{"id":6615,"date":"2017-11-19T04:00:35","date_gmt":"2017-11-19T12:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/?p=6615"},"modified":"2017-11-19T08:19:05","modified_gmt":"2017-11-19T16:19:05","slug":"halo-halo-especial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/writing\/halo-halo-especial\/","title":{"rendered":"Halo-halo Especial"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The main characters in the novel I’m writing are a husband and wife. I’ve set the scene for them in lots of different places. They talk and fight in the car and at the beach. They talk and laugh and cry in the kitchen, dining room, and bedroom of their Manila apartment. They talk on the phone, and they go out to eat, together and with friends. That gives me a chance to write about food.<\/p>\n

Like most cities around the world, Manila\u2019s restaurants serve a variety of cuisines. So far my characters have talked and argued over eggs and pancakes at McDonalds. They\u2019ve invited guests to a Spanish restaurant where they ordered paella Valenciana<\/em> and sangria. When their electricity went out, they had Japanese food at a hotel restaurant.<\/p>\n

Now they\u2019re about to stop for a snack. And I can think of no better snack to go with the serious conversation I have in store for them than halo-halo especial.<\/em> Unfortunately, a full description of halo-halo isn’t going to fit into the narrative of my novel, so I thought I’d write about it here.<\/p>\n

Halo-halo<\/em> (meaning mix-mix) allows for many variations. This is the way I remember it. They serve it to you in a tall, old-fashioned soda shoppe glass, the kind with a pedestal. If you ask for especial,<\/em> it comes with a scoop of ice cream on top\u2014mango or ube being the favorites. Through the glass, you can see crushed ice over messy layers of colorful, exotic ingredients.<\/p>\n

The whole concoction requires some stirring with a long spoon. It\u2019s up to the customer how much he or she wants to stir it and whether to eat the ice cream first or stir it in.<\/p>\n

Here are some of the ingredients you might find in the messy, colorful layers at the bottom:<\/p>\n