Ibyang

Elizabeth Gilbert – Life After Eat Pray Love (January 2013)

5 July 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 2 Comments Category: Aussie Life, Charmed Life of a Mrs, Cherished Memories, Deep Thoughts

This month, “A Wife’s Charmed Life“ is celebrating its 6th birthday in the blogosphere. I sometimes look back at the journeys this blog has taken and I always wonder in awe at how much it has grown and how much I’ve grown too as person. So as a gift to my beloved readers, let me share a special moment that happened on my birthday six months ago: attending Elizabeth Gilbert’s talk at the Sydney Opera House where I also got to meet her.

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Elizabeth “Liz” Gilbert is intelligent, funny and endearing. Her aura illuminates with such positive energy. Listening to her talk about her life and advices when it comes to following one’s passion was a very inspiring experience.

I love Liz Gilbert. Her book Eat Pray Love brought a lot of sense to me and thru it I learned the missing link in my life then which was the value of balance. It was a dream come true to see her and learn a lot from her stories.

The best part was I got to meet her too! She did this talk three days before my birthday in January this year and it was one of best gifts the Universe has ever given to me. When we met, she complimented me that I have a beautiful name (she referred to Ivy) and then greeted me a “Happy birthday!” when I mentioned that she is fate’s birthday gift to me. It was so surreal!

Elizabeth Gilbert, Life After Eat Pray Love (January 2013)

Here she is signing my old Eat Pray Love book. 🙂

I’m sharing a video of her talk at the Sydney Opera House below. It’s lengthy but it’s worth your time. However, if you have no time to watch just yet, here are some things I learned from Liz Gilbert’s talk:

On her life:

Writing is her only talent, she does it good and had always been her path.

She’s experienced life in Wyoming as a ranch girl.

She’s gullible…she easily believes in everything.

She enjoys the company of men as men are more interesting.

She describes herself as an introvert trapped in an extrovert body.

On writing

When writing, one should have a particular person/audience directed to .

On writing Eat Pray Love

It was a letter to her friend Darcy.

It’s her most intimate book as it is her story but she had no regrets writing it, it is a great blessing to her life.

The best thing that has happened during her journey was the 4 months she spent in India as she finds a peace resolution to herself.

On overcoming that judgemental voice

Be more stubborn to that voice; quiet that voice so your own voice will come out.

Be kind to yourself and forgive yourself.

Push hard, be relentless because it has to be done.

On making your dreams come true

Anything challenging is worth doing.

It is your passion, it is your responsibility.

Stop complaining.

On empowering women

We as women need to constantly be realistic perspective on how far we’ve come in such a short time.

Relax and don’t be hard on yourself.

It doesn’t help when society dictates what women should do etc. but there are new freedoms.

(source)

Last year, the universe gifted me with Roger Federer. This year, it was Liz Gilbert. Words cannot express how much I’m truly grateful for these inspiring encounters. Moments like these will always warm my heart.

Book: Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

The Australian Open 2012 Experience

Back From Melbourne

Our 6th Anniversary

A Happy Ibyang Day!

When Tuyo Is On The Table, It’s Love

4 July 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 4 Comments Category: Food

One fine Friday when I had my usual stop over at the Asian Supermarket, my foodie heart skipped a beat when I saw frozen-packed dried fish (Tuyo) imported from the Philippines. The Tuyo lover in me grabbed a pack and right there and then changed whatever dinner plans we had and told the Husband, “We are having Tuyo for dinner!”

Now here’s what I do to lessen the fishy smell in our home whenever I cook Tuyo:

At home, I filled our oil burner with new oil and lighted all the scented candles we had at home to counter (or at least lessen) the fishy smell that these yummy tuyo will generate while I cook them. Once all scented candles were lit, I fried them as fast as I could. My trick is to fry them in an almost high heat and cover the pan while frying them. Once I’m done cooking, I clean up the stove and kitchen counters and walls so they won’t smell like fish and spray some air freshener. As soon as the frying pan is cold, I immediately wash them.

A favourite siding to Tuyo are tomatoes and boiled eggs. Some people eat them with salted eggs. Since the Tuyo is already salty on its own, I just boil eggs, slice them up and combine them with tomatoes.

If there are no frozen Tuyo available in Asian supermarkets, I almost always have a bottle of Gourmet Tuyo at home so when the craving for Tuyo hits, we can readily have it in whatever meal of the day. Having a bottled Tuyo is very handy and versatile . Sometimes we enjoy it with Champorado (Chocolate Rice Porridge) for breakfast.

I also make pasta dishes with my bottled Tuyo. It’s so easy. Just saute the Tuyo in oil, garlic and tomatoes, add a bit of seasoning and voila! You have a tasty, healthy meal that only took less than 20 minutes to prepare.

Whenever we vacation in Manila, my parents always make sure we get to eat Tuyo at home. They’d always get us Danggit from Cebu. I love Danggit! It’s one of my favourite kind of Tuyo. I didn’t have a proper photo of the Danggit we ate but below is one where I took a photo of my breakfast at home. Although the Bacon took most of the frame (and in focused too!), the Danggit was equally enjoyed. I remember dipping it in vinegar and it was sooo yum!

When in Manila, there is always an abundance of foodie gifts from friends and we deeply appreciate all of their thoughtfulness. One of the foodie gifts we got were these little dried fish from Bicol. It was perfect with fried rice and salted egg and tomatoes.

There’s something about eating Tuyo that gives me and the Husband so much comfort. It’s a humble dish that brings a certain warmth to our hearts and home while we enjoy eating it together. Maybe because it reminds us of our home in Manila, our childhood, of times spent eating it with family or when we’d have beach outing with friends. Whatever the reason is, when Tuyo is on the table, it’s love.

Foodie Love In A Bottle of Gourmet Tuyo

Cookie Butter Spreads

2 July 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 3 Comments Category: Food

I learned about cookie butter spreads via instagram photos, specifically from IGers in the Philippines. It has become sought-after that it’s being sold at expensive prices. One of the famous brands being sold in Manila is the Trader Joe’s Cookie Butter and though I came across it in Rockwell, I didn’t buy it because I found the cost unreasonably expensive.

I mentioned the cookie butter spread to a friend who was about to go to America for a holiday. However, when she got there, all three Trader Joe’s branches she went to were sold out on the cookie butter. According to one of the owners, a lot of Filipinos hoard the cookie butters. So instead of the TJ Cookie Butter, my friend brought home the original cookie butter spread made from Belgium, Lotus Biscoff Spread (a.k.a. cookie butter).

On the other hand, I discovered that we can also get Lotus Cookie Butter spreads here in Australia via the online store: DutchStore.com.au (thanks to an IGmate for the tip!) So I went online and got ourselves a bottle of each: Lotus Speculoos, Lotus Speculoos with Chocolate and Duo Penotti.

We have tried all three and all were good-tasting spreads. The Speculoos spread tastes like the real cookie butter wherein I can very much taste the cinnamon and nutmeg. I like the Speculoos spread enough to have it once in a while and alternate it with other spreads. I’ve learned a tip to put it in pancakes and oatmeals so maybe one day I’ll try that too.

The Speculoos with Chocolate tastes exactly like a cookie butter dipped in chocolate. I ordered this in the hopes that the Husband will like it because he’s a choco-holic, however, he wasn’t impressed with this spread. He said it wasn’t chocolate-y enough. It seemed okay with me though, me being an average chocolate lover.

Because of this Speculoos phenomenon in the Phils, I realized we have a very boring selection of spreads at home. For years, it has always been just peanut butter, strawberry jam and Nutella for us.

I’m glad we got to try these Speculoos spreads. We weren’t blown away by it but we appreciate being able to try other spreads for a change. This also got me thinking to have a look out for different spreads available in cafes here. You’ll know know, right? I might just find a delicious spread that our home will love.

Discovered Inspirations: The Happy Quote Book (And My Thoughts On Being Happy)

1 July 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 2 Comments Category: Charmed Life of a Mrs, Deep Thoughts, Discovered Inspirations

Happy 1st day of July, everyone!

Let’s start the second half of the year with a cheerful post, shall we?

I discovered this book at kikki.K early this year and the first thing I thought of was to get a few pieces to give to friends. I have always believed that happiness felt from within should always be shared with the people you hold dearly. As much as I would love to give a copy of this book to everyone I love, well, some of them would have to wait (haha!) because I can’t afford to give each one a copy–yet.

The HAPPY Quote Book is a compilation of quotes on Happiness interpreted thru wonderful artworks and illustrations. It also includes a fold-out poster which you can frame and hang on your wall.

Here are a few of my favourite Happy Quotes and a bit of comments from me:

Think happy thoughts.

_MG_26Discovered Inspirations: The Happy Book82

Most times, it’s the little everyday things that give us a joy.

This quote supports my belief that happiness should come from within us. The pursuit of happiness must start in us and we should never depend on someone else or some things to make us happy.

A quote from a famous song which I love. One of the recipients of the books I gave out took a photo of this quote via instagram and tagged me. I was very touched by my friend’s gesture.

Dedicated to the love of my life.

I always relate happiness to gratitude. I believe that being happy is appreciating the blessings we have ALL the time. It’s like seeing rainbows of opportunities in a sea of challenges. And I also believe that as long as there are things to be grateful for, there is no reason to be unhappy.

Happiness is a choice.

I love this book! It’s inspiring and fun (because of its adorable illustrations) at the same time. A pocketful of reminders to live a life filled with happiness and inspiration.

The Happy Quote Book is available at kikki.K.

Related Posts:
My Affirmation Today (Focus on Happy Thoughts)
Discovered Inspirations: 10 Ways To Be Happy

Where I Buy Filipino Longganisa In Sydney Metro

25 June 2013 Ibyang Sanchez 2 Comments Category: Aussie Life, Food

I’ve very fond of eating Longganisa (Filipino sausage) that everytime I’m in Manila, my Mom makes sure that the household has enough Longganisas to feed me all throughout my stay. She also makes an effort of buying different kinds such as the ones from Vigan, Lucban, and Caloocan.

When we moved here, I learned how to do it but I was never patient enough making them (I’m more inclined to make Tocino). I once settled buying the frozen ones imported from the Philippines (they’re available in Asian supermarkets) but I long for Longganisa made fresh and available from the butcher.

During one of my usual visits at my “suking” butcher, I found that they’re selling Filipino Longganisa! Wow!!! I immediately asked him if they were made them by a Filipino and he confirmed with a smile. Since then I’ve been coming back to our butcher not just for the usual meat products that we need but also for my beloved Filipino Longganisa.

This Longganisa I found tastes very similar to the Filipino Longganisa that my Mom buys in Caloocan. The only difference is it’s not as sweet but the taste is really Pinoy, a balance of sweet, salty and peppery taste. The good thing about it too is that it’s not laden with food colouring.

If you’re a Filipino in Sydney Metro craving for Longganisa, check them out at Good Luck Butcher Shop, located at Good Luck Plaza Blacktown. The Longganisas are not available everyday so I suggest you call them first (02-9261-6696).

The Longganisas are priced at 9.99 a kilo.