Trivia Night

Last Saturday, I went out with two of my high school friends (one of whom I haven't seen for more than a decade) for trivia night at The Daily Table in Ma-a. Tin has been inviting me since last year. Recently, she has been putting off her weekend travel plans because of the rising fuel prices, so we finally had the chance.

That's us to the left of the host. (Photo courtesy Trivia Nights Pinas)

I genuinely thought I wouldn't be able to answer anything, but it's surprising what random things we have stored in our brains. And we won the night! We were lucky enough that some of the questions catered more to our age group. Most youngsters would not have heard of Diana Ross, much less know what group she's in. It was overall a very enjoyable game, with a funny host, and great company!

After the game, we went to Starbucks to chat. Tin and I meet yearly, so it was mostly Jeck who gave us life updates. But the highlight every now and then... was BTS. I'm not really a fan, so they ended up trying to convince me. Just so you know, I'm not a hater. I'm more into vocal groups like BtoB, Beast, Pentagon... and my favorites have goosebump-inducing voices (Changsub, Yoseob, Jinho, Sandeul). The sole BTS song in my K-pop playlist is a ballad called "The Truth Untold" sung by their vocal line.

I got home at around 1:30 AM. That's how much we needed catching up. Next time, we'd have to meet earlier.

Kadayawan Walk

Two days ago, I filmed a walking video around Magsaysay Park. I specially waited for this time of the year because of the Kadayawan Festival, when the tribes of Davao would build their houses inside the park --- called the Kadayawan Village. Thankfully it didn't rain the night before; the day was bright and the dirt tracks were dry.

This year's Kadayawan is noticeably different. The whole month is full of activities from different groups and sectors, including the usual trade fairs and bazaars inside malls and at the Davao Convention Center, food fests at Damosa and mall parking areas, concerts, cultural shows, exhibits, art, fashion, dance and sports events. You'd only have to look at the festival's official Facebook page to see what I mean. Last Monday, there was a free Taiwanese Cuisine Cooking Demonstration at the Grand Men Seng Hotel organized by Davao's Chinese Community, and yep, it's still a Kadayawan event.

Another thing that's different is the schedule of the two well-known parades. While before they were held on two consecutive days (Saturday and Sunday), this year the Indak-indak sa Kadalanan will be tomorrow, Saturday August 17, 2019, and the Pamulak or the Floral Float Parade will be on the next Saturday, August 24, 2019.

As for me, hopefully I could have some time to visit the remaining events. Happy Kadayawan!

Aze Ong: I am living with monsters

Aze Ong: I Am Living With Monsters exhibition

Two weeks of staying at home except for attending mass on Sundays, I've come out of hibernation to pay my quarterly tax and see two exhibits. Last Sunday, Padre Pio's heart arrived in Davao City for a four-day visit. From the airport, it was transported to ADDU Matina for the first mass and public veneration. In the evening, there was a procession to San Pedro Cathedral.

After lunch yesterday, I started for the church, but the line ended about 50 meters from the main gate. It was 1PM, the sun was scorching directly up and the line was not moving so I decided to come back later. At 3PM, the line reached farther down the street, although this time we were shaded by the buildings, dark clouds were covering the sun, there was a cool breeze, and the line was moving faster.

Lines at San Pedro Cathedral

Then I went straight to Aze Ong's thread art exhibit at Art Portal Gallery, where a friend of mine also works as a curator. I only intended to stay for 30 minutes, but I have not seen and talked to my friend for eight months, so... Then finally it poured after several days (maybe weeks) of false hopes. Yay!

For those who want to visit, the exhibit will run until November 10, 2018 at:
Art Portal Gallery for Contemporary Art,
Paseo de Legaspi, 115 P. Pelayo St., Davao City

This is a short description about the artist and the exhibit:

What kinds of monsters are you living with?

Manila-based visual and performance artist Aze Ong contends with monsters in homes and in the artworld in her upcoming exhibition I AM LIVING WITH MONSTERS in Davao's Art Portal, Gallery for Contemporary Art from October 12 – November 10, 2018.

Known for her installative crocheted works, Aze Ong uses fiber as medium in creating amorphous shapes to meditate on the discomfort of dwelling in limited spaces, the lack of privacy, and the chaotic soundscape of urban dwelling, as well as issue a proposition in an artworld that has long consigned the practice of crocheting and the use of fiber as feminized domestic labor.

The exhibition is curated by Laya Boquiren.

Did Not Survive

When my sister told me there was a place downtown where you can solve puzzles and other mysteries for a time limit, I could not get it off my mind. I googled it and found MysterEscape, located in Lanang. It is called an "escape room," a live adventure game where players are locked in a room and have to find clues and solve puzzles before the time runs out to escape, usually within 60 minutes. Apparently businesses like these have been popping up since 2006 and it's only in 2015 that it's reached Davao.

Being a fan of this genre from movies, to series (Sherlock, Survivor), books and games, I really wanted to go. The problem was my sister thought it was too expensive. The other people I could do something like this with would be my college friends, and our reunion plan last January was cancelled so this would be a great quick bonding activity. I posted about it on our fb group and one of my classmates already heard about the place and wanted to go for months. So she set our meeting immediately on the coming Saturday (Feb 18).

There were 3 rooms at the site: Girl in the Mirror (for horror fans), The Survival Game, and Redrum: a (murder) Mystery. I would have chosen to play Redrum, but when we arrived at about 5 in the afternoon, the Survival Game was the one immediately available. So we had no choice.

The Survival Game's story goes like this: we were kidnapped by an unknown group and sent to a locked room where we have to find our way out before the hour is finished. We kind of started great. Ten minutes in we were already finished with the first two steps. But the third clue consumed a lot of our time and by the fourth clue I felt like we were going nowhere and needed new ideas. Too bad because the last few puzzles would have been easier. In the end we didn't make it alive with two locks still unopened, so we just took our picture before our kidnappers finally get rid of us. :)

Clockwise from top left: moi, Eds, Annie, Eds' husband Francis and their son Red.

P.S. 34 yesterday yeehaw!

Easter Bookhunt 2015

Join the 5th Easter Bookhunt at the Magsaysay Park, Davao City on April 5, 2015! To register, just donate 3 books to Alleycat Tea House from March 23-31, 2015. For inquiries, contact 09085470950 or 09177949431.

Poster by Xiao and Aidx.

Update: The Davao Readers Circle, the organizer of this book hunt, now has an FB page. Like us for news and updates on upcoming events.

Gab - Cy Wedding

Late post. This wedding happened last September 20 in Calinan Church and Malagos Garden Resort. It was my first time being the main, and for the most part the only, photographer. If not because the groom's my friend, I would not have accepted this job. The two previous wedding jobs I had were as an assistant, which gave me more freedom to move around. So I salute wedding photographers for doing what they do because the pressure's just way over the scale I can handle.

As for the wedding, thankfully it was the most laid-back and spontaneous I've ever attended. My directions were to take photo-journalistic/candid shots, which I liked. The couple didn't want any photo shoots, which I also liked. I don't remember any awkward moments. In many instances in Philippine weddings, guests would start to leave after having their dinner, even though the reception program has just started. But there was none of that in this wedding. Everybody participated and had fun! And the program? Well, no professionals were hired. It was completely a production of the couple's friends and relatives.

I brought two cameras with me. One was an old DSLR, which I thought already died, but suddenly worked when I took it to a service center just days before the wedding. However, the photos it takes now have a washed-out color and vintage feel to it. Below is one of the photos from the old cam.

The groom (right) and best man discussing some plans for the reception.

This is another shot from the old camera.

I was almost late to the wedding because there was some misunderstanding with the resort's shuttle service. As a result, I was running around like crazy when the march started. One of the groom's co-workers, who also acted second photographer, was also late. :(

I love how busy this photo looks.

Myk, the best man, delivered a Star Wars-themed speech.
The lights were turned off when he took out his light saber. :)

MVGNA espasyo alternatibo

Meet our new office + creative space:

photo by Angely Chi

In partnership with an architect who runs Disenyo + Arkitektura's Showroom, some friends and I started MVGNA (pronounced mug-na, Visayan for: "to create", "to initiate", "to actualize") as an alternative space for artists and other creatives to meet, work, and collaborate.

Although the place is not yet ready (water, phone, and wifi have yet to be installed), we celebrated our soft launching last Saturday with presentations from 98B co-founders Mark Salvatus and Mayumi Hirano (also chief curator of Koganecho Bazaar).

Follow us, we are on Facebook.

Lea + Jerry Wedding

This wedding took place last July 19. Lea is my mother's seat-mate in the office and she requested that I also come (and with my sister, too) and take photos. But honestly, being a guest makes me a lazy "photographer". I don't want to get in the way of the official photographer/s so I only grab the camera during the march and reception entrances, then spend more time with the kids behind the scenes, which is something the official cameras ignore. And I don't understand that because that's the reason there are second and third photographers, right?

This is Sta. Ana Parish in Davao City. This is my first time here since its renovation 

and I've heard it offers the longest walk in Davao weddings.

 

right: mom's co-worker and her beautiful dress

 

why so serious?

 

 

this girl is so hyperactive!

bubble fun!

#SHIFTDavao

Technically, my "technical" work only involved live tweeting. Other times, I was a runner. This was volunteer work which I apparently signed up for after I joined the Davao Catholic Herald family.

Because I was checking live tweets all throughout the event, half the time I could not listen to the speakers. I was even unaware that the woman asking me from behind was already Maria Ressa, Rappler CEO. When she had her face next to mine looking at the computer screens in front of me, that's the only time I knew.

But from what information I gathered, these are the ones that stood out:

Maria Ressa:

A leader must

1. Set direction
2. Identify values
3. Set the bar for ethics

80% of how we make decisions is based on how we feel.

Sec. Lucille Sering:

The Philippine mean temperature for the past 60 years increased by 0.64 degrees Celsius. An increase of 1 degree is critical. An increase of 2 degrees is irreversible.

Atty. Yves Gonzales:

Do good things and people will follow you in every sense of the word.

Eleanor Roosevelt:

Do one thing a day that scares you.

And Bianca's 10 Tips to make your voice heard on social media

photo by @yhen_cinderella

1. Pick a fitting username and photo
2. Start strong
3. Engage in conversation
4. Content is KING
5. Write your idols
6. Use relatable #hashtags
7. Use catchy images
8. Go multi-platform
9. Grow your network
10. Follow with ACTION

P.S. It's worth noting that this event was conceptualized just last May, with only two months of preparation. The participation of volunteers and sponsors made this a success.