It was a short walk from my apartment on F Cabahug St to the Carmelite Monastery in Cebu. Since this was my first job outside Manila and away from family, I routinely dropped by the Carmelite chapel. For the most part, just to find peace. Here is where I first noticed Cebuanos, after lighting candles, […]
When we study history, we are not providing answers to definitive scientific problems. The argument is interesting. Do chismis contribute to how we tell history and preserve it? Can you imagine if the chismis was started by a major player in the event? In the face of such a situation, how can we, as historical […]
Tsismis as history? Social media has been dominated by this silly question. Both those interested and uninterested, famous and unknown, have voiced their opinions. It is clear that Tsismis is not history. Further explanation is not necessary. I find it surprising that regarded historians have even taken the time to explain why it’s not. Tsismis […]
There was a time in our lives when occasions were incomplete without paella. We came from a lower middle-class family, but my mother made sure that this dish was served. I remember it looking so classy and expensive with tahong, shrimps, and sliced eggs nicely placed around it. My mother stopped making them as the […]
In Quora, the post is titled “Why do the Netherlands and France do the same with Vietnam and Indonesia but not with Filipinos?”. It’s a long read, but it’s interesting. I read it once before and came across it again. I thought I’d share it. As a former colony, I am not familiar with the […]
A few years ago, while working for a software company in Singapore, I met a young Singaporean just out of college. This guy was our point of contact for the Japan office. He doesn’t speak the ethnic Chinese dialect he comes from (if I am not mistaken, it’s Teochew) and he admits that his standard […]
If you watched the Japanese television show “Lone Wolf and a Cub,” you’re really old. I kid. While I was too young to remember most of it, one episode stuck with me. It’s actually a scene in which Itto Ogami is in a river with his sword and hands hidden in the water. Of course, […]
Manong Frankie (F Sionil Jose) passed away in his sleep yesterday. He was scheduled for surgery, but it appears he decided not to go through with it. What a life he lived! I may not have known him too well, but having read him for so long, it feels as if I have known him […]
Most likely, he did. This speculation has been around for a while, but I hadn’t looked into it until I read Jorge Mojarro’s article in the Manila Times last year. Benito Pérez Galdós, a renowned Spanish writer, was Rizal’s contemporary. The two are not known to have met. What we can safely deduce is that […]
For Filipinos, Rizal is everywhere. As I was strolling near the Asian Civilizations Museum (Singapore) the other day, I was reminded of this. There’s a small Rizal memorial there, too, which reminds me of how abundant his statues are back home. Our obsession with Rizal has always seemed to me like an overcompensation. Often cited […]
The first time I learned that Catholic Mass has influenced the Japanese tea ceremony was when I came across an article on the Catholic news site Gloria TV. The whole idea that something so deeply Japanese would be influenced by a religion largely spread by Europeans in Asia surprised me. But it might end up […]
Throughout our childhood, how many times have we heard those orders from our parents? Several politically charged comments have been made about the Tung family who owns the Ligo brand in the Philippines after they sold it to the Po family, who owns Century Tuna. Due to their apparent open criticism of the current Duterte […]
The documentary Honor: The Legacy of Jose Abad Santos was an accidental discovery. My Facebook ads led me to it. Based on its release date (I watched it on Vimeo), it was launched last September. I did not hear about it anywhere. It’s one of those rare times when I appreciate social media ad algorithms, […]
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