A sweet ’n sour invasion

The table was set and I impatiently waited for our host to say grace before I lifted my fork to dig into the delicious food. One particular dish stood out in the sumptuous dinner spread and it was a large platter of “sweet and sour fish” that elicited a salivary deluge. 

The restaurant - the Grand Emerald Seafood Garden, is a Cantonese joint that has been serving yummy food since my younger years - many decades back, and the sweet and sour grouper was my all-time favorite. We were invited by some cousins on our short visit home from Bangkok and when Cindy mentioned that the Grand Emerald was the place, I was most certain that this dish won’t be missed. In no time we were smacking our lips and gobbling down the delicious food. The dinner ended and I was overly satiated and satisfied with my mind fondly savoring the tasty grouper.

On our drive home I overheard my wife and her mom talking about their plans for a Christmas dinner before we returned to Bangkok, and sure enough they had the yummy sweet and sour from Emerald in their list. When the day came, I was tasked to drive to the resto to get the food that they had ordered by phone and that was when my appetite for the sweet and sour was dashed to pieces. I was told by the lady at the counter that the tasty fish in our order was "Dory," not Lapu-lapu (vernacular for grouper). She said that they actually tell the customer ordering the dish that the fish is Dory.

I have been around fish ponds in Thailand and the Mekong river that mass-produce this fish - Pangasius hypophthalamus, and I am well aware about the issues that hound the raising, processing and shipping of this fish, which have made me decide many years back to stay away from store-bought, processed Dory. Catching it myself in a pond that is clearly free from contaminants and pollutants is a totally different story.

Driving home with the packed sweet and sour dish on the seat beside me, my mind slowly took hold of the sad truth that the grouper fish has become too scarce and expensive for regular dinner dishes in the local restaurants that the Dory has conveniently taken over it's place. I couldn't think of a Dory-producing region in the Philippines so I came to the realization that the tasty fish that I just recently devoured apparently was a product of the polluted ponds of Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand that I abhorred and detested, and that this low-priced, controversial fish has finally invaded the dining tables of my homeland islands.

the sweet and sour dish from the Grand

Emerald's website

that's the Pangasius hypohpthalamus or Dory. A species

of catfish without scales and is certainly not kosher.

at a processing plant

 

filleted and ready for packing

the grouper caught in a recent fishing trip

Dancing Aliwagwag and sleepy Cateel

Two contrasting moods at one location in the island of Mindanao have managed to avoid this blogger's interest through all his years as a resident of the same island. Notwithstanding his adventurous spirit, this writer failed to travel to the east coast due to a lack of knowledge about the beauty and grandeur that lies therein. That is now a thing of the past, and "mesmerized" and "in love" describe his sentiments for this place.

Cateel has the best advantage for a town to develop considering a big river and the limitless ocean resources at its feet. The perceived disadvantage lies in the rugged mountain range that keeps it isolated and beyond comfortable reach. A weather-beaten streamer on one side of the road welcomes visitors to Cateel's 114th founding anniversary, which shows that in spite of the length of time that it has been organized, Cateel's growth is much less than the development of another town - Bagangga, that lies a little distance towards the south. Politics and competition may have been some factors aside from the topography, and yet all in all, the present condition of Cateel unwittingly stands out as a gem for the adventurous spirit.

Even if the engineers had no other option, but to build a highway right across the heart of the Aliwagwag, there is wisdom in the location of the bridge. Persons with disabilities can now view its grandeur and appreciate the ease by which it can be reached. 

One thing that struck this writer even as he waited at the Lyrah bus station in Davao City, was the friendly and honest spirit of the Cateeleños who were aboard the same bus. Not only did they advise him on what to do and where to go - one unassuming guy even invited him to his house for a sumptuous meal of crabs and fresh fish - an invitation that could have been accepted if it were not for the stingy time constraints. Another exhibit of the natural and unadulterated spirit of Cateel was in a small road-side eatery where this writer enjoyed not only the simple, yet delicious food, but also the lively banter between the owner, and her unsolicited discount when he asked for his check. To top it all, another diner who overheard this writer's need for wifi connection invited him to his hardware store across the street for free use of the much needed internet service.

Wow, just wow! Cateel, you have captured my heart, and to borrow the words of the uniformed dude who strutted the beach in Leyte, let me declare, "I shall return!"

3 guys, 3 bicycles and 3 days out in the country

This blog is about a 6"5' towering American on a hybrid bike, a jolly South African on a mountain bike and a crispy fried Filipino on and a fat bike for a 3-day jaunt across the swampy flatlands that make up most of the central portion of Thailand. (photos are from the cameras of the three cyclists)

It only took less than a week to put this trip together in a Facebook post by Bill Tuffin. If there is an invitation in Facebook that Noah digs, it is a call for a day out cycling, and 3 days was such a juicy offer. Here's the rest of the story:

Day 1: Bangkok to Nakhon Chai Si

Noah's ride started from his house which is

8 kilometers from the actual starting point -

Grasshopper Adventures, a bicycle touring company

with shops in the major cities of Asia.

a Chao Phraya river crossing on this

ferry boat brings the cyclists to the 

Thonburi side of Bangkok

In a while they were biking through

elevated concrete pathways over marshland.

Breakfast was in the shanty behind fatso.

These pathways connect communities found
deep in the swamp. The other means
of getting to these villages is by boat.

With pathways just a little over one
meter wide it would take time for a 
newcomer to the place to adjust to the
thought of losing balance and falling
into the water.

at about noontime they get to the

Putthamonthon park where time is taken 

off to check for messages. Lunch was

at the Don Wai market.

atop a very high bridge across
the Tha Chin river

Checked in for the night at this Thai
homestay in Nakhon Chai Si

dinner was on a floating restaurant on

the Tha Chin river and Konstant was

just about to swallow the spoon

an irresistible plate of 

spicy boar meat.

GPS and stats for the first day

Day 2: Nakhon Chai Si to Lat Chado (Ratchado)

the weather was cool with a nice cloud cover

they discovered a small chinese temple which Noah 
wanted to imagine was a Shaolin temple with  
kung fu masters and pandas.

this spire something like a totem pole

adorned the front yard

next down the road was the Woodland Museum and the 
guard quoted 700 Baht as entrance fee. The three
opted to just have some photos outside and
coffee in their shop.

lanky Bill is dwarfed by a gigantic

carving of His Majesty King Bhumibol

this was the riding arrangement for the day 

since there was very minimal vehicular traffic.

Enough space is needed for farting allowance

and to avoid colliding in case of an abrupt stop.

pushing up north they soon came to the War 

Bang Phra, an 18th century Buddhist monastery 

that was witness to a very colorful history.

it is here where the sacred tattoo art of Sak Yant

is practiced and where devotees can get their 

tattoos for a small fee. The idea of getting

a tatt done in such an iconic place played in

the mind of Noah, but he was easily dissuaded

when the guys said that the needles are 

only dipped in alcohol before being used on

another person.

further up stream and it was time to cross the

Tha Chin river on this suspension bridge...

...to get to the bustling floating market 

of Lamphaya. Centuries back there were no

roads across the land and transportation

was mainly by boat through rivers and their

tributaries. Lamphaya was a trading center

back then. A trip here on a weekend is very

rewarding gastronomically.

after lunch they pedaled up north where

they came to this aqueduct - Prapa Maha Sawat,

which brings water to Bangkok. It is here were

Noah breaks from the team to head home because

of some important matters for the next day. Bill

and Konstant push on to Lat Chado and bedded

there for the night.

it took Noah a little more than three hours
ride from break-up point to home-base and a 
downpour held him at one spot for some time 
while he wished that he was still
pedaling up north.

here are the GPS tracing and stats for

the day 2 ride.

Day 3: Lat Chado to Lopburi

The team reduced to two riders proceed to Lop Buri and found this statue of the biggest sitting Buddha in Thailand. From there they take the train back home to Bangkok.

The GPS tracing of the entire trip

Noah would like to thank Bill and Konstant for opening this part of the Kingdom of Siam to him. The trip was all fun and the memories will last for a lifetime.

Fishing with the Badjao

If you have been to Davao City you may have wondered why there is an unusual presence of sea gypsies (Badjao) begging on the streets and peddling pearl jewelry in resorts and tourist spots. This marginalized minority have not been landlubbers until the last few decades for reasons not quite evident to Noah. He was not clueless for long, because one day a Badjao friend took him out fishing.

the boat was a 16-foot motorized banca and there were 3 Badjao guys led by Lando who lived in a village at the mouth of the Davao river. The method of fishing for this trip is called Plang-ree, which consists of one long nylon rope (not the usual type for fishing) and short smaller ropes tied to it at 1.5 meter intervals with each line holding a #15 fish hook for a total of 248 hooks in Lando's plang-ree.

The bait of choice is a fish called tamban (herring/sardines)and about 10 - 15 kgs of this is needed for one fishing trip. Tamban is caught in a different manner (net) and by other fishermen, hence Lando has to buy his bait a day before going out fishing to be sure that he has bait, because this type of fish isn't caught daily. The cost of the bait + the cost of gasoline for the 16 HP inboard motor could easily top 600 Pesos for one fishing trip.

The fishing lines are dropped in an area that is known to be rocky and is about 30 - 40 meters deep. The Grouper species is the type of fish caught by this method and they are supposed to be large and abundant at this depth. An anchor is tied to each end of the plane-ree and a rope goes up to a buoy for each anchor. The fishermen then motor to a shallower spot where they can do spear fishing or just simply wait out on the boat if the current and wind is too strong for diving. 

After about an hour and a half of waiting the line is pulled up and any fish caught is placed in an icebox and the hooks rebaited and dropped overboard in another area. This would be done 3 times if the fishermen leave early enough, but in this particular trip it was done only twice and in spite of that they were out in the sea for 8 hours.

One thing that was evident for that day was that most of the bait came up untouched. Some had nibble marks or were half-eaten and some were gone, but most of the bait looked as good as when they were thrown into the sea. The photo above will show the bait on the trough beside the boat, and Lando said that they would cook that for dinner. When your bait is untouched it means that no fish or very little fish is found in this area of the seabed. 

Before the sun disappeared over the mt. Apo mountain range the fishermen headed home with the day's catch in a plastic bag. It consisted of 1 large grouper, 2 smaller groupers of the same color and a meter-long extra big trumpet fish - the only product of a tedious, back-breaking job out in the heat of the sun. How much would that be in terms of income? About 1,500 pesos minus 600 pesos for the bait and gasoline and that would leave 300 pesos (6 US$) each. In this particular trip about one third of the line and hooks was left in the bottom of the sea because it got entangled in some rocks presumably when the fish struggled to free itself. To replace that would cost an amount of money and labor. 

Lando said that there are days when they came home empty-handed and some days when they had about 4,000 pesos worth of fish, which was not frequent in the recent years. All told, the saddening truth remains: the fish in our waters is dwindling due to overfishing and the use of indiscriminate fishing methods by big fishing companies. Who are the first to suffer? Sadly, the Badjao and other fishing tribes are the hardest hit and this would account for their shift in money-making activities.

To give a lighter mood to this story here are photos of the fish that they caught for the day:

a butcher's knife will show the

proportionate size of the fish...

...which could easily be about

half of Noah's torso.

To Thailand's highest peak on two wheels

Doi Inthanon stands 2,565 meters tall in the province of Chiang Mai, Thailand (Doi = mountain in Thai). There is a well maintained road that snakes continuously uphill 48 kilometers from the town of Chom Thong to the highest point - a very scenic and daunting challenge to cyclists (Noah included).

Before serious physical changes in his senior years starts to slow him down, Noah ventured out one day on a bicycle to conquer this cloud-shrouded, rainforest-clad behemoth. It didn't matter that the monsoon season had prematurely taken over summer and that the prospects of getting drenched on the road were high, which is the opposite of last years ride to Cambodia in the searing heat at practically the same time of the year. The exhilarating feeling of having conquered one more mountain, striking out one more item in the bucket list and some new cyclist friends added was foremost in his mind (actually it is the thrill-seeking and adventure-loving beast inside him that Noah has to feed every so often).

One thing that was not quite well with the plan was the threat of rain and this was the forecast a week before Noah left for Chiang Mai.

the weather.com showed that Thursday to Sunday 
were the most promising days even if rain

was still a possibility.

Noah decided to gamble on this lull in the rain and hoped that the weatherman would be right this time. He had to do this climb to Doi Inthanon, because it was now or never. A trip to the homeland was fast approaching and this was his only window of opportunity.

Next thing was to get a ticket on the night-sleeper train to the northern city of Chiang Mai where the mountain concerned is located.

D-day dawns and Noah kisses the missus goodbye and with a heart pounding with anticipation starts with what has to be done to get to the foot of the mountain.

At the Thai Railways central terminal

at Hua Lamphong, Bangkok waiting for

the call to board. Imran's backpack
doubles as a bike stand.

Thats the train #13 at the 

platform #6 to depart at 7:35 pm.

the bike goes into the cargo bogey...

...and Noah finds his seat #38 in

the second-class sleeper car...

...which transforms into double-decker

bunks once the trip is underway.

13 hours later Noah is in the

beautiful city of Chiang Mai.

from Chiang Mai railway station 

he pedaled 59 kilometers to Chom Thong -

a sleepy town at the foothills of the Doi

Inthanon national park.

that's the Inthanon Hostel. It is actually

more of an AirBnB that Noah found

online, which he fancied because of

it's location and because of the...

PIZZA!! and the owner - PJ, didn't

disappoint Noah, but immediately set out

to bake the best pizza this side of the world. 

She said that Noah needed all the nutrition

for a long ride in the morning and she threw

in practically every topping available.

breakfast the next day was from

this store where Noah stocked up

on Gatorade, water and other essentials

for the long ride.

The Doi Inthanon road is 39 kilometers from he first checkpoint, which is three times as long as the L'Alpes d'Huez - the French classic race. The average climb is 5.8% with gradients exeeding 23% in some stretches. 

that's the first check point...

 where Noah had to pay 300 Baht (9US$) for
this ticket, which would be checked at
the second check point.

a mandatory stop at Wachirathan falls
for restroom and pictorials including...

...a narcissistic activity.

 this sign says that the peak
is 20 kilometers ahead, but by
this time Noah was already near
breaking point.

 This sign was the sweetest Noah saw
that day and 4 kilometers was not 
far away except that this was the 
steepest portion so far.

 phew, that's the end of the road,
but Noah still needed to climb some
steps to get to...

 This landmark. It was here that a van of 
Buddhist monks and some supporters inquired 
from Noah if he rode the bike from the valley, 
and they got excited when they found out that
he did. what was next was really out of the 
ordinary, because they gave Noah these 
items, which they said was their blessing 
for such an achievement.

yeah, that's it. a bracelet and some cash

 that's the temperature at the peak

and the data that Noah achieved

for that ride to the top

Now for the ride back to Chom Thong

 and this gps shows what transpired. For that
day Noah was practically 8 hours on the saddle.

The next day Noah was stiff and hurting in every inch of the body that he had to scrap the original plan to pedal back to Chiang Mai. It was only good that a songthew driver - below, agreed to take him and the bike.

A relaxing haircut and shave at a police barbershop was unplanned, but Noah couldn't resist the novelty of having his hair cut by a policeman in uniform, complete with badge and pistol.

Yeah... khao soi. When in Chiang Mai never miss this coz you can't find it elsewhere.

Grasshopper biking Adventures was the next stop, which is managed by a good friend and co-cyclist - William Tuffin.

And yes, the most handsome German this side of Thailand makes a trip to Chiang Mai more meaningful. Catching up with him is always a blessing. 

Ralf takes Noah to the railway station for the 5 pm train to Bangkok amidst a heavy downpour. It was like the weather was saying: "Noah, now that your adventure is done, let me get back to my monsoon mood."

Noah boards the train only to discover that he is the only passenger on this car. He had to make sure that this was not the "Train to Busan" before he could sit back and relax. A few stations down the line added more passengers for about 9 for Bangkok.

That same day Noah's son schedules a Hyperbaric Oxygen treatment for his old man. It's the fastest way to recover from fatigue and Noah simply loved it.

Whilst inside the hyperbaric chamber Noah had time to think about the recent adrenaline-charged ride to the peak and with a thankful heart he raised his thoughts to God Almighty - the giver and sustainer of life.

This trip was made possible by Noah's sister - her birthday gift to him on his 61st birthday 2 weeks ago.. Thanks 'tol, you know fairly well what makes Noah tick.