Day 177 - Family Feast

We arrived at Cagayan de Oro at 7:00 in the morning, having spent the night on the bus. Cz's Auntie T was already waiting for us with a feast of fish, rice, crabs and shrimp, among other things. So we ate. We ate until almost 10:00, and then went upstairs for a nap. At 12:00 the family arrived. So we ate some more. As stated before, any Filipino party involves a feast. This one was the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Any argument Mr. Luther had against Catholic decadence could be found at this table.

The centerpiece of any feast is the lechon, or whole pig. Cz's family is large, and the Feast of Immaculate Conception is a proper celebration. There were not one, but four lechon. It is a good thing I have decided to eat whatever is presented. This is not the place to be a vegetarian.

I am working my way through the list of Filipino delicacies that Cz says I must try. Everything, with a few exceptions - balut egg - has been delicious. Even better has finally been getting to meet all the family. I am a little dazed trying to keep up with all the names and faces and who belongs to which family, but Cz has been taking pictures, and I'm developing a mental cheat sheet.

The most common question seems to be "When are you going to make Cz's mom a Lola (grandmom)?" Of the 5 sisters, Cz's mom is the only one without grandbabies, and this is quite a sore spot. It seems almost more acceptable here to make grandbabies without a spouse than it does to have a spouse and no grandbabies. Someday, guys. We'll spawn. We promise.