Scoring with the Hongkong Style Mahjong and the Philippine Style Variation

Hong Kong Mahjong Scoring and the Philippine Style Variation 

Playing mahjong with Dinah, Alix and Brendan, Dublin, California October 29, 2023  My Winning 7-pairs Hand without a Joker- The last time I had a hand like this was 5 years ago. I started playing mahjong Philippine style when I was only 5 years old. My mother had a mahjong group and they play every weekend. At times one of their players can not make it and my mother allowed me to play as a "sub". I still remember playing in my short pants and have a hard time reaching for the tiles in the center and playing against my teacher and my mom's adult mahjong buddies. However, I never learned how to feel the tiles with my touch except for the jokers and the white dragon and the one circle or dot tiles. Here are some scoring with the Hong Kong style ( 13 tiles-no joker) versus Philippine style ( 16 tiles with 2 to 3 jokers( wild tiles).     Hong Kong Mahjong Scoring

In addition to the scoring system above, there are also the following special hands which are difficult to compose but rewards the player with maximum payout!

1. Seven Pairs - 16 points + components  Hand containing any seven pairs.  2. Hidden Treasure - 64 points  Four Pungs, any pair, all concealed, and win by Self-Drawn.  3. Three Great Scholars - 64 points  Pung or Kong with all three dragons, any chow, pung or Kong, and any pair. May all be melded.  4. Little Four Winds - 64 points  Pung or Kong of three Winds, a pair of fourth wind, any other set completing the hand. May be all melded.  5. Big Four Winds - 64 points  Pung or Kong of each Wind, and any pair. May all be melded.  6. All Honors - 64 points  Four Pungs or Kongs and a pair of Dragons and Winds. May all be melded.  7. All Terminals - 64 points  Four Pungs or Kongs and a pair of 1's or 9's. May all be melded.  8. Nine Gates - 64 points  Three 1's, a sequence of 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and three 9's, all of the same suit, and any other tile of the same suit completing the hand. The hand must be concealed (the winning tile can be a discard). No Kongs are allowed. The Philippine style we called it the Escalera ( stair case). The pairs could be of other suits.  9. Thirteen Orphans - 64 points  One of each Dragon and Wind, 1 and 9 of each suite and 14th tile forming a pair with any of these. The hand must be concealed (the winning tile can be a discard). The Philippines style we called it Devil's hand.  10. All Kongs - 64 points  Any four Kongs + any Pair.  11. Jade Dragon - 64 points  Jade Dragon: Pung or Kong of Bamboos and a Pung or Kong of Green Dragon.  12. Ruby Dragon - 64 points  Ruby Dragon: Pung or Kong of Characters only and Pung of Red Dragon.  13. Pearl Dragon - 64 points  Pearl Dragon: Pung or Kongs of Dots only and Pung or Kong of White Dragon.  14. Heavenly Hands - 64 points East declares "Out" with the dealt hand (after supplement tiles, if any) 15. Earthly Hands - 64 points Non-dealer goes out on dealer's first discard (supplement tiles are allowed) Philippine style that I learned when I was a Child. A hand with same suits is called PURE.( $4x) A winning hand with one suit with either a dragon or wind Pung is called PLACIS ($3x).  The one who declares mahjong gets to score fan (points). These fan are based on the contents of the winning hand. Once the fan is calculated, it is then converted into a payment amount based upon a payment table called "fan-laak" table. The losing players will in turn pay the winning player based upon this payment table.  Below is the payment table: Fan Points By discard Self drawn 0 1 1+1+2=4 chips n/a 1 2 2+2+4=8 chips 4+4+4=12 chips 2 4 4+4+8=16 chips 8+8+8=24 chips 3 8 8+8+16=32 chips 16+16+16=48 chips 4, 5, 6 16 16+16+32=64 chips 32+32+32=96 chips 7, 8, 9 32 32+32+64=128 chips 64+64+64=192 chips 10+ 64 64+64+128=256 chips 128+128+128=384 chips If a player makes a faulty declaration of out - the deal is abandoned and the offender shall each of the other players 100% of the Limit (i.e., full laak, which in the rules described here is 64 points). If the faulty declaration was made in context of a claimed tile, the discarded gets double the amount. The deal normally passes after a faulty declaration of out. Personal Note: Mahjong could be addicted and can be a gambling activity or as source of income activity. When I was still residing in Fair Oaks, my home-care aide who was a Filipina-American played regularly mahjong for money in a friends house nearby. Sometimes she informed me she loses $60 for a 4-5 hour session. But, it is her only recreation, so she plays every week. The host charges each player a fee ( flat) and a commission for every winning hand. The host provides food and drinks. So the more players, the higher income for the host for every session. The bets could ranged from $1 to $5 per game plus additional fee for special hands mentioned in my article above.

All Saints and All Soul's Days in the Philippines

https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2023/11/how-do-filipinos-celebrate-all-saints.html

Carenna KT taking a break from Queen's University, Belfast, North Ireland

Carenna Katague Thompson, my youngest grand daughter send me the following photos from her school break a couple of weeks ago. The photos were taken in Vienna, Austria and Budapest, Hungary.  She has a break from her college studies in Queen's University, Belfast, Northern Ireland.  She has a scholarship to study abroad as part of her Master's Degree program in International Studies at Georgetown University, Washington, DC. 

Carenna is my youngest daughter( Ditas) only daughter. For Ditas video on her personal take on America in the Heart in connection with Filipino-American History Month -see  bottom of this page.💥 

Here are some photos from Carenna:

For more photos on Ireland visit this posting: 

https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2023/09/a-mini-photo-tour-of-dublin-ireland-not.html

"Queen's University Belfast is one of the leading universities in the UK and Ireland with a distinguished heritage and history. Founded in 1845 as Queen's College Belfast, we became an independent university in 1908. Today, we are ranked 43 in the world (Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2021), and a member of the Russell Group of UK research intensive universities, combining excellence in research and education with a student-centred ethos."

Meanwhile, here's Mama Ditas video in connection with the Filipino-American History Month Celebration-Her personal take to America in my Heart. BE VOCAL( Value, Opportunity, Culture, Afraid Not, and Life experiences).   

💥https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/Yrg9D0scC5x7L2eQb6IbiNjLHzO2MBzy7haLRskaS2xYSwANEr2mWeSQYR5uZxA8.O2CGyeI9IzUOtiAn?startTime=1698101700000

Good Bye October!! Happy Halloween to All! and MABUHAY SA INYONG LAHAT( I will give a million friendly hugs to the first person who can give me the correct translation of the above Tagalog phrase either in English or Spanish via the comments section of this blog)

A Sunday Escapade from My Gilded Cage

https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2023/10/a-sunday-escapade-from-my-gilded-cage.html

Uma Dobia Special Musical Performance

https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2023/10/a-most-special-musical-treat-saturday.html

Filipino Food is Crazy and Lazy- Michael's Filipino Barong

The end of Filipino-American History Month Celebration here at THD will be in 2 days.  Michael( see photo above) at the Concierge Staff informed me he have been to the Philippines and has a Barong. I told him to wear it before the end of the month so we can have a photo shoot. Today is the day. Here are the photos of Michael with his Filipino Barong and me with my Guayabera Mexican Shirt. The Guayabera is identical to the Barong except it has short sleeves. Here are the photos.

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This is my last posting celebrating Filipino-American History Month here at THD.

While looking up my previous articles on Filipino food, I found the following "non-serious take" on Filipino food, that only Filipinos will understand and enjoy. So my apology to my numerous non-filipino readers if this article does not ring a bell or tickle your funny bone. Anyway, you will learn a few names of Pinoy comfort dishes very popular to the Filipinos all over the world.

What is Filipino Food? Reprinted from www.myfilipinokitchen.com

Filipino food is not Chinese food. If it is, our Adobo (marinated meat) would be steamed chicken with soy sauce. It is neither Spanish food. If it is, we wouldn’t be eating rice like breathing air. Filipino food is not American food either. If it is, Jollibee would have bigger servings. True? If you don’t agree with me, next time you’re in NY try convincing the hotdog vendor that his dogs are not American hotdogs… in fact it is German because that’s where all the sausages come from. Then brace yourself.

Filipino food is filipino food. Adobo was just named "adobo" by the Spaniards because they can’t name the beast. Kinilaw (raw fish in vinegar and spices) has been with us for thousands of years that when the Japanese witnessed it wiggling on our native bamboo table they attacked Pearl Harbor just to get to us… a pretty smart move I tell you. And Sinigang (fish soup) is definitely a Filipino original because if you ask from what region this fish soup originated, you are definitely promoting a royal rumble, you should have brought a ring with you.

But then what is Filipino food really? I’ll give two points in the meantime.

Firstly, it is food for the crazy.

You can’t just eat the salty-sour Dinuguan (blood and guts stew) by itself, you have to eat it with the majestic – Puto (rice cake). There you go, you became beauty and the beast at the same time. You can’t just cook Kare-Kare (tripes and ox tail in peanut sauce) with enough salt to taste, you have to cook it bland and then eat it with the salty Bagoong (shrimp paste) as a condiment. You crazy, woman?

Secondly, it is food for the lazy.

Filipino food is made for Juan Tamad (Lazy)… and has a tendency to just put in any ingredient that is conveniently available. Would you believe me? No? I’ll prove my point. Adobo is a dish where you don’t do any cooking at all. You just throw them all together in a pot, put it on the fire, wait for the fruit to fall on the ground and- Voila! It’s cooked! Did you do any cooking? No. Except for putting vinegar in before the whole blob dries up. Ladies and Gents, Juan Tamad can now eat Adobo. If you are telling yourself that it is just me exaggerating, stop right now thank you very much, here’s another dish. Bulalo (beef shanks and marrow soup) is a dumper’s food like Adobo. Dump all the meat and bones in the pot and after 3 hours, dump the rest of the vegetables, cook for a little bit and Bob’s your uncle. You dumpster.

Crazy and Lazy could have been your cat and dog’s names but when it comes to cooking, those words mean cutting edge while painless. It’s crazy because it’s bursting with flavors. It’s lazy because it is chill out food. That’s me saying I want to live.

Anthony Bourdain on his recent trip to the Philippines was asking the question, ‘What is Filipino food?’ again and again and I felt so bad that no one can describe to him what we are eating! Somehow in the end, it turned out that we have a food identity crisis. And I wouldn’t even start talking about the Filipino identity. I’ll die of hunger before I can stop talking and start shoving food in my mouth. Don’t you just hate it when you’re supposed to eat and you can’t stop talking?

I’ll stop talking now. Let’s get to work and make adobo. *wink wink*.

And Now here's a more serious description of Filipino Food and Cuisine.

Filipino cuisine has developed from the different cultures that shaped its history; it is like other Southeast Asian cuisines but with heavy Spanish influence. Some ingredients of the Mexican cuisine, such as corn, tomato and chili, have also found their way to the Philippines.

Though its cuisine is not as renowned as many of its neighbours, such as that of Thailand and Vietnam, Filipino cooking is nonetheless distinct in that it is possibly the least spicy of all South East Asian cuisines.

Don't make the mistake of thinking that Filipino food is bland, though. It is just that instead of spices, Filipino food depends more on garlic, onions and ginger to add flavor to the dishes. Painstaking preparation and prolonged cooking time is also a characteristic of most Filipino dishes, and when done properly is often what brings out the flavor of the food, as opposed to a healthy dose of spices.

With over 7,500 islands, the cuisine of the Philippines is rather a mish-mash of hundreds of local, regional, and ethnic cuisines, and without any qualifiers, you would often think of ubiquitous dishes such as adobo, sinigang, lechon,and Filipino-Chinese dishes.

Filipinos prepare great-tasting food, especially on special occasions with visitors around. Filipino cuisine is a mesh between Chinese, Mexican, Malay, Spanish, Indian, and American cooking.

It usually consists of six meals per day, including breakfast, snacks, lunch, brunch, dinner, and a final reach toward snacks to end the day on a full stomach. Most Filipino dishes involve rice, which is served alongside other edibles.

Most Filipinos regularly use spoons, forks, and knives to eat their food. But, sometimes hands come into play when seafood is involved.

Some of their most popular dishes include:

• Chorizo, 
• Lumpia, 
• Paksiw (pork or fish in vinegar and other spices),
• Kare-kare (a stew made of ox-tail),
• Sinigang (soup delicacy made of pork, prawns, or fish), and
• Longanisa (sweet sausage).

On the other hand, some popular snacks are bibingka (rice cake made with margarine or butter), polvoron (powder candy), puto (rice cakes), and chocolate.

Visit this website for my favorite pinoy dishes: https://myfavoritepinoydishes.blogspot.com

The Philippines- The Call Center Capital of the World

https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2023/10/understanding-filipino-traits-and.html

High Occupancy Rate in the Fairmount Building Here at THD

https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2023/10/high-occupancy-rate-of-first-floor-of.html

First Impressions of Friends and Relatives of THD

https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2023/10/impressions-of-friends-and-relatives-of.html

The Balance Sheet of Life- Message from My Face Book Page Last Month

After my successful talk here at THD last Saturday, I got into an introspective mode so here's my posting for today. I received this message from my FaceBook last month.

Sunset as Viewed from the Balcony of the Chateau Du Mer Beach House*, Marinduque, Philippines, 2011 

https://chateaudemer.blogspot.com/2023/09/a-welcome-visit-from-nearby-relative.html

I received this page in my FaceBook Page last month.  I just feel like sharing it with you- All of My Blog Readers all over the World. Have a Wonderful Day or Night Wherever You are on Planet Earth. 

*https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2021/09/joys-and-pains-in-managing-small-beach.html

Me and one of Apartment-Mate ( Batman) just relaxing After Dinner here at THD

Lessons Learned in Life: This is what I learned when I was promoted to the Position of Chemistry Team Leader in the Division Of Anti-Infective Drug Products, Office of New Drugs Chemistry, Food and Drug Administration in 1998.

When you are a leader, you are no longer responsible for doing the job; you are now responsible for inspiring, coaching, mentoring and motivating your team to become the very best version of themselves, which will help them produce their very best work. It’s all about people.