Living on a duck egg embryo's tale
A duck egg's embryo called "balut" MANILA -- As dusk sets in, a limping woman would carefully load up a basket full of egg embryos called “balut” in Tagalog, along with her small stool, on a small wooden cart and slowly descend to the street corner about 200 meters away from where she lived. Wearing her usual black sweater and a bull cap, Aling Inday, a native of Leyte province, would slowly position her cart on the sidewalk, close to the terminal of tricycles and jeepneys, where hungry drivers would usually buy “balut” to energize themselves from a hard day’s drudgery. Not far from her favorite spot is the police substation, where she could always run to file a complaint if anybody bothers her. She eases herself down on a stool to wait for customers; lights her small kerosene lamp to provide a little illumination enough to distinguish the money that changed hands between her and the customers. This activity goes all the way until the egg contents of the baske...