Anything Potted: In Bhutan and in Capalonga

Posted on September 2, 2007
Filed Under Fun, Information, Pinoy Moms Network, Travel | Viewed 1440 times

Today, the first Monday of the month (and every first Monday of the month thereafter, Pinoy Moms Network members share photos through the Fam Pics project. This month’s theme is Anything Potted. Here are my 2 entries.


See the pots and pans above? They are part and parcel of a typical home and a typical roadside restaurant in Bhutan. As you can see, they still use wood to cook their food. Yes, this is in Bhutan. I had the chance to visit Bhutan three times in my lifetime. Each visit is unforgettable, once in a while, I got the experience a waylaid life, a quiet, simple life, amidst the pristine beauty of the country.

The Kingdom of Bhutan is a country nestled in the Eastern Himalayas. Visitors and guests in Bhutan will be surprised that the culture and traditional lifestyle in Bhutan is still richly intact and at the degree to which it permeates all strands of modern day secular life. The country has consciously adopted a controlled tourism and development policy to safeguard its rich and natural environment and culture. As of 2004, only 9,000 visitors have entered the kingdom, and the numbers in the coming years are not expected to increase greatly (they currently receive 5,000 visitors a year).

Trivia: Instead of Gross National Product it uses Gross National Happiness to measure posterity.

This is the altar in the Chinese Chapel in Capalonga, Camarines Norte. The Capalonga Festival, an annual celebration is held every May 11-12 honoring the feast day of the Black Nazarene. It draws people of Chinese descent to this small town to seek favors for an auspicious business climate. A series of masses are held both in the Chinese Chapel and in the Main Church during the festival, and processions are held around the main streets of the town.

See the potted plants and flowers that surround the altar? Next year, I will go back for a pilgrimage, let me also see again the simple but beautiful potted plants and flowers, reflective of the simple but beautiful hearts of the people who gather around the chapel year in and year out.

Trivia: I heard that every year, during the festival, a large number of buses would park in Lawton, to ferry pilgrims, for free to Capalonga and back to Manila, courtesy of the rich Chinese and Taiwanese (both from the mainland and those from the country) who have earned graces through the intercession of the Black Nazarene. True enough, I saw a lot of Chinese and Taiwanese devotees, and people from all walks of life in this small sleepy town. And yes, the airconditioned buses were there, waiting for the people who would like to go back to Manila.

Here are some more “potted” posts from fellow sexy Pinays:
he other moms who participated in the FamPics

  1. Julie’s flowers

  2. Raqgold’s Potted Memory

  3. Cookie’s different kind of pot alt=:” class=”wp-smiley” />

  4. KK’s indoor and outdoor pots

  5. Rach’s Flowers and a Smile

  6. Lynn’s Pot Shots

  7. Lady Cess’ The Best Tea

  8. Feng’s Tagaytay Pics

  9. Analyse’s Life isn’t easy being a nomad

  10. Purple Girl’s Coffee Alamid

  11. Mitch’s very edible photos

  12. Vicky’s Potted Fruits and Vegetables

  13. Auee’s From one pot to another

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Comments

28 Responses to “Anything Potted: In Bhutan and in Capalonga”

  1. lady cess on September 4th, 2007 7:49 am

    waa! di ako nakahabol.

    GNH. i think the philippines has a high GNH :) thanks for the intersting info about Bhutan. learned something new today :)

  2. Kongkong622 on September 4th, 2007 8:46 am

    interesting pics, dine. bhutan is one place i’d like to see. remember we were talking about it when we had dinner :)

    may project kami dyan sa capalonga!! haven’t been there, though. but my dad said it was nice daw. maraming ginto dyan :)

  3. Rach on September 4th, 2007 9:10 am

    Hi Dine. Interesting pictures. I like the trivia part. Gross National Happiness … I like the sound of that.

    I’ve never been to any of those two. It must be a pleasure to travel to many wonderful places.

  4. jun on September 4th, 2007 9:16 am

    How do you measure GNH?

  5. lady cess on September 4th, 2007 9:41 am

    yippeee! thanks dine!

  6. carlotta on September 4th, 2007 10:15 am

    maybe bhutan is one of the most peaceful countries in the world. i haven’t read/heard about the country since i read about it in the encyclopedia (yup i read those for fun as a kid ;D) thanks for the info!

  7. feng on September 4th, 2007 5:47 pm

    what a traveler you are! interesting photos for the PMN FamPic’s theme potted.

    lucky you for having been in Bhutan for three times. and the photo above certainly capture what life in Bhutan is all about. :) like Rach and Cess, I’d definitely agree with the GNH.

    and the altar at Capalonga, it definite reflects the Chinese atmosphere esp. highlighted by the wooden furniture behind, it has carvings like what can be seen in a Chinese temple. and the terracotta pots behind it too added more Chinese details.

  8. raqgold on September 5th, 2007 3:21 am

    interesting facts, sexymom!

  9. francesca on September 5th, 2007 4:18 am

    thats interesting,mom dina.

    Nakikibisita laang, nasa akin ang pc today, hehehe;
    siya, bisita ka uli sa blog ko, if feel tumawa hanggang sumakit ang panga! see you there!

  10. Belle on September 5th, 2007 2:01 pm

    dine, in the province where i came from, most people still prefer wood over gas for cooking because it is a lot cheaper.

    i miss the deadline again for Fam pics.

  11. julie on September 5th, 2007 9:17 pm

    Interesting places and interesting trivia. Thanks for sharing these, Dine!

  12. Lynn on September 5th, 2007 10:02 pm

    I wonder what’s the GNH of the Philippines. :) I like that slice of life photo in Bhutan. They say cooking using wood makes the food tastes better.

  13. teacherjulie.com » PinoyMomsNetwork Fam Pics: Potted on September 7th, 2007 1:11 am

    [...] Dine’s anything potted in Bhutan and Capalonga [...]

  14. the best tea | occupation: SAHM on September 7th, 2007 7:15 am

    [...] Dine’s anything potted in Bhutan and Capalonga Posted in life’s pleasures, parenthood RSS 2.0 | Trackback | Comment [...]

  15. Fam Pics: The Ceramic Fondue Pot » Touched by an Angel » on September 7th, 2007 7:19 am

    [...] Dine’s anything potted in Bhutan and Capalonga [...]

  16. SOMETHING POTTED IN TAGAYTAY, THE BAHAY KUBO, AND TOM’S WORLD « From Dawn Till Dusk on September 7th, 2007 9:59 am

    [...] Dine’s anything potted in Bhutan and Capalonga [...]

  17. analyse on September 7th, 2007 4:23 pm

    GNH! if only all countries use the same measure to evaluate posterity no?

  18. auee on September 7th, 2007 6:08 pm

    I like the trivia bits most! We could use the GNH instead of GNP ha
    :-)

  19. Rowena on September 7th, 2007 7:41 pm

    Hi Dine, I was going to ask pa naman what’s life like in Bhutan, until I’ve read the rest of this post, thanks for sharing. I’m gonna tell my kids this info…

  20. Domestic Glamor » Archive » FamPic - Potted: Coffee Alamid on September 7th, 2007 10:20 pm

    [...] Dine’s anything potted in Bhutan and Capalonga [...]

  21. KK on September 8th, 2007 11:34 am

    Hi Sexymom,
    Wow! 3 times in Bhutan? You’re one lucky lady! It must have been such an experience to travel there. Thanks for such an informative post on the pots.
    Have a great weekend!

  22. PMN Fam Pics : Potted « When Silence Speaks on September 8th, 2007 3:43 pm

    [...] Dine’s anything potted in Bhutan and Capalonga [...]

  23. chateau on September 8th, 2007 5:46 pm

    Hi Dine! Bhutan is only must-see list of places. I hope to make a pilgrimage to one of the holy Buddhist temples.

    The Filipino-Chinese have a unique “religion”, no? A mix of Buddhism-Taoism-Catholicism. My in-laws have a Sto. Nino statue beside great Budhhas and Toh Ti Kongs.

    Ay, you know of course that I missed this fam pics edition. Despite having lots of potted photos pala in my archives, I was too tired and sleepy to post an entry. :) But am recovered and blog-hopping now!

  24. kimmy on September 9th, 2007 7:54 am

    hmm… bhutan is a very mysterious place to me. hope i can visit the kingdom in the future.

  25. vicky on September 9th, 2007 2:28 pm

    those pots look old but shiny and very clean for a woodfire stove. Now I know more about Bhutan..and those are nice pots and plants and flowers for the Chinese Chapel.

  26. Fam Pics - Potted « GreyMom on September 14th, 2007 9:13 pm

    [...] Dine’s anything potted in Bhutan and Capalonga [...]

  27. clarita on December 21st, 2007 6:07 pm

    hi :) is there a flight from manila to bhutan? if not, what’s the best flight plan to and from manila? Thanks :)

    SexyMom: You have to take the flight from Bangkok!

  28. SOMETHING POTTED IN TAGAYTAY, THE BAHAY KUBO, AND TOM’S WORLD | From Dawn Till Dusk on January 9th, 2008 12:46 pm

    [...] Dine’s anything potted in Bhutan and Capalonga [...]

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