Passage to India

India has always fascinated me. In fact, there are a lot of Indian things that I like. 

First and foremost, there's Indian food. I'm a huge fan of Naan Bread, Curry, Biryani, Paper Doosa, Samosas, Lassi - you name it. Mark and I would often eat at New Bombay in Glorietta, and later on, at the Podium with Ia and Chrissie. When I was in Hong Kong, I'd often eat at Curry in a Hurry. And whenever I'm in Singapore, any restaurant - even the street stalls in Little India - was a source of gastronomic joy.

Second, there's Indian fashion. Their love for color is astounding. Whenever I'm in Little India, I'd pass through these sari stores (not to be confused with sari-sari stores, harhar) and see all these beautiful, jewel colored and gold embroidered fabrics. There's something very regal about them, especially when you see them worn by women on the streets.

I remember when I was still living in HKG, they had this Gujarat wedding skirt at Zara, and it was more than HK$1,000. Common sense would say that it's too much for a skirt, but the workmanship was just mind boggling, and the design was top notch. I ended up buying it for Ate Bullet.

Finally, there are Indian accessories. Again, I would spend hours in Little India poring through rows and rows of bangles in all shapes, sizes and colors. I'd buy a lot of the stacked bangles in metal, especially the ones encrusted with stones. 

On my way home, I passed through this non-descript shop in Farmer's Plaza called Girl Shoppe. From the window display, I saw two necklaces that had this strong Indian vibe. Naturally, I had to go in and check it out.

And naturally, I came out of the store carrying those 2 necklaces. (Typical.)

The first one was this bronze colored necklace with bells and crystals hanging from the end of the semi-circular patterns.

It jingles and jangles, thanks to the bell. And I can imagine this jingling and jangling when the wearer does that Bollywood neck move. (Which I doubt my sister would do.)

Then, here's another bronze beauty. And it has this lace pattern that's deceptively delicate. It actually looks like fabric from afar.

But it's metal, and it's really, really nice. (Too bad I can't say the same thing about the photograph. Harhar.)

These India-inspired finds made me crave for Indian food. Maybe it's time to eat that dish that Bela gave. Or maybe it's time to swing by New Bombay tomorrow.

How's this for a Universal Truth?

That was one question we were asked a lot during the 2nd week of our seminar. 

As Turan, our wonderful course leader, described it, Universal Truths are truths that apply to all, even if you agree or disagree with it. It will polarize people. Some will accept it while others will resist it. But no matter how people view it, it will always be true.

So how's this for a universal truth: Going back to school is fun!

(And here are some of the people who made my 2-week seminar such a wonderful experience. Dean Charlie, Turan, Ginger and Henk.)

I've learned a lot from our refresher course, and I can't wait to go back to school and teach my students all these gems that I picked up from our course leaders.

I'm sure it'll make going back to school so much fun.

Sunday's sorbet shades

Cool colors are one way to beat this oppressive summer heat. That's why on our summer get together at Mona's house, we all ended up wearing different shades of sorbet. (Or "sakura colors," as Mark observed.)

It might have been hot outside, but hey, at least we're cool inside.

Giving and Receiving

Yesterday, our 2-week seminar finally culminated with the awarding of certificates and a farewell luncheon for our foreign participants. 

I'm glad that I took part in this seminar. Not only did I gain knowledge, I also gained 12 new international friends, and 6 new local ones.

I couldn't let my new international friends leave without something that would remind them of the Philippines. So, I gave them souvenirs that were distinctly Filipino.

For the ladies, embroidered fans were the perfect reminder of the hot weather they experienced in the Philippines.

The embroidery on the fan is very intricate and beautifully done. The material is jusi, and the embroidery echoes the traditional barong design. I'm sure Sanija will love this since she's been looking for a Filipino fan since the start of this week.

For the gentlemen, I bought shot glasses with Manila and Philippine motifs. To make it more local, I bought banig boxes as container.

After giving the gifts, I was surprised to receive some local items from my International classmates as well. They're uber thoughtful.

Sadeesh gave me Green Tea from Sri Lanka. He mentioned that this is their premium brand back home. I'm sure it's great since Ceylon used to be the tea capital of the world. Bela then gave me a hanging ornament which is for good luck.

 Bela also gave me a ready to eat dish from India. She found out from our other classmates that I'm a huge fan of Indian food, so she gave me this authentic meal from her hometown. I hope I find Naan bread to go with this. And finally, the keychain came from Pabu, and she mentioned that it's one of their national symbols in Nepal.

Through this simple act of giving and receiving, we now have more things to remember each other by, aside from all the fun photos and wonderful experiences that were shared the past 2 weeks.

FMM: Always in Vogue

During yesterday's session, our topic was keeping television show formats fresh. This is key to keeping the audiences glued to the program for a long time.

In this day and age, most programs only last 13 weeks and disappear after that. Gone were the days when programs really lasted long, and in the Philippines, I think it's only Eat Bulaga that stood the test of time. 

Aside from mashing together different formats to give programs a fresh look and feel, another way is reinvention. This means taking the original and tweaking things to create a totally new material from an old and existing one. And during the class discussion, the subject turned to our generation's ionqueen of reinvention - Madonna.

The example given was the song "Vogue." It was first released in 1990, and Madonna has been singing it in her concerts ever since. And even if she's been singing the same song for 22 years, people are still excited to hear it because she brings something new to the table each time. It can be new synths, new arrangements, or even a new step. And once she's placed these new elements into the old song, it becomes a new one altogether.

This discussion inspired today's Friday Magic Madness entry. I looked at the original video of "Vogue" and a more current version. Here's the music video that debuted in 1990:



(video courtesy of youtube) 

And a more recent version from her "Sticky and Sweet" tour.
(video courtesy of youtube)

And it is indeed true. It's just like hearing two totally different songs, and that's why it never grows old.

Reinvention really is a powerful thing.

A Class Act

If memory serves me right, the last official class picture that I had was way back (and I do mean WAY back) in my Freshman year. I was part of Block I-1 with a lot of D' Frendz, and we had our photo taken at the steps of Quezon Hall. No other class pictures followed after that, basically because we really didn't have regular sections back in UP.

Today, after a long time, (and I do mean a LONG time) I found myself posing for a class picture again. A class composed of 20 professionals from 8 countries - from as near as Indonesia to as far as Bosnia & Herzegovina.

As it is customary, they asked us to act formal, and act wacky. And as it often happens, they sent us the wacky shot.

It's funny that whenever someone asks people to "act wacky," they just act surprised - hands up and mouths open. Most of my classmates did it, as well as our course leaders.

I guess that's the "agreed reality" of "acting wacky" all over the world.

Conversations and Confusion

I take the jeep going to the MRT station, and most of the time, the jeepney rides are boing and mundane.

Today, I hailed a jeep and seeing that the front seat was empty, I decided to sit there. So, it was just me and the driver in the front seats.

When I paid my fare, this conversation ensued between us:

ME: Bayad ho.
DRIVER: (looks at me) Ilan ka?
ME: Isa lang po.


After that conversation, I thought of what happened and let out a chuckle.

I didn't know what was more amusing. The fact that the driver asked a stupid question, or the fact that I answered it.

Disturbia(rt)

During our visit to the Modern Art exhibit at the National Museum, my classmates and I found ourselves in front of this very haunting and disturbing painting.

It was entitled "Drowning" and shows a family of 8 as they're submerging in floodwaters.

According to the description, it's an antithesis of the usual images of drowning. When people drown, they're usually in a state of panic, disarray, hands flailing and trying to hang on to anything they can put their hands on.

But if you look at the painting, the drowning family is calm and serene, as if trusting and waiting for someone to save them from death. You can even see the mother's hand as she clutches a rosary.

It was so disturbing, we left the gallery all pensive and quiet. And it took us about an hour and a half before we could talk about our feelings about the painting.

Now that's one powerful piece of art.

A day at the Museum

Yesterday, I decided to bring my classmates and one of our instructors on a mini-tour around Manila. 

Since our seminar started, all they've seen was their hotel, our school, Harrison Plaza, and the occasional trip to MOA or Roxas Boulevard. So, I promised them that I'd bring them to some of the more interesting historical sites in Manila.

And one of the places where I took them was the National Museum of the Filipino People.

Since I was in High School, I've always enjoyed going to the National Museum. And it provides a good snapshot of our history and culture - which they asked me to explain a lot of. Thank goodness I was attentive during our Kasaysayan 1 and 2 classes.

One of their favorite parts of the museum was the exhibit of the Philippine Art Awards.

They really took the time to study each piece and discuss among themselves. Also, they were impressed at the quality of creativity and the technical skill that went into each piece. 

And that's just the modern art. When I brought them to the National Art Gallery, they were even more impressed.

I should take my classes here next time. 

Soooo good. (Yet Soooo bad.)

If there's one fast food joint that never ceases to amaze me, it's KFC. They have this uncanny knack of turning something ordinary into something sinfully good. And here's their latest creation that fits that bill.

For two days straight, I've been ordering their Cheezy Bacon Bucket of Fries. It's part of their "Cheezy Bacon" series that includes a Twister and a Chicken Filet Burger. I've tried all 3, and the Twister and Burger are epic fails. But the fries... oh the fries!

It has their signature KFC fries, then drizzled with cheese sauce, mayonnaise, then topped with chicken bacon. Gosh, my arteries are clogging just by mentioning the ingredients. Harhar.

After today, I promise not to touch this product for the next week or two. It may be true to KFC's tagline of "Sooooo good," but it's so rich, it has to be "Sooooo bad."

Back to my roots

When I entered college, I had my mind set on becoming a journalist.

Writing was something that I was passionate about. Reading newspapers was my hobby. And I liked the idea of writing for a newspaper. That's why I chose to take up journalism in college, so I could plant my roots in the field I wanted to get into.

But somewhere along the way, I branched out. My creative instinct kicked in, and it kicked in fast.

Unfortunately, Journalism and Creativity don't mix. In our news writing class, our professor Ben Dom told me that I couldn't be a journalist because I was too creative. And because of that creativity, my news items were becoming less factual and more frivolous.

Of course, I tried to prove him wrong. Eventually, I did well in his class, but after that, I decided to uproot myself from Journalism and pursue a more creative field. The field where I am now.

I haven't completely turned my back on that field, though. There are the occasional article writing jobs for magazines, and the journalism courses that I've handled the past year. So, my roots to the journalistic world hasn't been completely cut.

And thanks to the seminar I'm attending, my journalistic roots are further being strengthened.

We had a group assignment: to create a news blog about a topic related to women and sports. Our group - composed of 2 Filipinos, an Indonesian and a Bosnian - was assigned the topic "Women in Boxing." After all the brainstorming, data gathering and interviewing, we divided the work among the 4 of us.

Two members were assigned to the video news presentation, one was assigned to the radio version of the report, and I was assigned to do the website and write all the articles.

In less than 4 hours, we came up with this.

For a journalistic piece that we had less than a day to prepare, our project came out beautifully. The articles were well researched, the videos were interesting and fun, the radio spot was fact filled, and the overall output was clear, concise and creative.

Among the 5 groups who presented, our website was the best received. The instructor said that it was interestingly done, while keeping all the facts and figures, and carrying a strong message.

I'm so glad that the journalist in me is still there. And after this exercise, I feel that I should do this more often.

FMM: Hit me with a rerun

Today's Friday Magic Madness song was inspired by our group work in school. Our TV diva, Dwi, edited a short feature on the subject of boxing, and she was looking for the right mood music for it. So, she comes up to my desk and asked if we could use this Pat Benatar classic from the 80s:



Being a big fan of the 80s, of course I gave her a resounding: "Hell, Yeah!"

This is actually the 2nd time I wrote about this song, which technically makes it a rerun.

But hey, that's what Friday Magic Madness is all about.

Time to be Avenged!

Cool Beans! The Avengers is opening today!

But like what Mark and I usually do, I think I'll wait for a few weeks for the hysteria to die down before I watch this film. I'm sure that it'll be in cinemas for quite a long time.

International School

For the past decade or so, I've been on the teacher's side of the classroom. And I really enjoy imparting knowledge, as well as getting insights from my students.

But this week was different. For the first time in a long time, I find myself sitting on the student's chair, listening to lessons on Gender, Sports and Media.

Because SSC played host to this regional learning event, I was given a slot and will play student for 2 weeks. And it really feels like being back in school. There are recitations, presentations, groupings, deadlines - everything I miss about school. (And I suspect, it's also everything my students dislike!)

What makes this class even more interesting is the fact that more than half of my classmates are foreigners. They come from as near as Indonesia to as far as Bosnia/Herzegovina. It's such a diverse class with different personalities, quirks and experiences.

It's been a while since I was last in a set-up like this, and I must say, I'm enjoying it. Whenever we have lunch or coffee breaks, I try to sit with different classmates so that I can get to know all of them before the 2-week seminar is done. 

Of course, there are some challenges to face while trying to do this task. First, there's the problem of language. Second, there's the problem that's more olfactory in nature. Harhar.

After being in this set-up for a few days, I think I now know how Mark felt in IUJ.  

Vera much

When I passed through Surplus Shop at SM Makati, I saw a couple of  pants on one of the racks. They were these cotton twill pants with a skinny silhouette.

After looking at them closely, I thought to myself: "Didn't I see these on the Kohl's website?"

And when I turned it over to see the brand, my hunch was confirmed.

They were Simply Vera cotton twill pants.

This brand is back in the haunts. And it's back with so, so much more.

Out of the Shadows

While browsing through the imdb site, I chanced upon the trailer of the newest collaboration between Johnny Depp and Tim Burton. It's a Vampire themed comedy film entitled "Dark Shadows."



It has all the elements of a Tim Burton film:

A touch of the macabre - check!
Dark and eerie setting - check!
Witty dialogue - check!
Interesting characters - check!
Helena Bonham Carter - double check!

The trailer alone has me all revved up to watch the film.

I hope the come out with this soon!

Entitled

What's with our obsession with titles?

 It seems like every star has to have a title to become legit. From the early days of "Superstar" and "Star for all Seasons," then we had "Diamond Star" and "Star of the new Decade." In fashion, we have Pitoy Moreno who's "Asia's Fashion Czar," to Ben Farrales as "The Dean of Philippine Fashion," to Inno Sotto's "Manila's Prince of Fashion."

 After hearing mass, I dropped by Robinson's Galleria to buy something at the Supermarket. Nearby, there was a mall concert by an artist named Juris.

When the host introduced her, he shouted:


"Let's all welcome, 'The Soothing Voice of Asia and the Pacific... Juris!'"

 Now that's the strangest title I've heard in a while.

ANTM's baffling bottom three

This may prove to be the biggest shocker of ANTM history. There's a bottom three, and they're no other than the 3 pillars of the show.

Imagine my shock when I read on-line that Nigel Barker, Jay Alexander and Jay Manuel were not only on the bottom three, but they were all eliminated! Yes, the magic triumvirate will not be coming back to ANTM next cycle. Unless they come up with better replacements, (something tells me that Benny Ninja might be the next runway and pose coach) I think i'll give ANTM a rest.

FMM: Turn up the Base!

Ace of Base, that is. Thanks to an on-line exchange I had with Ka Wei, my memories of "The Sign," came flooding back. This was one of those songs that were played non-stop on the radio. So often that it fast became a last song syndrome among the Adformatix folks, including Kuya Ers, of course. (With matching dance moves.) Songs from the 90s have that effect on people. Especially if that song is from Ace of Base! (Could the Vengabus be far behind?)

Choco Palmier is...

Yes, you're going to love French Baker's Choco Palmier.

I just chanced upon this one time when I was buying panini rolls. The cashier suggested that I try it, and that it's 50% off. I did, and I was delighted at how it tasted.

The pastry reminds me of argellanas - flaky, sweet with caramel undertones. And the chocolate they add is so thick and rich. The combination is light yet sinful.

Good thing they had more Choco Palmiers when I dropped by French Baker a while ago.