Roxas Blvd. that is home to the US embassy, Cultural Center, Baywalk.
Intramuros for history buffs. Manila Hotel for breakfast, lunch, coffee or tea, dinner, romantic engagement proposals, lavish wedding receptions. Chinatown for shopping and delicacies. Roxas Blvd. and Baywalk for the sunset.
Enough to keep a tourist curious and curiouser, and as the city approaches Year 3 of the pandemic, a second spring seems to have sprung.
Yes, spring in October! In one day, minutes apart, Benjie Yap and Dante Ang Sr. are seen separately at Manila Hotel, both blooming in flamboyantly floral shirts. Benjie’s colors cover his tee, socks and sneakers. Dante’s shirt in marine colors stand out against the warm reds and golds of the chinoiserie of jade murals and red tablecloths of Red Jade restaurant as accessorized by Rachy.
Dante was with a group of four. In one of the function rooms, Benjie presided over lunch of Four Technicolor Vegetables, Nobleman’s Soup, Long Life Prawn, and Salted Duck Ice Cream, to be consumed before throwing the dice to win a hopia as big as a lauriat table. The celebration was late by weeks, but charge it to the universal excuse of a raging pandemic. With 22 participants and two sets of hopia in varying sizes to fight over, the prize was the privilege to provide the hopia for next year’s Lucky Mooncake Festival.
Here’s the catch: Day after the party, one of the 22 present found he had Covid-19, but as 21 guardian angels would have it, no one else would test positive. A pretty lucky day!