Pan de Sal is a very well known Filipino bread.

I remember when I was growing up in Jaro, Iloilo, my Dad would buy pan de sal very early in the morning from a bakery called “Paa” in the corner of Jaro Plaza. It is a well-patronized local bakery known for their warm and yummy pan de sal. I guess, our family was one of the loyalists. To this day, my Dad would still buy pan de sal especially when he wants my two little boys to taste them.

When I went to Manila, my husband, who was my boyfriend that time, and I would frequently pass by Pugon de Manila located along EDSA right before the bridge going to Guadalupe. One big pan de sal was always not enough for me. It’s that delicious!

I have always wanted to bake my own version of pan de sal. Being away from your own country makes you long for food you have been accustomed to, and that’s exactly my sentiment. The recipe is all over the net. There are even you tube videos. But I only took the courage to finally do it after getting my long-time friend’s (Thess, herself away from the country she was born in) recipe.

And I followed her instructions sent through FB religiously:

Ingredients:

4 cups unbleached flour or bread flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup whole milk

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup evaporated milk

3 tsp yeast

1 egg

5 tbsp melted butter

bread crumbs

 

1) Mix flour, sugar and salt in a bowl and set aside.

2) Combine whole milk, water and evaporated milk and heat up for 30 seconds.

3) In a mixing bowl, pour liquid, and add 3 tsp of yeast and mix fast speed for 1 minute. Add 1 egg and mix again for 1-minute.

4) Add dry ingredients and mix in a very fast speed as you gradually pour in 5 tablespoon of melted butter. Mix for 3-5 minutes until dough is well mixed.

5) Set aside the rounded dough and let it rise for 5-10 minutes before cutting. Cut and shape your pan de sal as desired and roll it on the bread crumbs before setting it in a baking sheet.

6) Let it rise overnight or at least 8 hours to rise.

And these are ready after 8 hours!

 7) Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

And these were so ready to be served:

We had these for an afternoon snack. With milk for the 2 boys and with coffee for hubby and I.

Finally!

A stay-at-home Mom does not just clean the house, do the laundry, wash the dishes and feed the kids, take care of the needs of the husband. Oh no, not!

I relish in my role because I get to check on my babies’ needs and we get to spend as much time as they would allow us to play together and study together. One of the things we have strongly established together is their study habits. They both love Fridays – their no-study weekday – but they have comfortably settled in our nightly routine:

My 7-year old has very good reading and comprehension skills. He didn’t know I was taking this video. Although the story is familiar, this is his first time to read this particular version. And he is reading it with varying voice inflection:-)… Their reading assignment in school is web-based so, you see, he has a very good excuse to borrow my i-pad every now and then.

The younger one doesn’t really need a lot of studying yet. But he sees his kuya so, he also insists with having his own study time. I guess, all second-borns can relate to this. I love it that he can write his Hangeul name already… hahaha…

I didn’t teach him that. The school teacher did. On the night I learned that he can write his Hangeul name, I took this video. He was still confused with ”ㄹ” at this time but now he can write his name effortlessly.

Until when can we do this? As long as we can, I hope. It’s not easy to put up with this daily schedule but it’s simply amazing seeing them growing with established habits like this.

Cheers to mommy-hood!

The typhoon that bagged the headlines of major international newspapers and news programs November of last year brought the Philippines to its knees. It was a major devastation, the effect of which was unthinkable! Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) destroyed cities, flattened out villages, separated families, orphaned children. For almost everyone in the affected areas, their lives became dependent to aid… living under the circumstances that they had been reduced to endure.

But Typhoon Haiyan made us, Filipinos, feel that we are loved… that people outside our country genuinely care for us. And there’s that realization that fellow Filipinos living out of the country could instantaneously act for the affected people back home.

Our group, The 601 Habit, felt the immediate need of our fellow Filipinos who survived this biggest disaster that has fallen into our country. We are lucky to have received a substantial donation from Women’s News Magazine during the Santa Sports Festival held last December 7, 2013 and for this, we are eternally grateful.

The outreach activity that our group had chosen has the 211 students of Brgy. Macalbang Elementary School in Concepcion, Iloilo as beneficiaries. The school was badly battered by the strong winds of Typhoon Haiyan. Roofs were flown away and destroyed. Windows were threatened to be flown off. Unfortunately, the window of the office of the school principal was totally damaged so she now holds office in an almost-bare room with an open window, helpless prey to bad intentions. This state of the school is reflective of all the public schools affected by the wrath of Typhoon Haiyan. This has dampened the spirit of the students to go to school. Aside from seeing the pitiful state of their school, almost all the students have lost their school necessities… papers, ballpens, notebooks. It is for this reason that we, at The 601 Habit, found it imperative to uplift these children’s spirits by visiting them and giving each of them a school supplies kit. We are so lucky to have an Iloilo-based “Friend of The 601 Habit”, Pamela Ng-Yoo, who was very generous with her time and effort in packing all the 211 school supplies kit. And as an added bonus, we brought a television with dvd player for their audio-visual needs. It was a request they weren’t sure would be granted… we didn’t have the heart to refuse such a simple request which would benefit the whole student population.

It was inexplicable to personally witness the joy that the kids felt upon receiving their individual school supplies kit. It was even more heart-warming seeing the kids read the Christmas cards that went with each pack. The Christmas cards idea was suggested by Anne Campos, one of The 601 Habit ladies. Seeing the faces of the kids while reading their cards with personal greetings written by some Korean families and by The 601 Habit ladies shows that the Christmas cards added more heart to the gesture.

Mrs. Corazon Tupas, the school principal, was very glad to have received the television set and the dvd player. She told me that their television was destroyed during the typhoon. The new set will benefit all the students and they can continue with their supplementary educational aid through the use of educational videos which they schedule for the students to watch.

I am personally happy that we were able to help. But seeing the school grounds and watching the students over there, obviously there’s much more to be done. But we can’t be everything for everyone. And we can only do so much.

All photos in this post are by Pong Serdena III.

Original post was published at ABS-CBN GLobal-Filipino on January 13, 2014 titled How Pinays in Seoul Helped Fishermen In Iloilo Island.

I am reposting with additional pictures:

When our Seoul-based all-women group, The 601 Habit, decided to help the survivors of Typhoon Haiyan, we had no concrete project in mind. It could probably just have been the usual sending of money to the Philippines through trusted organizations like the Red Cross.

It was by chance that I got to read a news report by Nestor Burgos about a group of fishermen from an island-barangay from Brgy. Malangabang, Concepcion, Iloilo. The fishermen, led by Kagawad Sonny Ciriaco, were asking for fishing boats instead of the usual relief aid. Our group was struck by one of the fishermen, Raul Hipolito’s, words “How can we live if we cannot fish?”

After our group decided to breathe life to “The Life Boat Project”, I tasked myself to get in touch with these fishermen. They were, after all, the inspiration behind this undertaking.

While simultaneously implementing the project in other affected areas, I got in touch with Mr. Burgos. He would be the best source so I could get in touch with anyone he mentioned in the news report. Luckily for us, Mr. Burgos found his notes and gave me the number of Kagawad Sonny Ciriaco. While still in Seoul, I started calling Kagawad Sonny.

The fishermen who inspired us to do “The Life Boat Project”. Kagawad Sonny Ciriaco in black shirt and Mr. Raul Hipolito in white shirt (right) (photo by Pong Serdena III)

We agreed to meet on my group’s first visit to Concepcion after we distributed school supplies kit and a television and DVD set to Brgy. Macalbang Elementary School. We met. We talked. He presented a list of 54 beneficiaries complete with dependents. He did as he was requested. He did his job. And he was ready when he faced us.

He was steadfast in their needs, as they had been when they were first interviewed a few days after the typhoon took away almost everything they had.

They needed boats to start living the life they had always lived. They needed boats so they can feed their families again as they had always done. I was so glad we have the capacity to give them – albeit just half of it – what they needed the most at this time.

We have the capacity to give because we are surrounded by generous hearts. It wasn’t hard to ask for help for “The Life Boat Project”. As our group is based in Seoul, we have so many Koreans who were ready to help out. We didn’t have to beg. They understood and they believed.

As a group, it was easy to move and go forward with the plans. Everyone put their hearts into the task. Everyone was passionate about the idea to be able to help… long-term. And we have the support of Korea’s first foreign-born Assembly member, Representative Jasmine Lee. Without her, this project wouldn’t have reached this magnitude.

In just 10 days after our first meeting, Kagawad Sonny was able to gather people and resources to put together 26 boats. They were able to deliver. And we delivered. We provided the financial requirement – they provided the manpower and the skills. They knew what kind of boats they needed.

Just as they braved the waters days after Typhoon Haiyan hit them, we – The 601 Habit together with reliable friends – returned the gesture. We braved the strong waves for one hour until we reached the shores of Brgy. Malangabang. The visit became more special as Representative Jasmine Lee took the time to be with us and inspire the fishermen.

With Representative Jasmine Lee, center; Ms. Laarni Oh and Ms. Pamela Ng-Yoo (left) (photo by Pong Serdena III)

I specifically requested Kagawad Sonny to also introduce Raul Hipolito to us. He was one of the fishermen interviewed in that news article. I was just so happy to see him for he is no longer just a name for me. I am personally humbled to meet them who, only a few weeks ago, I was just reading in the news. The sleepless nights were all so worth it when I finally met and personally hear their thanks for giving them their needs.

For some reason, the day we went to the island was alternating between sunny and rainy. Some beneficiaries (some lived in other islands) in another location where we also turned-over some fishing boats didn’t make it due to the strong waves on December 28.

We arrived past 5 in the afternoon, dusk already. But along the shoreline, we saw families waiting. There was no time to fix our windblown hairs and sticky faces. We immediately addressed the eagerly waiting crowd, again humbled by the warm welcome.

We could have stayed longer. In fact, we stayed longer than what was safe for us. We couldn’t resist the fresh crabs served for our group. At 7:30 p.m., Kagawad Sonny had to shyly ask us to start sailing back to the mainland. It was dark, and even darker in the waters where we can see nothing around us but just feel the strong waves.

We could only hope that we left the island with happy families, ready to face the New Year with renewed strength to battle storms that regularly come their way.

Malangabang Island turn-over (photo by Pong Serdena III)

As for us, we were filled with joy. We fulfilled a self-imposed mission to deliver. There’s more to be turned-over in different locations. But for the fishermen of the island of Malangabang, know that you are special.

Finally, The 601 Habit is now an official group recognized by the Philippine Embassy in Seoul.

It was on November 9, 2013 when Betchay of Buhay sa Korea, Jaz, Razel and I seriously discussed Betchay’s suggestion that we make our group of 12 ladies a formal group recognized by the Embassy. I was hesitant of the idea at first because I had been used to meeting these ladies simply as friends. There were no rules that bound us. We met, we chatted over coffee, we celebrated each other’s lives. It was pure friendship which made us see each other and established our Saturday get-togethers… at Unit 601.

With the convincing powers of these 3 ladies, and with the brilliant ideas and support of Jaz, we convinced the others to be on board… and our group was born! It was only on November 16 when the group name “The 601 Habit” was finally decided.

A few days after November 9, reports on the magnitude of the damage caused by Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) found its way out of the affected areas and into international media and face book posts. We knew we had to do something. And we opted to do “The Life Boat Project”.

While we were busy with “The Life Boat Project”, we were also preparing the requirements for registration with the Embassy. When finally most of the boats were turned-over and the holidays were over, we had the chance to complete and submit the requirements. And so, we are happy to present:

This post is dedicated to the Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) survivors in the Philippines and to “The Life Boat Project” of a group of women residing in Seoul who call themselves “The 601 Habit”.

“The Life Boat Project” aims to deliver fishing boats to fishermen whose means of livelihood was suddenly stolen and ravaged by one of the strongest typhoons to ever land on the planet.

“The 601 Habit” was inspired and motivated by a newspaper article where the fishermen were said to have asked for livelihood, instead of aid.

“How can we live if we cannot fish?”

 

In the midst of the rubble seen on the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan, a group of fishermen braved the sea that left their family traumatized and destroyed their livelihood to ask for boats to start rebuilding their lives at the soonest possible time.

 

And so, the ladies behind The 601 Habit breathe life to “The Life Boat Project”. “The Life Boat Project” aims to provide boats to as many affected fishermen as possible whose means of income was put on hold because of the havoc wrought by one of the strongest typhoon recorded.

 

This project was inspired by the dignity that the group of fishermen from Northern Iloilo showed when they asked for the means to continue feeding their families, rather than asking for aid. They may not be rich but they have always been self-sufficient. They have not begged but this devastation has reduced most of them to begging for aid. The least that we can do is to give them back their tools to reclaim the dignity of their existence.

If you want to be part of this project, please get in touch with “The 601 Habit” or you can donate through the link below:

Donate to “The Life Boat Project”

Donations will be transparent and can be checked in the Facebook page of the group.

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For Pinoys living outside of the Philippines, I think it is more practical to send financial help to get things started rolling once again… to rebuild houses, buildings and LIVES.

• Our people need the money to buy their needs. The people on the ground and the victims know what their immediate needs are.

• Sending in-kind donations will add to the logistical concerns of sending things plus negotiations for tax-free cargo handling.

• The affected Filipinos would not care much about the imported things. They need the basic necessities to survive and to start anew.

• And, we need to buy from our own stores and our own goods. We will not only be helping the most helpless victims but we are also giving our badly-hit economies a push.

We can send money to our trusted organizations or trusted persons who, we think, would be able to manage donations very well and make sure that financial aid is well-spent and has reached those who need it most.

But for those living in the Philippines who want to help and have the capability to do so, this is good guide:

Please follow this guide to ensure that we are handing out the people’s needs. We can’t allow unnecessary items to scatter around. There’s so much cleaning up to do.

I personally had to exert effort to make Halloween fun and filled with treats for the kids today.

After making sure they had all the fun and the treats they could have, I now have to go to an even greater effort to make these magically disappear:

Oh, the irony of it all!

The cold Autumn breeze started in the middle of October here in Seoul. And so, from that day onwards I would daily wait on this spot for my son’s school bus to arrive:

These October afternoons were cold… not nasty cold. In fact, oftentimes they were soothingly cold. Just right for cool sweaters and light jackets. And those were good days.

But a few days ago, I stood on the same spot waiting… wet and cold…. very cold. The sudden rain made the cool weather harsher… a reminder perhaps, that we should be ready for colder November days.

Tomorrow is the start of November. What pictures will it bring to a waiting mom like me?