Hello Cebu City

I’ve been staying here in Cebu for more than a month now. You might expect me to write about the places I’ve visited, the restaurants that I’ve tried, and the food that I’ve eaten. There will be time for that. This blog post is about my journey to the province and the job that I’ve chosen to spend the next few months of my life or maybe even years.

 

There are a lot of things to ponder – the job itself, the recipes and the lessons, the blog and the future. But I realized that I have to live one day at a time. And for the past three weeks I attempted to write something for the blog but I am undergoing a writer’s block. And the same goes when I’m making an effort to contribute dishes for the final dinner at the school for the graduating students. I am actually experiencing hindrances of ideas and creativity, and not even happy with the flavours of the food that I’m making (oh yes, the kimchi). Is this normal? I thought that if you love what you do, ideas would flow like a river and cooking would become second nature. It didn’t happen to me. Where’s the passion? Where’s the enthusiasm? Where’s the inspiration? And I did it again, doubting myself about the things I could do. Don’t you hate it when that happens? This is the setback of not being able to work for years. And another difficulty is, I am always hard on myself, sometimes to the extreme, and people think that I am a perfectionist. But I have to learn to be good to myself and that I am a worthy to receive and experience that all the good things life has to offer.

 A beach at Marigondon

I’ve also attempted to go home many times during my stay here. The voice of passiveness whispered to pack my bags and go home. But the voice of adventure encouraged me to stay; make mistakes and take more risks. Just breathe, let go and be open. It’s okay, because nobody is going to judge you. Working in a professional kitchen again (in this scenario, a school kitchen) feels peculiar. The irrational fear is evident as I have an on and off relationship with cooking even until today. I honestly felt conscious while preparing and cooking food with other people but not that terrible to set off a disaster.

The beautiful thing about Cebu city is the people. Oh yes, the people are really nice. I may not speak their dialect yet but they are making an effort to speak to me in Tagalog so I could understand them. But it would still be a great advantage if I could speak to them in Cebuano. I’m also staying with my friend’s brother and his beautiful family who has made my stay here as pleasant as possible. They have taken me trips to the mountain and to the beach, and have fed me till I’m abundantly full. The Young family has been really accommodating and the teenage daughters Jamie, Jackie and Janine are really warm and friendly. Blessing!!

At the Bistro, the school's training kitchen and restaurant

The school has also moved to its new building and own permanent location which is run by a husband and wife team, Chef Jeremy Young and Chef Fatima Tan-Young , whose expertise and attention to detail is apparent by providing the crème de la crème of the ideal culinary school to the team and the future students. The International Culinary Arts Academy of Cebu (ICAAC) is purposefully and specifically designed for a culinary school where the layout and the blueprint of the building, the training rooms, the on-site training restaurant, and the kitchen facilities (they have the best equipments) are created to be workable and efficient compared to culinary schools who are just renting a building. The school is still under construction but it is up and running ready for the next batch of new culinary students coming in. The progressive state of the school is not only for the future of the students but also for the benefit of the environment. ICAAC is going green by using 90% LED lighting and recycling rain water too. The school is also starting a food compost program soon and the growing of herbs and certain vegetables are already in the works (by the the young and talented Chef Justin Mechill, one of the chef lecturers) 

I’ve been busy; although not crazy busy these past few weeks. I’ve been acquainting myself with the school and the remaining classes and practical exams for this semester as well as a lot of reading and studying. Being focused is sometimes one of the hardest things to do. I am also preparing my lessons for my natural nutrition class and a project is at work that I cannot reveal at the moment. And for the rest of the culinary classes that I’ll be handling in the future, I really have to take it one day at a time.  I cannot learn all of it at the same pace without ever experiencing it first. I’ve talked myself out in doing this (many times) but if I don’t do it now, it will never happen. It’s either I quit or I face my fears. And every day, each class is going to be a surprise with new challenges and different expectations. I have to stay in faith.

My life has been an open book ever since I started this blog. They are bare enough for me to reveal my vulnerabilities and my weaknesses, yet still reserved to guard my personal life. But by acknowledging my flaws and liabilities to the whole world, I am also allowing myself to step into my greatness. I know I have yet to discover my talents, skills and abilities that are still dormant and yet ready to be developed into its full potential. I hope that the late bloomer (yours truly) is now blooming.

Love and light,

Journey to Serendipity

Risk-taking, trust, and serendipity are key ingredients of joy. Without risk, nothing new ever happens. Without trust, fear creeps in. Without serendipity, there are no surprises. - Rita Golden Gelman

I am working soon. After 6 ½ years of being inactive, I am finally working. I know, that long. I don’t know if I should be ashamed of the long idleness from the work force or I should be proud that I gave up my career to take care of dad. Honestly, most employers would rather hire a newly graduate compared to someone who hasn’t worked for many years. And nowadays, with the booming of culinary schools, the increasing number of culinary students graduating and the popularity of food blogging, competition is really tight and intense. And there were moments in my life where I just want to quit cooking as my occupation. And just a few weeks ago, I was thinking about my other interest and have a career change.

   Thank you to the talented and great friend Deeba of Passionate About Baking for these flowers.

I am also moving to Cebu City (I was hoping I am moving to another country) where my job is located as an assistant culinary instructor/teacher. Teaching is not my dream job and it's probably the occupation I don’t even deserve. You need ample experience in order to teach culinary students to become professional cooks.

On top of that, I have reasons not to take this job.

First, my dentist removed my wisdom teeth (4 of them) many years ago and since I couldn’t tolerate the pain, she injected more anesthesia on the lower right area. For weeks that area including my upper right part of the tongue was numb and it became uncomfortable even if I continued taking B vitamins. Over the years, the numbness disappeared but that area of my tongue has never been the same. There were times that I eat my words and find it hard to pronounce the words clearly.

Second, I have temporomandibular joint disorder or TMJ syndrome. I was experiencing clicking, popping and locking in the mandibular area as well as tiredness and pain around my jaw and shoulders. After a scheduled x-ray by the dentist, she concluded that I have TMJ. My TMJ was corrected by wearing splints and braces for more than 2 years and maintenance by wearing 2 dental appliances for day and night. Although my TMJ has been rectified to a certain extent, it will never go back the way it was used to be. The temporamandibular joint is that small part our body that we never thought could make a difference in our well being. But it really does. TMJ not only affects you physically, it also affects you emotionally and mentally.

Okay, enough excuses...

I know that my minor liability is still not a good reason not to take this job. And for some people, they’re supportive enough to say that I am the right person for this profession.

When I started this blog last November 2008, I never thought that I could write my first blog post for a few people to read. Now, I have about 140 of them with more people reading. Not bad. It would probably backslide as I take the time off from blogging. Back in high school and college, writing an essay is one of my weaknesses. But lately, I love how a single word leaps out from a page and grasps your attention and that words developed into a sentence and into paragraphs could actually change a person’s life.

In two weeks, I am moving out of this house. I have no idea how long I will last in Cebu City but I’ll never know what I’m good at until I try and I’ll never know what I really want unless I take a risk. I hope someone out there understands how I feel and now that I’ve finally taken this daring step, I praying that everything would fall into place. And for the next few weeks, I may not be able to publish a post on my blog and I may not even have the time to read or comment on other people’s food blogs. But you can always send me an email to say hi or you could leave a message below or anywhere on the blog. That would be a great motivation and encouragement for me. And if you have any questions, feel free to write me.

Blogging didn’t change my life completely but through blogging I had the chance to get to know myself better. I’ve also met a lot of wonderful people and learned a lot from other food blogs. There are recipes that I would love to do (please check the recipe archives) when I have some free time and a project (you can even call it a revolution) about establishing good mood/healthy mind through whole foods and other ventures that I need to put on hold. And we really do have a bad mood epidemic all over the world. I love blogging and I’ll definitely miss everyone but I have to face more important things in my life right now. And hopefully this new chapter in my life will shed light and lead me into my divine destiny with confidence, boldness and courage.

Will you guys me miss? If you do, you can always contact me through email, facebook or twitter. Just be nice. In the meantime, please say a prayer for me.

Thank you.

Love and light,

Partners with Rouxbe Online Cooking School

I’ve been a member of Rouxbe Online Cooking School since December 2007. And ever since I started my blog, I’ve been sharing some of their video recipes and techniques so you can become a better cook. About a week ago, I’ve just become a Rouxbe Cooking School affiliate partner. I partnered with Rouxbe to help you improve your cooking skills and techniques, to encourage you to cook more at home and to inspire you to bring your passion back in cooking (just in case you lost it).

Here’s a story of how I found Rouxbe.

A few months after my father died, I just wanted to give up on cooking professionally and at that time I am so confused about what I really want in life. And as I was searching through the internet I found Kimberley’s blog sum.ptuo.us who writes about Rouxbe and taking cooking video instructions to a new and higher level. A few months later, Kimberley is now working at Rouxbe Online Cooking School team as co-producer and writer. So, I actually have to thank Kimberley for leading me to Rouxbe. And it was also Kimberley’s blog that slowly helped me get back into cooking by reading her post one at a time. It was also her attention to detail that opened my eyes back to the world of food and cooking. It didn’t happen overnight. It took time for me to bring that passion back.

For some of you who are new to my blog and who are not familiar with Rouxbe Online Cooking School, here’s an inspiring introduction from Joe Girard, one of the co-founders of Rouxbe.

Rouxbe Online Cooking School & Video Recipes

The first video I ever watched was the Chicken Saltimbocca, which is really tempting and from then on I was hooked and I emailed them telling them how I felt about their videos and how it inspired me to cook again. And I also found out that they also partnered with NWCAV (Northwest Culinary Academy of Vancouver) who are owned by my two former chef instructors. As someone who went to hotel school in Switzerland and culinary school in Canada, I still need help when it comes to improving and mastering those cooking skills and technique that I’ve forgotten how to do most especially if you haven’t worked in a professional kitchen in such a long time. And Rouxbe Online Cooking School has been indispensable in my life. As a member and as a student of Rouxbe, I can watch the cooking lessons anytime I want to.

One of the lessons: The Water Test | Heating the Pan

Rouxbe Online Cooking School & Video Recipes

As part of their affiliate program, I have the power to give you a free, full-access, no-videos-barred, 14-day pass to their site. All you have to do is go to the Rouxbe Online Cooking School and redeem the 14-day Gift Membership. After the trial, you can join for as little as $15 per month; however, there is no obligation. Remember, I even went to cooking school to become a professional cook and despite of all the trainings I received, cooking is not the same without world’s first-ever online cooking school, which is Rouxbe.


So, what are you waiting for?

Love and light,