Boholanos join People’s Pilgrimage for Climate Justice

Tagbilaran City – Some 20 Boholano environmental activists are taking a 99-kilometer journey on foot, from Tagbilaran City to Anda, Bohol on the November 27-29, 2015 to call for 100% Clean Energy and walk in solidarity with the People's Pilgrimage to the Paris climate talks.

The pilgrimage which the group calls Bagtas Lunhaw: Bohol Climate Walk 2015, will begin in Kilometer 0 at the Tagbilaran Plaza Rizal on November 27 at 3 o’clock in the afternoon. They will have a sleepover stop in Loay on the first day, and in Garcia Hernandez on Day 2, November 28. Midday breaks are pinned in Dimiao and Duero, on the 1st and 2nd day, respectively. Brown bag sessions on climate crisis, the climate talks and papal encyclical Laudato Si will be held along the way.

The School as a Canvas

Baji artist April Aquino conceptualized this wall's design

On November 7, 2015, the school buildings of Ubujan Elementary School in Tagbilaran became a canvas for a mural project initiated by its school principal Mrs. Evangeline I. Canda.

In an effort to bring more inspiration into the school environment, and inspired by a recent visit to a school in Negros festooned with wall paintings, Mrs. Canda sought out local artists to help bring into fruition her vision of a similar splash of color and creativity into her school. This is, in addition to existing school improvement programs in Ubujan Elementary School (ES) such as Bio or Green Parks, Gulayan sa Paaralan, Waste Segregation and the like.

Linog 10.15.2013 We Remember

Remember the fallen.
Remember the fear.
Remember the grief.
Remember the heartache.

Remember faith.
Remember strength.
Remember kinship.
Remember resilience.

Remember relief.
Remember gratitude.
Remember grace.
Remember love.

Boholanos as Filipino Americans

October is Filipino American History Month or Filipino American Heritage Month.

#FAHM2015 is the hashtag campaign in social media sites.

We saw one post in Facebook sharing this KVIE documentary on Little Manila.

Blood Moon

A fuzzy blood moon photo, but it's there. Missed the moonrise, this was taken around midnight of the 28th, in Siquijor.

Facebook exploded with photos of the blood moon over the weekend.

Apparently, Tagbilaran and Bohol had great blood moon sightings. And there's that haze that amplified the reddish hue. The total lunar eclipse comes quite rarely, this won't happen again for another 18 years. We wonder what FB or the social media would be like by then. Scary thought.

We hope you enjoyed the lunar phenomenon and had your rose quartz energized. 

After the earthquake: McDonald's

The golden arches rise in Tubigon, Bohol

Legit question to a local: Unsa na'y mga nakita ninyong nangahuman nga mga post-earthquake projects diri sa inyo? (referring to the DILG-funded projects)

Her epic reply: Uhmmm, McDonald's?

#LOLBohol #bohol
#longroadtorecovery #bangonbohol #2yearson

Happy Eid!

Eid al-Adha (Feast of Sacrifice), the second of two religious holidays celebrated by Muslims worldwide each year, honors the willingness of Abraham (Ibrahim) to sacrifice his son (Isaac), as an act of submission to God's command, before God then intervened, through his angel Jibra'il and informs him that his sacrifice has already been accepted. (Wikipedia)

Calamay Redux

Jagna (Bohol) Kalamay, bought at P50 in Jagna.

A few will argue that the trusty kalamay is the quintessential Boholano delicacy.

The Bohol kalamay's signature bagul or coconut shell container makes it more appealing visually. When cracked and stretched open, the delight of unraveling the gooey goodness adds to the overall gustatory sensation. (Seriously, no?)

Puddle Trouble

Malabon in Tagbilaran

On our way to a trip out of town, a friend pointed out this flooded area at Tagbilaran's Integrated Bus Terminal. He said it's been here for ages, the water, never drained, and seem to just be ignored by the authorities.

Talk about a breeding ground for mosquitoes, bacteria and other such disease-causing what-not's.

While that area out front of the Integrated Bus Terminal which used to be the problem-pool, ignored, left to turn green and disgusting, has vanished, now comes this new puddle.

There seemed to be someone digging something on the side, which looked like a sewerage manhole.

We hope this problem will get fixed. Soon.

Update (1 October 2015): The great puddle, unfortunately, was still there.

Heneral Luna: Adelante!

The student discount didn't count.

Heneral Luna, the independent film by Jerrold Tarog is the first Filipino I watched in the cinema since Eric Matti’s On The Job. Sadly, I only knew of it after reading raving reviews from Facebook and Twitter friends. Marketing budget was perhaps nil, which is unfortunate because these sorts of movies are exactly what Filipinos need, young and old. I watched a matinee showing at the Tagbilaran Island City Mall on its last day, and expected a full house. But alas, despite the 50% student discount (regular price is P120), the theater was mostly bare saved only by a string of senior Tagbilaranons enjoying their free movie passes c/o the city government. Where were the students?

In Photos: SidlaKasilak 2015

SidlaKasilak is an offering of dance and lights to Loon's patron saint the Lady of Light.

It was fortunate that we got the chance to again witness one of our favorite dance festivals in Bohol, Loon's SidlaKasilak Festival of Lights.

"SidlaKasilak is a combination of the words sidlak which means to rise, just as the sun rises to break the darkness of night, or to rise from life’s adversities; and kasilak, which means light. Collectively, SidlaKasilak expresses the Loonanons’ resilience amid challenges, hardships and suffering, and their ability to shine with their talents, capability and creativity." (Monreal, 2015)