Second seed: Fresh strawberry tart at the Peninsula hotel

How do I start with my second blog post?  Well for starters, allow me to acknowledge the abundance and kindness of my brother-in-law kuya Jappy who, two days before 2011 had ended, invited the family over to Peninsula hotel for an afternoon of what should have been a chocolate buffet but surprisingly turned out to be something different. Nonetheless the food course was very scrumptious and one of a kind - at least for taste buds.

Dining inside Peninsula hotel is definitely something all family and friends should do once in a while, it makes you feel "mayaman and sophisticated". It opens your eyes to grandiosity and makes you aware of  the middle-class people who are perfectly trying to be prim and proper while those millionaires who made a fortune out from their ill-gotten wealth looked like they have just woken up. I should know, I tried to act prim and proper. Eventually I got tired of it so I just reverted back to being me.

I intentionally skipped lunch that time so I could eat-all-i-can in this once in a blue moon buffet. Truly the best things in life are for free. But before I was given my set of plate and utensils I've made a mental note that I will hit the most expensive looking food first. That was the plan until a dessert known as "Fresh strawberry tart" has taken me aback. 

Sitting there on a silver platter were the glistening sliced of strawberries on top of a tart carefully baked to perfection as if calling me, "Momo, momo.....eat us!" I couldn't resist their cuteness and so I obliged. And  to avoid nasty looks from the people behind me, I cleverly got 2 tarts only but asked my innocent pretty sister-in-law Anne lorraine Adam beside me to get 5 more on her plate. When we got back to our table, I realized most of the food I got were all desserts: a to-die-for ice cream served by a very amiable american woman, one tuna sandwich and my 7 strawberry tarts. Good thing my ever sexy cousin June Parilla got more fish fillets than she could handle, because considering the distance from our table to where they serve the food, I would have been too lazy to get up back again and fall in line.

I have never tasted anything so delicious as these strawberry tarts in my 23 years of existence. It's the real deal. For a moment of what I can only describe as pure bitchiness, I decided I need to marry the chef who made these precious jewels that melt in my mouth, whether he's a man, woman, chickboy, lebanese, or whatever. Also I would  like to take this opportunity to thank the anonymous hot guy who passed by me. Without him, I would have made a very impulsive decision which could've cost me only God-knows-what.

The strawberry tarts you see on the picture, no matter how annoying the resolution of the photo is, are like little nymphs inviting you with their glistening skins and deceiving curves, before you know it, they are already safe and warm inside your drooling mouth. From that day on, I knew there's more to life than money, fame and sex - strawberries. Hence, I created this blog to give tribute to these strawberry tarts I devoured in less than 10 minutes.

I've dedicated to try all strawberry desserts and delicacies out there known or unknown to man. Oh how I wish I could blog all of strawberry encounters here! The conquest has just begun. Hence, my second seed.

First Seed: Ichigo daisuki ♥!♥!♥

I'm not quite sure how to start (plant) my very first post (seed) on this blog, but I knew it's about time I celebrate my overflowing LUUV for strawberries.

Since I was a little kid, I've always been fascinated with this fruit. The dotted bright red color and its cute little heart-shape somehow have made a captivating impact on the young me. I still can remember the days when just the image of a real strawberry on television would amaze me. Growing up, strawberries were never really a part of my family's regular grocery. It's because they were not common in my hometown, and even if it was available, it would be sold in a ridiculous price. Nowadays, however, it's not that rare anymore, but still very much expensive and seasonal.

Truth be told, I think I had my first bite of this fruit in highschool. It was thanks to my adventurous sister who came all the way from Baguio and had this plastic full of sparkling strawberries for the whole family. I happened to be strategically observing from a distance pretending to be occupied, but I was actually waiting for my mom to end her hour(s)-long conversation with my sister and her soon-to-be husband, so I could finally take my first bite on those rare fruits.

As soon as the two lovebirds left, my mom stored the strawberries in our refrigerator. I immediately sneak a strawberry, not worrying if my mom or the house keeper even washed it. Luckily, they tasted just like how I've always imagined them to be: sourly sweet and uber soft. Even more luckier is the fact that my brother isn't fond of fruits as much as I am and my two-year old sister was clearly no competition, which would only mean one thing: I had a heck of strawberries for myself.

It's definitely one of  those days that I would remember gleefully. Finally I was able to cross out my first strawberry experience in my long list of dreams to be realized. These things might sound really weird for some but as much I'd like to deny it, it is in fact based on a true story - my story.

Thus, my first seed.