It's been a common sight these days. A plain colored poster with the words "KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON". We've seen parodies including "Keep Calm and Travel On".



But how did the poster come about? Barter Books tells the story.

Nothing spells local like the local market called palengke. The concept of palengke is not foreign to any Filipino. Most of my childhood was spent waiting for my mom to get back from her pamamalengke as it often results to getting the newest Funny Komiks and those one peso snacks.

The La Paz Market in Iloilo definitely offers the local experience. We decided to have our late lunch there straight from Guimaras. We took one jeepney ride from the port straight to the market. You can't really miss it with its big La Paz Market sign.

First stop: Netong's La Paz batchoy

No visit to Iloilo will be complete without la laz batchoy. Real, authentic, sinful la paz batchoy for only Php80.00. The serving will fill you up. We requested that the bowl be split up into two but we still got a generous amount of noodles, liver, chicharon (pork cracklings) and meat.


Next stop: Madge Cafe

A tall glass of iced coffee for 30php? Define cheap! I wish this existed in Makati so I can get my daily caffeine without my wallet suffering. And this, ladies and gentlemen, is way better than those hundred pesos drinks. It has the right mix of sweet and bitter. It is not watery and goes well with puto. You can see locals drinking coffee and reading the newspaper which is a sign that Madge Cafe is loved by locals. There are even customized mugs for their regulars. Madge Cafe has been around since the 1940s and it still serves the best coffee.



Afterwards, we grabbed some grille corn and headed straight to DB's Hometel for an afternoon siesta. So, do you enjoy the palengke too? Any favorite stores?


(all photos taken using my phone)