elbi

Los Baños, I just recently found out, is also known as elbi.

In University of the Philippines Los Baños (or elbi) you will see the sunset boulevard.. a strip of towering coconut trees.

At the very entrance you won’t see the customary Oblation of UP, but you will get stone carabaos. As one Elbi alumni puts it.. its an agricultural school afterall.

The ambiance of UPLB is different from UP diliman. Just as laguna is different from quezon city.

They have their own urban legends (there was a certain statue in campus that is said to disappear on certain nights. Also, it was rumored that a serial killer lurks under a certain bridge).  The main diff between UP elbi and dili was.. the spaces in between.  There were more spaces in between structures.. and there was a lot more green.  And the vehicles have not invaded the streets too much.

Baan Thai

The great things I discovered in elbi are the cozy foodie places nearby campus.  I was able to try Baan Thai.  Great find if you love Thai food.  The waitress said that the chef and owner is Thai.  The pad thai was a combustion of green mango slivers… scrambled egg.. crushed peanuts.. flat noodles.. bean stalks.. and that special Thai concoction of vinegary-sour, herby spice which is a tad sweet. 

The cuttlefish (not to be mistaken with cattle-fish.. which has yet to crossbreed).. is an interesting number of.. you guessed right… fried flakes of fish meshed together with crunchy lettuce, paper thin slices of onions, chopped peanuts, and green mango slivers.  It was sour-sweet with the green mango dominating the other flavors. 

I love Baan Thai’s homey ambiance.. we stayed in one of its outdoor nipa huts with a low table… you have to sit on the floor to eat, preferably barefoot to ventilate your usually confined toes.  (make sure however your seatmate doesn’t mind your feet’s smell. And that your seatmate won’t have the urge to hide your discarded shoes just to annoy you).

I am a fan of milk tea.. and I remember Jatujacks and Som’s milk tea.  How does Baan Thai compare?  It’s color is milky pink.. like baby strawberries.. and it mildly tastes of strawberry milkshake. You know.. a little sour but mostly sweet.

Meanwhile in Boston Café

Has a havianas shop inside but the best part is the aircon. Had to admit, the noon heat of the province is more scorching than in the city. The main attraction really was the aircon, the chairs… and the company…  the board games inside the cafe (one of my friends learned scrabble for the first time).  They also had boggle, mastermind, and WIFI.

Sorry I wont be able to tell you  if the coffee is good..but based from the few sips I had. It was nothing spectacular.

So the top three things to remember when exploring elbi?

    1)    Don’t miss the Original Buko pie (we were able to pass by the buko store 7pm, unfortunately closed na at walang buko pie)

    2)   Do travel with friends (it’s one of the places ideal for foodie adventures)

    3)    Remember that by 3pm, the road up to Mt. Makiling’s Philippine High School for the Arts is closed. If that happens, go explore "Pook ni Maria Makling" nearby. It's a nature reserve with accommodations. One of the few places where you can walk on trails and trip over giant roots attached to giant skyscraping trees.. some taller than the buildings of Makati.

(photos courtesy of artist monk and rhea)