Tuos: An Exotic 2016 Cinemalaya Entry

Posted on August 11, 2016 by heavenliner

I have always believed that a superb art no matter what medium it is should be something that emits emotion subject to the sensors’ perception. It should be an art that is open to the subjective interpretation by the people who experiences it.

This precept is especially true of the Filipino film entitled Tuos, an official entry in the 2016 Cinemalaya Film Festival presently running at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. The conduct of the story as well as the moods of each of the characters in the film are all subject to the interpretation by the viewers.

cultural!!!

exotica!

Directed by Derick Cabrido, I consider Tuos as one of the most exotic Filipino film from among the Filipino films that I have seen. Though the movie has the tendency to get quite dragging, some of the rich colors of the Filipino customs and culture were shrewdly presented.

And aside from the impeccable acting of the legendary Filipino actress, Nora Aunor who plays Pina-Ilog in the movie, what particularly impressed me by Tuos were the additional layers of art that were fittingly mixed in the story. The landscape presented in a modern visual art and the haunting old folklore of a song mixed together during the animation portion of the movie were pure brilliance. These layers of art added up to the already rich texture of the movie.

When the movie ended and was already rolling its credits, I was left s mystified, stunned and thinking. With my limited cerebral capacity, I tried interpreting the scenes and the narratives that were presented. And there’s one last thing that I realized about Tuos, that it is indeed one exotic and powerful movie that only the smart and brainy human beings would be able to appreciate.

Sori na lang sa mga bobo, pang matalino lang ang pelikulang ito.

Palawan & Me: Saying Positive, Staying Positive

Posted on July 18, 2016 by heavenliner

According to Nengkoy, if you have anything good to say, SAY IT! That has been one positive mantra that I have learned from my mother. With this viewpoint, let me express two awesome thoughts.

First is to applaud the beautiful tropical island of Palawan for besting all other islands of the world. Congratulations to Palawan for being chosen as the number one island in the Travel + Leisure World’s Best Awards.

got Nacpan Beach in El Nido all for myself

Big Lagoon

Though I am very much elated by this awesome recognition, I am a little sad because this once hidden place of a paradise is slowly being discovered by world travelers. I would love to keep Palawan unspoiled. I hope that the blue and emerald green waters, the jungle-filled mountains as well as the incredible and colorful wildlife both underwater and on land of this beautiful paradise will be well preserved.

Second is to convey gratitude to my Facebook friends for “liking” my profile picture. I am delighted and overjoyed because it is the first time ever in my being an FB account user that my profile picture reached more than 200 likes.

my most “liked” FB profile

Thank you FB friends! Your “likes” in some ways makes me stay positive! I am not a popular FB account user, but my reaching 200+ likes felt like winning the award for being the best island of the world. And just like Palawan, I think I need to preserve my positive bearing and uncomplicated being because I’m starting to get “popular”! Hahaha!

Parang Palawan, pasikat na ako!

Excited for Celias Café

Posted on July 9, 2016 by heavenliner

People living in Alaminos, Pangasinan (and those who would visit this fast developing city) has something awesome to look forward to. Celias, a new modern Filipino coffee shop, is due to open on Saturday, July 16, 2016.

egzoited!!!

I am excited because the last time I visited Alaminos, Pangasinan, there seem to be no decent café or coffee shop where we could enjoy good coffee and some sumptuous meal. I and my friends (after touring the Hundred Islands) settled on eating at a trivial fastfood joint inside a trivial shopping mall.

What I’m most excited about Celias Cafe would be their all-day-breakfast Pinoy food offerings as well as that of their coffee concoctions. I am excited because I know, on a personal level, the owners of this café. And I know that these owners has lived for years in Osaka, the culinary capital of Japan. Hence, these new proprietors knows what good food is and I believe they have acquired impressive palatal sense. They know what delicious is!

I will definitely be heading to Celias Café and will give you my two cents on what this new exciting café has to offer! Celias is located beside the SSS Building along Marcos Avenue, Alaminos City, Pangasinan.

Si yu der…

China Blue Makes My Blog Look Expensive

Posted on July 5, 2016 by heavenliner

Let me add some class, sophistication and culinary elegance to this blog by posting photos of the interiors, table set-up and a couple of tasty food dishes of China Blue.

China Blue Manila

the set-up (especially the beautiful plate chargers) speaks a lot about elegance

Thin Crispy Beef… my personal favorite

elegant interiors… round chandelier in manila, square chandelier in tokyo…

Steamed Truffle Mushroom Bun… the most “sosyal” and ostentatious “siopao”

inside Conrad Hotel Manila

China Blue Manila inside Conrad Hotel (the newest five star luxury hotel in Manila) is not the first on the planet. The first China Blue, a classy modern Chinese cuisine restaurant is in Conrad Hotel in Tokyo.

O ‘di ba? Ang sosyal sosyal ko!

Pancit Batil Patung at Shallots-All-You-Can Joint

Posted on July 3, 2016 by heavenliner

The usual main aim of an out of town adventure is to see and experience for yourself the scenic view of your planned destination. While the food in your destination would usually come in as an additional perk to an already awesome adventure.

But this is not the case with my recent out of town adventure in Tuguegarao, Cagayan province. I, MJ, JB and Willie (my officemates) went to Tuguegarao for a long weekend with two major aims in mind: to visit the majestic Callo Cave and to take a bite of Tuguegarao’s unique noodle dish.

super special batil patung at jomar’s

Pancit Batil Patung on my first chomp was like an explosion of flavors in my palate. The delicious mixture of ingredients was so awesome it will make your taste buds wanna grow hands for it to give a good round of applause.

But let me digress from the as-expected delicious taste of this dish to that of the surprising and unique experience we had when we went and ordered our Pancit Batil Patung at Jomar’s Panceteria (panceteria: English translation, noodle house).

Jomar’s Panceteria only serves Pancit Batil Patung and there’s nothing else in the menu. Thus, you would really conclude that their noodle dish is one of the best since it’s the only dish that keeps their store alive. Nevertheless, their pancit are of three varieties, i.e. regular, special and super special. All four of us of course did not settle for less and opted for the Super Special which only costs eighty pesos (or less than US$ 2).

happy tummy… (with mj, jb and willie)

Our astonishment in the restaurant was further driven when we noticed at one corner of the dining area was the presence of a ginormous chopping board, several knives and a huge sack full of pungent shallots.

While we were having the first bite of the pancit (egg noodle), we noticed people were actually proceeding to the monster chopping board and were actually peeling off and mincing the shallots. After which they would place it on a small saucer and bring to their table. We then saw them pour soy sauce and scooped a generous amount so as to top it on their Pancit Batil Patung.

We then asked our companion Willie to peel and chop red onions for us. And when he could no longer take it he went back to our table serving a meager amount of minced shallots with uncontrollable tears in his eyes. We on the other hand were laughing so hard!

big portions!!!

extra challenge part of the adventure!

pose muna with the “cusinera“

That’s when we realized that Jomar’s Pancit Batil Patung was a shallots-all-you-can panciteria! I was actually telling my companions that Jomar’s should replace the knives and chopping board with a food processor so that it would be “no-more-tears” and would be easier for their guests. But then again, I realized that if electric food processor would be installed, the odd extra-challenge, fun and uniqueness of the whole experience would be expunged.

Where in the world would you find a restaurant that has this kind of an offering? Pancit Batil Patung at Jomar’s was definitely one unique, enjoyable and tummy-filling part of our adventure in Tuguegarao.

Sibuyas pa mor!

The Majesty & Magnificence of Callao Cave

Posted on June 30, 2016 by heavenliner

I can’t recall if I have been to a cave. This is until my attention, interest and curiosity was called upon by the beauty, majesty and magnificence of Callao Cave in Tuguegarao Province. This grand and imposing natural formation is known as the site where the oldest human bone of a Filipino has been discovered.

Being inside Callao Cave can be considered a blessing. It was such an awesome sight. The grandiose rock formations and the dramatic effect of natural rays of the sun seeping through the holes and crevices above the chambers and domes were really breathtaking. I never imagined that such a place actually exists!

with mj, jb and willie playing with the rays of the sun…

dramatic!

the rarest chapel ever!

the stunning lighting effect are all natural…

Me and my colleagues (MJ, JB and Willie) felt so blessed for we were fortunate enough to behold such a magnificent work of nature! The stunning site gives you an insight that the caveman who lived inside Callao thousands of years ago must be spending some auspicious lifestyle! His architect and interior designer was no less than Mother Nature.

My experience and beautiful impression of Callao is worth a memory that can be tucked securely in a corner of my mind which can readily be pulled out later, maybe for a poem, or a short story or a song. And it will definitely take a lot for the succeeding caves that I will step into for me to get as impressed as that of the first cave that I have been to. Callao was one stupendously gorgeous cave!

Hayop sa ganda ang kwebang yon!

Cool Tuguegarao Adventure 2016 Video

Posted on June 28, 2016 by heavenliner

Worry. That is my initial feeling when the plan to go to the province of Tuguegarao has finally been confirmed. I was worried that my super hot body might assimilate with that of the hottest place in the Philippines. I was worried for it might have an effect on mankind and the environment I was worried that the integration of my mega hot body with that of the blistering climate of Tugegarao may cause the planet to explode!

my gosh… that is one hot dude! (in my dreams) hahaha!

But I was wrong because by the time I stepped on the tarmac at Tugegarao airport all I could feel was coolness. I knew right away that this super hot spot in the Philippines would be one cool place to stay. I was wrong because the only blazing hot was the weather everything else were sooo cool and refreshing. The people, the food as well as the beautiful scenery were something to chill about!

To summarize my adventure with colleagues MJ, JB and Willie, here’s one refreshing video. I hope that Ben Rector would equally be cool about my using his awesome song entitled Brand New (no copyright infringement was intended) in this video…

It was a blast!

Sa sobrang init, gusto ko nang mag dyaket!

The Word for Today is Kafkaesque

Posted on June 6, 2016 by heavenliner

Our word for the day is ‘Kafkaesque’. Meriam-Webster defines this adjective as “having a nightmarishly complex, bizarre or illogical quality”. And still according to Meriam-Webster, this word is “often applied to bizarre and impersonal administrative situations where the individual feels powerless to understand or control what is happening”.

The feeling of being Kafkaesque is what I believe is what majority of the Filipinos are at in the present time. This is most specifically exact with regards to the socio-political environment of the Philippines now that Rodrigo “The Punisher” Duterte, the president-elect, is about to head the country. The Pinoy populace has gone Kafkaesque despite the fact that the incoming head of state has:

cursed and condemned the United Nations during his most recent press conference
called the Pope a son of a whore during its 2015 visit in the country
ridiculed Mexicans in front of the Mexican Ambassador
uttered misogynistic comments and called himself a womanizer
talked about his libido and sexual prowess during his campaign trails
pronounced that he could not live without Viagra
admitted to have permitted vigilante justice
joked about wanting to be the first to rape a brutally murdered Australian missionary
threatens to abolish the Congress if it plans to impeach him
voiced out that he is to pardon himself to mass murders
admitted his involvement with death squads
catcalled on a respectable lady journalist during a press conference
so used to using the Filipino-Tagalog term for “son of a bitch” as if it is one conventional and tolerable expression

kafkaesque ang peg natin dito kay manong

I don’t want to analyze and justify why he won the country’s presidential election and continues to be so loved and be so popular in this country despite all those atrocious and despicable rhetoric. And I know that my not trying to analyze and justify does not make things better. Maybe it is because like the majority of the Filipinos, I myself has gone Kafkaesque.

Mind you, the use of the word Kafkaesque is not the first time in this blog. I have utilized this word in one of my blog posts some three and a half years ago. Click this LINK (kafkaesque) to find out…

But seriously – as if the enumerated speechifying by Duterte are nothing but light, easy and cheery – the reason why I chose the word Kafkaesque is because of a recent video posted by New York Magazine in its Facebook page.

Watch this and be amazed by this stunning piece of art which commemorates Franz Kafka, the dude whose surname was the origin of the word of the day…

Parang pang sosyal naman yang word na yan!

Resolved Craving for Patupat

Posted on June 5, 2016 by heavenliner

Americans may crave for the tasty mac & cheese, Italians may hanker for an authentic margherita pizza and Japanese for a shot of sake. This is a common desire and appetite if they people have been out of their country for a considerable span of time. I for one yearned for the texture, flavor and smell of Patupat.

Being a child of a Pangasinense, I grew up chomping on the sweet molasses flavor of this glutinous rice wrapped in coconut leaves weaved into a bag. Patupat during my childhood was a usual chow readily available inside our ref every time my father’s relatives living in Pangasinan visits Manila. And because of this, my DNA was programmed to crave for such if my nutritional intake has been Patupat-deficient. I can confidently say that Patupat in a way defines me. It’s in my tradition, it’s in my subconscious, it’s in my roots.

i have to steam it! just like me... it's best consumed when sticky and hot!

i have to steam it! it’s best consumed when hot and sticky!

patupat defines me…

I could no longer recall the time when the last time I ate a bag of Patupat. I have been craving for it! That is why when I learned that Thatcher (my niece) will be arriving in Manila from Pangasinan, the foolish request I asked her is to bring me loads of this tasty, sticky and gluey delicacy.

Now my craving has been resolved because my hearty breakfast are two bags of Patupat. I guess… Patupat defines me. Patupat is tasty, hot and sticky just like me! Yummy!

Walang kaduda-duda, Pinoy nga ako!

The Sameness and Difference Between A Madonna Fan And A Duterte Fan

Posted on May 1, 2016 by heavenliner

A fanatic is someone who is enthusiastically devoted to something or somebody. They are the type whose supposed reasoning and realistic views are often clouded by their strong affection, uncritical adoration or excessive enthusiasm towards the object or person of their devotion.

filipino fandom

I for one is a fan. Lots of friends and relatives know that the person of my fanaticism is the Queen of Pop Madonna. I have done senseless things in the past on my being a fan of Madonna. That is, from hanging huge posters or framed photos in my room to cutting and collecting clippings of articles written about her to buying all her records.

I am a fan because whatever Madonna does, I still admire her. My reasoning, logic and judgement tends to get murky when it comes to Madonna. Whatever she does, whatever she says and whatever she thinks, no matter how bad, evil or crazy it is, such will just be fine, tolerable and acceptable with me.

I can always reason out or justify why she utter a thought or does things no matter how stupid it may be. I can even think of meanings behind what seem to be symbols in her wardrobe, in her songs or in her music videos. That is how fanatic I am about Madonna.

This is the very idea that led me to think about the new fandoms that has emerged in two countries where the presidential election campaigns are ongoing. I am talking about USA and the Philippines.

In US, it can no longer be denied the existence of hardcore devotion towards the Republican front runner Donald Trump. And here in the Philippines, we have the presidential front runner and likely victor Rodrigo Duterte, whose despicable utterances and vile conducts make Donald Trump look like a polite and obedient boy.

And since I live here in the Philippines, let me focus the fanaticism towards Duterte. Otherwise known as “The Digong Phenomenon”, this fandom is something new here in the Philippines. According to social analysts, this new fanbase crisscrosses the social status spectrum, i.e. from class A to E.

And despite the fact that he has gone fickle in admitting to have hidden wealth, he disrespect the elders, challenge the foreign allies, admitted to have killed thousands of people, joked about rape and death of a slashed neck woman, call the Pope a son of a b, and does not seem to have concrete plans about the Philippines, his fans still would not mind. The fanatics still profess to vote for him in the coming election. They would even threaten to fight and stage a revolution in case he loses.

Yeah, I am the same of a fan-tard of Madonna as what multitude of Filipinos to being fan-tards of Duterte. But what’s the disturbing difference? I can think of only one answer.

The big difference would be the effect of such fanaticism. My devotion or Madonna fans’ adoration would not shape or influence the future of a nation. While the Duterte fanaticism could actually affect everyone in the Philippines may a citizen be a fan or not. Madonna’s utterances, actions, triumphs and failures would basically affect her and her alone. But Duterte’s actions, decisions, would-be-achievements and most-likely-transgressions would obviously affect every Filipino may they be based here or abroad.

similar yet very different

And since I am not a fan, the thought of Duterte being my President makes me so anxious and nervous. The result of the upcoming Philippine election definitely is a very critical event. Whether I like it or not, it will be part of my life in the next six years. The future of the overall situation of the nation where I breathe is at stake. And the thought of Duterte being my President makes me shiver! That is why in my humble effort, I would try to dissuade people from voting for Duterte.

I know that (like my unbending illogical adoration towards Madonna) the Duterte fanatics will never, in any way reverse or even bend their fanaticism towards Mr. Duterte. And in case Duterte is proclaimed the President, I would just have to accept and assent to the impending menacing circumstances.

I will most probably lynched or will have to shower offensive slurs in the next couple of days because of this piece of writing – because Duterte diehards can somewhat be rude, insulting and odious – but I truly hope and pray that Duterte fans are outnumbered by voters who chose a different candidate.

Aside from being the same on being illogical, unbending and absurd. I just hope that Duterte fanatics are outnumbered, the same way that I being a Madonna fan is outnumbered.

Santa Maria!!! Hwag naman sana!!!!

Nengkoy

ruminations & travesties of the favorite yet naughty son of Nengkoy

Tag Archives: philippines