never mind the face

I remember the first time I saw Benedict Cumberbatch. Not very remarkable in the looks department.

digibytes.me

In fact, he does look a bit like an otter.

larvatusprodeo.net

another year over

I can't believe the Ayala Triangle Gardens light show is over and I missed it. Again, gademit.

sting & the apocalypse

It is now 9:30 in the morning here after the supposed Mayan Doomsday, but somewhere in the world, it's still 21 December 2012-- plus there's Daylight Savings to consider. So before we get incinerated by a gigantic solar flare, here's one last blog post.

STING!!!

Back To Bass in Manila on 9 December 2012. I was so happy, I could have cried. Sting fans, you know what I mean.

Here's the set list that I saved in my mobile phone, typing in the dark while screaming my head off. After the concert, my high was a teeny bit marred because I was stumped by the title of number 8, but two hours of Googling and Youtubing the lyrics later, I was able to complete my list and sleep the "heavy sleepe".

1. If I Ever Lose My Faith In You
2. Every Little Thing She does Is Magic
3. Englishman In New York
4. Seven Days
5. Demolition Man
6. I Hung My Head
7. The End Of The Game
8. Fields Of Gold
9. Driven To Tears
10. Heavy Cloud No Rain
11. Message In A Bottle
12. Shape Of My Heart
13. The Hounds Of Winter
14. Wrapped Around Your Finger
15. De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da
16. Roxanne

First encore
17. Desert Rose
18. King Of Pain
19. Every Breath You Take

Second encore
20. Next To You

Third encore
21. Fragile

The next morning, I woke up to see that some die-hard(er) had posted the set list on Twitter already.

puerto princesa city tour, part 1

The last time I was in Puerto Princesa was probably a decade ago, and only for an hour or so. I had joined a week-long liveaboard diving trip to Tubbataha Reef and when it ended, it was a ten-minute van ride from the pier to the airport. And that was all I saw of Puerto Princesa.

This time, I stayed for three nights. The first thing I saw at the airport when I arrived on 8 October 2012 was this 'Wanted" poster.

Welcome to Puerto Princesa?

OK, seriously? Dear mamang pulis, do you really expect tourists to encounter these guys while island hopping at Honda Bay or visiting the Underground River? Four million pesos is a lot of money, though. Hmm...

After checking in at our little B&B, One Rover's Place on Rizal Avenue, we walked to Noki Nocs Savory House, just five minutes away, for lunch. The food was served hot and fast, tasted like home and was quite cheap.

Smiley happy people about to tuck in. A very good sign.

Nilagang baka, lumpiang ubod and rice, P130. 4/5

I thought about trying their famous halo-halo for dessert, but I really wasn't in the mood. Maybe next time.

moves like petra

Now this is truly a most useful instructional video.

Have you ever wondered how to dance properly in a club? That is, not look like an idiot? Meet Petra Mahalimuyak.



Time to practice.

please come back

I waited a long time for this.

Who is Chris Botti, you ask? Oh, you Philistines.



OK, so we didn't have Sting last night, but it was still the best concert ever. I am so grateful that I was able to experience it. Worth every peso and the long drive to Resorts World Manila.

all dogs go to heaven

Didi the Dalmatian (or Deedee-- we could never agree on the spelling) was born on 26 April 2000. Her father, Spooky, was a macho hunk of a doggy, who had a black patch over one eye like a pirate. Her mother, Gale, was a sexy looker with one blue eye and one brown eye, kind of like Kate Bosworth.

We claimed Didi as our own when she was three months old. It was the first time I'd ever seen a liver-spotted Dalmatian. She was the liveliest and friendliest among her littermates. The caretaker said, "Makulit 'yan."

ati-atihan in kalibo 2012, part 4

During last year's Ati-atihan, we missed the Sunday morning mass because it was raining and our chauffeur Man Friday refused-- absolutely refused, I tell you-- to pick us up and bring us to church. In fact, he turned off his mobile phone and slept through the whole thing, oblivious to the fact that we had been awake and waiting for him since 5AM.

This year, we made it in time for the communion. It was the first time I had communion since my university days, I think, and it was completely accidental. While squeezing through the crowd to get to a good vantage point, I turned around and found myself nose-to-nose with a priest. He held the host in front of my face and I instinctively opened my mouth. Pop!

Attending the 7AM Sunday mass is truly a must-do. All the tribes gather in the plaza in front of the cathedral, in full regalia. It's an amazing sight.

fun fun fun fun

After months of trying to ignore her, I couldn't help myself. I was dying of curisosity.

Rebecca Black's "Friday". Over 11.4 million views. Universally reviled and hopelessly, irresistibly viral.

fasten your seatbelts

Over 6 million views as of today!



Hold on to your seat. I swear, when he starts to sing, you might just fall off.

cute as a button

Hello, did you miss me? I'm still here. I'm trying to organise my files on my Macbook (I only have 6 gigabytes of free space left!) before I update my blog. In the meantime, enjoy this video by Maddi Jane. What a cutie!



Right now she's an excellent mimic, but her bebop-ish improvisations towards the end of the song show that she's on her way to developing her own style.

Live long and prosper, Maddi Jane!

small but terrible

I'm liking the little shoulder bags with the top handles. Why so cute? 

Postman's Lock leather shoulder bag by Mulberry in snake-effect camel. £858.67

Alexander McQueen Wicca tweed shoulder bag. £928.42

Alexander McQueen dark red Wicca Mini leather satchel. £713.78

kids these days

We just saw this movie, "Post Grad", on Star Movies and we have very divided and strong feelings about it. Here are some reactions:

Is this a satire?

Is this a fairy tale?

She quit her job? So now what? She's gonna be a housewife.

A father would never say that to his daughter.

Well, at least the soundtrack is OK.



Sometimes, when trying to sound cleverly ambiguous, one ends up being just mediocre and confused.

the boy who lived can sing and dance

Harry Potter, isdatchu?



Even though I'm a fan of the books, I don't think I've ever avoided falling asleep halfway through a Harry Potter movie. Perhaps if they had been musicals?

time for a cool change

Sorry, but I just had to interrupt my Banaue-Sagada series for this. Watch it. It's the most amazing thing you will ever see.



Who knew that Target could be this cool?

random talent

Out of the blue today, I wanted to listen to some Ennio Morricone.



It reminded me of Korean child prodigy Sungha Jung's version of Cinema Paradiso. While searching for it, I noticed that his Mission Impossible theme already had 11.8 million hits.

born to express herself

Kids, you can keep your Lady Gaga. Lola Madonna still reigns supreme.

for my own entertainment

This video was uploaded in the year 2006, has over 77 MILLION hits, and is still making the rounds in Facebook. Everyone has probably seen it already, but I just felt like posting it here so that I can watch it whenever I want to.

Just because it's so freaking cute!

what is auto-tune?

While surfing the interweb, I am constantly surprised at the stuff I don't know about that actually exists out there. One example is the Jejemon phenomenon.

And now, I have found auto-tuning.



My question now is: Does the "I Am T-Pain" app really exist? Because I want it. In fact, if it only works on iPhones, I will go out and buy an iPhone just to be able to use this app. Can you imagine how many people I could annoy?

world cup + lego

I lurve it! Ang kulit...



Did you notice?

1. How so many of them are bald.

2. The instant replays. From different angles.

3. The English goalie's reaction to his huge slip which gave the US the score.

4. How the commentator seems to be speaking English, but you just can't understand what he's saying.

5. How Lego always makes you happy.