Merry Christmas!

Christmas gift suggestions: To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service. To all, charity. To every child, a good example.  To yourself, respect.
~Oren Arnold

Merry Christmas everyone!

Thanks for following my blog.

Evanescence in Manila!

Evanescence is coming to Manila for a one night concert on February 19, 2012 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.  The gig will also feature the band Bush.  Tickets are not yet available though.

2012 Philippine Holidays Announced

Time to set your calendars! Malacanang has announced the holidays for next year. There will be 16 non-working days in 2012 per Proclamation 95 signed by the President recently.  These include 10 regular holidays, five special non-working holidays and one special holiday.

Mark these days on your calendars:

Regular Holidays
New Year’s Day: January 1 (Sunday)
Maundy Thursday: April 5
Good Friday: April 6
Araw ng Kagitingan: April 9 (Monday)

Labor Day: May 1 (Tuesday)
Independence Day: June 12 (Tuesday)
National Heroes Day: August 27 (Last Monday of August)
Bonifacio Day: November 30 (Friday)
Christmas Day: December 25 (Tuesday)

Rizal Day: December 30 (Sunday)

Special (Non-Working) Days
Chinese New Year: January 23 (Monday)
Ninoy Aquino Day: August 21 (Tuesday)
All Saints Day: November 1 (Thursday)
Additional special (non-working) day: November 2 (Friday)
Last Day of the Year: December 31 (Monday

Special Holiday (for all schools)
EDSA Revolution Anniversary: February 25 (Saturday)

As you can see on the list, November 2 has been declared a special non working day.  This is, according to the proclamation,“to give full opportunity to our people to properly observe All Saints’ Day with all its religious fervor which invariably requires them to travel to and from different regions in the country.” Usually, only November 1 (All Saints’ Day) is declared a holiday.

The observance of Eid’l Fitr and Eid’l Adha will be declared as national holiday in separate proclamations once determined in accordance with the Islamic calendar.

Morning Walk in Quezon Memorial Circle

I joined a few friends in a morning walk at the Quezon Memorial Circle recently.  Though the place is the resting place of the late President Manuel Luis Quezon, city officials in consultation with the heirs of the deceased decided to turn it into a people's park.  The circle, which used to be a flat piece of land in the middle of the city has been developed into a recreational hub for its citizens.

It is now a hub of activities.  When we were there, there were kids jogging around the park, young people playing volleyball, old people doing calisthenic exercises, and there was even a seminar on the benefits of coconut.

We were there to shoot photos and that's what we did the whole morning.  Here are some of the scenes I captured.

Revisiting the National Museum

I had the chance to see the National Museum again a few weeks ago, and I was pleasantly surprised to learn that they are allowing photography inside.  We were told that like in other similar places, they do not allow flash photography.  Since it was sunny that day, I knew I wouldn't have any problem with the light.

The National Museum houses the award-winning mural of Juan Luna called, "Spoliarium".  It is the first piece that will greet you upon entering the gallery.  It shows the bodies of dead and defeated gladiators being dragged in the dark undergrounds of the colosseum.  It won the gold medal at the Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes in 1884. The art piece is a metaphor for the colonial rule of Spain in the Philippines and was used as propaganda material by the revolutionaries.

I love this painting and it never fails to impress me every time I see it.  You must see it for yourself to truly appreciate its beauty.  

Inside this hall are other works of Luna as well as those of Hidalgo and other great masters.  Most depict important events in our country's history.

On the other floors of the museum are pieces of sculpture and paintings from the 20th-century Filipino masters.  

On our way out, we passed by the floor where the Philippine Senate used to hold office.  It's there where we realized that the building of the National Museum is itself a work of art. Built during the American Colonial Regime, the hall gives us a glimpse of that time. The ceiling, flooring and even the friezes adorning the walls were real national treasures.

This section of the building is still being repaired and renovated.  I am not sure if it will be open to the public once the repairs are done.

In another gallery, mostly showing more contemporary works of art, I was reprimanded by a security officer for taking pictures.  When I told him that we were informed by the people at the front desk that we could take pictures he said that we are allowed only if we include ourselves in the photograph.  I was dumbfounded actually but I just followed and let it be.

I will still go back to the National Museum in spite that,  It is indeed a repository of our nation's soul.