Calm and peaceful again...

And for anyone who might be interested, check out my article in Philippinewide magazine:

http://www.philippinewide.com/pdf/boracay_magazine.pdf?PHPSESSID=6d5df3a8980bb3e50286...

There are still people swimming and sailing despite this dismal weather.
Luckily for us the typhoon which hit Manila had a minimal impact on Boracay - we've had a few days of rain and high winds but the storm has already passed over the country.

The sand lost after the last storm is slowly returning to White Beach. Each tide brings a new layer - sometimes gravelly, sometimes powder soft. I've spent some nice breezy afternoons just sitting on the beach reading & watching the boats go by - still sailing despite the choppy conditions. Yesterday I even observed an eagle dive and catch a fish from the sea just in front of where I sat.

The weather has turned a bit messy again, but I took this lovely peaceful shot a couple of days ago.

Ole!

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Joey contemplates his enormous beer...

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I'd been dying to get back to this popular Spanish Tapas restaurant in the mall since my first visit with friends Jeffrey and Minda a few months ago. Then, we munched on cold cuts and appetisers while enjoying a couple of beers. This time, Joe and I headed for the main course menu with something a bit more substantial in mind.

According to the menu, the owners are not Spanish, nor have they lived in Spain, but they were inspired to open Ole by their love of Spanish cuisine. Not having been to Spain myself, I am unable to comment on the authenticity of the food, but I did notice a couple of Spaniards sitting at tables outside, and that's a good sign.

As a starter, we ordered a dish of artichoke, ham and onions in olive oil, served with garlic bread. I'd had this dish before, and liked it so much I even learned to make it at home. This time it was a little heavy on the onions, but still really good.

For our main course we ordered chicken skewers (sorry I can't remember the Spanish names) and chicken breasts in a mushroom, wine and cream sauce. This is where we made our mistake, if you can call it that. Both dishes were very large, and had we known in advance we would have ordered just one and shared it between the two of us. The food was excellent though, and the waitress was happy to box up what we couldn't finish so that we could take it home. Evidently our friends at the next table experienced the same thing, as they came over with a plate of delicious seafood spaghetti which they too were unable to finish.

Ole is pretty pricy, but bearing in mind the size of the portions, it balances out. Unless you are particularly ravenous, one main course will probably be enough for two.

All in all, we thought this place was great - friendly staff, efficient service, nice ambience, and of course, good food.

We'd definately recommend this one.

Sailed up to Puka Beach and spent the afternoon there, eating sandwiches washed down with cold beer, and then laying around reading. White Beach (especially around station 1 and 2) is getting pretty busy for low season, and Puka is nice and quiet in comparison.

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We stopped at Manana on the way back for a plate of nachos and one of their enormous frozen mango daquiries, and were then treated to a stunning sunset on the ride home.

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On a full moon night, what else is there to do but hang out on the beach and drink beer?

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Old friends and new enjoying the scenery.

Look what this toad is eating...

My friend discovered this big toad in her outside bathroom this afternoon. As you can see, it has a mouthful of her underwear. Even when she carried it out into the garden to show us, it refused to let go of it's prize! There's no accounting for taste...

That sunday feeling is creeping in already. With just a couple of weeks to go before I have to return to cold, miserable England, I'm already getting that knot of dread in the pit of my stomach. If it was raining season here it wouldn't be so bad, but just look at the weather we've been having! It's sods law.

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Red Pirates Outing to Puka Beach

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The Pirates ventured up to Puka Beach yesterday, taking advantage of the nice weather. The beach was almost deserted, and we had a lovely morning, swimming and enjoying the scenery.

Unfortunately, the weather also took advantage of me, and my sunburn is pretty painful. I ought to know better. Ouch!

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Mongkok

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We must have passed Mongkok a hundred times since it opened, but a couple of days ago we finally decided to give this restaurant a try. We grabbed a table outside (much cooler) and began to peruse the menus. Bewilderingly, there were two of these - one with photos and no prices, and one with prices and no photos, so having found something on one which looked appetising, we then had to search for it again to discover the cost.
There are a number of interesting items on offer, such as Century Egg, Fish Head Dimsum, Tripe Dimsum and more than one dish involving chickens feet. However, we were feeling a little more conservative and chose Salt and Pepper Squid, (below) together with Beef & Broccoli with Oyster Sauce, and Salad Shrimp Puffs. Our side order of fried rice had to be specially arranged, as the only fried rice listed on the menu was the Yang Chow Fried Rice, which comes with meat and vegetables, and is almost a dish in itself. The chef was able to accomodate us without any problems though.

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The squid was excellent - soft and tender, cooked in a light batter, with just the right amount of mild chillis. It came with a vinegar dip, which was the perfect compliment to the dish.

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The Beef and Broccoli was also pretty tasty - though I personally found the meat a little fatty and slightly chewy, the broccoli was cooked to perfection (on the crunchy side, just how I like it) and the sauce (with carrots, ginger and green onions) was delicious.

The Salad Shrimp Puffs were a little disappointing though. Perhaps they had been cooked in advance and then reheated, as the edges were nice and cripy while the middles were soggy and not very appetising looking. The mayo dip was pretty uninspiring too.

All in all I have mixed feelings about this place. To be honest, we already had pre-concieved ideas about this kind of neon-lit, generic chain restaurant, and in many ways we were pleasantly surprised. However the prices were higher than I expected (though not ridiculously high), and this conflicted with some other aspects of the place. For example, our drinks being served to the table in the can, complete with cracked plastic glasses? - a little shoddy.

The staff were attentive, though at one point I almost wanted to asked them to back off a little while we were eating and give us some space - they hovered a bit too much. The ambience was OK - not what you'd call romantic, due to the busy location in the mall plaza, but nice nonetheless. Live music was provided by the Hobbit House band across the street, and it was fun people-watching as the diminutive sized touts tried to hustle the customers inside for an overpriced beer. Would we go back? Yes, I think we would, if only for another plate of that pepper squid. The soups look pretty good too, so I wouldn't mind returning to Mongkok at some stage.

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Relaxing during the day...

...and partying at night.