Why is it called pandesal? 🤔
In this video, we dive into the surprising history behind the Philippines’ most iconic breakfast bread. From its Spanish origins and linguistic evolution to its cultural impact on Filipino homes, discover the full story behind pan de sal — the “bread of salt” that became a symbol of family, comfort, and tradition.
If you grew up waking to the smell of warm pandesal, this deep dive will make you appreciate it even more. 🇵🇭🥖
Timestamps:
0:00 — Introduction
0:50 — History & Origin of the Name
1:51 — How Pandesal Became the Everyday Filipino Bread
2:54 — Cultural Significance and Daily Life
3:54 — Modern Variations and Evolution
4:48 — Linguistic Transformation
5:35 — Economic and Social Impact
6:24 — Modern-Day Appreciation
7:20 — Conclusion
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Friday, November 28, 2025
Coming of age in the Philippines
Photo by Simon Maage/Unsplash
Iam turning 31 soon, and at this point, people might tell me that I am about to be dropped from the calendar—that is, because a calendar month only goes up to 31! At this age, I feel “more adult” than I was at 21, so whenever I look at a 21-year-old, especially pictures of myself at that age, I cannot help but think: “They are still so childlike!”
In times long past, we used to have rituals that distinguished the threshold between child and adult. This is called a “rite of passage,” because a person transitions from one status to another. This means that they get more benefits as part of the adult world, but it also means that they have more responsibilities. Around the time a person turns 18 to 21, they can now buy alcohol and cigarettes, enter a casino, and watch R-rated movies.
But they are usually also expected to get a job, pay taxes, get married, and eventually, start a family. They are expected to be able to make clear decisions. Yes, there are benefits, but also responsibilities.
Meaningful life transitions
Many Indigenous cultures around the world still have their own rites of passage, but for urbanized and globalized people, these rituals have become superficial performances of meaningful life transitions. If anything, many Indigenous traditions are at risk of extinction precisely because of how Westernized we are becoming—through influences from Hollywood and our social media feeds!
Religions have been very consistent with these rites. In Catholicism, the Rite of Confirmation that children go through at age 12 is meant to be a meaningful transition from growing up in a Catholic household to actually accepting Catholicism as their personal faith.
But not everyone is Catholic, and not everyone finds Confirmation meaningful. I was raised Catholic, and, sorry, I do not even remember my own Confirmation.
Filipino rites of passage
So it got me thinking: What are some rites of passage we still practice today? What rituals do we actually do in our modern-day lives that most Filipinos are expected to celebrate? (Though this does not mean that every Filipino will go through it the same way, as there might be some societal pressures to do it.)
First, I immediately think of a girl’s debut in the Philippines, which happens when she turns 18. It’s supposed to celebrate the blossoming of a woman, but this might also reinforce old ideas of “femininity” (pagkababae). Of course, it is also an avenue for a family to showcase their wealth. Imagine all the magnificent debuts you have been to, and think about how much one of those costs—sometimes it can be just as expensive as a wedding!
After all, the suppliers and locations are usually the same. In a way, blowing candles on birthdays is a rite of passage, but this just marks the completion of a year. A debut is the clear transition from child to adult.
But even when we agree that 18 is technically a legal adult, older adults know that it is still too young to start engaging in “adult things.” I cannot think of an equivalent of a debut for boys, even when they turn 21, but I do think of tuli (circumcision) as a rite of passage.
When I was much younger, there was a stigma attached to the uncircumcised (supot), implying that they are ignorant about the ways of the world because of their rawness. Being supot is like being an unripe fruit that still has its covering (“supot” is also the term for a plastic bag). But if we think about the mental, physical, and social development of children, the age of circumcision is too young to actually call them a “man,” and yet, older men will say, “Lalaki ka na!”
Markers of maturity
Apart from these two, most Filipinos might consider graduating a rite of passage, whether that is from senior high school or from college. This is probably because we still hold the idea that education is the key to a good life, and most jobs (even those that do not need the complexity of a college degree) still expect applicants to have graduated from college.
After college, the emerging adult begins to navigate the “real world” by joining the workforce and becoming serious tax-paying members of society.
And yet, writing this as a 30-year-old, I still feel like I did not get a true rite of passage. I was too young to find any meaning in tuli or the Rite of Confirmation, and, as a man, I did not get a debut.
Yes, I graduated from university, and I eventually graduated again after completing my master’s degree. But these are just completions of programs, not necessarily markers of maturity. I had to develop in my own way as I navigated the very strange adult world—what we call “adulting,” which sounds like something you are trying to do, not necessarily something you are doing well.
Maybe this is why so many adults are still “isip bata,” and why many men still carry a very childish, “toxic” masculinity. We need serious rituals—events that really mark a level of maturity and allow people to be functioning, responsible members of a larger society.
For now, most of what we have is very kaniya-kaniya. There are barely any more masters to learn from or meaningful guidebooks that can help us survive and thrive. We need better parental figures—or, since we are the new adults, we must take it upon ourselves to be the adults that would have really helped our younger selves.
Thursday, November 27, 2025
When a parent dies
One becomes a full-fledged grown-up only after a parent dies. This happens no matter how old we already are when one of our parents passes on to the afterlife. Gone are the unrestrained counsel dispensed as reprimands by an ascendant who pays no heed to a descendant’s title, power, or possessions. Gone is the fallback for shelter, money, and advice, when turbulent storms upend our lives. Gone is one of our most ardent fans, who feels most proud during milestones in our lives.
For as long as our forebears are alive, we will always be children in their eyes. We will forever feel like kids in their presence. There may still be a remaining parent who survives in our midst, but without the other, the four-legged chair that has provided support and comfort in our lives would precariously stand on two legs.
My father breathed his last at the ripe age of 87 on Nov. 20. He left behind my 84-year-old mother, his five children, four children-in-law, and 11 grandchildren.
Our father put into practice his agriculture degree by cultivating our modest farm. Our mother served as a public school teacher at the local elementary school that her children attended. Despite our parents’ diligence and industry, they struggled to provide for our needs as a family. As children, we didn’t have the luxuries enjoyed by many of our cousins. Instead, my two brothers and I were exposed to the sun and the elements when we helped our father and our grandfather with farm chores, while our two sisters assisted our mother at home. As the eldest, I personally experienced the kind of hard labor required in the planting, harvesting, and drying of rice and corn. Looking back, the difficulties our father exposed us to have equipped us with grit and determination, which have proved to be the most valuable of all the lessons we gained in life.
Our father did not allow adversities to hinder our dreams. He moved heaven and earth to make us attain our professional aspirations and, in the process, he equipped us with wings to overcome adversities. He tapped the support of sympathetic relatives, he engaged in supplemental means to augment family income, used scholarships, and eventually produced a brood of two lawyers, one doctor, and two nurses, who are now based in America.
Beyond the bits and pieces of him that survive through us, his descendants, what else remains of our father that transcends his death? We have inherited the wealth of friends he accumulated throughout his life. Many of his friends remind us that he was the friendliest person they had met in their lives. They don’t exaggerate. In public transport rides, our father would initiate chats with complete strangers who unsuspectingly sat beside him. Before they reached their destination, our father would have probed his seatmate’s genealogy, would have found out about their problems, would have offered solutions to their tribulations, and would have extracted a commitment for an exchange of visits to their respective homes as if they had been longtime friends.
Another of our father’s traits imprinted in his friends’ minds is his ability to crack jokes and narrate funny stories even under the most serious circumstances. A few days before he died, our father’s worried caregiver started to stroke his forehead when he developed difficulty breathing. My father motioned for his caregiver to come closer and then whispered, “Be careful, my wife gets easily jealous.”
Our father had a huge zest for travel. When he was in his 70s and already using a cane to walk, he suddenly had an urge to visit his friend in Batanes, whom he had last seen in college. He packed a few clothes and boarded one of the small planes that transport passengers between Cagayan and Batanes, refusing to be accompanied. Upon reaching Batanes, his friend’s daughter informed him that her father had already died 15 years earlier. But because he regaled his friend’s family with so many stories about their patriarch, my father was invited to stay, and he was even given a guided tour of the island for several days, all for free.
One time, my father saw a group of World War II veterans preparing to travel to Leyte, where they were to take part in the commemoration of the “Leyte Landing” of liberation forces. With his prematurely white hair and mischief in his mind, he mingled with the veterans and donned a veteran’s vest being distributed to everyone. He managed to board the military cargo plane that transported the veterans to Tacloban City, took part in the celebration, and marched with the veterans, without anyone finding out that he was only 3 years old when the war broke out in our islands.
Farewell, Papa. When I hear thunder in the sky, I will imagine angels laughing hysterically at one of your funny stories.
—————-
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Übersetzerdienste - Translation Services
Even after retiring as German Consul, I am still accredited as a German translator and interpreter for the German, Swiss and Austrian Embassy as well as for Regional Trial Court Davao City and all courts nationwide. Please pm for via doringklaus@gmail.com further information. I'll be answering your messages as soon as possible. Please be patient. Auch nach meiner Pensionierung als deutscher Konsul bin ich weiterhin als deutscher Übersetzer und Dolmetscher für die deutsche, schweizerische und österreichische Botschaft sowie für das Regional Trial Court Davao City landesweit akkreditiert. Für weitere Informationen senden Sie bitte eine PN an doringklaus@gmail.com. Ich werde Ihre Nachrichten so schnell wie möglich beantworten.
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Typical Filipino (XLIV) - Typisch Philippinisch (XLIV): Like beating around the bush - Wie die Katze um den heißen Brei
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Foreigners who like to get straight to the point at hand often wonder about the purpose of a visit at home or in the office when the visitor merely indulges in gentle small-talk banter - a nice conversation that doesn't add to the visit seems to justify. Of course, the visitor has been waiting the entire time for you to offer him an appropriate occasion. to talk about the purpose of his visit by simply asking (after a pleasant atmosphere for conversation has been established): "What can I do for you?" Often the visitor will not mention the reason for his visit at all, but will only blurt out when saying goodbye, as if it had just occurred to him again: Oh yes, something I almost forgot..."
The prolixity and the time-wasting pleasantries are part of a dynamic that revolves around preserving fragile self-respect. HIYA and AMOR-PROPIO depend on manners that protect valuable self-respect from possible harm, and harmonious, smooth interpersonal relationships can ensure this state.
The difference between interpersonal relationships in Western countries and in the Philippines comes from the fact that we resolve conflicts by consciously initiating them, whereas Filipinos resolve conflicts by avoiding confrontation.
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Ausländer, die gern unverzüglich auf den eigentlichen Punkt zu sprechen kommen, wundern sich oft über den Zweck eines Besuches daheim oder im Büro, wenn der Besucher sich lediglich in sanftem Small-Talk-Geplänkel ergeht - eine nette Unterhaltung, die den Besuch aber nicht zu rechtfertigen scheint. Dabei hat natürlich der Besucher während der gesamten Zeit darauf gewartet, daß Sie ihm einen angemessenen Anlaß bieten. über den Zweck seines Besuches zu sprechen, indem Sie etwa (nachdem ein angenehmes Gesprächsklima hergestellt ist) ganz einfach fragen:"Was kann ich für Sie tun?" Oft wird der Besucher den Anlaß seines Besuches überhaput nicht erwähnen, sondern erst beim Abschied, als fiele es ihm gerade wieder ein, herauszuplatzen: Ach ja, was ich fast vergessen hätte..."
Die Weitschweifigkeit und die zeitraubenden Höflichkeiten sind Teile einer Dynamik, die um die Wahrung der zerbrechlichen Selbstachtung kreis. HIYA und AMOR-PROPIO sind auf Umgangsformen angewiesen, die die wertvolle Selbstachtung vor möglichen schaden bewahren, und harmonische, glatte zwischenmenschlichen Beziehungen vermögen diesen Zustand zu sichern.
Der Unterschied zwischen den zwischenmenschlichen Beziehungen in westlichen Ländern und auf den Philippinen rührt daher, daß bei uns Konflikte durch das bewußte Herbeiführen, bei den Filipinos hingegen durch das Vermeiden einer Konfrontation gelöst werden.
Half of Filipinos seen not ready for retirement
Only half of Filipinos feel financially prepared for retirement, even as a broader Asian trend shows that most prioritize quality of life over living longer, according to a survey by Manulife.
In its 2025 Financial Resilience and Longevity Report, Manulife found that just 52 percent of Filipinos believe they have enough funds to retire comfortably, placing the Philippines third out of four countries least likely to have sufficient retirement savings.
The finding highlights a gap between retirement aspirations and financial preparedness, as fewer than one in 10 respondents across Asia said they want to live longer regardless of circumstances, with the majority prioritizing independence, health and a meaningful life instead.
“Despite believing that financial well-being can affect health span and lifespan, people aren’t taking sufficient action to prepare,” Manulife said.
Planning
Even so, Manulife said the Philippines was showing signs of an optimistic transition in retirement planning, with 73 percent of respondents now preferring income-generating investments over property.
“Those who have de-prioritized property as an investment have done so because they’ve discovered it’s not the safe, low-downside investment they believed it was. They also feel property keeps them from being able to take advantage of other investments,” Manulife said.
Compared to Hong Kong, Indonesia and Malaysia, the Philippines had the highest share of respondents (55 percent) who believe that owning property could eat into their future savings.
With this, 66 percent of Filipino respondents rely on cash and fixed deposits for retirement, rather than alternatives such as pensions, property or mutual funds.
However, Manulife warned that relying on cash alone could leave retirees exposed to financial risks. It added that three to four in 10 Asians are not knowledgeable about investing.
“Holding too much cash and relying solely on property can leave people vulnerable to inflation and income shortfalls,” Calvin Chiu, head of Asia Retirement Manulife and chief executive officer of Manulife Hong Kong, said.
“Building financial resilience means diversifying across income-generating and inflation-protected assets—and doing so early,” he added.
Manulife surveyed over 9,000 respondents aged at least 25 years old across Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan region, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines between January and February 2025.
What is a typical German breakfast like, and how does it differ from other countries?
Volker Eichener
Professor at Hochschule Düsseldorf
This is a breakfast which is served by a furniture store.
It is very popular, especially among elder people. You can take it as a typical breakfast like it is eaten at home by most Germans:
- coffee (some prefer tea)
- rolls
- butter
- jam
- cold cuts
- cheese
- a boiled egg
- orange juice
- the sparkling wine is optional, more a thing for special occasions (but quite often ordered when eating out)
Some people also eat Müsli and/or yoghurt.
German breakfast is not as rich as (full) English breakfast which has warm items like fried eggs, sausages, bacon, black pudding, beans, mushrooms, sauteed tomatoes.
But it is richer than traditional French breakfast (white bread, croissant, butter, jam/honey) or Italian breakfast which is often nothing but a cup of coffee accompanied by a cornetto.
Full English breakfast
French petit dejeuner
Italian colazione
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