For the past five decades, the National Planetarium has been the main gateway for many Filipinos to learn about the beauty and mystery of the cosmos. It was the brainchild of the former head of the Philippine Astronomical Society, Maximo Sacre Jr., who shared his dream for the planetarium in the early 1970s with Godofredo […]
Cars have new models. Software gets upgraded. Malls undergo renovation. Everything around you seem to be improving – maybe it’s about time you do too. And what better time to do so than at the start of the year. People are always setting goals – “downgrading” three sizes from XL to small and strutting around […]
I wanted my year-end column to end on a happier note, but I cannot leave two upsetting pieces of news unaddressed. The first is about former Davao City vice mayor Paolo Duterte’s ridiculous but highly disturbing list of people allegedly planning the ouster of his father President Duterte. The second is about the project to […]
Oil on NFA Rice sacks by Archie Oclos. We started at the left most panel and Achi immediately asked me why their heads were tilted. I told her, “you’ll see.” Towards the end, right before the last panel, painted directly on the wall, is a bullet that had pierced all of those heads. As soon […]
He probably never thought that he would die that day. He and a few men from their barangay only wanted to help. They had rushed to try and rescue a family trapped under the rubble of muddy rocks. Jun-Jun, as his friends and family call him, was not fortunate enough to escape the mountain of […]
As a newcomer, I felt motivated just watching the organizers plan the relief operations in detail. Despite having just a few short days to prepare, the organizing team was able to coordinate with partners (e.g. Amity Foundation Baguio, the Filipino-Chinese Calamity Relief Fund, UPCB Educational Foundation and University of the Philippines-Baguio) and prepare enough relief […]
Our short trip to Benguet was meaningful and spontaneous. We had a little time to plan. I was amazed at how well the team was formed, ideas gathered and executed – all in just 11 days! This I think is a great example of the efficiency of Kaisa Para Sa Kaunlaran. After all, in conducting […]
Let me start this journal entry with a confession: I hesitated a lot when I got the invitation to be part of the relief ops for Bakun. My knee-jerk reaction was to say “no” to this opportunity. Just thinking about going to a relief operation site made me anxious. The last time I went to […]
Typhoon Ompong hit Benguet province on Sept. 15. Two days later, Kaisa’s partner organization, Amity Foundation Hong Kong (愛德基金會) called to ask if Kaisa was going to conduct relief operations. They informed us that the Hong Kong government’s Disaster Relief Fund now had a quick response option, which has less stringent requirements as long as […]
This is a continuation of my last Gems of History column on “Parian in Cebu” to complete the story of what happened to the Chinese in Cebu at the turn of the 20th century. Our narration will again be based mainly on National Artist Resil B. Mojares’ Casa Gerordo in Cebu.From 1850 onwards, the Chinese […]