noisy, feeling entitled, and..

"When we replace a sense of service and gratitude with a sense of entitlement and expectation, we quickly see the demise of our relationships, society, and economy."
 -- Steve Maraboli

the setting before was at the park, this time: in an airplane bound for manila from puerto princesa, boarding time 😉 june 10, 2018. 

view from my window seat
before our plane made it to the runway for take-off

when i reached my assigned row, a millenial couple from that country of the people who grabbed my map — but this reference is only useful if you already know the story at the park 🤪 — where was i? 

oh yes, in the airplane! 

a young couple were noisily discussing in their language about who, between the two of them, should take the still empty window seat along their row. i don’t speak their language but i figured out what it was all about because they were taking turns pointing to the window seat, their faces exhibiting eagerness to takeover but with hesitation upon reviewing & seeing the indisputable seating assignment registered on their boarding passes. 

play good music, that’s my cue! 

i politely interrupted their discussion by saying, “excuse me, i need to get there,” and using my hand to gesture towards the ‘hot’ seat of their conversation 😏. they had no choice but to stop their discussion. my presence meant they had to abort their takeover-the-window-seat plot. 🤣 they realized, too, that they had to stand and leave their middle & aisle seats temporarily so i can reach my seat. 

i saw the look on their faces when they realized that the window seat, which both of them wanted to take, was going to be occupied 😜. i’m glad that despite their disappointment, both of them stood up to make way for me and neither made an attempt to negotiate for 24F, the seat — i wasn’t inclined to give way to them anyway. 😅 i only give up coveted seats to impressionable kids, senior citizens, or PWDs, or in the interest of safety — NONE OF THESE apply to them nor the situation. 

they’re just noisy, feeling entitled, and undeserving.

note: i completed writing this while they were talking so noisily 🤯 beside me, while the rest of the passengers around us were just silent, the plane was going through turbulence, and the cabin crew and the captain took turns using the public address system to make important announcements. i could hardly hear what the captain said over the two inconsiderates’ irrelevantly loud conversation, which even got louder as the captain made further announcements 🤨.

map

"Inagaw nga namin (mga) isla n’yo, mapa pa kaya!"
 -- contributed by one of my friends

🙈🙉🙊

at some point in ashikaga flower park, i was preoccupied with trying to take selfies under the trellis of the double-flowered wisteria when two females approached and called my attention. with my left hand, i was holding the pamphlet-slash-park map, which was given to me by the personnel at the park entrance. held by my right hand was the selfie stick with my camphone. i had to stop what i was doing to properly acknowledge the presence of the two but even before i could complete a cordial greeting, one of them grabbed the folded-and-rolled pamphlet from my left hand! 😱 no words, no non-verbal plea, nothing but unpermitted taking of MY park map. 😱 i knew right away that they’re NOT japanese at all! despite my indignation 😠, i stood there trying so hard to maintain a tolerant facade 😳. as if they did not do anything socially unacceptable, the two started talking to each other while turning the paper over and over again, completely ignoring my presence 🤨. 

MY map of the ashikaga flower park

based on their interaction, the two of them got lost in the park 🧐 (note: ashikaga flower park covers a large area but it is not that large for two non-stupid adults to get lost in — there are signages and arrows. plus, park guests are given maps at the entrance.) 🤔 while they were carrying on with their conversation, it was obvious to me that they did not know where to go because they could not even figure out where we were despite the user-friendliness of the park map. 🤦🏻‍♀️ 

my first attempts at interrupting their conversation with an “excuse me” did not work but when they finally acknowledged that i was still around 😲, i told them “you are here” as i pointed our location on the map. then, they started resuming their discussion — as if i wasn’t there 🤷🏻‍♀️, as if i did not say anything helpful — while turning the paper once again 😵 and then back to the page with the park map before looking at me and telling me in a commanding tone, “how to get here?” 😱🤯

“from here, how to get here? (pointing at the park’s entrance on the map)” 😮👀 all along, they were figuring out how to go back to the park’s main entrance! (another note: the park map was drawn in such a self-explanatory way and the park pathways are easy to follow.) i told them to just follow the path. 

“how?” 

i pointed to the oh-so-visible path closest to us. they also asked where the park’s main entrance was 🤦🏻‍♀️. how could two people perusing a very-easy-to-understand map not know? 🧐 although i was tempted to lead them to the opposite direction because of their rudeness, i still pointed the correct direction. i got a thank you. i held out my hand to receive back MY map. the two of them hesitated and looked at me — maybe because they wanted to me to go with them to the entrance so they won’t get lost, maybe because they wanted to walk away with my map, or maybe because they didn’t trust what i told them; but whether it’s one or two or all of those reasons, i wasn’t inclined to go out of my way anymore to be of further help to them. it’s more than too much that i already still helped them even though they were rude, unapologetic, and dense.

note: this happened to me on april 20, 2018 and i got really pissed off that's why it took time for me to write about this. ang naka-quote ay clue sa kanilang bansang pinanggalingan. walang duda na doon sila galing; pati ugali sablay na sablay sa kalidad kahit nasa bansang hindi naman kanila. 

🙈🙉🙊

boxing

"To see a man beaten not by a better opponent 
but by himself is a tragedy."
 -- Cus D'Amato

boxing is a sport, yes, but, like modern-day wars, it's also a business. people can only wish for a great fight but there's no guarantee at all.

when a boxing match is touted as the "fight of the century" (never mind that it's just 15 years into this century), you can't blame people for expecting a mayweather-pacquiao bout to be something like an ali-frazier slugfest or even better. unfortunately, this "fight of the century" failed to live up to the hype and this is not surprising. quite predictably, mayweather won by taking advantage of a strategy that does not make him lose points in the game, anyway, but takes away the very idea of boxing as a contact sport of throwing power punches and not so much about turning far too many opportunities into the art of hugging and running about in the ring. still, congratulations floyd mayweather, jr.!

i am writing this and i am not even a fan of boxing. i just happen to read many, many months ago about the muhammad ali-joe frazier boxing matches, especially the anecdotes on the "thrilla in manila" (ali-frazier 3); check them out online then you'll have an idea or two of what a "fight of the century" should at least be. 

i was hoping mayweather would step up his game a bit in this boxing match to make things worthwhile for the boxing fans but it's like asking for the moon and stars -- he's just self-absorbed that way and, good for him, his boxing style lets him stay undefeated. his style, by the way, reminds me of winning any contest by mere technicalities, not by a spectacular display of excellence to raise the bar.

at best, i've only seen pictures of the mayweather-pacquiao match; i haven't seen any of the videos -- i don't have to. oh no! if it's just another one of those boxing matches with no KO's nor remarkable exchanges of punches, i don't have to watch otherwise it's just like reading a story with no climax nor cliffhangers, eating spaghetti without meatballs, drinking expired soda -- no fizz -- (and they all remind me of that biblical latin phrase "mane thecel phares" quoted in el filibusterismo) -- not worth the while, a waste of time.

i learned about how things were like during the mayweather-pacquiao bout mostly from facebook posts, which made it easy for me to imagine how mayweather played it like he always does because i've seen clips of his previous fights and there's nothing special in his wins -- his smart style of securing the win is boring. pacquiao, on the other hand, knows how to give a great show when he's in the ring, win or lose.

unsurprisingly, mayweather arrogantly claimed that he did more for boxing than muhammad ali BUT, if being the announced winner who got heavily booed by the crowd is any indication, this is just him and his money team shamelessly and desperately plugging his 'TBE' business. despite his undefeated record, the crowd and the other greats wouldn't readily serve glory and greatness to him. 

05.03.15 it's a pacman world today!

win or lose, it's how you play the game, how you do business. in deserving greatness, the HOW matters. :) congratulations manny pacquiao!

note: this was originally posted here.

blacklight (ultraviolet light) plus philippine passport pages

"The only reason people do not know much is because they do not care to know. They are incurious. Incuriosity is the oddest
and most foolish failing there is."
--Stephen Fry

1st day of april 2015 
once upon a wednesday

weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! thanks to the tip that i got from ate bambit, i found out about the interesting images that are embedded on the pages of our passports. 

thanks also to that viral article showing the images revealed by ultraviolet light (a.k.a. blacklight) on the pages of the canadian passport! ate bambit got curious and she wondered if there's something similarly interesting in philippine passports that we can see with blacklight, too. surprise, surprise... there are! she shared some pics and i got really interested so i went looking for a handy blacklight.

-- some of the blacklight treats in philippine passports -- 

here are some of the images from my old and my new passports (yep, even the old one!). these are all mobile shots so bear with the quality. 

departure and arrival stamps on my old passport
note: china really prefers to use red :)

i was surprised to find out that even those entry-exit stamps we get upon departure and arrival light up with blacklight... ohhh so they use special ink for those stamps.

this represents the generic look of the pages
of my old passport under blacklight
several lines of the passport issuing agency's name in filipino and in english
with the letters written all caps in normal and mirror-orientation
above the page number and a featured image at the bottom

those passport pages are not plain-looking at all! blacklight reveals that all the pages in the philippine passport have something other than the passport number and logo.

in my old passport (maroon and machine-readable; issued in 2008), all pages on the right face of every spread bear the image of the national flower of the philippines, the sampaguita. the photo which appears before this paragraph is page 42 and the left face of the last spread of my old passport. page 42 bears the image of the 2000-year old banaue rice terraces, a national cultural treasure of the philippines.

some of the images featured on the pages of the machine-readable passport:

sampaguita, kalesa, philippine jeepney, and abaca

rizal monument (manila), intramuros (old walled city of manila), barasoain church (malolos, bulacan),
and the colorful vintas (zamboanga)

bicolandia's mayon volcano and bohol's chocolate hills

both my old and new passports have a panoramic image of the malacañang palace on the centerfold. in my old passport, after the centerfold, the right face images from the previous pages were just used again. 

the centerfold image of the machine-readable passport
malacañang palace

unlike the old passport, my new passport (e-passport; issued in 2012) packs more and bears a unique image on every page -- representing stuff from northernmost batanes to southwesternmost tawi-tawi and from palawan in the west to surigao in the east!

some of the images featured on the pages of the e-passport:

stone houses (batanes), paoay church (ilocos norte), calle crisologo (vigan, ilocos sur),
and banaue rice terraces (ifugao)

bamboo organ (las piñas), the big guns of battery way (corregidor island),
mayon volcano and cagsawa ruins (bicol), and mines view park (baguio)

blood compact shrine (bohol), san juanico bridge (samar-leyte),
gen. macarthur and company landing memorial (palo, leyte), and lapu-lapu monument (cebu)

i am delighted that iligan city and tawi-tawi share a spread in the e-passport. on page 18 is an image of the maria cristina falls and on page 19 is the image of the sheikh makhdum masjid, which stands on the site of the oldest mosque in the philippines in simunul island, tawi-tawi.

'

images of mindanao in my new passport
maria cristina falls (iligan city) and sheikh makhdum mosque (tawi-tawi)

because i'm from iligan city, page 18 deserves a highlight in this post! hihihi.

presenting... the blacklight look of the 18th page of my new passport
iligan city's maria cristina falls 

another image of mindanao in my new passport
surigao's day-asan footbridge

well, if you think that this post is an april fool's day prank, get a uv lamp or uv penlight and see for yourself!

in my honest opinion, it's really a must-try! you won't be disappointed unless your passport is fake. hahaha.

post scripts:
(1) all the blacklight images 'hidden' in the machine-readable passport are already embedded in this post. i selected only a few from the pages of the e-passport but here's the list of featured blacklight images from that newer and better version: rizal monument, banaue rice terraces, bonifacio monument, vigan (calle crisologo), leyte landing memorial, chocolate hills, mayon volcano, corregidor, mines view park, blood compact shrine, day-asan footbridge (surigao), lapu-lapu monument, san juanico bridge, windmills of bangui, maria cristina falls, simunul island mosque, cultural center of the philippines, aguinaldo shrine, malacañang palace, san agustin church, taal volcano, fort santiago, san sebastian church, tubbataha reef, manila city hall, fort san pedro, barasoain church, national museum, callao cave, miag-ao church, limestone cliff (el nido, palawan), fort pilar, mt. apo, las piñas bamboo organ, people power monument, mt. samat shrine, underground river of palawan, batanes stone houses, paoay church, and the makati business district.

(2) with blacklight, philippine passport pages appear more interesting than philippine bills. i used to think that it was the other way around.

blacklight + PhP 20 bill
except for the serial number on the bill's front face,
nothing else really interesting lights up
so here's the back side

blacklight + PhP 100 bill
same case as the PhP 20 bill -- except for the serial number on the bill's front face,
nothing really interesting lights up
so here's the back side

snow people

"Winter must be cold for those with no warm memories."
-- from the 1957 movie, An Affair to Remember

they finally showed up!

the adorable family that greeted me on my way to the laboratory
fukui city in japan

as much as i want to take credit for these 3 delightful snow creatures, i have to say that i'm not the one who made them. i merely saw them while i was walking to our research building. the bigger ones stood no higher than my knees but they're such head-turners and i was won over right-away by their cuteness. needless to say, seeing them made my day!

i'm glad that i stopped and took the time to capture this picture. when i passed by the same area on my way home tonight, only the left one was left standing. the right one was already headless and the baby was... i don't know... kidnapped?

a glimpse of japanese culture: chanoyu

"If man has no tea in him, 
he is incapable of understanding truth and beauty."
-- Japanese Proverb

chanoyu

noun \¦chänō¦yü\

"a Japanese ceremony consisting of the serving and taking of tea in accordance with an elaborate ritual"

once upon a japanese tea ceremony in fukui-shi

this afternoon, i took a very short break and attended a summer tea ceremony. we ate mochi and drank green tea. both mochi and green tea were prepared and served according to japanese tradition.

by observation, i learned some key points...

they bow every time they approach to serve or to retrieve items from the guest, the guest acknowledges every time with a bow.

they turn the tea bowl 2, 3 times before serving the tea to the guest, the guest does the same before and after drinking -- this has everything to do with aesthetics and not superstition.

the guest who gets served first receives his tea in the most valuable bowl. with significance comes great pressure because all eyes are on this guest (trick: know where to sit and avoid the first chair. for this matter, know which is the "first" chair.)

the teapot, the tea whisk, the tea cups, all have their stories. all things related to the tea ceremony, including the chabana (tea flower arrangement) and the wall decor (calligraphic scroll), are meticulously chosen and done. no element is there by whim or random chance.

the host is usually female. it is a rare occasion when a male is the master of the tea ceremony.

the hosts don't just master the art, skills, grace, and discipline required to perform the various tasks that they do, they also speak with a higher degree of politeness -- definitely more polite compared to the already polite japanese form (there's "casual form" for everyday conversation with friends and equals, there's polite form, and there are also more polite forms.) because the tea ceremony is also about respect, the guests are expected to adhere to this level of politeness and exhibit social finesse.

my participation in the tea ceremony allowed me to have the experience but it didn't transform me into someone very capable of serving tea the japanese way. at best, i merely gained more insights on what transpires during the tea ceremony and on what the hosts and guests do before, during, and after. even for the role of a simple guest, i still have a lot to learn about the tea ceremony. this goes with saying that a whole lot more is expected from me if i were to be a host.

that alice in wonderland moment

"the days are long but the years are short." 

indeed, they are. 

today, i'm officially 10 years old... 

in blogging years!

the fukui, japan version

"We write to taste life twice,
in the moment and in retrospect."
-- Anais Nin

the 11.06.13 photo entry to my album of "firsts" in japan:
a photo of my right knee with my temporary souvenirs from an accidental stunt :D

on 11.07.13, i wrote...

the last time i posted a photo similar to this one was more than 7 years ago, when i got bruises and abrasions after i fell from a stationary ikot jeepney in UP diliman on my way to the old NIP building. :) now, THIS: the fukui, japan version! ;-)

yesterday morning, just before i reached the university, i *earned* these bruises on my right knee and another minor one on my left knee because i crashed my bicycle.

i was going slowly and was further slowing down as i manoeuvred my bicycle to join the lane of bikers waiting to cross the intersection just in front of the university's main gate. i don't know what exactly happened but i lost my balance and, unfortunately, failed to regain it.

there was a loud crash when my bicycle and i fell on the roadside.

i quickly got up and i quickly pulled my bicycle back up, too -- as if nothing happened even though i instantly felt intense pain in some parts of my body and my bike's basket got so obviously distorted due to the impact. part of me wanted to laugh out loud because i personally found my situation so funny on such a fine autumn morning. :) at the same time, i had this thought in 3 languages in my mind: ouch, that hurt; embarrassing, too / aray, ang sakit; nakakahiya / agay, kasakit; kaulaw oi. :D thank goodness, the people here are so polite and able to react with a collective show of nonchalance -- i was saved from further embarrassment. :D i looked around and saw nobody gawking at me. :)

as soon as i reached my parking spot within the university grounds, i fixed my bicycle's basket back into shape and checked my knees before i went to my morning classes. i was relieved to see no wounds but, with all the pain i was feeling, i was sure bruises here and there were starting to form. last night when i got home and saw the bruises, i understood better why i was still feeling intense body pains several hours after the accident. i managed to go about my activities for the day as if nothing happened though. :D

i don't mind having some action adventures but i think i have had enough of accidental stunts. i pray that yesterday's surprise "stunt" will be my first and last here. angsakitsakitkaya!

04.01.14 biking during a fine spring day along sakura-dori | fukui city, japan
the accident never stopped me from riding my bicycle :)

note: i arrived in japan for graduate studies on september 26, 2013. 

piled higher and deeper

"The early bird gets the worm,
but the second mouse gets the cheese."
--Author Unknown

x X x

"paranormal x-ray" for dental and facial structure imaging. what in the world is "paranormal x-ray"?!? :)

my "bangag" moment of the day (yeah, i know that it's just lunchtime and the day is far from over): i meant "panoramic x-ray" but i mentioned "paranormal x-ray" ...TWICE! parang pang espiritista x-ray lang??? hahaha. buti isa lang ang kausap ko pero super laugh trip pa rin. ang hirap maka-get over. hehe.

now, there's a worthy addition to this compilation which i made sometime in 2012...

- calcu, letter blue, atbp. - 

ang mga sumusunod ay totoong nangyari recently, magkakaibang instances naman pero... basta... read on. pumi-PhD na yata ako sa pagiging bangag.

eksena 1: calcu
isang umaga sa R&D cube

ako (habang tinampal-tampal at kinakamot ang braso, may something itchy) to teammate 1: oist, pahingi naman ng calcu (sabay turo sa isang malaking bote ng green cross isopropyl alcohol). 

teammate 1: ha? (magbubukas na ng drawer, kukuha ng calcu kaso natigilan) pakiulit.

ako: pahingi ngang calcu. pahingi n'yan (turo sa alcohol).

teammate 1: anong sabi mo, calcu?

*bwahahaha* *tawanan*

oo nga naman, ang layo ng calcutor sa alcohol. anoveh. tsaka ang calcu, hinihiram lang, hindi hinihingi.

eksena 2: kape
isang umaga ulit sa R&D cube 

ako (kararating lang) to teammate 1: tara, kape. igib. (igib ang term namin sa simpleng pagkuha ng tubig sa pantry.)

teammate 1: tara. igib.

niyaya din namin si teammate 2. ready na sila agad. 

ako: wait lang. (kumuha ng something sa pocket ng bag) game! (sabay kukuha na lang ng mug at tumbler.) 

teammate 1: kala ko ba sabi mo kape. bakit toothpaste ang bibitbitin mo?

so tumingin ako sa something na kakukuha ko lang sa bag -- shucks, toothpaste nga! (tsaka, ang mga sachets ng kape ay naka-store sa drawer ko at hindi sa pocket ng bag.) wow lang!

*bwahahaha* *tawanan* 

eksena 3: after last LSS (lean six sigma) class

sa hallway palabas ng planta 

teammate: kumusta naman kayo sa taas kanina? (ang class ay nasa second floor)

ako: ok lang. activity namin kanina ay related sa motivation and personalities. letter blue ako.

teammate: ano 'yon?

ako: ang letter blue personality, ma-technical, kelangan ng detalye, mabusisi

teammate: letter blue? parang alphabet lang?

ako: (pause) shucks! hindi letter blue. color blue.

teammate: sabi mo letter blue. narinig ko.

enggggkkkk. walang bawian! letter blue kung letter blue!

*bwahahaha* *tawanan*

ano ba, val, pang-ilan mo na 'yan?

eksena 4: password

isang hapon sa R&D cube, break time na dapat 

teammate: break.

ako: tara. kelangan ko din kasi ng password.

teammate: ano? password? para saan?

ako: kelangan ko ng password!! (sabay pakita sa ATM card) 

teammate: ha?

tengneneng! ang gusto ko palang sabihin ay... kelangan kong mag-withdraw. ang labo!!!

*bwahahaha* *tawanan*

eksena 5: orange

team weekend bonding sa shell tabangao 

ako (papunta sa kitchen counter, nadaanan si teammate 3 na nagsasalin ng orange liquid sa transparent na baso): wow, orange! (sa isip ko orange... juice.) ano 'yan, sprite?

teammate 2: huh?

teammate 3: hindi. royal.

teammate 2: kitang orange, tapos, sprite?

ako: ha?

teammate 3: hindi 'to sprite. royal tru orange 'to.

*bwahahaha* *tawanan*

ako: oo nga, no? ba't ko nga ba sinabing sprite?

ohmaigulai. pinagbabayaran ko na yata ang pambabara ko kay sir mel noong minsang tinawag n'yang spaghetti ang macaroni. aba, hindi pwede. hahaha!

eksena 6: listerine

after lunch break 

ako: (may kinuhang maliit na bote sa bag, binitbit sa ladies room. kru kru. binuksan ang bote kaso...) hmmm, ba't kelangan kong i-flip ang listerine cap para mabuksan?

tumingin ako sa bote at nanlaki ang mata. shucks! muntikan na!!! ang hawak-hawak ko ay... bote ng green cross sanitizing gel na sinalinan ko ng rubbing alcohol. disclaimer: di po ako suicidal. nag-autopilot lang.

when i shared this to my teammates, ayun, bonggang tawanan na lang ulit. wag ko daw sarilinin problema ko. haha.

07.06.12 isang matinding note to self: umayos ka.
ang green cross sanitizing gel na sinalinan ng rubbing alcohol
ay hindi listerine. (--,)

bus ride

Never say, "oops." 
Always say, "Ah, interesting."
-- Author Unknown

12th of february 2014: on board keifuku bus (京福バス) #12

my 3rd bus ride in fukui city

on a daily basis, i either walk or use my bicycle to get to the places where i need to be here in fukui city -- even if reaching my destination means i have to walk for twenty to thirty minutes or more, rain or shine, with snow on the road or without. i rarely need to ride the bus or the train and taking the taxi is not an attractive option. if the bus rates start at 200 yen (it's just 100 yen though for the limited routes of the community bus), taxi flagdown rates start at 650 yen (note: 1 yen is equivalent to ~0.45 philippine pesos. so, do the math and spell expensive). 

last month, when i needed to reach fukui station with my travel bags, i did myself a favor and studied the fukui city bus and train routes plus time-and-fare-tables. fukui city public transport timetables are available online and offline but they are published in japanese and mostly kanji. however, if one is familiar with the kanji characters for the departure and arrival points along a public ride's route, the system is very easy to follow and nobody gets lost in translation (or frustration? :P)!

by the end of my first public bus ride in the city, i was impressed with the reliability and efficiency of the system!!! i could have been equally impressed with myself, too, except that i committed a booboo just before i alighted the bus: i inserted my fare into the wrong coin slot :D lelz. i let out an involuntary "hala?" and my face went @.@ when i saw my two 100-yen coins being ejected in rapid succession by the machine as twenty 10-yen coins. the driver said, "ここ (koko)" and pointed to another slot. with a sheepish smile and a "ごめんなさい (gomennasai)" followed by a quick "ありがとう (arigatou)," i collected all twenty 10-yen coins and dropped them into the right slot. 

since i learned from that experience, everything went well with my 3rd bus ride in the city. ^_^ 

koko means here. gomennasai means sorry. arigatou means thank you.

kiddie art for my nihongo class

"All cartoon characters and fables must be exaggeration, caricatures. 
It is the very nature of fantasy and fable." 
--Walt Disney

on the 16th day of january 2014, our sensei introduced us to some imaginary animals (そうぞうのどうぶつ; souzou no doubutsu) in japanese stories. since mermaids and something similar to the abominable snowman were included in the そうぞうのどうぶつ sheets that she distributed, i decided to write about the manananggal when she asked us students to draw and write about imaginary animals in our respective countries.

this is the work that i shared to my sensei and classmates after about fifteen minutes of thinking, drawing, and writing...

impromptu drawing-and-writing activity output
this photo shows that i can still draw and write like a kid. :) hahahaha.

this is the rough translation of what i wrote:
"this imaginary creature lives in the village. in the morning, it's human.
in the evening, its body is cut in half.
the upper part of the body has wings. the wings are large and black.
this imaginary creature is called aswang. another name for it is manananggal.
this imaginary creature is bad. the eyes, teeth, and face are very scary.
the aswang likes various types of people. and, (the aswang) eats them."

i wanted to mention blood and exposed veins and internal organs but, until now, i don't know yet the nihongo words for those. i wanted to write more but... see, this is what happens if one's nihongo skills are very limited: stuck with simple statements and simple words and forced to an abrupt ending.

p.s. my drawing shows an aerodynamically-challenged manananggal. ;-)

newspaper

"It's those moments, those odd moments that you look for
and sometimes by creating this kind of loose atmosphere you find
those little moments that somehow mean a lot to an audience
when they really register right."
-- Barry Levinson

during our 3rd period class today, our kanji teacher said that he read a newspaper (新聞) and saw me there. he used nihongo in saying this so i initially had doubts if i understood him correctly and i wondered why, how, and what it was all about.

in english, he just said something like "you and other people, too."

then, i remembered that a day before i went to kobe, i participated in a multicultural workshop (多文化共生) supported by the fukui citizens international association. i was a member of a multinational panel -- composed of a chinese, a filipino (yours truly), a vietnamese, a thai, a korean, and an american. each of us talked to our japanese audience about the school lives of students from ages 6 to 15 in our country of origin.

to cut a short story shorter, the local newspaper (福井新聞), nikkan kenmin fukui (日刊県民福井), reported the event and printed two pictures of the panel.

one of those "caught-in-the-act-and-unaware-while-doing-something-worthwhile" moments

01.18.15 souvenir of my day #115 in japan :)

that's how my kanji teacher saw me in the newspaper that he read.

wake up in the philippines, sleep in japan!

"Go ahead then; study, study, and meditate well what you study. Life is a very serious thing and only those with intelligence and heart go through it worthily. To live is to be among men and to be among men is to struggle. But this struggle is not a brutal and material struggle with men alone; it is a struggle with them and one's self, with their passions and one's own, with errors and preoccupations. It is an eternal struggle with a smile on the lips and tears in the heart. On this battlefield man has no better weapon than his intelligence, no other force but his heart.
Sharpen, perfect, polish then your mind and
fortify and educate your heart."
-- excerpt of a letter written by Jose Rizal for his nephew, Alfredo

26th of september 2013
my first update from japan :)

today marks the start of a super set of firsts -- more on this in the coming days, weeks, months...

for now: just this hastily-put-together collage of my trip today
from manila to kansai

i tried my best not to pull out a jacket from my backpack when i went out of the airport terminal but, after a few minutes, i gave in. my body just isn't used to the cold 20-degree C outdoor temperature (it was colder outside than inside the air-conditioned shuttle to the hotel.) i know this will only get colder when autumn is in full swing and will even be colderrr during winter. brrr... 

i encountered a lot of angels today and the events that led me here are worth writing about. my flight was good and going through immigration, locating the bus stop, and getting to the hotel went smoothly. great solo adventure and great day 1, i can really say. still, it's been a long day for me.

oyasuminasai! (good night!)

i have to sleep now because i still have miles to go before i reach my new place. this hotel stay is just for tonight. tomorrow, i will be in fukui.

mission accomplished in iligan city: six waterfalls in one day!

oh yes! it can be done. actually, the target was to go to 7 waterfalls and, if not for circumstances beyond our control, we could have been to 8.

mission impossible and ultimate daytrip experience:
six waterfalls in an eight-hour adventure in iligan city

the 8-hour adventure of pinas flashpackers in iligan: 
waterfalls, waterfalls, and more waterfalls
08.23.13 six key stops, multiple public transportation transfers, and LOTS of walking | iligan -- "the city of majestic waterfalls"

in sitio kalubihon, brgy. dalipuga: [1] pampam falls. [2] unknown photogenic cascade downstream of pampam falls. [3] another unknown falls further downstream of pampam with deeper and more photogenic all-natural pool (accessible from the top of the falls or sa bakilid; just choose your own thrill).

via sitio dodiongan, brgy. digkilaan: [4] dodiongan falls 

via brgy. buru-un and brgy. ditucalan: [5] tinago falls

in brgy. buru-un: [6] mimbalot falls

missed (not our fault): maria cristina falls due to temporary closure of NPC nature's park/MinGen facilities to the public (a security-related proactive measure), missed (time & energy constraints and confusion over the location): kalubihon falls>

before this, the last time i set out to see some of iligan's more than twenty waterfalls was in december 2009.

kalubihon falls | february 2000

13 years ago, this was kalubihon falls -- we climbed above the cave instead of going inside it to eventually get to the foot of the falls. once we made our way down to the foot, we explored the cave. we went back upways and explored the upstream, too.

[watch out for the complete story; this post will be updated in the coming days.]



related posts:
In Focus: Iligan City, Her Lures, and More
destination: tinago falls

breathtaking tawi-tawi, truly breathtaking tawi-tawi

"It is a nature sanctuary with extensive rain and mangrove forests, rich culture, majestic mountains, primeval caves, coral reefs with some of the world’s rarest marine life, outstanding dive sites,
and pristine white sand beaches."
-- from Tawi-tawi, Close Encounters of a Natural Kind

tawi-tawi: what more can i say?

this is part 8 and the conclusion of a series entitled breathtaking tawi-tawi: our journey to the philippines' southernmost frontier.

picture perfect panglima sugala, tawi-tawi

tawi-tawi is THE destination you should not miss. the tawi-tawi travel experience is a priceless gift for the senses and this is not an overstatement.

it is true that tawi-tawi is "the backdoor gateway of the philippines to the rest of southeast asia," but this is only a simplified description of the country's southernmost melting pot that has so much in terms of culture, history, natural resources, and paradise spots.

bongao, tawi-tawi
as seen from the sea
on april 22, 2011

a kite eagle flying over brgy. pasiagan | tawi-tawi
on april 23, 2011

i dare share here a few pictures out of the hundreds that i took during our 3-day adventure but know that none of these can ever come close to making you experience the real deal.

bring yourself there, traveler. your tawi-tawi story is waiting to be told. allow your own tawi-tawi journey to unfold.


tawi-tawi: glimpses and tidbits in random order

tawi-tawi is an archipelago composed of 107 islands and islets located at the southwestern tip of the philippines. it is an island province with rich marine borders. a significant part of the tawi-tawi population rely on what they can have from the sea and it is logical that they stay close to it, if not on it -- either in houses built on stilts or on board boats.

when in tawi-tawi, expect to see lots of houses and outbuildings on stilts!

a lovely sight of stilthouses 
seen from sanga-sanga bridge
on april 24, 2011

stilts and a tropical hut in sangasiapu island | tawi-tawi
on april 23, 2011

a house on stilts in simunul island | tawi-tawi
on april 22, 2011

stilthouses and footbridges in brgy. tubig indangan, simunul, tawi-tawi
on april 22, 2011

the tawi-tawi provincial capitol, with its prominent dome and white walls, looks like a magnificent mosque.  it sits on a hill in bongao and provides an overlooking view of the town and the sea.

the tawi-tawi provincial capitol
as seen from the roofdeck of hotel juana
on the night of april 22, 2011

kat and i with the official seal of tawi-tawi
at the site of the provincial capitol
on april 23, 2011
(kat owns this picture)

black saturday sunset colors
as seen from the site of the tawi-tawi provincial capitol
on april 23, 2011

the venice of the south and the southernmost municipality of the philippines is sitangkai, a real deal waterworld where the known highway is a marine waterway. sitangkai is also the seaweed capital of the philippines.

 a smiling boatman taking the highway in sitangkai
on april 22, 2011

the island of sibutu is the nearest neighbor of sitangkai within philippine territory. sibutu is the island home of skilled seafarers, expert boat-builders, and master woodcarvers. aside from having white sand coastline with direct access to the celebes sea, sibutu also has the makhdum memorial and the kaban-kaban, a deep natural swimming hole with clear freshwater.

glimpses of sibutu island
on april 22, 2011

a known local mecca and pilgrimage site of filipino muslims is simunul, the recognized cradle of islam in the philippines. in simunul's brgy. tubig indangan, where the first mosque in the philippines was built, there is a commemorative arch to mark the 630th anniversary of the introduction of islam in the philippines.

the commemorative arch in simunul | tawi-tawi
on april 22, 2011

the pier in tubig indangan is not just a picture of open invitation. it is a good spot for watching inspiring sunsets, too.

once upon an awesome sunset
seen from tubig indangan, simunul, tawi-tawi
on april 22, 2011

among the many rewarding joys of island hopping in tawi-tawi is seeing the horizon disappear from view. because the sea can be so calm, the surface appears glassy, making it an efficient mirror of the sky.

the case of the disappearing horizon :)
while island hopping in tawi-tawi
on april 23, 2011

clear seawater, glassy water surface, and the vanishing horizon
just off sangasiapu island
on april 23, 2011

the seawater remains very clear, too, allowing you to see natural underwater gardens even though you're looking at them from a good distance.

view of the coastline, the sea, and underwater wonders
from sanga-sanga bridge
on april 24, 2011

the seawater in tawi-tawi is so clean and clear. there is no need for scuba nor snorkel-and-mask to see healthy corals. believe it or not, the colorful coral colonies are visible from the water surface!

a natural coral garden
just off tawi-tawi's tango island
on april 23, 2011

there are underwater areas that are all-sand, too, and very ideal for swimming.

part of sangasiapu island, tawi-tawi
on april 23, 2011

laa island, tawi-tawi
on april 23, 2011

this is a glimpse of how clean and clear tawi-tawi seawater is
photogenic sangasiapu island
on april 23, 2011

there is no exaggeration at all in saying this: breathtaking tawi-tawi, truly breathtaking tawi-tawi! :)

breathtaking tawi-tawi: our journey to the philippines' southernmost frontier | the series

part 1. the unplanned part of our tawi-tawi trip: the zamboanga city sidetrip
part 2. destination: sitangkai, the southernmost municipality of the philippines
part 3. exploring tawi-tawi's sibutu island
part 4. setting foot on tawi-tawi's simunul island
part 5. island hopping in the southern seas, island hopping in tawi-tawi and the continuation: island hopping in the southern seas, island hopping in tawi-tawi
part 6. from many angles: tawi-tawi's bud bongao
part 7. destination: balobok rock shelter and thereabouts
part 8. breathtaking tawi-tawi, truly breathtaking tawi-tawi