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Have you ever been to a real castle? Here are two short stories about my trips to two equally magical castles... Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland It was beginning to get dark, the shadows were getting longer and the air getting colder. We rushed to the castle at the Disneyland Theme Park in California and arrived with ample time to take photos and tour inside the famous castle. "Opened on July 17, 1955, the castle is the oldest of all Disney castles.." ref.

A Theme Thursday Post "Each morning I get up with the sun..." Below is a video of the UP Concert Chorus performing a medley of Gershwin's songs, taken during one of our concerts in Norway way back in the year 2000. I remember that the stage was huge, the lights and the sound systems were perfect - and the audience was amazing. We even had Norweigian visitors we met at a festival that we attended earlier that year.

A Theme Thursday Post Zero I was beginning to get bored inside my mummy's tummy so I kicked the joint and split through this passageway so tiny It took me three whole days it was a special trilogy until at long last I was born on that night of a syzygy Puberty I was beginning to grow hair in places that you know, and my voice was always cracking Oh, what about my singing? So I went to the Doc To seek medical support But instead, he circumcised me Now I'm no longer "supot". Lol. *supot is a Filipino word that means "uncircumcised". Subscribe in a reader

A Theme Thursday post We used to play this hilarious game where we replaced words in movie titles with the word "itlog" or "egg" in English. Now, let's try it for the word "funk", replacing words in the worldwide top grossing movies of all time (as of end June 2009!) #1 (1997) " Titanic Funk" - hm.. it's one word! #2 (2003) "The Lord of the Rings: Return Funk of the King" - hahahaha! #3 (2006) "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Funk" - he's dead already! #4 (2008) "The Dark Knight Funk" - why is it dark? on second thought, I don't want to know... #5 (2001) " Harry Funk Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" - can you imagine if J.K. Rowling named the lead character Funk instead of Harry? #6 (2007) " Pirates Funks of the Caribbean: At World's End" - or Punks. hahaha, maybe the writer had a bad case of "P & F syndrome". #7 (2007) "Harry Potter ...

A Theme Thursday post "Good day sunlight, I'd like to say how truly bright you are..." Summer ended early in the Philippines this year. Too early! It was only the beginning of May when the first typhoon arrived and a storm warning signal was declared over parts of the Philippines. Now as I type this post, typhoon Feria (local name) is raging outside my window... Next week it will be July. That means hoping for a bright sun shiny day is over, summer has lost to rain. This battle is now over. Soon the rains will completely take over: the skies will be dark for most of the day, the stars at night hidden by the dark clouds. "You don't know me, but I know you, see, you're my favorite star..." I miss the summer, when the sun is out and up. I miss the beach at summertime, when the sand and the water is warm and the nights a cool respite. I miss having ice cream and halo-halo to cool off. I miss not needing to bring an umbrella every time I leave the ...

I've been absent from Theme Thursday for the past couple of weeks. But since this week's theme was my suggestion, then I will play! The theme for this week is: "SWING". I gave a few suggestions in the "Whoops" theme post and mentioned about possibly moving to "verbs" after taking on several "noun" themes. I think verbs can prove to give a broader spectrum, and hopefully get our creative juices flowing. I was really interested in themes that can be interpreted in a lot of different ways so that the posts will also be as varied! Anyhow, here's my take on this week's theme... The Real Group "It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing!" I have been particularly interested in a song for quite a while but never really researched about it until now! I was introduced to it via this version by The Real Group, an amazing, amazing professional vocal group composed of 5 singers from Sweden. The group itself was formed ...

The storm before the calm This has got to be the most stressful vacation preparation I ever went through. On the day before our scheduled trip to Puerto Galera, I was closely monitoring the PAGASA website for updates on the weather. They lifted the storm signal warnings just in time for me to convince my friends that it's safe to take the boat through the shark infested waters on the way to White Beach, Puerto Galera in Mindoro. :D On May 2, onboard Paolo's dad's pick-up, we drove to and parked at the Batangas Pier and made our way to the boats. It was a quick enough trip, only about and hour and a half, but that didn't stop Liz and Jenny from taking a nap, and Princess for finishing her "baon" Romance Novel (yep, she was crying like a little girl over it too!) The Beach We arrived on the cream colored beach too early for the 2pm check-in time... but the good people at White Beach Guest House allowed us to check in at no extra charge. It was not a bea...

I was goin' to write a post, my brain brimming with a host of possibilities, a most exciting Thursday worth a toast! But I'm sitting here instead my home internet is dead! No one paid the monthly bill... No one had the urge nor will... So my friends, 'tis my short note In a hurry, this I wrote I don't want my boss to see My screen on 'Born a Syzygy'! ...whoops! A Theme Thursday post

A Theme Thursday post. Bangui Wind Farm in Ilocos Norte, Philippines. On the way to the Pagudpud Beach, north of the Philippines, we stopped by to take photos of the Bangui Wind Farm. The sun was about to set so we had to hurry to catch the last sliver of light. We were just in time. :D According to WikiPilipinas , the Bangui Windmills are located in Bangui, Ilocos Norte, Philippines. It was a project by the NorthWind Development Corporation as a renewable energy source and ... to help reduce the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. The project is the first “Wind Farm” in the Philippines consisting of wind turbines on-shore facing the South China Sea and considered to be the biggest in Southeast Asia. This clean energy source provides 40% of the power requirements of the whole Ilocos Norte province. Personally, I was just blown away by how clean energy could be so cool. ;) This photo of me and my dad, actually won for me a feature at our monthly e-Newletter sent to all sites i...

A Theme Thursday post Actually, no I DON'T have Aquaphobia. (sorry, lol!) But I could very well have developed a fear of water after having experienced two, shall we say, "watery" accidents. "...getting an anxiety attack when splashed with water..." What is Aquaphobia anyway? Aquaphobia is an abnormal and persistent fear of water. Not to be confused with "Hydrophobia" (which is also fear of water but in a more I've-been-bitten-by-a-dog kind of way), Aquaphobia is manifested by avoiding activities such as swimming or boating, and may extend to getting an anxiety attack when splashed with water or thrown into a pool. Wikipedia explains further that Aquaphobia may be "a reaction to a traumatic water experience - a near drown...

This is the conclusion of the post titled "I have Aquaphobia, a Theme Thursday post" It was a bright sunny summer day back in 2004. We were having a great time in Sur, Oman, visiting my dad. We went to the Turtle beach early in the morning and saw sea turtles laying eggs, dozens of tiny baby turtles, we also rode on camels, rode ATV's and went up and down the sand dunes. Off on a speedboat along the coastline of the Gulf, we were being stupid adventurous and accepted an invitation to ride on the banana boat... with no life vests. "...since I was going on a floating device, I wasn't so worried..." I asked them to be careful and not go too fast because I wasn't a very strong swimmer. At the time, I had learned how to swim short distances, but I've never been in open water before without a life vest. They reassured me that they would be careful, and since I was going to be on a floating device, I wasn't so worried. It was my first time to g...

This is a blast from the past for me, from my childhood (which, come to think of it, is now quite distant...) watching cartoons on television. One particular cartoons series I enjoyed was Captain Planet and the Planeteers. This week's theme reminded me of it because it's always the first element they shout. I actually know this next one by heart... Kwame: ...Then let our powers combine! EARTH! Wheeler: FIRE! Linka: WIND! Gi: WATER! Mati: HEART! Captain Planet: By your powers combined, I am Captain Planet! All: Go Planet! *Song - Captain Planet, he's our hero! Gonna take pollution down to zero... - then I don't know anymore. Haha! This video, I conveniently found on YouTube, the intro to Captain Planet's first episode: I really enjoyed this series because aside from the entertaining action sequences (hehe) they also have tips on how to save the earth at the end. I think this is really helpful in making children aware of how pollution affects the world. This is one of...

Really, there's only one thing that came to my mind when I found out Thursday's Theme was "egg", and that is... BALUT For the weak hearted, DO NOT PROCEED! :p ... Balut is a Filipino delicacy (yes it's food!), a soft boiled duck egg with a semi-formed duck embryo . It is also widely regarded as an aphrodisiac. Enjoy the rich taste of balut, the yellow part is soft and the darker part is crunchy! Why crunchy? Because it's the little unhatched baby duckling! How to Eat Balut Here's how to properly enjoy a balut: 1. Well, first you have to buy one from a street vendor who usually comes at night yelling, "Baluuuut!!! Baluuut!!!". He will give you one egg wrapped in old newspaper shaped liked an upturned sailor's hat, and a small plastic packet of salt. 2. The egg is kept warm in the vendor's cart, so it will be a bit warm to the touch. Hold it firmly at the smaller end of the egg and crack open the other side by lightly tapping it on a hard ...

My thoughts about a mineral do not come up with several Quite opposite! A general feeling like a struggle... My freshman year I was "Opal" Which now I learned isn't a mineral! because opal has no crystal- -line structure..thats for real! (Hm...I need to shave my stubble) Hold on this is not normal... can't find words ending A-L! A challenge to my mental capacity! Be gentle. At least I didn't use "rectal" In this my rhyme so playful I fumble and I foible I diddle and I babble just to make a single post on my Theme-a Thursday. oops. Vote for me to be filipino blog of the week!! (yes you can vote daily!)

Quickie post! Did you know that the term VEGETABLE is not a botanical term, but only a culinary term? Did you know that a tomato is NOT a vegetable but a FRUIT! Well, a BERRY to be precise. It is referred to as a vegetable in culinary terms, but it's really a fruit (like a coconut is not a nut but a fruit!) And the tomato is NOT the only culinary vegetable that is a botanical fruit: eggplants, cucumbers, and squashes of all kinds (such as zucchini and pumpkins) share the same ambiguity. VEGETABLE backwards is ELBATEGEV. - random! From the letters in VEGETABLE, you can form the following 5-or-more lettered words: table, beget, beetle, bagel, gable... add some more!

こんにちは、ようこそ！ Here's a couple of weird/unique animals we saw at the zoo in Tagaytay. The first one is a 5 legged-cow... This second one is an albino carabao (water bufallo) with an albino baby... Both photos are from my Valentine's Day 2009 set, Liz and I went up to Tagaytay for Valentine's Day, which will be the topic of a separate post. :p On Thursday we're off to Baguio! Yay!

Photos from the Manila Ocean Park Here are some photos from when I visited The Manila Ocean Park with my girlfriend for her birthday last year... I found Nemo (in Manila!) - I knew it! Creepy looking fishy eggs that sort of look more like lizards than fish... I bet your eyes would be this red too if you had to sleep with them open. :p I can talk to fish 'cause I'm a Pisces. :p Happy Valentine's Day Liz. I love you! a Theme Thursday post

Oble - UP Oblation The statue dearest to my heart is called the " The Oblation ". The Oblation is the symbol of the University of the Philippines, the university I went to for my Engineering degree. I have so many wonderful memories of UP. It was where I met my girlfriend of course. Haha.

From Coffee Messiah : Sometime last year a fellow blogger started Theme Thursday, and anyone who wanted could post something on their blog on Thursday relating to the theme. This week's topic is KITCHEN . Here's my Theme Thursday blog... The first thing that came to my mind about KITCHEN is, of course, that it's where people cook. I don't really cook. I just really eat. So in the absence of food cooking stories and photos of our kitchen, I thought to share some stuff about kitchens and scary movies... __________ 1. As a young boy, I loved watching horror movies even if they kept me up half the night. After a good intense scaring, I would lie in bed with the blanket covering my whole body (the feet too! coz I was scared zombies would grab my feet) and with only my eyes and my nose showing. On one particular night, after watching Freddie Kruger almost kill Nancy on "A Nightmare on Elm Street", my elder sister scared me half to death telling me she could hear a t...