The Freudian Slip Of A Bacolodnon

     Malacanang Palace has just released Proclamation No. 831 declaring certain dates for 2015 as legal holidays and special non-working holidays. It is time to check the "long weekends" and book those flights out of the city and into the best beaches and resorts the countryside has to offer.      Here are the holidays and non-working days for 2015.

        When I was younger, I encountered this story about a man who saw a young boy on a beach. The man noticed the young boy was throwing starfishes back into the ocean. The poor creatures were caught by the low tide and fearing that they would die, the young boy would pick them up and throw them back in to the waters. The man asked the young boy what he was doing. Of course, we all know the flow of the conversation afterwards. The story was about making a difference.       I could imagine that boy growing up (we all grow up) and perhaps looking back on that encounter on the beach, his perspective could probably have morphed into something different. He would probably have asked himself if it was really worth throwing back those starfish. Or perhaps, was it really the best use of time.       There was a time that such a young boy lived in me. It was with the same fascination and passion that led me to choose the path of public s...

    For those visiting Siargao Island, perhaps the first thing that comes to mind is Surfing. Many would then go to Cloud Nine in General Luna, Siargao and catch a wave or learn how to surf. However, Siargao is not just about surfing. When I visited the island for the first time, I was brought to Pilar, a few minutes away from Del Carmen where the airport of Siargao is located. I was told that we would be going to Magpupungko Beach and that we should hurry so we could catch the low tide. My curiosity was peaked. I asked what we could find in the place and I was told to expect rock formations.      Minutes later, we found ourselves walking along the sandy beach of Magpupungko. The low tide revealed the corals lining up the shoreline. Walking further out of the intertidal zone, I was then introduced to this amazing sight. The low tide revealed a geological formation which the beach is famous for. A huge rock sitting almost precariously on top of another. In ...

     When you happen to visit Negros Occidental, you must not fail to drop by the Ruins of Talisay. The Ruins actually refer to the Lacson Mansion - or whatever is left of it - located in the middle of a vast sugarcane plantation in the city of Talisay. Talisay is just a few minutes north of Bacolod City which is the capital of the Sugar Bowl of the Philippines. From the airport, you can go straight to the Ruins via the Circumferential Road a.k.a. the airport road which connects Bacolod directly to Silay City where the airport is located.      The mansion was built in the early 1900's and was built by Don Mariano Lacson for his first wife Maria Braga. The mansion is huge and the lumber used for its structure was so thick it took 3 days for the USAFFE and Filipino soldiers to burn the mansion. Of course, the walls were made of thick cement which could not be consumed by fire. They burned the mansion down during the 1940's to prevent the invading Japane...