A bite into paper-thin flower petals on double chocolates, followed by a sip into my tea cup and I’m in a place where, as Somerset Maugham put it, “all the fables of the exotic east” are.

Well, in fact I am. 

I’m at the Writers Bar at Raffles, in Makati, not in Singapore, which has played host to literature’s namedroppables like Ernest Hemingway, Rudyard Kipling, and Joseph Conrad, but well I’m steeped in the legacy of Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles, the British colonial official who helped establish the British Empire in East Asia, after whom this international chain of hotels has been named.

Like the luminaries of literature who graced the history of Raffles Hotel, I am at the moment partaking of the great 1840 invention of Anna Russell, the Duchess of Bedford and Lady of the Bedchamber of Queen Victoria’s—the afternoon tea.

Besides, I have my own literary history with the Writers Bar at Raffles Makati, where I have hosted a couple of meet-the-writer afternoon tea parties with aspiring writers and avid readers for my books Write Here Write Now and Hai[Na]Ku and Other Poems. These books of mine are among the books on the bookcase wall, which plays a dominant role in the interior design of the lobby lounge.

Unveiled is “Harmony in Forms,” an afternoon tea program-cum-art exhibition in collaboration with Filipino sculptor, serigraphist, muralist, and art innovator Impy Pilapil and Swiss-born Filipino citizen, artist and jeweler Hans Brumann, whose works—three masterpieces from the former’s “Aquabelle” series and seven sublime sculptures from the latter “Anyo at Talinhaga”—are on display in the duration of “Harmony in Forms.”

I met Hans 30 years ago at Cheval Blanc, the French restaurant at Makati Shangri-La, where we had a long dinner, just the two of us. He was my first interview as a journalist. As we meet again after a long time, I am reminded that 2024 is my 30th year in lifestyle journalism. I didn’t know it then but when I had a toast with Hans Brumann at Cheval Blanc 30 years ago, I was giving a toast to a dream that was going to be my life, 30 years and counting.

Among his works on display at the Writers Bar at the moment is the wall sculpture Cracksoil, which appears to me to be a profound expression—in mother-of-pearl with molave and yakal—of our concerns over climate change or our appreciation of the struggles of our farmers or our awe at the forces of nature, such as the imminent El Niño phenomenon. There’s also Polliwog, or the young form of a frog or a toad in a North American dialect, portrayed by sleight of Han’s hand as an army of tadpoles in black kamagong or Philippine mahogany swimming against the current of mother-of-pearl. A third work is Black Forest, also an organic, geometric study of the harmony between iridescent mother-of-pearl and impenetrable kamagong. 

Impy Pilapil, then known principally as a glass artist, was also a prominent figure in my pursuit of stories back when I was just beginning my career, working at Lifestyle Asia, a glossy monthly magazine on affluent Filipinos and Asians. For “Harmony in Forms,” she lends pieces from her famed series “Aquabella,” meaning “beautiful water,” drawn from her artistic explorations of and endless fascination with underwater riches and aquatic treasures. She considers water as the cradle of the universe. Her works, including the ones currently on exhibit at the Writers Bar, are expeditions into the depths of soul rendered in stone, glass, steel, and paper.

Afternoon tea, you know, is more than tea. The Duchess of Bedford’s invention was aimed at relieving hunger in the void between lunch at midday and dinner in the evening, so, needless to say, the tea came “with bread and butter and cake,” which the duchess asked to be delivered around 4 p.m. to her room, where later she would invite friends over, unwittingly inventing what would later become a British custom.

Curated by Bela Rieck, Raffles Makati’s executive chef, the “Harmony in Forms” afternoon tea program offers more than bread and butter. On top of the scones with clotted cream and jam, the set, served in three tiers, has a wide variety of luxury nibbles, from savory and sweet, such as wood-smoked salmon canapés, steel-cut foie gras terrine with red apple, paper-thin flower petals on double chocolates, and pistachio éclairs. 

Sit back and relax, pinkie up, as you savor a moment worthy of “all the fables of the exotic east” at “Harmony of Forms,” available at the Writers Bar at the Raffles Makati from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. and from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily. If tea is not your thing, you can do it with coffee or a cocktail or mocktail or Champagne, as long as you open up to a soulful dialogue with the works of Hans Brumann and Impy Pilapil strategically placed around the tea area. Reservations are a must. Book a table by visiting https://bit.ly/BookTheWritersBar.

“Arts and culture are not mere embellishments,” says Raffles and Fairmont Makati’s food and beverage director Anne-Sophie Hurtaud. “They are the very soul of the Raffles brand. Today, with the unveiling of ‘Harmony in Forms,’ we celebrate the rich tapestry of creativity that defines our brand’s profound passion for the arts.”