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“I wish this was real.” I still dream of going abroad for vacation, you know… …so I went to the PTAA Travel Tour Expo at the SMX Convention Center, Mall of Asia, Pasay today and the first thing I saw was the Visit Japan Pavilion — and seriously, I thought that the Japan National Tourism Organization is full-force as they got the train guys, some of the airport guys, and of course the tourism guys. Also, they got AEON with them. (AEON owns Ministop, which has a Philippine license granted to Robinsons Retail Holdings. See also the AEON Credit Service that also operates locally.) ...

Just before the month of January ends, I was invited to two activities in one day. Kendo I was able to join a Kendo practice for two hours. My impression of Kendo came from its depiction in Naoki Hanzawa and in various anime series, so it will be the first time that I am going to do a practice session for real. As a beginner, I have realized that my hand and foot movements are out of sync, much like my life nowadays. Koji Igarashi-sensei of the Iga Kendo Club (which holds the session) told me that Kendo needs a big (loud) voice, and I find it a challenge as I have a deep voice. ...

It’s been so long since I did a proper post (whether a photo or a piece of pseudo-prose), so let’s get started with the school idol project that is LoveLive!. As every LoveLive! fan has been made aware of (regardless of circumstances that they are into), the project has transitioned from Otonokizaka to Uranohoshi, where the story of school idols continues with a unit named Aquors. I predict three names for each unit. I hope one of them gets picked. While there’s a debacle (exaggeratedly speaking) on whether to support the new group or not (I’ll take my stand later in this post), the rising seiyuu-yuri blog Seiyuuri (of Seishun Kakumei member Satsu and Rurei) has posted a list of names of sub-units that are to be voted this Monday, February 1st. ...

It’s been a long time since I attended a TEDx event — the first one is TEDxDiliman years ago. Thankfully, I was admitted as a participant for TEDxXavierSchool, which has held at San Juan last Saturday. A variety of speakers were selected as part of this year’s theme, “Rethink Change.” Among them was Ramon Bautista, which gave the last talk on his definition of ‘pogi’ (cool guy). While I find some of his advice off-tangent to what happened to him, I still had a good time because I was able to speak with him directly… for a few minutes. Just a few minutes are enough. ...

Today, I went to a friend’s place to check out his secret base, which eventually led to a trip to the Mall of Asia complex to meet with other comrades (who are also going to witness ONE OK ROCK’s first concert in the country). Here are some of the photos that I took. The friend I was referring to is BossMac from Back2Gaming. Long story. Manila Mall of Asia Complex, Pasay City ...

A challenge for Halo Halo House to be seen by more eyeballs is the channel’s reception. This varies from a place-to-place basis. Halo Halo House has just aired last weekend on PTV, and I was able to watch the first episode. Days before the premiere, I was at the Dusit Thani Manila as part of AniZone’s delegation to witness its presentation to travel agents and media. In this post, I will describe the challenges in watching the series as well as what I think on how this show can get more eyeballs in a time where most people watch either online or on mobile. ...

I was able to get to three places — Pasig, Pateros, and Taguig. Here are some of the photos that I took. Pasig City I always like to take a picture of this part of the Manggahan Floodway. I’ve done this in more ways than one. Pateros It’s quite funny that I was able to pass by Pateros without realizing I left it. It’s quite odd for me. I should’ve gone and tasted their delicacies as well. ...

I was invited by a fellow member of the Facebook group Anizone to witness a presentation at the Dusit Thani Hotel in Makati. From what I’ve told, the presentation will unleash a new program from Japan for the Filipino audience — Halo Halo House. (Photo: Geoffrey Kutsukawa) Ichinomiya city Mayor Masayasu Nakano (third from left) in a photo with other guests. The show is about fresh graduate Jose, who went to Japan to search for his childhood friend Erika with only one hint: a handkerchief with her name and “Ichinomiya” in it. There he finds himself in a shared house with people of different strokes — and problems — along the way. He will finally see Erika soon, but what awaits him after? ...

I was lucky enough to get a snapshot of the BGC’s biggest art installations. Take note that this was taken sideways. I went to the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig to check out the surroundings and take part in a cosplay photoshoot. Actually, I wasn’t supposed to talk about cosplay here, but I have posted some cosplay photos last year; so why not do it again? Prior to entering the BGC, I got to see Buting in Makati City. Most of you know that the BGC is in the border of Makati and Taguig. (Both cities were fighting for its possession in 2013 because of tax revenue — but this issue has settled down) ...

I’m glad that the city government is refurbishing its revolving tower. I hope I can get there soon. Among the places I love to frequent is the Pasig City proper, where I get to check out the City Library (and read books — I recommend reading Taipan, the book that tells stories about Lucio Tan from the people he has worked with). There’s this Precious Pages store in the vicinity of the La Immaculada Concepcion School where I saw some PSICOM how-to books on display. ...