The Tzu Chi Foundation: Compassion in Action

Posted on by jane

I learned about Tzu Chi Foundation as I was reading up one time on good friend Jay Jaboneta‘s advocacy together with Anton Mari Lim — the Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation. The name of the foundation was familiar. I had heard it mentioned in different instances in the past but I guess I never really bothered to find out what they were all about.

Then recently I heard about them again when a friend, Maizie SyCip-Qua, sent me some information on Tzu Chi Foundation and what it has been quietly doing in our midst for years.

Tzu Chi: A Brief

Tzu Chi Foundation is an international non-profit humanitarian organization that seeks to spread what it calls Great Love through its work in the fields of charity, medicine, education and culture. Established in 1966 in Taiwan by the Venerable Dharma Master Cheng Yen, Tzu Chi came to Philippine shores in 1994. In 1995, volunteers, in cooperation with doctors and nurses from the Chinese General Hospital, headed by Dr. Josefino Qua, launched its first medical mission in Lion’s Club, Baguio City. From then on, quarterly missions would be conducted in provinces, with each mission having between 5,000-7,000 patients, many of whom would walk for 3 days down mountains just to get to the medical mission site.

Although Tzu Chi began with members from the Filipino-Chinese communities in the country, a number of Filipinos have likewise joined the group.

Tzu Chi in Action

Below are some pictures from different crisis situations in the Philippines where Tzu Chi was present and helped in various ways.

Clean-up post-Habagat, August 2013

Preparing stacks of rice for distribution during the Zamboanga siege, September 2013

Treating the wounded after the Bohol earthquake, October 2013
Tzu Chi volunteers post-Yolanda, November 2013

Post-Yolanda Assistance

Tzu Chi Foundation continues to help out in disaster areas post-Yolanda. In the short term, Tzu Chi provided cash relief for clean-up, heavy equipment to transport debris to the dumpsite, and cash assistance for shelter. In the medium-term, they are providing temporary classrooms and temporary housing.

At the moment, they are building 80 temporary classrooms using the Quonset structure. Wikipedia describes this kind of structure as a prefabricated one, usually made of corrugated galvanized steel with a semi-circular cross-section. Look at the pictures below showing the Quonset-type classrooms from the outside and from the inside.

Tzu Chi is also coordinating with LGUs on the construction of temporary housing.

Just to give you an estimate of what they have spent so far, here is a cost sheet. And this is not the end, because even as I write this post, they continue to bring relief to hundreds of thousands of displaced residents in Yolanda-damaged areas.

It’s truly a relief to know that the spirit of Buddhism is very much alive not just in a spiritual way but in concrete manifestation. And that it is happening right here in our country. I’m just glad I found out about all the things that Tzu Chi Foundation, through its volunteers, is doing in this country.

Tiger introduces innovations to kitchen appliances

Posted on by jane

Who has not heard of Tiger?

Even in my much younger days, Tiger was already a household name. The veritable Tiger lunch containers and water bottles were very well known and if you lugged one around your school, it was almost like a kiddo’s status symbol of quality and durability.

Fast forward to the present.

Some of my SoMoms friends and I had the chance to sit down with Lorraine Go-Munoz whose family has long been the exclusive distributor in the Philippines of Tiger products. We had an opportunity to sit down and hear a little bit about the company and some of its product innovations.

Tiger is a Japanese brand that has a 90-year history. It’s best known for thermal wares and cooking devices. At present, it enjoys a 23.5% market share in Japan.


Tacook Rice Cooker

I’ll never see rice cookers the same way again after seeing the Tacook rice cooker of Tiger. It is the first of its kind in the world and features synchronized cooking. You can cook the rice and side dishes simultaneously, programming it so that they both finish cooking at the same time. No need for the side dishes to grow cold while you wait for the rice to finish cooking.

How the Tacook rice cooker looks closed

The inner pan is where the rice is cooked. On top of it goes an orange plate for cooking side dishes.

The cooking plate of the Tacook is very different from the usual steaming plates available in other rice cooker brands. Most other brands have a steaming plate only with holes around the plate. The Tacook’s steam hole openings are just around the rim so that you can cook other side dishes without the juices falling into the rice below. Here’s a slide showing the difference.
Look at some of the different ways you can cook side dishes together with your rice.
The electronic front panel of the Tacook has different settings. Press “Synchro-Cooking” and it will time the cooking both your rice and side dish. When your rice is done, so is your side dish.

Front panel showing the electronically controlled features including synchro-cooking

Tiger Toaster

The Tiger Toaster works pretty much like other brands with some differences. The tray is wider than most that I am used to seeing. Underneath the solid tray is a detachable grill net, making it so much easier to clean than other brands.

Tiger Cordless Electric Kettle

At first, I was a bit surprised that this kettle cost more than usual electric kettles. But after studying its features, I now know why it is superior to ordinary electric kettles.

It has a double wall structure with inner container and outer body

It’s cordless! Charging is via a base that this kettle is inserted into.

A safety lock valve prevents accidental spillage in case kettle falls on its side.
To open you’d have to press on both sides

Here are the rest of its safety features.

A cup of water only takes 60 seconds to boil and the kettle emits 70% less steam than other types.

Tiger Electric Grill

The electric grill caught my eye besides the Tacook. I think I can reduce cooking with oil if I had one like this. Its got a far-infrared-ray pan with non-stick fluoropolymer coating (non-toxic). The pan itself can be placed atop a cooking range. Or put it on its own base and use electric current for cooking. A BBQ pan, with half of it bearing grated lines, seems great for cooking dishes like bulgogi on the grated side (to allow the juices to run) then moving it to the flat side once cooked. A glass cover top allows you to see what’s cooking without having to lift often to check.




PRICES

 Toaster – PhP 2,500
Tacook rice cooker (5 cups) – PhP 4,799.75;  (10 cups) – PhP 5,499.75
Cordless kettle – PhP 3,199.75
Electric grill – PhP 5,999.75

WHERE TO FIND TIGER

You can find Tiger at the following places:

SM Department Stores: Aura, Bacoor, Cubao, Fairview, Las Pinas, Makati, MOA, Manila, North EDSA, Ortigas, San Lazaro, Sta. Mesa, Baguio, Bacolod, Cebu
Landmark – Makati, Trinoma
Robinsons Dept Store – Galleria, Ermita, Magnolia
Metro Gaisano – Market! Market!, Alabang, Ayala
Ansons Makati
Fishermall
Rustans Makati
Tiongsan Harrison Baguio City
Ling Chao Merchandsing, Tel # 244-0344
Republic Emporium, Tel #244-0370
Fair and Square, Tel #241-3272
Worldwide, Tel #241-3447
AEY Commercial, Tel #244-0135
Community Commercial, Tel #733-6372
Friend Ann Merchandising, Tel #734-4300
J and R Appliance, Tel #242-1576
New Sin Kian Heng, Tel #733-2129

Herve Leger launches its first Asian store in Manila

Posted on by jane

Iconic haute couture has made its way to Manila in a grand way. Who would ever have imagined that Manila would trump the likes of Singapore and Hong Kong by playing host to Herve Leger‘s first and only store in Asia?

Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Diane Kruger, Miranda Kerr and Jennifer Lopez are among Herve Leger’s growing list of celebrity clientele so having it launch in Asia and in Manila, of all places, is an indication that Manila is probably holding its own as being a style capital in the region as well.

Vicky Belo was one of the celebrities who cut the ribbon to officially open the store in the new East Wing of Shangri-la Plaza. Other celebrities who were also spotted sporting Herve Leger outfits were Heart Evangelista, Tootsy Angara (wife of Sen. Sonny Angara), Tessa Prieto-Valdes, Herve Leger Philippines’ Kat Florencio, Cristalle Henares and a few more.

Vicky Belo and Tim Yap
Heart Evangelista

Tessa Prieto-Valdes and Dong Ronquillo

Herve Leger’s brand ambassadors

The look that Herve Leger is known for is what is known as the “bandage dress” because of the trademark strips of rayon, nylon and spandex/elasthanne material that are the hallmark of Herve Leger outfits. Talking to someone from the Herve Leger store during the launch, I learned that the strips are sewn ONE BY ONE to form the entire dress or gown. You can imagine how difficult that is when you are working with stretchable material. Each piece has to be perfectly cut and perfectly sewn together to give the entire dress a seamless look while still forming the billowing lower hem as well as the curves and dips in the design.

A look on the reverse side of an Herve Leger garment
Another thing I learned — each outfit has its own unique code that the owner can register with Herve Leger to get personalized service on how to care for her garment; in addition, the Herve Leger website says that registration also gives the owner access to “VIP invitations to special events, advance notice of new arrivals and sale events as well as private access to other promotions”. The unique code is also an assurance of authenticity – very important for a brand like Herve Leger.
Here are some outfits I took pics of at the Herve Leger store.

They also sell shoes and bags!

Herve Leger can be found at Level 1, Atrium, East Wing of Shangri-la Plaza, EDSA cor. Shaw Blvd., Mandaluyong.

An Afternoon ME Time with Karimadon and the SoMoms

Posted on by jane

Confession: I have never owned or worn a Karimadon dress or gown prior to an afternoon with the SoMoms at Karimadon’s SM Megamall boutique.

I do remember seeing their label at the old Virra Mall many, many, many years ago but I was already a stay-at-home Mom then and never saw the need to check their stuff out as I was always in very casual outfits. I met Karen Go-Wu at an earlier Steveston Pizza event, connected with her on Facebook, and finally got a chance, along with my SoMom-mies to check out the store that her parents, Richard and Josie Go, put up way back in 1980.

As it turns out, Karimadon is a unique name that combines the names of the Go children. Karen is the Kar in Karimadon. To ensure the best quality, Karimadon has in-house designers who oversee the entire production to ensure the elements are all in the right places. Since those Virra Mall days, Karimadon has now grown to 16 standalone stores (2 are franchises) located in prime malls and 4 outlets inside department stores.

Hearing the Karimadon team talk about quality and style of their designs, I was already expecting price tags that were a bit steep. I was WRONG! But I’m getting ahead of myself. Just read on and see how my afternoon in Karimadon was a new discovery for women’s apparel from daytime to evening wear to formal occasions that would be surprisingly affordable.

The creative and designer team of Karimadon composed of Borgh Carino, Aby Puzon and Raffy Viernes welcomed us to Karimadon. Also there was Eric Galos, head of Marketing.

The Karimadon team

With SoMoms Mish and Noemi and Eric of Karimadon

I went around the store checking the styles and the workmanship. If you want stylish clothes that show the best in you but hide what you want hidden, Karimadon is a good place to check out. Here are samplings of what we saw at the boutique that day.

Corporate wear that hardly need ironing come in geometric figure-slimming patterns and flattering stripes

Summery white daytime and evening wear

White and classy corporate look
Styles that look great any time of the day or night

Believe it or not, the cocktail and corporate dresses here do not cost more than PhP 2,000. The gowns range from PhP 2,200 to only PhP 5,000. And accessories cost between PhP 500-1,000. So affordable!

I had so much fun shopping with the SoMoms. We monopolized the dressing rooms and tried one dress after another, with laughter and oooh-ing and aaah-ing as each SoMom stepped out to get feedback from everyone else and to “model” the dress.

So many clothes….so hard to choose!

Captured by the lens thinking about that glamorous pantsuit

Conci and I trying out the first batch of dresses

I ended up getting this — a red laced dress. Loved it!

It was a long day for us but we all went away happy with our individual finds at Karimadon. Now I have one more place to mark in case I need to go shopping for stylish but comfy and reasonably priced clothes.

You can find Karimadon at the following malls and department stores:

Stand-alone Stores:

Glorietta 5, Ayala Trinoma Mall, Ayala Center Cebu, Ayala Marquee Mall, SM Megamall, SM City North Edsa, SM Centerpoint, SM Fairview, SM Bacoor, SM Marilao, SM Pampanga, SM Cebu, Robinsons Galleria, Robinsons Place Metro-East, Robinsons Place Ermita, Sta. Lucia East Grand Mall, and Ayala Terraces Mall, Fairview

Outlets in Department Stores:

Landmark, Makati; Landmark, Trinoma; La Casa Grand, Laoag; and Houseware Plaza Department Store, Daet.

Also follow Karimadon on social media at:

Website: www.karimadonfashion.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/karimadon.fashion
Twitter: @KarimadonPH
Instagram: karimadonph
Tumblr: karimadon.tumblr.com

Alere: Bringing Careers in Health Care to the Philippines

Posted on by jane

A leading health care solutions company based in the United States, Alere, which focuses on servicing patients with chronic diseases by providing them with near-patient diagnostic care and managing their supplies reorders, has come to the Philippines.

Alere Philippines has set up office at the Fort after having acquired a company established in Manila and felt it was a perfect match. They wanted to establish their service center platform here. Our English-speaking labor force as well as access to many healthcare-related graduates makes Alere’s presence here logical, practical and forward-looking.

Alere Home Monitoring President, Jon Russell, says it all in this video:

At the moment, the services the Philippines will be providing is the backend, i.e., Alere Philippines will be processing the ordering of diagnostic supplies by its customers, mainly in the US. By having it done here, where the time difference is almost exactly opposite that of the US, customers can place orders even outside working hours there and still have people here processing their orders so that the shipping process continues all day round worldwide.

We did a tour of the Alere offices which can hold 200 seats per floor. They plan to get another floor in the building, bringing capacity up to a maximum of 400 seats eventually. They operate normal office hours right now but eventually may move into a 24/7 work hour operation.

For those who want a career with Alere, they are currently open to hiring. Having a healthcare background (nurses, therapists, medical technologists, pharmacists, etc) is an advantage although they are also getting peope from other backgrounds. I asked how their salary structure is and I was told that they are competitive and is around the 70% percentile. Jon Russell says they are trying to develop careers, not jobs, as they hope to bring in more services into the Philippines down the road.

Alere Philippines is located on the 11th Floor of W Building, 32nd Ave. corner 5th St in Bonifacio Global City.

Lead a great life in spite of asthma

Posted on by jane

I come from a family with a history of asthma. I myself had childhood asthma though not too severe and during a couple of pregnancies, it came back even if I had already outgrown it. I also had to deal with asthma during the growing years of all my kids and I have to tell you that it is no joke.

Asthma is what I call “traydor na sakit” (traitor disease). It doesn’t look too alarming but in reality, it has been the cause of many deaths even among young people. The triggers can happen any time and anywhere — something you eat, something in the air — and suddenly your airways start to constrict. You start having difficulty breathing and it creates panic and pressure on the heart as well. Several celebrities in the past died young just because of an asthma episode, including a young model.

At a recent GSK event, I listened to one of the GSK doctors, Dr. Bernadette Arcilla, talk about asthma. It affects about 10.7M people in the Philippines now. 250,000 annual deaths worldwide are attributed to asthma. Of those deaths, majority are 45 years old and older. With children, asthma is the most frequent cause of absenteeism from school, emergency visits and hospitalization. Scary stats. I can remember so many instances when we’d rush to the emergency room of the hospital because one of our kids could not breathe well and would be wheezing. We always had a nebulizer with us at home and on trips. When they were older, they had to be taught to use an inhaler and carry this with them all the time.

But asthmatics are fighting back. And, hopefully, winning the war against asthma. That is a very important inspirational message for so many Pinoys who are similarly affected by asthma. Your life is not curtailed by it. You can still live a meaningful life and engage even in sports in spite of your condition.

At the event, two local celebrities, who were asthmatics, shared about their own battles against asthma  — Kim Chiu and Arnel Pineda of Journey.

Here are videoclips showing just how they are trying to battle asthma, and win over it:

Hopefully, this Win Against Asthma campaign spearheaded by GSK will bring to the forefront a greater awareness and understanding of asthma — that it is not a debilitating condition, and that people who are asthmatic, with proper treatment and cooperation with doctors and their own personal knowledge on how and when to use the different medicines, can lead the lives they dream of. Just like Kim Chiu and Arnel Pineda.

Steveston Pizza: From Canada to the Philippines

Posted on by jane

Who says NO to pizza? Ah, ah, NOT ME! And not when I am invited to try out Steveston Pizza which originated from Canada!

First let me tell you that I had no idea what Steveston Pizza was offering (but the thought of eating pizza appealed a lot to me!). Second, I was eager to check out UP Town Center because I heard of the place from my son but did not know exactly where it was.

Suffice it to say, I was pleasantly surprised upon arriving at the place. Apparently, UP Town Center is now the newest watering hole and the converging place for the students of UP Diliman, Ateneo and Miriam College.

I was early so I did some work at J.Co nearby. Noemi joined me shortly and we got to put in some productive time before moving over to Steveston Pizza close to lunch.

From the outside

Karen Go, who is part-owner of Steveston Pizza, joined us and recounted its history. Nader Hatami is its solo founder. A trained chef, he concocted all the pizza creations you can find at Steveston Pizza, which is located in Richmond, B.C. I actually googled them and found out that Steveston Pizza is known for creating the first commercially available and world’s most expensive pizza. Believe it or not, that pizza (C6) costs $450 and is made of thermidor of lobster and black Alaskan cod, side of Russion osetra caviar, and needs to be ordered a day ahead. Whew! And there’s more. Steveston Pizza singlehandedly won Best Pizza by the Richmond Review from 2008-2011. Straight!

It’s actually amazing that while they are this popular in Canada, they chose the Philippines to open up a presence. Nader Hatami is a part owner in the Philippine branches so you can be sure the quality will stay as good as it is in Canada. Karen also emphasized that they only use the freshest ingredients. She said that for pineapples, they never used the canned ones but always put fresh pineapples on their pizzas.

If you check their menu, you’ll notice something that sets them apart from other pizza places. Their pizzas only come in 1 size – 12 inches! I asked Karen why and she said it was so that they could better control its quality. And look, so many choices — 28 in all!

For some who are used to ordering the 18-inch pizzas available elsewhere, you may think 12 inches is too small for your appetites, right? Wrong! The Steveston pizzas are loaded, piled high and densely packed in those 12 inches. Their pizza pictures are not just for show. You actually get them as they look on those photos!

Here’s what we pigged out on. First, the salads.

Classic Caesar, PhP 175
Flying Caesar, PhP 195
(with paprika and lemon scented chicken)

Both are great but if you’re not into very spicy food, take note that the Flying Caesar’s chicken is very spicy.

Then on to the pizzas!

Classic Cheese, PhP 399 

They have 2 other flavors for the same price as the Classic Cheese: Margarite (tomato sauce, basil chiffonade, cheese) and Pepperoni.

One of 2 very gourmet pizzas — C2, PhP 1,299
I’m not kidding. If you have to break your budget over a gourmet pizza, you must try the C2 (prosociutto ham, brie, semi-dried roma tomatoes, and a dollop of roasted garlic mousse). Each ingredient is its worth in gourmet goodness. Nothing was spared to make this premium pizza. Just see all that prosciutto heaped on top of the pizza, practically one for every slice! That alone is a full meal and more!
Karen wanted us to try as many different flavors as our tummies could hold so she suggested 2 flavors in one pizza – half and half. (Take note ha, doing 2 flavors in one pizza is not a regular thing with them. But if you really want to try, ask them. Maybe on a not-too-busy day, they’ll give in.)
The first one brought out was the Black-Blue pizza combo from the Colours category (so named because as you’ll see, they are all named after the colors. 
Black, PhP 699
(honey-glazed chicken breast, fig gorgonzola and mascarpone mousse, walnuts, arugula julienne)

Blue, PhP 699
(rosemary-smoked bacon, caramelized onions, mushrooms, baby spinach, stilton blue cheese mousse)

I loved the walnuts of Black but my favorite was Blue. Know why? It was liberally coated with blue cheese — my favorite! The combination of everything else just made this my choice. I was tempted to go for a second slice but held off knowing more was coming.

Next was Green-Pink combo.
Green, PhP 699
(herb pesto butter, shrimp, brie, scallions)

Just look at that picture above again. With some other pizzas that say they have shrimp, you often find a few tiny shrimps here and there but not much. But Steveston Pizza’s Green pizza is LOADED! Just check how densely packed the shrimps are on this one. And see, they are huge, fat and juicy looking! No scrimping here!

The PINK pizza is smoked salmon, asparagus, bocconcini, and onion with pesto drizzle. Now WHY don’t I have a picture of that other side? Too busy eating, maybe. But it’s up there — in the menu pics.
So that was our pig-out lunch. But that’s not all. I noted a few more things about Steveston Pizza that I really liked so I’m pointing them out. You’ll observe that when you go check them out.
* Their pizzas are NOT GREASY! No kidding! I held all my pizza slices with my bare hands the whole time and believe it or not, my hands were not dripping with oil, unlike most other pizzas which are quite greasy to the touch.
* Their plates and utensils are biodegradable (that is a +1 in my environment-friendly score card!). And as they are use-once types, I know that it will be a lot more hygienic and healthy than reusable ceramic plates.

Thank you so much to Karen and to Steveston Pizza. I enjoyed that chance to meet up with my SoMoms friends again PLUS be treated to this sumptuous pizza experience like no other I’ve tried. The best pizza of Canada is indeed here in town now.

Thanks to Tin Dychiao — my one and only picture with the SoMoms at this event 🙂

Steveston Pizza

Ground Floor, UP Town Center, Katipunan Ave.
Brgy. UP Campus, Diliman, Quezon City
(02) 955-2273, 0917-9043428
Open 10AM-11PM

Also find them online:

Brush, brush, brush your teeth…and stay healthy!

Posted on by jane

If you think that brushing one’s teeth is simply for beauty and fresh breath, here’s one more piece of info you’ll surely appreciate. It will actually keep you more healthy!

Why is it that when we wake in the morning, our breath is so eeeewy??? That’s because our mouths were closed all night, allowing bacteria to accumulate and multiply. Because these bacteria are able to feed on some food sediments left, their waste products which are sulfur-based, emit a pungent smell.

Can you imagine if you start your day by taking breakfast immediately and drinking water or coffee? All that bacteria that multiplied overnight go right back into your system. Very unhealthy! Get rid of all that bacteria by brushing upon waking up.

Just recently tried Pepsodent toothpaste.
The blue paste has Perlite, a whitening ingredient.
The white paste has fluoride and calcium for stronger, healthier teeth.


In the U.S., medical organizations recommend brushing teeth at least twice a day. The first one should be done right upon waking up. Your school kids need to brush their teeth even before they go for breakfast and definitely before going to school!

In one of its articles on Oral Health, the world-famous Mayo Clinic’s top tip is to “brush your teeth at least twice a day”.  WebMD, a leading online medical reference site, also recommends brushing at least twice a day, saying that thrice is best. In fact, it goes further to say that what is considered adequate brushing is 2 minutes at least, 3 minutes at best. A tip to get this done right: In your mind, divide your tongue into 4 quadrants and brush each quadrant for 30 seconds to get that precious 2 minutes in. How can you tell how long is 2 minutes? Sing a song in your head that is around that length of time.

If you are parents of toddlers and small kids, brushing time can indeed be a challenge. If you’re wondering just how to keep your kids preoccupied long enough so that they indeed get that good 2 minutes of brushing time in, here are a few tips I can think of to make brushing time hassle-free for your small kids:

1. Let it become an adventure, not a chore – Take your kid away from something they love just to brush, expect a lot of whining and crying. But if brushing time is part of an imaginary adventure, then the fun continues, right? You can weave a magical story with brushing as one of the scenes in the story. If they have a rubberized toy or doll, that toy can be given its own toothbrush and you can help your kid brush while he/she brushes the teeth of his/her toy. Here’s an idea from Pepsodent. Let them sing along to the song “Brushing Can Be Fun“!

2. Keep them preoccupied with Pepsodent’s downloadable Funloadables that include a Brushing Calendar and a Pepsochallenge Word Search. To download, visit Pepsodent’s Facebook Page.

They say it takes 28 days for something to become a habit. If we can use as many useful tools (such as the Pepsodent Brushing Calendar) to help our kids make frequent brushing a habit, not only will we make less trips to the dentist but we will actually be keeping them healthier.

And oh, by the way, that goes for us adults too! 🙂

Find Pepsodent here:
Facebook Page: facebook.com/PepsodentPhilippines
Website: Pepsodent in Unilever website

Sangobion’s Christmas Special Made more Special for the Philippine National Red Cross

Posted on by jane

Christmas was definitely in the air when my mommy friends and I attended Sangobion‘s Christmas Special last December.

It was a joyous coming together. First of all I was with my SoMoms mommy blogger friends: Thammie, Jackie and Tin. Then I bumped into Ginger and Frances who brought along their kids, some of whom I saw in person for the first time after ooohing and aaahing their photos on Facebook. Attending too was Jenni Epperson, one of my fave bloggers whose “lifestyle and more” blog is read and enjoyed by so many.

(L-R}: Jenni Epperson, Christine Dychiao, Rowena Lei, Jackie Go, me

With Thammie Sy and her kids

Giselle Sanchez, Sangobion’s celebrity endorser, hosted our Christmas celebration and brought the house down with her really funny antics.

Giselle Sanchez

But the highlight of the whole Christmas celebration was not really focused on Sangobion, which I take, by the way, because it has helped me with my chronic anemia, something I have lived with since I was a child.

Sangobion took this opportunity to make a generous donation to the Philippine National Red Cross for those affected by Typhoon Yolanda.

Thank you, Sangobion, for sharing your hearts with the people affected by Typhoon Yolanda. This donation will go a long way towards relief and rehabilitation.

My Christmas Holidays were More Cheerful with Fog City Creamery

Posted on by jane

This was the dreariest Christmas ever. It was the first time none of us at home had the energy to put up a Christmas tree that was 8 feet high. We were on general housecleaning mode especially with one room that we had to clean from top to bottom, inside out. To give ourselves the spirit of some Christmas cheer, I played Christmas carols all day long as we dusted, cleared stuff out, mopped the floors, scrubbed tiles and did spring cleaning of items.

Gifts sent to our home were very much appreciated but one that I really looked forward to trying when it came to the house was 4 pints of Fog City Creamery ice cream in Christmas flavors: Fruit and Nuts Deluxe, Brandied Cherries, Peppermint Brownie and Tablea. Hey, you are looking at one ice cream lover here!!!

I had been wondering about the name Fog City Creamery because the pints had a picture of the San Francisco bridge on the front. Apparently, the creator of the ice cream flavors, Edylyn Gamboa-Liu, known as Edy by her family and friends, used to live in San Francisco. Credit her missing her favorite Salted Caramel flavor to the birth of Fog City Creamery. When she returned to the Philippines, she began experimenting with flavors that reminded her of San Francisco.
What stands out for me, healthwise, is what Fog City Creamery says — that there are no preservatives or artificial stabilizers in their ice cream. They’re chemical-free!!! And the flavors were chosen using ingredients that agree with the Filipino palate.
I’ll give you a list later of other flavors Edy has concocted so far but here’s my two cents on the ones that I got for Christmas.
Peppermint Brownie
I’m starting out with my favorite of the 4 flavors – Peppermint Brownie. I love mint chocolates so fusing peppermint and fudgy chocolates clearly went down with me very well. Well done on this one. My kids and I loved this the best.
PhP 300/pint
Tablea Sugar-Free
Tablea comes in second among the 4 variants we tried. This Pinoy round cocoa tablet which used to be made into hot coco during my time has evolved. The Fog City Creamery Tablea is sugar-free, sweetened by Coco Natura, an organic coco sugar made from coconut sap. I have used Coco Natura in the past instead of sugar to sweeten my morning coffee.
Fog City Creamery suggests that for another taste experience, pair up Tablea with a scoop of Ensaymada ice cream, brown butter ice cream with ensaymada bits, and queso de bola.
PhP 300/pint
It’s not bad actually but to ice cream lovers like me who love to fill our cups to the brim with ice cream, go slow on this one. Tablea can only be taken in small quantities. After several spoonfuls, it can get overwhelming.
Brandied Cherries
Here’s another flavor that uses Emperador Deluxe brandy. Dark, red cherries are soaked in the brandy and mixed in with an ice cream base for the Brandied Cherries variant. I liked the cherry taste but the liquor in ice cream takes some getting used to.
PhP 320/pint
Fruit and Nuts Deluxe
PhP 350/pint
Fruit and Nuts Deluxe is a mix of apricots, pistachio and almonds in an ice cream base flavored with Emperador Deluxe brandy. This variant for me was so-so. The ice cream base was a little too milky rather than creamy. I guess I’m also not a person very fond of fruit bits in my ice cream because while I like all these ingredients in fruit cake, it somehow had a different experience for me as an ice cream. But that’s me. 
Fog City Creamery has several other flavors, with new ones coming up every so often. They have Bourbon Pecan, Ferrero Rocher with Nutella Swirl, Cherry Vanilla, Ghirardelli Semi-Sweet Chocolate, Sorrento, Ensaymada (the first in the market), Salted Caramel and many more. Fog City Creamery offers more sugar-free flavors such as Butterscotch Pecan and Espresso Almond. 

Direct pick-ups of Fog City Creamery ice cream are at Valle Verde 5 or Foccacia, A. Venue, Makati City. It’s also available via delivery by calling City Delivery at 87878.

Fog City Creamery
Website: www.fogcitycreamery.com
Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/FogCityCreamery
Twitter and Instagram: @FogCityCreamery
Email: info@fogcitycreamery.com / fogcitycreamery@gmail.com
Mobile: +63 917 8833344