And we rushed out again.
Because we wanted to spend our time watching sunset at Boulevard Manado.
Reclamation to form Boulevard Manado has started since 1980. The development of this area has started since 1996, stopped temporarily in 1998due to monetary crisis that occurred very badly to the country, and resumed from 1999 onward. The objective of this project is integrated trade and tourism centre.
Up to now, there are four big shopping malls, a lot of shops, and row of restaurants at the beachfront that faces the west.
So you know where we were heading.
There was a bit of traffic jam along the way. When we reached the stony platform, the sky had turned amber and we could clearly see the round cheeky red sun trying to hug the horizon. We were lucky!
What did we do there?
Basically we just stood there and watched the sky. We took tons of photos. We chit chatted. We laughed. We sang a song. We were grateful for the chance of visiting this amazing place.
Just like small kids, we played "Guess the Cloud" game. We realized that the clouds kept changing shape and it was so interesting to see!
I could stand there and guess the clouds all day. But, when the sun got back home, it was our time to be move.
So, our next stop is...
DINNER!
There were so many restaurants along the coastline. Erland specifically recommended "Ragey 1/2 M" to me since a few months ago, so we would not going to turn him down. However, we would like to taste traditional (and a bit extreme) Minahasan Food. When we asked Erland, he told us it could be found at "San Fransisco Cafe".
Ragey 1/2 M is located at one end while San Fransisco Cafe was located at another end. I can't remember who popped up with the idea, we ended up asking the waitress at San Fransisco Cafe whether we could buy outside foods and bring it in. Without hesitation, she said yes.
I was sooooooo surprised. I expected certain objection before we could reach the agreement. And I secretly added another plus point to Manado in my heart.
Some of us proceeded to order Minahasan foods in San Fransisco Cafe while the rest went to Ragey 1/2 M to buy ragey and pork rib steak.
We ordered quite a number of foods that were traditionally Minahasan, which are:
- tinorangsak (specially spiced pork cooked inside a bamboo)
- paniki (bat in yellow curry sauce)
- ayam woku (curry chicken that is inside an earthen pot)
- cakalang rica (skipjack tuna in rica sauce)
- sup brenebon (traditional Minahasa red bean and pork bone soup)
- kangkung cah (stir fried water morning glory)
When the rest came with shining smiles, I knew they must be bringing something wonderful. So this is what we got.
We started to open up the wrapping papers for ragey and the steak. Again, the waitress surprised me. She brought us the plates for us to contain those! Wah, this was really a place with excellent service.
So we started eating and we ate like we never ever ate before. :P
These are my review of the foods:
Up to now, there are four big shopping malls, a lot of shops, and row of restaurants at the beachfront that faces the west.
So you know where we were heading.
There was a bit of traffic jam along the way. When we reached the stony platform, the sky had turned amber and we could clearly see the round cheeky red sun trying to hug the horizon. We were lucky!
 |
| The sun was trying to be back to the embrace of the horizon. What a romantic view. |
What did we do there?
Basically we just stood there and watched the sky. We took tons of photos. We chit chatted. We laughed. We sang a song. We were grateful for the chance of visiting this amazing place.
 |
| The clouds, the sun, the water |
 |
| Everybody was so taken aback by what was presented in front of us |
 |
| And we saw rainbow too! |
 |
| Love to be around with the right people <3 |
 |
| I still can remember how many times bf asked me to snap him in this pose. Bruno Mars HAHA. |
 |
| And the sky turned reddish, the sun got nearer to the sea |
Just like small kids, we played "Guess the Cloud" game. We realized that the clouds kept changing shape and it was so interesting to see!
 |
| Can you see the hippo saying "AAAAAAA"? |
 |
| How bout the flying jinn and the small little creatures there? |
I could stand there and guess the clouds all day. But, when the sun got back home, it was our time to be move.
 |
| When the sky turned dark, it was time to move. |
 |
| We thanked God for the wonderful view and the best companions |
So, our next stop is...
DINNER!
There were so many restaurants along the coastline. Erland specifically recommended "Ragey 1/2 M" to me since a few months ago, so we would not going to turn him down. However, we would like to taste traditional (and a bit extreme) Minahasan Food. When we asked Erland, he told us it could be found at "San Fransisco Cafe".
Ragey 1/2 M is located at one end while San Fransisco Cafe was located at another end. I can't remember who popped up with the idea, we ended up asking the waitress at San Fransisco Cafe whether we could buy outside foods and bring it in. Without hesitation, she said yes.
I was sooooooo surprised. I expected certain objection before we could reach the agreement. And I secretly added another plus point to Manado in my heart.
Some of us proceeded to order Minahasan foods in San Fransisco Cafe while the rest went to Ragey 1/2 M to buy ragey and pork rib steak.
We ordered quite a number of foods that were traditionally Minahasan, which are:
- tinorangsak (specially spiced pork cooked inside a bamboo)
- paniki (bat in yellow curry sauce)
- ayam woku (curry chicken that is inside an earthen pot)
- cakalang rica (skipjack tuna in rica sauce)
- sup brenebon (traditional Minahasa red bean and pork bone soup)
- kangkung cah (stir fried water morning glory)
 |
| From left to right Top: kangkung cah, cakalang rica, sup brenebon Bottom: paniki, ayam woku, tinorangsak |
When the rest came with shining smiles, I knew they must be bringing something wonderful. So this is what we got.
 |
| Ragey or speacial Manado pork satay |
 |
| Rusuk babi bakar or pork rib steak |
We started to open up the wrapping papers for ragey and the steak. Again, the waitress surprised me. She brought us the plates for us to contain those! Wah, this was really a place with excellent service.
So we started eating and we ate like we never ever ate before. :P
These are my review of the foods:
- Tinorangsak. The pork is tender and the curry gravy is nice.
- Paniki. Bat tastes like a mixture of chicken and liver. The gravy is nice.
- Ayam Woku. For me the spices are too strong and it leaves certain aftertaste that I didn't really like.
- Cakalang Rica. The fish is nice the sauce is even nicer, sour sweet and a little bit of spicy.
- Sup Brenebon. The soup is a bit thin and tasteless.
- Kangkung Cah. Everybody knows how this thing tastes. I don't need to say a thing.
- Ragey. The speciality of the satay at this place is the length. It is half a meter in length consists of pork and pork fat. I am not a pork person so I don't fancy this.
- Rusuk Babi Bakar. This is the star of the day. Big chunk of pork rib, tender flesh, tasty spices. I can still feel my saliva running while typing these sentences.
We found out that eating in this area was not pricey. The dishes in San Fransisco Cafe cost us around IDR 30000 (SGD3.3) per portion, the giant ragey cost IDR 40000 (SGD4.4) per stick, and the pork rib steak cost IDR 75000 (SGD8.1) per slab.
In total we spent less than IDR 100000 (SGD11) per pax for the feast!
 |
| I am not bluffing you on the size of the ragey, I swear! |
 |
| Happy tummies, happy faces |
It was about 8:00 pm when we finished our dinner. Erland then brought us to shop because he thought that we did not spend enough. :P
The first stop was Kartini Bakery to buy some klapertaart back home. As I wrote before, klapertaart literally means coconut tart. It is an iconic food of Manado made of coconut flesh, custard, rum, and topped with cream and raisins. Klapertaart came to existence by the influence of The Dutch during their time conquering Indonesia.
The first thing that we asked was how long the food could last. The lady told us that it could last 24 hour outside the fridge and 10 days in the fridge.
The second thing was the price. The lady explained that there sold klapertaart in three sizes and it cost IDR 25000 (SGD2.7), IDR 100000 (SGD11), and IDR 250000 (SGD 27) for small, medium, and large size respectively.
The third thing, we asked whether they provided sample for us. And they said no.So, we bought ourselves small size klapertaart for us to try before we decided how many we would order.
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| Small, medium, and large size of klapertaart |
Bf was the one tasting it first. After he spooned it into his mouth, he straightaway said, "Ok, buy!" and everybody got so excited to taste it. We ordered everything here but the collection would be in the airport. So convenient! We spent quite a fortune here but I thought it was worth the money.
The next stop was Merciful Building. This building sold various souvenirs and it opened 24 hours everyday. Basically we came here to get non-food souvenirs like key chain, T-shirt, handcraft, etc. Apology for not taking any picture here. :(
Merciful Building marked the end of our second day. And the third day itinerary already excited us like hell.
Next Post - Grand Luley Resort, A Hidden Gem in Manado
Love is in the air,
Little Feet
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