By Fung Yu

Author’s Note: This article uses virtual reality technology to provide an immersive experience. Click the images to view the 360-degree VRs. Adobe Flash 10 or higher is required. Average VR size is 2.3Mb each.

My foot kept slipping from the palm-leaves covered roof of the “Diwata ng Lahi” as I tried to balance myself and the camera-tripod combination; any sudden jerk or misstep would mean the lost of the precious equipment to mighty Poseidon, not to mention a wet and injured photographer, the first person to fell off from the balangay as she sails in the middle of Manila Bay.

Fortunately, it was a smooth sail as the balangay glided thru the water at about 4 knots; I was able to get a good foot-hold to the opposite side and finished panning my shots in a complete circle. Such was the inherit ‘thrills’ of shooting in 360, you sometimes live the excitement of the scenario and gets to brag about it thereafter.

One day before the balangay was set for her historic maiden voyage across the Philippine archipelago; I finally found the time to join her for my first, and her last training sail within the safe confines of Manila Bay. Having witness her from construction to launch, I felt a certain connection as I stepped into her bosom that day. Like a father who watched his child grew-up and was now ready to conquer her world, with full knowledge that the sea will sometimes be harsh and tempest awaits yonder, nonetheless, I’m confident she will achieve her eventual purpose and glory.

We set out from the breakwaters of CCP at around ten in the morning under a clear blue sky, a glorious sun, and a light breeze. The waters were calm and particularly ‘clean’ too, a perfect condition indeed for sailing.

Assisted by “Tiririt”, the motorized service-boat of the balangay, Diwata ng Lahi unfurled her multi-colored vinta-like sails upon reaching suitable wind position, from thereon; she’s right in her elements, cruising just like her ancient sisters, a gallant bygone era where she ruled the seas, a maritime heritage that this undertaking hopes to instilled, a pride of the Malay race that Filipinos everywhere can be proud of.

All VRs taken on August 31, 2009. Article archive at: www.virtualjournals.net. The author can be reached at: fung@firefly.ph

IT was when I was around 14 years old I remember buying my first Swatch. I saved enough from my allowance along with discount coupons cut out from newspapers at that time.

The only place I know where to buy one was in SM North in Quezon City–specifically in the Annex area because I’ve seen a Swatch store when our teachers took us there during a class field trip to Manila.

A field trip then wouldn’t be complete without a visit to an SM mall.

I never went to Manila on my own before then, but in previous trips (by car or bus) I’ve always figured out that once you’ve seen it you know you’re already in Manila.

And so I skipped class one morning and instead hopped on a bus bound for Cubao, told the conductor to drop me off at SM North, hopped on the bus a few hours after and was back in Tarlac in time to show off my brand-spanking new Swatch to high school buddies who may have thought I was sick that day.

[Read the rest of this entry »]

NOTHING beats a walk along Ongpin St. especially during the Chinese New Year. So to complete our experience of Chinatown, INQUIRER.net multimedia reporters Lawrence Casiraya, Marjorie Gorospe and I strolled along the street.

As we walked towards the action, we saw one performer spitting fire just like a dragon.

Everywhere, I saw red. According to Chinese tradition, red drives evil away. So we continued our stroll until the rhythmic beating of the drums and dancing lion caught my attention. At first, I thought adults were parading this creature, which can be mesmerizing. But kids were actually underneath it.

Later, I was told that they were called “The Kids Lion Dance.” Their youngest member is 8 years old. According to lion dancer Johnny Najera, 14, their oldest member is 30 years old.

In our conversation, Najera admits carrying the huge lion’s head while dancing is not easy. “Medyo mabigat po [It’s quite heavy],” he says.

Every night, they practice. These kids only perform the lion dance during Christmas, New Year and Chinese New Year. They often earn P200 to P500 a day dancing.

Najera says they earn some money doing the lion dance. Jessie Patrocinio, 12 years old, however, says he beats the drums to take away the bad luck.

By Marjorie Gorospe
INQUIRER.net

FILIPINOS are rich in culture and tradition. But will the future generation still remember them?

Practices, such as the “Bayanihan,” which describes a community coming together to help out those in need, and traditional Filipino dances and games are almost forgotten.

The Marikina government, however, has created doll museum to help Filpinos remember.

Working with world-renowned fashion designers Patis Tesoro and Guia Gomez, the local government has created 46 dioramas that highlight the history of Marikina and Filipino culture as well.

[Read the rest of this entry »]

IT was like seeing an army of ants climbing up a colony – only imagine it to be chaotic, more than a few stepping on heads and shoulders in order to touch a moving target.

In a predominantly Catholic country, religious festivities such as this are commonplace but the Feast of the Black Nazarene definitely stands out in terms of scale. This year’s estimates put the number of attendees by the millions.

During this day, the image of the Black Nazarene is paraded from Quiapo Church around Manila’s city streets and back. This year, though, the mass was held instead at the Quirino Grandstand (fronting Luneta or Rizal Park), followed by a procession leading to Quiapo Church.

[Read the rest of this entry »]

FILIPINO celebrity kids Paul Salas, Jane Oineza, Eliza Pineda, Kristel Fulgar and Micah Torre pick their favorite dinosaur and talk about lessons they learned from the Dinos Alive World Tour currently open to visitors at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City, Philippines. Watch this video report of INQUIRER.net multimedia reporter Izah Morales.

By Anna Valmero

HER love for drawing portraits and collecting photographs since childhood led to a business she now dubs a “stylistic preservation of portraits” on canvass.

As I was strolling Shang Ri-La Mall, I chanced upon the month-long Pinoy Pop Art exhibit showcasing 13 pop culture icons of the country painted on canvas.

“The exhibit aims to bring awareness to Filipinos 13 pop icons that can be emulated for their supremacy in their particular field and personal values,” says Bing Bernardo-Gaw, creative head and owner of Gallery 7 or “Art is Me,” the graphics design house that developed the exhibit.

The exhibit included Fernando Poe Jr., Efren “Bata” Reyes” Dolphy, Sharon Cuneta, Judy Ann Santos, The Apo Hiking Society, Gloria Diaz, Gary Valenciano, Michael V., Peque Gallaga, Parokya ni Edgar, Leah Salonga and Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao. Gaw said the they chose the 13 icons from a list of Filipino idols that can inspire Filipinos.

[Read the rest of this entry »]

“This is the best of them all.”

Thus said former UP president Jose Abueva himself when asked to describe this year’s lantern parade.

The annual Christmas event also became a fitting conclusion — the “climax,” says Abueva — to UP’s year-long centennial celebration.

“So many people are here,” he said, when I interviewed him while he was watching the parade from atop Quezon Hall, overlooking the Oblation statue.

“We are out to make it the best celebration because it’s our centennial year. This year, UP was proclaimed the national university and the amount of people here shows that UP is indeed the people’s university.”

All seven UP universities and 12 campuses were represented in this year’s centennial parade.

[Read the rest of this entry »]

GOOGLE his name and the first entry leads to a collection of trivia naming him the longest serving editor-in-chief in the world. Unofficially, at least.

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Sir Etienne Dupuch holds the “world’s longest editorship” at 72 years — he was editor-in-chief of the Nassau Daily Tribune in the Bahamas from 1919 t0 1972, and then as contributing editor until his death in 1991.

Sy Yinchow, meanwhile, stakes his claim as the world’s longest-serving editor-in-chief, since technically, Dupuch held that title for only 53 years.

Yinchow (also known by his pen name Chua Kee) first became editor-in-chief of the Manila New Day, an underground newspaper he founded in 1945 at the height of the Japanese occupation.

Since then, he’s been editor-in-chief for at least three newspapers — until today he’s the chief editor for United Daily News, a broadsheet catering to the local Chinese community.

Born in China’s Fujian province, his family migrated to the Philippines when he was three years old.

Until now, he’s been living in the same house in Binondo with his wife Jade, whom he affectionately refers to as a former beauty queen and the first acknowledged “model mother” within the Chinese community.

A place in the world record books would be just icing on the cake, though. Yinchow has published several books, translating Chinese poems from — as far back as the Tang and Sung dynasties — into English.

The 90-year old Yinchow was born in 1919, according to him during the height of the renaissance in Chinese literature.

Journalism is his career but he considers literature his passion. So he takes pride in numerous accolades given to him for his precise “word-for-word, rhyme-by-rhyme, meter-by-meter” translations.

During my conversation with him, I was quite amazed at how he was able to remember all the highlights of his career, realizing I am talking to someone more than nine decades old already.

So what’s his secret? For starters, running as a sport and eating shrimps and walnuts.

I was aimlessly wandering around CCP (Cultural Center of the Philippines) when I sighted what seemed to be structures amid a clump of coconut trees. So I went further to explore what looked like a park, half-expecting to sit for a while in the shade.

What I found instead were bare-footed kids playing and later on people lying on cartons under the shade. And then it dawned on me that these people could be ACTUALLY living here. From afar, camouflaged by trees and foliage, I spotted makeshift tents. And more kids.

I tried making conversation with Joey and Jingjing — they won’t give me their surnames — and learn more about the people living there. They told me there are about 200 people who live in this park

[Read the rest of this entry »]