Out with the Opera Stars

I completely forgot to request for my tickets to The Barber of Seville. What a shame!

The good thing is, I got assigned for a full-day tour of Tagaytay City... and look who it was that I was supposed to entertain? The stars of the opera. Ruggiero Barbieri (conductor), Antonio Petris (director), Loretta Bonamente (assistant director) and Mario Cassi (Figaro).

It's pretty hard to impress Italians with our art and culture (or so I thought) as they have a country that is just overflowing with it. But I was proven wrong when they were at their most attentive. The road on the way to Tagaytay was pretty quiet. I allowed them to get some more zzzzzzs. they were pretty tired from a gala performance the previous evening after which came a formal dinner in their honor.

So the departure for Tagaytay was moved to 11:00 a.m. I thought it would be difficult to drive at that time but fortunately, the driver of CCP's coaster was pretty adept. I asked that he bring us directly to Antonio's for the scheduled lunch. Thankfully we did not lose our reservation as we were at the venue 5 minutes prior to one o'clock.

Lunch was an experience in itself. The guests were impressed with Antonio's cuisine. For those not in the know, Anotnio's is the place to enjoy fine dining in Tagaytay City. Owned by Chef Antonio Escueta, the restaurant is replete with old world charm tucked away in a one hectare property away from the maddening Tagaytay crowd. The food ain't bad either... it has the distinction of being fifth on the Miel's Guide of top restaurants world-wide.  If you wanna experience it, you gotta be willing to part with some of your hard-earned bucks. Well worth it, I would say.

The guests were grateful for a great meal with an ambience that seemed like they were transported back to Tuscany. How would you like to hear that? They were as ordinary as the next plain Joe that gets caught up in Tagaytay's quaint charm. I can see the comparison. Tagaytay's rolling hills and plantations make everything so green and easy on the eyes. Except that Mr. Barbierri hates the sometimes slow moving traffic along Aguinaldo Highway. That's about the only thing they didn't quite enjoy but it was an excuse to give commentaries and engage in conversation with the guests.

Next stop was Taal Vista Lodge for them to enjoy the view of Taal Volcano. We were warmly greeted by the staff and heads of the hotel. We took our obligatory photos and had some palitao, siopao and glasses of iced tea by the veranda while talking and exchanging views on the volcano's episodes. Apparently Mario was scared of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Italy does get its fair share of those from time to time too.

We then proceeded to Tagaytay Highlands. It was getting dark with the rain clouds when we got there. We were welcomed and met at the clubhouse by the golf course. It had started to rain and the guests were going crazy trying to snap as many pictures as they can and posting them on Facebook. Loretta on the other hand, made friends with two Filipino kids who spoke fluent Italian. Apparently their dad had worked in Pisa for eight years and that was where they grew up. They were in the clubhouse that day and what a chance to meet with the opera stars and Mr. Barbierri's 11 year old son Piolo.

After some snacks and coffee (for me) and fresh fruit juice for the guests, it was time to get home. We took an alternate route that brought us directly to the SLEX where we headed for Manila Peninsula Hotel where the guests were billeted. It was a long fruitful day that was full of intellectual exchanges and pleasantries only the Italians could muster. Thank God I could manage a few sentences in Italian despite my foreign-sounding name.

Reaping Rewards

Some network providers extend an extra courtesy to their loyal subscribers. They provide them with new phones. after a lock in period of two years. It works two ways, actually. The subscriber gets a new phone that he may be longing to have or something that he aspires for.  The network on the other hand is assured of a lock-in period of two years, by which the phhone is duly paid for in two years time.

I was given a new LG e-400 phone which is sleek and stylish.It has a capacitive screen that is easily reactive to hand swipes. Handily, it fits my handbag slot as well as my hand. I got a stylus for it as well as a protective screen which should keep it looking like new.

After a few days of use, I noticed a fine line on the screen running horizontally near the top. I had to do something about it. I first went to the LG shop in Greenbelt only to find it closed for renovations. I had to go back to the Sunshop in Cash and Carry. The best they could do was refer me to another LG shop in MOA.

Off to Mall of Asia I went to have my phone fixed. The Technician wasn't there yet and while waiting I decided to have lunch at Okuya on the Food Center on the second floor. I had a bento of fried fish and bean sprouts and garnished with tofu in soy sauce.I twas filling and well seasoned. I would have wanted to eat some more but it was nearly one p.m. so I headed back to the LG store and had my phone fixed. I was told that they will call me when they have my phone repaired.

I spent the afternoon taking snapshots of the Mall of Asia with my camera and when it started to rain, I decided to head home. A fewdays later, I got a call from thje LG store that they had my phone repaired. I went back and got the hpone and as an added bonus, the techie updated my OS and added a few apps for my benefit. So now I am using my phone and enjoying its new features. I just have to bring it back in three month's time for another upgrade.

For three months now, I've been having trouble getting on the web with my wifi....Endless calls to the call center and and complaints to the customer service representative plus two re-configurations on my modem were no help. I had to bring over to the Sunshop in Robinson's Manila. Thankfully, the service representative had the initiative to inform me that my modem was still under warranty and she gave me a receipt to sign. She then informed me that they will call once the modem returns from the shop.The unit either gets repaired or changed. I hope I get this week though... I've been missing being online...

Homecomings

Two of my friends came home. One of them for good! Every time a friend arrives for a visit those of us who live here make it a point to get together and catch up on things. Marichi and I have been Facebook friends despite the distance. We haven't seen each other  in 23 years. So, no small wonder why we should at least meet for lunch and make the most of her limited time in the Philippines. Some of my college "barkada" took time out to be with us as well.

For lunch on day1, we met at the Cafe Adriatico in Gateway.
Cubao has become so much more accessible now that the Metro Railway passes right by it. I used to dread going there via public conveyance. I still do during rush hour... but the MRT
station is a god-send. I was there an hour of the appointed time. Yeah it was raining and was I glad that the MRT was there to take me to the cafe.

Minutes later, everyone started arriving and there was much to be delighted about. I did have fun seeing old friends who seem like they never aged a bit since college. Except we're wiser now! I did enjoy the ever-reliable menu that Cafe Adriatico had to offer. I was having too much fun snapping photos and chatting with my friends that i forgot about taking snapshots of the food.

There was just too much cheer to go around the food was a mere footnote to the merriment. I did have a pair of empanadas at Cafe Adriatico and then as I was hungry, had a plate of linguinni with marinara sauce.I was toofull to have some dessert so we decided to meet again the next day for dinner. 

Day 2

We made an agreement to meet at EDSA ShangriLa at six p.m. I was there by around three as my errand had finished early so I went re-discovering the little shops in the mall... This time, I drooled over some cocktail rings which I vowed I was gonna save up for.

The appointed restaurant was Cyma. I did take photos of the food this time. However, since my wifi and laptop aren't working properly, I will not be able to upload the rest of the photos.Suffice it to say that Chef Robbie Goco's take on mediterranean food was tasty and well-portioned. My watercress salad with feta cheese dressing was fresh and crunchy. The saltiness of the feta was perfect to my taste buds. My friend Emma found her pulled lamb sandwich a little too salty but she managed to finish up her meal with Gemma's help.Marichi had salad which she had shared with Gemma and Mael and a bowl of mussels.

We ate every morsel and Mael's cocktail habit had the group trekking to the nearby EDSA Shangri-la hotel's lounge where we had some drinks. Marichi had a concoction of lemon-lime mixed with Angustura bitters. I tried it and liked thedrink as it was non-alcoholic. We started loosening upwhen Marichi used her IPhone to hike up the music with our seventies anthems.

The party only broke up as we realized that our friend was parked at the mall and she had to beat the clockto get to it before closing hours. As we said our goodbyes, we hugged each other with the promise that we'll see each other again in the near future and do another evening on the town... the next one should e a blast as well.

As I close this article I'm wondering what went wrong with my modem. It used to work fine until a few months ago when it showed signs of slowing down and then finally, it got to a point where I couldn't get on the web anymore. Now I have a promise from Suncellular that they'll get back to me as soon as my modem gets fixed. What a relief! This article is waaaayyy overdue...

Foundation Day

Barangay Guadalupe in Baybay, Leyte celebrated their 53rd Foundation Day on June 21, 2012. Formerly known as Otod, the most striking feature of this barangay is that everyone takes part in the celebrations. I was invited to experience the event a month earlier when I tagged along on the Nunez family reunion celebrated each May. I joined in on the fun when I visited Baybay again from 20-23 June.

I never tire of going to far-flung areas around the country. This particular area of Leyte is very scenic offering majestic views from the mountain tops to serene vistas along the shore. So this trip was a bonus of sorts. It offers me to laze around the bahay-kubo of the Vilbar family as well as unlimited access to the beach and brilliant sunshine as much as I can.

I was with June Recto carousing on the clear waters that morning  when they had a bangkerohan regatta. The fishermen in the area competed in a boat race... no, two races!!! The first banca race had the boatmen paddling furiously to shore with the winners taking home cash prizes and bragging rights to boot. The second race was much more interesting and fun. All the contestants had to paddle way off the shoreline to a designated spot where the starting line was. then they had to paddle to shore with nothing  but bare hands. That was a blast! some boats with uneven outriggers would go roundabout and the oarsman had to steer it in a straight line. By the time the regatta had finished it was time for lunch. I had no pictures to share as I was getting a tan at sea... hah!

Barangay Guadalupe is one of two in Leyte that celebrates its foundation day. For this Congressman Jose Carlos Cari is proud and he makes it a point to make an appearance together with his lovely wife Marge on the big day. On their part, the entire community goes all out in the preparations for the big celebrations. All six zones are well represented in a grand parade that's preceded by a group of bikers in the area, a few drum and bugle corps from the schools and various socio-civic groups who joined in on the parade. Notable were the Senior Citizens Association, the Gardeners' Club, the Women's Livelihood Project and all four religious denominations whose pastors/priests were present during the invocation.

Cong. and  Mrs. Jose Carlos Cari

The gymnasium was converted into a stage and disco area specially for the event. The women's livelihood projects were on display in a makeshift bazaar while intelligent lighting and mega woofers and speakers were hired for audio requirements and the free disco to cap off the evening. The dance number of the senior citizens brought the house down as they did a folk dance to start the proverbial ball rolling.

Senior Citizens Group

Minutes later, the Commemorative Plates were handed out to the posthumous awardees that have contributed greatly to the barangay's welfare, sometimes at their own expense. June Recto received the honors for his grandfather Laureano Nunez who was cabeza de barangay in 1945. It's urprising to me how the committee members were able to research that far back as to who the barangay's founding fathers were. Tita Linda was also on hand to receive the award for her grandfather who happens to be a close relative of the Rectos and the entire APDANS clan.

Tita Linda and June Recto

Some of the guests flew in from Manila and were ably rewarded to be in the company of some of Leyte's esteemed political families. A baranggay official seal was unveiled with the help of Mrs. Cari. and the barrio captain.

Unveiling the baranggay seal with Mrs. Cari

The plates were handed out by the incumbent baranggay chairman and the honorable Congressman Cari. 

June Recto accepting the commemorative plate 

Later on, he was joined by his brother Vice Mayor Mike Cari who also gave a short inspirational speech to further move the community to continue with their own initiatives. Congressman Cari actually has earmarked the amount of P700,000.00 for the improvement of the river channels within the baranggay.

the honorable Congressman Jose Carlos Cari

The honorable Vice Mayor Mike Cari

After the more serious part of the festivities it was fun all the way till past midnight. There was a feast of specially made lechon that was served at the day care center area.  There were cheers wafting in the air as other groups performed in a variety show and then the disco followed. I was tempted to go dancing except I was tired from the day's events. But I could hear the national anthem playing as the dancing signed off at around 2 a.m.

Kudos to the  baranggay chairman and his organizing committee as well as the members of his staff for a job well done. What a celebration it was... see you in December?

Luloy's Backyard

Just this morning I read an article on Manila Bulletin's travel page regarding Baybay, Leyte. Now, I've been to Leyte a couple of times and am scheduling my next trip (yeah) come December. I have done some articles on my blog about Baybay and have posted my albums on my facebook page. So today, I'm writing about a particular experience about my trip last week.

My good friend June Recto has roots in Baybay. I got invited to tag along on this particular trip to take part in the celebrations of Bgy. Guadalupe's 53rd Foundation Day. June's grandfather was/is a posthumous awardee for his role as cabeza de barangay in 1945 or so. I was on hand to witness the colorful celebrations and to take photos of some interesting highlights of the event (more of this in another entry).

On the day of the big celebrations, June and I were on the beach and his cousin Luloy who was also in town for some R&R saw us and invited us for lunch. After having been on the beach all morning we decided to hit the showers and get ready to visit Luloy's home. Just to give my readers an idea, the barangay isn't a particularly huge one. It has seven zones, with each zone having descendants of the APDANS clan. APDANS is an acronym for the Amihan, Poliquit, Diaz, Almeroda, Nunez and Silao families who all share one family tree. Luloy and June belong to the Nunez group.

Luloy's home is a small patch of land a few meters away from where we were staying. Apparently, Luloy is home after finishing another contract as a seafarer abroad. His earnings went into the construction of his humble home for the women in his life... his wife and two little girls. When he's away on a job assignment his wife busies herself tending the garden and taking care of the two girls. 

I loved every minute of my brief visit in Luloy's home. I had to go back for my camera as I found every little corner very interesting. We had lunch at their backyard overlooking the rice paddies. Further down, was the new highway that leads to Visayas State University and a grand view of the Pangasugan Mountain range which seems to change according to the season and the time of day.

I took photos of the vegetable patch where they grew bird's eye chilli, eggplants, okra and camote. On the side of the fence which served as a hedge were the ornamentals. The calladiums stood out because of their pink color. Apparently, according to another friend, the color was caused by too much acid in the soil. But there were flowers which I didn't really know how to identify as I hadn't seen them before. I was tripping on taking shots with my camera as lunch was being served.

I admire the way they cook fresh produce. Lunch was simple fare of boiled camote (sweet potato) and saging na sabah (bananas),

a soup made with clams and lemon grass (halaan), a local variety of escargot (sisi) which you have to pry out of the shell using a safety pin,

sinugba (grilled tuna),

and a variety of baracuda which looked like torsillo that had a broth of garlic and  ginger.

To tie in all the flavors everything was either dabbed with sea urchin roe which was made into ginamos (fish sauce) which the locals call tihi-tihi. It was a surprise that Luloy's home could offer a gustatory and visual feast at the same time. 

Over cold soda and some bottles of Tanduay Ice, it would have been the perfect afternoon except we had to go back to the town hall/gym where the celebrations were about to start as we saw the parade going by on the main highway from our perch in the backyard.

Some good things never last, but the good memories linger...

Pinoys In the News

By now you must have realised Manny Pacquiao's loss has become a controversial decision that had resounding consequences for the state of Nevada. No less than Sen. Harry Reid joined the fracass when he sided with Manny Pacquiao and called for an investigation into the gaming mechanisms that rule the gambling state. Though Manny Pacquiao has graciously accepted defeat, the honourable senator wants to increase his pogi points by playing up to the Pinoys' wounded pride while trying to win the support of Filipinos in America. Sure, Pacquiao lost but he's still the big winner for gamely congratulating Bradley who showed up in a wheelchair for his post-fight media appearance.

Jessica Sanchez may have lost in American Idol to Philip Phillips (incidentally, where is he now?), but she sure is making more appearances on American national TV. Following in the heels of her Today Show guesting, she was given the honor of singing the US anthem for the Pacquiao-Bradley fight. Her star spangled banner rendition is one of the best we've heard so far, prompting Miley Cyrus to tweet about it on Twitter. Then she followed it up with another guest appearance for the NBA finals.

 On the coaching staff of course, is another Pinoy... Coach Eric Spoelstra.

The Ateneo Lady Eagles won their second Shakey's V League title recently after edging out the UST Tigresses in a best of three play off in the finals. Ateneo suffered their first and only loss ever during their first game bowing to the tigresses who happen to be the more experienced team. The second game went in their favour when the tigresses lost in four sets. The fifth set was the more exciting match when UST fought back to take the third and fourth sets. The fifth set was a thriller as UST regained composure to tie the set 13 all until Ateneo finally scored two more points to take the trophy. Now, if only they could beat LaSalle in the UAAP...

Another Pinoy who figured in international news is tennis player and Davis Cup veteran, Cecil Mamiit. After tennis star Maria Sharapova raised her arms in triumph for making a successful comeback and finally winning her first-ever championship at Roland Garros in the French Open, she climbed the stands to her coach and kissed and hugged Mamiit who happens to be her training partner. The next day, photos of her and Mamiit were splashed all over the sports page.

Unfortunately, after Sharapova won her coveted championship, Mamiit will no longer be part of her team. Apparently, Sharapova wanted Cecil to commit to be part of her team fulltime, but Mamiit can't as he has other duties with the Philippine Davis Cup team. That's great news for local tennis!

Diday Does It Again!!!

As of this writing, reports have reached Manila that Candice Adea and real life partner JM Cordero (both pricipal dancers of Ballet Philippines) have won the plum prize in the International Ballet Competition held in Helsinki, Finland.

This comes as no surprise as both have impressed world class judges in the US when Candice won the Silver Medal and JM, a special prize in 2010 for the International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi. Both  artists have actively pursued competing internationally giving them the opportunity to perform the in Russia as part of their prize in the First Boston International Competition.

Passionate in perfecting in their art, both Diday (Candice as I fondly call her) and JM left Manila together with CCP Dance School newly appointed director Victor Ursabia on the 22nd of May, 2012. Just two days after the CCP SDW workshop recital, all three went straight to Helsinki and took on the competition head-on. It comes as no surprise that Diday and JM have once again impressed the judges with their performances as both have continued to strengthen their technique and artistry despite hectic rehearsal schedules and a punishing Summer Dance Workshop for 2012.

Only 90 dancers were qualified to compete. Candice and JM being the only Filipinos and coached by Victor Ursabia, bested other dancers from Russia, China, France, Spain, Finland and the United Kingdom. Oh well, congratulations are in order. Job well done, Diday and JM!!!