Manila skyline

This view of the City of Manila is exactly like the night shot I posted on August 26, taken during the next (very overcast) morning. Aside from the two creamy yellow neoclassical buildings of the National Museum of the Philippines, one can see the water hazards of the Club Intramuros Golf Course, and parts of the 16th century walls of Intramuros on the lower right.

Green

The Club Intramuros Golf Course is located just outside the Spanish colonial era 16th century walls of Intramuros, which are barely peeking between the trees to the right of the golfer. The green and white building towering over the course is the 1977 expansion of the Manila Hotel, which first opened its doors in 1912.

Running blue

The new track oval of the Ateneo de Manila University is blue, the school's color. It goes around the Moro Lorenzo Football Field (football as in soccer, not American football) and can be used only by varsity team athletes. It's the first time I've ever seen a blue track oval—very striking.

Quonset hut

CITY DAILY PHOTO THEME DAY: FACADE • When the Jesuits decided to move the main campus of the Ateneo de Manila from Padre Faura in the City of Manila to the no-man's-land that was Loyola Heights in Quezon City in the 1950s, the first structure they had built was the gymnasium. It served as the storehouse of construction materials for the other buildings. Now called the Blue Eagle Gym, after the university's mascot, it continues to be the most visible landmark of the Ateneo de Manila—if only because it is currently the only building that can completely be seen from the road. And, yes, the design of the Blue Eagle Gym really is based on the lowly quonset hut. That inexpensive, prefabricated shelter served the Jesuits and the school well after World War II.

Go skateboarding!

When I left the Philippine Wedding Summit (see the two previous posts), I heard a funny noise to the side of the World Trade Center so I walked over to investigate and saw a whole bunch of boys and young men skateboarding on the corridor. I asked a man wearing a shirt that declared he was a bouncer what it was all about. Apparently, June 21 is Go Skateboarding Day. Skateboarding isn't very safe on Manila's streets, though, so Vans sponsored a skateboarding event on June 22 instead. The event was held in the white building to the left and the guys out here were just practicing.

As an aside, why does skateboarding seem to attract more males than females? I don't think I saw a single female in this group.

Inspiration

Every three years, the Ateneo de Manila University awards alumni who excelled in sports during their school days. They are inducted into the Ateneo Sports Hall of Fame, which has a room named after it in the Moro Lorenzo Sports Center. Some awardees donated their sports memorabilia—medals, trophies, jackets and jerseys—which are displayed in cases with their photo and a write-up of their sports accomplishments. Aside from recognizing the men and women who played for the school, the award, the room, and the displays also aim to inspire current student-athletes who train at the center to excel in their own sports.

School spirit

Watching the Sunday afternoon replay of Saturday's cardiac arrest-inducing playoff game between collegiate basketball archrivals Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University at the bar of Outback Steakhouse. The Ateneo Blue Eagles beat the De La Salle Green Archers 66–63, making it to the finals and a chance to win its 5th consecutive University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) championship. One Big Fight!

All fired up

Ateneo de Manila University AY 2010–2011 first semester sports championships:
• Blue Eagles (men's college basketball), 3-peat
• Blue Eaglets (high school basketball), 3-peat
• High School Swimming Team, 6-peat
• Grade School Small Basketeers, 4-peat




At the "Three for History" bonfire last night.

Touché

We had lunch with my husband's family at The Podium mall yesterday, where a fencing competition was going on. Sponsored by the mall and the Philippine Fencing Association, the competition was also meant to raise awareness about the sport, promote the association and, hopefully, excite enough interest from young mall-goers so they will take up fencing. The little girl in the pink shirt was watching the competition with complete attention (though her older sister wasn't)—think she'll ask her parents for epee, foil or sabre lessons some time soon?

Fore!

Capitol Hills Golf & Country Club is one of the most popular golf courses in Quezon City. It is located beside three of the richest residential subdivisions on this side of the city: Capitol Hills Subdivision, Ayala Heights and Ayala Hillside Estates. I can understand wanting to be near a golf course if one were a golf enthusiast, but choosing a lot within striking distance of a golf ball does not look like a very smart decision.

In my barangay

Last year, I showed the entrance to our barangay center, which includes our local government unit's offices and meeting hall, a senior citizen center, playground and sports facilities. The covered basketball court gets transformed into our voting precinct during elections. The small yellow building on the right is a gym which, for a small fee which goes into its maintenance, any resident can use.

The dome

Finally, I managed a photo of the Araneta Coliseum which actually shows its dome. Previously, I've shown photos of one of its entrances and the curved footbridge which connects it to several malls in the area. Nicknamed "The Big Dome," this multipurpose stadium in Cubao, Quezon City is one of the biggest indoor stadiums in Metro Manila. Its biggest claim to fame is the 1975 Thrilla in Manila, the final boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier for the Heavyweight Boxing Championship of the World. The glass building on the left is the part of Gateway Mall which stretches across a public road.

Raise the roof

Though I root for the Blue Eagles when it's basketball season, I have to confess that I'm not really much of a basketball fan. The only reason why I was at the Back 2 the Bonfire program last week was because our office was involved in organizing the event. In other words, it was just work for me—fun work, but work nevertheless. Anyway, we were at the parking lot early so we saw the stage being set up. We arrived while they were hanging flood lights and speakers from the ceiling frame and we wondered why the ceiling of the stage was so low. It looked kind of claustrophobic. Then these guys grabbed chains at the four corners and started pulling them to raise the ceiling. Oh!



But what happens when a chain gets stuck? Then someone has to climb up to untangle it by hand.

Fan-atics

On Thursday, October 8, I announced that the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles won the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men's basketball championship and the Blue Eaglets won the juniors' title. On Saturday, October 10, their fans gathered at the grade school parking lot to honor them at a program called "Back 2 the Bonfire." The title celebrates the fact that this is also a back-to-back championship for the Blue Eagles so this is the second year in a row that we've had a bonfire. Other teams were also honored for winning championships during the first semester: the grade school basketball team, high school swimming team, high school judokas, men's judokas and men's golf team. The program ended with the lighting of the big bonfire, only the top of which I could see because we could no longer move from where we were. University administrators estimate that there were eight thousand people crammed into the parking lot that night.

Training grounds

The Moro Lorenzo Sports Center (MLSC) of the Ateneo de Manila University was constructed in 2001, and has multi-purpose courts which can be used for basketball, volleyball and badminton. It has an indoor track oval, a gym and a sports medicine clinic, aside from a chapel and a café. It is named after Luis F. "Moro" Lorenzo, Sr., an alumnus of the university, a former basketball player, and, before his death in 1997, a very successful businessman. The MLSC is where the Ateneo Blue Eagles, the university's men's basketball team, practices everyday. This afternoon is the third and final game of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men's basketball championship between the Ateneo Blue Eagles and the University of the East (UE) Red Warriors. Last year, we won against the De La Salle Green Archers. I'm keeping all my fingers and toes crossed today! Go Blue Eagles! One big fight!!

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6:06 P.M. update: The Ateneo Blue Eagles beat the UE Red Warriors 71–58! Woohoo!!! And the Ateneo High School's Blue Eaglets also beat De La Salle-Zobel 61–51! A double championship! Congratulations, boys! And thank you.

The way to the palace

Postigo del Palacio (postern of the palace) was one of the main entrances into the walled city of Intramuros during the Spanish colonial era. It was built in 1662 and took its name from the fact that it was the way closest to the palaces of the Governor-General and the Archbishop. This was the path that Philippine National Hero Jose Rizal took when he walked from his prison cell inside Fort Santiago to Bagumbayan (Luneta or Rizal Park), where he was executed in 1896. It was damaged during the Battle of Manila in 1945 and restored in 1968. The gate is usually closed nowadays but if it were open, it would just lead to the Club Intramuros Golf Course, an 18-hole golf course built around the beautiful and historic stone walls of the old city.

Urban or rural, natural or man-made, take a sightseeing tour of our world's diverse scenery!

Ghost runners

THEME DAY: FEET • Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig City is one of the fastest-growing mixed-used upscale land developments in Metro Manila. Running seems to be a popular sport among the residents of BGC's many condominium towers. We were about to end our day at nine o'clock in the evening yet the runners were still out in full force. And all I caught were their disembodied feet.



Run, jog or walk on over to the portal to see how City Daily Photo bloggers are interpreting this month's theme. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants.

Climbing the wall

Last week, the Loyola Mountaineers, a student organization of mountain-climbing enthusiasts, had a rock-climbing wall set up in a lawn near the building where I work. With summer break only a few weeks away, I think they were promoting their summer climbs. The wall was courtesy of Tribu Outdoors, a company which specializes in outdoor and adventure gear. And before you ask, no, I did not try the wall. I couldn't risk torn slacks and I doubt I would have managed it in high-heeled pumps anyway.

We won!

The Ateneo de Manila Blue Eagles beat the De La Salle Green Archers 62–51 and are the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 71 men's basketball champions! Woohoo!!! This is the entrance to the Blue Eagle Gym of the Ateneo de Manila University where a projection screen was set up for those who couldn't watch the game at the Araneta Coliseum because they couldn't get tickets or had classes in the afternoon. A tarpaulin poster of the boys has been hanging there the entire season. From left to right: 17 Chris Tiu, 5 Jai Reyes, 12 Kirk Long, 13 Ryan Buenafe, 19 Rabeh Al-Hussaini, 7 Nonoy Baclao, 4 Yuri Escueta, 10 Jobe Nkemakolam, 20 Tonino Gonzaga, 11 Eric Salamat, 8 Raymond Austria, 14 Nico Salva, 16 Mike Baldos, 15 Vince Burke, 6 Christopher Sumalinog, 18 Justin Chua. Congratulations, boys! We are so proud of you!

The blue and the green

In less than half an hour, the hottest collegiate basketball rivalry in Metro Manila—maybe even the Philippines—will begin. Ateneo de Manila's Blue Eagles and De La Salle's Green Archers are vying for the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men's basketball championship. And almost everyone has gone crazy. The Philippine Star, a national daily, has it on the front page, along with a small feature about which team U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney cheers for. The Philippine Daily Inquirer, another national daily, featured the rivalry in their free tabloid Libre. Trinoma mall, which is nowhere near the stadium, has just gone blue and green and so has McDonalds' advertising. In past years, Krispy Kreme created special blue and green doughnuts and even Pepsi came out with blue and green soda pop. All over Metro Manila, those who weren't able to buy tickets are gathering around TVs—in their homes, in cafés and bars, even in gyms set up with projection screens. Alumni of both schools who are based in other cities in the Philippines are now having reunions of a sort, just to watch the game together and cheer on their school team. Die-hard alumni basketball fans living in other countries are not neglected either. The Filipino Channel is offering the game in a live broadcast, internet video stream. It's crazy, I tell you. Oh, and the blue "FIGHT" poster—that's mine. Go Blue Eagles!!!

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UPDATE 6:55 PM
Ateneo won 69–61! Go Ateneo! One big fight! Next game's on Thursday.