What I initially thought to be another boring night in the office turned out exactly the opposite when I ventured into Bale Dutung's website and saw their announcement ---
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| Bale Dutung website |
No required minimum number of people for dates so and so!! This is it! The moment we've been waiting for. My friends and I have always wanted to visit Bale Dutung, but we just couldn't agree on a date wherein we're all available and, as such, couldn't come up with the minimum number of people required for booking. I quickly sent an email to Bale Dutung to inquire if vegetarians can be accommodated. As soon as I got an affirmative reply, I sent an email to my friends --- several showed interest but only 2, Yaj and Chems, were available on the date I prefer.
And then, the day of an epicure's dream finally arrived!
The First Shall Be The Last
And then, the day of an epicure's dream finally arrived!
The First Shall Be The Last
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| Bale Dutung Villa Gloria Subdivision, Angeles City Pampanga |
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| One of the centerpieces |
We roamed around the silong, marvelled at the table arrangement, the centerpieces, the overhead lighting made of wood, the old but still working radio by the office door, the long, wooden table and chairs, the shelf with Claude's sauces and condiments, the coffee maker and coffee beans, the huge jars with odd-looking liquids --- like kids in a candy store, we didn't know which one to look at first!
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| The overhead lighting really got my attention. Table is cleverly arranged with conversation pieces. A sorbetes (or ice cream) cart is something we couldn't resist playing with. |
From the entrance of the office came a cheerful voice, "Hi, with which group are you?" Without even glancing at her, we knew instantly that she's Mary ann.
I walked towards her and replied, "Hi, I'm Senyorita Lakwatsera, the troublesome vegetarian." I apologized for making them go through all the trouble of preparing vegetarian dishes for me, but Mary ann quickly dismissed my apology, saying they welcomed the challenge.
She asked why I decided to go vegetarian and if I mind if other people eat meat in front of me. After a brief explanation about my reasons, I also told them that, except for squid balls, which the very scent could send me salivating like one of Pavlov's dogs, I don't mind if they would eat meat nor do I crave for it. Claude claimed squid balls are ok to eat as they're mostly made of starch than squid! (Hmm...soon, I know my resistance for squid balls will break and i would engorge on it!) We all talked a bit more about Bale Dutung itself and food, food, food, before the other groups started coming in.
She asked why I decided to go vegetarian and if I mind if other people eat meat in front of me. After a brief explanation about my reasons, I also told them that, except for squid balls, which the very scent could send me salivating like one of Pavlov's dogs, I don't mind if they would eat meat nor do I crave for it. Claude claimed squid balls are ok to eat as they're mostly made of starch than squid! (Hmm...soon, I know my resistance for squid balls will break and i would engorge on it!) We all talked a bit more about Bale Dutung itself and food, food, food, before the other groups started coming in.
We walked around the garden --- the improvised garden fogger built around the silong blew cool mists; the hammocks were enticing, perfect place to have siesta after a nice lunch; the huge, imposing tree at the corner provided an aura of intrigue --- like it's been lifted from the earlier versions of Shake, Rattle, Roll; the crown of tree shaded a vast area, the rustling leaves a precursor to the refreshing breeze that welcomed us.
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| Photo by Yaj of sightsandspices.blogspot.com |
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| Kapre, a Philippine mystical creature, playing a bamboo flute (Photo by Yaj of sightsandspices.blogspot.com) |
By the small pond is a sculpture of the Kapre, a mythical creature of Filipino Folklore, which is described as over 8 feet tall, with a body of a man but a head of horse; but instead of smoking a cigar, like how it's often portrayed, this one is playing a bamboo flute!
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| One of the four kitchens at Bale Dutung. See that brick oven? Pretty neat, huh? |
We walked towards the back of the house, where the one of the four kitchens are. This is, again, a place where one could get lost with pieces that you just want to touch and look at closely. We also got inside Claude's gallery, where his paintings and pieces of art, as well as the signature of the big names in Philippine Visual Arts are displayed.
We were even lucky enough to explore even the upper-level of Bale Dutung! After the 4-hour lunch, as I passed one of the servers on my way from the office, he asked me if I want to join the other group who went upstairs. How could anyone refuse the chance to take a peek into their home?
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| Bale Dutung Veranda (Photo by Yaj of sightsandspices.blogspot.com) |
The veranda provides the best seat to survey the garden. Bench and cushions are ideal for siesta or curling up with a good book, or better yet, with a hunky guy!! Inside, I was just so amazed with more precious items to look at. The ceiling, reminiscent of old churches from whence they came from; the "rocking" bench; Claude's private kitchen; the aquamarine abstract glass sculpture on the corner table that could only be Ramon Orlina's; the floor-to-ceiling wooden cabinet that houses hundreds of books; the floor that Claude got from an old bowling alley...Ahh!!! The upper level is just a whole new tale that I will reserve for another day! By the time we decided to leave Bale Dutung, we were the only group left!
(Tale is continued here: Bale Dutung Part 2)
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