fair dinkum

(The Adelaide Central Market series, part 3 of 3.)


I know it's late, but I wanted to greet all Australians a Happy Australia Day!

January 26, 2010 is the 222th Australia Day, it marks the arrival of the First Fleet in Sydney Cove last 1788 with the British troop, headed by Capt. Arthur Phillip, raising a British flag as they proclaimed sovereignty in the newly-found land.

Don't worry, I won't be lecturing about the History of Australia in this post; forget about the dates and the personalities that I've mentioned above because, as promised, I will be taking you again to the Adelaide Central Market- the meat and seafood sections.

Have you noticed the yellow banner saying "BBQ a roo on OZ Day"?

In the Philippines a 'barbecue' is primarily a marinated meat fastened in a bamboo skewer (kebab) grilled over a flaming charcoal. In Australia (as well as in Britain) a barbecue is simply an unmarinated meat grilled fast in an hot metal plate powered by an LPG. It is the same as broiling in the USA and Canada.

'Roo' is a shortened term for a kangaroo or a kangaroo meat. So the yellow banner says, "grill a kangaroo meat on Australia Day!"


But before we proceed, just take a quick look on these lovely and colourful flowers in the Adelaide Central Market...


Have you noticed the word 'Special' on the price tag of this stargazer? It doesn't mean that this lily is the exceptional or the best, it means its current price has become lower than the regular price; Filipinos call it 'Sale!'


Back to the meat section...

"What would you like, a roo or a croc?"

Quail, pheasant, guinea fowl, duck, goose, etc....

Cosmopolitan Adelaide loves wild and exotic meat, as well.

...remember my post about cheese? Some shops sell both dairy and meat products.

The total length of the pig's large and small intestines are about 19-24 meters.

-FAO

Spanish & Portugese, Turkish, and Italian products.

The first time I went to the Butcher Shop in Australia was in Millmerran, Queensland. I told the guy I wanted to buy 300grams of bEy-kon, he couldn't and didn't understand what I wanted until I pointed the thin strips of cured meat behind the glass! He then nodded and blurted out, "Ahhh, bAy-kon!"


The fresh meat...

"Stay behind the yellow lane!"

Finally, the seafood section of the Adelaide Central Market...



There's something in common with the South Australians, Australian permanent residents and temporary residents- they love tinapa!

This ends The Chook-minder's Quill's The Adelaide Central Market series.




Part I- Say Cheese
Part II- Come and Glow
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Monarchy: Economy?

I didn’t care about Prince William’s arrival in New Zealand yesterday, as well as his scheduled visit here in Australia tomorrow. But it doesn’t mean that I hate the monarchy...

It is The Prince’ first official overseas trip on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II— ...since yesterday my mind has been troubled in finding any direct or indirect effect of this event in the life of a foreigner who's working as a chook-minder in the monarchy of Australia. Perhaps, I care... but this doesn’t mean that I love the monarchy, either.

As an innocent boy being raised in a small village in Southern Philippines, I had the belief that the dominion of kingdoms, if they existed, has already ended many years ago... that those kings, queens, princes and princesses are only fictitious and are only present in the pages of fairytale books. Well, obviously I was wrong because they are factual and still exist until today.

I know that I need to read more to understand more about the British Throne, especially its absolute relevance in the Commonwealth Realm of the present day when every nation has its own government chief executive. A survey in New Zealand—a member of the Commonwealth of Nations has, somehow, surprised me. It says that in the recent years, around 40 per cent of the Kiwis voted to end their royal ties with Her Majesty and support the creation of a republic. Today, Australia’s Channel 7 is inviting the Aussies to participate in the poll tonight asking if this Land Down Under still needs monarchy. I can’t believe that these two developed nations have been considering to gain complete independence from the British Monarchy—whom, I believe, they owe a lot.

For me, there’s a thing called ‘British Magic’, and I believe in this magic... in its power to establish economically-stable nations such as Australia, Canada, and New Zealand! Just like the Philippines who bravely fought for independence from the Spanish, Japanese, and American rules, it is worthwhile to think about the ‘what if’s’ had South Africa and India dwelt under the British authority until today.

Singapore and Hong Kong are very fortunate! The two countries’ history was almost the same- while under the British Empire, both islands were occupied by the Japanese during World War II but the British regained their control after the war. These currently-wealthy cities didn’t fight through a bloody battle to achieve their independence from Britain, they waited for ages to gain their stability and used the war of words: Singapore outlined some policies that convinced the British; while Hong Kong, through the People’s Republic of China, initiated diplomatic negotiations. It is not destiny, it is the strategy.

Currently, according to the World Bank, Spain’s economy is the 9^th largest worldwide, Japan is the 2^nd largest (and 3^rd from the United States of America and China when it comes to purchasing power), and USA is on the first place... and the Republic of the Philippines, well, I have no plans to consult Google.



Source: Wikipedia

The Parable of the Chook-minder

Chicken harvest has started for a week now, and it will take another three sleepless weeks before we can totally empty the chicken sheds. This is the reason why The Chook-minder’s Quill hasn’t been scribbling anything for the past seven days.

*****

...but of course I didn't miss the bout between Pacquiao-Cotto. As a Filipino blogger, I obliged myself to subscribe the ‘pay-per-view’ of the said fight. So last Sunday, I sat in front of the telly for more than 4 hours as I waited with pessimism... but ended up happy and proud because I was able to witness how the People’s Champ engraved history in the boxing world!

*****

The movie 2012 is also the ‘talk of the blogosphere’ nowadays, so I watched it this evening. Huhmn, I commend the visual effects of the movie. That’s it, nothing more. But hey, I believe that the release of the movie was really planned to coincide with the Scripture readings last Sunday, and I think these are all related to what I have been doing lately—the chicken harvest.

With the company’s up-to-date knowledge in poultry genetics, health and nutrition; plus the husbandry skills of the poultry farm workers and the modern amenities of the chicken sheds, only 94-96% of the flock pass the standards of the harvest crew and the dressing plant. Part of the remaining 5% dies, and others are condemned along the growing cycle because they are sick, small or skinny. During the final night of the harvest, chicken catchers would set aside and leave all the substandard birds behind.

Then it’s the responsibility of the chook-minder. All the poor-performing or unproductive chickens are condemned- their head and neck joint is skilfully dislocated. The dead birds are then placed in a wheelbarrow, tipped in a tractor bucket parked outside the shed and finally dumped in a 6-foot deep mortality pit!

R.J. on Ovi Historical Tweet

Gamit ang Twitter, bawat segundo, minu-minuto, oras-oras o araw-araw ay nasusubaybayan natin ang mga pangyayari sa buhay ng ating mga kakilalang gumagamit din ng free social-networking at micro-blogging na ito. Ang mga ginagawa, naiisip o nararamdaman ng ating mga 'sinunsundang' kaibigan ay ating nababasa sa pamamagitan ng kanilang mga updates o 'tweets' na binubuo lamang ng 140 anyong titik o characters.

Samantala, ang Historical Tweet naman ay isang uri ng Twitter 'update' na ginagamitan ng mga salitang may halong pagmamalabis, kabalintunaan o komedya kung saan ang mga tanyag na tao at mga kaganapan sa kasaysayan ng mundo ang siyang nagiging tauhan o guest tweeter. Para mas lalong mapaganda at kapana-panabik ang isang historical tweet, madalas ay ginagawa ito sa isang template o larawan.

Ayon sa site na ito, ang mga aklat ay pahamak sa kasaysayan sapagkat ito'y binubuo ng napakaraming mga salitang madalas ay hindi naman ganu'n kahalaga. Kaya sa pamamagitan ng isang historical update, ang mga tauhan at pangyayari sa ating kasaysayan ay susubukan nating unawain sa pamamagitan lamang ng isang daan at apatnapung mga karakter.

Here's the chook-minder's contribution to PEBA, Nokia Ovi, and Twitter's Historical Tweets:

Jose Rizal's Execution
Bagumbayan Field, Manila
December 30, 1896

José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda Quintos (June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896) was a Filipino polymath: a poet, writer, artist, intellectual, and educator. He was a nationalist and the pre-eminent advocate for reforms in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era. Rizal's 1896 court-martial and execution made him a martyr of the Philippine Revolution. He is widely considered the most prominent Filipino and a national hero. Since Philippine Independence, the anniversary of Rizal's death has been commemorated as a national holiday.

The government secretly buried Rizal in Paco Cemetery in Manila, where they placed no identification on his grave. When his sister Narcisa toured all possible gravesites, she found freshly turned earth at the cemetery and civil guards posted at the gate. Assuming this was the most likely spot, as there had never been ground burials before, she made a gift to the caretaker to mark the site, "RPJ", Rizal's initials in reverse.

-Wikipedia

PEBA or the Pinoy Expats/OFW Blog Awards is the organization that honors the best and inspiring blogs of Filipino expatriates and Overseas Filipino Workers around the world. This year's theme is Filipinos Abroad: Hope of the Nation, Gift to the World which is 'synonymous' to Jose Rizal's vision- The Youth is the Hope of our Motherland.

The Chook-minder's Quill is, actually, nominated for the award this year.

Thank you very much Nokia Ovi for sponsoring the PEBA 2009 Awards this coming December 26, 2009 (four days before the 113th-year of the Jose Rizal's martyrdom). The event will be held at six in the evening at the UP Diliman- Ang Bahay ng Alumni Convention Hall, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines.

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