ILLUSTRADO Magazine March 2007

The Magazine for the International Filipino

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MARCH 2007

EDITOR’S NOTE

Fun, surrealism and survival When was the last time you had fun?

If you’re a Filipino, chances are you are having fun most of the time.

How so? It’s our eternally sunny attitude that makes us laugh at our own kabaliwan, or how we find amusement in just about anything – a picture, a sound, even a smell. It’s how we clown around or how a lot of us have effortlessly incorporated ‘swardspeak’ into our everyday chuva!. It’s the way we mischievously gravitate towards things, which are supposedly bawal or delikado, like eating pisbols inspite of ‘Hepa’ or jaywalking with gusto. It’s why we sing at home, in our neighbors’ homes, in the malls, even on busy streets or how we seem to laugh at even the slightest provocation. It’s in our genetic make-up, part of our DNA – it’s about being Pinoy.

It’s the same sense of ‘playfulness’ which has contributed to our notoriety – think Pinoy scandals on TV and the Internet, or getting away with parking or vendo machines with a 1 peso coin, “kung makakalusot lang”.

Of the surreal kind, it’s this appetite for amusement, which has allowed us to convert what would elsewhere be considered a disaster into a fiesta – where else in the world are welgas regarded like street shindigs?

Or turn an otherwise somber occasion into a carnival – think All Soul’s Day parties in cemeteries across the country complete with food, boom boxes, even mahjong.

On the extreme side of it all, it’s the same lighthearted attitude, which has allowed us to prevail inspite of tough times in and outside our homeland, allowing us to laugh in the face of adversity, enabling us to survive our struggles - with a hopeful heart and a smile on our face.

From a country, which gained international popularity for one formidable woman’s shoe fetish, this month’s Illustrado presents the Filipino - funny warts and all, as we talk about Pinoy Pop Culture. We feature the most basic of Pinoy fashion accessories – our humble but ultra flirtatious clogs from the bangketa ‘under the bridge’ in Quiapo in Bakya Mo, Neneng, while our food feature shows the lighter side of native cuisine with ukoy and turon. On top of our interesting regular columns, this issue also brings you a new feast for the eyes in Illustrado Runway featuring Filipino fashion design as seen on the ramp – a showcase of our kababayans’ creativity.

Pinoy pop culture - perhaps a truth that makes some of us cringe and a source of embarrassment for a few.

But it is the same inescapable truth, nonetheless, which defines us and how we can improve ourselves and our existence.

And in true Illustrado style, go ahead – have fun! Embrace your Pinoy eccentricities, even if it means being bakya, making tusok to the pisbols, or laughing inanely about anything and everything, because it is that which makes us unique and that which gives us boundless joie de vivre. But let us rise above the negative - because there’s a whole world of difference between being just a Pinoy, versus being a truly enlightened one.

Enjoy your ka-Pinoyan!

Taas noo, Filipino!

Lalaine Chu-Benitez Publisher and Editor

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Send your letters to: editor@illustrado.net

Rediscovering his roots The pilot issue of Illustrado was introduced to me by my aunt, Mrs. Ping Sarmiento. She told me to read it because aside from being patriotic and nationalistic, it helps every Filipino to rediscover and appreciate his roots. I’ve been in the UAE for the past five years, and since Dubai is one of the melting pots of cultures and nationalities in the world, most of the people I would meet would mistakenly take me for a Korean, Chinese, Nepalese or even Japanese. Every time it happens, I would feel happy, I felt proud.

But this shameful feeling of mine changed because of Illustrado. It changed my insight. It woke me up from a long sleep. It helped me to open my mind and helped me embrace and accept where I come from… where I really belong. It taught me how to appreciate the greatness of Filipinos and forget all the bad things and bad news back home. Every Filipino who reads Illustrado will have his spirit uplifted…feel that we are really unique, can adapt easily in different environments, and friendly as what one of the Dubai local newspapers said. Now, I can say with my head up high that I am a Filipino, indeed proud to be one! Keep up the excellent job ILLUSTRADO. Erwin D. Tolentino Dubai

I would like to subscribe to 12 issues of Illustrado Magazine. It’s been a long time since I went home and I know that I’m really missing a lot of things there. I was able to get one of your issues thru a friend and I find it very interesting and informative.

Please send me details on how to subscribe.

More power to you!

Chris Magsakay Umm Al Quwain

Thanks for giving us something to be proud of! Naaalis ang homesick namin when we read your magazine. Masaya talaga! My friends and I love your Filipinism pages, and of course, ang bongga na si Annie B. Who is this girl? Nakakaloka at nakaka-inspire !siya…promise It also makes us happy to see that we have kabayans who are so successful here in the UAE – it gives us the strength to work hard .and do well !Good work, Illustrado Sheryllin Catacutan – Sharjah

Fan of fashion!

I’m a super fan of all your fashion features.

From the ‘Modern Maria Clara Haute Couture’ to the ‘Breaking out of the Box Barong Bedlam’ and of course the ‘Ultimate Recto – Verso’. I just love it! I don’t know how you guys put this all together but you are Awesome! Mabuhay ang mga !Fashionista Vixen Escueta Dubai

More kudos!

I have been so impressed with the overall output of your publication every month. It seems that you have special production per issue. The covers are really captivating and the articles are very ‘homey’ and unique.

Kudos Illustrado!

Bro. Elly Gomez Abu Dhabi

Thank you for giving us Filipinos such a beautiful magazine. Something we could look up to and get inspiration away from home. Now I can truly say ‘Taas Noo - I’m proud to be a Filipino’.

Mon Gutierrez Dubai

Hi! I just got hold of one of your magazines and I find it very nice. I’ve been here in UAE quite a while but I was unaware that there is a Filipino quality publication like this. Hope you continue to publish more good stuff. !Mabuhay ang mga Filipino Lualhati Bernardo Ras Al Khaimah

Hey Illustrado peepz!

You guys are doing a GREAT job with the magazine. I feel so inspired and motivated every time I read your editorials. I know there’s a lot more good stuff to come… so !cheers to that! Keep it up Illustrados Mickie Ballesteros Dubai

Mabuhay Barangay Illustrado!

I was new in Dubai then when I first read this mag. I felt home sick at that time but as I read through it, I felt better coz it’s very uplifting. We need this mag especially these days - our country is suffering from lots of problems back home and never- ending .shocking news about Filipinos here in Dubai Please continue to write great articles about Filipinisms at ang ASTIG na si Annie B, love them so much. Good luck and more power !to you guys Marlon Dubai

Publisher & Editor Lalaine Chu-Benitez

MARCH

Associate Editor Elle Crisostomo Art Directors Paula Lorenzo Ron Perez Contributing Writers Philippines Carlito Viriña David Llorito Bernadette Reyes Lisa Cruz Mike Martin Jan La’O David Poarch United Arab Emirates Maripaz Febrero Giselle Estrada Dawn Almario Sonny de Guzman Antonella Andrada Jonie Jose United Kingdom Cecile Samson-Aquino Contributing Photographers Philippines Ben Chan United Arab Emirates Pot Ph Joel Guerrero Contributing Stylist Zekundo Chu Advertising Sales Michael Maguigad Ryan Iñigo Retail Sales Mars Sagario Subscriptions & Admin Frances Therese Macaya Publisher Illustrado Communications FZ-LLC 2nd Floor, Building 2 P.O. Box 72280 Office 20C Dubai Media City, U.A.E. Tel: + 9714 365 4547 Fax: + 9714 360 4771 email: admin@illustrado.net Website: illustrado.net Printers Delta Printing Press L.L.C. P.O. Box 37140 Dubai, U.A.E. Copyright Illustrado Communications 2006.

All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of Illustrado Communications FZ-LLC

CONTENTS Features

Onli in da Pilipins: A Look at Pinoy Pop Culture 5 Of Chicharon and Communication 10 Property Boom in the Philippines 14

Columns

Famous Filipinos 16 Kabayanihan: 12 Little Things 34 Kabuhayan – Money, Assets and Investing 35 Coconuter 38 Wish You Were Here 39 Usapang Kanto: Where do you want to settle? 52 Community Spotlight 44, 58 Filipinisms: Ang Liham ni Bebeng 60 The Annie B.(Batobalani) Chronicles 61 Pinoy Trivia 66

Fashion

Bakya Mo, Neneng 19 Shoe Fetish 28 Illustrado Runway 32

Arts & Culture

Si Darna at iba pa 40

People & Places

Pinoy Planet: Bostin’ Brit 46 Bakasyon Grande: Visit Vigan 48 Manila Trippin’: On Being a 501 – Commuting in the Metropolis 51 Face of the Month: Denzel Angelo Fuentes Doroja 63

Food & Entertainment Meriendang Pinoy 54 Youth-Oriented Programs on TV 64 Atomic Atom 65 Mon David Hits a High Pitch 67 Manila’s Hot Releases 68

Fun and perky Madel Arreza poses as Illustrado’s Pinoy Pop Muse this month

CONTRIBUTORS

Carlito Viriña Illustrado columnist Carlito comes from an illustrious family of writers lead by mom Loida Virina, scriptwriter of many a blockbuster TV series, including the epochal Gulong ng Palad. After a successful stint in the Manila and Dubai ad circuit, Carlito now heads his own advertising company in Makati. Carlito updates us on the Manila soupe du jour in Wish You Were Here - complete with his acerbic wit and twisted sense of humor.

JAN LA’O Illustrado’s entertainment writer Jan La’O’s

mantra in life truly captures his eclectic and bohemian lifestyle – Life, live it, love it! This freelance writer is also a multimedia designer, photographer, interior designer, athlete, community projects volunteer, actor and commercial model. When not working, Jan enjoys dabbling in the arts, traveling and dreams of being featured in ‘Lonely Planet’ someday.

Illustrado 58

Law Diche An OFW kid in the ‘70s and currently a Filipino expat himself, Law took film studies at U.P.Diliman with the conviction that he could one day write the Philippine’s greatest screenplay ever. That seems like centuries ago, and Law is still teetering his way to greatness. Meanwhile he’s picked up a ‘gig’ and currently works as Senior Copywriter for a Singaporebased ad agency. In this month’s Illustrado, Law delves into the world of telecommunications and how it bridged

DAVID POARCH Young Filipino-American David Poarch was raised in the US and has shining educational credentials, which include a full Ivy League college scholarship, Mensa international qualifications, top high school graduate honors from the State of Texas, and a two-year NASA Johnson Space Center apprenticeship. David has gained attention in Philippine media recently after leaving behind the ‘American Dream’ to find his roots, and eventually, himself in the homeland. “I am trying to find what it is I am meant to do in life. My heart tells me that my purpose lies within the Philippines.”

Joel Guerrero Budding photographer, architect by discipline, self-confessed techno-junkie and regular Joe on the street – that’s Joel Guerrero in a nutshell. Hardworking Joel, who’s always ‘on-the-go’, captures some of the Filipino communities’ interesting personalities, as well as events for Illustrado.

ZEKUNDO CHU Versace forever! Illustrado stylist Zekundo Chu swears by Gianni Versace’s signature luxurious glam when it comes to his preference in fashion.

“I could never be a minimalist, I believe in the design philosophy that more is more.”

Zekundo, who hones his designing talent as a Senior Visual Merchandiser for one of the most fabulous airport duty frees in the world, also creates ambient media and loves to collect accessories, while keeping abreast with what’s happening in the global fashion stage.

Onli in the Pilipins A look at Pinoy Pop Culture

By Lalaine Chu-Benitez

Traditional academicians might dismiss it as shallow.

Pinoy elitist would frown upon it with their delicate mestizo features muttering “Que horror…”, while upper middle class kids knowingly call it ‘jologs’. But truth be known, whether we like it or not, the Pinoy is defined by its pop culture.

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FEATURE In academic terms, pop culture consists of the widespread elements in any given society. It is the ‘culture’ of the majority – the masa. It is what people generally practice and accept, which by and large, exemplifies the current way of life and belief system.

toyo, suka, calamansi and our fave combinations.

to drive any hardcore Noranian or Vilmanian to hysteria.

The Poker Dogs and the Last Pinoys get emotional when they see their idols like Dolphy, Juday, Claudine and Piolo, April Boy Regino, Kris Aquino, Supper Boy Abunda and Manny Pacquiao.

Almost parallel to our love for irreverent food is our fondness for anything kitsch. Much used in tourism So what then is Pinoy pop? It is all these brochures as a symbol of the country - the jeepney is distinctive, mostly bizarre idiosyncracies, which one great example of Pinoy pop culture. Replete with a bind us together - eccentric to foreigners, smorgasbord of lights, amazingly long antennas, garish comfortingly familiar between us kababayans. paint and eyebrow-raising signs like ‘Katas ng Saudi’, Pinoy pop culture is a manifestation of our colorful ‘Paborito ng Biyenan’ and ‘Sweet Lover’, topped with history, of native and outside influences, and a ear-splitting heavy base music – it’s just like a perya on testament to true Pinoy creativity, resourcefulness, wheels. and yes - kalokohan.

For car owners, here’s an example of a souped-up Pinoy The bonggacious Pinoy lingo pop car which would put the show Pimp My Ride to shame – lowered mag wheels, a bunch of bananas or a At this day and age, there is no such thing as a pure rosary hanging on the rearview mirror, kumakabog na Filipino language. The Pinoy vernacular has a hodgepodge sound system, attachable ‘wang-wang’ (police light) in of influences from other languages, particularly that of our case of emergency or any dire driving need, the complete colonizers – the Spanish and the Americans. But even seven dwarves at the backseat, and a backhorn that plays more distinctive than this is how our speech has been Für Elise when the car goes reverse. infused, tainted or enriched (depending on how one sees Over at home sweet home, the story of kitsch continues it) by trends from the jeproks (the Pinoy equivalent of as soon as you enter the door and encounter the laughing hippies), the collegiallas (girls from exclusive schools), Buddha statue next to the cat with the swinging paw. the coño kids (elite), and the badings (gays) – with This of course pales in comparison to the collection swardspeak, a colloquial style invented by the gay of Moroland swords in the living room which you can community and popularized by mass media, pulling in contemplate while reclining on the plastic-covered sofa, the biggest weight. Hence, everyday Pinoy pop speech or the popular ‘poker dogs’ tapestry positioned next to would not be complete without terms like chuvacheness, chaka, gimik, sosi and jologs, chisms, the solemn picture of the Last Supper in the dining room.

These are just a few major pieces in the pop Pinoys bonggacious and certainly, the expression “Ang collection of anik-aniks around the house. ganda ng lola mo!”

Add to this fabulous mishmash of meanings, a lot of us Pinoys also have the ‘f and p deficiency’ – “Hello, my prend!” and have a knack for ‘englisizing’ Tagalog words, misspelling English and corrupting its syntax resulting to puns galore. Look around the Philippines, the world’s capital of funny signage, and you will see signs like Meating Place (for a butcher shop), Monaylisa (bakery), Frigid Ice Plant and Harry Cutters Barbershop, among many other mind bogglers and side splitters.

Of course, these celebrity appearances come amidst a backdrop of gossip shows, noontime game shows with scantily clad girls gyrating to the strains of novelty anthems like ‘Spaghetting Pababa’ or ‘Ocho-Ocho’, and where comic relief is provided by midgets, dimwits, ugly folks and ‘she-men’.

One cannot talk about Pinoy pop icons and miss the mother of all Pinoy pop icons – ‘Madame’ Imelda Marcos, who gained the country international acclaim with her astounding collection of 3,000 (or was it 4,000?) shoes.

To this day, even with a checkered political history and her sanity in question, the imperiously coiffed and immaculately terno-clad former first lady, easily commands ‘shock and awe’ from those hungry for the glitz and glamour of Pinoy pseudo-royalty.

Carnevale de Surreal How a former dictator’s family, once forcibly ejected from the country, can come back as modern day heroes and fashion icons – is simply incredibly bizarre. But a look around Manila will help one understand that this is a place where the surreal is actually ‘normal’ and very pop.

We Pinoys have elevated the act of urinating on the streets as pop art with the pink urinals that litter the streets of the metro. That’s right –“if you can’t teach the people to do it in the toilets, bring the toilets to them.” Conveniently positioned in our malls and bangketas, to cater to the ultimate Pinoy pop pastime are videoke machines – just so you can sing a long while taking a break from shopping, or on the way to the moneychanger or the sanglaan.

And if this isn’t surreal enough, Pinoys, who really know how to party, also have the ability of turning tense and somber occasions such as welgas or All Soul’s Day in cemeteries into a fiesta-like celebration complete with the cornik and peanut vendors and the blasting music.

IUD and betamax dipped in patis, please…

Bahala na, makakalusot yan…

As for food, there can be no other quite as unique – or as weird. How about our de facto national delicacy, the balut – duck embryo, anyone? Or our fondness for food, which can cause a major coronary like fried pork or chicken skin chicharons, crispy pata or sisig. Or delicacies which are hygienically questionable like ‘dirty ice cream’, or stinky bagoong, and animal parts, not of the ‘choice cuts’ kind, which have become signature pedestrian delights – IUD’s (chicken intestines), helmet (chicken heads), walkman (pigs ear), adidas (chicken feet), betamax (coagulated blood in skewers), et al.

In a nutshell, the Pinoy pop attitude can be summed up as easygoing and exuberant – which is both a boon and a bane. It’s easy for us to get along, we’re naturally cheerful and lively, and have the ability to laugh at anything, even at ourselves. However, the same low-key mindset also comes with the ‘bahala na’ or the ‘makakalusot’ attitude, which oftentimes gets us into trouble.

Si Nora, Si Darna at si Madame And if there’s anything even more outlandish than the anik-aniks we keep, it is our weird fascination with celebrity and appetite for the salacious on TV.

Perhaps, it is due to a deep-rooted lack of self-confidence, the same reason why majority of Pinoys also have this obsession with having white skin and believing that anything foreign or ‘PX’ must be superior, or why a lot of us love to copy mostly from the west – whether in terms of our lifestyle, our aspirations and pop arts.

We also have this certain taste for food which foreigners find hard to define – too salty and almost always sweet.

The Philippines is the only country where spaghetti, which Movie stars and celebs in the Philippines are treated like most consider to be noodles, is served sweet – enough demi-gods. Sightings of iconic stars like Nora “Walang But we also have a unique resourcefulness about us and to offend any real pasta lover, or where our rice meals are himala!” Aunor, and Vilma “Darna!” Santos, are enough a positive attitude of coping when means are limited. not complete without our beloved dipping sauces – patis, Where else can you buy tingi or ‘liliputian’ packets of

Illustrado 6

FEATURE or drink cola from a plastic bag? A lot of Pinoys still re-use disposables like cups and food keepers to economize and in an absolutely ingenious effort, some of our compatriots have been able to turn what once was lahar (from Pinatubo) and garbage (from Smokey Mountain) into saleable crafts.

In general, the ability to cope is best seen in the resilience of our people, or how the Pinoys have prevailed with their good nature intact in spite of all the country’s problems.

Ang Tunay na Pusong Pinoy So this is the Pinoy warts and all! Pinoy pop culture might be baduy and utterly ‘pang-jologs’. But, whether we like it or not, our popular way of life still defines who we are and is undeniably and inescapably at the heart of being a Filipino, no matter how westernized and globally savvy we become.

Looking at ourselves makes us aware of our faults, providing us guidance on improving our negative traits. But such cultural examination also uncovers the gem of being a Pinoy - revealing our people’s innate creativity, resourcefulness, resilience and our inexhaustible sense of humor.

So the next time you are faced with the garish and bizarre reality of Pinoy pop, dig in with gusto – because it’s amazingly fun to be a true blue Filipino!

Some Very Pinoy things

Another one of those ‘Filipinisms’ lists courtesy of the www

Merienda. Where else but in the Philippines is it normal to • ?eat five times a day

Sawsawan. Assorted sauces for a range of added flavors, • .like toyo’t calamansi, suka at sili, patis

Tingi. Thank goodness for small entrepreneurs there’s soap, • .condiments and life’s essentials in small affordable amounts

Po, opo, mano po. Suffixes that define courtesy, • .deference and filial respect

Pasalubong. An excuse to shop and our way of sharing the •

Kamayan style. To eat with one’s hand and eschew • .spoon, fork and table manners

Chicharon. Pork, fish or chicken crackling. There is in the • .crunch a hint of the extravagant, the decadent and the pedestrian

Tricycle and trisikad, the poor Pinoy’s taxicab • that delivers you at your doorstep for as little as PHP3, with a .complimentary dusting of polluted air

Dirty ice cream. Very Pinoy flavors that make up for the • .risk: munggo, langka, ube, mais, keso and macapuno

San Miguel Beer and pulutan. “Isa pa nga!” and •

Bagoong. Darkly mysterious, smelly fish or shrimp paste - •

the Philippines’ most popular, world-renowned beer goes well with peanuts, corniks, tapa, chicharon, barbecue, sisig, and cholesterol.rich chasers

Bayanihan. Our habit of pitching in to help still common in •

Tabo. All-powerful, ever-useful, device to scoop water out of a •

.small communities

.bucket and help the true Pinoy answer nature’s call

The Balikbayan box. Another way of sharing life’s •

Pandesal. Despite its shrinking size, still a good buy. Goes •

.vicarious delights of a trip

.unbearably stinky, but simply irresistible

.bounty, no matter where we are in the globe

Fiesta. Eat, drink and be merry - a Pinoy • .celebration at its pious and riotous best

Aswang, manananggal, kapre. The whole •

underworld of bizarre Filipino mythology that peppered the stories of .our childhood

Jeepneys. Colorful, fast, reckless, a vehicle of postwar Pinoy • .ingenuity - everyman’s communal Cadillac

Dinuguan. Blood stew, a bloodcurdling idea, until you try it • .with puto. Messy but murderously delicious

Balut. Unhatched duck’s embryo, another unspeakable ethnic • .food to outsiders, a guilty pleasure for Pinoys

Choc-nut. Crumbly peanut chocolate bars that defined • .childhood ecstasy before M&M’s and Hershey’s

.well with any filling, best when hot

Sing-a-long. Filipinos love to sing, and thank God a lot of • !us do it well

Street food. Barbecue, banana-cue, fishballs, IUD (chicken • entrails), adidas (chicken feet), warm taho. Forget hepatitis; here’s .cheap, tasty food with gritty ambience

Sari-sari store. There’s one in every corner, offering • .everything from bananas and floor wax to Band-Aid and bakya

Relatives and kababayan (countrymen) abroad. • The best refuge against loneliness and confusion in a foreign place.

Distant relatives and fellow Pinoys readily roll out the welcome mat .even on the basis of a phone introduction or referral

FEATUREEA-

REAL

Pinoy Signs • Alabank (Rural Bank of Alabang) • Babalik Karinderia • Caintacky Fried Chicken (in Cainta, Rizal) • Cinna Von (A laundromat) • Cleopata's (Bakahan and manukan) • Crispy per minute (Crispy Pata Eatery) • Curl Up and Dye (Beauty Salon) • Fagoofyt (A children's hair salon in BF Paranaque) • Let's Goat-Together (Kambingan cum beer garden) • Mang Donald's (Burger joint, Naga City plaza) • Meating Place (Meat Shop) • Pansit ng Taga-Malaboni (Along Boni Avenue, Mandaluyong) • Saudia Hairlines (Beauty Salon) • Side-Saki (Side street eatery beside Mandarin Hotel) • Sylvestre's Salon • TapSi TurBi (Tapa at Sinangag, Turon at Bibingka) • The Fried of Marikina (Fried chicken shop) • Le Cheng Tea House (In Chinatown) • Cooking ng Ina Mo (Carinderia) • Cooking ng Ina Mo Rin (Right across Cooking ng Ina Mo) Illustrado 8

Photos By Jojie Alcantara @www.witerary.com

FEATURE

Of

Chicharon

and Communication

by Law Diche Photos by Joel Guerrero

“Baka akala mo’y gano’n lamang Ang mamuhay sa ibang bayan” - Florante (“Pinay”)

Legendary Pinoy folk singer Florante must have been singing about a myriad of issues facing the OFW: working on foreign land and trying to fit in, coping with loneliness, coping with culture shock and all the sad stories that has had its share in Pinoy soaps.

But he must have been also talking largely about the extreme difficulty of keeping in constant touch with your loved ones in the Philippines.

After all, he wrote this song in the 70s.

Chicharon for the boys As a son of an OFW, I would only know this too well.

Back in the 70s, my Mom had to drag me and my brother to then Manila International Airport (now the Domestic Airport), so she could either send/receive a letter to/from my Dad’s co-worker who’s ‘departing/arriving’. And the chicharon, this indigenous, ethereal Pinoy delicacy (not of the sterile, Lapid’s kind but of the messier, finger-lickin’ balut vendor variety) was what she had to give us so we would stay put.

Caught in the height of the Iranian Revolution when then Shah Reza Pahlavi was overthrown, it had been months since we last heard from my Dad who worked in Tehran.

Communications 101 Fast forward to over a quarter century later.

This time, I’m in the Lion City, still nibbling on chicharon, a pasalubong from an officemate slash kababayan. And I’ve become my father’s son, so to speak as I’m now an OFW myself.

But unlike my Mom in the 70s, my wife need not bring my kids to the airport to get news about me. Right now, I’m just waiting for my wife to log to the Internet. A few more seconds and I would hear the digital, melodic ringing of her Skype call. Then, I would see her carrying my little princess, nibbling perhaps on a plastic toy pan. Just a few minutes ago, I sent her an SMS saying I’m having a backache attack, yet again. She ‘texted’ back saying she’ll be online in a while.

Of course, this scenario wasn’t possible a little over a decade ago.

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FEATURE lording it over the ‘airwaves’ for over seven decades since it was founded in 1928. Through the Public Telecommunications Policy Act of 1995 (RA 7925), a more level playing ground was created making the entry for new players possible.

Before, it would take many months, even years before you could get a telephone line as PLDT controlled 95% of the voice market, the balance divided among small rural telephone companies.

By 1980, the time when we were waiting for news from my Dad, there were only 1.3 telephones for every 100 people in the Philippines.

By late 1991, PLDT had 658,402 pending applications for telephones.

By 1993 the backlog was 789,259 lines, and thus, the PLDT campaign ‘Zero Backlog’ which I do quite distinctly remember.

Tale of the Tape, et al.

Tape recorded messages were a likewise a main fare for OFWs in the 70s, 80s and perhaps even in the early 90s.

It was the icing on the cake, the cake being the letters that would then take a month, or months depending on where it’s coming from, before it arrives, if it arrives at all.

On the other side of the continent I remember stories from my uncles and aunts from the land down under about needing to send their Christmas cards and letters at least 2 months before Santa Claus comes to town. Yes, and we sometimes do get their Christmas greetings on Valentine’s Day. Of course today, you’ve got (e)mail!

Plus, electronic greeting cards can even be “custom-made and personalized”, with all the trimmings of a 70s look if you want.

Lest I forget, it’s bad enough that you get once-in-a-blue-moon long distance calls. Back then, it would likewise cost an arm and leg. Or maybe a cow’s leg, or 2 chicken heads, or a turkey (or what-have-you, you get my drift) if you’re provincial folk. Speaking of provinces, it wasn’t weird to see people coming from the provinces, taking rides to the city for that oh-so-precious-long distance call too. When my family had to ship to Bicol, a long distance call was a practically an event that we would look forward to.

But with the dismantling of the PLDT monopoly, the practice of tape recorded messages has gone to obscurity as phone calls have become so much cheaper and easier with the drastic improvement in teledensity – the number of telephone lines per 100 persons.

The irony of course is that by the time 7 million lines have been installed all over the country, only 3 million were subscribed. It was too much, and too late. There was an even better, cheaper alternative – cellphones.

By the year 2000, the cellphone business has caught up with the number of fixed line business.

The present estimate for the Philippines, dubbed the text messaging capital of the world as most Pinoys today know, is 37 million mobile phone users, processing more than a billion text messages a day.

As of end - June 2006, Globe Telecom has a total of 13.9 million-client base. Smart with 16.4 million and Talk ‘N Text with 6.1 million while Sun Cellular, a relatively new player had over 2 million subscribers as of April 2006. This figure has arguably been boosted greatly by its non-stop promos.

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FEATURE

That figure is higher than the average population of mobile subscribers in the East Asia and Pacific region (248 for every 1,000 people) and for the lower-middle income group (255).

Back to the OFW front, we are now eyed by mobile phone giant Nokia as the jump-off point for 3G, the latest mobile phone technology. OFWs have been cited as a good and strong market for 3G technology that allows them to see their families while talking on the phone. 3G networks deliver full-motion, real-time video calls and enable them to download content faster.

Real wonderful option for the lonely OFW indeed, I would say.

Online all right After leaving Iran, my Dad went around Egypt, Greece, among other countries, before finally landing a job at Khartoum in Sudan where he let his naturally curly hair grow long and got his skin burned so that when he finally came home, I didn’t recognize him.

Compared that to what happened when I came home last Christmas.

My daughter was sleeping in the car when they picked me up at the airport. She briefly woke up when I took her from my wife, gave me a startled look on her face… for only about a second… and went back to dreamland. I mean, we get to talk and see each other almost every night after all via the Internet.

Popularized in the Philippines by servicemen from the former U.S. military installations in Subic and Clark in the early 1990s, the Philippine Internet industry has expanded and developed in only a little over a decade.

The research group BSBC Hook UAI proclaims that there were 1,925,649 Internet users in 2004 in Metro Manila compared to 1,885,465 in 2002, a 21.3% increase.

At the OFW front, websites devoted to all things Filipino continue to grow, and while a 2004 OFW (Overseas Filipino Worker) Internet Habits Report shows that only 24% of OFWs surf the Internet, that number arguably has grown immensely these past three years.

To their credit, OWWA has partnered with Microsoft Philippines for a program called Tulay that offers free computer lessons to OFWS and their families. Developed under Microsoft Unlimited Potential, a global initiative that seeks to provide IT skills for underserved individuals the program as of March 2006, has produced more than 1,300 graduates of various computer courses being taught in Pasay City and another center located in Cebu. Extensions of this program have been conducted at similar centers in Hongkong, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Telecom companies have even embarked on an OFW entrepreneurship drive that offers low-cost business packages.

PLDT for instance has myDSL Internet Café. Globe has ‘Globe Negosyo,’ intended for OFWs seeking to start or are engaged in small businesses such as neighborhood variety stores, bakeshops and kiosk retailers.

To chicharon and beyond “Text mo na lang ako. Ay, e-mail mo na lang. Or YM. Or…” That’s my wife. We’ve been bouncing off this year’s budget to each other for over two weeks now, and I’m seriously asking myself will this ever be fixed?

Anyway, like chicharon, the OFWs means of communications has become a smorgasbord of choices.

Illustrado 12

As with the chicharon bulaklak, bituka, tenga, laman, bilog and what have you, OFWs can now communicate with their families via SMS, cellphones and VOIP over the regular voice calls. We have call cards, prepaid cards, IDD options. We have emails. We have 3G. The possibilities have become nothing short of endless.

FEATU

Property Boom in the Philippines

By David Llorito

For Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI), the property sector arm of the Ayala global conglomerate that is usually known for its conservative slow-but-sure approach to doing business, the keyword for 2007 is ‘aggressive investing’. It has set aside PHP 16.2 billion (US$338 million) capital expenditure for 27 major residential development projects all over the Philippines; redevelopment and construction of six shopping centers; three huge business process outsourcing commercial buildings in Manila and Cebu; and a business process outsourcing campus south of Manila. It’s throwing caution to the wind because, according to analysts, the Philippines is going to have a ‘property boom’ that will be more durable and long-lasting than those experienced in the last few decades.

Analysts expect frenzied construction activities in 2007 because Metro Manila’s central business districts are running out of office spaces. Demand is particularly high for large premium and Grade A spaces or those with high specification and finish and are centrally located.

Richard Raymundo, director for research and consultancy of Colliers International, a property research and consulting company, said vacancy rates in all office grades is down to 3.9% in the last quarter of 2006, down significantly from 5% in the previous quarter. Vacancy rate in premium grade is even lower at 1.6%. “We expect the average vacancy rate for all grades to further go down to 2.7% by the end of 2007,” said Raymundo.

From close to 50% in 1998 during the peak of the Asian financial crisis, vacancy rates in the CBD have been on the rapid slide particularly since 2001 when demand for commercial spaces accelerated. Since office vacancy rates started going down below 10% as early as 2005, rents have been escalating.

“Rents in the Premium Grade segment escalated by nearly 31% year-on-year to an average of PHP853 per square meter per month. Rental levels are already reaching early 1996 levels. We expect rents to further increase by 20% in the course of 2007 to an average of PHP1,023 per square meter per month,” said Raymundo. “Also, premium grade office capital values are up by

Illustrado 14

20% year on year to an average of PHP96,500 per square meter from the previous year’s PHP80,400 per square meter. In the next 12 months, our capital value forecast is PHP115,800 per square meter, another significant rise.”

But according to Claro Cordero, senior manager of the consultancy division of Lee Chiu and Associates, also a property research firm, demand for residential, hotels and serviced apartments, retail spaces, and even farm lots are also rising, an indication of a broad-based recovery in the property sector. That’s why property developers especially the major players like Ayala Land, Megaworld Properties, Robinsons Land, One Asia Development, and Phinma Properties are scrambling to take advantage of the potential windfalls.

“This could be our biggest year, depending on the political developments in the next six months,” said Joey Radovan, vice chairman of the CB Richard Ellis, a global real estate services company. “If the coming elections are conducted well, the year 2007 could even be the biggest year ever considering the prevailing low interest rates.”

Property developers are confident because— according to Jaime E.Ysmael, Ayala Land’s senior vice president and chief finance officer—the recovery in the property sector is driven by three major ‘structural changes’ in the Philippine economy.

These ‘structural’ factors, Ysmael said, are economic: specifically the improving fiscal position of the country and steady 5-6% growth since 2001; secular: referring to the rapid rise of dollar remittances from overseas workers; and global: specifically the rapid growth of information technology services industries.

Improved fiscal deficit, low inflation, and consistent growth since 2001, Ysmael said, have pushed interest rates down to as low as 3%, thus encouraging people to invest in the property sector. He said that banks these days even offer 25-year loans at fixed interest rates just to entice people from investing in property. That’s totally unheard of in the history of the country,” he said.

“Banks used to be saddled with lots of nonperforming assets following the Asian crisis but in the last few years, they have been selling off those assets through the Special Purpose Vehicle Law [that gives them incentives to sell bad assets at huge discounts], thus significantly reducing the amount of their non-performing loans,” adds Ninalyn S. Cordero, assistant vice president for business development of Rockwell Land, developer of the Rockwell Center in Makati.

“With so much liquidity, they are encouraged to resume lending to the real property sector.”

According to Raymundo, the Filipinos’ changing cultural ethos seems to contribute to the demand for condominiums. “Lately, there is this growing appreciation for condominium

FEATURE old. Their moms would even wash their underwear. Now, that is changing. It’s not yet a big wave but their numbers are growing.”

“The expansion of high paying jobs in the services sector like telecommunications, information technology, and finance has enabled lots of young professionals to afford such a lifestyle change,” said Valerie L. Soliven, Rockwell Land’s vice president for sales and marketing.

Ysmael explained that dollar remittances by overseas Filipinos have doubled in just five years to almost US$14 billion from just $6 billion largely due to the increasing globalization of the Philippine labor market.

“It used to be that only the malls are making money of these remittances,” observed Ysmael.

“Now, overseas Filipinos are increasingly investing their money in real properties like condominiums, leisure resorts, house and lots,

and even farm lots.”

Ysmael explained that as of end 2006, 37% of Ayala Land’s sale of residential units are accounted for by overseas Filipinos, up significantly from 26% in 2005, and 16% in 2004.

This trend, he explained, is due to the fact the share of professionals and highly paid workers in the total number of overseas Filipinos leaving to work abroad are rising.

Many people tend to think of OFWs as those sunburnt hardscrabble desert workers who could only afford those low-cost, low-quality housing.

Ysmael said this is a misconception as 38% of their sales of high-end or expensive units costing at least PHP10 millon pesos ($208,000) per unit located in prime locations such as Makati and Fort Bonifacio Global City are accounted for by overseas Filipinos.

“By local standards, these high-end residential units are expensive, but for an OFW who receives US$4,000 dollars a month as a medical professional in the US, a US$300 dollar a month amortization is very much affordable,” said Raymundo of Colliers International.

Other analysts think changing demographics are also a factor. “Overseas Filipinos who have left in the 60s and the 70s after the declaration of Martial Law are now in their 50s and 60s,” explained Rockwell Land’s Soliven. “Now many of them are coming back and looking at the possibility of retiring here. So they are buying condo units either as investments or as a place where they could stay when they have their

vacation. Others have started opening business operations here.”

“Besides overseas Filipinos, foreigners are also emerging as a market for condominium units,” said Radovan, stressing that foreigners are allowed by law to buy 40% of the total number of condominium units being sold. “I observed they come from different countries like South Korea, United States, Saudi Arabia and other parts of the Middle East.

According to Ayala Land’s Ysmael, it’s primarily the business process outsourcing industry or cyberservices that’s driving the prime and office grade market. He explained that in the last five years, this industry has been growing by 57% in terms of the number of seats. The industry now occupies 700,000 square meters (200,000 in Makati and 500,000 in Ortigas) thus stretching the existing supply.

At its current rate of growth, Ayala Land estimates that the cyberservices industry would require 3 million square meters by 2010. And yet, projected additional supply, based on buildings under construction and those in the pipeline announced by other developers, will only be 900,000 square meters thus bringing total supply to only 1.6 million square meters by 2010. That means, Ysmael said, there’s going to be a shortfall of about 1.4 million office spaces by 2010 unless more projects will go onstream to meet demand.

“Market demand has been moving way too fast as compared to the decision making process of most developers,” explained Raymundo. “Thus, the ones that are really making money right now are those that have made their decisions fast, especially those who are able to build within 12-18 months. They are the ones whose projects are filled or taken even before the buildings are finished.”

“There’s also an increasing mall patronage and rising aspirational or lifestyle spending,” said Ysmael. And the retail magnates are responding by building more malls. From about 3 million square meter mall spaces in 1999, there are now more than 4 million square meters devoted to retail mall spaces all over the country, he said.

“Competition among retail malls has prompted developers to undergo major renovations and facelifts, ranging from improvement in tenant mix to expansion of retail space to satisfy increasing demand for mall space,” said Cordero of Lee Chiu and Associates.

All these trends are driving up land values in the Philippine major cities. “Developable land in Makati central business district is estimated at an average of PHP 222,500 per square meter, up by nearly 4% year on year. We expect land values to further increase by 10% to an average of PHP 245,000 per square meter,” said Raymundo.

“Land valuation in Ortigas is at an average of PHP107,500 per square meter, up by 10% year on year.”

Analysts are now wondering for how long would the expected ‘property boom’ would last. In terms of demand for commercial spaces, there seems to be a consensus that the good times may prevail over the next three years or more.

“Property boom usually take a five to seven-year cycle,” said economist Ninalyn Cordero, Rockwell Land’s vice president for business development. “But I’m inclined to

think that this one might stretch for a few more years. This is because demand covers the whole spectrum of the property sector including hotels, leisure, and serviced apartments.”

There are also fears that the expected ‘property boom’ that may last until 2010 may ultimately burst in a bubble just like what happened during Asian crisis. Ysmael said that it’s a possibility but pointed out that there are major differences between the property boom prior to the Asian crisis and today.

“Demand these days comes from three major factors—first, the improving local economy; second, overseas Filipinos, and third outsourcing.

We didn’t have factors two and three during the property boom prior to the Asian crisis,” said Ysmael. “It was largely driven by domestic demand. The recovery these days therefore should be more durable. Besides, we don’t start construction unless we are certain that demand is real.”

Valerie Soliven, Rockwell Land’s vice president for sales, however, feels confident about the continuing demand from overseas Filipinos.

She explained that there are more than ten million overseas Filipinos abroad, about a million workers are leaving each year, and property developers have started tapping the overseas market only in 2001. “We have barely scratched the surface,” she said.

Illustrado 15

Famous Filipinos

By Maripaz Febrero

It seems almost impossible not to find a Filipino among the world’s achievers, which is good for us here at Illustrado. We will always have material to share with our readers. Here, once again, we introduce you to more of your famous kababayans around the world!

…Global Finance

Pinay known as “The Wall Street Fighter” Lilia Clemente would likely object to any effort at reducing her life down to numbers. But one very telling number that helps to understand her perspective is 350,000. That’s the number of miles she jets each year, the equivalent of circling the earth 15 times. She does it to review investment opportunities personally. The distances are extra large because, as one of Wall Street’s top emerging markets specialist, she has focused on Asia.

Another number to help complete the picture is 4’11”. It’s Clemente’s height. One more 25,000. That’s the number of dollars of her own money with which she started to build investment funds which today have their own listings on the New York Stock Exchange. They now put Clemente into the ranks of America’s top 20 fund managers.

As chairman and CEO of Clemente Capital Inc. she oversees a U.S. portfolio worth $1 billion managed by 25 employees hailing from 15 countries. Globally, Clemente manages another $6 billion through branch offices in Beijing, Hong Kong, Manila, Seoul, Tokyo and Bombay. That means her seed money has grown 300,000 times so that she now controls funds totaling $7.5 billion.

“You know the poem ‘The Road Less Traveled?” she says. “I always try to take that road. It’s important to concentrate on the basics of being a human being. And the basics of going back to your roots. Without that support I would have had trouble. The support and understanding of my husband Leo is important. He’s my friend and partner in business and in life.”

On weekends the couple drives to their New Jersey cottage where she gardens, writes poetry and reads. Occasionally, they fly to their Miami Beach home.

Major League Baseball

Piratang Pinoy sa Pittsburg Christopher Louis Aguila is a Major League Baseball player with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Born on February 23, 1979 in Redwood City, California, Christopher has played parts of three seasons in the major leagues with the Florida Marlins, all three were outfield positions.

Aguila was chosen by the Marlins in the third round of the 1997 MLB draft out of McQueen High School in Reno, Nevada, where he set a single-season home run record. Although he was initially a highly-regarded prospect, he spent two seasons playing rookie ball in the Gulf Coast League and 2 1/2 more seasons in Class A before he was promoted to the Class AA Portland Sea Dogs. When he started playing for Portland in 2001, he was in his fifth professional season but was still only 22 years old. He batted .257 in 64 games with Portland. He returned to the Sea Dogs in 2002 and posted a .294 average.

The Marlins switched their Class AA affiliation to the Carolina Mudcats the following year, and Aguila spent 2003 with the Mudcats, posting a .320 batting average in 93 games. It was then that Aguila once again showed his potential as a hitter, and he played in spring training with the Marlins in 2004.

Although he did not make the Marlins’ opening day roster, he impressed Marlins manager Jack McKeon, and he batted .312 for Class AAA Albuquerque in 2004. He had two stints in the majors in 2004, paving the way for him to make the Marlins’ opening day roster in 2005. On December 10, 2006, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that Aguila had signed a minor-league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Aguila comes from a widely varied ethnic background. His father is Filipino, and his mother is Samoan, Tongan, and Fijian. As of 2006, Aguila and Tony Solaita are the only known ethnic Samoans who have played in Major League Baseball.

Illustrado 16

FAMOUS FILIPINOS …In Hollywood

Pinay Make-up Artist to the Hottest Celebrities Some of the world’s top celebrities turn to Mally Roncal to prepare for their most important career moments. She has become a favorite among a versatile group of actors and music industry heavyweights including: Celine Dion, Kelly Osbourne, Beyonce Knowles, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lopez, Lisa Kudrow, Gretchen Mol, Kerri Russell, Molly Shannon, Lee Ann Womak, Zooey Deschannel, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and many more.

Magazines like Allure, Marie Claire, In Style, Self, Harper’s Bazaar and Town & Country have all turned to Roncal for her technique. Her monthly ‘Trend Spotting’ column for Seventeen is a favorite in the beauty industry.

Roncal has served as a spokesperson for brands including Revlon, Shu Uemura, Elizabeth Arden, Almay, MAC, and most recently Sephora.

She helped create memorable looks for ad campaigns for Ralph Lauren Polo, Candies and Elizabeth Arden Cosmetics, and her makeup ingenuity and creativity has been recruited for the runways by Tracy Reese and Pat Fields, for the House of Fields.

Pinoy Hollywood Hotshot Dean Devlin, failing to find success as an actor in films and TV despite being the son of film producer Don Devlin, ‘My Bodyguard’ (1980); ‘The Witches of Eastwick’ (1987) and former TV actress Pilar Devlin (best known for a guest shot on the original ‘Star Trek’), Dean turned to producing and screenwriting. In collaboration with German writer-director Roland Emmerich, Dean co-wrote and/or produced such enjoyable if minor sci-fi outings such as ‘Universal Soldier’ (1992), ‘Stargate’ (1994) and, most popular of all, ‘Independence Day’ (1996).

Dean began making his own thrifty little Super-8mm sci-fi movies as a Los Angeles youth, winning a student film award at age 13. His showbiz connections won him lots of early access to film sets--and his first feature credits as a production assistant and actor on his father’s production of ‘My Bodyguard’ - but his lackluster grades kept him out of film school (just as did those of his hero, Steven Spielberg). Devlin moved to NYC where he took a job as a chauffeur to actor Al Pacino. He parked long enough to do some stage work and soon segued into standup comedy, bit parts in features and TV guest shots. With his intriguing biracial appearance (Jewish New Yorker on his father’s side, Filipino on his mother’s), the young Devlin was often cast as a Latino.

Iba talaga ang Pinoy! Who would have thought we have kababayans who were big winners in global finance, Hollywood and Major League Baseball?

It’s heartwarming and incredibly gratifying to share this information with you.

We hope you’re as proud as we are to have discovered such an illustrious batch of famous Filipinos. More on next issue!

Illustrado 17

FASHION

FASHION

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HIGHLIGHTING FILIPINO CREATIONS ON THE CATWALK

FFDG’S GLOBAL BRIDE AT THE GLOBAL VILLAGE AMPHITHEATRE FEB 2007

by Butz Fuentes

Illustrado 32

by Nesty Cawaling

by Rene Santos

by Lumer Hamto

by Ruben Santos

by Kim Gorospe

by Nelson Buhain

by Rod Balingit

by Donjie Santos and Aldwin Guardiana

by Angelo de Jesus

by Butz Fuentes

FFDG Members

Illustrado 33

KABAYANIHAN

By Gisela Estrada

In 2005, a little known lawyer in the Philippines made a small move that created big ripples. Atty. Alexander Lacson published a book destined to be a So Alexander Lacson went about writing best seller, creating a revolution of its own. Faced with the question a book, which has whether his family should migrate to another country or stay in the awakened the collective Philippines, Alexander and his wife Pia asked themselves, “Is consciousness of Filipinos back home – 12 Little Things there hope in the Philippines?” After much soul searching Every Filipino Can Do to Help the couple made a defining realization that changed 4. Buy Filipino, wherever you are our Country. The sincere slim tome in the world. their lives: that the answer to that question was in with its list of practical and actionable 5.

Adopt a poor child as a scholar ‘little things’ to help the country has them. They finally understood that to affect back home. become the commandment and guide book change they (and every Filipino) must of many progressive thinking Pinoys who yearn 6. Support a charitable organization. take an active part in acts of good for change in a country with a long history of 7. Teach your children about the Philippines internal difficulties. citizenship. to love it and its people.

The logic was simple - if each of us Filipinos in our own way would do ‘little positive things’, then this would help the country. That if each of us took it upon ourselves to improve the situation, then there would be hope for the Philippines. And surely, we couldn’t agree more. Because, as they say, the sum of the whole, is always greater than its parts and a little help from each of us, will go a long way.

Here are Alexander Lacson’s lists of ‘little things’:

8. Speak positively about our Philippines and our people.

9. If you are remitting funds to your relatives in the Philippines, teach them to save 15% or 20% of the funds.

10. Invest in the Philippines

With Alexander Lacson’s inspirational work in mind, we have put a small list of ‘little things’, yet again, this time to promote the concept of ‘kabayanihan’. Read on, mga kababayans:

12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do to Help our Country

10 Little Things Pinoys Can Do To Promote Kabayanihan

1. Follow traffic rules. Follow the law.

2. Whenever you buy or pay for anything,

1. Be a friendly kababayan. Smile whenever you meet a kababayan on

always ask for an official receipt.

3. Don’t buy smuggled goods. Buy Local. Buy Filipino.

4. When you talk to others, especially foreigners, speak positively about us and our country.

5. Respect your traffic officer, policeman and soldier.

6. Do not litter. Dispose your garbage properly.

Segregate. Recycle. Conserve.

7. Support your church.

8. During elections, do your solemn duty.

9. Pay your employees well.

10. Pay your taxes.

11. Adopt a scholar or a poor child.

12. Be a good parent.

Teach your kids to follow the law and love our country.

10 Things Pinoys Abroad Can Do To Help Our Country 1. Spend your vacation, your dollars and other foreign currencies, in the Philippines.

2. Encourage and teach your relatives back home to be good citizens and good Filipinos.

3. All OFWs, Balikbayans and Pinoy Expats should do more during elections in RP.

Illustrado 34

the street – huwag maging suplado or suplada.

2.Tulungan tayo! Give a kababayan a job referral whenever possible.

3. Support and serve. Make an effort to help and serve your kababayans especially well.

4. Always tip generously to kababayans who serve you well.

5. Makiisa ka. Make an effort to join any community organization or endeavor that will uplift your country and its people.

Even a small effort goes a long way.

6. Ipasa mo, Kaibigan. If somebody does you a good deed, pay it forward.

Help out a kababayan in need, without expecting anything in return.

7. Foster love of country at home. Teach your kids about the Philippines and about being a good Filipino.

8. Be an Ambassador of Goodwill. Promote the Philippines and your people to friends from other countries.

9. Ikatuwa mo ang tagumpay ng iyong kababayan. Throw away ‘crab mentality’. Be happy and promote the success of your compatriots while pursuing your own.

10. Love your own. Maging totoong Pilipino ka.

Patronize your community and your country.

Regardless of age, gender, creed, political or religious inclinations, a little effort from all of us will surely have a great incremental effect on our community. Life outside our home country, away from our loved ones, is

KABUHAYAN INSURANCE

Money, Assets and Investing ‘KKK’ (Kamag-anak Kaibigan and Kaeskuwela) approach, which agents employ in prospecting for clients.

The rationale is that people normally like to do business with someone they know and trust.

Sadly, however, this is the reason why many of our kababayans have acquired several life insurance policies without understanding what they are for – giving them a false sense of security but not achieving their actual goals. As a result, many have become frustrated and disillusioned with insurance.

Insuring Your

by Ben Parco

Life Insurance – The Only Solution Every morning when I wake up, I thank God that I am breathing, and excited to be alive. Another opportunity to live a meaningful, purpose-driven, productive life to help people plan and secure their future and that of their loved ones. Another day to work to provide for the ever increasing needs of my growing family.

But what if one day I am not able to wake up and suddenly find myself in heaven? What if I am allowed to look down, for one brief moment, to see the situation of my family? Would I be happy to see them living a comfortable life just like they did when I was still around?

Or would I be sad to see them because I failed to prepare them financially in the event of my untimely demise?

This is a serious question that, many loving, familyoriented, and responsible people will face at some point in their lives - an ever-niggling feeling that will always be there. An uncomfortable issue, that to this day and age, only life insurance can solve. So far, there is no financial instrument or idea that has been created to deal with this problem. While a life insurance policy cannot prevent people from dying or from contracting a critical illness or becoming disabled, it can effectively replace future income providing family security that will be lost if such unfortunate events do occur.

Do you own a life insurance policy?

According to surveys, an average working person will buy at least six life insurance policies during his lifetime. In the Philippines this could be especially true because of the

I am optimistic however, that as we steadily mature in this fast-paced information age, coupled with the awareness drive initiated by our government and the private sector, our kababayans will buy life insurance and insurancebased financial products more intelligently.

Be specific about your objectives To fully benefit from a life insurance policy, one should conduct a personal ‘needs analysis’ to ensure that the amount of cover or face amount is sufficient to attain your objective. For example, if a sole breadwinner is looking to buy a life insurance policy for family protection then he has to calculate how much money his family will need every month to maintain their current standard of living if he, God forbid, dies or becomes critically ill today.

If the objective is for estate preservation or conservation, then one should look at the estate tax liability based on his net estate. For example, if his net estate is PHP12 million then according to Republic Act No. 7499, Section 1. Section 77 of the National Internal Revenue Code, he is liable to pay an estate tax of around PHP2.2million.

If there is no cash money available at the time of his death, then part of his estate has to be sold or liquidated to pay the estate tax liability to the government before his heirs can take possession of the estate. Again, this problem can be solved only through a life insurance policy equivalent to the tax liability so that the whole estate may be transferred to his heirs without sacrificing any part of it.

I can speak from personal experience because my mother was a public school teacher in Manila for 38 years and my father was an employee in a private company for over 40 years. When both retired, we had to send money on a regular basis because their pension benefits from GSIS and SSS were not enough to cover even their basic expenses. It is therefore always a good idea to supplement these government-sponsored schemes with a personally arranged life insurance cover to keep up with the rising cost of living.

What is the next step?

If one is convinced that life insurance is important and must be the basic foundation to sound financial planning, then my advice is for him to look for a full-time, qualified, and certified insurance specialist or broker and engage his services. Most of these professionals are paid by their principal companies so people can get an unbiased, independent, and professional advice for free. So go for it!

The ideas and information presented here are intended primarily to educate and inform, create awareness, interest, and desire, and motivate people to take action now before it’s too late. Many people believe that life insurance is an excellent idea that will give them peace of mind. They believe it can help them save money in a disciplined way and would make their loved ones remember them as loving, caring, responsible, and selfless providers long after they are gone.

But believing in life insurance is not enough. An insurance ‘believer’ will never gain the proven security and benefit of a policy until he buys one. ‘Till that day comes, he will always have that niggling feeling of ‘what if?’

These are only two of the major uses of a life insurance policy. There are many others, which, we will explore and discuss in the future.

What about government-sponsored schemes?

Many governments, including the Philippines, believe in the importance of having a population of insured people.

When people are covered with life insurance and social security, the country will not be over-burdened financially to take care of orphans left behind by parents who had no life insurance or social security benefits. That is the reason why we have SSS for employees in the private sector and GSIS for government employees. The weakness of the current insurance and social security systems is that the level of benefits provided is outmoded and not adequate to take care of the family that is left behind or the insured himself when he retires.

Ben Parco is a Dubai-based insurance specialist who has been working working full-time in the insurance and financial services industry since 1990. He’s been a member of Million Dollar Round Table, U.S.A. (an elite international network of leading insurance and investment financial services professionals/advisors) for the past four years, and is a Holder of Financial Advisers International Qualification (FAIQ) Certificate from the Chartered Insurance Institute, U.K.

Illustrado 35

KABUHAYAN REAL ESTATE

Money, Assets and Investing

Dreams

A Primer on Property Purchasing

PART 2 by Jovy Tuano

Dreaming of buying a home? It is a common dream for us Filipino expats, a major decision that merits careful planning.

Once you have decided on what kind of home you would like to buy depending on your lifestyle, while considering other aspects like location, maintenance and amenities, it is important to take your inquiry to the next stage.

Know your Seller or Developer

Know the background and track record of your seller or developer thoroughly. Visit the website, the main office and the property site along with the developer’s representative aside from the broker. Inspect interior and exterior construction and design of completed projects by talking to residents. Get acquainted with the developer’s employee in-charge of payments, documentation and building construction. Exercise your buyer’s right to establish a relationship with the seller to ensure that you receive the agreed full product package with benefits (e.g.

Certificate of Ownership, public utilities, amenities, etc).

Pricing

Here’s a simple comparison of market prices (estimates) between the Philippines and the UAE. Don’t lose your dream of buying a home when you see millions, as there are many easy payment options available in both markets that may suit your monthly income. You will be surprised to find good bargains as you spend more time shopping for properties.

Other than lower cost of living, it is easier for Filipinos to buy properties back home due to the lower cost of land, labor and locally manufactured materials compared to the UAE. However, if you are living with your family in the emirates and foresee a long-term stay, it may be more practical for you to get a reasonably priced freehold property under easy payment terms instead of paying high rental for your accommodation.

Buying a Home in the Philippines or in the UAE Buying a brand new property ready for occupancy is very expensive since the price is dictated by currently high market demand. The terms are usually very short and cash outlay is very high. The trend in many parts of the world is to buy properties from reliable developers on ‘PreSelling’ basis (or ‘Off-Plan’ as they call it in the UAE), which means that you start investing today with lower cash outlay until completion date that may take 3 to 5 years.

Illustrado 36

Buying ‘pre-sold’ is more attractive for us Pinoys since we usually intend to work for about five years abroad before settling back home. The best part of buying pre-sold properties is the increase in market value as the project nears completion. As an example, a flat at The Bellagio, Fort Bonifacio Global City, which a friend purchased in February 2004 at P4.8M, has already gained about P1M today at 60% project completion.

months at 10% interest. The balance of 40% is payable upon turnover in 2010. Some companies even offer zero downpayment with interest-free deferred payment schemes designed to attract to Overseas Filipinos who are earning at least DHS3,000 monthly.

Documentation

is one of the greatest investment options with a lower risk factor compared to doing business and investing in the stock market. You can gauge risk and returns if you observe the LAND principle - ‘L’ for location, ‘A’ for accessibility and amenities, ‘N’ for nominal value based on affordable pricing and payment scheme, ‘D’ for the right developer who can deliver and support your needs in the long run with good dividends.

Back home, the most important documents that a buyer should possess as proof of payment and ownership are the original Official Receipts, Purchase Contract or Contract to Buy and Sell, Deed of Absolute Sale and the Certificate of Title. Make sure you read and understand the fine print before signing any document.

The ‘freehold’ concept is a legal way for expatriates to own property in the UAE. However, this entitlement is limited only to areas specified by the ruler of the Emirates such as those developed by Emaar, Nakheel and Aldar around the vicinity of Jumeirah, Sheikh Zayed Road and Emirates Road i.e. The Palm, The Gardens, Meadows, Green Community, Arabian Ranches, International City and Al Raha Abu Dhabi.

Conclusion Other than your children’s education, buying a home

Many OFWs today have moved higher to become Overseas Filipino Investors or OFIs who have earned profitable returns on their real estate investment via passive rental income and capital gains from buying and selling their own properties. Real estate can also be used as collateral for personal and business loans.

So wake up now and make a wise move that will shape In the Philippines, non-Filipinos are permitted by law to buy your future. condominium or flats under their names. Many foreigners married to Filipino nationals have been taking advantage of this opportunity since they are able to buy two to three properties in the Philippines for the price of one property in Dubai. The government also grants exceptions and special privileges to foreigners who wish to invest and retire in the Philippines under a special resident visa (www.plra.com. ph).

Financing options

Many developers and real estate companies in the UAE have tied up with local banks to offer easy payment schemes from 10% to 30% downpayment with the balance amortized over 3 to 15 years. Monthly payments can be as low as DHS3,000.

In the Philippines, some companies even offer in-house financing. For example, Megaworld Corporation is offering Marriot Residential Resort or New Port City at zero downpayment with 60% of the cost payable in 50

Jovy Tuano is the Chairman of the Philippine Business Council of Abu Dhabi and Managing Director of Asia Gulf Trading & Commercial Brokerage based in Abu Dhabi. For free consultation, you may send an email to asiatrdg@aem.ae or call +97150-443 2656 For queries and free consultation on KABUHAYAN issues, send us an e-mail at: kabuhayan@illustrado.net

KABUHAYAN ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Money, Assets and Investing

Business

By Bernadette Reyes You don’t need to be brilliantly clever, lucky, have an ancestry of entrepreneurs or be quite well-off to start running your own business although all these things help a little bit. But what really helps is first, knowing the business that is right for you, couple that with enough determination and you are likely to pull it off.

You may choose from a wide selection of business opportunities from food to non-food whichever matches your skills and interest and embark on that endeavor.

Or you can also start your own business in the Philippines while still working abroad through franchising. You just have to appoint a trusty representative from among your family members or friends to operate the business for you. Franchising is a method of doing business where the buyer (the franchisee) runs a business by using the system and trademark of the seller (the franchisor). Franchising has gained attractiveness due to the minimized risk of business failure associated with it. The PITC (Philippine International Trading Corporation), an attached agency of the Department of Trade and Industry, is encouraging Filipinos based or working abroad who want to put up and operate their own business here in the Philippines and those who are planning to return to the country to look at the possibility of becoming a franchisee. Interested applicants may check out the Order Negosyo or Franchising Program of the Philippines, which offers a range of pre-selected business packages. Order Negosyo saves you the trouble of going through each franchisor at the initial stages of your research by providing the needed information and matching you with the franchise business that meets your interest and financial resources. The program runs a list of reputable franchise companies involved in food or non-food businesses such as Bench, Candy Corner, Facialhaus, Kameraworld, Metropole Laundry & Dry Cleaners, Inc., Miggy’s Super Tacos, Inc., Mister Donut, Mr. Quickie, Nacho King and Potato Corner to name a few. Investment cost will depend on the nature of the franchise business

you choose. Usually, investment could range from as low as PHP200,000 to as high as PHP4 million.

For those who wish to start from square one, DTI encourages businesses involved in the food industry such as the processed food business or anything that has to do with basic commodities because there is a ready market. Also, there are institutions that provide hands-on livelihood training courses that should serve as a springboard to owning and operating a food business. These institutions include TLRC (Technology and Livelihood Resource Center), TESDA (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority) and the DOST (Department of Science and Technology).

Fashion accessories such as custom and fine jewelry, bags and hats are also good potential business ventures due to the small capital requirement involved, according to DTI. Earmark as low as PHP5,000 to PHP10,000 and you would be able to buy the necessary raw materials to create dozens of fashion jewelry pieces or make several bags and hats for small orders. This kind of business thrives because of the large pool of trainable manpower and the availability of indigenous raw materials which when put together produce excellent designs. Current fashion trends lean towards handcrafted bags made from local raw materials such as abaca. While fashion accessories distributed in small quantities yield small profits the bulk of the income may arise from orders abroad. Moreover, fashion accessories are some of the most common local products for export with the United States and Japan as two of the major markets.

Aside from the fashion accessory business, the service industry is another promising sector which offers money-spinning activities.

Bureau of SME Development Assistant Director Jerry Clavesillas told Illustrado that health-oriented businesses are gaining

grounds among the businesses in the service sector. “Spas are some of the most profitable businesses in the service industry because there is a strong demand nowadays for health and wellness services with the demand created by the people who have become more health-conscious,” he said. Internet shops and coffee shops are other service industry businesses that could rake in decent profits, Clavesillas added. However, he warns that these businesses are risky because of the high capital outlay.

While the government is not discouraging businesses that involve high capital requirement, investors are given a word of caution due to high exit barriers involved in capital-intensive businesses. It is harder to recoup investment and liquidation of nonliquid assets such as building and equipments.

Business ventures that only require operating capital requirement as those mentioned earlier are good picks.

If you have contemplated which business to take upon yourself but have limited resources, there are lending institutions, which can provide financial assistance. Aside from commercial and rural banks, there are also micro finance institutions that can help pool the needed capital to start a business.

The government also provides business owners a respite from the costs arising from business operation and taxes through the Baranggay Micro Buisness Enterprises Act of 2002 which gives incentives to business with capital of less than P3 million. Businesses that qualify under this category are exempted from income tax arising from income from operation. This law was created in order to encourage ‘informal’ business owners to register their business and help fuel the economy.

Clavesillas said DTI is working closely with

COCONUTER A young Pinoy rediscovers his roots

Life in Zambales’ Unknown Gem

By David Poarch

I’ve heard only from a couple of people about a beach known as Pundaquit. They told me it was one of the lesser-known gems of Zambales and that I should definitely try and visit it. So, on a particularly hot day and in the mood for adventure, I finally decided that I would.

We traveled on an old rickety tricycle from Subic as we went off to Pundaquit. Before we achieved a steady pace, we had to struggle to overcome a few initial hills. There were a few times that I had to get off in order to push the smoking tricycle as the driver forced the motor to its limits. After overcoming those hills, we were finally able to steadily chug down the road.

After about an hour, we began to venture into unfamiliar ground. Farm fields covered the stretch of land and large mountains towered in the distance.

The straight road was, for the most part, vacant of vehicles. Small provincial bars and karaoke huts peppered the area. After this long stretch of expanse, we reached the town of San Antonio, and I decided to walk from there. From the town market, I took roads that went in the direction of the mountains, as that is where the ocean meets the land. A long dirt road curved through a beautiful scenic area that seemed to be hidden from mainstream Zambales.

A river ran down from the mountains and provided many of the nearby inhabitants a means of living.

Women could be seen washing clothes in the clear water. The people there also used the clean river for drinking, bathing, fishing, and farming. They seem to have realized that the river is the heart of their survival, and thus they treated it as so.

It was a relaxing walk to Pundaquit as the birds chirped and the leaves rustled in the wind. Horses and cows roamed the countryside. Brown rocky cliffs now began to emerge across the river. There

Illustrado 38

was a peculiar house atop one of the cliffs that struck my curiosity. The area soon gave way to the green towering mountains I had seen earlier but was much closer now. Not long after that, to my surprise, I finally reached a post that welcomed me to Barangay Pundaquit.

Pundaquit is a small barrio next to a glorious ocean surrounded by paramount mountains. It is home to many fishermen as several bangka lined the beach.

The sun was glaring as I tried to take in the striking surroundings. The beach was very clean, of both trash and tourists. However, many of Pundaquit’s citizens were on the beach either fishing, making nets, or resting in the shade. Fishermen were throwing large fish onto shore and headed back out into the ocean for more. Children were playing and even catching flying fish along the beach as well. I was quite surprised that the place was not horded by resorts already, but I was happy that it wasn’t.

But in due time, I predicted the place would be lined with resorts, and I worried that the Philippines would slowly lose the very qualities that make it unique.

But I guess this feeling is similar to when you have a child that you don’t want to grow up. I just hope that the trade-off with nature isn’t so unbalanced that the beauty of a place like Pundaquit is forever scarred.

I took a short rest and ate a ‘buko salad’ ice cream bar, which tasted great and had a great texture too from the strings of coconut in the ice cream. I sat on

the beach and looked out into the ocean. I noticed some islands in the distance. I was told that the large island visible from the beach was Capones Island. Although a bit expensive considering my financial state, for 700 pesos JC, a local fisherman, agreed to take me to the island. Aboard his motorized bangka, JC steered towards Capones across the deep blue water. I couldn’t help but think that we were now in the mercy of the powerful ocean. But JC, used to venturing to much farther and deeper parts of the ocean, confidently plowed through the rolling waves. Although we were only a few kilometers from the mainland, several large tuna fish could be seen leaping out of the water on our way to Capones. Soon the deep blue water turned into a bright aqua blue. Ten minutes had passed by the time we reached Capones. The first thing I noticed after stepping onto shore was the many shells and pebbles that covered the beach. The gray rock formations were also other beautiful works of nature. JC said that there exists an old Spanish home on the far side of Capones. A lighthouse has been constructed next to the home, and a caretaker from San Antonio visits it every weekend. The caretaker has even introduced goats onto the far side of the island. I caught a glimpse of some of them grazing near the cliffs.

If only I was still a child, I thought, and had lived my childhood here in Pundaquit I could have enjoyed frolicking along the beaches and exploring the islands. It would have been nice to live there, to walk along the river, to explore the homes on the cliffs, to trek up the mountains, and to discover the treasures of Capones Islands, but perhaps another time. The sun was setting and I had to head back home.

On the way back to the bangka, I took the opportunity to sift through some of the endless varieties of pebbles and was able to pick up a few unique ones to take back with me. I also came upon a long stick. I would not have given it any attention but it didn’t look like just any ordinary stick. It was strong, straight, and sturdy. Its bark was quite smooth and not prone to splinter as I ran my fingers along it. Before getting on the boat, I was compelled to take it as it would make a great wooden staff. It reminded me of the bible’s David when he rejected the king’s offer of an armor and a sword and went out to fight Goliath instead with five smooth stones and a simple wooden staff.

Letters from the edge of the teeming metropolis

It’s March! And you know what that means, right? Another long, sweltering hot summer has begun!

By Carlito Viriña

So why not, for a change, join the flock of our kababayan expatriates flying home to the Motherland to be with family and friends. We miss your company every summer. Don’t you have a niece or nephew, a long-lost cousin graduating this March? Why you prefer to take your vacations on the most unlikely months still boggles our minds. Nobody vacations in July?!?

November, the year before that, right?

Anyway, the kids are excited about summer. They’re anticipating a vacation that always seems, to them, and even to us, to come too late and end too soon.

Like most families we’re busy chatting over lunch or dinner about the places where we should go this summer (should seems to be the operative word every time.)

And like most parents, we humor each suggestion the kids give and silently, automatically, do some mental computations if we can really afford these places we should see.

Boracay was mentioned. Bang! I shot that down.

Everyone from Manila would be there, I said. Too commercial during the summer. And besides, I’ve been to Palawan. Pretty much a no-brainer for me because I’ll pick Palawan over Boracay anytime.

Bohol was mentioned. Hearing great things about Bohol. Haven’t been there though. But the girls want to go back to Puerto Galera in Calapan, Mindoro.

They were there last year with my brother-in-law’s family and they had a tremendous time. Work kept me and my wife from joining them last year, so we’re chewing this idea very seriously. Before Boracay, there was Galera, remember.

Puerto Galera is just a bus ride to the port in Batangas City and about an hour by ferry and you’re there. And I heard it’s easy to find a simple bed and breakfast or hostel now. Yeah that’s possible.

Tina, whom you know isn’t a beach person like us, wants to go up to Banawe with side trips to Sagada and Baguio. Sagada, yes. Baguio? If it’s to catch the gig of some of Baguio’s blues and rock bands like North Wind, why not? Baguio just doesn’t smell nice anymore. Especially the downtown area during summer. Diesel fumes seem to overwhelm the sweet pine aroma of our summer capital. And Baguio during summer is like Boracay during summer. Too commercial. And everyone from Manila would be there, too. Bang!

Beach. Mountain. Either way, I’m okay. I’m easy.

But everything is still iffy, up in the air. If the workload relaxes and I can get some free time off from work without feeling guilty. And the biggest IF of all, if there’s moolah to burn.

Because if you ask me, I just want to stay home and watch DVDs all day and all night long. And I’m not talking just the must-see and worth-a-look movies.

I’m talking serious bloodshot marathon, memorize-

the-subtitles, if-it’s-for-me, I-ain’t-home kind of serious watching.

Like finish all season episodes of 24, Lost, House, My name is Earl, the Office, Desperate Housewives, all 3 CSIs, the Man Show, Grey’s Anatomy, etc. And if my wife and kids are out at the mall or at her parent’s, maybe slide in that Seymour Butts DVD you lent me but never got to watch. Hah! But yeah, I should take a break. We all should. Let’s forget about life for a while, guys. We all deserve it, right? We work hard; we should play hard (remember the operative word).

So yeah, maybe it’ll either be Galera or Banawe for this family. We’ll go for both if wallets would permit.

But if the big IF is answered with a big NO - we’ll just go to nearby Pansol in Calamba for a dip in a hot spring pool. With a case of ice cold San Mig Light (okay, I’ll bring some Pale Pilsens), ensaladang mangga, kamatis, sibuyas and bagoong, inihaw na bangus, hito and liempo, leche flan, buko pie (the original or Letty’s) throw in some lechon manok and hot Batangas bulalo soup.

Hmmmm…

What are you waiting for, man? Pack those bags!

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ARTS & CULTURE

Si Darna atbp.

Tales of Post-War Pinoy Superheroes

By Elle Crisostomo

“I have been chosen. But there is a reason for my having been given the magic stone and that is to undertake a mission of great significance.

From this day forth, Narda and Darna are one. I am Darna, foe of all that is evil, and savior of humanity.”

– ‘Darna’ by Mars Ravelo They say heroes are born in adversity.

The year was 1947, shortly after World War II, when the late Filipino artist, illustrator and writer Mars Ravelo created a super heroine named ‘Varga’ for Bulaklak magazine. Varga was, in all things but name, the woman we now know as ‘Darna’. Her mortal identity is a little girl named ‘Narda’ (a name Mars Ravelo based on a childhood playmate).

Varga stood up for the weak, battling common criminals as well as evil in superhuman form. She was both written and illustrated by her creator whose artistic style resembled the cartoons of Max Fleischer Studios in the early 20th Century. A bold innovator in his field, and now revered as one of the Philippine’s greatest artists, Mars Ravelo’s super heroine brought relief to the imagination of a nation struggling to recover from the casualties of war.

This steak was cut short though, when Mars had to leave Bulaklak in 1949 after a conflict with one of his editors.

His creation restricted by copyright laws, Mars re-launched his heroine as ‘Darna’ (a mighty warrior from Planet

Illustrado 40

Marte) in Pilipino Komiks in 1950.

Darna was based on the name of her mortal identity, Narda, spelled in reverse. (Yes, it is based on ‘Narda’ and not the bird of Philippine folklore named ‘Ibong Adarna’, a common misconception).

Mars described Darna as possessing “the allure of Venus, the glory of Apollo and the strength of Samson.” She has superhuman strength and speed - indestructible to all man-made weapons. She can switch between forms by stating her two names in required order (i.e. Narda to become Darna and Darna to become Narda).

Darna has heat vision, while her winged medallion also emits a powerful ‘concussion ray’. The medallions that make up her belt can be also be used as weaponized stars (shuriken).

Although Darna’s concept remained the same as Varga, Ravelo assigned another artist to illustrate his creation - the soon to be legendary Nestor Redondo. Unlike Mars Ravelo, Nestor Redondo’s artistic style was more illustrative and not ‘cartoony’ like her run as Varga, which Mars Ravelo wrote and drew.

Pitted against the sultry snake goddess Valentina, Darna’s breathtaking adventures, made possible by her mystic talisman-pebble, restored her popularity among Filipino comic book readers. But Darna only began being a household name the following year in 1951, when Filipinos witnessed her first live action flight in Fernando Poe Sr’s Royal Films production, starring Manila’s golden age movie queen Rosa Del Rosario in the title role, and

Cristina Aragon as Valentina; while Mila Nimfa portrayed Narda. The movie was a huge box office success. Darna was proclaimed as the first Asian heroine.

Over the next decades, numerous hit movies and TV shows on Darna were made and portrayed by the Philippines’ biggest stars. Endless versions of Darna were also serialized in different comic books.

Although Darna can be credited as having popularized the superhero genre in Philippine komiks, there were already a few enterprising individuals after the war who started the very first (fullyfledged) ‘komiks-magazines’ in the Philippines: Halakhak and Pilipino Komiks. Although Halakhak Komiks did not feature any serious superhero story, it had on the other hand, a funny albeit fumbling pinoy superhero called Siopawman (sounds deliciously powerful), created by the young and now well reknown Larry Alcala.

There’s also ‘Ipo-ipo’ (twister in English) – considered as the first true Pinoy komiks superhero.

Ipo-ipo is a character created by Lib Abrena and Oscar del Rosario in 1946 in a Tagalog magazine called Magasin ng Pagsilang. IpoIpo gets his power from the wind.

Bullets simply slip past him, as he’s as fast and can be ferocious as the wind. With memories of Japanese invasion still fresh in people’s minds, Abrena and Del Rosario pitted Ipo-ipo against the ruthless Japanese soldiers who refused to surrender, even after the unconditional capitulation of Japan (to the Americans) in 1945.

ARTS & CULTURE

ENTERTAINMENT

By Jan La’O

ARTS & CULTURE

Superheroes like Darna, Ipo-ipo, Lagim, or even Siopawman, and many others we’ve yet to discover… were conceptualized by artists of a different time…conceived at the wake of one of the most devastating periods in our history, when most cherished posssessions were either gone or in ruins… family, property, finances and natural resources. As much as their creations, Filipino post-war artists were superheroes and reflect our most admirable trait – resilience.

And then there was ‘Lagim’. Nope, he didn’t scare his enemies to death, as many would assume from his name. Created by Cris Caguintuan, Lagim first appeared in Pilipino Komiks #1 in 1947, and was in fact a wholesome character superhero. Like Ipo-ipo, Lagim battled Japanese forces who would not surrender. He got his power from a headgear given to him by a scientist named Dr. Malasakit. The headgear made Lagim’s strength twice that of a man. But unlike Ipo-ipo, Lagim was essentially just a man and vulnerable to bullets, yet his incredible strength was enough to give him his powerful

defensive instincts against evil forces. Possibly influenced by Batman, Lagim even had a sidekick named Levy, whose costume was similar to Robin.

Although the next five decades would witness the rise of countless pinoy superheroes (in Komiks or TV/Movies) like Captain Barbell, Lastikman, Panday, Super Gee, Zsazsa Zaturnnah, or even the insanely popular Super Inggo, our post-war superheroes were not just products of the Filipinos’ rabid and inherent passion for justice and freedom.

The popularity of komiks may have dwindled in recent years, but the reincanations of our Pinoy superheroes continue in movies, television, graphic arts and many branches of art, and attest to their enduring appeal. Because the values they stand for will always be part of Philippine popular culture… an essential part of who we really are as Filipinos.

Taas Noo Filipino!

Images published with permission from the New Official Mars Ravelo’s Darna Website www.marsravelodarna. tripod.com

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COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT

Pinoy Creativity at the Salon Culinaire 2007 The Pinoy’s creative talent always shines in any given field of endeavor. The recently concluded Salon Culinaire in Dubai, in February, was another such event where Filipino originality and skill earned well-deserved accolades.

The Emirates International Salon Culinaire 2007, organised by the Emirates Culinary Guild (ECG), the UAE’s association of professional chefs, is a four day culinary extravaganza that includes seminars, competitions and demonstrations. Held at the Dubai World Trade Center in February, it is a celebration of food and its accoutrements displayed in a variety of pleasing forms. The salon included cookery, live cooking competitions, ice carving demonstrations, banqueting showpieces, pastry and sugar set pieces, as well as bakery and confectionery innovations.

True to form, our kababayan hoteliers excelled in the category of kitchen arts, translating their creative ideas into amazing sculptures made out of ice, butter, chocolates, fruits and vegetables. Three Filipinos who have been consistent toppers in the Salon Culinaire in recent years, rose to the occasion, yet again, to make our community proud.

Illustrado 44

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT

Elzmer Macaya A political science graduate from U.P. Diliman, Elzmer, stumbled into kitchen arts purely by chance when he was given an opportunity to cross-train in a hotel.

With his interest in fine arts enhancing his creative flair, Elzmer was able to excel in the field and has been winning medals from the salon since 2001. Elzmer, who is currently connected with the Fairmont Hotel, has been in Dubai for the last nine years, and has garnered five medals in this year’s event – two of which are silver in the categories of chocolate and team ice carving.

Felix Gaan Felix won five medals this year including a gold for chocolate carving. A native of Paete, Laguna, he was the 1977 Flyweight Boxing Champion in the Philippines before he directed his energies to culinary artistry, armed with skills he picked up from his woodcarver friends in Paete. Felix has been in the UAE for 16 years now and is currently working as Chef Artist for the Dubai World Trade Center.

Leonardo Casa Born in Paete to a woodcarver father, Leonardo and his five siblings are all kitchen artists.

Leonardo won Best Kitchen Artist in last year’s Dubai Summer Suprises and has won two medals in this year’s Salon Culinaire.

Currently working for the Radisson Hotel (formerly InterContinental Hotel), Leonardo has also worked for the prestigious JW Marriott in the U.S. and believes that Pinoys have the originality and ‘lakas ng loob’ to excel in the field of culinary arts.

Illustrado 45

PINOY PLANET

Bostin Brit

By Cecile Samson-Aquino Just like the wave of heat that hits you when you come out of our airport in Manila, the first thing that you notice when you step out of UK’s Heathrow airport is the gloomy weather. Skies are often overcast, either raining, foggy, misty or occasionally snowy. The weather changes easily such that it is possible to have sunshine, clouds, rain, snow, and hail all in one day. I know because I’ve experienced it firsthand.

Out of the airport you see the traffic - where everybody’s driving on what seems to be the wrong side of the road! The UK remains one of just four countries left in Europe to still drive on the left side of the road. The others are Cyprus, Malta and Ireland. This makes for some interesting walking for pedestrians used to looking left and then right before crossing the road.

Sightseeing-wise I guarantee, you won’t feel short-changed because I regard this country as a kind of historical theme park. Everywhere you go, everywhere you turn, you will find a wealth of significant places steeped in history.

From the stone-age monoliths of Stonehenge to magnificent medieval castles to fabulous royal palaces and glorious gothic cathedrals, a visit

Illustrado 46

here should not be missed if you’re a history buff.

You will also find some of the oldest and most prestigious universities in the world. The art world is richly represented as well, with the likes of Tate Modern, National Gallery, British Museum, etc. You could spend a whole week in London alone and still have plenty left to discover.

For me, the equally great thing to see here is the country’s glorious countryside. All that rain is for a purpose. The lush green, rolling hillsides are made more beautiful by one of nature’s tireless lawnmowers – sheeps by the thousands.

A favourite haunt of ours is the rugged southwestern coast of Cornwall with its beautiful cliffs, lovely seaside villages, and great surfing (not that I know how to). We thought Kent had a lot of castles but Northumberland seems to be the one to beat…with castles within stone’s throw of each other. Wales has got lots of great places to see, plus a peculiar language spoken everywhere in that small part of Britain. On one visit, I sat at a Caernarfon B&B glued on BBC, mesmerized by conversations I couldn’t understand.

Britain especially London, is one of the most expensive places in the world – from houses, transport, clothes to food. But you can get relatively cheap food and produce in open

markets that dot the city during certain days of the week. There are a number of clothes shops that won’t cost you the earth to kit yourself from head to toe. Primark, Matalan, TK Maxx, Sportsworld and Lillywhites are prime examples of these. I’m afraid I can’t suggest anything cheap in the housing department other than to live in the north. Generally the rule is, the further north of Britain you go the cheaper the houses but then the wages are lower also.

There used to be only a few thousand Pinoys here in UK. Most are concentrated in big cities and towns like London. Of those who are not spouses of Brits, the first wave of Pinoys who came around the early 1970s were mostly caregivers or hotel staff. Their numbers hardly swelled since the importation of workers stopped after only a few years. There was a very long lull after which came the second wave around 1999 when Kingston hospital employed a batch of Pinoy nurses. This kicked off a recruitment spree for Pinoy nurses by almost every major hospital and nursing homes encouraged by our highly experienced English-speaking nurses. Now the Pinoy demography points to pockets in towns and cities all over the UK with big hospitals that employed these nurses although London still carries the biggest number.

Places and faces, through the eyes of a Pinoy viajero. It’s a small planet, a PINOY PLANET

The English language (both the written and oral forms) is very important in their culture. You can see the emphasis they give it, as many are quite articulate, eloquent speakers and masters of the art of conversation. This love for language has ensured the continued flourishing of their written and oral traditions - in their poems, novels, plays (think Shakespeare or JK Rowling aka Harry Potter author). I love their puns and, nicknames (telly - TV, brolly - umbrella, bangers – sausages). The Brits also love trivia quizzes – almost every pub, school, PTA, club, or office has got a quiz night at least once a year. No wonder the popular TV quiz shows like Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and The Weakest Link originated in these isles.

When Pinoys go out, we go to the movies or eat, when South Americans go out they dance, when Brits go out they go to the pub and drink merrily. That’s right, the pub (or public house) is a very popular destination for the mundane or the special occasion. It is the centre of village life.

Much like the local sari-sari store in Pinas, where people hang around and gossip, pubs are where the locals come and congregate and share the latest goings on in the community over a pint of beer.

As for food, the current restaurant scene especially in London is attracting the best chefs all over the world. So it’s very modern, cosmopolitan, innovative and most of all excellent food. But as far as the traditional British food is concerned, let’s just say it’s rustic, bland, a bit stodgy, but filling and thoroughly satisfying.

Think of fish ‘n’ chips, steak and kidney pie, bangers ‘n’ mash, sticky toffee pudding, etc.

Talk of British people would not be complete without mentioning their innate humour. They have a similar attitude with the Pinoys - humour in adversity. They love irony and humour that makes you think. They always see something to laugh about in good and bad times even in tragedies. In this regard, they don’t often take things too seriously - well at least not outwardly serious - which is another thing we Pinoys share with them.

Living here in the land of fog and seemingly miserable weather (you get used to it) is not so bad after all. Because you also uncover a treasure trove of historical and artistic finds that people travel at great expense and distance just to see.

Most of all you start to love the good nature and eccentricities of the British people.

Illustrado 47

BAKASYON GRANDE

Visit Vigan

You are today’s Illustrado. An international Filipino working globally. You never forget to fly home whenever possible because there is an urge to see the family, to visit your birthplace, to see friends and previous officemates. Yes, the urge is very strong to see familiar places and people in your homeland.

To visit Vigan today is to travel back. Back to the time of the conquistadores. The time of the guardia civiles. The time of the white-skinned colonizers and the Indios.

Text by Cecilia S. Angeles Photos by Vic Sison Vigan is now a city, yet it has kept its distinct atmosphere. Standing proud still are the same multi-century old buildings, ancestral mansions, huge houses, stone churches and other architectural structures. They have been well preserved, neatly maintained for the love of historical heritage. These structures still bear their original designs especially the exterior portions. Repairs, whitewashing and some improvements might have been in the interior, but care is taken not to alter the facade and outstanding exterior features of the buildings.

Existing still are the Spanish grills, the barandillas, azotea, balconaje, capiz windows, the wide veranda, the wide stairs. A heritage town, Vigan in its entirety is a veritable museum.

Nestled on the west coast of Luzon, Vigan is the capital of Ilocos Sur, one of the oldest settlements in the Ilocos Region, Philippines. It is a heritage town. Quiet, yet resplendent in cultural and historical treasures.

A day’s trip with friends is more than an enjoyment. Four hundred kilometers from Manila or 250 miles, Vigan is the fourth oldest Spanish settlement and the best preserved historical town in the Philippines. It is prohibited to alter the original architectural designs of the houses, buildings and other structures and landmarks there especially the façade and other exterior parts.

But just like any other place in the world today, Vigan is just a text, call or an e-mail away. The IT or ICT has come so fast that sometimes I’m confused or often lost as to where I am and in what regime I’m living in. This place boasts of villas and mansions. Refuted to be the most beautiful is Villa Angela. Its furnishings show a blend of Spanish, Chinese and Malay influence. Villa Angela doubles as a hotel and its management is proud to claim prominent visitors like Tom Cruise. Worthy of mention here is the Syquia Mansion, residence of President Elpidio Quirino.

Despite its historical ambience, Vigan is a modern city reached by equally modern communication and transportation. This is a place influenced by international trends yet there seems no distinction between the past and the present.

Homes are equipped with electronic appliances, refrigerators, microwave ovens, computers, TV sets, DVD’s, wireless phones and electric ranges. They blend with antique furniture and heirloom paintings, vases and artifacts. Outside, ancient houses appear the same as when you left for greener pasture or adventure for Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Canada, US or Japan. Vigan still looks the same more than a hundred years ago, with cobbled streets, old houses and caretelas.

The hard working Ilocanos are still here. Some leisurely puffing huge home-made cigars or filtered cigarettes.

Illustrado 48

Keeping the ambience of our colonial history are the horse-drawn calesas, still a favorite public transport today most welcomed especially on Crisologo Street, the only street that bans motorized vehicles. The only street without hanging electrical cables.

Deeply religious Vigan has also preserved its churches. At one end of Plaza Burgos stands the historic St. Paul Cathedral. Adjacent is the magnificent Archbishop Palace. To stand at such a junction, one cannot help but be awed by the sight of these two very old sacred architectures.

Don’t forget to visit Bantay Church which features baroque architecture. Its belfry is a separate structure away from the church. This belfry doubled as a look-out for the intruders during the Spanish regime. Sta. Maria Church lies on top of a 60-meter high hill. Enjoy the challenging climb of its wide concrete stairway.

We may no longer hear “si senorito’’, “si senorita”, “si senor”, or “si senora” addressed to us. We instead hear hear “wen manong”, “manang”, “ading”. It sounds nostalgic enough to make us feel that we are genuine Ilocanos, as we are genuine Filipinos.

Just like any other modern city, Vigan has welcomed a number of popular food chains for chicken, pizza, hot dog, burger, Chinese cuisine and even Japanese favorites. They contrast with enduring traditional fare such pinakbet, fat-free bulanlang, dinengdeng, saluyot, bagnet, sinanglao (goat innards), Vigan’s version of longanisa, kulangot, tupig, bibingka and many more of Vigan’s gustatory greats. Try empanada and okoy deep-fried right before your eyes along side walk eateries shaded by trees, huge colorful umbrellas or makeshift stalls.

Take a trip to the outskirts of the city. Enjoy its lush vegetation and wild forests on its hilly terrain on the eastern side where the great Cordillera mountain range offers visitors breathtaking scenery. Nine rivers rush down from various steps of this mountain range, their graceful routes snake along the lower valleys to seek their own water beds.

Your stay in Vigan is never complete without a side trip to Burnay town where you will be welcomed by mounds and rows of clay pots, vases and pottery pieces in all sorts of sizes and designs. Watch how a piece is made with the dexterous bare hands of manong with the help of a rotating device. Ah, what an art!

Well, I’ll see you again in Vigan the next time you’re home, Illustrado.

BAKASYON GRANDE

Illustrado 49

Illustrado 58

MANILA TRIPPIN’

501

On Being a Commuting in the Metropolis

Yes, Abdullah, there’s a Lamborghini and Ferrari showroom in the Philippines now. And Peugeot, Porsche and Jaguar, too. even with new car showrooms sprouting up here everywhere, the streets of Manila seem to be less crowded now than

By And Carlito Viriña last time you were here.

By Carlito Viriña

Filipinos have not stopped buying cars. We’ve not forgotten that we’re a car-crazed nation. It’s just that most of us just don’t bring them out as often as we would like to. Like everyday.

Now, the only ones who seem to be driving their cars on a regular basis are the sons and daughters of the very rich, powerful politicians, showbiz folks, sports celebrities, top business executives, Chinese businessmen, the police and the military, the diplomatic corps, regular folks who just happen to have a parent, husband or wife working overseas and the lucky, hardworking medical representatives.

If you’re like me who belong to the ‘isang kahig, isang tuka’ set, you’re essentially a 501. A commuter.

If you must know, 501 is the numberterm assigned to commuting passengers by all radio-equipped shuttle service/FX drivers who ply daily the major roads in Metro Manila. 502 is for a passenger who rent these vans out of their usual route for an outing in Laguna or Batangas or an extended weekend in Baguio.

I secretly prefer the term used by a buddy of mine who describes himself as belonging to the ‘infantry’ now when he left his Nissan pickup to rust and retire in his mother’s garage and become a commuter.

I’ve always believed that one only drives to work.

You must never work just to drive.

Just a couple of years ago most employees earning a minimum of 20 grand a month had a car. Now if you’re earning 20 thousand and you’re still driving, people have a right to get suspicious.

With fuel prices close to PHP40 per liter, you may have to spend anywhere from PHP200 to PHP300 per day on gasoline alone, depending on your home location and your car’s engine displacement. If your pay scale does not include a parking slot, add another PHP100 to PHP150 for parking. If you live where you can’t escape taking the NLEX or SLEX going to and from work, there are the toll fees to contend with. So you may have to spend about PHP500 a day just to bring your car. That’s about PHP2500 a week, or about 10 grand a month. And that’s just for a 5-day work week and excludes meal expenses.

Add to that equation regular maintenance costs like regular car wash, tune ups, oil changes, tire replacements and the annual LTO registration fees and license renewal.

Twenty grand a month and still driving? Quick, somebody, call the BIR! I must admit here that my biggest fear about growing old is not earning enough if I were still

employed, not having enough savings if I were in retirement, or not having any of my daughters enjoy lucrative careers and marry well, to be able to support me and my love for driving. Such a prospect always give me the chills.

I could surrender to this dreadful reality if it happened long after I’ve gotten my senior citizen card and I’m no longer fit to drive. But I never imagined myself not being able to do so in my still hopeful, very youthful 40s.

I don’t mind commuting. It doesn’t make me less of a man that I am a 501. I’m in good company.

I’ve discovered that many white collar workers from respectable businesses now commute paralegals, accountants, secretaries, engineers, accountants, architects, art directors, account executives, college professors, among many.

I line up with them every morning at a designated place in Pilar Village in Las Piñas to take a shuttle service to get to my office in Makati. I queue up again in the afternoon to get home at the Landmark terminal that now begins to resemble a bus depot in Delhi.

But commuting should be like eating pares at a rolling food cart at a busy street corner when you have enough money to eat at Via Mare. It can be an agreeable experience if you do it because you want to and not because you have to.

Illustrado 51

The view from your regular Juan dela Cruz on the street

Usapang Kanto

Where do you want to settle?

Compiled by Jonie Jose

Manila, Manila ...

Home sweet home

Home is where the heart is. You will always come back, no matter how a lot of things may seem so much better abroad. Nothing compares to living in our own land. At the end of the day everybody goes home.

Melany Demetillo

Canada is the place to be!

My family and I would like to settle in Canada. In fact, we have already applied for Canadian citizenship because we think better opportunities exist there. We know it’s a safe country and everyone has equal rights and that there is no discrimination. Although all residents of Canada are subject to income tax, they enjoy many benefits from Canada’s tax system. It pays for such things as roads, public utilities, schools, health care, economic development and cultural activities. Everyone knows Canada is the place to be!

Pinas pa rin

I just moved to this country and I am trying to settle down here. I’ve seen a great deal of this place, a very good paying job, met a lot of interesting people, found many friends and learnt from them. And even if this is where I belong right now, there is only one place that I really feel comfortable in.

Manila will always be my home!

Thus, this song holds true...

Manila, I keep coming back to Manila Simply no place like Manila Manila I’m coming home Hinahanap-hanap kita Manila Ang ingay mong kay sarap sa tenga Mga jeepney mong nagliliparan Mga babae mong naggagandahan Take me back in your arms Manila And promise me you’ll never let go Promise me you’ll never let go Mary Anne Acosta

Although it is my passion to see new faces and go to different places, it is with my family back home in Pinas where I would like to settle.

Anna Eloisa Palupit

American dream

Given the chance, I would like to settle in America or Canada with my whole family, especially my mother and my future wife and children. I would love them to experience a better life and bright future.

Rom Bautista

Settlement

I would like to settle either in Italy or France with my family. These two countries are very rich in culture, arts and have true sense of life. I would love to bring my family there for a better future.

Cheryl Lyn Formoso

Back to roots

I consider Dubai my temporary home.

Staying here to work and save is my shortterm plan.

My ultimate goal is to have enough savings to live a semi-charmed life and to help my family and relatives.

I don’t plan to migrate to other countries, like the United States or the United Kingdom, unless I am offered better pay.

Dubai offers people a chance to make part of their dreams come true. Like, right now, I am getting paid well for a job I love, which is journalism. I also get to invest in property and still have enough savings to support my family in the Philippines.

But, there is just no place like home and the Philippines offers me things money cannot buy - my roots. And that’s why I will always come back.

Florence Pia Yu

Illustrado 52

Where to retire?

I always envisioned settling down with my own family in Canada or in the US simply because good life awaits you abroad. But when retirement comes as they always say, “There’s no place like home”, so I’d spend it in my beloved Philippines!

Rhoez Uy

Where I belong

Of course I want to settle in my own country because this is where I grew up and my whole family is there. It is easier and more comfortable to work and to live in my own country.

SAUCE IT SPREAD IT LOVE IT

Ang Rich na Lasang Pinoy Available in all suking tindahan all over the U.A.E.

FOOD

Meriendang

By Cecile Samson-Aquino Photography by Joel Guerrero

Let’s admit it - we’re a nation that is mad for snacks!

Whether we’re hungry or not, we reach out for these delicious little morsels to keep us amused, pass our time or simply out of sheer force of habit. Foreigners just watch in wonder how we manage to eat all the time!

to whip this up at home – although for me having the saba banana here in the UK would be a godsend. It’s so exotic here I rarely see one around.

Our streets back home are also replete with freshlycooked snacks that are either grilled, barbecued or deep fried. It doesn’t matter whether they’re sold on dusty and fume-congested roads; most of us love them any way. The Filipino ‘tongue in cheek’ humour is very much evident in the funny, sometimes thought provoking names these street snacks have become known for, like ‘betamax’ – coagulated blood cut into blocks; ‘helmet’ – chicken head; ‘adidas’ – chicken feet; kwek-kwek – battered small eggs (does a chicken go ‘kwek kwek’?); ‘PAL’ – chicken wings; ‘walkman’ – pig’s ears, etc. I won’t spoon-feed you on as to why they’ve come to be known as such, but they are obviously imaginative and funny as opposed to staid and boring names like barbecued pork or grilled chicken.

250 gm small shrimps (shell on) 1 cup bean sprouts (togue) 1 green onion – chopped

Here are two simple snacks (one savory, one sweet) found everywhere up and down the country. You do not need any special equipment or exotic ingredients

Ukoy 2 eggs – beaten 1 cup cornstarch ½ tsp baking powder ½ tsp salt ¾ cups shrimp juice* or water 1 Tbsp achuete ¼ cup water 1. Soak the achuete in the ¼ cup water for at least 30 minutes.

2. Mash the achuete a little (to extract the red coloring) then drain, reserve water and discard achuete seeds.

3. Combine cornstarch and baking powder, set aside.

4. Mix the achuete water, eggs, and salt. Stir to

combine well.

5. Stir in the cornstarch mixture and mix well until batter is smooth.

6. Add in 2/3 of the shrimp water and mix. Stir in the remaining 1/3 a little at a time until batter is of the consistency of single / light cream. You may not use up all the shrimp water.

7. Add in the shrimps, bean sprouts, and green onions.

Combine well.

8. Heat about ½-inch deep oil in a pan or saucepan.

9. Put in about ¼ cups mounds of the mixture in the pan and fry until brown and thoroughly cooked. This has to be fried in medium-high heat to keep it crunchy.

10. Serve with a vinegar and chilli dip. *Note: Make shrimp juice by mashing shrimp heads and shells with a little water in a mortar and pestle.

FOOD The street side snack of bananas rolled in sugar and enveloped in spring roll wrappers is commonly known in the Tagalog region as ‘uron. However, in our corner of Cavite this is always called as valencia or balensia.

“Biiii-li na kayong balensia!!!,” shouts the girl in a sing-song manner with a bilao full of these wonderful snacks on top of her head. Like anything else, I have no idea why it’s called that. But it may have something to do with the way the contents are rolled and wrapped because I know of a seam stitching technique wherein the frayed edge is inverted and sewn over which my dressmaker mother always called a valenciana.

So I think the term pertains to a manner of enclosing something resulting in a ‘rolled’ appearance.

in chocolates! I always use muscovado sugar on this since it is the closest to our panucha. I love the ‘caramelly’ glaze it imparts to the valencia. Also, I added slivers of langka (jackfruit) because it gives that fruity aroma and adds sweetness to the package.

As for the banana, I still haven’t found any other cooking variety of banana closest to the saba other than plantain. In my opinion, saba is still the best in terms of flavor and texture but for now plantains will do.

ends open).

4. Deep fry or pan fry in oil keeping close watch as this burns easily.

5. Drain on a wire mesh strainer (not on paper towels because they will stick to the valencia).

Turon (Valencia) 1. Peel and cut bananas into about 3-4 inch lengths then into quarters lengthwise.

2. Roll bananas in the sugar.

3. Arrange bananas and langka in springroll wrappers and wrap as in a parcel (or wrap like a log with both

Pinoy There are lots of variations you can do, you can add

Illustrado 55

SUBSCRIPTION

DESIGN FEATURE

Liven up your small

home

Bored with living in a small flat?

Just because you have a petite living space doesn’t mean that you have to stay in a drab and uninviting home. Welcome the spring season by sprucing up your small space and bringing some color and life into your room. Think – small room, but BIG ideas!

cozy and cheerful. In this case, if you have a studio where you’ve got your bed and living room together, it is advisable to choose the color of your linens first, and then match or complement it with smaller accessories like throw pillows and knick-knacks.

Again, go for a fresh light look.

So with a little effort and imagination, turn your small space to a cool, cozy and cheerful sanctuary where you can relax and unwind after a hard day’s work.

• Clean, clean, clean! Always keep your room clean and uncluttered for maximum breathing space.

Featured items: Bedroom - Savannah bed, nightstand, wardrobe, dresser, mirror and chest of drawers; Living room - Swiss screen, 2083 three-seater sofa with two arm chairs, Omega wall unit, Edmage bookcase and Spring glass table.

• To keep your small room clutter-free, make sure that you utilize space smartly for storage. Apart from cabinets, look for other solutions like under the bed and undisturbed corners. Just make sure that your things are kept neatly in good containers so they don’t end up in a mess gathering dust.

Nanette Suarez is the Visual Merchandising Manager of Home Center for the UAE Territory.

Nanette has been instrumental in setting up six of Home Center’s local showrooms and is currently responsible for 10 outlets. This dynamic Pinay from Pasig who is passionate about her work is looking forward to the further expansion of one of the UAE’s leading furniture chains.

Here are some useful designing tips from Home Center’s Visual Merchandising Manager Nanette Suarez • Use color to liven up your small space. Get inspiration from this season’s fresh marine colors – splash any shade of light, bright blue to create single fresh toned walls which will let you keep your cool especially in the usually hot and humid weather in the Gulf.

• Make sure to choose correct-sized furniture. The last thing you would want to do is to try and fit oversized fixtures, which will eat up all the space.

Go for sleek pieces to keep everything streamlined.

For this showcase, we used modern design furniture made of MDF and wood with a dark fine finish that will suit any bright colored wall.

• Once you’ve got your furniture together, build up your design with accessories to make your space

Illustrado 57

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT

By Jonie Jose

BISDAK Bisayang Dako (BISDAK-UAE) is a non-stock, non-profit, non-political and non-religious group organized in May 2002 with the main purpose of assisting Bisayans working in the UAE. BISDAK has the following objectives: (1) to preserve and promote Visayan heritage, (2) to boost camaraderie in the community (3) to actively participate in Filipino welfare activities (4) to disseminate relevant information regarding the laws of the host country that will affect the members, (5) to equip members with valuable skills that would help them when they decide to return to the Philippines for good (reintegration to local workforce).

Membership is open to any Bisayan in the UAE. Members are invited to actively participate in the various projects and activities whether social, cultural, sports and educational, and receive basic privileges such as insurance coverage and medical assistance, as well as assistance in Labor Law issues.

For more information, contact Yankee Mellijor (President) on 050-644 8375, or visit Bisdak’s website http://bisdakuae.tripod.com.

PEACE PEACE (Pinoy Expats Auto Club in the Emirates) is the first Filipino automobile club in the UAE and the Middle East. A non-profit organization, the club aims to set a good example in motoring, on top of indulging its members’ enthusiasm for cars, making the vehicle ownership experience an enjoyable one.

The club had its humble beginnings on the Internet at www.tsikot.com then www. mymitsuph.com initiated by Bhongskie Agnote, Jose Ervin Samano, Noel Pimentel and Jojo Agnote. The group formally established PEACE on September 25, 2005. In less than a year, after being recognized by the Philippine Consulate in Dubai, the club went into fifth gear with membership increasing to 350 automobile fans.

PEACE encourages all Filipino car enthusiasts, regardless of age, to join the club. Members get roadside assistance, free towing, updates on traffic laws, online/onsite tutorials on proper car maintenance and technical advice, as well as invitations to club social events.

Illustrado 58

For additional information, contact Bhongskie Agnote at 050-678 5242, email: admin@pinoy. ae or visit: www.PINOY.ae

Ngayon, may RCBC TeleMoney kang maaasahan sa anumang klaseng padala.

Walang kaba dahil siguradong kuha mo ang perang padala---saan ka man sa Pilipinas.

Choose from a wide rabge of RCBC remittance products and services: -CREDIT Tele-CREDIT

Safe na Safe! Diretso sa RCBC or RCBC Savings Bank account mo ang perang dineposito.

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Convenient! Pwedeng i-claim ang perang padala sa iyo sa kahit saang RCBC or RCBC Savings Bank business center, nationwide!

-CASH CARD CARD Tele-CASH

Parang cash na rin! Ito ang RCBC Tele-Cash Card na pwedeng bilhin ng kamag-anak mo abroad. Mag-load lang s’ya...good as cash na!

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Mag log-on lang ang kamag-anak abroad sa www.rcbc.com para mkapag-remit ng pera.

-PAY Tele-PAY

Walang problema sa pag-babayad ng bills!

Pwede nang bayaran ng mga mahal sa buhay abroad ang mga bills sa Pilipinas.

FILIPINISMS

The Annie B.(Batobalani) Chronicles

The adventures and misadventures of a ‘not so average’ Pinay trying to make it in the cosmopolitan city of Dubai.

BLOODY BLIND DATE So what happens when you show your true colors to your future man of your dreams? If he is Pinoy then for sure he will only look for a mother in every girl: to cook for him, to clean for him, to wait for him, to serve him all the time. So, enough with Pinoys, I am here in Dubai so I should taste other cuisinas. Why limit myself to Adobo when I can have like Fish N’ Chips this time?

After Ashton, my DOM Pinoy Valentine date never returned my phone calls, text messages and emails after our romantic EyeBall - Ang labo mo, Ashton!

Sorry ka na lang....It’s not my loose, it’s your lost!!!

- my boss set me up in a blind date. This time with a British guy - yes. White leghorn na itu - Dizzizit!!!

So the blind date was all set - 8pm at the Noodle House, Emirates Towers. I take it as a good signs that he likes Asian Food - that’s already 100 pogi points for trying to please me.

After nights of practising my British accent, I got all dressed up and went to the Emirates Towers to meet my blind date. He texted me that he will be wearing a red shirt - another signs from God! This is so romantic!!! Dizzizit!!!

When I arrive at the Noodle House, there he was, tall, very white – he has fretzels all over his face, and macho-macho – he kinda looksalike Robbie Williams - only that his hair is blond and bald plus he has many tatto that can be seen all over his body since he is wear red sando and he is maybe I think around 50 years old. He is very casual, I get it - many other foreigners were also dressed in pambahay even if they are in a five star twin towers hotel. I am also not bothered by his age - I like mature men - they are more stabled in life you know.

“Eh-nnie? Eh-nnie Batow-bah-lo-nnie is that you?”

“Coopah?” “Are you Bloody Coo-pah? (Cooper) “How ‘ya doing, Luv?” “Oh, I’m bloody fine thank you and you - how bloody are you?” Ohmygaaaasss, tinawag nya akong Luv – ang bilis hah?!!!

“I’m starving! Why don’t we get to our seats and have dinner now? We’re just right on schedule...

(Briitsh pronounciation)”

- like Mother Pearl or Jade Garden in Manila - the ones owned by Mother Lily. But this place is remind me of the panciterias in Ongpin - the tables are long and we had to share it with other customers - not too intimate for me. But instead of the Intsiks in Binondo, everyone here are white foreigners.

Bongga pa din!

While ordering our food, I noticed they don’t have Palabok and Lomi and even Bihon – what kind of Noodle House is this? Even Spaghetti they don’t have!!! Eh di ba puro may noodles ang mga yun?

Haaayyy......Cooper ordered Nasi Goreng “My favorite dish! “ He said. “I spent almost twenty years all around Southeast Asia, ya’ know? I’ve already been to Hongkong, China, Ja-pen, K-reeyuh, Viet-num, Cum-bow-dyah, Tay-lend, Boh-lee, and of course, Mah-nee-luh....” Cooper said.

“Oh, I’ve also been to Hongkong.....for a stopover!!!”

Akala nya sya lang ang well traveled noh?

Pasiklaban ko din nga.

Any way, I thought the Nasi Goreng will be something special - eh hallerrr, Tapsilog lang pala yun! As for me, I got Brocolli with Oyster Sauce as appetizer – para pa-girl - and Type Pad Noodles. I’m so hungry I quickly finished my brocolli. But again, I got dissappointed - my noodles were very spicy! My armpits began to sweat - minus 50 points itu!

“Are you ow-kay, Luv?” Cooper asked.

“Oh you bloody mean isked-yul?” Palpak yata magIngles itong Briton na to ah.. “Oh right, she-jel... whatever, whenever!!!” I answered..

“To tell you the truth, no.......I don’t like the food here. This is not the right noodle house - plus my food is very spicy. I might paint if I continue to finish this...” I complained to him.

The Noodles House is far from what I expected – I thought it will be a fine dining Chinese restaurant

“Oh is that so? Would you like us to move somewhere else, Luv?” he said.

Since Cooper is very understanding, I thought of a way to make him feel thank you-ed. “Come, I’ll bloody take you to a real Noodle House!” I suggested.

So we got into his car - a Land Rovers 4 x 4, sey mo? And I gave him directions towards Deira.

Minutes later, we arrived at - wherelse - but the pride of the Philippine’s fine dining here in Dubai Chowking!!!

“Coopah, this is what you bloody call a real Noodle House!!!” I was proud to tell him. “Is that so? Well then bring it on, baby!!!” he said.

So while the kabayans stared at us - Inggit lang sila ako may date na puti! Eh ano kung para akong tarsier sa tindi ng kapit ko sa date ko? - we had a grand time feasting on Pancit Canton, Chopsuey, Fried Tilapia, Kare-kare and my ever favorites Buchi and Chicharap! Meron ba sa Emirates Towers nyan?

However, as I continued to tell Cooper the story of my life while eating Chopsuey and Kare-kare, I noticed that he wasn’t paying attention - he just kept looking at my mouth. Maybe I’m so kissable lips? Hindi ba sya makapag hintay?

After eating, I thought we will still be bar-hopping but he said he will have to take a rain check. I told him no need to check the rain because it doesn’t always rain here in Dubai. But he decided to call it a night. He drove me home and even before I could even give him a goodnight kiss, he quickly ran away in his 4 x 4s. Bakeeet?

All this time, I kept on thinking, “what went wrong?”

Was I too hot? Was I too beautiful for him? I thought Dizizzit na talaga - but he never returned any of my calls and texts. Men – lulu at lili (lulubog at lilitaw)!

Illustrado 61

FILIPINISMS Kilala ang mga Pinoy sa pagiging mapagmahal sa pamilya – marami kang mababasa sa Internet na ehemplo ng

tunay na ‘love for family’ ng ating mga kababayan, lalo kung tungkol sa ating nasa ibang bansa. Heto ang isang halimbawa ng pagiging ulirang anak – basahin at ng matawa…pero ‘wag gagayahin, at ‘wag ding mamasamain, at ito’y katuwaan lang.

ang Liham ni

Bebeng

Registered nurse si Bebeng sa L.A. Kasama niya ang kanyang ina na nagpagamot doon. Namatay ang ina nito. Dahil sa kamahalan ng pamasahe pabalik sa Pilipinas, nagtipid si Bebeng. Pinauwi na lang niya ang kabaong ng kanyang ina na mag-isa.

Pagdating ng kabaong, napansin ng mga kapamilya niya na nakadikit ang mukha ng ina sa salamin ng ataul. Nagkomento tuloy ang isang anak, “Ay, naku! Tingnan mo ‘yan...hindi sila marunong mag-ayos ng bangkay sa Amerika! Nakudrado tuloy ang mukha ng Nanay.”

Upang ayusin ang itsura ng bangkay, binuksan ang kabaong. Aba! May sulat na-nakastaple sa dibdib ng ina. Kinuha nila ito at binasa. Ang nilalaman ng liham na mula kay Bebeng:

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ILLUSTRADO FACE OF THE MONTH

CELEBRATING PINOY CHARM

DENZEL ANGELO FUENTES DOROJA Just when most kids his age might look good on shirts with defining messages like, ‘Here comes trouble’ or ‘Just cute’, Denzel has won several baby contests and modeled for commercial brands since the age of two.

Born on January 3, 2003, ‘Bonzi’ doesn’t merely have the talent for the camera; he’s also been showing promising skills in drawing and painting at such an early age. He is also interested in sports such as swimming, tennis and basketball. Known to his classmates as a camera-loving, gregarious and friendly personality, Bonzi has also won praise for his helpful and inquisitive attitude in school.

A fireball indeed!

Kudos! to Dennis and Annabelle Doroja for raising such a wonderful and talented kid!

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ENTERTAINMENT

By Jan La’O Is there really too much trash on TV these days that we fail to see the good stuff? Jan La ‘O digs deep into our mainstream Filipino-oriented cable and finds out that there’s more out there than regular tsismis and teleseryes – WHOLESOME and INFORMATIVE SHOWS in fact, that provide excellent and entertaining alternative viewing for young people.

GMA ORBIT (for more details on the shows below, log on to: http://www.igma.tv/)

3R

Respect, Relax, Respond...create fun and interactive ways of exploring the ups and downs in the lives of young women today. 3R empowers its viewers by exploring varied issues that affect young women like relationships, technology literacy, peer and social pressures, among others. In a chaotic world like ours, it always helps to know how to respond to problems in a hip, fun and cool way -- the 3R way.

Bubble Gang

At Your Service, Star Power

A public service program putting a different spin into public service. Filled not just with helping hands but with loads of entertainment value as well! Hosted by Iza Calzado, At Your Service Star Power features celebrities giving solutions to the different problems in the community by helping the residents help themselves. Who says a public service program needs to be completely serious?

MMS

For more than a decade, Bubble Gang MMS packs one-hour with everything has made audiences around the country about music. It is a stage for favorite roll over with laughter. Their commercial artists, songs, songwriters, foreign and spoofs and recurring characters keep local music news, behind-the-scenes of everyone in stitches while the parodies on politicians prove that nothing music videos, concerts and everything you needs to know about music. All is sacred to their funny bones. Are you ready to laugh till you drop? The in an adrenaline-pumping one hour! Hosted by MMS’ main VJ, Raymond gangs gags and segments continue to make this the country’s funniest Gutierrez, MMS is destined to be THE music tambayan of choice! spoof show.

ABS-CBN (for more details on the shows below, log on to: http://beta.abs-cbn.com/)

It’s a Guy Thing

A lifestyle gag show hosted by barkadas Bernard Palanca, Borgy Manotoc, Ketchup Eusebio and John Joe Joseph with their muse Bubbles Paraiso. Get ready for an exciting ride of fun and adventure through the minds of boys. It’s all about dating, gaming, girls, technology, girls, food, music, girls, sports, girls, stupid stuff, and well, girls. It’s alive.

It’s throbbing. It’s a Guy Thing.

Basta Sports

Hosted by Atom Araullo and Ketchup Eusebio, Basta Sports is a unique show about games and sports for today’s youth.

Learn how to be active and healthy through engaging in fun sporty activities. Not only do sports build character, it also promotes good health and discipline. “Kahit sino ka man, o saan ka nakatira, mahalagang may laro ka! Dahil BASTA SPORTS, PANALO KA!”

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Y Speak

It’s more than just talk! Now on its third year of giving voice to the youth, Studio 23’s flagship show Y Speak is now paving the way for breakthrough, edgy and uncensored youth documentaries on the hottest, most relevant and controversial youth issues in the country -- this, aside from revving up even more heated debates among the youth, celebrities, and the country’s powers-that-be.

Us Girls

As its title suggests, Us Girls zeroes in on all things that are just for ‘girls’. The diverse yet complementary trio of hosts explores everything new about Pinay lifestyle. Angel, Cheska and Iya provide all the info you need, week in and week out, on everything girls love, fashion and beauty, practical living, fitness, sports and leisure, the newest restaurants and gimmick spots, and every girls’ fave topic: men!

A collage of Philippine facts bringing you closer to home PINOY TRIVIA

ROOTS

KNOW YOUR

By Maripaz Febrero

The Filipino invasion of North America The first arrivals in the United States were the ‘Manilamen.’ They established villages in the Louisiana bayous as early as 1763, thereby becoming the first Asians in New Orleans. These pioneering Filipinos jumped ships that sailed between Manila and Mexico during the Spanish galleon trade from 1565 to 1815.

1762 and 1764 during the various Anglo-Spanish wars. Though ‘Bumbay’ would imply India, the term is generic and refers to any other South Asian as well (Pakistani, Bangladeshi, etc). When the British decided to withdraw, many of their South Asian soldiers (Sepoy) mutinied and refused to leave. Virtually all had taken Filipina brides (or soon did so). They settled in what is now Cainta, Rizal, just east of Metro Manila. The region in and around Cainta still has many Sepoy descendants.

Thereafter, the migration of Filipinos was divided into four periods or ‘waves.’

The first wave (1903-1934) involved pensionados (scholars), non-sponsored students, and unskilled workers.

Pioneering Filipino Physicists

The second wave (1945-1965) consisted mostly of military personnel who served with the U.S. Armed Forces in the Philippines during the Second World War. The third wave (1966-present) has been comprised mostly of professionals: doctors, nurses, lawyers, engineers, and entrepreneurs. Filipinos are now the second fastest-growing segment of the Asian American population.

In Canada, more than 150,000 Filipinos arrived between 1946 and 1990, 89% of whom were admitted from 1970 to 1990, due to Canada’s liberalizing trend of taking in more diverse nationalities. Latest estimates place the Filipino population there at 200,000.

Are we all “mestizos”?

Filipinos of mixed ethnic background are called mestizos, though originally the term referred specifically to mixed indigenous Austronesian with Spanish ancestry.

Modern genetic research has shown that the racial stock of the majority of the Philippine population, the ethnic Filipinos who constitute the majority of the country, was established in prehistory by Austronesian-speaking Taiwanese aborigine migrants who arrived in successive waves to the Philippines around 3000 BCE, most of whom would later also mixed with subsequent sporadic migrations from mainland Asia (modern-day southern China).

Filipino mestizo, however, refers to specific minority communities of mixed ancestry whose origins stem from the mixture of ethnic Filipinos with foreign migrants, colonizers, or settlers in recent human history; such as recent Chinese merchants and settlers, Hispanics during the Spanish colonial period, Americans during the protector period, Japanese during the Japanese occupation, but also independent migrants or refugees to the Philippines (Britons, Germans, Koreans, Vietnamese, etc.)

As a result of the above, most present-day Filipinos carry southern Chinese genetic markers, although the overwhelming majority would not be considered Chinese mestizos, since those markers were contributed in pre-history during the formation of the general ‘ethnic Filipino’ population.

Are some of us Indian mestizos?

Indian mestizos are called Bumbay (Filipino for Indian) or ‘Sepoy’ (along with more recent unmixed South Asian immigrants), their ancestors arrived with the British between

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They have not received the same amount of recognition as their North American or European counterparts. We hope the following provides some balance to this perspective.

Some of the individuals listed below were trained in or worked in the United States.

Although not all the following were strictly physicists, their contributions are in areas closely related to physics and are included in this list of famous Filipino physicists.

Alcaraz, Arturo: was a leading member of a team that used steam produced from the heat of a volcano to produce electric power in 1967.

Banatao, Diosdado: introduced or developed accelerator chips that improved computer performance, helped make the internet possible by contributing to the development of the Ethernet controller chip, created the local bus concept for personal computers.

Campos, Paulo: wrote many papers in the field of nuclear medicine and was instrumental in building the first radioisotope lab in the Philippines.

Comiso, Josefino: the first person to discover a recurring area of open water in sea ice in the Cosmonaut Sea. Comiso was studying global warming at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

Maramba, Felix: developed a profitable biogas system, building a power generator fuelled by coconut oil.

Zara, Gregorio: discovered around 1930 the law of electrical kinetic resistance (Zara Effect). In 1955 he patented a two-way videophone. In the 1950s and 1960s he developed or improved alternate energy technologies.

Where did ‘karaoke’ come from?

While Karaoke is a Japanese word, Filipino inventor Roberto del Rosario is now the world’s sole patent holder for a sing-along system, according to a Philippine court ruling. Del Rosario won an infringement case against Janito Corp., the Chinese firm which claimed to have invented the Miyata Karaoke. The court ruled that Janito Corp. manufactured a system identical or substantially similar to Del Rosario’s invention. He developed the karaoke prototype in 1975 and started marketing it in 1978. Roberto del Rosario is the founder and president of the Inventors and Innovators Development Foundation.

ENTERTAINMENT Middle East. In the mid-80s he was with the APO in Riyadh and Jeddah, where he played drums for the group. In the mid-90s he performed in Dubai with the quartet ‘AngFOURgettables’ (Pinky Marquez, Isay Alvarez and Dyords Javier among them). This March, he performs at the Java Jazz Festival in Indonesia.

Mon’s formal music training was at the University of the Philippines, under the great Professor Aurelio Estanislao. Not many, however, know that he started as a commercial jingle interpreter. He has now recorded and produced five albums. “I’ve always wanted to be able to record, arrange, produce albums and express my views and outlook through songs. It’s a rare and special privilege I think,” he says.

MON DAVID

Hits a High Pitch

By Jan La’O

“THE Filipino artist is worth listening to,” jazz musician Mon David tells Illustrado a month after performing at the 2nd FilAm Jazz Festival in Hollywood’s Catalina Jazz Bar & Grill. If the 53-year-old music legend sounds like he’s never had the blues, it’s because he has every reason to be happy. After two decades in the Philippine music industry, his career is still reaching new heights.

Last year he won the grand prize in the first London International Jazz Competition (he was the only Asian who competed), and as a result of that victory, the international music label Candid Records is releasing his latest CD album, ‘My One & Only Love’ worldwide this year. “This could attract an entirely new generation of followers from different parts of

the world and that’s what really excites me,” he explains. “The idea that my music will finally be available for global consumption, is quite fulfilling” Included in the 14-track compilation is the AWIT Awardee (Best Jazz Recording) ‘Let Go’, an original composition, and three of the songs that he rendered at the London Jazz contest: ‘Skylark’, ‘Waltz for Debbie’, and ‘My One and Only Love’. There is also the Kapampangan inspirational ‘Abe Mu Ku’, and a duet with Ms. Bituin Escalante entitled ‘Alone Together’, a beautiful Gary Granada tune ‘I Had A Dream’, and some collaborations with Tots Tolentino.

Mon’s first break in the music industry was through the APO Hiking Society in the 1980s, where he was their drummer and vocal coach for seven years. He also co-produced their album ‘Mga Kwento ng APO’. But it was not until 1991 that he launched his career as a solo performer. “Since high school days, I already envisioned myself to be part of the music industry not only as a singer but as a songwriter as well,” he says.

He has since earned a name and the respect of the local music industry, and has been performing internationally, including the

These days, Mon continues to write and arrange music, which he uses in his gigs at venues such as MAG:NET Café Katipunan, Conspiracy Café on Visayas Avenue, and Merck’s Bar & Bistro in Makati (owned by singer Richard Merck). He performs originals, interprets standards, and plays guitar and percussion instruments.

He and his wife Ann have been living in Quezon City the past 15 years, but when he needs to ‘recharge’ Mon drives to his hometown Pampanga where he has a studio. “I also like to go to coffee shops where I meditate and come up with creative ideas,” he shares. “As soon as I wake up I thank God for this beautiful gift of music, I thank Him for providing me the first instrument—the human voice—which is capable of expressing a thousand emotions and nuances on life and love, and just about everything under the sun.”

Mon still practices playing the guitar and sings at least three hours a day. He also fits ‘listening sessions’ into his schedule, where he reviews materials and new songs. He likes to take quiet walks around the UP Lagoon area three times a week and, when he’s not too busy with shows and recordings, conducts voice lessons to aspiring singers. “I also like to read stories about jazz icons and great artists like Bill Evans, Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Nat King Cole,” he reveals.

Despite the numerous accolades he’s received through the years, Mon is still excited about the future. “I’d like to explore the possibilities of recording and performing with the finest artists from different parts of the world—share with the global audience our own nuances in music,” he says.

“This may sound corny or ‘childish’ but I’ve always believed in the power of music,” he confesses. “It’s healing and inspiring…I’ve

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Inside Manila with Kids: A Travel Companion for Parents - by Didith Tan Rodrigo Are your kids always glued to their computers or have turned into young couch potatoes? Well, here’s a solution -- a small book that gives your whole family ideas on what to do and where to go around the metro. Written for residents and tourists alike, the book recommends places to go and activities to get your kids hooked onto science, history, culture, sports, or simply the pleasure of sightseeing. A very handy companion guide including maps, photos, and a short history of the Philippines. So come along and discover the city of Manila!

Young Pens for Young Minds - Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation A collection of 21 essays from the first four years of the Ramon Magsaysay Student Essay Competition. AwardWinning young writers from high schools, colleges and universities across the Philippines -- and three from Korea -- reflect on the inspiring lives and work of Asia’s moral heroes. They talk about the Magsaysay Awardees, men and women whose lives of courage, conviction, and selfless service manifest the same greatness of spirit for which the late Philippine President was much loved by his people and widely admired across the world.

Young Blood 3

Bagets: An Anthology of Filipino Young Adult Fiction

- by Jorge V. Aruta and Ruel S. de Vera

- by Felice Prudence Sta. Maria

Logging on from the pages of the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Young Blood 3 is in the house, fully loaded with the best essays from 1999 to 2004 in the most concentrated Young Blood package yet. Bear witness as a generation continues its evolution, wired faster to dream higher. This is the Filipino youth at their most honest and most eloquent. Here is your password. Here are the messages that matter from the newspaper that started it all. Young Blood 3 is the young Filipino.

The idea was to start publishing a series of anthologies focusing on areas that were still lacking in the present body of literature for children. It was even considered being called Ocho-ocho, but then Bagets was decided on and now it has come of age. Here, finally, is a collection of short stories written in both English and Filipino for Filipino teenagers that discuss their issues and concerns in well-told narratives that are funny poignant, cautionary, and even a bit risqué.

Books available at Powerbooks, Phils. www.powerbooks.com.ph CDs available at Tower Records Phils. www.tower-records.ph

Craeons After a successful audition with Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Craeons formally signed a recording contract with the top label on December 7, 2005. With members hailing from Miriam College, Philippine School of Business Administration and De La Salle, ‘colorful’ is a description which perfectly suits the group. A sound fusion of each member’s genre such as alternative rock, funk, grunge, new metal rock, rock and roll, jazz and blues in one energetic package.

Check out tracks: ‘Mis Kol’, ‘I’ and ‘Grabe’. Album: ‘Non-Toxic’.

Dicta Licence

Mojofly A doze of radio-friendly, pop-leaning alternative music compared to other local acts. Apart from their unique musicality, they also boast of celebrity endorsements like Del Monte Pizza Sauce, Penshoppe and especially Cream Silk Conditioners, a campaign which brought Lougee’s (20 year-old vocalist Junior at Assumption College) vivid image into every household. Check out tracks: ‘Minamalas’, ‘Turn’, ‘Mata’, ‘Tumatakbo’, ‘Sa Uulitin’ and ‘Wake Up’. If you like Kitchie Nadal or Barbie Almalbis, you’ll like Mojofly.

Album/s: EP, Now, 2 in 1 Series.

Spongecola An all Atenean kick-ass rock band founded by Yael Yuzon (lead vocals and guitar) and Gosh Dilay (bass and vocals) during their high school theatre guild, Teatro Baguntao at the Ateneo. They coined Spongecola after R.S. Surtee’s Mr. Sponge’s Sporting Tour. Check out tracks ‘Lunes’, ‘KLSP’, ‘Gemini’, ‘Una’, ‘Jeepney’ and especially their version of Madonna’s ‘Crazy for You’ which has been instrumental in their break-out popularity. A sound mix of classic OPM, metal, pop-rock, ballads, emo and alternative. Albums: ‘Palabas’ and ‘Transit’.

They’ve been around since 1999, but due to a lot of internal problems and band re-shuffling, they’ve just finally took off around 2003. Based Hilera in the slopes of UP-Diliman, they got a sound mix of east coast lyrical hip-hop, Composed of brothers Chris (vocalist) attending Dominican College and Bobby grunge and rock & roll. The first big break that they (drums) still in high school at Community of Learners Padilla and Ivan Garcia (bass) got was being included in the first No Seat Affair attending Kalayaan College, Hilera rode the music wave after becoming Nescafe compilation album wherein their song ‘Duct Tape’, Soundskool’s champion and won a contract with EMI Philippines. ‘Hilera’ came got chosen to be its carrier single. Check out tracks: about as a Filipino name to relate the band’s name to the music, like a command. Check out tracks: ‘Ang Ating Araw’, ‘Mga Sugat’, ‘Complex’ and ‘Alay ‘Rhyme Without Reason’, ‘Define’ and ‘Sungrass’. If you like Metallica, Pantera or Sepultura, you’ll like Sa Nagkamalay’. Album: ‘Paghilom’. them! Album: ‘Hilera’.

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