Why Retire in the Philippines/Marinduque Vacations: Celebrating the Start of the "BER" Months with a Special Dumpling Lunch

Planning to Retire Soon!

If you are planning to retire in the Philippines soon, I suggest you visit several excellent websites on pro's and cons of retiring in the Philippines. However if you want to retire in the provinces, where life is simple, standard of living cheaper, less traffic congestion and pollution, availability of fresh seafood and vegetables compared to the big cities, my island province is the place for you! If this is your first time in my site, welcome. Some of the photos and videos on this site, I do not own. However, I have no intention on the infringement of your copyrights. The photo above is the front yard of Chateau Du Mer- Our Retirement Home in Boac, Marinduque, Philippines

Thursday, September 1, 2022

Celebrating the Start of the "BER" Months with a Special Dumpling Lunch

Today, September 1, is the beginning of the "BER" months. The weather forecast for this week here in Northern California is a whole week of 3-Digit temperatures. In other words it is a Heat Wave-first in the history of California as the longest heat wave ever recorded. It is not good news specially for those whose jobs requires them to be outside. However, I am turning this negative news, by being positive and enjoy a special lunch of Pork, Scallop and Shrimp Dumplings with my Chili Sauce ( see photo above).

I purchased the dumpling on line from 99 Ranch Market-a store that specialized on Asian Foods. With it I purchased my first Vietnamese Pia Cake of Mung bean and durian.

The Pia Cake is similar to the Pinoy Hopia- the durian make it taste great. I will have this for dessert along with my mango sorbet. I purchased other items from 99 Ranch Market including a Live Main Lobster. I had the Lobster dinner last night. Here are some photos:

Besides the Lobster and Pia Cake, I purchased Longanisa(Pinoy sweet sausage)
mango and tempura mix for my okra.

My Lobster Dinner with Sauteed Okra paired with Navarro Chardonnay

Here'a a photo of my cut okra ( 6th harvest)- ready to be sauteed in Bagoong ( Barrio Fiesta brand.

Finally, if you live in California, keep cool, stay inside and Hydrate. If you live in the Philippines, May I wish you an advanced Merry Christmas. September 1 is the start of the Christmas season in the Philippines.

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Fruit Trees in the Gardens of Chateau Du Mer

The Mango Tree-I have three varieties in my Garden-The Indian, Guimaras and Carabao Mangoes My caretaker/gardener informed me last month that due to the El Nino drought in Marinduque, two of my Durian trees died in spite of his vigilant watering. One of the tree was attacked by insects that looks like a big fly but yellowish in color that sucks the sap of the seedling. The roots of the other tree was attacked by ants residing in the soil. However, my other fruit trees, the rambutans( 2), the lanzones(2) and the jack fruits ( 2) trees are doing well. The above eight fruit trees were given to me by Retired General Recaredo Sarmiento of Boac and Lucena., about three years ago. General Sarmiento is the “atid” of my wife. “Atid” is the colloquial term for brother. Evidently, Macrine's father, the late Bernardo Jambalos was the Godfather of General Sarmiento during his baptism and comfirmation. Gen Sarmiento's hobby is orchard planting, reforestation and farming. The other fruit trees in my garden are guayabanos, cashew, avocados, starapples, duhats, ates, guavas, mangoes( 3 varieties) and papayas as well as several varieties of bananas . Of the above fruit trees, my favorite is the guayabanos, also known as soursop tree known for its anti-tumor and anti-cancer properties . The following are photos of the fruit trees. The Durian photo is from the web. Note that it almost look like a jack fruit tree, except that the leaves are bigger and shiny. My desire is to have a passion fruit tree in the near future. You are welcome to visit my orchard and flower gardens any time, if perchance you are in the vicinity of The Chateau Du Mer Beach Resort and Conference Center.

The Rambutan Tree and Fruits

The Lanzone Tree and Fruits

The Jack Fruit Tree

The Durian Fruit Tree