Taste of the Marianas 2008

All traces of the usually-quiet American Memorial Park grounds were gone and the whole place was turned into a beehive of non-stop activities as the 10^th annual Taste of the Marianas International Food Festival and Beer Garden kicked off with much pomp on Saturday night.

The smell of the scrumptious and delectable food wafting from the different booths were enough to tantalize one’s taste buds the moment they step into the clearing which has been transformed into one huge village-type restaurant, and the visitors doesn’t need prodding to purchase tokens to avail of the wonderful spread all within their arm’s reach.

Here is one event nobody should miss. It’s that once-a-year affair when the island’s top chefs from the top hotels and restaurants go out from the confines of their kitchens and show themselves to the public to prepare delectable and affordable food.

It’s one of those rare nights in a year where locals, tourists and people from all walks of life rub elbows with each other and share in the fun and laughter as they sample and share the island’s diversity of culinary showcase.

Free entertainment from local artists and performers added sizzle to the festive event that is characterized by the unique warmth and hospitality in the island.

Guests had the chance to sample the widest array of local food and flowing drinks by hopping from stall to stall and partook of the specialties offered by this year’s participating vendors.

And for the night’s bestsellers:

Hyatt Regency Saipan: Chicken pajetas and the Shawarma, which made its debut to the island made an instant hit with the guests.

Aqua Resort Club: Beef Tinaktak, flat bread pockets with beef and Tinian hot peppers

3’s Hula Girl: Native delicacies and sweets

Ty & Tia: Pearl shakes, fruit mixes and chillers

Herman’s Modern Bakery: Double chocolate Oreo cake which disappeared in no time at all

Hafadai Beach Hotel: Barbeque, sushi and Oden, a Japanese delicacy consisting fish cake, raddish, eggs and garnish.

Pacific Islands Club: Banana crepes- fried banana rolled in lumpia wrapper and garnished with grapes, strawberry, cream and syrup.

Tony Roma’s Capricciosa: Pizza and rice croquette, a fried ball consisting of rice, green peas and stuffed mozzarella cheese dipped in savory meat sauce.

Saipan Grand Hotel and Fiesta Resort: Chinese and Korean combo

Thai House: Five choices of vegetable and seafood menu

D’ Elegance Café: Typical Filipino dishes and the ever-present pork lechon and dinuguan

Mariana Resort & Spa: Mixed serving of international taste from Mexican burritos, Chinese spring rolls and others.

World Resort: Tasty barbeque and other dishes

Palms Resort Saipan: Teppan-yaki and a set menu of three choices

Poon’s Restaurant: Chinese cuisine

Nothern Marianas Bartenders Association: Never-ending orders of all drinks, beers, Carlsberg, and Mangorita which for four tokens, you can avail of a tall, iced glass of fresh green mango juice with sugar and a shot of tequila.

Food lovers who flocked to have a taste of the local and international dishes and flowing drinks went home sated yet craving for more. The Taste of the Marianas is one of the much-anticipated events in the CNMI. The event is a chance to lose yourself in the “food and drink wonderland” for the four Saturdays for the month. Don’t miss it!

Of paved roads and heaps of twisted metal

The grumbling of my stomach and the sudden build-up of traffic brought me almost to the edge of irritation as the car I was riding rolled to a complete stop near a busy intersection at the Middle Road last week. Traffic very rarely build up in this island where the paved roads are so wide it practically takes forever if you want to cross to the other side.

It was two o’clock, I had to write my stories and rush on to another interview in a couple of hours. Waiting for almost an hour for somebody to pick me up from the wharf where I inhaled all the smoke and dust from the container trucks did nothing but to cool my rising irritation.

I craned my neck to check what caused the traffic when a few cars up I saw four wheels sticking out in the air from something which looked like an SUV. Instinctively, I fished out my camera and dashed out of the car as I instructed the driver to wait for me at the next street. Forgetting the heat, I ran towards the vehicle which seemed to be tired of running and decided to lie on the road. At the shoulder of the road beside the overturned SUV was a white Toyota Sienna van with a crashed windshield. In front of it, a woman with bloodied knees was talking to a policeman. But there was more to see.

A few meters down across the road, a white Ford FISO pickup had plunged into the drainage after colliding with a Toyota Echo, trapping the passenger of the Toyota inside the car. I kept pressing the shutter, having the side of the road all to myself because in this island, people don’t flock to the accident site and block traffic. Everybody stays a safe distance away.

Judging from the positions of the cars I could not understand who hit whom, or whose fault it was. What I know was that my knees were shaking as I surveyed the shards of broken glass and car parts scattered on the street and blamed it on the advent of modernization. I began to think that if the roads were not that paved and wide, cars would have run more slowly and accidents won’t happen.

It was gross to think that in a split of a second, four shiny and expensive cars were reduced to a sorry-looking heap of distorted and bloodied scraps of metal. Luckily, all the drivers and passengers sustained just minor wounds, thanks to the strict implementation of seatbelt rules. I had been in the island for two weeks and it was the second road accident I had witnessed, the other one involving three cars.

I have learned to buckle my seatbelt every time I ride not because of the $25 fine if a police catches you without strapping one, but because drivers in this island doesn’t seem to recognize the words “Slow Down”.

Ah, how I miss Davao and its small and crowded single-lane streets. I wouldn’t mind choosing the narrow roads with pot-holes and one-inch distances from one car to another. It is ironic but I feel comfortable in not having to bother with seatbelts (they don’t have any, anyway) every time I ride a car to anywhere. What a price modernization has to pay!

(For more articles, please visit www.raquelcuaresma.multiply.com/blogs)

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