The news was blurted out on TV as early as Wednesday that the supertyphoon Milenyo is entering Philippine area of responsibility and classes at all levels and work in government offices were already suspended.

Thursday morning going to the office was a breeze but around lunchtime powerful wind arrived taking with it roofs and making trees dance to its beat, if not completely blown away.

Work was suspended starting at 12noon but I decided not to go home and let the storm pass us. It’s a wise decision for out our office window, Milenyo was seen battering into submission everything that stands in its path like watching National Geographic series on nature's fury.

When the howling winds went away, we decided to go home and saw with our eyes the considerable damage the storm has wrought.

On Valero Street near our office, a delivery truck overturned and blocking the road as shown (picture taken using my camera phone again, sorry for the poor resolution and Milenyo’s wind made my hand shake)

Trees near Makati Sports Club were badly damaged as well as those near Paseo Center.


As I made my regular commute to QC, I took the Manila route since the MRT was still inoperable, and there I saw the bigger picture of nature’s wrath: blackout almost everywhere, trees uprooted, electric posts fallen, missing billboards (welcome thought) and houses badly needing repairs.

Passed by Arroceros Forrest Park, the site of protracted battle between pro-conservation Winner Foundation and “pro-teacher” Manila Mayor Atienza, where most of the trees were decimated.

On Timog avenue in Quezon city at least three electric posts still block the road while somewhere in barangay Katipunan the mighty narra trees remain standing.

On personal note, Milenyo is the most powerful typhoon I’ve seen to hit Metro Manila— plunging the once bustling megalopolis back to the middle ages!

Labels: News

Went to the Philippine Birdfest last saturday at Crossroads77 on Mother Ignacia Avenue with R.O. and well I didn't expect such a people-packed venue with lots of exhibits, pictures, kids. Even PETA was present with their KentuckyFriedCruelty.com campaign

didn't get to take lots of pictures since I didn't neither 1 of my 2 cameras being too lazy :)

i only took pictures of the Philippine eagle shown below using my camera phone



read more of the story from R.O. here and here

Labels: Advocacies

I'm trapped here in the office even if we're allowed to go home at 12nn. I opted not to go home even if I can. Better safe than sorry

From our office window we can see how powerful "Milenyo" (international codename: Xangsane) is with flying G.I. roofs and trees swaying

a satellite image courtesy of weather.com shown below as Milenyo batters the big city

Labels: Floobydust

Now here's something interesting and needed to at least offer some relief from Metro Manila's clogged streets: the revived Pasig River Ferry system that should've been resurrected a long time ago. Details of various stations show below:

UPDATE: This Pasig River Ferry service was discontinued in 2011. Government is mulling reviving the service in 2014 to aid in declogging the Metro Manila of heavy traffic but it needs additional capital and investors to revive it.

UPDATE February 17, 2014: accroding to this news report, the MMDA together with the DOTC will resurrect the Pasig River Ferry in April 2014 to ease the traffic woes due to the 15 road projects in Metro Manila. Proposed routes are Guadalupe to Intramuros in Manila and Guadalupe to Pinagbuhatan in Pasig City.


a total of 15 modern stations currently being built along the river to comprise the new transport system that would cut travel times in more than half particularly from Marikina to Manila

1. Plaza Mexico
2. Escolta
3. Quezon Bridge
4. South Nagtahan
5. PUP
6. Sta. Ana
7. Lambingan Bridge
8. Hulo
9. Valenzuela
10. Guadalupe
11. Bambang
12. Napindan
13. Marcos Bridge
14. Riverbanks
15. Marikina Bridge



this project was planned a long time ago but shelved same number to time. However, this time it's all go judging from the visible construction of modern airconditioned terminals with floating pontoons that go along with the rising and ebbing of the tide of the once pristine and beautiful river that inspired the muses of yore.

something to look forward to heh? :)

UPDATE:

This Pasig River Ferry service was discontinued in 2011. Government is mulling reviving the service in 2014 to aid in declogging the Metro Manila of heavy traffic but it needs additional capital and investors to revive it.


Sightseeing on the Pasig River Ferry with views of various historic spots and harsh reality:

Pasig River Cruise,
Pasig River Lighthouse,
Pasig River Structures,
People of Pasig River,
Pasig River Bridges History and Pictures

Labels: Ferries, Public Transportation

Kinabuhayan cafe is a garden and an art work in progress that will continue to evolve and provide a respite from tired souls from the big city. (Please see links to related posts below)

after a morning of taking pictures, wonderful breakfast again with fern salad and washed down with kapeng barako, we prepared to return to the big city.


(portraits of the place's two inhabitants)

















saying goodbye to our host Jay, one of us remarked the food was good. I remarked that the food ain't good, 'twas great!

(JB Nalang "stolen" portrait)


the best thing about the Kinabuhayan cafe experience wasn't exactly the food, place or the new things learned from photography-- it's the people I met have who share the same passion for travel and photography I now call friends!

Related Posts:

Banahaw Trek, Kinabuhayan Cafe Gateway to Mt Banahaw

Kinabuhayan Cafe is part of Viaje Del Sol

How to go to Kinabuhayan Cafe from the words of the co-owner himself (Winston Baltasar aka JB Nalang)

How to Commute/Commuting to Kinabuhayan Cafe:

Take any bus going south to Quezon or Bicol province like Jac or Jam liner. Make sure it stops in Tiaong, Quezon. Bus stations in Cubao or Buendia corner Taft.

Get off at the new Tiaong market. The jeepney to Dolores waits there. Last trip is at 6pm. Get off in Dolores at Dejarme St. which is 4 streets before the Dolores church (Our Lady of Sorrows). There is no Dejarme (pronounced "deHARme") sign but there is a
white grill sign saying "Paaralang Sentral ng Dolores". If you miss it, get off before the church and walk back.

Kinabuhayan Cafe is 50 feet away from the corner. Look for the tree house by the road, the bougainvilla in front, and the stained glass windows in the cafe.

IF YOU GET LOST IN DOLORES, DON'T ASK FOR 'KINABUHAYAN CAFE' OR YOU MIGHT BE DIRECTED TO 'KINABUHAYAN BARANGAY' ON THE MOUNTAIN SIDE. ASK FOR 'DEJARME ST' OR 'THE RESTAURANT OF JAY HERRERA'.

It's all good roads to Kinabuhayan Cafe. If you are on rough roads, you're probably past the cafe and heading towards the mountain side.

Labels: Calabarzon, Flora and Fauna, Flowers, Hotels and Resorts, Quezon, Resorts, Southern Tagalog, Viaje del Sol

ANNOUNCEMENT: Call for Photo Works for the Visions of Peace Photo Gallery

September is National Peace Consciousness month and the United Nations celebrates September 21 as the International Day of Peace.

In pursuance of promoting public consciousness on peace possibilities in the country, the Government of the Republic of the Philippines- Monitoring Committee (GRP-MC) is coming up with a peace photo gallery,which will be launched within September/October 2006.

GP-MC is inviting students, professionals, photography enthusiasts and others to submit photo works exploring themes related to peace.

Works can explore answers to questions such as:

How do we achieve peace in the Philippines?
What is your vision of peace?
Where or with what does peace start?
What will make peace possible in the Philippines?

Photos may vary in size from 4 x 5 to 15 x 17 inches, in black and white or colored.

Persons whose works have been selected for exhibition in the GRP-MC peace photo gallery will receive Php 2,000 to 5,000 cash plus certificate. Those whose works have not been selected will receive a special prize token and certificate.

PLEASE SUBMIT EARLY.

With your submission, attach a piece of paper that indicates
Your Name
Age
Address
School or Organization (if any)
Contact Numbers (landline, mobile phone, fax, etc.)
The date and place you took the photo
A short description of what the photo wants to tell

Send photos to
Photo Contest
GRP-MC Secretariat
6TH Floor Immaculate Conception Multi-Purpose Building
41 Lantana Street, Cubao 1111
Quezon City, Philippines

Submissions will be accepted until 21 September 2006.

For inquiries, email or < info@grpmc-jmc. org>,
or call (63-2) 725-4621.

Labels: Floobydust

Kinabuhayan Cafe cont'd...

part of the Kinabuhayan Cafe package and photography seminar is a light trek to Mt Banahaw's green slopes, streams, and caves. A short jeepney ride to the jump off point will pass by numerous churches and shrines by groups (avoid to call them cults for political correctness) believing in the mysticism of the mountain.

First stop is Dolores where more than a hundred concrete steps that i didn't bother to count leading down to a stream below but along the way you'll encounter an image of Sta Lucia where you're requested to light a candle and say a short prayer.

Another icon you'll see hundred steps further down before we reached the end of the steps where images of the Holy Family and of Mary and a genuflected child (shown below) perched on a large rock against a backdrop of mystic mountain's lush foliage including ferns.



the stream and small waterfalls below (the truth is i expected a larger falls than the one I saw so a bit disappointed, that's what you get for such "great expectations"). I also don't like concrete steps on mountains for I prefer unspoiled and pristine off the beaten track places but that's just me.







going back up after taking photos and getting drenched and refreshed wasn't easy to some of us and we proceeded to another place locals call Jacob's well which is a small cave with an opening suited for horizontally-challenged or non-claustrophobic individuals. Inside the cave is a cramped chamber and pool of water where people take a refreshing dip seven times that locals believe would wash away their sins (not that i believe such claims but i respect them and not say a word). It was probably named Jacob's well due to the presence of a ladder in the pool akin to Jacob's ladder in the Bible. Anyway, i should've dipped much more than seven times since it's really refreshing and more efficacious than Dr Wong's and Dr Kaufmann's sulphur soap!
(picture shown lacks scale since i forgot to include people but the cave entrance can really make "healthy" people squirm and wiggle through the narrow crevices of the cave)

the trail back to the jeep again we saw stalls selling various talismans, amulets with the all familiar eye enclosed by an equilateral triangle symbol, souvenirs, food including sweet bukayo, and things that looked like stalactites and stalagmites blasted from the caves by unscrupulous individuals looking for quick cash to the detriment of the environment that they should be looking after.

Mt Banahaw is a nice place to visit and re-visit (and re-visit) and perhaps because i wasn't able to see and take pictures of my enigmatic namesake, the tutubi, that JB informed me of. Maybe next time.

to be concluded...

Related Posts:

Kinabuhayan Cafe Gateway to Mt Banahaw, Kinabuhayan Cafe Day 2

Labels: Calabarzon, Caves, Mountains, Quezon, Southern Tagalog, Spelunking, Trekking, Waterfalls

For more a few days that seem like eternity, the lovely and bucolic island of Guimaras off the coast of Iloilo has been hugging the headlines due to the "Solar-powered" oil spill that caught the government unprepared again aside from being perenially ill-equipped and slow to react.

News blurted out by the media paints a really dark scenario and pictures i get to see are all black with blackgold turned menace wreaking havoc to a delicate ecosystem.

Share some pictures of ours sometime in 2004 (taken by a friend from my immediate "past life") when I got the chance to visit Iloilo and made a sidetrip to that "sweet-mango-flavored" land even for just a few hours (also did the same that while I was in Dumaguete, i hopped into a Siquijor-bound ferry and circled the island in just two hours)



Alubihod: sea, sand, sun and shade :)



Isla Nagarao from a distance



the good news, according to a reliable source, is that this part of Guimaras is not affected by the oil spill although tourism and other dependent livelihoods are ground ed to a near halt.

Other places to see in Guimaras:

Isla Naburot, Trappist Monastery, Mango Plantations, white sand beaches, dive spots, Roca Encantadia, Guisi Lighthouse (Faro de Punta Luzaran), Tiniguiban Islet, Lombija Wildlife Resort, Taklong-Tandog Island, Igang Marine Station, Toyo Reef, and La Paz and Pamankulan Fish Sanctuaries

Adventure Tour Package: Guisi Discovery Quest, by the Barangay Dolores Tourism Council (BDTC), centered on the rich historical heritage of Sitio Guisi, Nueva Valencia, an eight-hour tour, costing P999 per person.

How to get to Guimaras:

Guimaras Island can be reached by a mere 15 minuteboat ride from Iloilo pier to Jordan pier on Guimaras.There's also Buenavista pier but farther from Iloilo.

UPDATED: May 18, 2008

Labels: Beaches, Guimaras, Islands, Western Visayas