HoJ Ppenh Xmas 2008

and voila ... House of Joy (HoJ)  Phnom Penh greeted Advent 2008 in style. 

this is the 13th year of an annual HoJ tradition, the first time that “Joy”  in HoJ is not in any of the photos.  i watched the fun through the webcam but sorely missed being physically there.  

i bear the name from which HoJ took after.  but that’s incidental. milou, doc marissa and myself, who arrived in phnom penh months apart in 1995, formed its original core.  HoJ has become a composite of the different persons who came through its doors, stayed  (literally or in spirit),  bonded at different points for nearly a decade and a half. the bonds have been kept regardless of distance - indai carmela in argentina, maan in colombo, valerie in the states, chona and mommy su in afghanistan, nenette/ollie/tita babes in thailand, dhidak in north korea, wowie in manila, kristin in indonesia, etc. it operates in the spirit of inclusion, synergy and respect for the individual’s life options. it continues to be so. 

people oftentimes cant make out what HoJ is . a restaurant ? a bahay aliwan? an association ? its all and neither.  or maybe.

it may well be a restaurant indeed - it hosts church choir practices and feeds 25 plus persons every saturday.  and more. on week ends, anyone can drop by for meals (not just on week ends), mani-pedi, massages, endless “halhalan.” 

its also a bahay aliwan - mahjong, kantahan, sayawan, inuman . there were “crab nights”  in the early yearss.  for some time it boasted  one of the busiest week end bars in the city - nenette’s bar @hoj opens at 8 p,m. fridays and saturdays, on invitation only.    its usually-themed parties are legendary (hehehe, hosted in fact the first ever theme party in phnom penh in ‘98).  pinoy and expat old timers in phnom penh still remember to this day the philippine centennial presentation  (1998), which HoJ took the lead in organizing.  

its not a formal association but has a more or less regular “membership”   so much so that the phil embassy includes HoJ in its list of groups to consult alongside couples for christ, samapi (the filipino association), etc. as necessary, it serves as a drop-in shelter and  transient house, day care, dispensary, commissary, training ground for domestic staff.

it stimulates the mind and facilitates social service involvements - countless post prandial discussions on politics and development issues, the Move Out and Move On Gloria group in ppenh, support to kababayans in distress, and so on. 

whatever. HoJ is my heart. and i am so so blessed. 

deck the halls

Mike aka pinakadalisay blogged about the HoJ-Ppenh’s preparation for the advent season.  I could have created a link to his site but couldn’t for some reason. Hence, re-posting below.   

Yesterday I went to my friends’ house to participate in their annual Christmas tree trimming. It’s the third time that I had joined in this activity, which goes like this. It’s actually very simple. Days before, an inventory of Christmas decorations is done to plan the current year’s color theme. Then people are invited. They set up the tree and the rest of the materials. One household member usually takes the lead, the past years it has been Mz Oh. But since she’s now in the Gobi desert, fiercely trying to tan her mestiza complexion (hehe), Tito Gar has taken her place.

People like me come: our eagerness to help and to catch up with friends while working are only equaled (if not surpassed) by our anticipating on what good food awaits us. And before the day, afternoon, or evening is over, voila! the tree is done!

This year the usual suspects were present: Tita Lou, Tito Gar, Tita Sonia, Doc Marisa,Tita Purit, Lala, Bea, Alec, Tita Aviic, moi, and Badette — who was fashionably late.

But before the work started, we were first fed, HoJ style: Spaghetti with Bolognaise sauce, chicken lollipops, taco shells with beef strips and carrots & onions. Plus the ginataan for dessert was simply scrumptious! yummy!

Next week, I’ll pay attention to my own Christmas tree. I’m wondering how to do it now, but my friends will surely be helping me to complete the task of decorating. And of course, I will chronicle it here.