The Department of Health states that around 300 to 600 Filipinos die from rabies per year. More than half of the victims are children between five to 14 years of age. According to the World Health Organization, the Philippines ranks among the highest in the world in terms of rabies prevalence. Rabies is a deadly […]
That’s the mantra of tour operators and tour guides to visitors who go to either of the Unesco World Heritage sites. Indeed, with over 3,000 limestone outcroppings spread over an area of 4,810 hectares, Zhangjiajie in Hunan province in China is a mystical glimpse into times long past. Looking down into the tangled spaces between […]
During ancient times, letter writers were called scribes. Nowadays, with improved literacy, it’s hard to imagine why letter writers were necessary a century ago. My first encounter with the profession was at the Bahay Tsinoy, a museum of Chinese in Philippine life. One prominent life-sized figure depicted a late Spanish or early American era man […]
For many parents involved in their children’s schooling, annual rites include buying school supplies. With so many goodies available from large retailers at the mall, children tag along with parents to shop for supplies and all have a grand time. All, that is, except the wallet. On average, the price markup at large chains is […]
If you’re often on the road, you must have witnessed angry drivers shouting at each other. Sometimes, this argument ends up with just evil stares and horn blowing. That’s all right. No harm done. However, there are instances when the fight escalates with one person physically mauling or using a weapon to hurt another. This […]
He bought his first car at 25, his first 350 sq. meter home at 28. This is Sean Si. He’s now reaping the rewards from running several successful technology-based businesses that he started at the age of 22. But it wasn’t always that way. Technology is how he’s making a comfortable living now, but it’s […]
According to legend, a child enters the world with a mirror that holds his soul, and this mirror reflects not only his image but also the love shaping his soul. Should the mirror break, the child’s soul will be marred forever. This metaphor forms the basis of Broken Mirror: Inside a Chinese Marriage, the story […]
I have finished my Buddhist studies with wise senior Buddhist nuns in a nunnery on top of a hill. Time to take the final exams – attend a Nepali wedding! A word of caution: Do not take the same curriculum –this ‘exam’ only happens once in a blue moon! It just so happen that the […]
Growing up in Binondo, I always wondered about other Overseas Chinese communities. What fascinates me is the integration process – how they combine their culture with that of the country they now call home. So, whenever I visit a country that has a Chinatown, I check it out. When I visited Japan this year, I […]
My father grew up in Davao but left in the late 1930s to study in Shanghai. When he returned in 1947, he decided to settle in Manila where he married. My sister and I were both born and raised in Manila. I was about five when I took my first plane ride, my mother bringing […]