a long way from cadbury

I grew up going to the sari-sari store to get my 5 cents worth of candies. And I am not kidding, in my time a singko (five centavos) can buy 6 pieces of hard candy. We call it kending hubad (naked candy) because it didn’t have a wrapper and when you buy them, the not so friendly tindera (sales personnel) will get the sugar coated candy from a clear glass bottle and put them in an envelop made from used paper.

My sister (the long haired girl in the side bar) likes red candies. She usually bought Lipps, a strawberry flavored hard candy or red bubble gum. She would use her singko to buy candies that turn her lips and tongue into a big blob of rouge. She liked it because she liked putting on lipstick.

Señorita lemon drops (now in doy pack), cola still dressed in violet wrapper,
butterball still in yellow stripes,
melon drops in generic pillow packs and methol drops in classic green

I remember my Lola (grandmother) Nene asking me to buy Señorita lemon drops (in the 1980’s), hard candy wrapped in foil, of course, lemon flavored. My brother liked to piss me off with Cola Eisbon (1970’s Candy Co, Inc.), a brown candy that tasted like root beer. It tasted weird for me then but now it’s a favorite. I guess I got my sweet tooth from my Lola Nene because she was the one who taught me how to eat menthol drops (1970’s, also by Señorita) and melon balls (1990, manufacturer unknown).
My favorite is Peter’s Butterball (1970’s P. P. Confectioners, Inc.)! It’s so sweet and tasty! But my mom told me not to eat much because it will ruin my teeth. Well, ladies and gentlemen, I’m turning 34 and my teeth are still my teeth.

I had the chance to buy these candies again when I went to Los Baños (October 18, 2005). I was so excited I bought them, I also saw kending hubad but it was sold by the bottle and I was 3 hours away from home. Boy, were they heavy!!!!

I shared them with my neighbor and my boss and they were nostalgic about them. Come to think of it, I have gone a long way from buying 5 cents worth of candy. I have graduated from Hershey bars and Butterfingers, I have had my fill of Kitkat, Nestle Crucnh and Kisses, I crave for Toblerone occasionally, I have stopped buying Cadbury, and Belgian chocolate has stopped being a constant part of my diet.

I have returned to my roots. I have come home to my 6 singkong kendi (6 pieces for 5 cents, quite a bargain), my Chocnut, my Cola, my Melon Ball, my Butterball, my lemon drops, my Menthol drops.