The Gingerbreak Village: A vision of white Christmas in Tinapayan
Tinapayan Staff
"Whatever comes out this year, we offer it to our customers. It's our labor of love for them"
Even for us Filipinos, the topic about Christmas brings to mind snow and life in the North Pole where Sta. Claus came from. Children, most especially, regale at this vision. That is why Tinapayan's Gingerbread Village is a very exciting yearly fixture for them and even adults.
Soon, this Gingerbread Village will again be put up in front of Tinapayan and Atrium. On what it will look like this time would depend on the creativity of the Tinapayan team. The village will stay in Tinapayan until the first week of January 2008.
Gingerbread for sale
"It's our childlike nature, I guess that led me to start the Gingerbread Village," said Evelyn Que, manager of Tinapayan. "It's like your dream of being somewhere ... in a dreamland ... living in a different pole."
Que said she used to spend sleepless nights with the staff in making the Gingerbread Village. "But when I got sick, they had to do it themselves. And I noticed that they made a better village. So since then, I gave them the independence to work on the village. I monitor the color combination. A Gingerbread Village is like a fantasy, thus the colors have to be striking," she said.
The first village spanned only one table. Even then, the village was a sight to behold. As the years pass, they added more features.
"Every year, the staff looks forward to making the Gingerbread Village," Que said.
It takes a long time for the Gingerbread Village to take shape. As this article is written, the staff is already busy coming up with a more exciting presentation. "You have to color flow it and pain it with Royal icing. The most difficult part is making the base, which is made of gingerbread cookies. It's fast to bake, but takes three weeks to toast. We want everything to be edible except for the windows and the figures, which are made of plastic," Que said.
They also make gingerbread houses that people can buy. They can even put a light inside the gingerbread house, making it an added Christmas treat at home.
It was learned that gingerbread, once hardened, lasts for years. It is a sweet that can take the form of a cake or a cookie where the predominant flavor is ginger. It was invented in Drayton in Shropshire, England. Before, it was dipped in port. There's another dough that is used to build gingerbread houses. Another variant uses a boiled dough that can be molded like clay to form inedible statuettes or other decorations.
So, what shall we expect this year? "I still don't know. It's still a surprise. Whatever comes up in their (staff's) creative minds," Que said. "But whatever comes out, we offer it to our customers. It's our labor of love for them."