Sydney, with Mario Tiong and family

My first night in my 2nd visit in Sydney (first time was 2010), last month May 21, I stayed with Mario Tiong. Mario is a former schoolmate at UP School of Economics in the 80s, also an orgmate at UP Economics Towards Consciousness (ETC).

We have dinner in a Thai resto at Rouse Hill Shopping Center, not far from their place, The Ponds. With Mario's wife Tess, and daughter Abi. Nice and yummy food, I ate a lot that night.

Then we headed back to their house. Nice, big, new and clean place, plus cold Australian beer plus chat about our lives in the 80s at UP, current lives and friends. We missed fellow ETCers in Sydney Debbie Abundo and Larry Lara, both are godmother-godfather to my two girls. Debbie has a sprained ankle while Larry was out of town that week.

We finished beer past midnight, haha.
The next day, I looked outside my room, the guest room. Houses there are new and beautiful, like Mario's.

After breakfast, Mario would bring me to another Filipino in Woodcroft who would host me that day, May 22. On our way, Mario brought me to this place. A huge Lindt chocolate store. What's inside?

Awww, lots of chocolates, packed by kilos. Am no longer a kid and chocolate lover but when I saw the place, my eyes sparkled, haha. Was thinking about my family in Makati who love chocolates, Mario gifted them with 4 packs.

We also have hot, yummy chocolate drinks.

Thanks again, Mario. Sa uulitin, hehe.

Sydney, with Kitt Santos and family

When I went to Sydney last May 21, my friend (and my wife's ex-officemate) Francis "Kitt" Santos picked me up from the airport. We took the train, it was good. They live in one of the suburbs of Sydney. Here with Kitt's wife Cherrie and their two girls.

With Ma'am Lot, Kitt's mother.

Sydney's trains. I like the sights on the upper seats. Took this at Sydney central station.

Open space going to Banks' School, where Kitt's older daughter attends.

By evening, another Filipino friend and my former schoolmate at UPSE, Mario Tiong, picked me up from Kitt's house.

Thanks again Kitt, Cherrie.

View of Honda Bay, Palawan

Another late post from photos last December 2018. Honda Bay behind us, from left: Jimmuel Naval, me, Peter "Pidro" Sing (our great and kind host), Clifford Espinosa, Ding Aguila. All former UP Diliman Narra dormmates, mid-80s.

Our van, one of few fleets of Balai Princesa hotel.

Then Pidro brought us to another hotel in Puerto Princesa that he was helping manage.

Nice view of the nearby sea.

With Tito Cruz (rightmost).

Thanks again, Pidro.

Puerto Princesa Subterranean/Underground River

Another late post, taken last December 2018 when our former UP Narra dormmate Pidro Sing hosted us.

More than a thousand people come here everyday, mostly foreign tourists. Could be nearly 2,000 during the vacation months of April-May as domestic visitors also come.

Lots of boats to transport lots of visitors.

How much does it cost?
Here is the entrance fee alone.
Excluded here are the boat rides. I don't know how much, Pidro arranged for everything. We didn't even queue, our tickets were given to us, then an arranged boat was already waiting for us.

Inside the boat, from left: me, Clifford Espinosa, Ding Aguila, and Jimuel Naval. We were among the nice friends and dormmates of Pidro at UP Diliman Narra dormitory in the 80s.

Boat ride is perhaps 30-40 minutes, I don't remember now.


At the shoreline near the underground river.

From the beach and shoreline, we walked several meters in a thick forest, then we reached this area, another boat, non-motorized, would take us inside the underground river. We were given a headphone where a taped narration would tell visitors what are those structures inside the cave.

Entering the cave's mouth.

No pictures inside, my camera phone does not have strong flash to capture the majestic and huge sights inside the cave.

Going out, waiting for our motorboat to bring us back. Clear, white sand beach.

Thanks again, Pidro.

Sabang Mangrove, Palawan

These photos I took last December 2018 when our good friend from UP Narra dorm, Peter Sing, hosted us.

The start of the boat ride. The mangrove trees look simple and small...

Then further upstream, huge and tall mangrove forest unfolded. I didn't realize that mangrove trees can be so tall and big.

The roots, wide, sturdy and elaborate.

More huge and tall mangrove trees.

A sleeping snake on a branch. Our boatman paddled near this branch. I kidded the small reptile, "Hoy, nag-mahjong or nakipag inuman ka kagabi ano, kaya plakda ka ngayon." It didn't get my joke :-)

Thank you, Pidro.

Fete de la Musique and Switchblade Manila band

Last Saturday night, I visited one of the bars participating in the annual big rock festival, Fete de la Musique, https://www.facebook.com/FetePH/. I went to Arkipelago bar, more than one block away from our apartment in Makati City.

That night, I heard and watched more than a dozen rock bands from Arkipelago then at Mang Rudy's bar. Lots of talented Filipino musicians and aspiring rock n roll stars. 

Among the great bands I really enjoyed that night at Arkipelago was the high-energy, long-hair, true-blue rak-en-rol band Switchblade Manila, https://www.facebook.com/switchblademanila/, haneeep! 

They posted this note in their fb page, 

“Sarapan lang, hindi paangasan”

#sbm #sexyrock #hairhaireverywhere

Band members from left: Jay Flora (base guitar), Gilbert Martinez (drums), Daximus Labiano (lead guitar), Bok Raz Arcilla (lead singer), and Arnie Baluyut (guitar).

They are now my friends, particularly Bok, Jay and Gilbert, haha. Jay is a fellow Ilongo from Negros Occidental. All of them have regular jobs at weekdays, they morph and transform into long-haired high-energy rock band on weekends, either performing in some bars, private/corporate events, or practice in studios.

When I transferred at Mang Rudy's bar, I was able to catch the last song of https://www.facebook.com/LesterCanon.LesterCanon/ band -- they were singing Nirvana's "On a plain", Awwww! Young and cool rock musicians. More Nirvana's music, young guys. 

Thank you, Fete. You have pulled some of the great musical talents in this country.

Picture in Sweden, 2003

Last March 11, my friend from Indonesia, Ani Andayani, posted our group photo when we were in an agricultural seminar in Sweden in September-October 2003.

Ani wrote, “Feeling nostalgie, Swalof Weibul Sweden..... with my sister Orasa Dissataporn from Thailand, my younger brother Chi Trung Nguyen form Vietnam, my brother Nonoy Oplas from The Philippines, my elder brother Tony Cujo from Ghana....and others.

"Sustainable Agriculture" training. It was so nice gathering and having friendship like brother sister.

Tony Cudjoe as the leader of the group and me as vice leader.

#yeaahIcouldfindthispicture

#helloeveryoneinthegroup."

We have two North Korean batchmates there -- to my right, then to my left was my Vietnamese friend Trung, and another N. Korean, Choi I think. 

I enjoyed that seminar. It was handled by a Swedish biotech company engaged in high tech, molecular biology farming. I learned many things though hard for me to apply here as I was in agro forest farming then. Thanks to SIDA for that opportunity.

Hilton Colombo, Sri Lanka

Last February 27-March 01, I attended the Asia Liberty Forum (ALF) 2019 Conference held at The Hilton Colombo, Sri Lanka. It was my first time to visit Sri Lanka.

My room was on the 12/F. Some views from my room. One of these two buildings on the right is Shangrila Colombo.

Land reclamation at the commercial center.

Other side of the hotel, facing the seaport.

The hotel water park. Huge ducks swirling with huge koi fishes.

Nice swimming pool but I didn't dip here.

Instead I went to the jacuzzi, steam bath, hot pool area. I enjoyed the place very much.

Close up view of the reclamation project.

Thanks to Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF) for sponsoring my travel and participation in that conference.

Here's what I wrote about the conference:

ALF 12, Conference 2019 at Hilton Colombo, Sri Lanka, ALF 13, Some presentations in conf 2019,BWorld 299, Capitalism and freedom in Asia.