№ 777. “Instruments of a Beating Heart”

№ 770. "Hearsay is not excluded"

№ 562. Terroir

 

Woodberrys

№ 553. Panciteria Macanista del Buen Gusto

Panciteria Macanista del Buen Gusto

 

On my way back to Binondo Church, I crossed San Fernando Bridge again. I remembered that in old photographs, the ruined building on the left side, at the foot of the bridge, was the site of a restaurant. A wall used to carry a huge sign that read: “Panciteria Macanista del Buen Gusto” (Macanese Panciteria of Good Taste), which was referenced in Chapter 25 of “El Filibusterismo.” As Rizal described it: “At the center of the sala and beneath the red lanterns were four round tables, systematically arranged to form a square; equally round little wooden stools served as seats. In the middle of each table, according to the custom of the establishment, were laid out four small colored plates with four pastries on each one, and four tea cups with their corresponding lids, all of red porcelain. In front of each stool could be seen a bottle and two wineglasses of gleaming crystal.”

№ 313. Post Modern Jukebox

It's hard not to fall for this type of cultural imperialism. It's so well made! Bravo!

№ 278. Mad World

From An Atlas of the Difficult World
Adrienne Rich

I know you are reading this poem
late, before leaving your office
of the one intense yellow lamp-spot and the darkening window
in the lassitude of a building faded to quiet
long after rush-hour. I know you are reading this poem
standing up in a bookstore far from the ocean
on a grey day of early spring, faint flakes driven
across the plains’ enormous spaces around you.

Atlas of Prejudice

№ 156. Manila Walks: Manila Central Post Office

I had lived in Manila for close to three decades. And I had never explored this heritage building, until I moved to another city.

Sometimes, despite the almost conceded urban decay, I can still see the vignettes of the capital's charm. True, there aren't many. It takes a lot of faith and purpose to find them. But these enclaves in the middle of chaos do exist.

One such enclave sits in Lawton Plaza.

It is near the equally-historic Manila City Hall. By the banks of Pasig River just across Escolta and Binondo, it is an aging relic of Manila's post-colonial past. Just about a ten-minute walk from either Jones Bridge or Sta. Cruz Bridge, the Manila Central Post Office in its neo-classical architecture, fortunately, still looks elegant despite the fiscal neglect over the years.

The building, viewed from outside, looks sturdy and well-kept. But the interiors really need some face lift.

I hope for the day when we have enough resources to fix the place and restore it to its post-colonial, pre-martial law glory. These resources would entail funds, cultural capital, bureaucratic will and time.

Soon, I hope.

№ 153. Negative Echoes

Modern world is a noisy, polluted space. It is still inhabitable but we are approaching a threshold that is close to barely. I came across this BBC article, during the quiet sweet spot of 2 AM, which writes about the search for the noiseless places on earth.

There are none that exist.

Even inside the human-crafted anechoic chamber, we can hear our bodies hum--- breathing, et cetera! There is no escape.

Should this be the next portable invention: iQuiet? A wearable contraption that can cancel out and seal off the ambient and intrusive sounds that civilize our lives --- cellphone beeps, tech white noise, air conditioning hum, elevator music, chatter, ad infinitum. Yes, there are just too many species in these aural zoos we live in.

Or even more radical, how about a device to escape from it all, just long enough to let the insanity simmer down: iDisappear? iThink people from Silicon Valley should pay attention.



Andy Warhol Sleep 1963 from screen_tests on Vimeo.

№ 114. Oscars: Best Short Animation

I was looking for Guacamole, but this isn't bad either.

 

№ 113. Oscar's Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis

He spoke his acceptance in the best possible manner. I guess, that's how to deliver the dish: warm and elegant, gracious with unrehearsed eloquence and laced with wit. Time to jot down notes.

I've been a fan since I saw "The Age of Innocence" and I'm still a fan as I watched "Lincoln". Good to know that some performances remain consistent.

Daniel Day-Lewis, a master of many selves and the finest among equals.

Fanpop

№ 111. Music History in 7 Minutes!

Good prep for oral exams.

№ 110. Binondo Rising: Part 1

Say "Ahh" for Tikoy, kid.

Binondo is still a study in controlled chaos.

Many Filipinos already know that Binondo is home to Manila's Chinatown. Many Chinese-Filipinos call it their spiritual home, I think, mainly because it's a transplant of their roots in China. I had lived in Binondo for almost two decades before college beckoned me to the hills of Valencia.

Binondo is so different now and yet oddly familiar in equal parts.

For one, it has become gentrified: cleaner, although the esteros still stink; littered less with horse manure and other organic refuse; and, freshened up with new high rises and coats of paint. Another reason for the ambivalence is while I can still eat at the staple restaurants like The President's, Eng Bee Tin, Ha Yuan and Country Chicken, et cetera, there are many that have already upgraded while a few have not done so well.

Fried garlicky peanuts, chicha-corn
(dried and  fried crisp with coconut oil) and other street delights.

№ 107. A little good news....

№ 105. MTV: Tagistis ng Ulan

Christian Bautista's pipes may be a little on the thin side but this song fits his voice.
I wonder if they'd do a repeat.

We can certainly watch more of these MTVs.