Despite the travel advisory issued by Australia against Philippines, Travel.com.au, an Australian travel website cited our country as one of the top holiday destinations in 2011 based on travel trends and statistics. Reason is "Philippines becoming increasingly popular due to the political unrest in Thailand and its untapped beaches". Brazil and India are also included in a suggested list of destinations, travel tips and airlines for next year. Brazil’s affordable airfares and its rich cultures, interest in India are cited too. USA and New Zealand are also in which were described as “old favorites”.
While Ex. US Pres. Bill Clinton urges to "get more people to come home" during his November trip to the Philippines this year, it is a sad reality that more Filipinos find abroad still the best resort to improve the quality of their lives. When one speaks of Philippine tourism, it refers to Boracay’s beaches, Palawan’s underground river or Bohol’s Chocolate hills but surprisingly, Manila’s tourism outshone them. The demand for IT products was not explained enough but thinking Manila is the central hub in the Philippines where most of the BPO’s (business processing outsources) are, it is really possible that there really is a demand.
Manila is home to 10 million people, plus one million for those living in the streets, under bridges or vagabonds at all. Manila Galleons during the Manila – Acapulco Trade are the largest ships ever built at that time during 1800’s – 1900’s earning the title “Pearl of the Orient”. The first airline in Asia, the oldest existing university in Asia even older than Harvard – University of Sto Tomas and the only all steel church in Asia - Basilica Minore de San Sebastian ... these are all in Manila. Seen in The Atlantic, is the picture of the latter
Source: 30 Most Dynamic Cities in the World by Derek Thompson
"Its welcoming, friendly, creative, forgiving, kind and resilient people." says Canadian photojournalist Liza Linklater when asked what she finds so special about the Philippines. Her photo exhibit entitled Philippine Portraits displayed at The Alcove photo gallery of the Filipinas Heritage Library, presented fifteen (15) photographs taken in Tagaytay, Intramuros, Roxas Boulevard and Makati . Shot from 2008 until 2010, Philippine Portraits is mostly about ordinary Filipinos who dwell in the streets all day long to make a living or continue living.
Liza Linklater describes these people are hard-working that get up and work everyday to support their families. She adds "it is these daily occupations and the dignity and pride that they attach to even the humblest of tasks that I have tried to capture in my photographs". She is convinced that the country is really about the people though she thinks that the landscape is magnificent too. Her photographs were exhibited in Canada, Thailand and the Philippines. Her articles and photographs were published in North American and Asian magazines and newspapers. She has lived in Asia for eleven (11) years and Philippine Portraits is the fruit of her three (3) - year stay in Manila.
Philippine Portraits is a hodge-podge of the country's identities. A touch of tourism can be seen in "Intramuros Guards" and "Three Nuns." Love for sports is shown in "Baseball Players", "Tennis Coach & Ball Boy", "Skateboarders" and of course the "Boxing Trainers". Filipinos in the streets: "Pedicab Driver", "Street Sweepers", "DPC & Construction Workers", "Crossing Guards" and the "Guadalupe Girls". "Domestic Helpers" which used to be the flagship of overseas filipino workers before and education as the hope of the future "Manila Students".
Check the Photos:
The Alcove Photo Gallery of the Filipinas Heritage Library
Intramuros Guards - Manila 2009
Pedicab Driver - Intramuros 2010
Guadalupe Girls - Makati 2010
Pedicab Driver - Intramuros 2010
Three Nuns - Tagaytay 2008
Boxing Trainers - Punch Out Club Makati 2010
To view the rest of the photos, click here
Information and Photographs taken from Filipinas Heritage Library dated Nov. 27, 2010
M/V Tenshu Maru was launched last Nov. 10 at Tsuneishi shipyard in Balamban town of western Cebu province. Pres. Noynoy C. Aquino, the Japanese ambassador, Cebu Governor Gwen Garcia and other local politicians, leaders of the Aboitiz family who owns 20 percent of the shipyard, Japanese executives and workers joined the event. The M/V Tenshu Maru stretches 286.9 meter long, 45 meter wide and weighs around 92,000 tons. It only took 10 months to build the M/V Tenshu Maru with the help of 50 engineers and is now manned by 22 crews. To date, it is the 120th vessel constructed in Cebu.
The 147-hectare shipyard where M/V Tenshu Maru, was built 16 years ago with only 2,000 workers but now it surged to 11,000 workers and 70% of these workers are Balamban residents. Aboitiz added with the combined output of the Balamban shipyard and Hanjin in Subic, we’re surely be the fourth largest in shipbuilding. Balamban Mayor Ace Binghay in an interview said he is very proud that his hometown is the site of one of the world’s biggest shipyards though the place doesn’t have a track record of shipbuilding before. Pres. Noynoy in his speech thanked Tsuneishi “for achieving so much in short time and for the jobs provided to the people.”
Source: Aquino hails shipbuilders for jobs from Sunstar Cebu and Let's aim to be the Manny Pacquiao of shipbuilding, tourism and entertainment
Picture from Newsflash.org
Dead Ifugao girl
Sultan of Sulu has Many Wives
Bayanihan
Caption be added soon
This exhibition is presented to you by The Mind Museum, a science museum project of the Bonifacio Art Foundation, Inc. and its institutional partner, The National Geographic Channel.
Exhibition dates and venues (2010):
October 3-4 Greenbelt 5
October 7-10 Glorietta
October 21-24 TriNoma
November 12-14 Bonifacio High Street
Puerto Princesa's Palawan Underground River is now in the top spot among the other 27 international finalists in an online search for New Seven Wonders of the Nature. Palawan’s underground river is a unique and magnificent river located at the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, declared as a World Heritage site by UNESCO and one of the most biodiverse conservation areas in the world. As described in the New7Wonders website, this place features a limestone karst mountain landscape with an 8.2km navigable underground river, reputedly the longest subterranean river in the world with major formations of stalactites and stalagmites inside. At the mouth of the cave, a clear lagoon is framed by ancient trees growing right on the water’s edge.
Puerto Princesa Mayor Edward Hagedorn is calling more Filipinos here and abroad to support voting our very own Palawan underground river through www.new7wonders.com/n7w. Helping him are Tourism Secretary Ace Durano and mall heir Henry Sy Jr. who launched a campaign in Mall of Asia last Aug. 13st. Globe, Smart and Sun cellular companies are also helping out for taking in votes for PPUR through text messaging. Subscribers can text PPUR, PPUR7 or PPUR15 to 2861. Palawan Underground River was in 13th slot two weeks ago and it needs more vote to stay on top of the list since the voting time is not over yet. The online contest will end officially on Nov. 11, 2011.
Joining Palawan Underground River in the list are: Dead Sea, Mt. Kilimanjaro, Maldives, Grand Canyon, Jeju Island, Bay of Fundy, Black Forest, Iguazu Falls, Angel Falls, Yushan, Uluru, Galapagos, Milford Sound, Bu Tinah Island, Great Barrier Reef, Halong Bay, Komodo, Amazon, Mt. Vesuvius, Table Mountain, Masurian Lake District and Mud Volcano. Most of these finalists are found in Europe and Latin America. The latest ranking result was chosen by 58.38 percent of females who joined the online poll, with 41.62 percent of the voters comprised of males. Voting won’t cause Filipinos a single drop of sweat as there are two ways: either online or text messaging so please vote for the Palawan underground river!
Whew! While some of our fellow kababayans are dying to book either an Asian or European tour trips to see the beauty, a known international and famous travel website based in California
that features great spots around the world has acknowledged Philippines, our beloved
country as one of the 25 Best Trips For 2010.
Honestly, first thing I heard about it. I did stopped for a while and think of what?
Where? Really? I admit I only personally know a handful of some world-class spots
in my own country. But then I (crossing fingers) would love to appreciate these spots myself and hopefully from our fellow kababayans who first should learn how to appreciate what we have or should I say what we have alone.
This is the excerpt of their featured trip:
"This May the outfit will lead clients high into the 4,000-foot Cordillera Central, then deep into the world’s most biodiverse marine environment. The trip begins in Banaue, where travelers spend days hiking into terraced mountains and nights back at the town’s namesake hotel (pine cabins, private balconies, killer views). Then it’s down to the island of Cabilao, trading butterflies for fish� species of them. For the next five days, you’ll bob around reefs, scanning the area’s 350 varieties of coral (including table coral that’s a whopping nine feet wide). But don’t forget: The best snorkeling starts at dusk. “It’s like being in a train station during commuting hours,” says Barbara Banks, Wilderness Travel’s director of new trip development. “The day fish are moving out and the night creatures like octopuses and eels are moving in.”
And guess what, it would take at least 12 days and almost $3000 (that's around P160,000+) to get this.
Check out their site: http://www.wildernesstravel.com/
