Mantons–those dainty embroidered silk shawls from China–found their way into the hands of sixteenth-century Filipinos through the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade. A Spanish colony back then, the Philippines was the port of call for many galleons that sailed to and from Mexico.

Aside from spices, porcelain, and ivory, silk shawls–which would later be known as Manton de Manila–were among the coveted merchandise that passed the Manila-Acapulco route. The Spanish adapted these shawls as part of their fashion and costumes for dance and music. The manton would also strongly influence Philippine embroidery.

“Draped in Silk: The Journey of the Manton de Manila,” an ongoing exhibit at the Yuchengco Museum, unravels stories of these captivating shawls while showcasing modern illustrations, paintings, photography, decor, couture, and installations that were inspired by the Manton de Manila. Exhibit runs until December 29.

Supplementing the manton exhibit, Yuchengco Museumand the Spanish Embassy are running a series of lectures about antique maps, wherein historical buffs and antique map enthusiasts will get to see early maps of the Philippines (July 4 with Dr. Leovino Garcia), learn more about the galleon trade (July 11 withDr. Benito Legarda, Jr.), find out what Intramuros was like in 1717 (July 18 with  Dr. Jaime Laya), and learn more about Jesuit writer and missionary Fr. Pedro Murillo Velarde (July 25 with Alberto Montilla). The lectures cost P100 and are held Saturdays, 3: 30 p.m. at the Yuchengco Museum Masters Gallery.

Yuchengco Museum is located at the ground floor, RCBC Plaza, corner Ayala and Gil Puyat Avenues in Makati City. Gallery hours are Mondays to Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission prices are P100 for adults, P50 for students 15 years and above, and P25 for children and senior citizens. For inquiries, call (+632) 889 1234.No Tags

Last of two parts

Read part 1.

With the popularity of motorcycles in Dipolog, it’s not surprising that one of the biggest spectacles in this city is motocross, which attracts fans from 6 to 60 from all over Visayas and Mindanao. The annual motocross competition happens during the summer, usually a week or two prior to the Hudyaka Festival, a celebration of the province of Zanorte (Zamboanga del Norte). Well-known racers from neighboring regions come over to join.

Locals attribute the popularity of motocross to the fact that in all of Visayas and Mindanao, only Dipolog City offers a good venue for the race. Big motocross enthusiasts like Nards Amatong, who is past 60 and was one of the pioneering members of the local riding group Dipolog Cycles Unlimited, has been to many motocross venues in Visayas and Mindanao and he swears, not only does Dipolog have the biggest stadium  that’s perfect for motocross, but in this city, spectators can watch all day, rain or shine, and remain comfortable.

In Dipolog, motocross is a family event. Families come in droves, some bringing in packed lunches so they can stay and watch the all-day event. Sisters (yes, girls race too) compete in friendly rivalry. And yes, in this city, they start motocross early, sometimes as young as nine.

So high is the adrenaline for motocross that locals say illegal drugs has never been a problem among Dipolognon teenagers, because they’re addicted to a different kind of speed.

R&R
Because the last movie theater closed many years ago, having lost to the cable companies and bootleg DVDs, those looking for some R&R can go to the nearby Dakak resort to get a good tan, or to other local beaches to swim, play Frisbee, or go wakeboarding, a new pastime that’s becoming popular in Zanorte.

Dipolog, however, is not a destination for shoppers because it doesn’t have the big malls that we have in the metro (and to that I say, thank God!). To me, a child raised in the city and who thinks of malls as the next best place for some R&R, I had to think real hard over what to do in Dipolog other than riding on motorcycles with boys or reading in my hotel room. For some serious shopping, however, Cebu or Cagayan de Oro is the nearest destination. (To hobnob with the literary luminaries of the south, go to Dumaguete or Cebu.)

An attraction not to miss–the Dipolog sunset, seen from the boulevard.

From orchid . . . to fish
Aside from being 15 minutes away from Dakak resort and Dapitan, where national hero Jose Rizal had been exiled, another fact that elevates Dipolog to national notice and being a household name is that a huge chunk of gourmet bottled sardines comes from this city.

Two of the biggest sardines makers—Montanos and Zaragoza—are based here that Dipolog, once known as the Orchid City, has now evolved into being the Sardines Capital of the Philippines.

Locals say that the herring that the sardines manufacturers use starts out as a fry in the Indian Ocean and travels upward and finds its way to Dipolog water. By this time, it is just the right size to be bottled. The word goes that back in those days, there was just so much fish that one could buy a whole pail of them for less than 10 pesos.

Coming back
By the end of my second trip in Dipolog, I was starting to wish I didn’t have to go back to Manila. Maybe growing old does that to us–we cease to be impressed with tall buildings. We start yearning for green and wide spaces. We learn to appreciate the simple joys of provincial lifestyle, when a getaway simply means getting out of the house, and where one can catch a glimpse of seawater without traveling for hours.

Whether it’s my age or this tired traveler now wishes to grow roots, I think I’m going back to Dipolog again, and maybe by that time, I’ll be there to stay.

Thanks to the Ambibo folks for putting up with me.No Tags

Pinoy OFWs in London and Barcelona celebrated Philippine Independence Day with Asia’s Pop Idol Christian Bautista, who sang their favorite love songs in a concert sponsored by The Filipino Channel (TFC) and Globe Telecoms.

“I’m very grateful to have had the opportunity to spend Independence Day with my fellow countrymen in Europe,” said Christian.

Christian related how the audience sang “Ako ay Pilipino” with him. “It was such an inspiring moment,” he said.

A quick vacation in Barcelona, where Christian performed for overseas Pinoys, celebrating Philippine independence from Spain in Spain.

Between concerts in London and Barcelona, Christian took the opportunity to get some R&R in Europe. In London, he made sure to see some of the city’s historic landmarks such as the Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, London Eye, Buckingham Palace, and the Piccadilly. He also attended a dinner party hosted by the Philippine community with ambassadors and consuls in a Japanese restaurant partly owned by London-based Filipina actress Monique Wilson. In addition, Christian was also able to catch The Phantom of the Opera and Jersey Boys as well as Avenue Q, where former stage partner Joanna Ampil had been playing the role of Christmas Eve.

In Barcelona, which he was visiting for the first time, Christian spent his free days touring the national museums where the works of Picasso and Van Dungen were on display. He also took time to visit the famous Sagrada Familia designed by renowned artist and architect Gaudi. With Pinoys having invaded the world, it was no surprise that he would bump into veteran singer Ray Ann Fuentes in Barcelona, where the latter performed for a Filipino community church.No Tags

First of two parts

There’s something familiar about Dipolog, I told myself on my first day in the city. Maybe because the city  reminded me so much of Butuan, where I spent my pre-college teenage years. Or maybe because I could understand the language, having learned it when I was 11. Whatever it was, I could feel this small provincial city growing on me. Manila seemed a universe away.

And indeed it seemed to be. I had left Manila with news of a storm brewing. The dark clouds outside the plane looked threatening, and I wondered if we could make it before the storm hit. But it was all sunshine in Dipolog when I arrived that Thursday morning in May, so even if I hadn’t slept the night before, having come from work, I was feeling energetic and ready to take on Dipolog.

Dipolog was only an idea before I finally set foot on its soil. Aside from being the capital of Zamboanga del Norte, nothing much is known or has been written about it, except that it is “somewhere in Zamboanga,” and friends were worried about my safety. I discovered that other than having that misfortune—if you could even call it that— of being in Zamboanga, Dipolog has this rustic manner about it that I realized that all this worry about security was for naught.

If there was something that was becoming a worry, it was the fact that I was starting to like the city.

Laid back, but within reach
Traffic? Ah, fairly nonexistent, except when motorists are rushing to drop off or pick up kids from school. None of the harried “need to make it home before the evening news” manner that you see on the MRT. Wherever you need to be in Dipolog, you will be in 10 minutes.

Worried about being out of touch? Whatever your telecoms provider of choice is, you will always be within reach in Dipolog. If you’re a Web worker like me, the Internet service is very reliable; there should be no worries about delivering when you should.

Wanting to go local as much as I could, I stopped by to check the supermarket and was impressed with the stocks. I could live here, I realized, as I spotted some of my favorite brands on the shelves. Surely, Dipolog has changed so much, agrees a local boy RV, who tells me that many years back, the only time his family had Purefoods Tender Juicy hotdogs for dinner was when his Cebu-based brother would come home to visit.

So near yet so far
A Starbucks suki will surely miss her overpriced gourmet coffee, but during my weeks in Dipolog, I became privy to a local secret—Café Ysabelle—where coffee was excellent, ambiance was great, the dessert was cheap, and crowds were nonexistent. A great place to bring a date, RV and I discovered, in a small city where everyone knew everybody else, and word of people dating, kissing, philandering, or doing other unmentionables easily goes around, and fast.

Which is why, I brought it up with RV, that if anyone wanted to do some hanky-panky, better to bring it somewhere else, like Dumaguete, which is just a few hours’ ride away by boat, or Cebu, where direct flights ply at least twice a week.

It’s also the reason many Dipolognon parents send their kids to university in Dumaguete or Cebu— far enough to give one a semblance of independence, but near enough to be wary that one’s parents can just easily drop by and check any time they wish to.

Those who stay to live with parents find a different way to experience freedom—on a motorcycle.  Seeing Dipolog on a bike was fun, as RV and I weaved through Dipolog’s oldest streets, passed by the boulevard to catch a glimpse of the sunset, and spotted some good places to eat, even as we raced against a thousand other motorcycle drivers. Like in many provincial cities in the Philippines, the motorcycle is a popular form of transportation in Dipolog, that one could easily say that every household probably has one motorcycle. So numerous are they and their three-wheeler counterparts (tricycles) that the local transportation office has even assigned a “day off” to every tricycle, to ensure that they don’t clog the city streets.

And we came upon an epiphany: All one needs to enjoy life in Dipolog is a motorcycle.

Read part II.No Tags

See the centuries-old architecture of Taal, Batangas, and photograph it, when you join Filipinas Heritage Library’s  “Photographing Architecture” on July 25, 2009.

This fun shoot promises that you’ll get to photograph the old infrastructure of this quaint Batangas town. Professional photographer Jay Alonzo, who’ll guide you through the trip, will teach you how to capture the overall design and intricate details of a structure and reflect its character in digital or film form.

Aside from being a good chance to practice your photography, the trip will enable you to get to know Taal more. One of the most prosperous towns in nineteenth-century Batangas, Taal is home to the largest Catholic church in the Philippines–the Basilica of St. Martin of Tours, commonly known as Taal Basilica. The Caysasay Church, where the miraculous 400-year-old image of Our Lady of Caysasay is enshrined, can also be found in Taal.

Owing to many of its prosperous residents during the Spanish time, Taal has many fine examples of stone houses or bahay na bato. The trip will bring you to the ancestral homes of Marcela Agoncillo, the main seamstress of the Philippine flag; Doña Gliceria Marella de Villavicencio, one of the heroic women who assisted the revolution; and Don Gregorio Agoncillo, a banker and known supporter of the Katipunan.

A short lecture will be held at the Filipinas Heritage Library before the trip to Taal. Alonzo will do on-the-spot critiques during the trip. The best photographs during the trip will be shown in a group exhibit at the Filipinas Heritage Library’s Alcove Gallery.

Workshop fee is P3,000. Those who join the trip must have basic knowledge in photography and a camera. Due to limited slots, interested participants must register before July 11. For inquiries, call (+632) 892 1801 or send an SMS to (+63917) 559 4417. You can also e-mail cruz.ct@ayalafoundation.org.No Tags

Homegrown children’s clothing brand Big & Small Co. believes in starting ’em young. Collaborating with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF-Philippines) for its newest apparel collection, the company hopes to mold a new breed of environmentalists who will usher in a new “cultural revolution” to save the planet.

“We’d like to communicate to moms that we can teach our kids at an early age the importance of caring for our environment,” says Big & Small Co. president Joanna Duarte.

The kiddie tops–sold at Big & Small, Spin, and Orange Juice–impart strong messages about the environment, but in a witty manner: “Dugongs deserve better! Don’t give them a hard time!” and “Stop the whale sharks from wailing!” are just some of the taglines imprinted on these shirts. More than just slogans, they hope to bring the message across in a language kids understand without talking down to them.

“Forward-thinking companies like the Big & Small Co. display brand leadership through vision, innovation, and a responsibility to the environment. Hopefully, the effects will trickle down when the children grow up,” says Susan Roxas, marketing and corporate relations head of WWF.

Recent studies from the WWF have shown that global temperature is rising at an alarming level resulting in rapidly thinning forests and more endangered animals. With one-third of Pinoys younger than 15, there’s an urgent need to find environmental heroes in the next generation.

Green in every way
Imparting earth-loving messages and sensible tips on reducing carbon footprint through apparel doesn’t just stop there. Big&Small Co. hopes to take its eco-friendly campaign a notch higher by ensuring that its operations adhere to eco-friendly standards.

WWF–which has worked with Philippine corporations to assess the life-cycle impact of their products on natural resources, climate change, human health, and local biodiversity–will measure the ecological footprint of Big&Small, from sourcing out raw materials to manufacturing, transportation to waste processing and disposal.

Pinoy brands like Big&Small Co. show that every effort, no matter how small, counts in the move to save the earth.

Related earth-loving stories:
Pinoy jeepney goes green
Walk the green mile with Haribon, Ipanema
Greener Philippines with Luntian bags
Making bags out of newspapers
Giant clams find a home in Pico de Loro
Female-powered green revolutionNo Tags

Kicking off at the Shang Cineplex Cinema 3 on July 2, 2009, the festival features one anime and seven contemporary films in 35mm format. An invitational screening of Always–Sunset on Third Street (Always San-chome no yuhi, 2005) by director Yamazaki Takashi will be held on July 2, 2009, Thursday, 7 p.m. at the Shangri-La Plaza Cinema 3, Edsa, Mandaluyong City.

Other featured film are Memories of Matsuko (Kiraware Matsuko no issho, 2006) directed by Nakashima Tetsuya, Kamome Diner (Kamome shokudo, 2006) directed by Ogigami Naoko, Memories of Tomorrow (Ashita no kioku, 2006) directed by Tsutsumi Yukihiko, The Milkwoman (Itsuka dokusho suru hi, 2005) directed by Ogata Akira, Turn Over–An Angel Is Coming on a Bicycle (Futari biyori, 2004) directed by Nomura Keiichi, Tony Takitani (Toni Takitani, 2004) directed by Ichikawa Jun, and the sole anime film Mind Game (Mind Game, 2004) directed by Masaaki Yuasa.

All films will be shown with English subtitles. Admission is free. Screening venues are at the Shangri-La Plaza Cinema 3 (July 2 to 12) and the UP Film Institute (August 14 to 20). “Eigasai ’09” will also have provincial screenings that will commence in Gaisano South City Mall, Davao (July 18 and 19); Ayala Center, Cebu (July 28 to Aug 2), and Baguio Center Mall, Baguio (August 7 to 11).

See screening scheduleNo Tags

Butuanon hip-hop dancers Next Block Crew and Experience Kidz from General Santos City snagged the grand prize of P100,000 each in the adult and kids categories of the recently concluded Dunkin’ Donuts Icy Coolers Dance Dunkdown 2009 grand finals night at the SM Mall of Asia. Runners-up Batang Mama from the National Capital Region and Dance Pull Kids from Bacolod City got P50,000 each.

Aside from promoting Dunkin’ Donuts’ new summer drink, the Icy Coolers, the dance contest encouraged kids and young adults to do something productive during the summer.

Fourteen groups from all over the country made it to grand finals, the winners of which were announced in the noontime show Eat Bulaga. The judges were made up of the hottest names in the Pinoy hip-hop scene, among them dancer-choreographer Jason Zamora of the Manoeuvres ; Lema Diaz, member and choreographer of international hip-hop group Philippine All Stars; and hip-hop choreographer and music producer Jungee Marcelo.

Grand prize winner in the kids category of the Dunkin’ Donuts Dance Showdown Experience Kidz came all the way from from General Santos City.

“I’m looking for a group that starts fresh and finishes strong,” said Jason. Lema said she wanted to see “variety–popping and locking–not just the same krumping style,” while Jungee considered “precision” to be an edge.

“The kids I saw were not just the usual dancers you see on the streets, and some of them I think have what it takes to be professional dancers some day,” said Dunkin’ Donuts Icy Coolers Dance Dunkdown endorser Sam Concepcion.

No Tags

• Theater critic Gibbs Cadiz is holding a Virgin Labfest Blog Contest. Read his post to find out how you can win a copy of Preview Art (valued at P1,000)–“a stunning, limited-edition collection of images from the Philippines’ most provocative visual artists,” released to celebrate Preview Magazine’s 150th issue–and an exclusive autographed copy of Sinta and Other Plays, by the legendary teacher and theater mentor Onofre Pagsanghan of Ateneo’s Dulaang Sibol.
• A new monument by sculptor Eduardo Castrillo pays homage to the defenders of the freedom of the press. It is the first Castrillo monument to be erected in Mindanao.
• WCOPA grand champion Reymond Sajor performs in “I’ll Be There,” a benefit concert for World Vision on June 27 at the Music Museum. Call (+632) 557 9283 for tickets.
• Sunday is Father’s Day! Do you have something in mind to make the day a special one for Dad? Krispy Kreme offers a budget treat for every father, available until June 30.
• Singer and UNICEF ambassador Gary Valenciano is searching for 5,000 people who would like to become  Champions for the Pinoy Children. Also, TV host Donita Rose, another UNICEF supporter, explains why giving to UNICEF makes sense.

Image: “Ate Annie” by BwilibNo Tags

To singer Gary Valenciano, UNICEF national ambassador, every contribution counts when it comes to the fight for children’s rights.

“One thing I’ve learned from my work in UNICEF is that nothing is impossible: I’ve seen former war zones transformed into peaceful thriving communities. I’ve seen empty classrooms fill up with children, all eager to learn and make their dreams for the future come true,” Gary said as he appealed to the public during the launch of UNICEF’s Champion for the Children project, which aims to find 5,000 donors–or “champions”–this year.

Gary, who has UNICEF’s Philippine ambassador for 10 years now, related how he had witnessed the plight of Pinoy children who are unable to enjoy their basic rights of education, health care, and nutrition because of neglect, abuse, and exploitation.

“We can do so much for these children, who deserve every chance we give them, if we all work together,” Gary says. He also expressed his confidence in UNICEF’s meeting its yearly goal because of the Pinoy’s innate generosity.

“Filipinos are very giving. When there’s a calamity, they are always willing to help. [Even Pinoys abroad] gather together to give,” he says.

A global organization, UNICEF works with local and international partners to fight for children’s rights. The group relies mainly on donations to finance its activities. In the Philippines, where UNICEF has been at work for 60 years, a donation of P600 a month is enough to provide oral rehydration salt treatment to a child suffering from diarrhea. With as little as P500 a month, five Filipino children can go to school complete with supplies.

TV host Donita Rose, who is an active supporter of UNICEF, considers donors’ pledges a good legacy. She also shares the advantages of giving through an organized group like UNICEF.

“When we give to someone, sometimes we don’t know what happens to the money. What I like about UNICEF is that I get a report every month telling me [where my money has gone],” she relates.

To be a Champion for the Children, call UNICEF at (+632) 758 100 or visit its official Website.No Tags