A symphony in blue

The Ateneo de Manila University officially opened its celebrations and events for the Advent and Christmas season last night, and we were treated to a lovely performance by the Blue Symphony at the Sacred Heart Plaza of the Church of the Gesù.

The student symphony orchestra is the youngest performing arts organization in the university, and they still need a lot of support from the community. None of the students are music majors (since the Ateneo does not have a music program) and there are too many instruments that are not represented; the organization does not have production or marketing teams yet; they are trained by a conductor gratis; and the kids need a formation program set up to help them deal with the challenges of combining their love of music with the demands of their academics, not to mention the emotional drama that is inevitable in any group of artists. Despite all these, however, the young and youthful orchestra has garnered much praise from those who have heard them perform, and I really hope that the university and its benefactors can give Blue Symphony the assistance that it needs to become a full orchestra that everyone can be proud of.

School artifact

The 1932 "Jesuit Bell," from the time when the Ateneo de Manila University was still located along Padre Faura Street in Manila. It is inscribed with the monogram IHS (iota-eta-sigma) from the first three letters of the Greek name of Jesus, which also appears in the seal of the Society of Jesus.

Go to Joseph!

The Manila Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica, whose formal name is the Cathedral-Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, but is more popularly known simply as the Manila Cathedral, has a set of stained glass windows dedicated to Joseph, husband of Mary and foster father of Jesus. The Latin "Ite ad Joseph" in the small, circular window means "Go to Joseph" and is an admonition to Catholics to seek the intercession of Saint Joseph.

Into the bowels

The walls of the 16th century Spanish citadel Fort Santiago are so thick, it actually has rooms, tunnels and staircases. Too bad most are too dangerous to explore nowadays.

Suspended

The "lake" pavilion at the Chinese Garden of the Rizal Park.

Guiding light

The Cape Bojeador Lighthouse, also known as the Burgos Lighthouse after the town in the province of Ilocos Norte where it is located, is the highest elevated original Spanish colonial era working lighthouse in the Philippines. It also marks the northwestern-most point in the island of Luzon. Construction on the lighthouse began in 1887 and it was first lit on March 30, 1892 to guide Spanish ships away from the rocky coast of the area. The octagonal stone and brick tower is topped with a bronze cupola, and used to be equipped with a kerosene lamp and Fresnel lens, though the light nowadays is provided by an electric lamp powered by solar panels.

Lazy day game

Sungka is a Philippine mancala game. The sungkaan (the game board) is usually made of wood, shaped like a canoe, and is portable. However, as in chess and backgammon, there are also dedicated sungka tables. Ordinarily, our game pieces are small cowrie shells, which should not be surprising for a country with the fourth longest coastline in the world despite its relatively tiny land area. This beautiful set is made for children—only one hip of mine would have fit in the tiny chair.

Mix-mix

Halo-halo (literally, mix-mix) is a popular Filipino dessert. It is made of various sweetened, preserved fruits and beans—which usually includes nata de coco (jellied coconut water), kaong (sugar palm fruit), saba (plantain), langka (jackfruit), kidney beans and garbanzos (chickpea)—topped with shaved ice, sugar and milk. Really special ones include all or a combination of ube (purple yam preserve), leche flan (a very sweet egg and milk flan) and ice cream. You first have to mix everything well before eating it. It doesn't look quite as pretty afterward, but it sure tastes great!

Stand out

One of the towers of The Residences at Greenbelt, highrise residential condominiums integrated with Ayala Land's shopping and dining center, taken from under the canopy of the much smaller building across the street.

में आपका स्वागत है

In my limited sphere in a tiny corner of the world, I do not often get to visit the homes of other nationals living in Manila. This is the foyer of the home of an Indian family that has been based here for a couple of decades.

I sure hope I copied the correct Hindu welcome greeting from Google Translate.

Neural connection

I'm not quite sure what this thing is at the Centennial Terminal of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA). I think it's just a quirky skylight with shutters. What caught my eye was the thing in the middle, which reminds me so much of a nervous system synapse.

Old favorites with a twist

Probably one reason why Cafe Juanita's crazy decor wasn't overwhelming is the fact that we spent more time focusing on the food rather than our surroundings. Two of our choices were traditional Filipino favorites, but served a little differently than the usual.
  Adobo is a style of cooking that simply requires vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and bay leaves, but a chef once told us that there are as many ways of cooking adobo as there are Filipinos. Cafe Juanita uses pork ribs and serves it two-way: the traditional way, stewed in the sauce (but their sauce is thicker than most), and as crispy flakes.
  Kare-kare is based on a peanut sauce and is eaten with bagoong (shrimp or fish paste). Traditionally, it uses ox or beef tail and tripe, but there is a healthier option using seafood. Cafe Juanita's version uses pan-fried white fish fillet. I really like how they knotted the string beans and wrapped the pechay stalks in their leaves—so much easier to eat!

Pamulinawen

The Pamulinawen Fountain at the Aurora Park in Laoag, Ilocos Norte is named after a maiden in a traditional Ilocano folk song.
 
The fountain is a celebration of the farmers of Ilocos—both male and female—and of the two products that they are most famous for: garlic and tobacco.
  The obelisk-like monument at the back is called the Tobacco Monopoly Monument and commemorates the lifting of the monopoly on tobacco imposed by the Spanish colonial government on the country. The monopoly was established in 1780 and abolished in 1881.

Meditating in the garden

Cafe Juanita (see the previous two posts) is located in a converted house in Barangay Kapitolyo in Pasig City. To maximize the space for customers, the small garden was roofed over and enclosed. To retain the feeling of a garden, however, the space was filled with hanging and potted plants, and what looks like old window grills were attached to the bare concrete wall. Buddha also meditates in the room—on a drum this time—watched over by six colorful macaws.