Today in the Philippines, it is declared a National Day of Mourning.

Yesterday, it’s kind of a bit weird to wake up with two news headlines – Venus Raj bagging the 4^th runner up title in Miss Universe pageant and then the hostage drama in Manila which took the lives of 8 tourists.

How should one ordinary Filipino feel about these events?

So many things have been said, almost everyone had expressed their views and opinions. Whilst we Filipinos – those in the Philippines and the rest of us across the globe, have to face the doubts, discrimination, disappointment, mockery and perhaps hatred of some, this is one moment where we can truly show who we truly are as a people and as a nation. Allow me to borrow the words of Kris Aquino in one of her interviews, ‘The brutality of one man does not speak of who we are as a nation.’

Remember that it is every person’s right to condemn what happened in Luneta last Monday, but that is not enough to denounce our country and the rest of our countrymen just because of that.

There are lapses in the way the hostage taking was handled – our government has duly acknowledged and apologized for those shortcomings. There are government officials who were expected to execute their duties in a more appropriate and tactical way than what they have done – our government has already started relieving those responsible from their duties. Our people have shown their sympathies, our people are also hurting.

I have seen in the television the sister of the hostage taker where she asked for forgiveness on behalf of their whole family.

I have seen masses offered for the victims and their families.

I have seen the caskets of the victims draped in white, with flowers and a note from Filipino nation asking for forgiveness.

A high level delegation, headed by no less than the Vice President of the Philippines will be sent to Hongkong and Beijing to personally express our condolences and provide initial reports on what truly happened during that fateful day.

I guess, the bottomline is – we are taking accountability on what happened and I believe that’s what truly matters. We are a nation who knows how to bow down our heads, not because of shame, but because of sincere sympathy.

Today, I went to the Philippine Embassy in London and though I know that it will already be closed by the time I reach their office, I still went. I want to see our Philippine Flag in half-mast, as Philippine embassies all over the world are asked to also observe this day of national mourning.

In the midst of chill and rain, to show my solidarity to everyone back home and all OFWs who might be suffering from silent persecution, I stood in front of our flag and silently offered prayers for the victims, their families, but most of all for my beloved Philippines.

Today, I walked 3 miles just to have a single shot of espresso.

I am supposed to travel outside the city and grace a house warming invitation of a friend. But, I didn’t go. Instead, I just stayed home and welcomed the idea of doing something random, simple, unplanned and hopefully exciting. I was browsing Facebook and I saw a little ad that says, ‘365 things to do in London’. I clicked the ad and it brought me to a website where it lists places in London that are not usually featured in tourist guides and magazines.

No. 1 in the list – Monmouth. Promoted as having some of the best beans in London. I don’t really have a craving for coffee. The pre-requisite of me having one is either it is shared with a friend over a nice conversation or I am trapped somewhere and have to kill time then I will have a cup while reading a book. But today, I will pretend that I love caffeine.

I checked Monmouth’s website – I read the story behind the coffee beans, about the company’s operations and the more I read, the more I am eager to go to their shop. Each of their coffee beans has a story and I wanted to experience and be part of that story. So, I checked google map to find where it is. It says it is 1.5 miles from where I live and around 30mins walk. Easy peasy. Ready, steady, off I went. It took me almost an hour to reach the place (as I also pretended to be a tourist and tried to stop once in awhile and look around). The Monmouth shop is within the Borough market area so I got distracted because there were so many delicacies from different parts of Europe. There was also a pub across the coffee shop, bursting with people having alcohol – for a moment, I thought, should it be a shot of tequila or a shot of espresso? I recovered quickly and remembered my real purpose why I was there. 😉

I have seen the queue at Starbucks during weekday mornings but I have not seen a coffee shop as busy as this:

They have the usual selections of coffee but as what my Italian friend once said, real proper coffee is espresso. I queued, ordered my coffee and weird as it may sound, I felt extremely excited. The place was so busy that I decided to close my eyes while taking the espresso so I will be able to savour the taste and let my taste receptor cells give an objective verdict. An hour to get there and just less than a minute to enjoy the coffee – but it’s all worth it.

Like an espresso, there are great things that happen in our lives that cannot be enjoyed for long. But, it will leave something within you. Whatever that something is, lock it safely in your memory. After today’s experience, what lies between me and coffee will never be the same as it used to be.

Today, I cooked adobo.

I met a new friend yesterday. We went to a nice restaurant along the River Thames overlooking Tower Bridge. Whilst the place and the menu are excellent, he would, in several instances, mention how he loves Filipino food. If only I know a nice, decent Filipino restaurant in London, I would have probably offered to bring my new Argentinian-cum-Italian-religious-brother-friend there right away.

For more than 5 hours, our conversations travelled across the world. From Vatican to Peru to China – talking about literature, history, languages, theater, food, people and of life in general.  But he did ask me one personal question – ‘Adnelle, do you know how to cook?’.

I answered reluctantly, ‘No, but if and when needed, I can put something together.’ He then told me that he thinks I can cook, I just have to believe that I can.

So today, when I woke up, remembering the challenged I was given by my new friend last night, plus after starving myself the whole week, I decided I will prepare something. The safest dish to try is, what else but every Filipino’s favourite – Adobo.

I think there are 3 important ingredients in discovering what and how well we can do something – 1) a pinch of courage to at least try; 2) a spoonful of enthusiasm to do it with fun and not be afraid of failing; and 3) a cup of openness where you let others either affirm or criticize you.

We agreed to meet again soon, before he flies back to Rome – I will probably offer to cook and offer him a menu of Filipino dishes. We’ll see.