Jernie's Hub: July 2009

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Loretonians of the US & Canada (LUSCAN) 20th Reunion

LUSCAN was created in 1989 by Loretonians who migrated to the United States with the intention of keeping in touch with each other. The organization is concerned about the communities of their origin; Loreto and Tubajon, Surigao del Norte, Philippines. It is also committed in bringing goodwill by contributing to the educational and cultural needs in the communities of Loreto and Tubajon. Check out their website: http://www.loretonian.org/

I have been in touch to some of the members but never had a chance to attend any of their reunions. They would choose a venue for their annual reunion in different places in the United States and Canada, This year was here in Toronto, Canada; a perfect opportunity for us to join them.

The event started on Friday (July 10, 2009) with a welcome evening and a business meeting in North York, Toronto. Watch the video clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elcOvqBZ-qc

Saturday (July 11, 2009) was a free day. Everyone went out to explore the city of Toronto, GTA and Niagara. In the evening we had a "Dinner and Dance" party held at the Adult Centre Hall of Square One Mall in Mississauga. Since the venue is just opposite our place, we didn't have to rush. It was around 6:30pm when we got there. We did our registration, bought some souvenirs and joined everyone for the "meet and greet" session. Of course the picture-taking kept everyone busy. We were introduced to the people around and I was ecstatic to meet my friends, relatives and fellow-Loretonians whom I've never met in my life. Cameras are everywhere, flashing almost every minute until the party started. I couldn't even believe it was real; we were part of the LUSCAN reunion. I was so grateful for such an opportunity. The party ran until midnight.

The Canadian Hosts

Message from the LUSCAN President from L.A. California

Dinner time

Philippine dessets prepared by the Canadian members

so yummy...!

cassava suman was the first one to go.....even before dessert time..

Baked by Christine Galido, nice huh!

dancing the night away!

raising fund..., well done girls!

The next morning Sunday (July 12, 2009), we convened in North York, Toronto for the prayer service and lunch. The food was fantastic, mainly Filipino dishes. One thing I loved the most was the salted fish and some native sweet delicacies from our hometown, Loreto. After lunch, they voted for the next year's reunion venue which is Beverly Hills, Florida. We spent the whole afternoon singing some folk songs, exchanging jokes and enjoying each other's company. At 4pm we said our goodbyes to everyone and last minute picture-taking.

lunch time

singing Visayan Folk songs

folk dancing

the Escobido clan

North York, Toronto

It really was a fun and wonderful experience. Unforgettable!

Posted by: Jernie

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Wasaga Beach

Wasaga is a town in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada. It is situated in Nottawasaga Bay at the southern end of Georgian Bay. Wasaga Beach is nestled in and around 14 kilometres of white sandy beach approximately two hours' drive north from Toronto. I was told it is the longest fresh water beach in the world.

The beach is divided into smaller beaches with the public beaches numbered 1 to 6 sequentially from east to west. Its position on the waters of Nottawasaga Bay means its summer temperatures are moderated somewhat by the water, so summer days are much more comfortable than Toronto's scorching days, but the same winds off the water trigger very heavy and intense snow squalls in the winter. As such, snowmobiling, skiing, and other winter sports are extremely popular along the beach. (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/)

We spent the long weekend at the Wasaga Beach with our friends, the Wolfe Family. They used to spend a week or two in Wasaga Beach every year. We opted to join them for the weekend as we haven't been to this place. They made a reservation at Tony B's Place cottage.

We drove up on Friday morning. There was not much of food preparation required as there are enough supermarkets and restaurants there. While waiting for the Wolfe’s, Herbert and I drove to the Manila Bakery at Hurontario cor. Dundas St. Mississauga to pickup my favourite Pan de Sal and some other Filipino delicacies. When I stepped into the bakery the smell of freshly baked Pan de Sal made me so hungry. I can't believe it; we got them fresh from the oven. I took 3 dozens of those and some packs of Sapin-sapin (Filipino delicacy made from glutinous rice flour). While driving, we couldn't resist the Pan de Sal, it was really delicious.

We met up with the Wolfe’s at the Shell station in Hurontario and drove up north along the Highway 10. It is our first time to drive along the country roads because we usually take the highway going north. The country side scenery is fantastic: the green fields, farms, fields covered with flowers farm houses are so beautiful. It took us two hours to get to the cottage. Tony B's Place has seven modest cottages. We took the cottage right next to our friends.

Our cottage has 2 bedrooms, a washroom, a living room and kitchen. It is not luxurious but a reasonable place to stay. It could have been cleaner. The first thing we did is to wash the dishes, glasses, cups and utensils and clean the floor. Outside our cottage, the ground is not well-kept but at least there were tables and chairs around.

Once we were settled, we went out to Wal-Mart supermarket to buy food and drinks. Our friends are right, no need to bring food from home; everything is very much available there. In the evening, we had dinner together and had our usual long conversation. The cottage has no internet connection but our friends bought their wireless internet stick along. We managed to connect but the signal is low which is just enough to support chatting and emailing, no calls can be made let alone browsing the internet. We called the night off at around 1am. Oh, I didn't expect it was that cold. I was wondering if the weather won't change, then going into the water will be impossible.

The next morning, we had breakfast again together. Our friend Zeny (we call her Inay), prepared a delicious fried rice. We had so much food on the table. After breakfast, we went out to kind of explore the place. We were advised by the cottage owner that there is a farm market nearby. Since it was a little bit cold and windy, we decided to go instead to the farm.

After a few minutes’ drive along the Highway 92, we found the Valley Farm. The place was quite busy and the market has locally produced honey, steaks, sausages, bread as well as freshly harvested vegetables. There was a long queue of people with baskets full of lovely strawberries. So we went to pick strawberries as well. It was really fun. When we got our baskets full, we walked back to the market to pay. They were charging $3.99 per basket, not bad at all. The freshly baked cinnamon was so delicious; it was so soft and not so sweet, yummy. All of us loved it. Also the asparagus was so good. It really tastes different if it's fresh.

In the afternoon, our other friends the Ocaba’s arrived. The girls went straight to the beach and I was the chosen one to give them company. The weather was so nice then, we took a mat and swimming gadgets. While we were in the beach Herbert initiated the grilling of the meat, his ever favourite activity with his favourite German and Philippine beer alongside. I was so happy to be at the beach. It has been a long time I haven't sat by the water on a warm sunny day. I didn’t go into the water because it was not that clear and it was rough. I was better off at the beach enjoying the sunlight and the beautiful scenery. I couldn't help but imagine my hometown in the Philippines where the beaches are natural, clear blue water, fresh air, and the beautiful sights of the island.

After an hour, we went back to the cottage, can't wait for the grilled meat. We had a really good lunch together. Then the gents and the girls played volleyball while the ladies were busy chatting.

Late in the afternoon, the Ocaba’s drove home and we took a stroll along the beach. It was getting cold so we had to wrap ourselves. The sunset was awesome. I was amazed to see young children swimming in a cold and windy late afternoon. Whew! it was too much for me. The Seagulls flocked at the beach, they are so beautiful.

After we had dinner, we watched the movie "Angels and Demons" together. We had to pause the movie to give room for our never-ending snacks (the Filipino Midnight snacks).

Sunday after our breakfast, all of us went to the beach. The girls were really enjoying the water while the adults were just sitting at the beach. Because the weather was so nice, more and more people, mostly families came. I enjoyed the time watching the kids swimming and running around. The beach was nearly full. At 12nn, it was too hot so we went back to the cottage and geared-up to go for a stroll at the shops along the beach area.

There, the streets were too busy, music so loud, the beach area was literally full. Most of the people were just enjoying sun-tanning. There were some going wild with the speed boats and jet skis. We had been to most of the shops but I didn't find something for me. Then we went to Harvey's for lunch. The girls couldn't wait to get to the Harvey's.

Later on, we went on shopping again at the Wal-Mart and went home. It wasn't so hot anymore, so I joined the girls again go into the water. However not long after, the weather changes again, the sun was out and it was getting cool. I hanged around with the girls and later on got out of the water and back in the cottage.

After our dinner, we started to load our things in the car. It was time for us to hit the road back to Mississauga. We took the Country Road 124 down to the Highway 10. The scenery was awesome.