BONIFACIO DAY TREAT

Today, 30 November, 2011 was declared a special non-working holiday. It's Bonifacio Day! We honor the Supremo for his selfless contribution in bringing independence to fruition. Bonifacio's humble beginnings was looked upon with disdain by the Spaniards and with an almost critical eye by the illustrados. He was looked upon as a pariah because he was not well-schooled and he supported himself by selling fans and walking canes in the Binondo area prior to his ascent to "notoriety" during the Philippine revolution against Spain. He and lived and worked in Chinatown even getting married to Gregoria de Jesus at Binondo church ( but that's another story.)

Sto. Nino Church in Tondo

I had promised myself I was going to hear Mass at the Sto. Nino de Tondo, so I woke up a little earlier than usual to get there promptly before the eucharistic celebration. I was delighted to have arrived just a few minutes prior to nine a.m. Mass. Built around 1625, this historic church has been destroyed and rebuilt many times. First it was destroyed as a safety measure to ward of Chinese revolts due to Koxinga's  pirate incursions in Manila. Then, there were successive earthquakes and fires that continually plagued its very existence. It was dutifully rebuilt, however, to cater to the spiritual needs of both Filipinos and Chinese flock. It is massive and yet simple in design. Constructed using volcanic tuft, the church measures 65m long, 22m wide and 17m high. The church is dedicated to the Holy Infant Jesus much like the first image that was handed to Rajah Humabon's wife, Maniwantiwan of Cebu,  who after baptism was named Dna. Juana.

Sto. Nino image 

When I got home at mid-morning, I got a call from my friend June Recto who asked me to join Sarita and Fides for lunch at Greenbelt, Makati. In order to get there, I had to ride a jeepney to Zobel Roxas. As we were crossing the railroad parallel to Osmena Highway, this PNR train stalls blocking both Zobel Roxas and Pablo Ocampo streets... I had to walk to June's house and from there we took a cab to Greenbelt.

Greenbelt 3 promenade

So June and myself met Sarita at the Banana Leaf restaurant on the second level of greenbelt three and we started chatting and laughing all the way from the time starters were served until the dessert arrived. 

We literally gorged on asian cuisine starting with prawn balls and the spring rolls. 

Spring rolls

Then came Roti with two kinds of dip: condensed milk and curry. And then one by one the dishes started arriving on the table, ably served by Jasper.

Roti with dips

The next dish served was the Pomelo Salad that had shrimp and bits of shredded chicken and garlic chips with it.

We had (clockwise) Alfalfa Greens, Shrimp coated in Oats,  Blackened Lamb, Thai Rice, Shrimp Curry and Braised Pork. We relished the meal completely and downed glasses of freshly-squeezed Dalandan juice as we went along. Finally, we had had enough and we ordered a simple dessert of tapioca much like a maha-mais...

We gorged on great food and enjoyed great company... Eventually, we just needed to have our coffee fix so we headed for Cafe Breton at the ground floor to get our caffeine boost... 

It was just too much fun!

Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal

November 27 is the feast of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. I dropped by the national shrine this evening   to visit our Lady at San Marcelino street in Manila just to say a little prayer and to thank her for her mediation and for bestowing me graces from her Son.

The veneration of the Miraculous Medal started in France when the a nun heard a voice of a child calling her to the chapel of the Daughters of Charity on Rue de Bac in Paris. Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal appeared to St. Catherine of Laboure and charged her with a mission: to create a medal exactly the way she appeared to St. Catherine and those who wore the medal would receive great graces. St. Catherine reported the apparitions to her spiritual director who then told the archbishop whilst keeping her identity a secret. The request was granted and the medals were made and spread worldwide.

The medal has the image of our Lady with rays emanating from her fingers covering the globe and the words " O Mary conceived without sin, Pray for us who have recourse to thee." On the obverse side ae twelve stars with a large letter M and a cross surmounting it. The lower portion has the Twin hearts of Jesus and Mary. this was the exact image St. Catherine Laboure saw and reported. The year 1830 appears at the bottom. 

Below is the prayer for the Miraculous Medal reprinted from the website www.catholicdoors.com. The chapel is still located in Rue de Bac until the present. The uncorrupt remains of St. Catherine of Laboure and St. Louise de Marillac (co-founder of the order of the Daughters of Charity) are encased in glass coffins in the chapel  for the devout pilgrims to view. 

Prayer to Our Lady of The Miraculous Medal

Virgin Mother of God, Mary Immaculate, we unite ourselves to you under your title of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. May this medal be for each one of us a sure sign of your motherly affection for us and a constant reminder of our filial duties towards you. While wearing it, may we be blessed by your loving protection and preserved in the grace of your Son. Most powerful Virgin, Mother of our Savior, keep us close to you every moment of our lives so that like you we may live and act according to the teaching and example of your Son. Obtain for us, your children, the grace of a happy death so that in union with you we may enjoy the happiness of heaven forever. Amen. O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you.

Ayala Triangle Light and Sound

It's 31 days to Christmas. It was a rather sudden tour this afternoon which i took over from Mabuhay Guide Lovely. She could not do this tour so she passed it on to me. For which I am thankful. 

Manila Peninsula Hotel Christmas tree at the lobby

Apparently the contact person was a niece of Johnny Medina. The guests were Swiss nationals in Manila for a spell and they were sight-seeing for the meantime and meeting long unseen relatives. The tour went well and we ended quite early so I brought them back to their hotel as they had another family dinner to go to. It was growing dark and at this time, Ayala is all decked out for the Christmas season.

Manila Pen front desk

Aside form the compliments I got from my guests who thoroughly enjoyed being shown the sights, I had an extra treat by viewing the light and sound presentation at the Ayala Triangle. Yards and yards of  Christmas lights were linked in series and hung from the garden's trees. Rigged to synchronize with Christmas carols the lights turn on and off in a medley of series connections and highlighted with laser lights and smoke machines that go off on cue.

Workers on their way home, students coming from classes and the plain curious like me gathered around the garden and amidst a cacophony of music and lights stare in wonder at the technical display. Everyday during the Christmas season the light and sound show comes alive starting at six p.m. and ends with a last show at  p.m. and the show happens after an interval of every fifteen minutes.

Some must think the display is a total waste of energy... NOT! 

Ayala management, with its commitment to saving the planet through its eco-friendly programs thought out the  cost and the logistics of staging a more ecologically aware light show by ensuring all the lighting used were LEDs (that's light-emitting diodes to you, buster!). 

I'm posting a video so you can judge if Ayala Corporation is hiking up its own carbon footprint. See for yourself... =)

SEA GAMES and the Pinoys' Output

After 11 days the vaunted South East Asian Games finally closes its curtain. In glittering ceremonies, the event opened with an extravanganza highlighted by a song number (Together We Will Shine) with Agnes Monica (Indonesia), Jaclyn Victor (Malaysia) and our very own KC Concepcion.

KC Concepcion*

This evening, the formal closing was aired over IBC 13 and Studio 23 live via satellite. Our athletes were either very brilliant or they were completely forgettable. As expected, Basketball stood out among the outstanding sports we competed in. Of course, we captured the gold in this sport! Arguably, the most popular sport nationwide, it had the most sponsorship coming into the SEA event. Why am I not surprised?

The Philippine Men's Basketball National Team**

Incidentally, most of the young players in the National Men's Basketball Team belong to the Ateneo squad fresh from their four-peat at the UAAP. Coach Norman Black earns kudos for bagging the gold opting to sign up a mostly Atenean team. But what about the other outstanding players from the other universities? I don't begrudge the good coach for his bias in picking most of his wards, though. He probably wants to work with players he's already honed to his style of coaching... And they did win...

Overall standings show a  lack-luster output from the Philippine contingent. We placed sixth in the medal tally. But there was a time (that seems so distant now) when the Philippines reigned supreme as far as sports was concerned. Every so often we find ourselves sliding down the teams' medal haul. Our ASEAN neighbors who used to lag behind in medal standings have eventually surpassed us. There's got to be something they're doing right in their sports training that we have somehow discontinued... or forgotten!

Denise Dy and Treat Huey - Gold Medalists for Mixed Doubles in Tennis***

Incidentally, in the waning moments of the SEA Games, the Philippines still managed to snag the gold medal for Tennis mixed doubles with the tandem of  Denise Dy and Treat Huey. They were one of the last nine gold medal winners that added to the 36 golds that we garnered in total. Haven't heard much about Denise Dy but her doubles partner is indeed a Treat. 

Don't you think?

-0-

* from image bucket

**from AllVoices

***from Google

*** from Google 

Nstra. Sra. De Los Remedios and Christ the King

What are the odds that two religious celebrations would be celebrated on the same weekend?

This past Sunday, the annual fiesta of Our Lady of Remedies and the feast of Christ the King fell on the same Sunday. Both feasts are significant in that they both honor two of the most revered figures in Christian religion.

Christ the King is celebrated on the last Sunday of Ordinary time which is the week before the start of Advent. That means Christmas is only four weeks away (but that's another story). The feast is significant since it concretizes the belief of Christ's all-embracing authority as Lord of all creation. The Universe is his realm and He exercises supreme control over all of thing "seen and unseen" as indicated in the Nicean creed.

The terms Christ and messiah (Greek and Jewish, respectively) both mean the same thing - the annointed one. As He suffered and died in atonement for our transgressions of God's law, we are reminded that his death signified our freedom from the bondage of sin. And we in turn, surrender to God's power and relinquish all authority on Jesus Christ and we submit to His divine rule.

On the other hand, the feast of Remedios is celebrated every third Sunday of November. I've blogged about it in my earlier posts. To quote my earlier post: Malate Church, which was built by the Augustinians as a Visita has it's own Catholic School run by RVM Sisters (originally established from Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo's Cofradia) and the Nstra. Senora de los Remedios is now administered by the Columbans mostly of Irish priests who were running the Malate Catholic School during the American period until after the Liberation of Manila up to the present.

Devotees flock to Malate Church to request for healing, either spiritual or physical, financial aid, emotional strength and every conceivable petition any Catholic follower would ever need. There is also a special Mass for children at nine a.m.every Sunday.

Our Lady of Remedies never fails to hear Her children's prayers. Every year, she is brought down from her pedestal in the main altar of the church. The original image, brought from Spain during colonial times was destroyed during the bombing of Manila in WWII. Nonetheless, Malate's designer's row has a cotery of coutouriers who take turns in dressing up the image year after year. Our Lady of Remedies patiently waits for her children in her resplendent robes.

Asian Patent Attorneys Association Convention

The past weekend was an important assignment for eight of the Mabuhay Guides assigned for the Asian Patent Attorneys Association. The schedule for the Three day itinerary was to begin on the 13th (Sunday) until the 15th (Tuesday). The 13th was to merely convey guests  from Shangrila Hotel in Makati to Sofitel for a welcome dinner reception. The 14th was a full day's tour for the guests to relax in Tagaytay Highlands. The 15th was to transfer guests from Dusit Thani Hotel to another dinner reception at the Manila Hotel.

The assignment sounds so simple, right? Not so... As it turns out, lawyers can be finicky about everything from punctuality to the minutest details as the weather... yeah, right... like we can control it... Luckily, the surroundings were magical enough to let the complaints on the slight drizzle slide by...

Anyway, the schedule for the 13th was to bring the guests to dinner from the convention venue of Shangrila Hotel to the Sofitel. We were at the Shangrila by three in the afternoon in our suits. One by one all the guides were given their coach captain's names and corresponding contact numbers. Since it was the day of Manny Pacquiao's fight and a Sunday at that, there was no hint of any traffic jams to contend with. However, due to the volume of the number of buses, all twenty of them, loading guests was painstakingly slow.

But eventually, all the guests were loaded up on the buses and brought to the pool deck for the guests to experience the famed Manila Bay sunset. We were all at the parking area chatting busily along as the fireworks display started. And then, just as the evening event had started, a few minutes after our meals were handed out, the fireworks started again to mark the end of the festivities. All the guests were shuttled off to Shangrila again for the Hospitality Suite. Those who were too tired to attend the after party were brought to all the other official hotels. Most of the MGs ended their duty at around ten p.m.

The next day was an early call for the Mabuhay Guides as we were bringing the participants to a special  full day trip to Tagaytay Highlands. Nestled on the  ridge overlooking the volcano, all the guests had eagerly awaited the excursion day. We left Manila at 7 a.m. and arrived at 8:15. Once there, the participants were free to partake of all the native delicacies being offered by the highlands: fresh coconut, puto bumbong, bibingka, balut, sapin sapin, etc. They also had the freedom to participate in any of the games and the Amazing Race style game to cap the afternoon. All the guides were holed up in the China Palace. We weren't allowed to be seen loitering around the area.

At three p.m., most of the guests wanted to be back in Manila to continue with some meetings and squeeze in some time for shopping. So we gathered our guests and headed back for the official hotels. But I managed to take some snapshots of the great views of the exclusive club.

No matter how well-planned some events are, some kinks are bound to come up once in a while. On the 14th, we all got messages asking us to be at our assigned hotels earlier than 4 p.m. But when we got to the hotel, we were told the buses don't leave until 6 p.m. so we were forced to wait around. I didn't mind the wait but since it was raining, we knew there was bound to be traffic jams everywhere. So a 6 p.m. departure was dangerous. True enough, some of the guests came late as their buses were stuck in traffic. Some irate guests were so peeved they didn't even feel like having dinner anymore. However, after the party, they all settled down and eventually got to enjoy the ride back to their hotels. Some of the buses left Manila Hotel a little before midnight. All in all, we delivered. We stood out. And we convinced our tour operator we're worth every cent.

Restoration Nation

Last Saturday was a red-letter day for friend and Mabuhay Guide Chito Tayag. He and his business partner Dr. Raffy (sorry, can't recall his last name)formally opened their exhibit of restored ivory images of centuries old santos.

The ribbon-cutting was preceded by a thanksgiving Mass at the seminary of San Agustin Church in Intramuros. Though it was the first time some of the Mabuhay Guide attendees were allowed inside the seminary, we couldn't help but admire the plush modern interiors that blended well with it's old world Philippine earthquake baroque exterior. The richness of the dark wooden flooring and the seats were a smart contrast to glass panels with sepia prints on the life of Saint Agustin. These panels also served to define the voladas of the prayer room.

Yael Fernandez, June Recto and myself were able to attend the Mass while Jeff Velasco caught up with us for the ribbon cutting ceremonies at the Sala Recibidor. The venue was festooned with aranas of kiping from Lucban,Quezon and strands and strands of fragrant Sampaguita garlands. The doors of the Sala Recibidor swung open to reveal a bevy of Marian images atop carozas. The smallest image was that of the Penafrancia with other manifestations of our Lady vying for attention. The Mater Dolorosa and the image of the Nstra. Sra. Del Rosario loomed in resplendent attire over everyone. But one image struck me with a beautifully carved face and doe-eyed countenance. That particular image was just too pretty to ignore.

We were then led to the Claustro San Pablo on the second floor in which another ribbon-cutting ceremony took place. Unfortunately, picture taking was prohibited in this section as most of the images were privately owned. 150 images were on display. Some were tableaux of the Calvary scene. Some were of the Holy Family, still others were icons of the Virgin Mary and of other patron saints. Each and every image was splendidly robed with finely detailed "inuod" embroidery.

The reception at the corridor was catered by Tamayo's. Hosts Chito and Doc Raffy were flitting from one table to the next eventually joining us in animated conversation. They then disappeared with some other guests to scrutinize the other collections. 

My personal favourites were the Sto. Rosario whose image appears above and the icons of the Nstra. Sra. Del Pronto Socorro and the Nstra. Sra. Virgen de las Dolores de Turumba and the Bambina.

As we left the exhibit, we caught a glimpse of the San Agustin facade decked out in Christmas lights. It was too difficult to resist taking another photo.

Come Visit My Philippines - A Novel Idea That Works!

A few days ago, my Facebook friend, JB Santos added my name to the e-group that changed the landscape of domestic and international tourism promotions. And I couldn't be more thankful to JB for adding me to COME VISIT MY PHILIPPINES.

San Agustin Church, Paoay, Ilocos Norte

I looked at the homepage and realized that it didn't need millions of dollars to get people interested in coming over to experience our beautiful country. Immediately I posted some of the photos I took of some of the country's tourist spots. Let's face it, our ASEAN neighbors get the edge on promoting their countries because they have millions of dollars to burn just so they can drum up interest for foreign buyers and tourists. We actually get a pittance from the number of tourists they get when some of them decide to include a side trip to the Philippines. True, we have yet to meet the 10 millionth mark as far as tourist arrivals are concerned. But as far as destinations are concerned, we have the goods!

Bangui Windmills, Ilocos Norte

I can't go any further in my story without giving credit to the main man, er... woman... and friends who put up the group page. BESSIE BADILLA and her friends had this brilliant idea of making a profile page to highlight the beauty of the country through photos posted on the webpage.Taking her cue from a speech of newly appointed Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez, Come Visit My Philippines was born. And now, there are about 24,000 members (and growing). 

Ms Bessie Badilla - image courtesy on image bucket

Being a UP alumnus and self-proclaimed fashionista, I commend Ms Badilla, who has re-invented herself anew as doyenne of Philippine tourism. Having been a fashion and commercial model, TV personality and the only Filipina to ever be Emperatriz in one of Brazil's Mardi Gras celebrations, she definitely proves she has more than just a pretty face. 

Pagudpud coastline, Ilocos Norte

It only goes to show, you don't need to spend half a million pesos to formally launch a botched up logo that's a "second rate, trying hard, copy cat" of some other country's tourism advertisement. Former Secretary Ace Durano started drumming up interest in the country by taking part in international tourism exhibitions and also by asking Filipinos living abroad to invite at least one foreign friend to tag along when they come home to Manila during the holidays (that's a simple idea too).  He also wanted to upgrade the standard of tourist guides in the country with the Mabuhay Guides (that's us).

Currimao coastline, Ilocos Sur

Needless to say, other tourism secretaries the likes of: Dick Gordon, Gemma Cruz Araneta, Mina Gabor and  Jose Aspiras (pardon me if I can't recall the others) have laid the groundwork for an ever-increasing number of visitors and for seeing the need for more infrastructure in line with their tourism programs. It seems like Secretary Jimenez will eventually be putting his indelible stamp on his tenure as well. His speech has already fired up the spirit in others... let's hope there's more...

Secretary of Tourism Ramon Jimenez  (image from  Google)

 The simplest ideas sometimes are the best ones.

Saint Jose in Batangas

It's 47 days till Christmas... The Big Day draws closer and closer upon us. And when it comes this close, people in the Philippines are waiting with bated breath for the celebrations to begin. However, the Nativity story is not complete without one of its central characters - Saint Joseph.

Saint Joseph sometimes gets a bad rap for nearly turning his back on the Blessed Virgin Mary after finding out that she was with child. I think it's just a normal reaction. Wouldn't you have second thoughts yourself if the woman you're about to marry and thought was pristine suddenly ended up having a baby in the oven? He figures prominently in the Christmas story because he suddenly has a change of heart after the angel Gabriel appears to him and tells him that the child in Mary's womb was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. St Joseph surrenders to God's will and becomes the father figure of Christ on earth.

He goes so far as saving Mother and Child from the evil designs of Herod by bringing them into Egypt and just as mysteriously as he appears, nothing is heard of him when Christ enters his public life as Savior.  But St. Joseph is deemed as the ideal father; teaching Jesus his trade as carpenter, providing for both Mother and Son's needs and protecting them from harm. Thus he is venerated, honored and adored as part of the Holy Family. 

San Jose, Batangas is the site of one of the more prominent churches dedicated to him (the other one is located nearby in Palanan, Makati City). The shrine sits atop a hill in the town painted in two tones of gray with a statue of the saint painted in gold. What's interesting about the shrine is that it was built on a site formerly known to the Spaniards as Malaquing Tubig.  The church itself was built by none other than Fr. Ramon Blanco, O.S.A. in 1812. Yes... the same Agustinian priest hailed as the Prince of Philippine Botany!

Like all Spanish built and designed churches in the Philippines, the San Jose church in Batangas has a wide expanse of space which includes a convento and a huge jardin. The open space on this one has recently been converted into a prayer garden complete with larger than life size stations of the cross and a museum that houses the church's relics.

St. Joseph is the patron saint of laborers, carpenters and padres de familia. Filipinos also pray to him to ask for favors specially for those seeking employment, asking for help for their temporal needs and even those who are selling their homes. It is said that in order for a house to be sold immediately all one need do is bury a statue of St Joseph in the front yard until the home is sold to prospective buyers.

25 Years of TRAVEL TIME

Long before the advent of all these travel documentaries on TV there was TRAVELTIME...

Vintage Travel Time photos with Susan Calo Medina in the foreground

Nowadays, with the proliferation of so-called travel and lifestyle shows the journey Susan Calo Medina took still stands out as a benchmark for other travellers to emulate. I can still recall how many years ago I would watch her thirty-minute program and wonder how it would be nice to visit all these places she would go to each week. I even remember her moving from one station to another after a few months/years of being on air on a particular network.

Twenty-five years later, our dear Susan Calo-Medina is still at it. Just this past Saturday, I watched the episode (part II) of her tribute to the friends and people she has met over the years on the road. Some have reached the pinnacle of their success as national artists, government secretaries, institutions in the travel and hospitality industry. While others remain simple folk... the "little people" as it were who continue to do their work with a  passion matching her own: farm owners, her own TV production crew, hotel workers, resort owners, tour operators, cooks, weavers, musicians and the list goes on...

The gregarious Susan Calo- Medina

I remember being in Power Plant Mall many years ago with another friend Leslie Noble. We were having lunch at CIBO and when we went out of the restaurant after our meeting Leslie saw Susan having coffee al -fresco and introduced me. I greeted her and told her: "I'm a fan of yours"... to which she responded with nothing more than a smile.

SCM's Travel Time Magazine

Little would I have known that that meeting would lead to better things. After I had arrived from the States about five years ago, I was starting anew and doing the rounds of interviews at different call centers. Leslie had begun working for Edu Jarque and they were working on a program to upgrade the standards of the local tour guides under the directive of then Secretary of Tourism Ace Durano. Leslie urged me to fill out an application form online and apply for a slot in the training of the MABUHAY GUIDES. The rest is history...

The people behind the Mabuhay Guides training: (seated) SCM, Niccola Evans, Roger Rajah (both London Blue Badge trainors with coordinators (standing) Ms Goya and Ms Issa

Susan Calo-Medina's knack for finding out-of-the-way destinations, her knowledge in the arts and culture, her mastery of telling a story coupled with unforgettable images of the landscapes made me want to travel myself. And I have been fortunate to see the country on some national tours with Ballet Philippines. But to see this country alone without the knowledge I gleaned from the Travel Time episodes would have been incomplete. 

The Mabuhay Guides with Lecturers Felipe de Leon Jr., and  Jack Pilar at the National Museum steps

My history background, coupled with my London Blue Badge training would not have been enough to become a Mabuhay Guide had I not been influenced by that TV show hosted by a virtual unknown that started out in a lesser known channel (IBC 13) twenty five years ago. Today, Travel Time has set a standard by which other shows can only hope to equal. It has also branched out with a Travel Magazine that's sold in the more popular bookstores. 

Travel Time has captured its own niche of viewers who have remained loyal over a quarter of a century. As for me, I look forward to viewing it on lazy Saturday mornings after breakfast and a few cups of coffee... 

*photos taken from image bucket and Bryan Ocampo's Filipino Tour Guide blog