In a talk before the Chinese Filipino Business Club, I asked the audience if anyone remembered the original name of San Fernando Bridge. Only a few raised their hands and said “Baybay Kio” or Baybay Bridge. Young people and newcomers are no longer familiar with the essence of Binondo that made it unique in the […]
Hokkien, on the tongues of Tsinoys, has grown and evolved, taking on a life of its own. Sometimes words simply fail us. With some creativity, Tsinoys have strung together words to form colorful phrases that simply hit the bull’s eye. Here are some expressions unique to Hokkien as favored by Tsinoys. Idioms, expressions Hokkien pronunciation […]
One thing I have observed in the last decade or so regarding the Chinese New Year celebration in the Philippines is how it has slowly been injected with Filipino flavor. I am not talking about the vendors who come to Binondo to sell their wares or the Ati-atihan dancers and fire eaters. What I am […]
Queen Du Gu (獨孤), wife of Emperor Sui Wen Di (隋文帝 581-601 AD), was of noble origin. Even as a queen, she did not abuse her power or yearn for and seek vanity. Rather, she worked hard and attached importance to the state. When the Turks (突厥) traded with Sui Dynasty, they had a suitcase […]
The past week saw many discussions arising from misdemeanors of young Chinese nationals in our country. Two of the incidents, just three days apart, incensed the public, Tsinoys included. I want to think that the culprits’ ethnicity was not the main consideration. That even if the malefactors are American, Korean, Japanese or some other foreign […]
The Lantern Festival (元宵節) is celebrated on the 15th day of the first lunar month, and signals the end of the Chinese New Year Spring Festival (春節). Also known as Shangyuan Festival (上元節), this event marks the first full moon of the year, which falls on February 19 this year. The Lantern Festival can be […]
An Indonesian captive of the Abu Sayyaf in Sulu was released on Jan. 15, the military said. Juragan Kapal Samsul Saguni, who was abducted off waters of Sabah in September 2018, was brought to the house of former Sulu Governor Abdul Sakur Tan in Barangay Poblacion in Maimbung town, said Western Mindanao Command spokesperson Lt. […]
I asked my daughter if the SM jingle “SM Shoemart, we have it all” is still heard on the air. She laughed at me, “Mom, that’s 20 years ago!” We at Kaisa Para Sa Kaunlaran remember the jingle very well because SM was the main advertiser of our Sunday children’s television show, the award-winning “Pin-Pin.” […]
In 2017, we commemorated the 600th year of the historical visit of Sulu Sultan Paduka Batara to Peking. By next year, 2020, it will be the 600th anniversary of another historical visit to Peking by another Filipino king, the Sultan of Kumalarang in Basilan. Sultan Batara’s visit to Peking in 1417 and his death and […]
In the olden days, China was largely an agricultural country. People did not know how to keep count of years or months, and so, they asked the Jade Emperor (玉帝) for guidance. The emperor mused that the lives of men are linked with that of animals. If 12 kinds of animals were selected to represent […]