halfwhiteboy

Anyone into sewing? I recently posted about Sulyap Gallery Cafe where I mentioned that apart from being a cafe and bed and breakfast, it also has a museum of sorts. The museum, which occupies about half of the three-storey concrete building's ground floor, houses the owners's staggering collection of everything from old mills, lamps, and religious figures, to aparadors  (clothes closet) and other old furniture. Sulyap's owners (Roy Empalmado and Arthur Reyes) are collectors, hoarders if you may, and I mean it in a good way. Here we have two people who, on their own volition, have decided to gather bits and pieces of Filipino life from periods past. I don't even know where they get all these things but I'm glad they have decided to exhibit it somehow for others to appreciate. And let's not forget that the three casas that house the bed and breakfast and restaurant are also part of their collection, ancestral houses from elsewhere in the country that have...

The colors come alive as the afternoon sun hits the second floor of the cafe. Finally had the time to write this. Three weeks ago over the Independence Day long weekend Kwittiegirl and I drove down south to San Pablo City in Laguna. We originally intended to do an ambitious Viaje del Sol (Way of the Sun), a design-your-own-tour around several establishments in the provinces of Laguna, Quezon, and Batangas engaged in leisure products and services that promote Filipino hospitality, cuisine, crafts, the arts, and other facets of Philippine culture and traditions. We thought of visiting several towns in Laguna but ended up just holed up in San Pablo, spending the weekend relaxing and food-tripping at a very leisurely pace. People we've asked for recommendations often gave Casa San Pablo but I'm glad we played deaf and spent our first night at the lovely Sulyap Gallery Cafe .

Just got back from our little trip down south in Laguna. These shots are from our first day there. It's one thing to get myself to go on a long drive and another to make a little effort to not be in a lazy t-shirt and shorts combo on such a trip. After all it was a special day -- Philippine Independence Day, people!