Now I understand why balikbayans bring home comfort foods back to wherever they’re going, even if it is available for sale. With other friends abroad who are back home recently, we shared experiences and stories what we bring back to wherever from home. I usually don’t bring anything since I can buy them here anyway. So I was also back home recently, but I deprived myself of the comfort foods I used to eat. I only ate foods truly homegrown which i cant find here like bamboo shoots, cassava/kamote leaves, grated santol, string beans etc and everything in fresh coconut milk (yuuuum!!!), and organic. That explains why i gained 8kg in a month not to mention my constant drinking of beer, rum colas and all sort of liquor since the day I arrive til the day I left! Now that I am back I am craving for foods I deprived myself of, dried fish: dilis, tinapa, badi also maalat na itlog, and pansit bato. Those are the foods I love to eat in the morning or anytime of the day in the absence of proper lunch food or snacks. I managed to bring pansit bato so thats minus 1 from my list of cravings today. So i got up from my bed, took a 100 bill from my wallet, grab my sunglasses and off I go to the filipino store.
I was surprised to find out that less than a hundred grams of dilis cost $2.50, 100g dangit costs $4, 150g tuyo costs $1.90 and tinapa ( in this presentation was a medium sized mackerel ) costs $2.50 also. I buy before but I never knew the prices compared back home for the same costs a lot less, and the taste is beyond compare! Though surprised I bought them anyway. I am craving.
If i have managed to bring these comfort foods, for the same prices I will be able to bring large quantities to supply my cravings for a month! So yeah, next time I will travel back home, I will travel light. I will not bring lots of clothes like I usually do. So upon my return to wherever, my 20kg luggage will all be filled with all the ka-pinoyan lurking inside my palate.
So tara, have breakfast with me (well it’s lunch already)! I have pansit bato. :-)