Tuguegarao City—The extended ECQ has tested the wits of many residents in this northeastern provincial capital.
While posting a QR code of GCash accounts seeking “ayuda” has become a practical joke in social media, some admitted they were really in dire need of help.
A man even posted a video while eating some known edible flowers.
For Benjamin De Yro, known here as a travel writer, disc jockey, and a stage director, his imposed self-isolation in Barangay Annafunan West since the lockdown two weeks ago made him and his family detached from the outside world.
In his social media account, he demonstrated live how he feasted on flowers found in their backyard.
“I have here five varieties of Hibiscus, or Gumamela, and Blue Ternate flowers. So, to those who are not prepared to watch this, do not continue watching if you feel this is yucky,” De Yro said in his posted video blog.
He dipped the raw Hibiscus flowers in mayonnaise while he ate the Blue Ternate flowers as it was.
“I apologize to the bees for eating the flowers where they get food,” De Yro joked.
More than 100 netizens commented on the posted video and, so far, the views it gained has reached 792 as of press time.
Many commented “masingo yari”, the Ybanag word for “that is delicious”.
“Our country has one of the richest flora in the world, yet the nutritious value of these edible food is not popular among us. But we see other Asian countries are eating these,” he said.
The Ybanag people are fond of noodles, and Tuguegarao City is popular for its “Pansit batil patong,” a local recipe where noodles are topped with egg yolks and sautéed mix of vegetables and meat, while the egg whites are used to make an accompanying soup.
The ECQ has strictly limited people’s movement, and individuals are simply afraid to go out and dine in “panciterias” since there are not many open anyway and safety protocols demand social distancing among others.
While most social media posts like the above are made just for fun, there are individuals who admitted that they have become penniless during the ECQ.