ILLUSTRADO Magazine_Sept 2011

ANNIVERSARY

Photo by Eros Goze

EDITOR’S NOTE

55 in 5

“Little drops of water make the mighty ocean.”

It’s just a bunch of insignificant numbers, but a significant landmark to us. Consider how 55 issues of Illustrado in the last 5 years have contributed to fanning the winds of positive change within the Filipino community - setting a new standard for Philippine media in the region, a newfound dignity on how we present ourselves to world, and honor ourselves as worthy people.

No matter how big or small our role and contributions have been in the last five years – whether they be in the area of discussing relevant issues, creating opportunities for Filipino empowerment, education and recognition, promoting original Filipino creativity, stimulating competitiveness within our community, or simply giving you that extra boost of confidence and Pinoy pride - suffice to say, we are ecstatic that all our efforts are focused on a clear and singular mission and that is – To deliver goodness to the people who mean the most to us.

Instead of looking back on the last five years, we look ahead. We look forward to touching even more Filipinos around the world, bridging geographical gaps, sharing our common experiences and aspirations, and demonstrating the capacity for greatness that reside in all of us. As we move to the next chapter of our advocacy, we will continue promoting a global mindset, contributing to the recognition of Filipino talent and creativity, pushing our people in the process towards better standards and upliftment. And we do so while nurturing our core, that which makes us uniquely Filipino, in the process.

We make no excuses for our relentless pursuit of progressive Filipino ideals - because we believe we all deserve nothing less.

Continuing to pursue the dream…

Taas Noo, Filipino!

LALAINE CHU-BENITEZ Publisher and Editor-in-Chief

2 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Send your letters to: editor@illustrado.net or join the discussion at IIlustrado Magazine’s Facebook page

Illustrado & Pinoy Art “Imagine a World without Filipinos…

(Be proud to be Pinoy)” Filipino brothers and sisters! We are often overlooked and ignored, but by golly, we have done so much to this world. We are the laborers, domestic helpers, sailors, engineers, scientists, doctors, nurses, freedom fighters, serving all over the world. We are humble, pious, respectful, hospitable, yet courageous, full of indomitable spirit, patient, and resilient.

We need to unite as a people. Let us start to stand up, and get recognized. We are FILIPINOS, and we have to be proud of our heritage.

Hallucinations in RGB Congratulations ILLUSTRADO... You have brought peace to the hungry fashionistas!

Jimmy Outhwaite

To our leaders and public servants, it is time for you to fight corruption, and serve the needs of our population. We are a great people, and this world is not what it is without us.

Love our heritage, love our country, and we need to love each other. FILIPINOS we need to be one!

Haze Japitana

Kudos to the stylist and photographer... great work!!! The kind of stuff that can make our presence felt in the international arena of fashion and photography.

Joel Villanueva

MABUHAY KA PINOY!!! Salamat po ng marami sa laging pag suporta sa lahat ng artist!!!

Darwin Guevarra

From the United Blogs of Benetton -

Salamat po sa inyo Illustrado Magazine.

Kampay sa lahat ng Pinoy Artists!!!

Brownfusion

Filipino in Full Color It comes as a coincidence (or maybe not?) that a Filipino-themed editorial in Dubai-based Illustrado magazine was released in August, the Philippines’ national month for language.

True, this editorial by up-and-coming photographer-stylist duo Enzo Mondejar and Eric Poliquit draws on western images (color blocking, psychedelia, surrealism), but the fusion of local elements has made the spreads fluent in Philippine culture.

Who would ever expect the use of cellophane (frequently used locally to wrap gifts and even Christmas loaves) and even containers of street food (for hotdog buns and fish balls) as props for a fashion shoot?

Even the expressions of the models and the characterizations draw richly on noontime telenovelas and icons of local cinema. Truly, this fresh visual language has come as a surprise, and a delight!

May Allah continue to shower his blessings… Eid Mubarak to all our Muslim brothers and sisters :) Fatima Tim Garcia

Pinays Take Charge Campaign

Long live Illustrado Magazine... Keep up the good work...

You are the voice of Pinays.

Egypinay Mie Maraming napapariwarang mga Filipina dito sa UAE. Maaring kulang sa kaalaman sa batas o di kaya nama’y kulang ang pagpapahalaga sa sarili bilang isang babae. Meron na mang inosente kaya inaabuso o di kaya’y nahuhumaling at napapagaya lang sa mga kaibigan.

Sa totoo lang masyadong nakakababa ng moral para sa iba sa atin na tumatahak ng tamang daan habang naririto sa ibang bansa. Nangyari na iyan sa isang kaibigan ko na minsan nang napagkamalan bilang isang bayaran habang naglalakad pauwi ng bahay galing sa trabaho. Sa takot niya ay kumaripas na lang takbo.

Kaya nararapat lang na pag-ibayuhin nating maitayo ang karangalan ng mga Pinay dito sa UAE. Gamot daw ang paalala sa taong nakalilimot and prevention is better than cure, and I salute those people who try to save not just themselves. Ang mga naliligaw ng landas ay maaring turuan at akayin sa tamang daan.

Love this advocacy, Illustrado!

Carla Roque Great campaign. Keep it up. Bravo to you, Lalaine and your team.

Jay Hilotin Congratulations on this amazing achievement. You have proven time and time again what hard work and dedication can produce results. I wish you the best of luck and I am sure you will continue to do what it is you have always set out to do: put your heart and soul into everything you do for the Filipinos in Dubai. God bless you guys.

Haze Japitana Kudos to you and your team! It’s about time somebody initiated this especially here in UAE! Mabuhay ang mga Pinay! Count me in!

Karen Frances Bisana-Tolentino

Your magazine is very informative and I love your state-of-the-art graphics. I also love your advocacy on Pinays Take Charge. I’ll be one of your supporters... because it really hurts to hear a lot of negative comments about Filipinas. We have to prove that they are wrong.

This will help all Pinay’s in UAE. It is really good campaign Lalaine!!! Two thumbs-up!!!

Maribi Supan Opolentisima Hello, Lalaine. I just hope that all Pinays here in the Philippines and abroad can read about your project and understand what it means. So that they can take care and respect themselves.

Caring Freeman

CONTRIBUTORS

Bo Sanchez Bo Sanchez is a Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) awardee, best-selling author, respected speaker and TV personality also known as the “Preacher in Blue Jeans.”

Every month, he shares worthwhile words of wisdom with Illustrado readers in his column on Spirituality. In this issue, Brother Bo talks about luxury of another kind – spiritual abundance, and how to attain it.

Alfred ‘Krip’ Yuson

Renowned writer Krip Yuson has co-authored travel books (among these APA Insight Guide to the Philippines and Philippines: Islands of Enchantment). He has earned distinctions as a literary author of over 20 other books — from poetry, short stories, children’s stories, biographies, and translation. A Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature Hall-of-Famer, he has also received the SEAWrite (SouthEast Asia Writer’s) Award from Thai royalty and the UMPIL or Writers’ Union of the Philippines’ Gawad Balagtas for lifetime achievement. In this issue, Krip writes about a favorite indulgence - chocolate and chocolate cake with such literary gusto one can’t help but get hooked.

Margarita Go Singco Holmes & Jeremy Baer Columnist couple Margarita Go Singco Holmes and Jeremy Baer are a force to reckon with, especially in the realm of relationships. Margarita is a best-selling author and TV personality. A clinical psychologist and professor at the Department of Psychology, UP Diliman, she has authored 17 books. Former banker Jeremy, on the other hand, is a psychotherapist-in-training and writes a column for OPINYON, a weekly newspaper, and co-hosts an OPINYON radio show with Dr. Holmes. He is also currently working on his first book.

Ana Santos

Eros Goze

Being a writer can be such a cumbersome task but somebody’s got to do it - as Ana demonstrates this month with a piece on a weekend in one of the country’s most exclusive resorts, and an outing to Borneo, all in the name of jazz. Illustrado’s Associate Editor Ana Santos writes for glossies in the Philippines, as well as foreign wires on specific women’s issues, and also runs www. sexandsensibilities.com (SAS), a website with culturally sensitive sexual health information for young Filipinas, spent a privileged 9-year stint in the corporate world, before making a drastic career move to pursue her advocacies as a journalist and sexual health advocate.

Drama, sensuousness and edginess are the hallmarks of Dubai-based freelance photographer Eros Goze’s photography style. This month, he turns a new leaf with striking images that’s also about scale and structure in our special fashion editorial inspired by amazingcontemporaryarchitecture.

Nikka Sarthou

Ana Kalaw

Ana Kalaw’s fashion background spans more than a decade. She has worked in various fields of the fashion industry as an editor, columnist, stylist and speaker. Presently, she is a columnist for YStyle, the weekly Friday fashion section of the Philippine Star and is also fashion director for Cosmopolitan magazine. In this month’s issue of Illustrado, Ana writes about the Filipino brand names that are known around the world for luxury, creativity and craftsmanship.

Karen Galarpe

Karen Galarpe, a longtime print and online journalist based in Manila, has been covering the lifestyle beat since the early 90s. Most recently, she was the lifestyle editor of ABS-CBN News Online.

Karen’s idea of luxury is having the time to watch the sun rise majestically on a private white sand beach, and surrendering to a relaxing aromatherapy massage in a villa overlooking a quiet cove. In this issue of Illustrado, Karen reviews the concept of urban luxury by checking into the Oakwood in Ortigas.

Full-time freelance writer Nikka specializes in lifestylerelated features. She has written for various local print and online publications, as well as corporate clients. She is one of the founders of Writer’s Block Philippines, an organization that aims to provide writers an avenue to hone their skills and make them effective communicators, and content manager of OfficiallyPhilippines.com, a website that aims to be the ultimate travel guide to the Philippines.

Nikka spends the night at a famous hotel by the Manila Bay and tells us how it is to sleep with the fishes.

Johanna Michelle Lim Johanna Michelle Lim is a freelance copywriter and graphic artist from Cebu. She graduated with a degree of Fine Arts in Advertising Arts at the University of San Carlos back in 2008, and has been wandering and wayward since. When she isn’t stuck in the design world, she keeps busy by engaging in masochistic projects like writing a story or producing one photograph a day. She is forever under construction. Her formula for a luxurious escapade includes a good book, a pitched tent at the beach and an optional companion. In writing her story about the Eskaya Resort in Bohol, she just discovered luxury resorts could fit very well into the formula.

Publisher & Editor-in Chief Lalaine Chu-Benitez Associate Editor Ana Santos CONTRIBUTING WRITERS UAE, Philippines, USA Aby Yap Anna Lorraine Balita JR Bustamante Bernadette Reyes Jude Cartalaba Bo Sanchez Karen Galarpe Carlito Viriña KC Abalos Chayie Maligalig Krip Yuson David Poarch Lawrence Diche Excel Dyquiangco Rache Hernandez Flordeliz Samonte Shar Matingka Francisco Colayco Toni Loyola Isabelo Samonte Sonny Guzman Ivan Henares Vic Lactaoen Jack Catarata Victor Sollorano Jesse Edep ART DIRECTORS Tom Bolivar Paula Lorenzo Ron Perez CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS UAE Eros Goze Mariyah Gaspacho Christina Linaza Illuminado Ong Donald Rosales CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS PHILIPPINES Dr. Marlon Pecjo Glenn Peter-Perez Filbert Kung Alan Desiderio Enzo Mondejar CONTRIBUTING STYLISTS & FASHION TEAM UAE Jessie Tabla Ginno Alducente Ushi Sato Jojo Padua Frankie Melendez PUBLISHER - UAE Illustrado Communications FZ-LLC 2nd Floor, Building 2, P.O. Box 72280 Office 20C Dubai Media City, UAE Tel: +9714 365 4543, 365 4547 Fax:+9714 360 4771 E-mail: admin@illustrado.net, info@illustrado.net Web: www.illustrado.net, www.illustradolife.com PRINTERS PRINTWELL PRINTING LLC P.O. Box 18828 Dubai, UAE Copyright Illustrado Communications FZ-LLC 2006-2011. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Illustrado Communications FZ-LLC.

CONTENTS

56 SEPT 2011

An androgynous Kylene Ganigan sports contemporary architectural details in this month’s special style editorial featuring the avant garde creations of nine of the UAE’s most promising fashion designers.

FEATURES

Proudly Filipino-Made Luxury 10 Eat, Sleep, Breathe Fashion 22 Affordable Luxury 26 Illustrado’s 5th Anniversary Retrospective 30

REGULAR COLUMNS

Editor’s Note 1 Letters 2 Contributors 4 Illustrado Profile: Michael Carandang 38 Pinoy Pro 42 It’s What I Do: Pinoy Talent On-the-Job 44 Illuminati: Endorphin Indulgence 50 Illustrado Scrapbook 54 Illustrado Profile: Albert Andrada Five Things to Do 102 Spirituality: Life of Abundance 118 DiasporaPhilanthropy:CharityBuiltonLipstick,Photos& Dance 120 Relationships: Panakip-Butas 124 Onli in Da Pilipins: Luho and Luxury 128 Annie B. Chronicles: Bag Crazy 130

FASION & DESIGN

Fashion: Architectural Avant Garde 56 Couture Gallery 92 Items of Envy 100

PLACES

Trippin’:GetEnlightenedattheManaratAlSaadiyat106 Luxury in the City: Makati Shangri-La 108 Luxury in the City: Oakwood 110 Luxury in the Islands: Eskaya 112 Luxury in the Islands: Bellarocca 114 H2O Hotel: Sleeping with the Fishes 116 Trippin’: Borneo Jazz Fest

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12 FEATURE

Proudly

FILIPINO MADE

LUXURY

Our appreciation for all things beautiful, coupled with the resourcefulness that is innate in all Filipinos, has produced some of the most arrestingly luxurious pieces in the world of fashion and design, admired both by international celebrities and global style cognoscenti, and desired by just about anyone who can appreciate style. Ana Kalaw takes us through luxury Filipino style.

Whether by going abroad or staying on home ground —Filipino designers have proven their worth and talent, either as designers for big name brands or proprietors of their own world-class labels.

Crossing off points in New York, Paris, Dubai or Manila, these Filipino designers are constantly proving that Filipino craftsmanship and ingenuity deserves a share of the international spotlight.

embellished bags for Panlilio, her mother’s family’s jewelry store in 2002. Valdes doesn’t have a particular design plan when coming up with her collections, creating straight from what she sees in her mind, be they egg-shaped minaudieres or the statement necklaces that she eventually moved on to. “I prefer to explore certain emotions when I am creating,” says the accessory designer. Hence, one-of-a-kind pieces that are a 100-percent handcrafted.

Valdes’ unique creations eventually gained international recognition, and with the help and referral of Thai designer Thakoon, one of her bags appeared in the pages of US Vogue in 2005 and was dubbed “this season’s must have evening bag.”

Class act department stores such as Barneys, Saks Fifth Avenue and Harvey Nichols also started carrying her pieces.

Valdes’ biggest magazine endorsement, however, came in the latter part of 2009, when UK Vogue featured Brit supermodel Kate Moss wearing a Bea Valdes bib necklace on the cover of their September issue. As many in the fashion industry know, the month emphasizes the significance of the feature; September is considered to be the most important month in publishing, where pages are coveted by advertisers and the thickness of each issue becomes a measure for profitability.

Adding to the coup of 2009 was exposure in Sex and the City 2. Sarah Jessica Parker’s Carrie Bradshaw toted a silver Bea Valdes bag paired with an Alexander McQueen dress.

Valdes has since expanded her choice of materials and designs, combining gemstones with exotic snakeskin, metal and chains in bags, necklaces and even ornamental vests. Swarovski crystals, however, remains the most visible component in her creations.

Bea Valdes When you own a Bea Valdes piece, you’re sure of at least two things: one, that it’s of world-class quality and workmanship, and two, that you’re the only one who has it. Valdes started creating beaded and

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One of her most recent creations, a monumental piece called Equus, made of hundreds of Swarovski crystals fashioned into jagged shards worn sash-like from shoulder to hip was chosen over 150 designs as an opener in Swarovski’s Beijing show. Valdes’ statement sash will be featured alongside those of Versace and Gaultier.

FEATURE 13 It’s quite an honor for the designer who became known for incorporating what America and the rest of the world thought of as unconventional materials into the luxe pieces he created under the Rafe New York label. Totengco has constantly used Philippine-made materials in his designs, from rattan to raffia to textiles indigenous to certain Filipino tribes. In fact, his Spring 2010 line featured the Tinalak fabric produced by the T’boli weavers of Mindanao.

Rafe Totengco Bag hags may have noticed that Rafe Totengco did not come out with a collection for Spring 2011. They would also know that just when he decided to give designing a break, the New York-based designer was, by what he describes as “kismet,” appointed the Jones Group’s creative director for handbags.

Best known as the mother company of Nine West, Jones Group also has Anne Klein, Vintage America, and Rachel by Rachel Roy under its umbrella. Sack designer guru Totengco is tasked to create bag collections for all four brands.

Totengco has continued this aesthetic with his first collection for Nine West, which came out in April of this year. The 2001 recipient of the Best Accessories Designer award from the Accessories Council combines woven jute and quirky quilted patterns with more contemporary chain elements and trendy animal prints.

Though he’s currently focused on his Nine West assignation, Totengco is quick to assure fans that he still plans to relaunch Rafe New York, this time with the support of the Jones Group. And as his blog Rafe Loves will attest, it’s a promise that many women will surely hold him to.

Furne One After dressing up A-listers Katy Perry, Jennifer Lopez, Nicki Minaj and Heidi Klum, there seems to be no stopping Furne One from conquering Hollywood.

One known for his extravagant haute couture confections worn by the region’s elite, has a penchant for majestic proportions, rich fabric and grandiose accessorizing. “After all,” he says, “fashion is all about excess, indulgence, and fun.”

The designer has carried his fashions from the catwalks of Dubai, to Miami, to London last year. His first major show in Manila also last year, was a first in the country in terms of haute couture magnitude a catwalk procession of modern-Victorianesqe Swarovski-encrusted painstakingly handcrafted creations with the theme “I am the Queen.””

The Cebuano designer’s daring has certainly not failed him. His label Amato has become one of the most anticipated collections out of Dubai every fashion season. His decadent signature also caught the eye of Heidi Klum, who, in 2008, commissioned One to design all the gowns for the final round of her TV show‚ Germany’s Next Top Model. He’s been designing for the show ever since and has been able to breakthrough in the US as well. At the moment, One is in talks to design for another three A-list musicians and is looking forward to opening his couture atelier in Los Angeles very soon.

Michael Cinco It takes anywhere from 200 to 1,000 hours to bead a Michael Cinco creation. Painstakingly hand-crafted and hand-beaded, each wedding gown or haute couture ensemble, when completed, will bear the dramatically fabulous flair that has become a Cinco signature. No wonder he is known for creating “one million peso dresses.”

Cinco, another Filipino designer who has found his calling in Dubai, combines his beadwork with other showy elements such as feathers and fur, and with fabric sourced from Italy, Paris and Switzerland.

“I love working with impalpable fabric like lace and tulle,” says the flamboyant designer, who has also proudly introduced his mostlyArab clientele to calado embroidery, a method of decorative sewing that originated in a town called Lumban in the Philippines. “They love it so much.”

14 FEATURE As of press time, Cinco has been nominated as a finalist for the Breakthrough Designer Award in the WGSN Global Fashion Awards. This nomination comes soon after Cinco’s creations appeared in the 16th cycle of America’s Next Top Model. He is also set to represent the Philippines in the World Fashion Show in November in New York.

The Samar-born designer was asked to create six different eco-friendly pieces for one of the model challenges. Using elements usually found in the garbage bin such as safety pins, broken mirrors, recycled parachutes and rubber bands, Cinco created metallic corsets and fluid floor-sweeping gowns that looked anything but trashy. There was hardly any beading in this collection, although he did create stately necklaces out of forks and spoons.

The fashion divas to own a Cinco creation include supermodel Naomi Campbell and burlesque model and actress Dita Von Teese.

A-list celebs proudly wear Pinoy Bea Valdes

Black Eyed Peas front woman Fergie carried a black satin Bea Valdes bag to the 2010 American Music Awards. Stylist Rachel Roy, model Christy Turlington and media wife Wendi Deng-Murdoch also own Valdes’ statement pieces.

Rafe Totengco Most of Hollywood’s who’s who have been photographed with a Rafe bag, from Gossip Girl’s Blake Lively and Leighton Meester to style-philes Cameron Diaz and Jessica Alba to supermodels Daria Werbowy and Adrianna Lima.

Furne One Josie Natori Before Natori, undergarments were either “frumpy or lewd,” or at least not fit to be called lingerie. Josie Natori changed all that by providing luxurious slips of underwear that emphasized an East-meets-West aesthetic as well as exquisite detailing and embroidery. Without initially meaning to, she made the rules regarding innerwear hazy by providing lingerie that’s classy and sophisticated enough to be worn while lounging or under a stylish suit. At the same time, her pieces retain a quality of intimacy and indulgence.

Three decades later, Natori has since expanded to include loungewear, readyto-wear, swimwear, eyewear, fragrances and home accessories. It is still elegant, expensive lingerie however, that is at the core of Josie Natori’s business, many of which are made in the Philippines by a diligent production staff that numbers nearly a thousand. “Filipinos know how to handle the finer things,” says Natori, who also discloses that it is actually her label’s most expensive pieces that are Philippine-made. These would include delicately-embroidered chemises, vibrantly-colored caftans, boldly-colored robes and the limited accessories that accompany each RTW collection.

Sticking to Filipino craftsmanship was a conscious decision for the investment banker-turned-fashion designer. It was a way of giving back to her country, an effort to help uplift Filipino skill and talent. Her actions as well as her international success have accorded Josie Natori the Lakandula Award, considered the highest honor bestowed on a Filipino citizen.

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Turning heads at the recent MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) Furne One’s creations were worn by Katy Perry, who’s worn several Amato pieces in her Teenage Dream World Tour 2011, and Nicki Minaj, who’s mortal combat futuristic Barbie ensemble became a huge talking point in fashion circles around the world. One has also dressed Jennifer Lopez and Heidi Klum.

Michael Cinco Cinco has dressed up sultry sirens Naomi Campbell and Dita Von Teese on each one’s visit to Dubai. He also reveals that another America’s Next Top Model project is in the works.

Josie Natori Natori is a regular on magazine covers. Oprah wore an embellished Natori tunic on the cover of the July 2010 issue of O Magazine, while Glee’s Lea Michele wore Josie lace briefs on her cover story shoot for the October 2010 issue of Glamour. Natori is also a favorite among the characters in Gossip Girl.

16 FEATURE

Kenneth Cobonpue Having Hollywood royalty purchase your designs is one thing; having your designs internationally-awarded and then bought by actual royalty is another.

Kenneth Cobonpue has bragging rights for both. The Cebu-based furniture designer, whose list of celebrity clients include power couple Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, Lucy Liu, and Robert de Niro, recently added Queen Rania of Jordan to his stellar clientele list. The queen, known for her impeccable style and elegance, purchased Cobonpue's Bloom chair, a flower-shaped percher made from microfiber that won the Coup de Coeur award at Maison et the Objet in Paris last year.

Known for creating contemporary studies of rattan as well as other inherently Filipino materials such as bamboo, abaca, and buri, Cobonpue is proving that stylish, world class furniture doesn't necessarily come with an Italian, Dutch or Scandinavian label. His sleek, ergonomic designs are not only seen in the homes of the ultra-

Cebu Craftsmanship in Internationally Renowned Brand If you’re an interior design enthusiasts or a lover of classy contemporary furniture, chances are, you probably already know the brand Dedon, a perennial fixture in prestigious international design magazines like Wallpaper. But did you know that Dedon is proudly Philippine made?

In the advent of the '90s, former German football player Bobby Dekeyser discovered rattan at a booth of a Filipino entrepreneur in a trade show in Cologne, Germany. In less than a week, Dekeyser was on a plane to Cebu, chasing after what he figured was his new calling: outdoor furniture inspired by rattan, but made of special Dedon fiber, a sustainably-produced, non-toxic, synthetic,

Illustrado Magazine

rich, but also in the lobbies and lounges of plush hotels and resorts in Greece, Spain, Mexico, Dubai and the Maldives. The Cobonpue signature has also invaded pop culture, having been seen in movies such Ocean's Thirteen, Made of Honor and Spread. Earlier this year, Cobonpue's iconic Voyage bed, a rattan sleeper with a raised, majestically-curving headboard, was given MTV mileage when it was featured in Maroon 5's "Never Gonna Leave this Bed" music video.

The prolific designer has also set his sights artistic beyond lounge furniture. In March of this year, Kenneth Cobonpue unveiled the Phoenix, a car ingeniously made of bamboo, rattan, steel and nylon at Milan Design Week's Salone Internazionale del Mobile. Though yet to be equipped with an engine, the funky wing-shaped mobile realizes the possibility of biodegradable — and disposable — cars.

The Phoenix’s organic, biodegradable exterior is designed to last the average length of time a person keeps a car (five years in industrialized countries, 10 to 20 years elsewhere). Beyond this timeframe, the skin can be replaced or can be easily customized for an individual customers’ needs. As part of its green objective, the Phoenix is also designed to contain an electric engine set-up.

polyethylene-based material that is sturdy and durable enough to be molded into beautifully-sculpted, organic chairs, loungers, couches, tables and beds.

Twenty years and a lot of hard work later, Dedon is a worldrenowned brand built essentially off Cebu’s flair for design and weaving, with a Red Dot Design award and Good Design awards in the Green Product category and collaborations with some of the world's most recognizable furniture designers, including Philippe Starck, Richard Frinier, Jean-Marie Massaud, Fred Frety and Daniel Pouzet.

With headquarters in Luneberg, Germany and manufacturing facilities in Cebu, Dedon's pieces are handmade originals that can take as much as 150 man-hours to weave. An original Dedon is instantly recognized by the serial number stamped on each piece that leaves the factory. Each Dedon piece carries a metal tag with the brand name Dedon, embossed with the words “Proudly made in the Philippines.” Bobby Dekeyser, who tirelessly promotes Cebu’s talent for design says, “Without Cebu, Dedon is nothing."

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EAT, BREATHE, LIVE FASHION They get invitations to the hottest style events, rock the coolest ensembles, hobnob with the fashionable set and even get front row seats at fashion shows. They’re not exactly celebs and yet “Le Superstar Fabuleux” Bryan Boy has cemented the position of the modern day blogger as a force to reckon with in today’s digitally-led world of fashion. Illustrado talks to the most popular style bloggers this side and the Philippines, to get an insight on what drives their fashion appetite.

Krystle Gail Uy

Creative Director for WAGW (What a Girl Wants) Boutique Freelance stylist, model, writer and blogger Manila and Cebu, Philippines http://kryzuy.com/ and http://lookbook.nu/kryz

Fashion in my life Fashion is self expression- it’s an art. I love fashion, but I’m not controlled by it.

Blogging bio I started blogging as an activity for 3rd year college. I started blogging about random Ateneo things and my first readers were Atenistas. I guess they noticed that I love dressing up so I got crazy hits unexpectedly and numerous emails requesting me to post outfit shots. That’s when my blog transformed into a fashion blog. I love writing, dressing up (and getting photographed haha), so why not continue?

I blog because I just love doing it. Plus, the opportunities (features, billboards, magazine covers, TV interviews, fashion shows both local and international) it has given me are priceless. I am also able to network, get “free swag,” and have the ability to inspire others by doing what I love.

Fashion inclination I dress however I feel like dressing on a certain day. It’s all about mood and what inspires me. I’m always randomly inspired and I see the beauty in almost everything!

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Scoring fashion finds I get my stuff from everywhere! From big department stores to high street brands, designer pieces to thrift items - everything! I don’t choose brands or set a budget. I just buy what inspires me.

Fashion inspiration I love Miroslava Duma for her effortlessly chic appeal and petite frame. I love Anna Dello Russo for her eccentric style and confidence.

I love Karla Deras for her vintage love affair- I can totally relate!

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Versus. I have my own style - one day I could be wearing shorts, the next day I’m in my coat, and on other days I’d mix my coat with my short shorts. There are no rules. As long as I’m satisfied with the ensemble, then that’s it.

Scoring Fashion Finds Most of the items I wear are from my travels. Hongkong is my number one source of clothing and shoes. There’s a good number of choices and brands available. When shopping for basics, I always visit Zara, 5cm and H&M. At the height of my fashion obsession, I bought four pairs of designer shoes by Raf Simons, Trickers, Lanvin and Comme des Garcons. Do the math! That doesn’t even include the clothes and accessories yet!

Dennis Robles

Designer, Hand Bag Trader and Photography Hobbyist Manila, Philippines http://lookbook.nu/dennisrobles

Fashion in my life My fashion obsession started four years ago, but my love for designer bags began in the heyday of the Ralph Lauren plaid bags. I remember owning a clutch in plaid green, and then moved on to a Prada backpack when I reached college. It’s also what motivated me to start my business trading designer hand bags.

Fashion inspiration and pet peeve If there’s one person I need to name, it would have to be Carine Roitfeld, former Editor-in-Chief of Vogue Paris. I’ve seen a documentary about her and she’s effortless yet fierce. On the other hand, I hate Paris Hilton’s bags! They’re hideous!

Mariyah Gaspacho Photographer Dubai, UAE www.mahryska.com

Blogging Bio A friend introduced me to Lookbook.nu. At first, my raw photos didn’t get enough ‘hypes’ due to poor quality and lack of editing. Then I decided to learn Photoshop and also studied basic photography so I can improve my images. My photos changed tremendously so I earned more ‘hypes,’ followers, and eventually features in magazines like Mega and L’Officiel Hommes, as well as online blogs. I also won a Jeffrey Campbell competition and got a pair of combat boots named after me. I became so addicted to blogging that my friends, secretary and even my driver would take my photos whenever I felt my outfit was “Lookbook worthy.”

I keep on looking back at my old looks and still giggle at them.

There are some outfits I wouldn’t be caught dead wearing now but I retained them as part of my fashion history. I love receiving beautiful praises from my followers. I somehow feel they’re inspired by my looks so that validates my crazy purchases in a way.

Fashion inclination I’ve mellowed lately as I’ve realized I’m not a young kid anymore so I should start investing in more classic clothes. These days, I just wear whatever fits me or what’s in my mood. I don’t follow the latest trends anymore, unlike before when I would buy the latest iconic shoes by European designers, though I still lust over edgy pieces from Balenciaga, Givenchy, Lanvin, Comme des Garcons, Margiela and

Fashion in my life Fashion is a big thing in my life, especially now that fashion blogging has taken a huge chunk of my time. I blog every single day and go to a ton of fashion events around the city.

Blogging bio I have been blogging since 2005 but never really got serious about until recently. I am huge follower of fashion blogs internationally and I noticed that the Middle East lacked quality fashion blogs. I figured I could help kick start the movement. I think I have done pretty well so far - being featured several times in local magazines,

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internationally online plus voted for the recent Grazia Style Awards.

I know that I am widely read out here in the Middle East, and have a pretty good standing with style followers. I mean, I go to an event and everyone pretty much knows who I am, it’s crazy!

With blogging I meet lots of interesting people and experience new things every single day. As a photographer and lover of fashion, being able to penetrate the industry is great. Not only do I talk about fashion, express myself and experience it, I also get a ton of clients because of it. Hopefully, I will get more clients and more opportunities internationally. I would love to visit Paris, Milan and New York fashion week.

Fashion inclination I follow trends and experiment a lot, but I mostly rely on my mood and comfort. I love the structured pieces and all the studs and mix of prints right now. My personal picks are from The Row, Stella McCartney, Chloe, Victoria Beckham and Alexander Wang. Also, my list won’t be complete without Oscar De La Renta, Gucci and Valentino - you need to get a little classic every now and then.

Scoring fashion finds I usually shop in Dubai Mall and Burjuman but I also go to thrift stores around the city. Believe me, if you look hard enough, you find great things out there. I also shop online and the Philippines has got a huge number of online stores with amazing stuff.

Fashion inspiration I absolutely adore the Olsen twins - they inspire me a lot. Oh, and Victoria Beckham...the woman rocks! My ultimate fashion inspiration is the character Carrie Bradshaw - she was never afraid to embrace fashion.

Cristina Linaza

Photographer Dubai, UAE http://www.tinayums.com/

Fashion in my life I think love for fashion is something my mother passed on to me. My twin and I grew up with wonderful things around us from clothes, shoes and accessories. I grew up playing and dressing up all kinds of Barbie dolls since my Mom and my Grandma, were the best makers of Barbie dresses and hair pieces for Matel Co. back in our home town. It’s everything a young girl could dream of.

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Blogging bio I love fashion in its very essence and the campaigns and editorials from magazines inspire me a lot. Landing into the field of fashion photography was never a coincidence but merely my choice, and my focus point. To be out there, I looked for another platform where I could showcase my photography works, and Mariyah Gaspacho, my photography partner/friend encouraged me to try out blogging.

And so I did. Slowly, I began sharing my shoots from a behind-thescenes perspective, as well as my inspirations to the public. Like my photography, it somehow picked up and I never realized that I was doing well until I was nominated in the “Best Style Bloggers” category of the Grazia Style Awards in May 2011. And, though I didn’t win, I vowed to become a better blogger ever since.

Presence in the local fashion scene is extremely important for me.

Not because of the popularity and the feature that I might get from some publications, but to be out there and meet important people that can help me out with my journey to fashion. At the moment, I am elated to be involved with international brands such as Lanvin, Longchamp, Kenneth Cole, Garage, Aldo and Nine West, Revlon, Rimmel, Une, Maxfactor, Benefit and Inglot. I am also a proud online ambassador for United Colors of Benetton UAE. Fashion inclination According to Coco Chanel, “A girl should be two things, classy and fabulous!” For my own style, I always prefer classic. I am mostly minimalistic though it’s fun to wear or own things with lots of color just for a change. Yes, I follow trends most of the time but comfort is my priority.

I am a very practical person. I only buy things that I can afford.

H&M, New Look and Forever 21 are the best brands if you want

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to be comfortable yet fashionable. Fashion pet peeves? I may love looking at flat sandals’ and ballerina shoes but I can’t wear them. I prefer any kind of shoes as long as it has heels.

Fashion inspiration Who wouldn’t love Sarah Jessica Parker’s style from Sex and the City?

And how about Blake Lively and Leighton Meester who are complete trendsetters from Gossip girl?

Ushi Sato

Fashion Designer, Warda Haute Couture Hobby stylist and budding shoe designer Dubai, UAE www.theshadesandscarf.com www.ushisato.carbonmade.com www.lookbook.nu/ushisato

Blogging bio I was always fascinated with fashion magazines and dreamt of becoming a style columnist. That brought me into blogging. Basically, I write about the things I like and from there share something original with my readers. I recently got into posting my Outfit Du Jour on Lookbook.nu, where we get a lot of attention from specific brands. I have followers from networkeblog, IFB (Independent Fashion Blogger), BlogLovin, etc. Recently, my fellow bloggers voted me as one of the stylish bloggers and I got featured in different blogs.

I was also chosen as one of the Community Founder in the UAE for Enstyle.dk. Also I was chosen as one of the United Colors of Benetton online brand ambassadors/bloggers.

Fashion inclination I’m more into fusing the old with the new. I tend to grab the simplest and common thing and make it work fabulously as much as possible.

I usually drool over shoes, sunglasses and scarves! Any brands as long as it looks unique, cool and has a wow effect! I don’t like to see people who style without the right proportions, or those who over-dress.

That really turns me off! I hate fixing my hair and baggy clothes.

Scoring Fashion Finds I get most of my stuff from online brands sales. I’m a very picky shopper and make sure that I get unique stuff that’s useful and of good quality. I don’t take items that are so obvious, the ones that everybody’s wearing.

I want something different. I try to be smart with my budget.

Fashion doesn’t mean you spend a lot. It’s about how creative and productive you are. Like me, I’m a designer creating something for myself – it’s not that hard anyway!

Fashion in my life I have a love affair with fashion. I believe in what Coco Chanel said – “Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only.” Fashion is in the sky, on the street; fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening. For me fashion is eternal, it never fades and there’s no end to it. That’s why when I was younger, I thought fashion is the best thing I could embrace, a career that would last even when I’m gone.

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Fashion inspiration and pet peeves I am fascinated by celebs that have made their own unique fashion statement. I love Michael Jackson’s style, for me he’s one avant garde icon. There’s Lady Gaga who set high fashion in flames. She brought out style that no one had the guts to pull-off. I like Bill Kaulitz, he’s Germany’s pop icon who looks awesome in androgynous style. I hate Britney Spear’s fashion taste. Mutants evolve but her fashion did not!

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Affordable

LUXURIES

With the recent explosion of shopping sales promotions and online discount deals, the luxurious lifestyle is not just a dream to many in the UAE. Of late, a trip to the spa, a weekend getaway to Turkey or even a new BlackBerry Bold have become “reasonable indulgence” because of their affordability.

This month, Illustrado shows you how luxury does not have to be an impossible dream; in fact, one does not need to live beyond their means to attain it.

Louis, Louis, Longchamp The Louis Vuitton Speedy is a much coveted bag for a lot of ladies, and Pinays are no exception to that. Is it because the bag is just so gorgeous that every Pinay has to have it? What is it in that AED2,700+ bag that makes it a lusted-after accessory to many? Well, the answer is pretty obvious. The bag’s price tag, compared to other luxury bags is still a reasonable amount for the pleasure of owning something from the prestigious French design house. Still, if one isn’t prepared to shell out the money to get this luxurious LV, they could always opt for a AED 300++ arm candy from another French design house - Longchamp. Since supermodel Kate Moss endorsed the brand, and since they sell bags that are almost ten times cheaper than the Speedy, it would not be a surprise why a number of Pinays own at least one Longchamp.

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BlackBerry and iPhones If Pinays are so drawn to handbags, Pinoys on the other hand are quite fixated with gadgets most especially mobile phones. In fact, if they can only change their phones each time a new model comes out, they will. That’s why it is not a wonder why many Filipinos use BlackBerry and iPhones even if they do not really need them for work. They simply have to have them. Thanks to the many promotions from Etisalat, du and Carrefour, plus the great opportunities presented during Gitex, most Pinoys can afford to buy these up-to-date gadgets for themselves and their loved ones back home. Beyond phones, the pretty affordable tax free pricing here in the UAE allows Pinoys to buy laptops, iPads, LED televisions, Wi-I and many more.

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High street style

Spa Therapies

Admit it. High fashion is simply affordable to a few privileged people.

That’s why we’re very fortunate to have the likes of H&M, Zara, Mango, Giordano, Splash, Iconic, and other high street brands to sell the latest fashion trends at affordable prices. Thus, it is not a surprise why many Pinoys are always up-to-date when it comes to style. Back home, buying from these shops may seem to be reserved for a select few, but here in the UAE where shopping sales and tremendous promotional discounts abound, buying these brands is just plain ordinary. Apart from perpetual discounts from places like the Dubai Outlet Mall, bargain shopping during Dubai Summer Surprises and Dubai Shopping Festival keep Pinoys on trend.

Thanks to Groupon and Cobone Deals, visits to spas and beauty salons have become very accessible to most UAE folks. Imagine getting almost 70% off on treatments like massages, hair color, body sculpting, among others – it simply paved the way for reasonable luxurious indulgences. Before, pampering was mostly seen as unnecessary and the rare spa trip was never on top of must do lists.

Now with discounted rates, therapies, hair and body treatments have simply become easy spends without the guilt trip. Indeed heaven sent, these deals are amazing discoveries for Filipinos who need to relax and rejuvenate from time to time.

Getaway trips

Beauty buys If you think Chanel No. 5 is a perfume reserved for the rich and famous, then you better think again. It may be a favorite among the world’s elite but, it’s also an accessible brand to most Filipinos in the UAE. Thanks to semi-annual super promos by mega fashion and beauty conglomerate Chalhoub Group, clothing, perfumes and make-up from various brands like Christian Dior, Valentino, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi, Carolina Herrera and even Prada are easy on the pocket during the sale period. And, even beyond the sales promos, Filipinas still opt to buy the best brands of perfumes and make-up – we just can’t let go of our beauty and fragrance fix, can we?

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A European trip may be a luxury to many but a weekend spent in Egypt or Turkey or any nearby country is affordable to many based here in the emirates.

You don’t need to spend a fortune or your lifetime savings in order to travel to nearby countries. Yes, a good bank statement helps in acquiring visa but the tour packages speak of humble pricing. In about AED 3,000 – almost the same price as the LV Speedy – one can have a weekend spent to see the famous Pyramids or the magnificent Petra. Also, with the same amount one can opt to travel to Germany via Air Berlin and manage to stay for two nights in a three star hotel there. Traveling to Paris, Italy or Greece may be just a dream, but the truth is, now, with a bit of savings, good budgeting and research this is could be a reasonable reality.

Truth be known, luxuries are affordable to those who know how and where to get them. Be wise in spending, so be open to deals, promotions and bargains. You’ll see, the lifestyle you covet is not necessarily beyond our reach.

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55 in 5 AN ILLUSTRADO RETROSPECTIVE We take a look back at Illustrado’s five glorious years and fifty-five fabulous issues!

Here are some of our favorite images through the years.

2006-20

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07-2008

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2008 Illustrado Magazine

- 2009

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2010 Illustrado Magazine

- 2011

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MICHAEL CINCO DUBAI

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Emmy Award Winning Producer:

MICHAEL CARANDANG While many dream of a life of fame in front of a camera, US-based Michael Carandang dreamt of having a career working behind it.

Ana P. Santos asks Michael what life is like going from being a fan boy who loved watching TV, to an award-winning TV producer.

“I love watching television so I figured a job in the TV industry would make me happy,” says 31 year old Michael Carandang. It is a simple declaration, leading one to believe that the road to building a career in American television is easy.

“Here is a tip for someone who wants to work in television,” shares Carandang. “This is a business of who you know so it is really important to network. Every job I’ve ever gotten was because someone referred me and helped me get the interview. Once scheduled for an interview, I knew it was up to me to get the job.”

And Carandang has bagged more than his fair share of plum jobs, working for major TV show host, Jerry Springer and now, supermodel-media genius Tyra Banks.

Selina Santos, acted as a mentor to Carandang and within a year, he moved up from production assistant to associate producer and then eventually a producer.

“After working for four years of producing with Jerry, I felt that I reached the glass ceiling and it was time to move on. I wasn’t learning anymore so I needed to find new challenges.”

Then Carandang’s network pulled through again; this time it was through his boss, Rachelle Consiglio. “She knew the company producing Tyra Banks’ talk show so she referred me. I flew to Los Angeles for the interview and got the job! It was awesome because I was a huge fan of America’s Next Top Model and I was ecstatic to work for Tyra,” says Carandang, who says he has always been fascinated by the fashion world.

The road to Hollywood that started in Indiana Behind the Scenes As a young college student in Indiana, Carandang first enrolled as a pre-med student. He originally wanted to be a doctor, but after his Biology class, he realized that he had a problem: he had no interest in Biology. So he went to his guidance counselor and changed his major to Telecommunications, a move that would set the course of his professional life.

Right after college, a friend of his who was an intern on the Jerry Springer show told him that the show was in need of production assistants. It was a long shot for someone fresh out of college, but Michael was confident. “I knew that if I could just get an interview with them. I can convince them to take a chance on me.”

It also helped that Carandang was a fan of the controversial TV show and had a keen understanding of the show’s appeal and the hot button that it struck among people. “I understood the entertainment value of the show and the same time, I get why people air their dirty laundry on Jerry. Most of these people can’t afford to see a therapist and this is their therapy.”

He got the job and moved to Chicago. Looking back, he considers his years on the Jerry Springer show as his biggest break. First, it was while working for The Jerry Springer Show that a Filipino producer,

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Working for one of the most famous women in American television was both thrilling and daunting for Carandang who says that he didn’t expect Tyra to know the more than 80 employees working for her by name. He was surprised when one day she greeted him in the hallway and said, “Hi, Michael.”

After five years of working for her on both the Tyra Banks’ Show and America’s Next Top Model, a laughing Carandang says Tyra now calls him by his last name.

And while working for the same Tyra, the format of the two shows — one being a talk show and the other being a reality TV / fashion show — makes a world of difference.

“When I was producing the Jerry Springer Show and the Tyra Banks Show, my job as producer is like a storyteller. Based on the show topic assigned to me, I lay out the show and its content,” Michael explains.

“But at Top Model, my job as producer is like an event planner. We make sure that all the essential parts of creating the show are executed and all the information is properly communicated.”

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Michael with Tyra Banks and the crew of Tyra Bank’s Show

It also has more perks such as Michael’s office being in Los Angeles one day and Morocco or Italy the next when they go on location for their fashion shoots. But Carandang is emphatic when he says that the life of a TV producer is not all glamour. “It is a commitment. We sacrifice a lot of our personal life in order to do what we do.”

But there are many things that make it all worth it like when The Tyra Banks Show won the Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Informative Talk Show. “It was amazing! Being part of an Emmy Winning show made all the sacrifices worth it!” said Carandang who only remembers parts of the awards night — like how the production team screamed when they heard their name called and how he made sure he was standing as close to Tyra as possible so his family could see him on TV — probably one of the few times when Carandang ventured to be in front of the camera. “I knew they were watching back home and I knew they would be proud.”

The trophy is now in his parents’ home in Vincennes, Indiana where they migrated when Michael was 13 years old. “They’re so Pinoy, so they love to show the award to their friends. And their friends love taking pictures with the Emmy. It’s cute,” Carandang laughs.

ANTM shoot with Michael Cinco

and “do whatever it takes to get him to be the first Filipino designer featured on ANTM.” “Michael Cinco reminded me of the late Alexander Mcqueen. His creativity is beyond words and it was easy to make the rest of the ANTM people see that.”

“It was epic! The episode solidified Michael Cinco’s mark in the fashion industry not only in the Philippines but all over the world. Michael Cinco not only made history as the first Filipino designer to be featured on ANTM. He also made history as the first designer to specifically design for an ANTM photo shoot. What Michael did was never been done before in ANTM history!”

“I think Filipino designers have always had the “it” factor. It’s about time that they’re finally getting noticed.”

Though he won’t go into detail, Carandang gives us a hint by saying, “Let’s just say that there are more things to come… itinaas ni Michael Cinco and bandila nating mga Pilipino!”

From being a producer to now being a creator

“We’re originally from Tanauan, Batangas and as an immigrant family, I knew my parents had to make a lot of sacrifices for me and my siblings. It [giving them the trophy] was simply a sign of my gratitude.”

Carandang in many of his interviews has proudly declared that even after decades of living in the US, he is still fluent in Filipino and still has what he calls “a strong Batangeño accent.”

While winning an Emmy is certainly an achievement, Carandang openly admits that he didn’t want an award to define him or make him complacent. He wanted to continue being as hard working and as driven as he was when he first started out, only this time, with a higher goal of helping other Filipino talent shine in the spotlight.

Michael helps another Michael Recently, Carandang became instrumental in helping another Filipino shine in ANTM, this time from in front of the camera.

Carandang saw the designs of Dubai-based designer Michael Cinco on Facebook. The pictures taken during Philippine Fashion Week were posted by a mutual photographer friend, Ash Evasco.

He was so impressed by Cinco’s work which he describes as reminiscent of Alexander McQueen when it came to attention to detail and creativity. Carandang was determined to bring his creations to ANTM

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After being awarded an Emmy, Carandang created his first talk show.

“I’m not the host, but the Creator & Executive Producer,” he clarifies.

The show, called RSVP, is for the The Filipino Channel and is hosted by actress Giselle Tongi and America’s Favorite Dermatologist Dr Tess Mauricio. “It is weekly talk show that strives to educate, entertain and empower women.”

Things have come full circle for Carandang who says that he took a risk and is both grateful and lucky that it paid off. “My parents were very supportive. Even when I had doubts about how I could make a living by working in television, they supported me all the way.”

And this simple fact is something that still keeps Carandang — who at any given time could be flying from one exotic location to another, hobnobbing with supermodels and fashion designers — grounded on what is important.

“Most people assume that because I work in television, I live this crazy life. To be honest, I spend most of my free time chilling at home. I love my family and I’m a proud godfather to my niece, Charlie and nephew, Kaeden. They’re the future of the Carandangs.”

Truly, it is what happens behind the scenes that defines Michael Carandang.

44 PINOY PRO CELEBRATING THE PROFESSIONAL FILIPINO

Francis Errol Medina

Operational and Business Excellence Manager Hilti Regional Office Dubai Francis Errol Medina graduated with a degree in Computer Science at the AMA Computer University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Strathclyde. He started his career as the man behind software programs, hardware integration and security system coding working as Systems Analyst/Computer Programmer with Wyeth, SGV & Co, Food Terminal Industry, Hertrex Automation, Innov 8 Inc, ELID Technologies, among other companies.

Currently, Francis works as Operational and Business Excellence Manager for the Hilti Regional Office in Dubai. His job covers Global Process Management, Corporate Governance, Cost Center Management and the Region’s operational strategies with administration, finance and logistics. Handling countries in the Near East, Middle East and South Asia means that Francis spends around 70% of his professional time on business trips around the region.

Francis, who loves taking short trips with his wife in their free time, also collects RC cars, helicopters, designer watches and Hard Rock Cafe memorabilia. He is also a fitness fanatic and plays basketball.

Vagelyn Tumbaga-Federico General Manager The Acacia Hotel Ras Al Khaimah

Vagelyn Tumbaga-Federico is the General Manager at the four star The Acacia Hotel in Ras Al Khaimah, and also holds the functions of Operations Manager and HR Director.

Her multifaceted job involves overseeing all aspects of the property’s management including maximization of financial performance, guest satisfaction, and staff development within established quality standards. Functioning as HR Director, she is also responsible for all staff issues. Not surprisingly, Vagelyn’s job keeps her on call 24 hours a day – meeting with department heads, studying staff and occupancy reports, meeting with the food and beverage manager and going over room assignments and inspection. Quite the people person, Vagelyn shares that above all her duties, her main concern is the welfare of the staff. She says she goes by the motto, “Happy Employees equals Happy Guest.” Among her achievements in her current post, Vagelyn counts the recognition of The Acacia Hotel as an “Excellent Hotel” by Tripadvisor and its top 4 ranking in all the hotels in Ras Al Khaimah in its second year of operation under her leadership and management.

Vagelyn holds a Bachelor of Arts Major in Political Science from Saint Louis College in San Fernando, La Union, as well as Bachelor of Laws from the Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University – DMMMSU, also in San Fernando.

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Eldino Alberto V. Caballes Jr.

Production Manager Anabeeb Pipes Manufacturing Company Abu Dhabi Eldino joined Anabeeb Pipes Manufacturing Company in 1991 as a Senior Production Technician and went up the career ladder – from Shift Supervisor in 1993, to Production Engineer in 1998 and then to his current post of Production Manager in 2010. Eldino says that a normal working day for him constitutes trouble-shooting in all areas of production responsibility – and that a day without any problem at work is boring.

Eldino is a graduate of BS Electrical Engineering from Feati University, and also holds a Master of Business Administration degree from the Philippine Christian University – Graduate School Middle East. He is currently taking a PhD in Business Management from the same graduate school.

With his family currently-based in Davao, Eldino considers Filipino organizations LAWIN (Leaders Alliance for OFWS Welfare, Integrity, & Needs) where he is President, and IIEE-UAE Chapter (Institute of Integrated Electrical Engineers of the Phil. Inc) where he is the Executive Secretary, as his immediate family in the emirates.

Donald Rosales

Project Manager JCDecaux Middle East & Africa Dubai Donald M. Rosales has Bachelor of Science in Management Accounting degree from the University of Mindanao, in Davao City. Before moving to the Gulf, Donald worked as a creative assistant and photographer at an events agency in Davao City, where he enthusiastically earned experience in managing events. Prior to joining his current company, Donald was working as a freelance photographer in Dubai for five years. He says that as a selfemployed photographer, being tough, competitive and efficient are keys to succeed. Among his achievements in the area of photography was scoring a cover page in 2010 in Arabian Business Magazine, one of the leading business magazines in the UAE, and winning second prize at the Illustrado Women of Substance photo competition early this year.

In his current post as Project Manager at JCDecaux MEA, the largest outdoor advertising company in the world and a leader in the region, Donald’s main responsibility is to realize the best pictures for all their production in the region, at the same time developing and supporting the team to improve the production and the organization of their imagery units.

When not working or clicking his camera, Donald is a passionate musician who plays the bass guitar. He calls music his lifetime passion and plays with a group of Filipino professional Musicians in Dubai. Donald also loves mountaineering and proudly declares that he has been to Mt. Apo for all of nine times.

46 PINOY TALENT-ON THE-JOB IT’S ALL ABOUT FILIPINO PROGRESS AND DIVERSITY AT THE WORKFRONT.

It’s What I Do

PINOY TALENT

ON-THE- JOB Edver Celso

Financial Adviser, Prosperity Insurance Brokerage LLC Dubai

More than just being a financial adviser, I am also a wife and a mother.

Breakfast and dinner are always a family affair. I also make sure every week, I spend two full days with my family especially my daughter, Hannah. What’s great with my job is that I manage my own hours.

Career Advice

Nothing comes easy, but hard work, dedication and persistence will eventually bring you career fulfilment. Explore your potentials in every opportunity. Love what you do and be proud. Be happy to do it. Along the way, you will realize your potential or definitely, somebody else will.

As a Financial Adviser I say we should all enjoy today but don’t forget about tomorrow. Financial freedom is all we OF’s want at the end of the day, opting to come here and leave our loved ones back home is not an easy thing to do.

Ruben Mirabel

My Job

I was a stewardess for 13 years and flew with major international airlines Philippine Airlines, Qatar Airways and Emirates Airlines. Then motherhood gave me the chance to choose a different career path. I became a financial adviser because I personally experienced the advantages of sound financial planning and got attracted to the benefits of the job – meeting different people and being able to help them.

I help individuals and families keen on achieving their future financial goals. I get an overview of their needs, dreams and goals in life. I listen to financial concerns and analyse their personal situation. I then propose realistic, unbiased solutions to provide them peace of mind. Finally, I collaborate with them long term to ensure that plans and goals are accomplished. Moreso, it’s also important for me to show my clients that I practice what I preach.

As a Financial Adviser, I am privileged to show kababayans options on how to live their lives to the fullest whilst their income, families, selves and assets are protected, as well as comfortably preparing for their future dreams. Every Filipino individual and family I have serviced gives me fulfillment because I know that I have set their minds free from uncertainties.

A typical working day for me

Most of my workday is spent with prospects and clients; this helps me build trust and rapport. Before any meeting though, I first prepare my presentations and research about my client’s profile, know their interests that could encourage them to make the first step towards wealth building. Client meetings are casual and intimate. I usually go to their place. It’s private, quiet and comfortable for them. Other times, I invite them to my place. I cook for them, chit-chat and if they have children, they can play with my daughter in her play room. I conduct an in-depth review of their financial circumstances and future aims which could go for a couple of hours or more.

At the office, I analyze the data gathered and design the best plan suited to individual client’s needs. Liaising with our head office, product providers, updating myself with different financial products, legislation, funds, keeping records up to date to comply with the regulations and informing clients with any changes or updates, these are the things that I typically do before the day ends.

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Art Director, The Idea Agency Dubai

My Job

I work on above-the-line or traditional advertising like print, TV and radio for our various clients. I also develop below-theline advertising requirements like brochures, posters and the like. One of my most memorable projects involved creating a logo for Damas Cut. From this, I learned that a diamond can have many different cuts: there’s a Dubai Cut with 100 facets, a Tiffany cut which is very elegant and a Damas Cut with 99 facets that give the diamond its brilliance and luster.

I have handled projects involving the most precious stones and most prized jewels in the world. I have also been privileged to see the world’s biggest, perfect pearl and diamonds.

Photography is also a big part of my job. In 2006, I was commissioned to cover Dubai Fashion for En Vouge Magazine. At the same time, I was given an opportunity to shoot a Tiffany & Co. brochure. That was really my big break. Since then, opportunities to style and art direct jewelry and fashion shoots just kept coming.

Meeting with clients of different nationalities is not an easy task, the buzz of the advertizing world makes me crazy sometimes, but when I see my work published in different newspapers and magazines, I always feel rewarded. It’s like someone is giving me a pat on the back each time, saying, “Job well done, keep it up!”

A typical working day for me

I start my day with a cup of tea while reading the latest news on BBC online. Then, off I go looking for inspirations for my logos, magazine and website requirements for the day. For lunch, I usually just grab a sandwich and stroll around the office for 15 minutes before going back to my seat and losing myself in the world of reality and dreams that I weave together to create the perfect campaign.

Career Advice

In my years in the business, I’ve learned that the best thing to do is to reach for your dreams and don’t let others intimidate you. As we Filipinos say “LABAN kung LABAN.”

48 ADVERTTORIAL

Enderun Colleges’ Degree Programs Offer World-Class Management Education Today’s corporate world is a collection of complex processes that make it more demanding, and more challenging, than ever before. The world of business today requires executives with the technical expertise, business acumen, and values to lead and innovate in cross-cultural settings.

As a management college, Enderun offers Bachelor of Science degrees in Business Administration, major in Finance and Wealth

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Management, Business Process Management and Consulting, or Marketing Management; in Entrepreneurship, with focus on Family Enterprise; and in International Hospitality Management, major in Culinary Arts or Hotel Administration. Enderun aims to graduate students with the academic training, professional competencies, and character required for success in today’s complex world, by offering international-caliber degree programs that combine management theory and practical experience in a values-rich learning environment.

As Enderun’s lead founder, Mr. Jack Tuason, explains, “We have always focused on the long-term objective of establishing the finest management program and graduating leaders globally. We do not take our responsibility lightly and know our success is truly based on the success of Enderun’s graduating students. Parents and students do not pay for a service, they invest for results.”

Enderun Colleges is at 1100 Campus Avenue, McKinley Hill, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City. For inquiries, please call (632) 856 5000, or visit its website at www.enderuncolleges.com.

50 ADVERTTORIAL

When you gift a LIALI, you gift a lot more

Solitaire set of pendant with chain and matching earrings AED3,900

When you buy a gift for yourself or your beloved, there’s nothing better than a piece of jewelry. And when it comes to fine jewelry, there is no gift better than a Liali.

Diamond jewelry from Liali is certified by the world-renowned International Gemological Institute to give you complete peace of mind and protection for your investment.

Other Liali advantages include – price ranges that suit every budget; special gift wrapping; easy installment payment plans on your credit card with select banks; unconditional exchange policy; lifetime free cleaning and polishing of your precious pieces. Liali is a name associated with fine jewelry and personalized services that are completely trustworthy. So when you take home a LIALI, you take home a lot more.

Check out these exquisite pieces at the Liali outlet nearest you -

Twin rings from the Nouf collection

Diamond bangles - from AED7,000

- AED12,000

onwards

CHARICE to wow fans in Dubai and UAE The teen belter loved for her soul, pop and RnB songs, under the talent management of famous talk show personality Oprah Winfrey, and coached by no less than Canadian Singer/Composer David Foster; the 19-year-old international singing sensation Charice Pempengco is set to visit Dubai for a fun-filled concert billed “CHARICE IN DUBAI” at the Open grounds of the Dubai Festival City this coming October 2011.

“Charice’s legion of Dubai and UAE fans can expect an evening of songs never before seen onscreen or Youtube and many of it will be taken from her new album and her favorite songs that made her popular all over the globe. An outstanding Asian that shines brightly in the international concert arena, we are sure this will thrill her fans no end,” stated Zoha Beig, CEO of 321 Events, a Dubaibased premier events organizing company involved in flying in international artists to perform in the metropolis.

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Half eternity diamond ring featuring seven stones set in 18K white gold - AED1,999

The event will also become an avenue where Filipinos and the community can converge to network in a whole day of fun-filled entertainment. It will feature entertainment arenas for children, retail and shopping stalls selling proudly Philippine-made goods, and numerous Filipino food and beverage stalls.

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Indulging in

ENDORPHINS

By Krip Yuson

I say the best chocolate cake in Manila is the Deep Dark Kahlua from Chocolat. Its main branch is on B. Gonzales St. off Xavierville Road, which starts off from Katipunan Avenue fronting the Ateneo Blue Eagle gym.

Always freshly baked, it's properly moist, rich, delectable — and real value-for-money at less than PHP500. Full disclosure: I don't say all this because the fellow who set up Chocolat, Ding Reyes, happens to be an old friend, someone I grew up with as Bedan schoolboys on our beloved Mendiola campus.

I started tasting his chocolate cakes when our high school class began to have a spate of reunions leading up to our Golden Jubilee in 2010.

Yes, that's how ancient we are. And yet we still have our sweet teeth, so we started a tradition of meeting up at Chocolat for beers, whisky, pulutan and cakes on weekends, especially when there was a Red Lions basketball game on TV.

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The choc shop is small, but can accommodate a couple of tables for a dozen of us. When we exceeded that number, we spilled over to the raised pavement and parking area, where we could smoke. Sometimes we numbered over 20, and the neighbors must have wondered how over a score of senior citizens could congregate outside a chocolate shop and down bottles of beer and whisky and caterwaul with raucous laughter throughout the night, maybe helped along by all that extra glucose.

Friends in Ateneo corroborated the claim that Chocolat's cakes were the best in the neighborhood and beyond. Ding said he had developed the recipes while he was living in the U.S. He started the small business when he came back, and when it proved megasuccessful, he pulled in one daughter and her husband and had them take over its management.

54 ILLUMINATI The SM Malls' canny headhunters sniffed out Chocolat and offered spaces in Mall of Asia and SM North. The latter site was eventually dropped for its poor interior location; the one in MOA is going great guns, and another outlet has been opened in the Wilson St. area off Greenhills.

I took to giving the Deep Dark Kahlua cake as birthday gifts.

Everyone appreciated them. And I appreciated the fact that I got a hefty discount each time: 20% off as a senior citizen and an additional 10% as a Bedan classmate. Now, where do you get that kind of deal?

But it's not the price factor that has kept this friend's product — of sinful indulgence — on top of my list when it comes to choc cakes. I really love it, and think it’s tops among all other expressions I've savored, albeit many come close.

A former AdMU student in poetry class, who grew up to be a fine, multi-awarded poet, used to gift me with an excellent chocolate cake (Rosanna's) made in and bought from a private residence on Bagobo St. in La Vista off Katipunan.

But before we get deeper into a lecture on health benefits, allow me to say simply that all these effectively rationalize my abiding need for that "runner's high" I get from chocolates or whisky — without having to sweat for it, too.

Besides Chocolat and Rosanna's, if you're not in QC, where do you turn to for heavenly cakes, chocolate or otherwise? The following is no definitive listing, but comes from random give-and-take with friends similarly inclined to indulgences by way of mouth.

That young poet swears by the chocolate cake of Terry's Selection, but which is more like mousse, she says. She also plugs for Heny Sison's chocolate cake, which was served at her wedding, to another writer, also prize-winning.

A food stylist I believe in gives the thumbs-up to Goodies 'N Sweets' Decadence, their mouth-watering chocolate cake over at Greenhills. And as a chocoholic like me, she authoritatively flags what she calls a kick-ass chocolate cake over at Bellevue Hotel in Filinvest.

Hmm, now there seems to be something in that avenue separating the two finest universities in the land that positively affects bakers within creaming distance. Is that why one of the more popular dining places in the UP Diliman campus, among professors and car-driving students, happens to be Chocolate Kiss at the Balay Alumni building?

I've also heard positively about Ms. Polly's chocolate cake at the Galeria. And I still recall the great goodness of Katrina Kuhn-Alcantara's chocolate ganache when she still ran Cuillere at Serendra. Then there's Nono’s Chocolate Oblivion at Classic Confections in Greenbelt 5, Makati. And all over town are Conti's branches, with their "mile-high" specialty desserts such as Viennese Mocha Torte and Black Velvet. Yummy!

In any case, I confess to having been a sucker for chocolates ever since Serg's dared compete with all of the imported stuff like Mars, Three Musketeers, and all the gooey-sweet editions that came from the USA as early as my boyhood days of the '50s.

Whenever I find myself in Salcedo Village in Makati, I can't help but make a stop at Chocolate Fire, for its dark truffles and just about everything else. Ah, sheer indulgence. Of the temporal kind — which makes it sinfully satiating.

I never liked the hard bars much, plain or with all sorts of nuts that disrupted the consistency of the main delight. I've since settled for Butterfinger (not so sweet) and Almond Joy (for its coconut ingredient) as my fave grocery supplies for my midnight sugar fix.

I’ve also added Reese's and Kit Kat and Kisses.

If we talk about that other kind of indulgence, which I still associate with a Catolico cerrado boyhood, then I'm afraid it appears to have gone to the dogs, given the latest lowdown on our bishops' apparent predilection for posh vehicles as gifts from government's milkingcow agencies.

But of late it's the simple, pure chocolate bars from all sorts of countries, mostly Lat-Am (the pure cacao percentages are noted in the wrapper fronts), which I stuff in my personal ref. I need to amp those endorphins past midnight, when I'm writing or writhing. And it's evidently been intuitive, since I only found out eventually that tomatoes come with lycopene, red wine its phenolic constituents such as resveratrol and the flavonoids (same as those found in dark chocs), and that whisky pump-primes one's heart.

The latest joke that's elevated my endorphin levels goes this way: "Need a birthday gift for the prelate who has everything? The new Nissan “Sa Pari”, with factory-installed indulgences. Then there's also the “Mitsubishop” Pareho.

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Ah, when it comes to humor, may we never find ourselves beyond indulging.

56 ILLUSTRADO SCRAPBOOK A platform for budding Filipino creative talent

Gerber Bench Yrac

In his senior year in high school, Gerber had the opportunity to attend a photography workshop by Philippine Star. Back, then it was still all about film based photography and Gerber learned the intricacies of developing his own film in the darkroom. Since then, he has been fascinated with the idea of capturing time and space using light and shadows to capture angles, expressions and emotions. He also understood that lights and shadows do not just meet, they breathe life; that expressions and emotions do not just interpret the essence of the moment, they give a soul for everyone to understand and empathize with.

He met and joined Doha Pinoy Shooters Club in 2008, a local photo club in Qatar and from there, the awards and accolades came pouring in. He won Photo of the Year in 2009, was included in the Top 5 photographers, won Best Image in the Landscape Category and recently Photographer of the Year for 2011. Moving forward, Gerber has set his sights on the Scarborough Camera Club which he will join this month. His ultimate project is to create his own photobook.

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A platform for budding Filipino creative talent

ILLUSTRADO SCRAPBOOK 57

Sam Coran

Sam has taken on a number of odd jobs from being a service crew in a restaurant, a tour guide, a salesman, a call center agent, even a receptionist for a fitness center, saying that before becoming a photographer, he didn’t know what to do with his life.

He was studying Social Sciences at the University of the Philippines in Baguio, but needed to quit in his third year due to financial reasons, which somewhat added to his listlessness.

In 2008, from his scrimping and saving, he was able to buy his first DSLR and instantly fell in love with the craft. With a new found sense of determination, Sam enrolled in a self-paced study program with The New York Institute of Photography to study the fundamentals of photography. Then, after just a year, with growing success in his newfound field, he needed to quit his day job to accommodate a growing number of clients.

“Photography for me, is my life. I am nothing without it, says Sam with a drive and purpose that he once thought he did not have.

PJ Tiongson

PJ describes herself as a flight attendant and a frustrated painter. Originally from the City of Pines, Baguio, PJ first became acquainted with film - black and white photography to be exact - in college when a friend who owned a studio invited her to be a model for them. Since then, PJ’s interest grew, and the same friend became a photography mentor. PJ acquired her first digital SLR in 2006 and shortly after, discovered that she liked taking portraits of people, especially women.

She began experimenting with self-portraits, as well as shooting friends and family.

Working for an airline has allowed PJ to not only have the world as visual playground and have multicultural subjects for her portraits, it also affords her the unique opportunity of sourcing photography books wherever she may be. Her photographic diligence was rewarded when some of her photographs were featured in their company's 2011 vintage Hollywood glamour calendar.

“I am still a passionate ‘wandergirl’ as well as a freelance photographer who loves shooting beautiful, exciting, dreamy, dramatic, and soulful photographs,” PJ gushes. Frustrated painter, maybe. Fulfilled photographer, definitely.

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Distinctivearchitecturaldetailsfindnewperspectivesinthesethree-dimensionalavantgarde ensemblesinspiredbysomeoftheworld’smostintriguingcontemporarystructures.

PHOTOGRAPHY: EROS GOZE POST PROCESSING: TOM BOLIVAR HAIRANDMAKE-UP:JOJOPADUAANDFRANKIEMELENDEZ MODELS:KYLENEGANIGANANDDARYAKOVALENKO Shot on location at the Manarat Al Saadiyat, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi Special thanks to Abu Dhabi TDIC (Tourism Development & Innvestment Co.) and Al Raha Beach Hotel.

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OPERATIC CONTOURS

BY RUBEN SANTOS

The iconic Sydney Opera House is reincarnated in this dress featuring contours constructed with architectural accuracy. The dress is made with molded rubber sheets and metallic components set on an ivory jacquard brocade fabric.

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SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE Sydney, Australia Designed by Jorn Utzon and completed under the direction of Peter Hall, the Sydney Opera House is one of the world’s most iconic buildings. Modern expressionist in design, the building’s most significant feature is it roofs – large pre-cast concrete “shells” composed of a section of a sphere with a 75.2 meter radius. The “shells” set on a monumental podium, are covered in a subtle chevron pattern with 1,056,006 glossy white and matte-cream colored Swedish-made tiles, but appear uniform white from a distance.

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SCULPTURAL FREEFORM

BY RALPH RAMIREZ

From the hem to the bodice, this piece inspired by the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain is a continuous swirling and rising journey from darkness to light.

Interpreted in monochromatic tones of black, grey and white, the dress features an asymmetric neckline topped on one shoulder with pure and organic structural form that crown the museum.

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GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM Bilbao, Spain Known as the most important structure of its time, this masterpiece of renowned architect Frank Gehry was probably the most mentioned new building of the late 90’s in architecture circles around the world.

The structure done in free form sculptural style features random curves designed to catch the light. It’s brilliantly reflective titanium panels resemble fish scales, echoing the organic forms that are common in Gehry’s designs.

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YAS HOTEL Abu Dhabi, UAE A landmark in the UAE, the Yas Hotel and the accompanying Formula 1 circuit is one of the main attractions of the ambitious developments at Yas Island. The building, designed by Hani Rashid and Lise Anne Couture, principals of New York based Asymptote Architecture, meant to embody speed and movement juxtaposed with the artistry and geometries of Islamic arts and details, has as its focal point a 217 meter expanse of curvilinear forms made up of steel and 5,800 pivoting diamond shaped glass panels known as the “Grid Shell.” The “Grid Shell” which has the effect of an atmospheric-like veil features an amazing lighting system which incorporates video feeds, visible from miles away.

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CURVILINEAR FABRICATION

BY ANGELO ESTERA

Combining different fabrications with both soft and tough textures is this dress based on the Yas Hotel.

Calling to mind the building’s distinctive domes

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CRYSTAL AGGREGATE

BY DAN DELIMA

A clean sculptural art piece inspired by the crystal formation design of the Futuroscope of Poitiers, France.

The dress features molded metallic organza in gunmetal gray.

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KINEMAX, FUTUROSCOPE Poitiers, France Futuroscope is a French theme park featuring multimedia, cinematographic and audiovisual packages. The theme park made up of many pavilions built of glass and metal - modern materials which give the buildings form and texture, as works of art that make the observer stand and stare, is designed by architect Dennis Laming. Its flagship building Kinemax, is fashioned after rock crystals thrusting out from the ground. The structure’s 45,750 ft surface area is covered is with 3,000 reflective glass plates.

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URBAN ORGANIC

BY ALDWIN ORNOPIA GUARDIANA Cut rubber and glass in irregular undulating layers mimic organic forms in this piece inspired by a unique skyscraper slated to punctuate Chongqing, China’s skyline - Urban Forest. The dress is matched with a voluminous full bias cut cape in metallic fabric embellished with cut mirrors.

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URBAN FOREST Chongqing, China Set to change the skyline of Chongqing, China, Urban Forest is an ambitious project from MAD Architects inspired by Chinese landscapes and traditional hillside villages. The commercial high rise with a distinctively organic form is meant to depict a stacked vertical forest in the heart of the city embodying the designers’ affinity to green and sustainable architecture. Urban forest features curved, abstract shaped floors which have been layered slightly off-center from one another. Connected by a core cylindrical structure, each level’s interior is protected by full length glass windows with a seethrough, wrap around balcony, providing transparency throughout the building, making the floors appear to float on top of one another.

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MESH CONSTRUCT

BY TIM TEJARES

The sinewy lines and intricate mesh like façade of Kuala Lumpur’s Sunrise Tower are echoed in this dress which uses both soft and industrial materials. The piece features a plunging neckline bodice made of Montana gray silk taffeta embellished with silver mesh strips and exaggerated hips using boning and industrial hose for the web-like structure.

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SUNRISE TOWER Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Designed by Zaha Hadid, the Sunrise Tower set for development in Kuala Lumpur is a design concept that blurs the difference between building and landscape, characterized by fluidity between the interior and exterior. The tower body is developed through a performative outer skin that merges programmatic, structural and building envelope requirements. The design integrates natural light, shading, program, access and views, making the component the key operator of the transition between interior and exterior spaces. The building has 66 floors and an absolute height of 280m. The ground lobby is the primary hub of the tower, defining four different dedicated lobbies for residential, hotel, offices and general public.

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BODY CANOPY

BY USHI SATO

Depicting sensuous curves using metal screens coated with lightweight paper creating asymmetrical waves on the body, this piece is all about movement inspired by the hotel marques de riscal.

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HOTEL MARQUES DE RISCAL Elciego, Spain Another Frank Gehry architectural masterpiece the Hotel Marques de Riscal showcases a series of rectilinear elements, clad in sandstone, combined with sweeping panels of gold and pink titanium, and mirror finish stainless steel. The structure is a former winery transformed into a City of Wine complex, complete with a five-star hotel, spa, museum of viticulture and wine shop. The building was inspired by the character of the region and its famous vintage. Hence, the usage of a titanium façade shaped into a ribbon reflecting the colors of the wine Rioja, the silver foil shielding the cork, and the distinctive gold mesh which adorns all Marqués de Riscal bottles.

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ENGINEERED PROTRUSIONS

BY ROMEL MA. TUMULAK

A bustier and pants ensemble fashioned after the Seed Cathedral – UK pavilion at the Shanghai World 2010 Expo, this piece features plastic straws to echo the fibre optic rods used in the original structure.

Plastic sheet cut in different shapes and crystal elements embellish the bodice. High heeled boots complete the ensemble.

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SEED CATHEDRAL UK Pavilion at the Shanghai Expo 2010 One of the most significant structures built for the Shanghai Expo 2010 is this extraordinary bristling form of 60,000 fibre-optic rods, each with a seed implanted in its tip, created by Thomas Heatherwick and his studio. Formed from 60,000 slender transparent rods, each 7.5 meters long and each encasing one or more seeds at its tip, the Seed Cathedral is 20 meters high. As wind moves past this building, its optic “hairs” move gently creating a dynamic effect. At night, light sources inside each rod makes the Seed Cathedral glow.

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SAIL SIMULATION

BY MANNY CAJOLES

Sculpted metal sheet in pleats formation attached to a wire, form a shape that mimics the sail of a ship channeling the Burj Al Arab, this time in v formation. The dress is accentuated with diagonal cut mirrors and matched with leggings.

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BURJ AL ARAB Dubai, UAE Known as the only seven stars hotel in the world, the Burj Arab Hotel is not only popular for its legendary luxury, but also the uniqueness of its architecture. Designed

by Tom Wright, the iconic building stands at 321 meters and mimics the image of the billowing sail of a boat. The structure features an exoskeleton wrapped around a reinforced concrete tower, with a Tefloancoated fiberglass “sail” curving across the front, creating an atrium inside. The sail is made of a material called Dyneon, spanning over 161,000 square feet. At daytime, the white fabric allows soft natural light into the building, while at night it reflects colorchanging lights.

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At the easternmost part of the United Arab Emirates, along the Gulf of Oman is the emirate of Fujairah.

Here, the Royal Family has, under their wing, a unique kind of jewel – that is, Filipino haute couture designer Albert Andrada.

In the last two years, Albert Andrada has made his brand of couture sparkle, not only in the emirate, but also as a homecoming fashion hero in the Philippines.

A

Royal Jewel: Albert Andrada

contemporary of Frederick Peralta and Eddie Badeo, Albert left the Philippines for Saudi Arabia in 1986, against his parent’s wishes, to venture out on his own and explore how far he can stretch his talent away from his comfort zone. Growing up pampered in an affluent Manileño family, his father predicted that he wouldn’t survive without the usual support system he had home.

Thankfully, that prediction didn’t come true; Albert said that despite all the challenges he had to face in establishing a career from scratch as a designer in the Middle East , he always believed that his move was probably the best thing he had done for himself and his designing career.

By Lalaine Chu-Benitez Photography by Eros Goze

creates some 50 couture pieces on a monthly basis – just for the Sheikha and her three daughters. The job, which sounds more like the output of a commercial haute couture house serving many clients during peak season in the emirates, is no small feat. “It’s like creating a full collection for a gala fashion show every quarter,” Albert shares.

Albert Andrada has been living a charmed life for the last nine years.

As head fashion designer for the Royal Family of Fujairah and a trusted member of the Royal Household, the designer’s life is cloaked in grandiosity like nobody else can imagine.

Then there are those trips all over the world - privileged class all the way and official escorts at every stop; luxury and the good life at every turn; summers spent in London where a stretch limo with a British chauffeur is at his disposal even for the proverbial “small trip” to the corner store. When Albert and assistant designer Rene Santos shop for the Royal family anywhere in the world, in luxury shops like Harrods (which is regarded by the Royal family like a favorite “sari-sari” store), they receive treatment that is only reserved for a chosen few. Albert fondly remembers one specific incident where a cashier’s till had to be closed because they exceeded the maximum allowable purchase for that day. Albert, who did not want to disclose the amount of that shopping trip, said, “Harrods’ management had to open another till just for us, to accommodate all the stuff we needed to buy.”

Leading a design and production team of 29, Albert whom the Royal family hired after winning the Designer of the Year Award at the Swarovski Bridal Show in 2002, manages the royal atelier which

Still, with his exposure to all these luxuries, his influence and the liberties he’s been given, Albert, who is known in the local fashion circle for his exceptional generosity and kindness, has kept himself

A charmed life in the Royal Household

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firmly rooted. “We have been very blessed to be treated so well by the Royal family, and I am very thankful. There was never a time when we felt like we were regarded as employees. So on my part, I always make sure that I deliver my best, that I am mindful of my place, and never abuse their trust, no matter how close I have become to them.”

That great attitude has certainly put the designer in good stead, because his number one supporter in pursuing his passion for fashion design is the Sheikha. “Away from my work in the palace, I’ve always missed designing for myself – just creating the pieces that I wanted to do on my own terms. So when the right time came, I asked for the Sheikha’s approval and I’ve been very blessed because she and her daughters have always encouraged me to go for it since then.”

A jewel of extraordinary luster and depth A year ago, Albert made his presence felt in the fashion industry back home via the Philippine Fashion Week (PFW) 2010 unveiling a mini-collection entitled “Kohinoor.” The set featured elaborate and rich ensembles with crystals and mirror work in nude tulle, silks and satins, synthetic hair, elegant embroidery and draping inspired by the exotic aesthetics of Indian Maharajahs. And what a debut it was. Rave reviews and fashion blogs mentioned words like “jawdropping,” “spell-binding,” “dramatic” and “opulent,” referring to the show that would further whet Manila’s curiosity for the brand of haute couture that could only come from the rich canvas and creative playing field available to Filipino designers in the Gulf.

Then this year, Albert returned to PFW, this time with a collection called “The Last Virgins of the Renaissance.” His show, a collection of floaty pieces with exquisite ruffles, chiffons and organzas embellished with lace, gold and silver embroideries and splashes of Swarovski crystals here and there, was such a spectacle, audiences automatically assumed that it was the finale. Rave reviews once again followed, a TV interview with ANC, invitations from the industry key players and the metro’s ‘who’s who,’ as well as recognition from fashion watchers, cementing Albert Andrada’s position as a formidable one to watch out for in the Philippines; something the designer is serious to follow through as he eyes the establishment of his own brand boutique at home.

Together with Michael Cinco and Furne One, Albert Andrada’s amazing show of world-class brilliance and bravura, unfettered by conventions and logistical limitations has definitely caught the attention of style pundits in Manila. Their impressive show of talent, including those of their UAE-based peers including Bandoix Flores, Ruben Santos, Angelo Estera, Cherry Samuya Veric, has created a new level of acceptance and recognition for the once “underestimated” socalled “OFW” Filipino designers in the Middle East. Albert also says, “Hopefully, seeing a different, braver and richer fashion perspective from us, will also push our young designers to up their game and be more creative and competitive like never before.”

For Albert, designing is not an end in itself.

Coming home with his designs has been a dream 25 years in the making. He shares, “Going back to the Philippines for me is my way of paying back. I have always prayed that I become a blessing to others. I am the kind of person who wants to motivate and inspire people.” He furthers, “By showing my works, I want our young talented designers to be inspired, to dream beyond what is usual for them, to look out into the world, explore their creativity without limits - and take that back to the Philippines.”

And without a doubt, Albert Andrada, who is truly a jewel of extraordinary luster and depth, will get his wish – and that is to shine his gracious light on the international Philippine fashion firmament.

94 COUTURE GALLERY

BANDOIX FLORES

ALDWIN “JLO” ORNOPIA

DAN DELIMA

ALBERT ANDRADA

WARDA Haute Couture Villa No. G3 U4, Al Wasl Road, Jumeirah, Dubai Tel: +971 4 349 5200 Email: bandoix_flores@yahoo.com.ph

La Diva Moda 201 Dubai Islamic Bank Bldg, Airport Rd, Abu Dhabi Tel: +971 2 634 8494 Mobile: +971 50 780 7826 Email: dgdelima@yahoo.com

Art Fashion Company Khalidyah, Abu Dhabi Tel: +971 2 639 3340 Mobile: +971 50 699 1829 Email: lovelyfeliza@yahoo.com

P.O. Box 416, Fujairah, UAE Tel: +971 50 675 2789 Email: albertdxb@yahoo.com

COUTURE GALLERY 95

BASIL YUNTING

DAZE TAN

RICHARD TOJOS

KRIS JUGGERNAUT ONATE

Dar Lutfi Tailoring and Embroidery Al Barajeel Complex, Mirdiff, Dubai Tel: +9714 283 9892 Email: basilyunting@yahoo.com

Lecci Fashion Design Al Khan, Sharjah Tel: +971 6 528 2787 Mobile: +971 50 635 0060 Email: richard.tojos@gmail.com

WARDA Haute Couture Villa No. G3 U4, Al Wasl Road, Jumeirah, Dubai Mobile: +971 50 737 4809, +971 55 534 3227 Email: daisytansario@yahoo.com

Primera Moda le Femme Couture Khalidiya, Abu Dhabi Telephone: +971 504429338 Email: kjugz@yahoo.com

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RUBEN SANTOS

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank Bldg, Mez 03, Khalidaya St, Abu Dhabi Tel: +971 2 666 9519 Mobile: +971 50 741 6966 Email: benika27@yahoo.com

TIM TEJARES Illustra Fashion Abu Dhabi Tel: +971 02 666 5822 Email: ttejares@yahoo.com

JIMI BUENCONSEJO La Bonita Jumeirah Rd, Umm Suqeim 1, Dubai Tel: +971 4 394 4339 Email: la_bonita_fashion@hotmail.com

JULES QUIRANTE

Jules Quirante Haute Couture Al Kusear Bldg, Mezzanine Floor 1, Al Rigga St, Deira, Dubai Tel: +971 4 295 9891 Mobile: +971 55 557 6494, +971 50 927 7178 Email: julesatq@yahoo.com, julesquirante@gmail.com

98 COUTURE GALLERY

SHELFRED SURDILLA

HENRY MANGAHAS

ROD BALINGIT

JHOE LINA

REDD couture Jumeirah beach road, PO box 117094 Dubai Tel: +971 4 3490775 Email: Info@sigalerie.com

Garasheeb Design & Tailoring Al Arif Bldg, Karama, Dubai Tel: + 971 4 396 8900 Email: roddubai@yahoo.com

La Reina Fashion Designs Jumeirah 1, Dubai and Emirates Center, Karama, Dubai Tel: +971 4 3360647 Email: henry_mangahas@yahoo.com

Chic Lady Al Waab St., P.O. Box 9667 Doha, Qatar Tel: +9744 444 7544 Email: jhoelina@ymail.com

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DAVE FUENTES Dikochi Dubai Int’l Knitting Ltd. Jebel Ali Free Zone Tel: +9714 881 8814 Mobile No: 055-9114155 E-Mail: carladavefuentes@yahoo.com

USHI SATO

WARDA Haute Couture Villa No. G3 U4, Al Wasl Road, Jumeirah, Dubai Mobile: +97150 5411527 Email: ushisato@theshadesandscarf.com

JOEL VILLANUEVA

Laswa Fashion Design Abu Dhabi Central Market, Abu Dhabi Tel: +971 2 622 0944 Mobile: +971 50 311 6414 E-mail: jayvil430@yahoo.com

DAVE LEE A. REYES Sevda Fashion House Jamal Abdul Nasser St., Sharjah UAE Email: daveygurl06@gmail.com

100 COUTURE GALLERY

ROMMEL MA. TUMULAK

JOEY BALUYOT

REYNALDO GONZAGA Scalini Haute Couture Villa 941 Al Wasl Rd, Umm Suqeim, Dubai Tel: +971 4 346 8820 Email: reypinggonzaga@yahoo.com

Al Manaraya Fashion Mamzar,Deira, Dubai Tel: +971 4 269 2600 Email: joeybaluyot25@yahoo.com.ph

Jewelry by Liali Jewellery

Bella Dona Khalidiya St, Abu Dhabi Tel: +9712 633 3288 Email: mymel1434@gmail.com

RALPH RAMIREZ Ralph de Lafana Haute Couture Al Wahda St, Sharjah Tel: +971 6 539 4595 Email: ralphdelafana@yahoo.com

102 ITEMS OF ENVY

1 PER DIEM by VANESSA ESPINOSA Python open cuff

1 PER DIEM by VANESSA ESPINOSA Crosby satchel in full-grain Italian leather in black lightly buffed goatskin and trim in premium grade Teju lizard skin from South America

BEA VALDES Equus Hero Piece From Swarovski Element’s Spring/ Summer 2012 direction for glamour, inspired by the dark magnetism of a stallion - a jagged mane of crystals, in shades that submit to sunburst and penumbra

LEA FORTEZA Phoemela white crystallized clutch

LEA FORTEZA R12 crystallized clutch

BEA VALDES Stromboli metal alloy clutch

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CELESTINA Coronel handbag in natural caiman crocodile skin

ITEMS OF ENVY 103

ARANAZ Rosita Delujo fully embellished evening tote with tulle rosettes, Swarovski crystals, mother-of-pearl paillettes and a round gold handle

CELESTINA Alvarez handbag in choco caiman crocodile

CELESTINA Pinggan – Mother of Pearl decorative platie with tribal etching

SHOPPING GUIDE: 1 per Diem by Vanessa Espinosa New York, Washington DC, Sydney, Melbourne & Manila http://www.1perdiem.com Aranaz Manila & Davao Telephone: +632 5713136 E-MAIL: aranazbags@gmail.com http://aranazbag.com/

ARANAZ Pavo Real bag made of coconut shell with detail dipped in 24K gold and encrusted with lapis lazuli stones

BEA VALDES Jacobo turquoise and enamel necklace

Bea Valdes USA, UK, Canada, Ireland, Italy, Frane, Czech Republic, Norway, Croatia, Monaco, Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Nicaragua, Venezuela, China & Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Taiwan, Philippines & India; online: couture lab.com E-Mail: info@beavaldes.com www.beavaldes.com Celestina Manila & New York Online: couturelab.com Telephone No: +63 2 8977819, +63 9228708462 Email: sales_hd@celestinamlany.com We b: www.facebook.com/ celestinamaynila-newyork

1 PER DIEM by VANESSA ESPINOSA Python bank deposit clutch

1 PER DIEM by VANESSA ESPINOSA Lafayette satchel in Italian pebbled lambskin

Lea Forteza Dubai Tel: +971 50 541 1527 E-mail: ushisato@theshadesandscarf.com

5 Month

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things To Do This

With the quietness and stillness of the city for the past two hot months, Dubai awakens into a new period, filled with vigor and excitement as we roll into the last quarter of the year. So, after the lazy summer, let’s welcome September with high energy, and try to accomplish our annual goals before we cram everything into December. While at it, let’s try to enjoy and have fun as well. Because even after a long break, we still need to take time and relax.

Check out our suggestions for the month, and hopefully you’ll get ideas that will keep you going throughout busy September.

1

Pay a visit to Illustrado’s photo exhibit

Summer may have exhausted your energy as you travelled and went out and about under the sun. That’s why we know that you’ll enjoy this simple yet still exciting activity – going to an art exhibit. Other than having fun, take the chance to feel that Pinoy pride as you pay a visit to the Illustrado Photo Exhibit to be revived at the last half of the month at Reuter’s Building (Building 1) in Dubai Media City.

Twenty eight photos from Illustrado’s Coffee Table Book Project: “The Gulf through the Eyes of a Filipino Photographer” as well as choice images from Illustrado Magazine reached the final cut to the said exhibit. The selection made by the Dubai Media City Management include images which embody life in the UAE and greater Gulf, as well as beauty and fashion strictly conforming to local cultural sensitivities. The Illustrado Photo Exhibit is available for viewing until end of September.

2

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Spring clean for the Fall

It is time for you to open your closets and review your wardrobe for the coming cold season. Since summer is almost over, it is definitely a good time for you to check whether your old jackets, cardigans and knee-high boots are still in the latest trends for the Fall/Winter 2011. If your clothes hidden in the closet are not classics, then it is surely important that you think about recycling them this season. Remember that Sixties and Seventies fashion are making a comeback so if you have some granny vintage-looking clothes, you may want to use them for this Fall.

Do your homework, check the trends, review your closet, take out the unnecessary fashion items, and invest in a few pieces that are classic and on trend for the coming season. Trust us, spring cleaning is definitely therapeutic exercise – it does not only help unleash your stylish side, it also is a good way of identifying your personality and fashion identity.

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Cruise the creek via dhow

Another not-so-physically challenging yet equally entertaining activity for you this month is dining and cruising at the Dubai Creek whilst aboard the traditional Arabian boat called Dhow. Enjoy a sumptuous feast of delectable international cuisine over an hour and a half of travelling along the scenic view of the Old Dubai. Marvel at the panoramic sight of the Dubai’s wharf, Gold Souk, Spice Souk and even Heritage Village as the dhow roams around the famous creek. Listen to Arabian music, watch Arabic dancers perform, and laze around the dhow while appreciating the local culture and regional heritage. Check out travel agencies and tour operators for detailed information. Dhow cruise would cost an average of AED 150 per person.

4 Concert with Charice Pempengco

Whether you’re a fan or not, watch out for the upcoming concert of the international music sensation Charice Pempengco in Dubai. This young Filipina who rose to global stardom – thanks to YouTube, Ellen Degeneres, Oprah Winfrey and Glee – has proven her talents in the field of music and onstage performance.

That’s why you should not miss the rare chance when she graces the Dubai’s concert scene. Aside from the wonderful performance that Charice Pempengco would surely provide, concert goers will also enjoy a half-day treat with food stalls, shopping kiosks and play area. Tickets will be sold soon for this October concert at the Dubai Festival City Concert Arena.

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Day tour to Musandam

A trip to Musandam is another cruise that is going to be worth your time this month. It’s going to take you through the panoramic sights of this Omani village via cruising along the Fjords of Musandam while aboard the traditional Arabic dhow.

The boats are decorated with comfortable cushions and Middle Eastern inspired carpets, giving the guests the feel of Arabian Gulf. Aside from feasting over the beautiful landscape, you will get to taste the delightful buffet that is served while onboard. And when the dhow anchors to select islands, you get the opportunity to swim and snorkel in the clear waters as well as glimpse (if lucky) at the playful dolphins along the cruise. To book your seat for the Musandam tour, check out the travel agencies and tour operators in the city. They would also provide you package for overnight trips.

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108 TRIPPIN’

Get Enlightened at the

MANARAT AL SAADIYAT If you’ve never ventured to check out Abu Dhabi’s new development areas, you would be pleased to know that there is more to see than just Yas Island. Drive a little further down Sheikh Khalifa Highway to the place slated to be the capital’s cultural hub that will house the Guggenheim, the Louvre and the Zayed National Museum in the future, and see what creative stuff is brewing at the Manarat Al Saadiyat Meaning ‘the place of enlightenment,’ Manarat Al Saadiyat is a purpose-built art and exhibition centre, designed to showcase Saadiyat Island’s exciting projects and host art exhibitions from around the world, providing visitors with a taste of what’s to come for the museums being built in the Saadiyat Cultural District. The centre opened this year in March and features three major galleries for hosting permanent and touring international art and cultural exhibitions; The Saadiyat Story, a central events space, Sales Centre and a popular restaurant named Fanr.

Manarat Al Saadiyat is housing the next Emirati Expressions, this time a photography exhibition which will open on the 19th of

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October and will include the works of 10 Emirati photographers.

The exhibition offers Emirati artists the opportunity to share their work and enter in a creative exchange with some of the world’s prominent experts. The 2011 exhibition will show some of renowned photographer Stephen Shore’s photographs of Abu Dhabi, as well as the works of photographer JR, known for his larger than life photographic installations in public places, and Tarek Al Ghoussein, photographer and Professor of the American University of Sharjah, whose work has been exhibited extensively and collected by museums all over the world. As a grass roots project, Emiratis are involved in all aspects of the exhibition from graphic design to publications and production.

TRIPPIN’ 109 Following its successful debut in 2008 with the theme “The Movement of Thought,” a select group of Emirati artists has been working with the exhibition’s Artistic Director, Stephen Shore over the course of the summer months to capture the artists’ stories. The exhibition is based on the idea of an artistic process - not on a final product. It is not about the best photographers in the UAE but about a process, a tool where artists interact to create a new aesthetic expression that can shape the vision of an artist. Stephen Shore has guided several workshops during the past few months, working directly with each artist engaging in their artistic production. The exhibition will be on display until 28th January 2012.

Commenting on Emirati Expressions 2011, HE Sheikh Sultan bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, Chairman of TDIC, the organisers of the exhibition said: “Emirati Expressions offers Emirati artists a platform for sharing their work and showcasing their talent. It aims to foster opportunities for them to learn from some of the world’s prominent experts facilitating new work and creative exchange, and it’s great we can involve Emirati artists in all aspects of the exhibition, including the publication and logo design.”

Building on its public outreach, TDIC will, for the first time, extend the exhibition beyond the walls of Manarat Al Saadiyat on Saadiyat Island to share the experience with the people of the UAE in outdoor public spaces. A photobooth installation from renowned international artist JR will open in Abu Dhabi’s Marina Mall and later, at Manarat Al Saadiyat. Members of the public are invited to enter the photobooth to take self-portrait photographs which they can post for display at designated public spaces. The exhibition will also feature public programme of workshops and lectures.

Later this year, Manarat Al Saadiyat will also be home to the third edition of the UAE capital’s acclaimed art event, Abu Dhabi Art. The UAE Pavilion will host the event from Wednesday 16th to Saturday 19th of November 2011 on Saadiyat Island. Abu Dhabi Art is a platform for modern and contemporary art, bringing together an exclusive selection of 50 international galleries and operating as a boutique fair. The new venue, the UAE Pavilion, being built on Saadiyat Island, inspired by the desert dunes of the Emirates, showcased exhibitions about the history of the UAE in Shanghai at the World Expo 2010 and attracted almost 2 million visitors. It was designed by Foster + Partners, one of the world’s top architectural firms.

Over the past year, the venue of Manarat Al Saadiyat has successfully played host to two landmark exhibitions. Between September 2010 and January 2011 visitors experienced RSTW (Rauschenberg, Ruscha, Serra, Twombly, Warhol and Wool), a novel exhibition of masterpieces from the private collection of one of the art world’s preeminent figures, gallerist Larry Gagosian and curated byAnne Baldassari. Artscape RSTW An evening of Cool Performances

celebrated the closing of the exhibition with a performance by UAE’s Takht Al Emarat, the Wayne Escoffery Quartet from New York’s Jazz at the Lincoln Center and spoken word artist Hala Ali. In March 2011 the historic Splendours of Mesopotamia exhibition opened at Manarat Al Saadiyat which introduced the history of the ancient civilization of Mesopotamia, told through the three great centres of Mesopotamian civilisation: Sumer, Assyria and Babylon.

The stunning array of 200 objects featuredwere loaned from the British Museum and Al Ain National Museum. The exhibition received over 30,000 visitors and gave a glimpse of themes of the Zayed National Museum.

On 23rd June 2011, the exhibition closed with Artscape NEO Babylon event, with a series of workshops where both children and adults joined workshops to make their own forms of art inspired by Mesopotamian artefacts. The evening’s Maqam performance featured the voice of prominent female singer Farida Mohammed Ali and the Iraqi Maqam Ensemble as well as international performer and Syrian poet Omar Al Farra who recited Bedouin and contemporary poetry.

RSTW, Splendours of Mesopotamia, Emirati Expressions and Abu Dhabi Art are all featured in the rich calendar of events presented by Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC), as part of a diverse series of art exhibitions and public programmes to further engage audiences in the Saadiyat Cultural District institutions, vision and concept. Through exhibitions such as these, TDIC is striving to reach out to the community in the capital’s urban, cultural and artistic development and help build professional skills and knowledge in the community through a dialogue with representatives from the world’s leading cultural organisations.

Stephen Shore working with Emirati artists at the Manarat Al Saadiyat

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Luxury in the Metro: SHANGRI-LA HOTEL MAKATI There are a handful of things that immediately evoke that distinct feeling of restrained luxury in my mind - like the smell of freshly popped Dom Perignon, being called by name as you step into business class, the first mouthful of delectable haute cuisine, and then… there’s stepping into the grand lobby of the Makati Shangri-La.

By Lalaine Chu-Benitez

Author James Hilton’s depiction of Shangri-La, a mythical place, an earthly paradise of serenity and service, in his famous book Lost Horizon published in 1933 and the inspiration for the Shangri-La chain of hotels, fits to a tee when you take into consideration the delicate nuances within this luxury hotel poised elegantly at the heart of the Makati business district.

Walking into the luxurious lobby of the “Shang” is quite a pleasant sensorial experience. As soon as you step inside, away from the rush of the Makati shopping and business center, you are greeted by quiet opulence at every turn. Here, an elegant grand staircase, a glittering massive chandelier at the very center of the room and an enormous

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floral arrangement underneath it, dominate the entrance; all this, set on a background of richly colored interiors and impeccably-dressed attentive staff.

Here, more than just the visual feast surrounding you, you are immediately enveloped by a distinct sense of richness and comfort – a whiff of vanilla, sandal and musk highlighted by top notes of light bergamot and tea spiced with ginger. It is the same familiar fresh scent that embraces you whenever you step into a Shangri-La hotel anywhere in the world, which primes you for the exceptional stay you are about to experience.

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Move past the hotel’s grand foyer and the space opens up to the expansive lobby. Seated on one of the many clusters of plush sofas and classic chairs, one can enjoy views of the hotel’s lush tropical gardens and cascading waterfall, have a light meal, high tea, or perhaps a glass from the hotel’s impressive selection of wines.

The Shangri-La Makati’s lobby lounge, which has become a favorite watering hole for Dubai’s key Filipino haute couture figures when they are in the metro, is like a microcosm of Makati’s distinctive high life - a great place for business meetings, intimate socials, mini fashion events, or simply people watching. You see businessmen in sharp suits, socialites, models and beautiful people, and have the odd celebrity sighting or two.

A couple of years ago, I had the privilege of seeing the unflappable Imelda Marcos decked to the nines in flaming red terno, entourage including Cory Quirino in tow, coming in for a nightcap, as I sipped Earl Grey Tea and gossiped with a friend at 2 o’clock in the morning.

If the gracious lobby is anything to judge by, things are just bound to get better. The Makati Shangri-la has 699 of the city’s biggest and most beautifully-appointed rooms and suites. Their spacious ergonomically designed deluxe rooms, the most basic of their accommodations, sporting sensuous lines, modern amenities, online connectivity, soft-hued décor and a bathroom one can just spend hours in, can easily match (even exceed) the junior suites of other 5-star Makati hotels right off the bat. For a jaded business traveler like me, who has seen hotel rooms all over Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe, there’s nothing like dropping your suitcase in this cocoon of impeccable taste and comfort - where one of my favorite ‘simple’ indulgences is the heavenly 300 thread count beddings that let you sink slowly into restful oblivion.

Goose down pillows, the “can do” brand of service, as well as simple personalized details aside, another thing that gets you spoiled at the Shang is food. Apart from the lobby lounge, the hotel has several restaurants and bars which include the Shang Palace (Chinese),

Inagiku (Japanese), Red (international), Conway’s (bar fare), the pool bar (pool side snacks), as well as Sinfully Circles (patisserie).

However, nothing is as decadent as Circles which serves up inarguably one of the country’s best buffets.

The restaurant features several open theater kitchens offering specialties including cold appetizers, seafood, Western cuisine, Asian cuisine and dessert. At Circles, which has a jovial Asian marketlike atmosphere, one will find an absolutely mind-boggling array of food – from Camembert cheese, to salmon terrine, to healthy salads, to Indian dal and chapati, to sushi, to roast and sausages, to pastas, to tapsilog, to nasi goreng, to Danish pastries, to ensaimada, to local and exotic fruits, ad infinitum all at the same meal time. Are you feeling full already? To say that guest come to Circles to eat is an understatement – this is a place to feast.

If you’re one to feel guilty after all that indulgence, fret not, because you could always burn some calories at the Shang’s state-of-the-art Health Club, or do a few laps in the pool. Better yet, couple that with a pampering massage treatment at the hotel spa and you will feel ready to start over again in no time.

There are a lot of reasons, why the Makati Shangri-La is considered an easy favorite not only among seasoned business travelers, holidaymakers looking for something special, couples who are getting married, companies throwing parties, and those who simply like to sample the delightful morsels of the Shang’s own brand of good and gracious life, time and time again, while residing at the metro.

With the entire hotel’s concept fashioned and delivered to exacting standards as inspired by the legendary paradise created by James Hilton, the Shangri-La hotel stands in a league of its.

While the Makati Shangri-La - a leader in its own class.

Makati Shangri-La Ayala Avenue corner Makati Avenue, Makati City 1200, Philippines Tel: +63 2 813 8888; Fax: +63 2 813 5499 e-mail: slm@shangri-la.com www.shangri-la.com/en/property/manila/makatishangrila

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The new Oakwood in Manila:

AN OASIS IN THE CITY

Mention “Oakwood” and the first thing that comes to mind to most Filipinos is the mutiny that now Senator Antonio Trillanes IV led during the time of then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. But that was years ago. Trillanes is now out of detention, Arroyo is no longer President but a Congresswoman, and mention “Oakwood” to those in the know and you'll get an entirely different answer.

By Karen Galarpe Photos courtesy of Oakwood-Joy~Nostalg Center

“Oakwood” you see, now connotes luxury, a quiet oasis for those longing for restful and discerning accommodations right in the heart of the city.

This I got to experience firsthand when I checked in at the new Oakwood Premier Joy~Nostalg Center on ADB Avenue right across Asian Development Bank in Ortigas Center in Pasig City last August.

I felt it as soon as I stepped onto the small elegant lobby, unlike other hotels in the city. At Oakwood, it's quiet, the front desk staff and the bellboys are attentive, and you are immediately put at ease.

The bellhop who brought my luggage to my room, a 41-squaremeter studio, took pride in showing me the amenities inside: a

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sauna, a washer and dryer, a full kitchen complete with pots, pans, and tableware; and an entertainment system aside from the standard amenities in hotel rooms. “If you want to watch DVD, you may borrow from our Business Center for free. And if you want to have food delivered from McDonald's or Jollibee, just have them deliver it to the lobby and we'll take it up to your room,” he added. “Really?”

I said. Hmmm.

I learned later that all the 230 luxury rooms at the Oakwood Premier Joy~Nostalg Center — from studios up to 3 bedroom accommodations — all had those same amenities as serviced apartments, intended to be one's home away from home. Oakwood is conducive for long-term stays for those who require 5-star standards

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A world of flavors at Oakroom Sitting at the relaxed and elegant sixth floor signature restaurant of Oakwood – the Oakroom, and sampling the scrumptious offerings convinced me that this has got to be one of Ortigas Center's best kept secrets. The food, which ranges from Asian, Western, and healthy dishes (read: vegan, vegetarian) created by French Executive Chef Jerome Cartailler and his team, among them Chef Edgar Alejandria and Chef Benjie Gardiola, is definitely worth the visit. in their accommodations. That is why Oakwood boasts of corporate clientele including top executives from prestigious international firms, as well as balikbayans, mostly Fil-Ams, who come during the summer and Christmas holidays.

Offering comfort, security and 5-star service, the Oakwood’s services encompasses a whole lot: from airport transfer, limousine and taxi service, to regular shuttle service to malls and places of interest (e.g., Malacañang Museum, Bahay Tsinoy, even Lucban, Quezon for the Pahiyas Festival last May). For executives and businessmen, the Genesis Business Services center has boardrooms and video conferencing facilities, and offers secretarial and courier services, as well as airline ticket handling.

High speed broadband Internet is also guaranteed in the rooms and in the public areas of the hotel. For health buffs, there's The Fitness Center by Oakwood which has modern weights and cardio machines, an aerobics room and personal trainers on hand. There is a swimming pool, a lap pool, a jacuzzi, and a children’s play area. Massage services and spa treatments are also available either at The Fitness Center or in the comfort of one's room.

But if there's one thing that Oakwood Premier Joy~Nostalg Center is best at, it's the unique service from the attentive staff. I can attest to that. The bellhop remembered my name the next day, the personal trainer at The Fitness Center said it was too bad I won't be able to attend the body jam class as I was checking out so soon, and the waiter at the Oakroom asked if I would like some bread while waiting for my panini.

And the chef, who noted that my chocolate lava cake and coffee crumble ice cream were melting after I took photos of it, said, “I'll bake you another one.” And he promptly went to the kitchen with a smile. Now that's service with a capital S.

Take the simple pizza. Since Oakroom's World of Pizzas event was ongoing that time, I sampled the Scandinavian Pizza from a menu of 12 pizzas from around the world, and was rewarded with a thin crust pizza generously topped with smoked salmon, chopped dill, Gravlax, and dollops of sour cream. Creative and delicious, and at PHP495 for a whole pizza, definitely worth its price.

On my next visit to the restaurant, I tried the three course meal (PHP798 per person) which started with a Duck Liver Salad pan-fried duck liver (foie gras) with mesclun lettuce and raspberry vinaigrette. The foie gras was done perfectly, and the vinaigrette went well with the whole salad. My entrée was a pan-roasted sea bass fillet served with lemon cream and morels, an expensive mushroom (at PHP15,000 for 500 grams according to the chef ). Delightful from the first bite, the fish was tender and the mushrooms provided a wonderful contrast to the cream. To cap my meal, I had to sample Oakroom’s legendary chocolate lava cake. Served freshly baked, it oozes with rich chocolate (like lava flowing out from a volcano, thus the name) at first slice. Partnered with espresso ice cream on the side, it was just a fitting end to a lovely meal.

Oakroom also offers a High Tea set of teas, coffees, sandwiches, scones, and sweets from 3 to 6 pm for PHP695 for two, while at the Oakroom Bar, Thursday nights is Wine Buffet night, where guests can enjoy unlimited wine from a selection, as well as a complimentary plate of assorted cheeses for only PHP500 per person. A live band livens up the scene at the bar every Friday.

Oakwood Premier Joy~Nostalg Center is offering a Balik Oakwood promo for balikbayans. Room rates are discounted: studio executive room at P4,000++ and a one-bedroom superior room at P4,800++. Promo is valid until June 30, 2012. E-mail premiermanila@oakwoodasia. com for details.

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The Escape within an Escape

ESKAYA

To be in the land of the lost. To wander unknowingly. Once, it was considered an absurd idea. But today’s rapid world pushes for it to be a necessity, if not an extravagance. Johanna Michelle Lim tells us of her escape to Eskaya Resort in Bohol.

Entering the outskirts of Panglao Island in Bohol is similar to getting misplaced in the magnetism of an undeveloped destination. But Barangay Lawala, where the houses are unobtrusive to its surroundings, the greenery seemingly unchanged since its beginning, is deceiving.

Local legends will tell you Lawala (Boholano term for “lost”) was once the residence of agtas or folklore’s smoking tree giants who took a fancy of getting a trinket here, a chair there from early dwellers – hence, it became known to locals as the land of the lawalaan or those of the lost. Go further and you will discover that the only giants remaining today are the numerous resorts and hotels which have planted themselves in its 5-km beachfront. The Eskaya Resort and Spa is its most ambitious offering yet.

A Conversation with Nature Arriving at the resort, one will notice the resort’s unpretentious façade - perhaps a trick for privacy’s sake, because the frontage is where the ordinariness ends. The prerequisites are there, of course: abundant

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foliage, paved footpaths, charming waterscapes, an interesting footbridge and even a helipad. But the excellence of a resort is never judged by its prerequisites, but through its unexpected extras. A hint of this is found when guests are met by the General Manager (or the Assistant GM) upon arrival, a privilege so rare with most Philippine resorts. The term is ‘privilege’ because with a small and exclusive group to cater to, the Eskaya staff and management almost always have the time for customized service. Armed with their kalachuchis, the welcoming crew navigates you through the resort leading you to your own nook with a parting message to “Call us anytime.” Cliché, yes, but in Eskaya, it seems to be a promise that is kept everytime. Everytime.

Sitting on 18 hectares of land and a 600 meter beachfront, The Eskaya Resort and Spa is named after Bohols only remaining indigenous tribe who dwell in the mountainous areas of Guindulman and Candijay. The five year old property is the design project of renowned Philippine architecture crusader and National Artist, Francisco ‘Bobby’ Mañosa. As is, the whole resort is reminiscent of Mañosa’s

TRIPPIN’ 115 careful combination of tropical and contemporary - featuring native raw materials like cogon and bamboo, generous open spaces, and a delightful juxtaposition of Filipino architecture and nature.

Living like the Eskayans There are no rooms in Eskaya. There are villas or ‘balais’, each a selfsustaining honeycomb where guests can tuck in for days without interruption. Currently, 11 out of its 15 villas have their own private pools, while those that don’t, either have direct access to the beach or to the communal infinity pool. Nothing beats having your own watering hole whether you are solo, with a loved one or with friends.

Lanais, lounge chairs and coffee tables accessorize the deck. Little corners invite the reading of a good book or warm conversation. A private garden at the back sparks ideas for morning dawdling.

And in the late afternoons, how about spending a few hours or so sipping black currant tea while engaging in a bubble bath? The pool has direct access to the open air bathroom slash mini spa. So, when lazing in a warm whirlpool bath at night, you can hear the lap of the pool water, the rustling of bamboos, the sound of crickets or the

flitting of dragonflies - a prized extra that you can get pleasantly lost in.

All of the villas with its surrounding foliage have been designed in such a way that the only people guests can see are housekeeping. All other guests are happily tucked in their own honeycombs. Spend a short time in one of the balais and you will find yourself constantly cooing, “Oh, I can spend hours in this pool, in this Jacuzzi, in this bed, in this chair…” Such moments are probably what author Alice Walker referred to as a ‘life ruled by its own spirit’.

Grasping Socialization Again If you’ve found the time and the willpower to step out of the villa, then there are only three places you can directly head to if you crave for human interaction: the Lantawan Restaurant, Handuraw Spa and the Dive Shop.

Like the rest of its facilities, Lantawan is an open-air restaurant which offers intercontinental cuisine, from seafood to pizza and a Filipino dish in between. Handuraw Spa, on the other hand, offers couple’s massage inclusive of the Villa package, apart from the regular Asian and European massages such as the Shiatsu and the Swedish massage.

They also have their own pool and outdoor whirlpool bath for water therapy sessions. Lastly, among non-divers and even with fickle weather, a must visit is the Dive Shop run by Frenchman, Yannick Epitalon. Give him a few minutes and Yannick will convince you to a quick dive at Balicasag Island, a famous international dive spot found in the outskirts of Panglao.

To revel in lavishness has often been synonymous to the art of doing nothing, but more than the comfort of a rare idle period, there is also a joy in paying attention to seemingly trivial acts and finding significance in them. Suddenly, a bath is more than just an inconsequential act of cleansing; it becomes a conversation with the self. Sleeping is not a force of habit; it’s a choice for rejuvenation.

Lounging is not just necessary boredom; it is allowing the spirit to rest.

Eskaya is an escape within an escape, an island within an island. The realization that creating a sanctuary - is not just about the facilities but the totality of the ambiance, not just the efficiency of the service but the sincerity by which it is rendered, and not just the overall package but the details in the right places — that separates a good resort from an excellent one.

And that the ultimate luxury is a sanctuary where one can feel voluntarily lost in, and in the end, find a part of the self in.

How to Get There There are direct flights to Bohol from major cities like Manila or Cebu going to Tagbilaran City. Four airlines fly to Bohol. These are Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, Air Philippines and ZestAir. From the airport, a complimentary hotel shuttle from the airport will take you Eskaya Resort. For more information or to make reservations, log on to www.eskayaresort.com or email reservations@ eskayaresort.com.

116 TRIPPIN’

Bellarocca: An island to call your own Luxury has a reputation that precedes it. It is commonly perceived to be grandiose, flamboyant and flashy — where everything is over the top. In Marinduque, just a 35 minute plane ride from Manila, one will discover another aspect of luxury borne of quiet relaxation and harmony with nature. Balance and serenity cast a magic spell on white stone structures nestled on a cliffside and create an island paradise known as Bellarocca Island Resort and Spa.

By Ana Santos

level conjure images of Santorini, Greece. Here, you are greeted by hotel staff performing a traditional welcoming ceremony called the “putong” - a song and dance meant to wish visitors good health, good luck and long life. It is an indigenous tradition among the people of Marinduque.

A golf cart whisked us away to the reception area which was actually a piano bar, filled with plush sofas and chairs. We filled out the forms sitting down and sipping a cold glass of iced tea.

If it is the secret desire of most to have an island all to yourself somewhere you can spend time doing nothing more strenuous than watching the day unfold and the sun set as it gives way to the night; then it is also a blatant wish to have this seclusion come with the comfort of being pampered in the most indulgent and yet unobtrusive way.

These seemingly celestial pleasures are the promise of Bellarocca.

A speedboat ride takes you from the mainland to the island where Mediterranean style houses sitting as high as 114 meters above sea

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There are many things that differentiate the experience of having an island to yourself. One of them is the offer of a tour of the 20 hectare island to orient yourself on your surroundings: the 50 de luxe rooms, suites, terrazas and villas. There are also a multitude other things to explore: the meditation sanctuary where weddings can be held, a tea room where you can spend an afternoon relaxing with a book and sipping hot tea, a huge garden for other outdoor activities and the aqua sports area in the pavilion.

Another is personalization. The resort manager introduced himself to me and welcomed me by name. “We know you’ve tried many times to come here and it is our pleasure to be able to finally welcome you to Bellarocca,” resort manager Alexis Tibayan told me, warmly shaking my hand. I had to smile.

TRIPPIN’ 117 It had been two and a half years and four attempts since I first started planning my visit to Bellarocca. So anxious was I about being disappointed again that I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until I was actually on the plane en route to Marinduque and finally on my way.

Back in the villa, we decided to have a night cap – a dip in our private infinity pool and Jacuzzi at one o’clock in the morning. I guess that’s what happens when you have such exclusivity — you try things that sound silly - mundane even - simply because you can.

In the years that have passed, much has been written about Bellarocca.

Like the luxury that it promises. But such is an island like Bellarocca, no two visitors will have the same experience because of how personal the service is and the means the staff will go to give you this kind of treatment.

Breakfast by the bay in a poolside cabana, lunch in the villa

Having an island to yourself means doing things just because you can We were pleasantly led to our “room” which was actually a 200 square meter villa. All the villas had outdoor Jacuzzis and private infinity pools with balconies overlooking the sea and with a view that stretches over to the other horizon and other islands like Romblon.

This was no room. This was a private sanctuary.

“90% of our guests never leave their villa until departure time,” said John Tanjangco, Director of Sales and Marketing. Why would you want to? Apart from the amazing view (all the 50 rooms have a view overlooking Sibuyan Sea and Mt. Malindig) through the almost floor to ceiling windows, there was a cinema surround system with movietheatre sized screen to watch movies from.

A candlelight dinner was prepared for us in the al fresco dining area of the resort’s restaurant. A menu labeled “private dinner” set on a table with flowers told us that we would be dining on apple and pear salad with chestnuts, asparagus soup, steak prawns with mashed potato and panacotta.

The next morning was spent at the Pavilion which overlooked Mount Malindig Island where a 9-hole golf course sits for the exclusive use of Bellarocca guests.

Light, feathery, wispy clouds perched themselves on the mountain tops as if they had nowhere else in the heavens to be, give everything around it a feeling of softness. I would have been happy to lie in my lounge chair, but the crystal clear waters were too difficult to resist.

Standing above them, from the shoreline, you can see right through them. Going deeper into the water, sunlight streamed in, and its illumination making the fish appear as if they are dancing instead of swimming along, wiggling their tails. A school of yellow and black striped fish kept me company until they scurried off to another part of the sea.

When I finally got out of the water, I decided to go around the island by kayak and continued to marvel at how clear the water was. Even farther away from the shoreline, I could look down and see the ocean floor around it. We went around the island and marveled at the island villas named after Greek gods looking down on us.

That day, we decided to have our lunch served in our villa. We were pleasantly surprised that we were served soup and salad first. As if on cue, the staff knew just when to come back with our main course, and again a third time, for our dessert. Perfect timing considering they had to go back each time to the resort restaurant to serve our next dish at our villa.

The staff asked if we could like to have dinner again in our room, in the dining room or any other part of the resort, but since it was our last day on the island, we decided to walk around until it was dinner time and we dined at the restaurant.

When we returned to our room, and it was made up for the evening — with fresh towels, reminders for checking out, another postcard with a different saying and a personalized letter signed by resort manager Alexies Tibayan thanking us for our stay.

“At Bellarocca, guests can be assured of utmost privacy and be surrounded by sheer luxury and exclusivity. As one of our guests simply put it, “I now know how it feels to live like a rockstar with the full V.I.P treatment we received!”

That may be so, but I left Bellarocca feeling that I didn’t have to be a rock star to have an island all to myself and indulge in pampering and luxury with my name on it.

Bellarocca Island Resort & Spa – Barangay Tungib, Lipata, Buenavista, Marinduque, Philippines Reservations Tel: +63 2 817 7290; +63 2 328 8831 E-mail: info@bellaroccaresorts.com www.bellaroccaresorts.com

118 TRIPPIN’

Sleeping with Fishes If the Little Mermaid were to take a vacation outside her underwater kingdom, she would feel right at home in Hotel H20. Nikka Sarthou spends the night in this hotel built on stilts in the waters of the Manila Bay and steps into her own luxury aquarium.

Inside the Manila Ocean Park is Hotel H2O, a hotel unlike any you will find in the Philippines. In this one-of-a-kind hotel, guests stay in aquarium-themed rooms. “According to Antonette Mischiener, Director of Sales and Marketing, “[It’s] the first integrated resorthotel in the Philippines. We have the attraction in the complex. Here in Hotel H2O, you will have the actual experience of having your own aquarium in your room.”

Hotel H2O, which opened in April 2010, is a project of China Oceanis Philippines and is a member of WORLDHOTELS, which is the biggest Europe-based global hotel group for both independent and regional hotels brands. Hotel H2O is the only one featured from the Philippines. “First-time visitors will have the chance to experience an aquarium in the room — not just a small one, but a built-in aquarium in the wall. [Guests will] be acquainted with different marine animals — most of the fishes come from the Philippines,” shares Mitschiener about this ocean world hotel experience.

With 128 rooms, the hotel offers different kinds of accommodations — from park view to bay view, and aquarium-themed rooms with either fish or jellyfish species. There are also 19 suites that are perfect for couples or family overnight stays. The room with a view of the bay has a floor to ceiling view of the calm Manila Bay waters. The themed rooms have different kinds of fish. Yes, you can even get a glimpse of Nemo. The fish aquarium is interconnected to each room so guests will see various species swimming in and out of the room.

Aside from the marine life, the colorful lighting of the aquariums makes it mesmerizing to look at — one time it’s blue and then it will alternate to other colors of the rainbow.

The room I stayed in was the one with a view of the park, which practically gave me a front seat to the Aquatica Fountain Show that night.

Fish be with you Although it provides the usual spa services such as massages, facials, and nail treatments, what sets the hotel’s Zenyu Eco Spa apart

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from others is that it is located in the only negative ion hotel in the country—and in the world as well.

Do not be deceived by the name though, the negative in this case does not connote something bad. Negative ion refers to the technology of providing an ideal balance of electrical charges in the environment — one that is free from virus and bacteria. Ecoparadise Japan created this technology, as they saw the need to counteract the positive ions and free radicals that were dislodged while cities developed and shifted the symbiotic relationship of air and soil.

With this technology, they were able to create a deoxidizing solution that helps the spa guests strengthen immune system, improve their blood circulation, metabolism, and blood pressure. It may even lower cholesterol and body toxins.

The spa has a special package that includes a one-hour body massage, access to the hot bed, and a fish spa treatment, which is another exclusive offer of the hotel. The massage helps remove stress, the hot bed aids in detoxification, while the fish spa uses doctor fish to remove dead skin cells. It is the only place in the country where this is being offered.

Hotel H2O is just inside the Manila Ocean Park complex and guests should make sure to include that in their itinerary. There are plenty of leisure facilities inside the complex—oceanarium, swimming pool, jellies museum, glass bottom boat ride, and liquid pool and lounge among others. Some local restaurants have also found their home in the complex. Guests do not have to go far to enjoy a day of leisure.

The complex is an all-in-one place where one can dine, shop, look around, and enjoy a luxurious stay in the first oceanarium-theme type hotel in the Philippines.

Hotel H2O - Luneta Manila 1000 Philippines; Telephone number: +63 2 2386100; Fax number: +63 2 238-6188; Website: www.hotelh2o.com Email: reservation@hotelh2o.com

120 SUCCESSFUL PINOY SPIRITUALITY

Do You Want a Life of

Abundance?

By Bo Sanchez

I’m terrible when it comes to picking gifts for my wife.

The first gift I gave her was a dress.

When I saw it, I thought it was beautiful. But when I gave it to her, I learned again the truth that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Because she said, “Oh Bo, I love you for giving me a dress. Thank you so much. But I suggest you stick to preaching. Your fashion sense is awful.”

I pouted, “You mean you won’t wear the dress?”

She smiled. “If I become suddenly suicidal, perhaps - in other words, I wouldn’t be caught alive wearing that thing.”

But last month, I hit the jackpot. I finally bought her a birthday gift she really adored.

I bought her a book. But it was no ordinary book.

It was a gigantic 1,000-page book containing beautifully stunning pictures of the most gorgeous places all over the world. She loved the book because I wrote on the first page, “Sweets, when our kids are grown up, I will bring you to these places.”

She loved the book because it wasn’t just a book. It was a promise.

I promised, “I’ll grow old with you. I’ll stay with you forever. I’ll love you forever.” Because I wasn’t really giving a book. I was really giving myself.

My marriage is abundant because these past 11 years, I’ve been giving my time, effort, attention, and energy to my marriage.

By Bo Sanchez

is my relationship with my kids suffering?”

Simple. Because life is not one bucket but a collection of buckets. If you want to harvest abundance in a particular area of your life, you have to plant in that specific bucket.

Some people think God wants them to give all their time to Him and be in church all the time and serve in ministries — neglecting their jobs, businesses, and families. They reason that “because if I put God first, God will take care of all these anyway.”

Not really.

I met a woman recently who said, “Bo, for the past 22 years, I was serving the church full time. Without a salary. Today, I’m my 54, and I just realized I have no money for my old age. So I’m catching up, starting a small business and investing for the future.”

In between the lines, I could tell that she was asking, “Lord, why didn’t you take care of me financially? I gave my life to you.”

Many preachers I know simply tell people to give 10% to God. I’m one of the few preachers who tell people to give 10% to God (as a guide, not as a law) and also give 20% to their future in the form of paper assets, businesses, real estate. Why? So that they can keep giving to God in their old age.

Let me state this again: I believe that God blesses us when we are generous to Him.

Here’s what I learned: Life is not one bucket. Life Is a Collection of Buckets.

But because we lack financial wisdom, many spiritual people simply consume all of His financial blessings. They spend it all. Instead of setting aside a portion and investing it in their future.

You can’t expect abundance in one bucket when you’re giving into another bucket. Some religious people think that if they give their time to their religious bucket, their family life will be abundant too. That won’t happen.

If you want abundance in your finances, you need to give more time, effort, and energy into your financial bucket. Grow in financial wisdom, learn new skills, read financial books, attend financial seminars, and get financial mentors.

I’ve met a lot of religious people who are always in church, attending their religious activities, but they don’t give their time, attention, and energy to their family life. Thus, their family life is empty. They complain to God, “Lord, I gave my time to you! Why is my marriage suffering? Why

So you see, financial abundance is much more than giving to your spiritual bucket. If you want to grow your money, you also need to give to your financial bucket as well.

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Where Do You Want To Have Abundance?

Here’s my question: What bucket of life do you want to experience God’s blessings and abundance? Another way of asking this question:

SPIRITUALITY SUCCESSFUL PINOY

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Which bucket in your life is empty or lacking today?

Give to that specific bucket If you want abundance in your “marriage bucket”, give time and attention and love to your spouse.

If you want abundance in your “family bucket”, give more time and energy and patience to your children.

If you want abundance in your “financial bucket”, give time to learn and invest in your financial future.

If you want abundance in your “spiritual bucket”, give your time, your service, and your tithes to God.

Season of Delay Here’s my belief: When you give, you receive.

Today, I meet many persons trapped in mediocrity and stagnation because of their scarcity mentality. They think that God wants them to stay small, live small, and be small.

This is a law in our universe. You’ll even receive much more than what you gave. This is as sure as the sun rising tomorrow. This is 100% guaranteed.

I’ve met spiritual people who believe they should be poor.

Here’s the great mystery of life: When you give, you don’t lose. You gain.

People don’t see this.

I’ve met good people who believe they should always remain in hardship because they are good people.

I know because I was like this for almost 20 years of my life.

Why? Because between our giving and our receiving, there is a delay. If you want to receive the blessings of your giving, you need to be patient during the season of delay.

But when I was 30 years old, I changed my thinking. I decided I wanted to become a millionaire missionary. It was crazy but I believed it was possible.

People expect instant returns.

Today, I’m still a missionary. I run nine non-profit organizations, doing beautiful work in the world. Only one pays me a salary. I can do that because I earn through my small businesses and other investments.

But the greatest things in life — a great marriage, a strong family, a happy friendship, financial freedom, and godly character — don’t happen instantly.

When you plant, you don’t harvest right away. You have to enter into a season of delay.

So what do you do while you wait? Keep on giving.

Why Giving to God Is Crucial Giving to God will train you to give in the other areas of your life.

I don’t believe that tithing is a law for Christians. (Sorry, too long to explain.) But tithing is a great guideline and a fantastic training tool for greater giving. Because the first blessing of giving to God is not abundance, but an abundance mentality. Without an abundance mentality, it’ll be difficult to receive abundance in every area of life.

I have a conspiracy theory.

I believe that the entire physical and spiritual universe around you is conspiring, plotting, and conniving to give you massive abundance.

One of the most difficult things to overcome is a scarcity mentality - that there’s a limited amount of blessings in the world.

God is an abundant God, not a God of scarcity.

I’ve broken out of that scarcity mentality.

I believe God wants abundance for my life and I believe God wants abundance for your life, too.

Have you ever met parents who have a secret desire that their children suffer? Who pray, “Lord, please make our kids poor?”

I doubt it. There are a few deranged parents out there, but a normal father and mother would want the best for their children.

God wants abundance for your life.

No, it’s not primarily money. Abundance is primarily about love. But I believe it includes money—but only so that we can love!

Make Do with My Imperfect Love There are five ministries for the poor that I’ve been involved in the last couple of years. And in working with them, I have realized that it’s true: When I gave love, I’ve received so much love. That’s been my experience. To have a life of abundance, you have to love abundantly.

122 DIASPORA PHILANTROPHY

Charity Built on

ShootandShelter

Lou Parroco hands out packs of lipsticks and rice to mothers.

LIPSTICKS, PHOTOS AND DANCE

By Lalaine Chu-Benitez, Photos courtesy of Cesar and Lou Parroco

Charity comes in all forms. Whatever shape or format they take, however, they all spring from the same earnest intention of people wanting to extend a helping hand to those who need it. For husband and wife team Cesar and Lou Parroco, successful Dubai-based professionals, generosity for the less fortunate in the Filipino community comes in the guise of curiously creative projects built on lipsticks, photos and dance; acts of altruism which they have initiated after getting touched by life-changing experiences.

Lou grew up in a family of eight children where wants and luxuries were hard to come by. Growing up, she witnessed how hard her parents worked to put food on the table, and how her mother, in particular, had to forgo her personal comforts.

One of the most painful episodes in her childhood which stuck to Lou’s mind is seeing how her mother would painstakingly scrape the last dot of pigment from an empty shell of lipstick with a matchstick and then carefully distribute the tiny dot of color to her lips, chicks and eyes. Even at that young age, Lou came to understand that, within a woman’s nature, no matter what the circumstances are, is the innate desire to look good. So Lou promised herself that one day, as soon as she gets a job and earns her very first salary, she will buy her mother the nice things she wants and needs to feel good; and of course, many lipsticks. Sadly, just before her graduation from university, her mother passed away due to an ailment.

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In late 2008, Cesar, also known to his friends as Rocky, had a near death experience. Early one morning, he felt a sudden overwhelming pain right under his chest, which radiated to his left arm including his jaw. He was rushed to the hospital only to be told that his vital signs were normal. However, the intense feeling of pain, as well as his instincts told Rocky that all was not well. Luckily, another doctor suggested that he be kept in observation for 24 hours. Good thing he did, because by early afternoon further tests were able to confirm that he had a blockage in his major and minor arteries of up to 70 and 90 percent. Had he not stayed at the hospital, the blockage would not have been detected and he could have suffered a fatal heart attack or serious damages to his body, at the very least.

The hospital ordered an angioplasty procedure which was successful.

Rocky was able to recover from his alarming ordeal eventually.

However, he went back to his normal life - to his family and work, a

124 DIASPORA PHILANTROPHY smallest measure of vanity every woman desires – a lipstick. Together with friends, Lou and Cesar were able to collect more than a thousand tubes of lipstick. And from the moment they stepped out of their airplane at the NAIA, home for their annual vacations, they started distributing lipsticks to cleaners, street vendors and metro aids. They also visited markets and schools, handing out lipsticks to vendors, and public school teachers.

Hearty Party- a dance event for good health

On the same month, Rocky also initiated another charity photography workshop organized with the Lightbenders. With the proceeds, they were able to buy 10 sacks of rice. Hence, in one of the rural areas Lou and Rocky visited, they supplemented each lipstick distributed with two kilos of rice. Lou says of their experience, “The smiles that we saw from the dear Nanays who received our gifts were priceless!”

During May of this year, the Parroco’s celebrated their birthday month, with yet another charity scheme. In cooperation with the Filipino Dance Club of Dubai, they organized ‘Hearty Party,’ a series of two-hour dance parties featuring Zumba and aerobics, aimed at promoting health awareness to the community. Proceeds from the AED30 entrance fee were donated to the aged, adopted by the Anawim Foundation in the Philippines, particularly those who suffering from Cardiovascular disease. The project which targeted a PHP100,000 donation to Anawim was also given extra boost with the venue, the Asiana Hotel offering their facilities at Boracay Nightclub for the free.

Cesar Parroco, charity in action

changed man realizing how fragile and short life could be.

With their joint experiences and sensitivity to those who are less fortunate, Cesar and Lou who both celebrate their birthdays in the month of May, came up with a novel idea a couple of years ago. They decided, instead of having lavish birthday parties, to do charity work instead. Lou shares, “Instead of spending our energy, time and money on big parties with the same privileged friends, we thought of organizing small charity projects to benefit less privileged Filipinos. We have talents; we are in network of privileged Filipinos who are talented and gifted and we know, many Filipinos here would like to help the poor back home. We believe, being charitable is an innate nature of every Filipino.”

She continues, “Rocky and I simply formed the idea, set the project plan and tapped the right network of talents to help us carry through the project we have in mind. Our projects are team projects.”

The two started the wheels of charity rolling in May of 2009 with their first project “Shoot and Shelter” – a series of photography workshops which aimed to donate a house through the Gawad Kalinga Foundation. The project, which was supported by different photography clubs in the UAE, as well as volunteer models and make-up artists, was so successful that it was able to provide houses to two families, instead of just the original target of one.

In May 2010, the couple embarked on another charity concept, “Color for Her,” to realize Lou’s dream of providing an emotional boost to less fortunate Filipinas unable to afford themselves the

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Rocky shares, “We know how difficult it is, financially, to sustain the many medicines required for people with heart problems. We realize how fortunate we are that here in the UAE we have medical insurance that covers the medications we need. We were moved to do something to pay this forward to those who are less privileged.”

With all the projects that they have done in the last couple of years, Rocky and Lou say that they have become even more grateful for what they have in life and become more prudent, in some ways, restraining themselves from their old habit of spending sprees.

Lou comments, “Definitely, we would like our children, Patrick (9 years old) and Pia (5 years old), to see the value of helping others.

We make sure we involve them in the projects we make. Even just in little task like cutting flyers, or asking their suggestion on the best font color when designing posters, etc. but we make every conscious effort to make them feel that this is their project too.” She stresses, “We live our lives the way we want our children to live theirs.”

Ultimately, Rocky and Lou who dream of mounting a charity project to sponsor scholarship in the Philippines someday, also hope that their endeavors would encourage other Filipinos, individuals or organizations alike, to look for opportunities to help those in need. Lou stresses, “We do not need to be rich to help.” She explains, “An ‘abundance mentality’ and a grateful heart, is something that both my husband and I share in common and we both are committed to seek every opportunity to be able to pay forward all the blessings bestowed on us by helping others in need.”

ADVERTORIAL 125

FILIPINO FILMS TO WOW THE UAE For the first time ever, The Philippine Film Festival (PFF) will be held in the UAE to celebrate Filipino cinema and artistry from November 25 to 26 in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Several workshops are also organized in different venues in Dubai. The festival, endorsed by the Philippine Embassy to the UAE, is being organized by The Kitsch Company, a Filipino-owned arts and entertainment company.

PFF will bring award-winning films to the UAE, a country that rarely sees Filipino films. The list starts with “Ded na si Lolo (Grandpa is Dead),” a contemporary comedy about a family’s way of dealing with their loss and grief, mixing both modern and traditional practices.

Next in the line-up is “Rosario” which follows the travails of a woman whose only sin is to love and follow her heart. Films will be screened in select cinemas with English and Arabic subtitles.

“We have long been planning the 1st Philippine Film Festival and we are very happy to finally be able to tie loose ends and officially announce this exciting event. As a company that produces one of the UAE’s entertainment portals, www.kitschmovies.com, we find it quite ironic that we do not feature Filipino films more often – that’s because we only get about one or two Filipino films per month,” shares Obet Ramos, managing partner of The Kitsch Company.

“With this festival, we hope to fill, even just a portion of that. As an all-Filipino company, we realize that one sure way to fill that longing for home and to help showcase our rich culture in our adopted home, the UAE, is to bring these films here. We would like all Filipinos to enjoy these films and we would like non-Pinoys to enjoy them too.

This is a chance for them to get a peek of what the rich Filipino culture is like outside from our love of food. For example “Ded na Si Lolo” is a funny take at how families try to incorporate old, cultural practices during the wake of a love one. You will laugh, you will get teary-eyed but you will see how close-knit we are as a family,” he adds.

Aside from the screening of classic and contemporary Filipino movies, fans of the cinema industry have more to look forward to. Movie Workers Welfare Foundation, Inc. (Mowelfund) Chairperson and Philippine veteran actress Boots Anson Roa and Philippine veteran thespian, actor, screenwriter and director Soxie Topacio will be flying to Dubai for the Festival. Both guests of honor will be conducting

two separate symposia to tackle different aspects of the Filipino film industry. Two other movies will be screened during these workshops.

“The Filipino constituents in the UAE are significant. They deserve to experience the best in Filipino films, past and present,” shares Boots Anson Roa when asked about the upcoming festival.

With about 600,000-strong Filipino community in the UAE and only about six to 12 Filipino films showing every year, the festival aims to fill the wide gap and bring expatriate Filipinos in the UAE a little bit closer to home through an engaging cinematic experience.

The festival will also benefit Mowelfund, a non-stock, non-profit corporation, and the country’s leading film resource center that aims to develop and uplift the state of Philippine film culture through educational and developmental initiatives, responsive welfare programs, local and international linkages and partnerships and resource generation, as a way of supporting the growing Philippine film industry.

The 1st Philippine Film Festival tickets will be given away for free through competitions on www.kitschmovies.com. For more information about the festival schedule, please visit the website.

About The Kitsch Company The First Philippine Film Festival is brought to you by The Kitsch Company, an arts and entertainment company which also owns www.kitschmovies.com. It is owned by three enterprising and creative Filipinos who aim to bring Filipino culture and art to the Filipino expatriate community in the UAE. About KitschMovies.com KitschMovies.com is the only integrated movie portal in the UAE bringing movie schedules of the different cinemas in the country together in one website.

It also features new movie releases, reviews and cinema-related feature stories.

For more information, please visit to www.kitschmovies.com/philippinefestival or email info@kitschmovies.com.

126 SUCCESSFUL PINOY RELATIONSHIPS

Hi Dr. Marge and Mr. Baer, Just hide me under the name TERYA. I’ve had this feeling of selfishness since I met this guy who's with me now. He is married with two kids and I think that he is in good terms with his wife. I knew the situation when I met him and accepted that this would be an affair with a married man.

We're both OFs and are living in the same place. We’ve been together almost a year now, but I’m beginning to feel that I'm getting in too involved in this relationship, which I know will not last.

Dr. Marge, Mr. Baer, I get so hurt when I see the posts on his Facebook account, especially when I see their pictures.

How can I leave this relationship? There is no reason to break up with him and we promised each other “walang iwanan, anuman mangyari” (whatever happens, we'll never leave each other).

He will leave only if he finds out that I have someone else but there is no danger of that. I could never do that to him. I never want the day when he will leave me, to come.

I am separated from my husband and have one child. How do I get out of this situation without getting hurt?

Terya *This letter was translated from Tagalog to English.

Dear Terya,

Dearest Terya,

I thank you for your email, though I am not sure that you will thank me for my response.

Mr. Baer has outlined the choices you have, and shown you the futility of what you say you want: that you plan to leave without getting hurt. True, this is difficult since if one loves truly and yet not wisely, hurt is inevitable. But this, in and of itself, is not what makes it futile.

From what you have told us, you have deliberately, with open eyes, become involved with a married man who has no intention of leaving his wife and family. You have exchanged vows that you will never separate, you can see no reason to break with him and you cannot imagine doing anything to upset the relationship. So far, so clear.

Then, suddenly, you ask how you can extricate yourself from this mess of your own making without getting hurt.

Nothing in your letter gives us the slightest notion that you want out of this affair. Indeed, everything points the other way - that you are dedicated to continuing it for as long as you possibly can. How on earth are we supposed to give any sensible advice to a person so focused on staying, not leaving?

Your choices are simple. Stay or leave. As for hurt, you are already experiencing plenty of that just looking at Facebook, so get used to it.

All the best, JAF Baer

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What does make it futile is that what you say at the end is the exact opposite of what you say in your earlier paragraphs, where you explain how you would never leave him.

It is mainly for this reason — not only the inability to decide what to do despite agonizing over it for many months, but also the inability to recognize the impossibility of doing both — that I feel very strongly that you are clinically depressed, Terya.

Already I can hear the naysayers: “How on earth is she be depressed when she goes to work (di ba depression means you stay in bed all day?) and she makes no mention of losing weight (di ba depression means you can’t eat?) or even of losing sleep (di ba depression means it is so, sooo difficult to fall asleep?) She doesn’t even mention crying all day?!!?”

To the naysayers, I say: It is reasonable for you to think she isn’t depressed since she doesn’t mention having any of the depression symptoms mentioned above.

RELATIONSHIPS SUCCESSFUL PINOY 127

But the most glaring cognitive symptom of depression is the inability to make decisions.

Should I go or should I stay? What are the pros and cons of either choice? A depressed person can feel unequal to any task, even that of choosing what to wear the next day.

Some factoids: Yes, depression often means insomnia — tossing and turning and lying awake no matter how hard you try to fall asleep. But it can also mean its opposite: hypersomnia. Some depressives — especially among us Filipinos — fall asleep a lot. And they don’t fight it, because, while asleep and if one can guarantee the absence of nightmares, the pain no longer exists.

Yes, depression can also mean losing one’s appetite and thus hardly eating, but it can also mean constantly eating, especially what is aptly called “comfort" (but alas, usually fattening) food.

That is the reason scientists describe depressive symptoms as changes in appetite and weight and/or in eating and sleeping patterns, rather than only eating or sleeping less. Some depressed people actually eat and sleep more.

But going back to you, Terya, and why I think you may be depressed: While you make no mention of insomnia or hypersomnia, weight gain or loss, you may be experiencing such symptoms but just wanted to focus on your emotional pain. But even if you didn’t experience a single one of the symptoms mentioned above, the physical symptoms are only one part of depression and its effect.

Depression also has cognitive symptoms. Among them are the inability to concentrate. This is why depressed students or lawyers, for example, need to read their books and briefs over and over again when depressed. Nothing seems to sink in.

Another cognitive symptom is a seeming inability to remember your good points and your past achievements. I say seeming because while depressed people can list their achievements when asked, there is no feeling that accompanies it: there is no joy, no gratitude, no pride in one’s successes. It is as if it happened to someone else. The same disconnect happens when people tell you how much they admire your integrity, generosity and intelligence. You have no trouble believing them when you are not depressed, but when you are, you feel they are just saying these things to make you feel good, or that it is “tsamba” (sheer luck so it really doesn’t have anything to do with you) rather than the result of your talents and efforts.

True, love can make sane folks seem irrational. But love is not the only reason you have changed from the no-nonsense woman who was ready for the only kind of relationship a married man (who has no intentions of leaving his wife) can offer to a woman who is prepared to stay in a relationship where the only light at the end of it is that of an oncoming train (with apologies to Robert Lowell’s estate for my paraphrasing).

This would be an easy decision for someone as rational and matter of fact as you were when you first started this relationship. But because you are depressed, you cannot make a decision that, true, will be painful as hell, but will, at least, be the start of your healing - of your not longer feeling a panakip butas (a mere filler, or substitute), of your doing something instead of merely waiting for the other shoe to drop.

After all, were it not for depression, this would be a no brainer: Stay with someone who can never love you fully and is so publicly happily married to someone else (Facebook) or leave and be the independent, quietly confident woman you always used to be.

Should you ever need help in overcoming your depression, please write to us again. At the risk of sounding mayabang (arrogant), we are experts, both professionally and personally, when it comes to this all-too-common, yet very kinahihiyang (shameful) mental disorder.

All the very best —MG Holmes

Dear Terya: After reading Dr. Holmes’s analysis, I feel that maybe you are, indeed, depressed and that this has affected the terms in which you couched your letter.

Thus, I regret the rather intransigent tone of my answer which, admittedly, comes across more harshly than when a psychologist like my wife transmits the same message.

As my wife’s website administrator, I have come across numerous letters about the depression many feel and I know that it feels bad enough without having to read the views of a tactless (though I like to describe it as straightforward) Englishman.

My apologies and best wishes, -JAFBaer

128 TRIPPIN’

Bellarocca BORNEO

JAZZ Festival

By Ana Santos

Sometimes the first time is indeed the best A jazz virgin goes to the Borneo Jazz Festival 2011, not knowing what she’s in for. She doesn’t exactly come out a convert, but Ana Santos does (surprisingly) get to enjoy herself and appreciate the passion jazz artists have for their craft – a passion that transcends the quest for money or fame and can only be prescribed as pure love.

“A jazz festival in Miri?!?”

“Where is Miri??!?”

These are probably the two most asked questions when people would hear about a jazz festival in Miri, one of the Sarawak states in Borneo, Malaysia.

Now, on its sixth year, the event has been renamed the “Borneo Jazz Festival,” making it easier to direct everyone to the region.

As in the past years, the Borneo Jazz Festival brought together a mix of jazz legends and new talent from the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia to perform in this two day festival held every year in May. And this year, it brought me, a Filipina journalist to cover a jazz festival.

Never having written about and watched a jazz festival, I wondered how I would write about it without sounding pretentious or pompous.

I decided I would approach it as any a ‘virgin’ would–marveling at the newness, relishing in the revelations and simply savoring the feeling of doing something for the first time.

Wholesome, pure, clean fun The first thing that caught my attention was the venue for this festival.

It was — and there is no other way to say this — so green.

It was a sprawling open air grass field that was lined by rows and rows

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of palm trees on one side and then bordered off by the coastline on the other. Large video screens were spread around the venue so people could see the stage even without being near it. There was no fancy production of lights and fireworks or an elaborate stage built just for the performance, or back-up dancers in flamboyantly flashy costumes who in perfectly synchronized moves. It was music, plain and simple.

I was also surprised by the people who were in attendance, coming with their children, some of whom were young enough to be hoisted on the parents’ shoulders to get a better view of the stage.

Many brought their own small blankets, a bottle of wine and glasses to toast with, and cheese and other biscuits to nibble on. A group of four female expatriates from Australia and New Zealand drove in from Brunei to catch the festival – which has now become a yearly tradition for them. “We love the music, everyone just getting together and dancing,” Sandra, one of the girls told me. Though the music was loud, I couldn’t help but notice that we didn’t have to scream in each other’s ear in order to be heard.

At some point, the girls got up on their feet and danced - one with a glass of wine in her hand and the others just simply kicked up their feet, jovially carefree.

The breeze from the coastline was just as gentle as the music from the stage — a light, airy, sound that you could float on, or as Sandra and her friends had shown - light enough to dance in your bare feet.

TRIPPIN’ 129

No need to be an expert at it to enjoy it Jazz is the blues with a college degree,” says Maria Maldaur, an American jazz musician who was made famous by her hit “Midnight at the Oasis.”

Thirty four years since she recorded that single, Maria still sings because “we’ll just get in trouble with the crowd, if we don’t.”

Having performed for close to five decades now, Maria has been on the cover of Rollin’ Stone (the number of women who have been on the cover can be counted on one hand) and has been nominated for numerous Grammy Awards. Still she says she doesn’t have an agent; just a manager who keeps track of her tour schedule.

Maria’s performance was the finale of the show. The years of performing have done nothing to her sexy, sultry performance. “When the band plays, they give me wings. The crowd plays and I feel like I’m just bouncing around on stage.”

John Hammond, who was recently inducted in the Blues Hall of Fame shared a similar experience. “There’s something that comes through me [when I perform]. I’m 19 years old again, back when I played my first guitar.” John has been part of the music scene since it started, going all the way back to when the blues was a black man’s music and he was the “new white boy” who people just wanted to give a chance to.

“It hurt that I was racially profiled. I didn’t think of the music as black or white. I just fell in love with it and wanted to play it,” he said simply.

And he has for close to 50 years, having played with the legends like Jimi Hendrix--John has seen them all. “I don’t have a lot of money, it’s harder to make money with jazz, definitely, but I get to do what I love.”

Victor Yong, a Canadian immigrant who was born and raised in Miri, played at the festival for the first time. To Victor, this was a homecoming.

“For anyone who likes music improvisation, jazz is the genre for you.

Jazz is the ultimate improvisation that brings together elements of the blues, rock and even techno for an eclectic sound.”

That’s the thing I discovered about jazz, it doesn’t need to have lyrics.

More than swinging and moving to music, I found myself moved by melodies that ranged from the funky and jazzy of the saxophone to classic, heart wrenchingly pure sound of the harmonica and guitar.

You don’t ever forget it Back in Manila, months after the Borneo Jazz Festival, the Alliance Francaise and the FrancoPhil brought in another kind of music festival called Fete dela Musique. It was an event that, in previous years would go by without me so much as noticing it. But there I was, like the hapless moth drawn to a flickering seductive flame.

The venue was indoors and smaller. There was no gentle breeze or swaying palm trees, but as when I closed my eyes and listened to the music, I was back in Borneo.

Nothing is ever quite as memorable as a first time. But is precisely the memory of that first time that makes you seek out a second, a third and a fourth jazz festival.

The Borneo Jazz Festival is held every year in Mir, Malaysia. For more information, log onto http://jazzborneo.com/.

Other sights and sounds of Miri Miri is a coastal Malaysian city located on the island of Borneo. It is a quiet, small town the covers 4,707.1 square kilometers and has a population of about 269,000. Miri is the birthplace of Sarawak’s and Malaysia’s petroleum industry when old was first discovered in the early 1900s. Petroleum and lumber remain the major industries. Nicknamed the “resort city,” Miri’s impeccably clean, wide streets are lined with trees and flowers, all add to the city’s quaint charm.

Canada Hill Canada Hill is the site of Malaysia’s first oil well which was built in 1910 by Shell. Now known as the “Grand Old Lady”, this oil well is now a state monument and a popular tourist attraction.

The new Petroleum Museum which is also on Canada Hill holds an interesting display that chronicles the birth of Miri’s petroleum industry.

Miri Marriot Resort and Spa This 5-star resort offers its guests an unobstructed view of the sunset from the poolside which overlooks the South China Sea. The resort’s in-house spa, Mandara Spa is a mecca of relaxing massages, body baths and facial treatments. The Miri Marriot is the kind of hotel that has just the right mix of sun and relaxation to cajole you into staying in and never leaving the poolside. http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/myymc-miri-marriottresort-and-spa/

Mulu Caves The Mulu Caves contain the largest limestone cave system in the world. This national park includes the Sarawak Chamber, the world’s largest natural chamber; Deer Cave the world’s largest cave passage and Clearwater Cave, the longest cave in South-East Asia.

130 FILIPINISMS

Onli In Da Pilipins - 1. n. a phrase used to define anything or anyone that only exists anywhere in the 7,107 islands of the Philippines || 2. adj. a phrase used to describe a Pinas episode or a Pinoy persona so rare one would never find anywhere else in the WWW (whole, wide world). It merits a documentation of some sort.

Ah, To Live in

LUXURY!

(The Super-Duper Elusive Filipino Dream)

By Aby Yap

Surveying the hacienda from your terrace, you say to your little boy/girl, “Look around. Everything that your eyes can reach shall be yours.” You smile smugly. The child gives you a weird look and yells for milk. Growing bored, you sprawl out on the divan next to a heart-shaped Arowana pond. You clap your hands three times and slaves looking like Piolo Pascual or KC Concepcion (take your pick) rush by your side and start feeding you mangga with bagoong. Or, tukneneng with sukang pinakurat.

It’s all up to you. It’s your fantasy. As dreamers would say, “Libre lang ang mangarap.”

Lifestyles of the Lucky Too bad for the bitter ampalaya, though. A few Pinoys were born rich, others are famous and have become rich, and some are just plain lucky that it hurts.

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If your surname is Zobel de Ayala, Lopez, Cojuangco, Gokongwei, or any of the monosyllables Sy, Tan, Ty, Yap (Yup, I’m the missing heiress. Libre lang ang mangarap.), then Luxury is most certainly your middle name. It’s a given we already know by heart without any tinge of resentment. No news there. Boring. Blah.

So, we move on to more “interesting” personalities, how they spend their pesoses endlessly piquing our curiosity even as many of us slowly die from the Green Monster attacks. Oh, but how we love to be masochists time and again — not just during elections.

Especially when it’s about the Pacquiao family. If envy could strike, 94 million Filipinos would have been knocked out by now. And why not?

FILIPINISMS 131 Manny is the PHP1.13 billion man. He’s got a mansion in General Santos City, South Cotabato with a swimming pool patterned after — surprise, surprise! — a boxing glove. His home in Los Angeles (in the US of A, not in Pampanga) is a US$2.16 million mansion. Recently, he joined Forbes Park’s roster of proud homeowners with a mansion worth a whopping PHP388 million! Bentleys, Lamborghinis, and Porsches are his garage toys, putting P-Noy’s second-hand 2007 Porsche to ukay-ukay level.

Wife Jinkee is every girl’s object of inggit with her PHP7 million yellow diamond earrings and indecent collection of designer bags: Chanel, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Birkin — apparently, nine Birkins are never enough. Wait, did you know too that she’s Paris Hilton’s new BFF? That’s ouch for you and Nicole Richie.

Party animal Mommy Dionisia, of course, is today’s most celebrated bag lady. Her PHP1 million orange Hermès bag says it all. Pretty much like Imelda and her 2,000 shoes or Gloria and her US$20,000 Le Cirque dinner.

Having chest pains already?

But we haven’t even gone to Willie and his wealth yet. Luxury vehicles including a PHP70 million yacht and a PHP200 million private plane; real estate including vacation houses, resorts, the Wil Tower Condominium, the Wil Theater Mall, the Wil Television Station (last one is a wild guess) — can you say Wowowee?

Or, shhh, the “PCSO bishops” and their Mitsubishi Pajero, Toyota Grandia, Mitsubishi Strada, Montero Sport, Isuzu Crosswind, and Nissan Pathfinder.

Hey, you still breathing? Chill lang!

Our Brand of Extravagance While 0.1% of Filipino families (the so-called elite according to the 2006 Family Income and Expenditure Survey results) squander their cash on stuff that makes the rest drool, 99.9% of us choose to redefine what luxury is. As if we had any other options.

So, what if the coňo revel in their gorgeous PHP4 million Jaguar?

You have your own chauffeur-driven Tamaraw FX! For just PHP20, you can ride/sleep with complimentary A/C while listening to Nicole Hyala and Chris Tsuper, and other snoring passengers. Kailangan pa bang i-memorize ‘yan? What do you need 350 kmph for anyway when bumper-to-bumper traffic is the norm in Metro Manila? Besides, it’s a jungle out there come rainy season; a Jaguar drowning in waist-high floods is a pretty frightful sight.

From the jungle, we fly to paradise. Oh, forget the “we.” Unless you’re part of Robert De Niro’s/, Madonna’s/Tom Cruise’s/Mariah Carey’s/ Samuel L. Jackson’s entourage, chances are you haven’t caught a glimpse of Amanpulo, where no ordinary Juan has gone before. With rates from US$800 to US$4,500 per night - excluding airfare (now you know why), we’d rather patiently wait for Piso Fares and go on plane trips even without the free Zesto and/or cupcake.

Well, at least the goal to reach all 79 provinces of the Philippines is achievable in your lifetime.

So is going through life without ever having to do your laundry, iron your clothes, clean the house, cook meals, tend to your kids/pets, paint your nails, and make rounds in the neighborhood for the latest tsismis — thanks to Inday or Boy, our dakilang kasambahay. Having a domestic helper may be considered a luxury in other parts of the world, but definitely not in Pinas. She/He can easily be your distant cousin from a far-flung barrio hoping to try it out in the big city. So, you “welcome” her/him into your home, “give” her/him a monthly “allowance” of PHP2,000 (if you’re barat), and you don’t even have to agonize over SSS, NHIP, HDMF, 13th month pay, and VL/SL. Indulging in your luho is very much possible so long as you have little cash to spare or huge doses of diskarte. A DSLR to join the in crowd?

Test your haggling/combat skills in Hidalgo, Quiapo. Spa treatments?

There’s always Manang Hilot and her classic ventosa massage. Buffet meals? Fiestas in the Philippines happen all year round; you might even be lucky to bring home some pabalot.

In the Philippines, there are pre-defined luhos to fit every lifestyle or well, pay grade. Libre mangarap, but in the Philippines, certain luxuries can be bought for a song!

132 FASHION

BAG CRAZY “I’m thinking balls are to men what purses are to women. It’s just a little bag, but we feel naked in public without it.”

Carrie Bradshaw, Sex & The City

Hinding-hindi ko malilimutan ang mga sandaling yon. It was a Friday afternoon, kakatapos lang naming mag-brunch ni Adam My Love. We were still getting to know each other back then. Pero confidence na akong may feelings na rin sya sa akin. After nyang hingin yung chit sa waiter, may hinugot syang paper bag from under our restaurant table. Kulay Brown, malaki. Napangiti ako. Pero nang makita ko yung pangalan sa paper bag, bumilis ang tibok ng puso ko.

L-O-U-I-S-V-U-I-T-T-O-N. Juice ko, kakaibang level na ito! Nang ilabas nya ang laman nung sako, tumulo ang laway ko. My very first authentic Monogram Canvas Speedy 30 Handbag!!! Muntik na akong mawalan ng malay tao. Thanks God! Thanks Adam! Dizizzit!!

Nang hawakan ko yung bag, inamuy-amoy ko talaga at kinapakapa ang kabuo-an nito. Never akong nag-doubt na galing ito sa Karama dahil unang-una, hindi naman nagagawi doon si Adam at kagagaling lang nya from Paris noon. Abot langit ang tuwang naramdaman ko noong mga sandaling yon – para akong nanalo ng Lotto at kinoronahang Miss Campus Charming combined in one.

Aaaahhh….sa wakas! Tapos na ang mga masalimuot na bahagi ng buhay ko gamit ang mga Class A Imitation at Replica bags. Hindi biro ang mga masasaklap na kahihiyang pinagdaanan ko noon ha?

Nang bumiyahe ako noon sa Paris upang maging Aleli Abadilla (alalay) ng boss ko, na-hold ako sa immigration ng airport dahil wala akong kamuwang-muwang na japeyks pala ang Luwis Biton na luggage na ipinasalubong lang naman sa akin ng kumare ko from her Bangkok trip. Imagine ang lakas ng tagaktak ng pawis ko at humulas ang foundation ko sa sobrang under pressure at kahihiyang inabot ko sa harap ng amo at mga officemates ko dahil halos tratuhin akong

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kriminal ng mga immigration officers doon? Awaaaard!!! Tapos noong umattend ako ng Fashion Week, pinagtitinginan ako ng mga utaw pagpasok ko sa venue, buong akala ko eh gandang-ganda sila sa outfit ko, nang may isang matronang Bitoy akong nakita na kapareho ng Guchi bag ko. Nagbulungan yung mga nasa paligid ko, nginunguso yung bitbit ko. Doon ko lang din nalaman na japeyks na naman ang bag ko. Kaya pala yung Guci ko isa lang ang “C” pero dun sa matrona tama ang ispelling. Double awaaaard!!! Matapos ang kacheapang yon, ipinangako ko sa sarili ko na hinding-hindi na muli ako gagamit ng japeyks na bag. Grows!

Kaya nang mga sandaling yapos-yapos ko ang regalong LV Speedy bag ni Adam, nadama ko ang muling pagkabuhay ng aking fashion career. Unti-unting nabura sa isipan ko ang mga bad experience ko noon. “Never again!” Sabay halak-hak na mala-Bella Flores. Bwahahahahahahaha!

Nang sumunod na bumiyahe si Adam abroad, isa Mulberry Bayswater Tote bag naman ang ipinasalubong nya sa akin. Win na win! Dahil dun ay nag-simba ako kinabukasan upang ipagmalaki sa aking mga kapwa Tarsier friends ang bago kong baby. Hindi maipinta ang inggit sa mga pagmumukha nila. Akala nyo kayo lang noh? Manigas kayo sa inggit girls!

Tapos sunod-sunod na ang pagtanggap ko ng regalo from Adam.

Fendi Spy Bag, Chanel 2.55 black purse, Balenciaga Motorcycle Bag, YSL Muse, Alexander McQueen Novak, Marc Jacobs Stam, Chloe Padington at ang latest addition to my luxury collection: Gucci “GG running” Medium Hobo with Double-G detail Shoulder Bag. Haaaayyy, kaya naman labs na labs ko si Adam. Alam na alam nya ang weekness ko…designer luxury bags. Ayoko ng Longchamp kasi masyado nang common - besides mura lang. I wouldn’t be quote dead being in a room with the same hand bag like everybody else.

That’s such a major fashion foe. To-moh……

FASHION 133

INGGIT KAYO GURLS? Ewan ko ba. Alam kong kalabisan na itong pagiging obsessive ko sa mga luxury designer bags pero the more I have them, the more I crave for more. Feeling ko kailangan kong lumevel up lagi with the next most desired bag of the moment. Kaya nga panay ang paramdam ko kay Adam na sana biyayaan naman nya ako ng aking dream bag - ang Hermes Birkin. Ayoko ng Croc Leather kasi I hate reptiles. Mas feel ko ang Calf Skin dahil I’m a beef lover. Pero sana in different colors – para depende sa color motif ng outfit ko. Blue Jean para kapag nagrogrocery ako sa Westzone, Vert Amande kapag nasa office ako, Rouge Vif naman kapag gumigimik ako sa Kitakits at Comedy Junction.

Jinky Pacquiao, eat your hearts out!

Pero nakaka-praning din. What if makamit ko na soon ang Hermes Birkin ko? What’s next? Baka mamulibi si Adam sa kakabigay ng kapritso ko balang-araw. Baka isipin nya na bag lang ang habol ko sa kanya, bukod sa US Visa, iPhone 5, Manolo Blahnik stilettos, at 5-Carat diamond ring… ooops, sleep of the tongue. Hindi noh?

Sapat na ang pagmamahal ni Adam upang lumigaya ako sa mundong ito. Pramis. Kahit na Secosana lang ang iregalo nya sa akin, magiging happy pa rin ako. Pwede ko rin namang ipadala kina Ate yun.

Chikaaaa!

Kunsabagay, hindi rin madali ang mag-maintain ng luxury designer bag collection. Kapag nasira o nagasgas ito, kailangan sa Bag Spa ito dadalhin. Hindi pwedeng sa Mr. Quickie o sa Minutes ipagkatiwala ang daang libong pisong handbag, kailangan pangatawanan mo ang image. Kapag umuwi ka at nagbakasyon sa atin, hindi mo naman pwedeng iwagay-way habang naglalakad ka sa EDSA ang mga designer bags mo dahil any moment eh mai-isnatch lang yun – magiging mitsa pa ng buhay mo. Nakaka-Stress Oreña Drilon lang. Pero on the other hand, kapag kinapos ka naman sa cash at inabot ng matinding pangangailangan, maaari mo namang isangla sa Tambunting or ibenta sa mga fashion wannabe ang mga ito. Kikita ka na, nakatulong ka pa sa mga nangangarap sa buhay. It’s a double win-win situation.

Inaamin ko, ganito ako ka-materialistic kasi simula pa sa pagkabata eh wala naman akong natikmang luho sa buhay. Lumaki ako na naiinggit at nanghihiram lang ng mga laruan at damit sa mga kapitbahay at kaklase kong mas nakaka-angat sa buhay noon. Bukod sa luma at wala sa uso ang mga gamit ko ay puro galing palengke at Divisoria lang ang mga ito. Fiesta na kapag sa SM kami nakapamili. Pero hindi ko naranasan ang magkaroon ng mga mamahaling gamit mula sa Rustan’s, sa Greenbelt o sa Rockwell. Kaya nang makatuntong ako dito sa Dubai at makatikim ng komportableng buhay (at jumackpot kay Adam!) ay itinaga ko sa bato na bukas, luluhod ang mga tala.

Balang-araw mapapasa-akin din yang mga naka-displey sa bintana ng mga designer shops sa Burjuman, Dubai Mall at Mall Of The Emirates. And the rest as they say is history. Sabi nga nila, “Be careful with what your wish is for…” ayun na nga, it seems that no amount of luxury designer bags can make me feel complete these days.

Sa totoo lang, batid kong isang malaking kalokohan ang obsession nating mga kababaihan sa mga designer bags nowadays. Dala na rin siguro ng pagiging materialistic nating mga Pinoy, kadalasan hindi natin namamalayan na nagiging alipin na tayo ng fashion and commercialism. Masyado kasi tayong nakiki-uso eh. Bagong model ng Blackberry, bili! New collection ng Forever 21, sugod! Kadalasan miski hindi naman natin kailangan, basta in the name of patalbugan, napipilitan tayong humugot ng ating mga wallet at pikit matang bilhin ang kung anu-ano walang katuturang mga bagay na hindi naman natin makakain.

Kunsabagay kung sarili mo namang pera yan, then gow for it!

Nobody can stop you from reaping the foots of your labor and rewarding yourself with the good things in life. Pero kung alam mo namang hindi mo kayang pangatawanan at i-sustain ang maluhong lifestyle eh mabuti pang manahimik ka na lang. Alam ko mahirap kalaban ang inggit…pero hindi bale nang tubuan ka ng lumot sa paninibugho kesa naman mabaon sa utang hindi ba?

134 FASHION Karamihan dyan, hindi mapigil ang mga paandar sa katawan - pabulous! Busog na busog sa mga papuri at likes ang mga Facebook photos at walang humpay ang pag-pose sa pikchur sa mga parties at events. Ikaw na, Teh! Isang fashionista, dyosa at woman of the world!

Pero kapag katapusan naman eh hindi magkanda-ugaga sa kababayad ng credit cards at utang kay ganito at ganoon. May naiipon ka pa ba? Paano na ang pambayad sa renta? Nakakapagpadala ka pa ba ng pera sa pamilya mo? May pang-matrikula pa ba ang mga bata? May pang-kain ka pa ba? O baka naman ipangungutang mo lang din ang ipambabayad mo sa credit card? Tsk… tsk…tsk. Gumising ka, Maruja!!!

Mabuti sana kung may mahuhugot ka tuwing araw ng bayaran. Eh papano kung wala? Hihintayin mo pa bang ma-Julie Vega (mahuli) ka ni Jun Polistico (pulis) at maging miyembro ng Bulaklak ng City Jail? Syempre matatanggal ka sa trabaho then kapag natapos na ang jail time mo eh diretso ka na sa airport upang maideport. With matching ban! O sa palagay mo kaiingitan ka pa ng mga utaw sa mga pangyayaring yan? Bukod sa itatapon mo lang ang buhay at kinabukasan mo eh mahe-headline ka pa sa Philippine community upang pag-piyestahan sa chismis ang kacheapang na-experience mo. O, at the end of the day, is it all worth it? Afraidy Aguilar!

I LV...

LOUIS VAYONG!

Isipin mo nga, imbes na iniipon at ini-invest mo sa mga mas makabuluhang bagay yang hard-earned OFW dollars and dirhams mo eh maraming sikmura na ang kayang busugin nyang luxury designer bag mo.

Andami yatang nagugutom sa mundong ito. Buksan mo ang iyong isip at idilat mo ang iyong mga mata sa katotohanang maraming nangangailangan ng tulong sa araw-araw. Ang mga nasalanta ng bagyo, ang mga namamalimos sa kalsada, ang mga nade-demolish ang bahay, ang mga nagkakasakit at walang pambili ng gamot… lahat yan kaya mong matulungan imbes na lustayin ang datung mo sa kung anik-anik na kababawan mo, day! Think about it.

Kaya next time, bago mo ibandera yang brand new Louis Vuitton Neverfull sa Facebook mo, ilagay mo sa kukote mo ang lahat ng mga nangangailangan na maaring makinabang dyan sa panandaliang luho mo. Sa bandang huli, hindi mo rin naman maisasama sa hukay ang lahat ng mga collections mo di ba? Pero pwede rin namang ipamana sa pamilya mo, basta hindi lang kasama ang mga utang.

So Ladies, allow me to show off my brand new bayong.

Sa murang halaga, kaya kong ipagsiksikan ang mga gamit ko kesehodang sino pang Herodes ang gumawa at nag-design nito - it doesn’t matters. Tatak Pinoy pa!

Nakakatipid na ko, tumatangkilik pa ng sariling atin.

Now that is what I call true luxury. Dizizzit!!!

Illustrado Magazine