Team Philippines wins TARA 4!

CONGRATULATIONS to Richard Herrera and Richard Hardin (aka the Two Richards) for winning Season 4 of The Amazing Race Asia (TARA). Woot-woot! (Details here.)

While they were not my favorite Philippine team - I was rooting more for Jessy and Lani – the Two Richards showed they had the best blend of brains and brawn to win this race. I kept on screaming and clapping my hands as I cheered them on to their win tonight. But it was pretty clear at the onset of the episode they were going to be victorious because they just looked so determined.

As the episode began with a flight from Incheon to Singapore, the closest competitor of the Two Richards was the father-daughter team of Natasha and Hussein from Indonesia. Although they ended up in third place, I just have to tip my hat to Hussein, who was really such a cool dad for even agreeing to this race with his daughter. I'm sorry I really never liked her. It seemed that she kept on making her Dad do all the most difficult tasks, one of them at the coconut trees even leading to some mild injury. I feel so sorry for Hussein for having such a brat of a daughter. But there is no shame in ending in third place bec. he was really such a trooper.

And because he had such difficulty accomplishing the tight-rope task of the race in this episode, Michelle and Claire from Singapore - previously in last place having left 10 hours behind all the other teams, overtook the Indonesian team to win second place. They're the youngest team ever to compete in TARA and it was their spunkiness that helped them to hang in the race.

But all teams were actually super competitive, and each episode sprang a new surprise on the audience in terms of the level of difficulty (or downright trickiness) of the challenges, the wonderful destinations the teams traveled to, and insights into the behavior of each team member.

With the recent victory of Manny Pacquiao at the boxing ring, and the Azkals making such a good showing in the Suzuki Cup, this win by Team Philippines in TARA is just the icing on the cake for the country! While we may not be doing so great in our political and economic landscape, at least we're getting our kicks in the sports and entertainment arena. Congratulations again to the Two Richards! Mabuhay!

Legazpi and Misibis in The Amazing Race Asia

YOU know how much I love Legazpi, Albay, and how I enjoyed staying at the Misibis Bay Resort* in Cagraray Island. In last week's episode of The Amazing Race Asia, both destinations were on display for that leg of the race. Hope this eases any nervousnessness about the Philippines by foreign travelers.



The rest of the episode can be watched here.

You just gotta love those Amboys, the Richards, for choosing the nastier challenge in the Jig/Pig portion. I won't say more, just watch it ;p

I'm glad the two Philippine teams are still in the game. Will one of them triumph in this season's race? I certainly hope so. A win can just buoy our collective Pinoy spirit right now.

*Just to clarify, Misibis Bay Resort is under new management.

Dinelli, a new deli-cafe in Q.C. (and a word about TARA)

LIKE your salami and pepperoni? how about some prosciutto, sausages and delicate cheeses from Europe and Australia?

If you live in Q.C. like I do, you probably go to Santi's for these delicatessen items, as well as their steak cuts and bottled goods. I have no complaints about Santi's and continue to pay for their items through my nose. Yup, they are expensive but like I said, I always thought I was getting my money's worth. I don't have to fly all the way to Switzerland just to get a block of gruyere.

Well a new deli just opened on the opposite end of Timog Ave. called Dinelli, owned by Rep. Eric Singson of Ilocos Sur, and managed by his daughter Kristine Singson Meehan and husband Anthony Meehan. I was invited to its official launch last Tuesday, Nov. 18 by boy wonder, Chef Robby Goco, who designed the menu of this deli-cum-cafe.

At first glance, the prices of its deli items looked about 10% lower than Santi's, although I wasn't able to inspect all 'cos the entire place was in a frenzy. Space was tight, and everyone was talking while eating and drinking. But according to Pinky Mendoza, director of sales and operations of Dinelli, they are getting their goods directly from suppliers instead of consolidators which helps the establishment cut down on expenses. (If her name sounds familiar, yes, Pinky used to be w/ the other deli.)

The dishes on the cafe's menu seemed affordable as well even by Q.C. standards. (My friend Pangs had his doubts, but I assured him that there were enough rich folk in Q.C. who support good food.) I haven't eaten a full meal at the cafe so I can't assess its dishes just yet. Although so far, Robby's concoctions in his own Cyma as well as other restaurants he has worked with, have yet to let me down. I intend to have lunch there next week and will give you the lowdown.

We enjoyed the various hors d'oeuvres served during the event which used ingredients sold at the deli (e.g. slices of wagyu beef on polenta, halibut on toasted french bread, creme brulee w/ chocolate mint discs, etc.) as well as the red and white wine selections w/c were flowing the entire night.

(Pinky Mendoza and Rep. Eric Singson)

Other products sold at the deli include Australian wagyu, various lamb cuts, black angus; free range chicken; lumpfish black caviar from Norway; Chilean seabass and Halibut from Norway; foie gras from France; and as I mentioned earlier, sausages, hams, as well as cheeses from Europe and Australia.

There is also a wide array of bottled condiments like vinegars, olive oil, whole peeled tomatoes, and kalamata olives, canned zucchinis, chocolates, etc. Almost everything that a home cook or chef may require. I will personally go back to pick up some wagyu and halibut, and I've already been looking up the various recipes I can experiment w/ for the fish. Wish me luck!

Oh did I mention Dinelli also has a small selection of wines? I promise to inspect the wine section further and tell you about it as well.

Dinelli is located on #5 Timog Ave., Q.C. across St. Peter's Church and near the old Circle Theater. Tel. No. 666-3544.

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BTW, the hosts for the night were our own Philippine team to The Amazing Race Asia, Tisha Silang and Geoff Rodriguez. I didn't really know them but I was kapal anyway to blurt out to Geoff who was standing about 5 feet away from us, if they won the race. Of course he didn't want to say but was very good natured about it.

Geoff was actually very friendly, surprisingly, considering how he managed to rub off the other contestants the wrong way w/ his seeming arrogance. Siguro, he was just under too much pressure to win. After all, we all know what happened our team last year, right? (Boo-hoo)

(Geoff Rodriguez and Kristine Singson Meehan)

But he, and even Tisha, were very nice and sounded sincere. They accepted our good wishes for the show (but it was kinda weird; we were wishing them luck when the race was actually over weeks ago, ngek). Huy she's very sexy ha. So thin. Kainggit. (Of course, if she spent part of her time scouring and buying from delis like I do, she wouldn't be so slim haha.) Lurved her pumps. Sorry, I wasn't able to take her photo, only of Geoff, and it didn't even do him justice. Too much libation on my end. Oof! my apologies man. He is actually much cuter in person.

Geoff was even almost apologetic that he didn't look Pinoy enough to represent the country. So to make up for it, I guess he wore all those very cool Pinoy-themed shirts all throughout the show w/c he said were available at Team Manila at Powerplant in Rockwell Makati.

Anyway, watch TARA tonight. It's the finale show. I'm rooting for them.

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UPDATE: Tish and Geoff came in second place. Not a bad showing. Congratulations are still in order. Maybe next year, Team Philippines will come in first.

And the winner of Amazing Race Asia 2 is...

...NOT the Philippine team unfortunately. Awww...did I hear a collective sigh of disappointment amongst you? Ah well, when it came down to it, brains won over brawn so the Singapore team of Adrian Yap and Collin Low won the last challenge which was to identify all the flags of the countries the teams visited, and put them all in order. I dunno what Marc Nelson was thinking...he did say he was good at geography, so why did he allow his partner Rovilson Fernandez take up the challenge. Hay anovayan, boys!

(Love your hot bod, Marc! Photo from Kapamilya Photos)

But okay lang actually, because the Philipine team did so much better this year than in the first race last year when Ernie Lopez and his wife Jeena were the first to be booted out of competition. So Marc and Rovilson landing in third place really isn't so bad. The boys performed extremely well and were the most focused among the teams. It's just a bit disconcerting considering that they had consistently landed first place in most of the race's legs! I was literally on pins and needles watching tonight's final episode. It was a nice touch that the boys unfurled and ran with a Philippine flag even if they came in last of the three teams. Hay, sexy ka lang talaga Marc. Now take your shirt off and kiss me. All will be forgiven!

But then it was almost like a fairytale ending where the lead in the story, always with some sort of disadvantage or disability – in Adrian's case, he is hearing-impaired – wins the girl. In this case, he and Collin get bragging rights as the first place winner of this year's race AND! $100,000! Actually I had a sneaky suspicion that they had won the race as their Sony handicam and TV ad kept on playing towards the last legs of the race. Ah well, these guys really deserved it. The winner was a toss-up between the Singapore and Philippine teams so it's good the Singaporeans won. These guys are smart and always remained cool under pressure. Furthermore, Adrian was a good example to all different-abled and physically-challenged individuals by showing that his disability was not an obstacle in accomplishing menial tasks nor grand productions. Bravo!

(The Singapore team of Collin, left, and Adrian. Photo from The Star Online)

Well I was really surprised the Chong sisters of Malaysia made it to second place, beating out the Philippine team. They were constantly fighting and calling themselves stupid. Honestly, I didn't think they stood a chance in making it to the top three. Pamela, the squat sister, just constantly screamed and hurled all sorts of insults at her prettier sister Vanessa (who lost her memory temporarily after diving into a pool, poor girl). Well, this is really what you call, a surprise ending.

To all the teams, congratulations on a job well done. I'm looking forward to next year's exciting , ay Amazing pala, race.

Proud to be Pinoy!

IN case you guys missed American Idol last night, here's a clip showing the hilarious Pinoy Renaldo Lapuz from Nevada auditioning/showing off for Simon and the gang. In fairview, nakakatawa talaga sya. Makapal, pero nakakatawa. I hope he gets to cut a record deal from this ala William Hung.

Altogether now..."You are my brother, my best friend forever..."



ON another front, I'm really glad that the other Philippine team at Amazing Race Asia 2 was eliminated. Week after week, it just showed the Filipina at her worst. I mean how loud can a woman be?

(Don't let these happy faces fool you. There's something sinister lurking beneath this woman's smile.)

This Pinay, Terry, just shot off her mouth like a common fishwife. She was just freaking annoying! And nakakahiya! I'm sure a lot of men also got shook up at how she would just scream invectives and belittle her husband, Henry, a retired U.S. Navy senior petty officer. Nakaka-awa talaga ang lalaki. He finally broke down in tears in one episode because of utter humiliation and self-pity. Henry gave new meaning to the term ander-d'saya! What a battered husband! Afraid.

In the episodes after Henry's breakdown, Terry seemed more cordial, less hysterical. Did someone slip valium or lithium in her food? She was even close to cheerful and laughing in the last episode. Too late for this personality makeover. She and her husband were eliminated. Good luck to Henry.

(Marc and Rovilson...still leading the race.)

I have my bets that Marc Nelson and Rovilson Fernandez won the race. (I went over to Rovilson's home publication and no one knew anything. Wow and here I thought no one could keep a secret in Manila.) Although not a Pinoy, Marc has performed extremely well as a member of the Philippine team. I just wish he would take off his T-shirt more often hehe.

And Rovilson just cracks me up. His humor is possibly the reason why he and Marc have yet to wring each other's necks unlike the other teams which had shown signs of breaking apart. Moral of the story, don't take yourselves too seriously.

(Hottie Allan Wu is at it again, hosting for Amazing Race Asia 2.)

Oh, and host Allan Wu is still super hot! I'd embarass myself and join the contest just to get a whiff of him. Mmmm...