Here’s a trailer from the main documentary.

Hi everyone,

We’d like to thank you all for following our work here on our blog, now it’s time for the exhibition!

Saturday 24 July, our work will be featured at the Kultura Festival in Kensington Market, Toronto.  It’s a free event.  See you all very soon!

[*note: I have a bit of a backlog of stuff I want to write about from the past bit, but that will have to wait for the weeks ahead.  This weeks been way too busy to get any writing done!]

It’s been four and a bit months now and it’s time to go back to Toronto…

I’m ready to head back, there’s a lot of work to be done to get this exhibition together in time for Kultura 2010.  I was looking through my collection of photos and vids the other day and damn, there’s a ton of stuff to go through, select, and edit.  And as always, my mind shifts once it knows it’s time to move on.

The rains have started here and that has me reflecting on the trip.  Basically my Philippines 2010 was like two different travels.  One done for the sake of the project, and one I did for myself, for my own education, and that will come together more completely in future projects.  It’s been pretty amazing.

I think that my Philippines is probably different from the one most other balikbayans see.  As Vince would tell you, I’m more comfortable outside the tourist and rich people areas—but I did make an effort to spend time there this time around.  Rich Manila is different from other rich areas I’ve visited in Asia, it’s much smaller and more exclusive (even compared to a similar country like Indonesia where I lived for 15 months).  The places are shiny, cost ridiculously more than the average city worker can afford, more modern and more Western than most places in the West, and everyone speaks English.  It’s a place where people seem to know each other or they’re foreigners.  It reminded me too often that the Phils has a bit of a problem with class.  And yes, sometimes I did enjoy myself—but it sucks that places that I would normally enjoy have to give me a case of anger in Manila.

photo by v.galvez

Maybe that’s why the second part of my trip had me dropped in the midst of the vast majority of the country, landless farmers (75% of the population).  It was as if I had to cleanse myself psychologically.

My trip ends successfully (though I do think I spent too much money), but on a sad note.  Yesterday some of my fam treated me to dinner for my despedida (usually I take them out before I leave, this time they wanted to take me).  It was a nice hotel restaurant and my usually careful tita [aunt] got careless.  During dinner she had her purse stolen (it was on her chair and she didn’t notice a group of young women come in and lift it].  She lost her ID, and basically her savings (P20,000).  She’s a street vendor and keeps all her money on her as she doesn’t have a bank account and the small room the family rents has no security.  Today she got a call from a KFC down the road from the restaurant and was told they found her ID in the washroom during clean up last night (at least that’s good news).

*sigh*

The family is hopeful that good karma will replace what was lost, the ever hopeful Filipino attitude, it’s what keeps the people from just going crazy I guess.

I leave the Philippines soon.  And so my mind will have to adjust again to a different world.  I usually get more culture shocked coming back to Toronto than I do coming here.  Good thing I’ll be busy the moment I arrive.

The maple leaf on a tricycle...

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Thanks to everyone for following the blog, I hope you’ll come back to it still as there’s more to be shared.

And don’t forget to come check out our exhibition!!!

Project Balikbayan @ Kultura 2010, 24 July 2010
The exhibition will run for the next 2 weeks at Kapisanan.

Kapisanan Philippine Centre for Arts and Culture

167 augusta ave, Toronto, ON, Canada
M5T 2L4

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Three photos: ©2010 alex felipe  / All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the photographer with use inquiries.

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by alex

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted I hope everyone is doing well.

Yesterday morning I was on a bus back to Manila from the provinces and I felt something I hadn’t felt since I was a kid—carsick.  I don’t get carsick, not anymore at least, so for the first while I thought I was coming down with something.

It made sense when I thought about it.  I hadn’t been on any kind of transport that wasn’t my own feet for over a month, the longest stretch in memory.  Try thinking about it yourself, how many days—or more what’s probably more accurate: how many hours have you gone without riding in some kind vehicle?

I first felt it on the motorcycle ride from a small mountain village of 100 people to the bridge where I’d wait for the bus.  The driver drove fast and made quick turns on the wide dirt road to dodge big rocks and giant mud puddles (as the rainy season has started).  At first I was just staring out at the amazing sight of coconut tree covered mountains, a river freshly swollen from the rains (and muddy from the run-off of the freshly plowed fields).  Billowing cumulous clouds seemed to grow from the mountaintops, but as beautiful as it was, I was starting to feel vertigo and had to grip tighter than normal onto the railing so as not to fly off the bike.

Then on the bus I alternated from feeling nauseous to feeling exhausted and passing out for a few seconds.  It was weird.

I’m back from a month plus of volunteer work, of hard labour, and most importantly, of exploration.  The media project Vince and I are working on focuses on Manila, but we purposely chose to stay past principle photography was complete so that we could do some exploring on our own, outside the confines of the video/photo project.  I personally chose to explore a side of the Philippines I’ve only had an outsiders view of in the past (and not much at that), I wanted to explore the life that the vast majority of this country live: that of the peasant farmer.

About 75% of the Phil population consists of landless farmers living a semi-feudal way of life.  I spent my last bit in the countryside giving educational workshops on worker’s and migrant rights (many migrants come from rural communities), reading, writing, and basic math, and helping with the farm work.  I lived as they lived, ate what they ate, drank what they drank—and wow, it was an experience.

It was an experience where I lived without running water (we drank out of shallow wells dug into the sides of mountains or near streams), and without electricity (and so that means no lights, no stove, no fridge, no ice, no tv, no internet, etc).

It was an experience where the houses were made of nipa, wood, and bamboo.  The floors inside were sometimes the same as the floor outside—dirt (no concrete).  And the toilets were basically wherever you felt comfortable.

It was an experience where we ate what was available (and meat was pretty not available most of the time—though there were some interesting times where meat came to us and were eaten because of it, I’m thinking of you python, that should teach ya to not come sneaking up on me like that), and cooked using cauldrons balanced on three rocks with a fire in between.  Where we ate with our hands and used banana leaves as plates.

And it was an experience where I tried my hand at the farmer’s life (and usually severely outclassed by children under 10).  I still suck at controlling a carabao (as a deep scab on my right leg will attest), but I am a bit better at using an itak (also called a ‘bolo’ in other parts of the Phils).

I’m going to write more focused entries in the upcoming days and weeks, but for now know that while I’m sorry I wasn’t able to stay in touch during the last month+ I have had an amazingly unique experience both beautiful and horribly heart wrenching, and both incredibly difficult and surprisingly easy (it’s great to learn you are capable of things you didn’t expect to be capable of isn’t it?).

But the most important part of the experience was that I was able to share in the lives of the type of people that most populate our country, who suffer some of the worst of the hardships of the country because of abuses of those in power, and by the systems (local and international) that keep their lives from improving.

I think it’s pretty hard to be able to speak about the Philippines and it’s people without direct experience, and with the majority living simple peasant lives, not many of us outside this world have had that experience and I know I am lucky to have had it… now to try to convey some of it through my work.

Stay tuned, more to come…

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All photos: ©2010 alex felipe  / All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the photographer with use inquiries.

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photo by: V.Galvez, Leaving Baguio for Manila

I haven’t written anything down in a few weeks. Thoughts here and there, but nothing too substantial. I realize there’s been an internal struggle that I’ve been trying to make sense of. Riding the constantly changing waves of life and energy that flow to me and through me. Being in the cool air of Baguio, the caves and mountains of Sagada, the traffic of Manila, the streets of Quezon City, the markets of Quiapo, the sites of Bataan, the organic farms of Los Banos. Seeing the museums, cemeteries, churches, houses, malls, neighborhoods rich and poor. Philippines is vast and wide, varied and complex.

I guess I’ve just been searching for something to speak to me…

photo by: V.Galvez, Organic Farm in Los Banos

photo by: V.Galvez, Baguio Homes

Something, an energy, an aura, a presence, a spirit. This is the country that my parents, their parents, and their parents parents came from. My blood descends from the people that have lived and died here. And yet I feel only a partial connection. Well that’s not true, I do feel a strong connection when it comes to talking about stories of our family from ages past. But what I’m saying is the sense of belonging or “my people”, is a flickering fire within me, a constant flux of burning strong and dimming down to a small flame, an ever varying back and forth flow.

photo by: V.Galvez, Chess Pieces by Peter Pinder, Gloria vs Erap

The truth is, you can’t accept one world, say from where your blood comes from, if you don’t also accept the world where you learned to function and grow in the first place. I was raised in Canada, and therefore have the mentalities of the people, the systems, and the media from that part of the world. But being in the Philippines for the past 3 months has helped me realize that my home life, of family, relatives and Filipino friends, was very much shaped by the beliefs and practices from this place, thousands of miles away from where I was raised.

Nostalgia by Jojo Elmeda in the BenCab Museum

Tradition & Religion by Jordan Mang-Osan in the BenCab Museum

Ninuno/ Anito by BenCab in the BenCab Museum

So I can see now that being here is a very important part of my journey in this realization process of identity and self. There are thoughts and actions that my parents would often take, that didn’t make much sense to me growing up in Canada, but are now crystal clear having been exposed to everyday life here. The term ‘hiya’ in particular comes to mind. There’s a constant way to carry oneself in this country, no matter where you are or who you’re around.

The best way to translate Hiya is to think of it as the decorum that is expected of you in your relationships with others. Expectations are put on you the second you’re involved in an interactive situation with another person here. There are things you “should do” and things you “shouldn’t do”, and whether you know these rules or not, you will most certainly be judged by these unspoken guidelines that are put before you to follow.

Cool people we met in Baguio

Inside the 'Oh My Gulay' Resto / Art Space in Baguio

The entrance to 'Oh My Gulay' in Baguio

There’s just too many situations to get into here, but suffice it to say, you’ll get a first hand chance to experience hiya, the longer you stay in the Philippines. I like to think of it in the way that “you haven’t really been to Philippines unless you’ve offended someone”.  It’s just a part of the way of life here that stems from the generations of growing up with a colonized system of thought, mixed in with the tribal society of life before that. The guiding idea is that your actions are not just about yourself, but of the people that may be affected around you. My Tita said to me this morning at breakfast, “you can do whatever you want, but if your actions will affect the family, then you have to report to everyone about what you do.” Hmmm, some interesting food for thought from my dad’s oldest sister, and the 3^rd of 10 in the hierarchy of my family elders.

photo by: V.Galvez, The Bus to Sagada

I guess that’s the big difference between growing up in the North American practices of Canada. We’re often able to live very independent solitary lives, checking in with our family at regular intervals when it’s appropriate or convenient to do so. Holidays, weekends, time off, are often when we can catch up with the fam and say ‘what’s up?’, but in the Philippines it is very different. What you do daily can have an affect on everyone around you, and if that’s case, which it often is, you will be held accountable for the outcomes of those actions. Including any debts, insult, or lack of respect that may occur.

photo by: V.Galvez, On my way to the caves of Sagada

The good news is that most family situations can be settled by accepting responsibility for the mistake, and taking action to make the wrong things right. But I can tell you from the upbringing of where I grew up, it’s not the easiest thing to admit you’re wrong, when you didn’t even know about the unspoken rules in the first place. The concept you’ll often here, when you listen to Filipinos talking about other Filipinos, is as simple as the notion “I shouldn’t have to tell them, they should already know.” And sometimes us Balikbayans really just don’t know. But we’ll certainly get to learn what to do for next time. Seeing that most likely we’ll screw up in the process during our initial times out and about, meeting family and friends over here in the Philippines for the first time.

photo by: V.Galvez, The many terraces of Sagada

by alex

Nationalism.  Democracy.  Freedom.  These are words.  In the Philippines they are important words.  Unfortunately more because they are reminders of what Filipinos don’t yet have.  [*Current events around this election are perfect example.]  

Now that principle photography for the documentary Vince and I are working on is finished we are moving on to the more personal portions of our visit.  For me that means getting involved with the issues I believe important for the well-being of the country and it’s people.  And yes, that means getting involved in politics.

Politics.  Another word.  One with a dirty connotation.  That’s true in many parts of the world, but here (in the most corrupt country in Asia, and one of the most in the world) even moreso than most.

I believe that it’s important for balikbayans not just to come back and enjoy the pleasant parts of the Philippines, but to also to accept the truth that is their face virtually everywhere: the country is poor and the majority of the people are living difficult lives—even though it’s rich in resources and has one of the highest educated populations in the world.  And in realizing this, we should strive to find out why, and to act to fix the problems.

There are elections coming up soon (10 May), and though I don’t have a vote, I do know who I would vote for if I did.  And this past weekend I helped do some electioneering for two senatorial candidates that have proven themselves to be on the side of the common Filipino:  Satur Ocampo (of Bayan Muna, ie. Nation First) and Liza Maza (of Gabriela Women’s Party).

If you have a vote and still don’t have all your senatorial slots filled (you get to vote for 12), I hope you will consider these two (click on their names above and or see the links at the bottom of this article).  *I also support the members of the Makabayan group of Partylists.

The Philippines is economically poor because even after over 50 years of ‘independence’ we remain under the thumb of our former masters and their local pets.  We suffer from imperialism, politician/businessmen who use government as a business to enrich themselves, and a semi-feudal system in the countryside.

While helping in Pangasinan with electioneering we spoke to people about the two Liza and Satur and were met with various reactions.  From the indifferent (like in Canada, this is the most common reaction), to open support (they would speak of how they saw them as brave and outspoken for the rights of common people like the farmers, fishers, and overseas workers), to dislike.

The ones who dislike them would say that they were activists or that they were always critiquing [‘parating kontra lang yan, walang mangyayari kung pakontra-kontra lang’].  First, what’s the problem with being an activist?  There’s something wrong in the world (and not just the Phils) when being active in fighting for a better world is seen as a negative.  Secondly, for anyone that actually looks into it they don’t just critique, Satur alone filed 88 bills and had seven passed (considering how few progressive leaders there are that’s pretty good).

Bills passed into law: Anti-Torture law (RA 9745) Rent Control Act of 2009 (RA 9635)
Tax Relief for Minimum Wage Earners Act of 2008 (RA 9504)
Public Attorney’s Office Act of 2006 (RA 9406)
Abolition of Death Penalty (RA 9346)
Overseas Absentee Voting Act of 2003 (RA 9189)
Philippine Nursing Act of 2002 (RA 9173)

Click here for a full list of bills filed.

Here are some of the bills Liza Maza authored (or co-authored):

Anti-Violence in Women and Children Act (RA9262)
Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006 (RA 9344)
Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act (RA9208)
Magna Carta of Women (RA 9710)
Rent Control Act of 2009 (RA 9653)
Overseas Absentee Voting Act (R9189)
Public Attorney’s Office Act (RA9406)
Philippine Nursing Act (RA 9173)
Anti-Torture Law (RA 9745)

Personally I feel that having been brought up outside the Philippines doesn’t make us less Filipino—or at least it doesn’t have to.  Coming from the outside makes the inequalities so much more evident for us…

I urge you all to take a more detailed look at these candidates.  If you don’t have a vote, then I urge you to invite your family and/or friends to check them out.

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Links:

Satur Ocampo

Liza Maza

Makabayan

In front of the Commission on Elections in Intramuros, Manila. Progressive partylist congresspersons (and two senatorial candidates) in the centre from Bayan Muna, Gabriela, and Anakpawis.

It has became apparent that the 2010 Philippine elections are in trouble.  

Today a coalition of church and progressive groups gathered in front of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC).

In case you haven’t been keeping up the elections are going to be historic.  If all goes well it will be the first ever automated election in the Philippines.  If all doesn’t go well, well, it might get ugly.

Progressive senatorial candidates Satur Ocampo and Liza Maza.

What we know so far:

- COMELEC announced a while back that it expects 30% of the Smartmatic election machines to fail–and that this was acceptable. “The Comelec has long said it is prepared for a 30-percent [failure rate]—in other words, that as many as 22,000-plus voting machines may malfunction or be inoperable on May 10.” [Inquirer.net]

- The machines failed in Hong Kong during the overseas vote in April.

- In the first major public tests in the Philippines (earlier this week!) the machine software malfunctioned giving all votes cast to the administration candidate.

- 76,000 machines need to have their software fixed between now and Monday 10 May 2010.

- There is little chance of a full manual count being done as it hasn’t been prepared for (and hiring all the people, getting all the forms ready, and having the money for it is a bit tough to do in four days).

Senatorial candidate Liza Maza.

As Liza Maza, currently a congresswoman for Gabriela Women’s Party and a senatorial candidate (who I would vote for if I could) says:

With only a few days to go… the automated elections with COMELEC’s partner Smartmatic have all gone problematic.  The Commission is liable for the serious doubts on the credibility of the elections, as well as for the looming irregularities and lack of contingency measures in the event that these errors and glitches have not been address.

It all seems a little odd doesn’t it?  That COMELEC had years to prepare for this election… and only now are they finding out their P10 billion machines bought abroad don’t work?

Seemingly, the stage is set for the elections to fail to pave the way for the extension of President Arroyo’s rule… (Rep. L. Maza)

I don’t know about you, but with this and the ‘hanging chad’ fiasco in the States in 2000, I have to give credit to Canada to just sticking with a simple manual count…

Over 7000 troops are descending on Manila to ensure 'peace and order.'

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In case you’re a reader from the Philippines or if you just want to learn more about the political groups present here (they could use your support if you have a vote, they’d have mine!), check out:

Satur Ocampo

Liza Maza

Makabayan

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All photos: ©2010 alex felipe  / All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the photographer with use inquiries.

*            *            *

This article is illustrated with older photos of mine.

The mood was kinda weird tonight at the house.  We have a friend from Kapisanan in Toronto who has been here almost a week, and today his cultural adjustment just hit a major bit of Philippine political reality.  We were up talking til three… and then I decided to write this.

You see there is a very real possibility of a failure of elections (or a postponement or straight out cancelation).  And if that happens things will get real interesting, real crazy, and real soon.

It’s kinda freaking near everyone (in the country) out.

It’s just a few days til the election (10 May), and this week’s test run revealed major problems with the machine.

What do I mean problems?  Well in the test, every vote for president cast, no matter who it was cast for, was tallied up for the Macapagal-Arroyo’s administration candidate Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro.

On Monday night the PCOS machines failed their first major test in several areas, unable to read or accurately record data in the ballots. The malfunctions prompted a massive recall of flash cards — those tiny devices where data processed from filled out ballots will be stored in the PCOS machines. [Philstar.com]

And in the overseas elections in Hong Kong last month the first day was a failure because the ballots didn’t fit into the machine that read them.  They blamed it on the paper expanding due to different temperatures from the room where the ballots were kept to the room where the machines were kept.

Clearly there are problems.

Some are calling for a postponement, but that would mean that Gloria stays in as president.  Not that many people really want that.  [*There are some theories that this whole wonky electronic election was designed to fail just so she could remain in power.]

But if the election fails, or if widespread cheating becomes evident there’s a good chance of Manila being a very interesting place to be… and I don’t mean happy-good-time interesting.

On one side the military (about 7300 of them) are being called in to ‘protect’ Manila.  And on the other, activists, along with opposition politicians and their followers, are thinking over what mass actions to take on.  Suffice to say there will be a lot of angry people sharing the streets with the military and police.

It’s might just be a very historic time to be a balikbayan in the Philippines.

… but then again it might turn out just fine.  Elections will happen on Monday and they’ll be smooth and clean [despite the current software and hardware glitches, the energy crisis that threatens very possible power outages, the lack of electricity in many far out places in the country, etc, etc.]

Yup it might just turn out fine… unless it doesn’t.

*   *   *

To me it’s a super interesting time to be here.  I’m glad to also see how it a first and second time balikbayans are reacting to it.

I remember my first time to a developing country, the shock of it all and the paranoia that bad things lurked everywhere.  I remember my first time in the Philippines and how everyone would tell me that pretty much everything was dangerous and to basically to never go out (I did anyway of course).  And I wonder how much more of a fear overload it would have been.

I’m glad to report everyone is taking it in stride.

*   *   *

As a balikbayan I think it’s important to care about this sort of stuff.  A badly functioning Philippines is a blight on us all.  No matter how much you deny who you are you will always have a Filipino face stare back at you in the mirror.  And if the motherland of that face is an embarrassment, well, that mirrors back too.

That’s why a good part of this project is about making people care about the state of the Philippines as a nation.  It’s not just enough to have some kind of abstract “pride of where you’re from.”  It’s not just enough to do art to celebrate some faraway culture.  It’s not enough to just wear a shirt with a flag (or Pacquiao) design.

We have a role to play to make sure that that country is the place we want it to be.  And obviously right now, it is not.

So I ask you, what are you doing about it?

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All photos: ©2007 alex felipe  / All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the photographer with use inquiries.

*            *            *

We got through principle photography without killing each other. Awesome. (photo by dyan ruiz)

So Vince and I are done principle photography on our documentary.  But we still have two months left on our trip.  Now what?

Taytay, on the Pasig river. Just before we headed out to location we were told by our guide that we had to change plans. Two journalists (including a photographer) covering a story about drug lords had just been killed a few days before and it was now too dangerous. What you see here is the alternate community they chose, just up river. That's why we always go in with a local guide. Safety first right?

We’ve seen a lot in the last couple months.  For Vince, a lot of it was new. We saw everything from urban poor neighbourhoods, to Alabang’s gated community for the elite.  We shared (in a small way) the lives of tenant farmers, fishermen threatened by ‘development,’ jeepney drivers in their day to day routine, street-vendors in Quiapo, sportscasters covering a PBA game, doctors, lawyers, and artists.  And that’s just what I can think of right now.

It was amazing, and sometimes terrible.

A photo after filming in Bataan province. (photo by v.galvez)

We had a lot of discussions about what we saw.  It was definitely interesting to have our two (sometimes very) different opinions about Philippine society.  I think Vince thinks I might be crazy.  But somehow we didn’t kill each other in the process.

Well, now comes the more difficult part.  Now we have to face the Philippines straight up.  We no longer are protected behind the lens of what’s needed for the film, we no longer have a divide between us and the reality before us.

In Manila you don't have to look too hard to find contrasts...

For my part I’ll be doing some volunteer work outside of Manila.  I’m working with groups I’ve worked with before like Migrante and Bayan.  I’m not sure what I’ll be doing yet, perhaps I’ll join in some of the work around the election, perhaps I’ll take part is some fact-finding missions, or maybe I’ll be doing some community work in the provinces, it really comes down to what is needed of me.

All I request is to be able to visit the far out areas.  I have always been curious about how Filipinos outside of the urban centres live.  I’d love to be able to work with the landless tenant farmers who are the vast majority here in the country. [*75% of the population are landless agriculture workers that live in semi-feudal conditions.]  I’d also love to work with any of the proud indigenous peoples.  I’d also love to be able to visit Mindanao and work with our Moro brothers and sisters there.

It’s pretty exciting.

Also apparently people think standing on the ledge of Raon overpass (a two story fall to the street) for a shot is crazy. You people are crazy. (photo by k. ancheta)

At the same time it’s a little terrifying.  I’ve had a lot of people comment about how ‘crazy’ my mini-adventures have been during our doc shoot.  Well I disagree.  Life has been simple and, well, bougie these past couple months.  I’ve had the luxury to have A/C when I’m back at homebase, I’ve been eating in nice restos and going to nice areas in Manila and beyond.  This has without a doubt been my most posh trip to the Philippines to date.

Whereas I used to get by on P200/day (about $5), on this trip it’s not been unheard of to spend more than double that on a meal (or on—gasp—a taxi).  I kinda feel guilty about that I have to admit.  I justified it by telling myself that I was here on a project and that I had to experience ‘the other side’ of Manila life—the bougie side.  I justified it by telling myself that I was with Vince (and whoever else we were with at the time) and that I had to stay within his/their comfort range (while occasionally bringing him to the Philippines I’m familiar with)—the transition is easier for me, I would tell myself.

Well soon, Vince and I will be headed separate ways to work on our own projects.  I’ve shared what I could with him (he probably knows Manila better than most Fil-Cans in Toronto now) and I’ve seen a side of Manila I’ve never seen with him.

In a few days, a week at most, it’ll be time to live in Majority Philippines (where most of the 90 million live).  It’ll be goodbye A/C hello heat, mozzies, and ‘reality.’  In other words, it’s near time for the real Philippine adventure to begin…

*   *   *

I had a preview of just how much things will change for me this past weekend when I did some election work in Pangasinan, north of Manila (I’ll blog about it soon).

One night I couldn’t sleep as I was mad itchy from mosquito bites and because of the disquieting feeling that little insects were crawling on me here and there (the ‘there’ part was particularly concerning).  At one point my back was ichy/tickled and so I reached over to scratch.

Something got caught in my hand.  I grabbed and instinctively squeezed.  It crunched.  And in my hand was something solid yet creamy.

I had just crushed a cockroach.

Eew.

photo by: A.Felipe, Me and the giant Tribesmen Statue

by vincent

It’s been a while since I posted. I’ve really just been in a place where I’ve been taking everything in. I guess like I said before, it’s interesting to be exposed to various art work and character depictions of Filipinos, that I would never be exposed to if I wasn’t here. In some ways it’s a bit overwhelming, unnerving, unsettling, and at the same time it’s brilliant, exciting, and overall amazing. The uncomfortable feelings come from the notion I instantly feel by saying to myself “why have I never seen or heard about this before?!” and then the good time feelings sprout up with “whoa, this is frickin cool, I want to know more about it!”

photo by: V.Galvez. statue of Rajah Sulaiman, who was King of Maynila when the Spanish arrived

Growing up, I learned so much about Greek legends, Roman chronicles, Chinese folktales, Japanese myths, European mythological stories of all kinds, and even South American tales of folklore. I grew up being a huge fan of stories from those worlds, but of course you can only be a fan of things you know to exist. When it comes to traditional Filipino stories, my exposure growing up in Canada was limited, meaning almost non-existent.

photo by: V.Galvez, Lapu lapu stands tall in Luneta Park

And I don’t think it’s due to a lack of that material being available, as I’ve seen the tons of books and resources on Filipino based Epics, Myths, legends, folktales, proverbs, riddles, etc… that exist here. It was just never put in front of me personally to appreciate. I guess I find it curious that neither my parents, nor aunts or uncles, or any other older relatives ever mentioned to me richness of the strong characters and stories that exist in our shared heritage. But that’s just the way it goes sometimes. If I want to learn about something, then I have to go out myself and see what it’s about.

photo by: V.Galvez, Gabriela Silang rides high in Makati, she's the first Filipina to lead revolt against Spain

Being here has really allowed me the opportunity to see into the rich deep pool that is Filipino stories and characters of old. And I gotta say, that there’s definitely some crazy cool legends and true stories here, that can match up to and even rival the best of tales, that other parts of the world have to offer.

photo by: V.Galvez, a bust of Datu Ache in Luneta Park

photo by: V.Galvez, a bust of Datu Taupan in Luneta Park

A book I bought of comic book images inspired by Filipino Heroism. Amazing art inside.

Sample of the art in the book, this one done by Lan Medina. So talented these peeps!