Pre-2010

Earlier, I was just going back home in a tricycle when a traffic gridlock happened. It happens that a commotion heats up. There I realized the different kinds of people there: The one who didn’t gave way for the other drivers — self-explanatory. The other driver who is on rage mode — “Look, you didn’t gave way and just revved like you don’t care!” The “citizen journalist” — Let me take a video of this and send it to YouScoop or Top Gear Philippines. The ones who are part of a few good men — You can name an enforcer or a good citizen who helps in fixing the road. “Let’s push back a bit to give way so that the car can pass.” The spectator — who just watched…and waited. The whiner — Which is me most of the time. “Who parked that car in the sidewalk?!” The one who should be really blamed for the gridlock — shout-out to that guy who parked his vehicle on a sidewalk in a two-way road. Bless you, really. Sell your car if you can’t park it in the right place. This is just a scenario in a two-way road. Let’s not talk about EDSA and the highways, as we’ll have more people there. It’s like a special halo-halo in there; so delicious, you have to stop talking. ...

It’s been long since I posted here, so let me tell you my experience during the 20th of February, the day where I was supposed to go to UP Diliman for AME Fair X: In anticipation of the upcoming World Street Food Congress this April, Singapore-based food guide Makansutra, the Department of Tourism and Ayala Malls presented the 15-Hour Food Frenzy Safari, which took the local and international media present to a five-city trip throughout Pampanga and Metro Manila to taste the delicacies these cities can offer. Our Awesome Planet’s Anton Diaz also brief the participants what to expect on the tour. ...

The Tamagoya Noodle House in Antipolo City. [Photo by Juan Angelo Custodio] After participating in AniZone’s first series viewing in Marikina featuring Halo Halo House, I got the chance to visit a restaurant that is closer to what Japan offers — Tamagoya Noodle House. Before you get inside Tamagoya, you will be welcomed with their menu. [Photo by Juan Angelo Custodio] At around ₱180, you can enjoy a big bowl of ramen that should serve as your dinner for the night. The metro and nearby provinces felt a few light rain showers, so it was the perfect time to keep myself well. ...

“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. ...