MT: One of the most surprising things for me was travelling down to Mindanao, which is the Muslim region of the Philippines and tasting the food there. When we came back and we were telling people about it, they were like, "We've never heard about it." Even some of the elders up north in the Philippines, Manila, Ilocos Norte—they didn't know anything about it, the different types of adobos. I was under the impression that there were five different adobos, but there are so many. Especially if you go down to Mindanao, you have adobong dilaw, adobong pula. Their tamales are different. The tamale in Davao is stuffed with glass noodles, which was a nice surprise. And then we go further into the A.R.M.M. [Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao] region—Nicole had to wear a hijab. It's a highly militarized zone, but the food was amazing! Even just the little snacks. There's a snack called pastil, which is chicken fried in soy and seasoning, then packed in rice and wrapped in banana leaf. This is something that you put in your backpack or your pocket for a snack. Simple food, super delicious, highly flavorful, really exciting things that I had never seen before.

Jasmine P. Ting