The Freudian Slip Of A Bacolodnon

One fun activity to do this summer is to go to the strawberry farms in La Trinidad, Benguet and pick fresh strawberries. Before we left Baguio City last month, we stopped by La Trinidad to visit one of the strawberry farms. It was a good thing that we were there quite early in the morning: not too many tourists and traffic. When we arrived there, we immediately realized that it wasn't just a strawberry farm. It was also a huge vegetable farm. We found our way into the middle of the farm where local farmers were waiting for tourists who had some cash to spare and would like to experience picking strawberries for themselves. Picking fresh strawberries is more expensive than buying already-picked and packed strawberries in the stores. There are many stores outside of the farm selling strawberries and strawberry-related products such as jams, jellies and even wine. If you want to pick your own strawberry, it would cost you around 400 pesos per kilo. A friendly lady farmer led us t...

I always find myself lucky whenever I am running a leadership training. The preparation is always tough and it takes months to get ready for even just a small leadership training. Part of the preparation is to study and research on the topics assigned to me. To make a good preparation I always make sure who the participants are and the objectives of the session. It is important so that I could customize my lecture based on the experiences and backgrounds of the participants and what the entire leadership program would want to achieve for the participants. I always feel that I have so much to share, so much to teach, and being a teacher as well, I always look forward to the moment when I share my own leadership story. What I usually teach is for other leaders to share their own leadership story. It's not about bragging. It's about inspiring. When a leader shares his or her personal story, he or she shares not only his accomplishments but more importantly his or her struggles...

One of the places we visited this summer was Baguio City. Dubbed as the summer capital of the Philippines, it was an obvious choice to spend a weekend to escape the searing heat of Manila. We left Manila the night of Friday traveling on a hired van. By around 5:30a.m we already arrived in Baguio City. Prior to the trip, we were able to arrange with St. Louis University's Father-Rector if we could stay in the dorm of the St. Louis University Hospital. We were given 2 rooms with around 4 double-decked beds and a private bathroom. After taking a quick nap, we then head out to find a place where we could grab some breakfast. After breakfast, we went around the city with our driver taking us around the familiar sights of the City of Pines. I was expecting the climate to be cooler but by mid-day, the heat was almost as scorching as the heat in Manila. Of course, when you are in Baguio, one shouldn't miss buying strawberry jams and the highly recommended ones are those sol...

When Bacolod City won the Inter-town Competition during the Grand Finals in ABS-CBN's Noontime program "It's Showtime", it became yet again another platform to promote the city's festival. According to one judge, their performance truly defined the word, "Fiesta". The Masskara Festival is held every October. The festival first began in 1980 during a period of crisis. The province relied on sugar cane as its primary agricultural crop, and the price of sugar was at an all-time low due to the introduction of sugar substitutes like high fructose corn syrup in the United States.It was also a time of tragedy; on April 22 of that year, the inter-island vessel Don Juan carrying many Negrenses, including those belonging to prominent families in Bacolod City, collided with the tanker Tacloban City and sank. An estimated 700 lives were lost in the tragedy. In the midst of these tragic events, the city's artists, local government and civic groups decided ...

Last April 27-30, 2012, our dream of running our own leadership program as a way of "paying it forward" finally came true. 15 participants from 5 different schools attended our first Aguila Youth Leadership Program Leadership training at Balay Kalinungan, University of Saint La Salle, Bacolod City. These 5 schools come from the rural parts of Negros Occidental which is actually our main intention: to provide more opportunities to far-flung schools. It was definitely a fun experience. One of the most memorable moments was the Socials Night during the last night of the training. You can view the fun here . Aguila Youth Leadership Training Program Slideshow : SEAYLP’s trip to Bacolod , Negros , Philippines was created by TripAdvisor . See another Bacolod slideshow . Create a free slideshow with music from your travel photos. AYLP included plenary sessions focusing on bridging leadership, acting workshop, writing workshop, action planning, and coaching and mentoring for t...

One place the family can visit this summer vacation is the Enchanted Kingdom in Sta. Rosa, Laguna. Going to E.K. is very easy. On our end, we took the bus (JAC Liner) to Sta. Rosa. The Bus terminal of JAC Liner is at Buendia corner Taft. Their buses are clean and come with free Wifi. We then got off Walter Mart in Sta. Rosa where we took a tricycle (paid 40 pesos for 4 people) which brought us to E.K. During our recent family outing at EK, we arrived at around noon. Elementary students enjoy discounts this summer. It includes a free drink and Tender Juicy hotdog. After having a quick lunch, we immediately went around the park and rode every ride we could. We left EK at around 7pm. Enchanted Kingdom is definitely a cheap place to enjoy international-quality rides. My favorites are still the Rio Grande and the Log Jam. Try to come early to avoid long lines. On weekends, they open at 11am and closes at around 9pm. Be sure to wear sunscreen this summer as you go around EK. ...

So it's our first day of family summer vacation and since I got no vacation leave for the summer, the family decided to spend at least 2 weeks in Manila where I am based and enjoy the sights of the capital city of the Philippines. Family's Day Out in Manila Slideshow : Bien’s trip to Manila , National Capital Region , Philippines was created by TripAdvisor . See another Manila slideshow . Create your own stunning slideshow with our free photo slideshow maker . I have so many pictures to share but here's a slideshow courtesy of TripWow that I feel appropriately captures the experience. The day was spent strolling around Rizal Park, Manila Ocean Park and a late afternoon stroll inside SM's Mall of Asia. Like it? Share it. Get the Share on Facebook widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox ! Not seeing a widget? ( More info )Like it.