buko and the wet market

     This is going to be redundant, I know.  I can't help it.

     It was early evening and I had just walked over to a Korean neighbor's to gift her with some sweets. She spoke no English but was quite grateful. I hope she understood I wanted to BUY her kimchi and korean doughnuts.  Now I'm embarrassed she might have thought I only gave her something expecting kimchi in return. My face is red. I hope she knows I mean to pay for it.  But you know the neighbors, they've been sharing food, right. (see past posts!)

    So anyway, I was walking back home, when a car stopped in front of me--it was another friend, the amazing Nigella baker one.  "I have to go to the wet market to buy more bukoh. I ran out of coconut meat" she said.  Whoa! What are you making now? I asked.  "...bukoh crumble, sort of like bukoh pie".

    See? Amazing, right? She's only been here a year. She prefers baking her own from scratch. Why line up at Collette's, Rowenna's, or all the other buko pie stores in Tagaytay, Silang, Los Banos...

    Here's the redundant part. My heart just bursting with the simple joys of--just having twisted off ripe golden coconuts again, for the sweet juice, a friend dashing off to the wet market. Our ability to just dash off to the market at any time, a chore from the makati cbd at 7pm. The wet market itself!  My child ewwing yet staring at "Suso" or those black shells with their black slimy insides sliding and slipping on a tray in the supermarket, and just the laid back atmosphere here.

   I haven't even started on the fresh carabao (water buffalo) milk my child has discovered she loves for breakfast.

   World-class city, technoparks, nuvali...they're all icing on this sweet suburban cake. 

   Sadly, we may have to leave this place soon.