Tuesday 27 March 2012

The 6th Season Has Started - Asparagus Time

  What's this woman doing in this ad for asparagus, I asked the waiter. He said it is a beautiful thing to look at which can compare to that feeling while eating delicious asparagus. Imagine if that will be a photo of a muscular man posing in adoration of a huge asparagus. It won't surely drive that same effect. Or even George Clooney and asparagus...it does not fit somehow. Right?





Sunny days are here again! With it starts what I term the 6th season after winter, spring, summer, fall, Carnival and now Asparagus time from March to June.
We wanted just to have the normal German fav when we saw the offer of this village restaurant for the whole season:
"Spargelschlacht" for 4 Persons for 59.90Euro which includes non-stop eating Asparagus, plate of  potatoes, porkchops, ham, scrambled eggs, turkey steak and a bottle of white wine. Wow! Was tempted to get the especial menu even if we were only two.  We might still do it considering the length of the season of this white gold in German restaurants.

"I stick to asparagus which still seems to inspire gentle thought."  Charles Lamb





Monday 26 March 2012

English Mass in a Filipino Community/Holy Week 2012 Observance





Come to Cologne City every last Sunday of the month if you wish to attend a Holy Mass. The Filipino Community of Cologne holds its monthly mass at the church of St. Michael in Bruesseler Platz every 5 pm with lively community music and entertaining homily.
I like the current prayers of the faithful with some lines like these:
"Inspire our elected officials to build a world of peace and goodness and show concern for the good of all. We pray: Father, listen to our prayers.
Make our love grow deeper every day, so that we may share with others their joys and sorrows.
We pray: Father, listen to our prayers."
For the observance of the Holy Week, the community is inviting faithfuls to join them in the activities below:

Pinoy Semana Santa Schedule 2012
April 1 (Palmsonntag), Mass of the Palm Sunday, 12:45 - St. Winfried Pfarrkiche, Bonn
(Choir-Shalom)

April 05 (Gründonnerstag)
Magdamagang Pabasa ng Pasyon and Opportunities for Confessions and Counselling
Elohim Center, Bonn-Bad Godesberg

April 06 (Karfreitag) Good Friday
Stations of the Cross - 13:00 Uhr in Apolinariskirche, Remagen
Celebration of the Lord's Passion 16:30 Uhr - in St. Winfried Pfarrkiche, Bonn
Siete Palabras (while Confessions are going on)
Veneration of the Cross and Communion (choir Loved Flock)

April 08 (Ostersonntag)
Mass of the Risen Lord
12:45Uhr - St. Winfried Pfarrkiche, Bonn
Special Features: Bridges Choir to sing Halleluia
Easter Fellowship at the Unterkiche after the Mass


Sunday 11 March 2012

Of Food, Women and other Topics











As our traditional gathering to celebrate IWD, International Women's Day, we planned to treat ourselves to a brunch which was changed later on to a dinner to make space for many working women friends. We found a Chinese restaurant specializing in Sichuan food as a venue for this special Meet and Eat on IWD. What we didn't expect was that the restaurant is also catering to Chinese groups of tourists. It will be easy for you to imagine the mood of the place with our circle of women with the equally noisy and hungry tourists but despite our noise and the confusion of the sole waiter, we were able to get our orders and shared the spicy food eventually. One Pinay was reminding the poor waiter named Sonny (whom we were calling with that song, "Sonny, yesterday my life was filled with rain") not to forget that she ordered not a spicy soup while another Pinay was complaining it was not hot enough so please more chilli sauce. The night ended up with another round of coffee and cake inside the main station and with another Eat and Meet (a birthday treat) planning for next Monday.
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Was reading today the local newspaper Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger, and in the Panorama section, I found this column "Die Liste, Wie Kinder heißen," The List, How Children Are Named. The most loved names for children in Germany are Sophie/Sofie for girls and Maximilian for boys according to the "Gesellschaft für deutsche Sprache" (Society for German Language).  The five most loved names are the following:

1. Sophie/Sofie  -  Maximilian
2. Marie - Alexander
3. Maria - Paul
4. Mia - Leon
5. Sophia/Sofia - Ben

(Source: Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger 10./11.März.2012)



Thursday 8 March 2012

Celebrating International Women's Day


Turkish dinner to celebrate International Women's Day. G gave each one of us to read this piece:

Women's Cry: Not free Even in a Name

When we examine the names given to us,
it makes feel down-hearted and degraded.

We call ourselves females,
look closely the males are there.

Know as we women,
but the word men is annexed.

We pride ourselves as being ladies,
look the word begins with lad.

Be on your grand against being called madam,
because it carries the word Adam.

What about being a human,
a bitter pill again, man is still there.

Chairperson is a feminist coinage,
sadly it ends in son.

Even in simple title like Mrs.,
why should it be derived from Mr.

Look at the word mothers,
is made of others,
who are these others, if not men again.

(Author Unknown)