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. 好心被雷撞 ho sim t’o […]
During the Sui Dynasty (581-618 AD), Xin Gong Yi (辛公義) was appointed as the governor of Mou Zhou (牟州) prefecture. Upon assuming his post, despite being worn out during travel, he went straight to the prison. He looked for a spot at an open air vacant lot and started interrogating the prisoners by himself. Continuing the […]
不可熄滅的光明 施文志 血淚與骨肉 鑄造的銅像 不可屈辱的尊嚴 完美堅定 黑暗中 不可熄滅的光明 讓她們 活在史冊上 Hindi Mapapawing Liwanag Estatwang nililok Sa dugo at luha, buto at laman Hindi maalipustang dignidad Walang pingas at matatag Hindi mapapawing liwanag Sa kadiliman Hayaang mabuhay sila Sa libro ng kasaysayan Light That Could Not Be Dimmed Figure carved From blood and tears, bone and […]
Chinese animal zodiac signs have always been part of the fun of our Lunar New Year celebrations. We are all familiar with its 12-year cycle but not everybody is aware that it is actually part of a bigger 60-year cycle, or that each birth year is also assigned to any one of the five elements, […]
In my 25 years of working for reforms in the criminal justice system, I thought I have heard and known the worst cases of travesty of justice. I thought wrong. Feelings of shock, dismay and sadness competed while I read the news that the Office of the Ombudsman has ordered the dismissal of Dr. Ester […]
The Year of Brown Earth (or Mountain) Dog officially starts on Chinese New Year (Feb. 16) this year. The Dog occupies the 11th position in the Chinese zodiac, after the Rooster and before the Pig. In Chinese element theory, each zodiac sign is associated with one of the five elements: Gold or Metal, Wood, Water, Fire and […]
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. 學好三年，學壞三日 ô ho san […]
(First of two parts) In one of our medical missions, we visited a poor family living beside the Sta. Mesa railway. They have seven children, all with tuberculosis. The father and mother also have TB. We helped them for a span of six months. The last time I saw them, the mother was again pregnant […]
Hong Kong has long been a favorite travel destination for many Filipinos. In 2016 alone, 791,171 Filipino tourists visited Hong Kong for shopping bargains, gourmet treats and Disneyland. The city is also a popular destination for overseas Filipino workers. They comprise Hong Kong’s largest migrant worker community with a population of 184,081. So it makes sense […]
During our research on old names of places in the Philippines mentioned in ancient Chinese records, we encountered a pair of names – 沙瑶 (Sayao) and 呐嗶嘽 (Dapitan). 呐嗶嘽 is easy to locate because Dapitan is pronounced almost exactly like Na-pi-tan in Hokkien or Na Bi Dan in Mandarin. This Zamboanga del Norte city is […]