Swinging with "The Real Group" and "The Swingle Singers"

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 about 25 years ago. Current members Emma Nilsdotter, Katarina Henryson, Anders Edenroth, Peder Karlsson, and Anders Jalkéus.

Here's a video of The Real Group singing "It Don't Mean a Thing (If it Ain't Got That Swing)".... It's LIVE!

"It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" is a 1931 composition by Duke Ellington with lyrics by Irving Mills, now accepted as a jazz standard. The music was written and arranged by Ellington in August 1931 during intermissions at Chicago's Lincoln Tavern and was first recorded by Ellington and his orchestra for Brunswick Records (Br 6265) on February 2, 1932. - Wiki

The Swingle Singers

Now, the Swingle Singers is an 8-member, multi-Grammy Award winning, acapella singing group formed in 1962, but is still around today (with new singers of course!).

I was lucky enough to meet one of the Swingle Singers personally in 2000 during the Aberdeen International Youth Festival (AIYF) in Scotland: composer, arranger, choral conductor, teacher and singer Mr. Ben Parry was first Bass with the swingle singers from 1987 to 1992.

The Swingle Singers are now part of the music for the new Fox series "Glee", a musical comedy. It's not being shown here in the Philippines yet, but from news stories and the trailer, it sounds like it will be a huge hit here too. Here's why I think so!

A Theme Thursday post

Pinay Scandal / Pinoy Scandal

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Welcome everyone! Go ahead and click, it's safe!

Better late than never! This post is in support of a project that began on Macuha.com way back in 2007. It was simply called "Pinay scandal". The goal was to steer Google searches away from websites containing Filipinas on "display" and direct them instead to these blog posts. Keyword "Pinay scandal" is one of the biggest all time keywords in the Philippines, and when I checked, apparently, "Pinoy scandal" is even bigger. Lol!

Welcome men, women, boys and girls. I apologize if this was not what you were looking for, but since you're here anyway, why don't you SUBSCRIBE?

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Okay Okay, I don't want you to leave empty handed (ehem...) so here's something for all y'all.

For all of your who came here looking for something Asian, something exotic, something that you'll want over and over again... why not try some eel! ----->>>>

I had some EEL for the first (and only) time on a business trip to Singapore. It was quite delectable actually, the sauce was very good. The meat of the eel itself was surprisingly very much like fish, and not at all like how I expected it (I had initially thought it would be something like squid...)

Now that that's done, let's move on!
Here are some of the bloggers that participated in this exercise!
The Pinay scandal hit list:

1. Wanna know the latest trend about Pinay Scandal? by Dexter of Tech At Hand
2. Pinay Scandal… The Issue by Darang Sisa
3. Pinay Scandal by Almer Viloria
4. Google Suggested Pinay Scandal by Ada
5. Pinay Scandal by Ada
6. Pinay Scandal by Catzie
7. Pinay Scandal by Mina
8. Pinay Scandal by Jehzeel Laurente
9. Pinay Scandals: Earning Big Bucks? by Nika
10. Looking For Pinay Scandals?! by Eli
11. Pinay Scandal by Eligio
12. Pinay Scandal by Stentorized
13. Pinay Scandal by Caryl
14. Pinay Scandal o Iskandalosang Pinay by Kengkay
15. Pinay Scandal by Hazel
16. Pinay Scandal by Baby Face
17. Pinay Scandal Story by Pinoy Ambisyoso
18. Pinay Scandal by Kenneth
19. Pinay Scandal by JoanJoyce
20. Pinay Scandal, Anyone? by MyGlitch
21. Pinay Scandal Here by Jojitah
22. “Pinay Scandal” Idea by Neil
23. Pinay Scandal… In The Mind Of Pinays by Marikenya
24. The Pinay Scandal - Most Outrageous and Raw Scandal by Chuva
25. Pinoy Scandal Survivor No. 1 Proud Filipina: Julie Borje by Marikenya
26. Pinay Scandal by Chuvaness
27. The Best of Pinay Scandals by Rhodilee
28. Pinay Scandal by Che
29. Pinay Scandal by JeanGrey
30. Pinay Scandal Revealed! by Glitchline
31. Pinay Scandal on the Web by Philippine Elections 2007
32. Pinay Scandal, Let’s Play The Trend by Selaplana
33. The Hottest Pinay Scandals by iRonnie
34. Blog About Filipina, Pinay Scandal And Vedio by Allen
35. Pinay Scandal Video by Ronald Mojica
36. Pinay Scandal by Paulyn
37. Pinay Scandal Videos by Mi
38. Pinay Scandals by Rhyannefranz
39. Pinay Scandal Revealed! by Mesothelioma Info
40. Pinay Scandal or Pinay Sex Scandal SEO Project by Lestat
41. Pinay Scandal Here by Ronald
42. Sex And Pinay Scandal Videos Sell by Blogging Pinay
43. Pinay Scandal / Pnay Scandal: 18 Above Only by Ceefive
44. Pinay Scandal Me by Marlene
45. Pinay Scandal in Baguio City by Reyna Elena
46. Pinay Scandal, Performing In Bubbles by Kotsengkuba
47. The Famous Pinay Scandal Keyword by Edward
48. The Pinay Scandal Advocates by Lestat
49. Pinay Scandal Free Download Available by Allen
50. Pinay Sex Scandal by Culture Shiok
51. Pinay Scandal Free Download by Derek
52. Pinay Scandal by Pusa
53. Pinay Scandal? Think Again by Babyface
54. Pinay Scandals: The Wrong Turn by Lady Influence
55. Pinay Scandal by Agloco Philippines
56. Pinay Scandals Are Dominating The Web by Pinoy World
57. Pinay Scandal Is A Hit by The Pinoy Blogger Reviews
58. Rampant Pinay Scandal by Eduard
59. Watch as the True Pinay Scandal Goes Down by Dark Knight
60. Pinay Scandal by Pinoytek
61. Pinay Scandal by Zigfred
62. Pinay Scandal by Julia
63. Exposing Pinay Scandals by Ruth
64. Download Pinay Scandals 3gp for your Phone For Free by Jam
65. Pinay Scandal (For Adults Only) by Apol
66. Pinay Scandal In The Mountainsby Banco De Reyna
67. Pinay Scandal sa Ombudsman by Manilenya
68. Batangas Scandal by Batangueno.net
69. Not Another Pinay Scandal by GoBuzzYourSelf
70. Pinay Scandals by Nursing Crib
71. I am Pinay and this is a Pinay Scandal by Agnes
72. Pinay Scandal Anew by Seek No More
73. Pinay Scandal OMG! by ExcEsc
74. Pinay Scandal - Pinay Celebrity Scandal - 3gp Scandal Download by Pinay Celebrity Online
75. Pinay Scandal (with Photo!) by Seven.Senses
76. Best Pinay Scandal by The Filipino Web
77. Pinay Scandal, Amateur Filipina Sex Videos Download by archondigital.com
78. The Pinay Scandal SEO Saga by Snow

Just leave a comment if you want to be added to this list! (which blatantly copied from Macuha's site, hehehe. Thanks dude!)

#88 Balai Indang, a hideaway

Our overnight stay at Balai Indang or Balay Indang was thanks to the wedding of Kuya Dean and Ate Joy. Their wedding was in the morning of a Saturday up in Tagaytay (Caleruega, Nasugbu to be exact), so they had booked their whole entourage at the Balai Indang on Friday so that no one would be late! ;) (great idea ya?)
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We (Liz and I) went via Tagaytay from Batangas where we left at around 5:30 in the afternoon. Unfortunately for us, May is the season for fiestas in Batangas, and with fiestas come bumper-to-bumper-traffic-causing processions. :)

About half an hour from when we first got stuck, I was already ranting about how they should make laws preventing processions from completely taking away half of the road and effectively freezing traffic! Calling governor V? :p

Driving to Balai Indang

This procession, along the main highway through Bauan, Batangas, held us prisoners for a little more than an hour. The 1.5 hour trip to Tagaytay was extended to almost 3 hours! Good thing Balai Indang was not difficult to find, save for the initial it's-dark-and-are-we-going-in-the-right-direction/is-this-a-horror-movie feeling.

The trick was just to keep an eye out for a large #88 painted on a wall on the left side of the street (coming from Tagaytay!). It's big enough for the near sighted to see. ;)

When we arrived, we were quite hungry. Good thing there was a program for "getting-to-know-each-other-in-the-entourage" before dinner, so there was still a lot of food when we arrived. At dinner, we got to sit with Dean's high school teacher, and she kept us entertained with Dean's childhood stories while we ate dinner...

Great Food and Graham Crackers

The food, (which I cannot describe in detail anymore because I don't remember!) was good, Liz particularly enjoyed the fish something (hehe) and I particularly enjoyed the dessert (of course!) which was (and this one I remember!) Graham crackers that they made into little graham balls (little Graham Bells?) and rolled in coconut bits. Awesome! :D


After dinner, Dean (haha, yes the groom himself) escorted us to our rooms. The set-up was very homey, the lamps and the curtains were very Filipino. There were about 3 rooms per house, and each room was big enough for at least 6 adults: 2 queen sized beds on the first floor and 2 single beds up on the loft.

I especially liked the bathrooms: the shower area was a piece of flat stone surrounded by pebbles, the sink area was a mix of modern and traditional elements, the wooden counters and the ceramics mix well. There were some problems with the door to the toilet area, which was a sliding door and was a bit difficult to close. (heh heh)

Because we arrived late and needed to be up early, we did not really have much time to walk around and enjoy the rest of Balai Indang. I was told there was a swimming pool and a fishing area, and I found a mini-trail with a sign saying "Barefoot walk". There was also a bar with a billiard table. The brochure actually was promoting the place as a family getaway, or a venue for corporate team building activities.

The next day, we were up bright and early, and we got a good look at the lush greens and lovely flowers at Balai Indang. Breakfast was lovely and light while we watched the members of the entourage getting their hair and make-up done (some of them were up at 4AM!) We enjoyed the ambiance of the house, the details in the decorations were exquisite. Liz liked the sink in the ladies room, the ceramic vase with intricate painting detail, and even took a camera in the toilet. ;)

Filipiniana Wedding

Finally we were off to Caleruega for Kuya Dean and Ate Joy's wedding, where I was set to sing at the ceremony. Thank you to the couple for our relaxing, albeit brief stay at Balai Indang!


Click on the photos to view full size. Photos by Liz and Rey using Canon Digital Ixus 90IS.

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June 5 is World Environment Day, How did we fare?

Today, June 5 is World Environment Day (WED), according to the UNEP Homepage, it is the day when the United Nations stimulate people and governments to push for action on environmental issues. The theme for WED 2009 is 'Your Planet Needs You-UNite to Combat Climate Change'.

Climate Change has been in the forefront of environment related discussions for the past few decades, and numerous promotions have been made to try to address the issue. There is a particularly wonderful page on the UNEP Homepage about how to: "Easily Green your daily Routine" (and it rhymes too!) which details small adjustments to your lifestyle that will help in big ways. Things like "wear jeans more than once" or "usa a washable mug for your morning coffee" are very easily doable.

My question though is have we gone far enough to effect a slowdown of this inevitable future of climate change? How have we in our yearly Environmental Day celebrations been able to effect change and curb climate change? Or has June 5 become just another celebration we do, but not really affecting anything?

As an improvement, I think it would be good to know how we have as individuals uniting together have been able to make a difference. Or if we haven't, how we should do more. From my work I have learned that we can't improve on something we don't measure. So, so far, how have we fared? How far have we come? And what do we need to do more?

Although wonderfully clever to break down environmental friendly contributions to a doable daily task list, it's still difficult to imagine how my putting my printer on default "print on both sides" mode will effect the cutting down of trees in the thousands per day. So, my challenge to UN is... to help me imagine it better. :D If I see how I have been able to help, then maybe I will be inspired to help some more, and maybe other people will be inspired as well.

This is our world, we, the human race, are the biggest stakeholders in this worldwide project. And even if you do not care if I or any other person in the world will survive, even if your intentions are purely selfish, I don't care. As long as you do your bit to help.

Oh, and please plant a tree. :D

Puerto Galera 2009: last summer outing

This post is the second of 2 posts about my 2009 summer at Puerto Galera, White Beach in Mindoro. Read the first post here.

The end of summer

2009 Summer is over for the Philippines when it's supposed to be just beginning. (It's only May!!!) Our trip to Puerto Galera (although in retrospect was quite headstrong) would probably be our last summer outing to the beach, or rather, anywhere which requires you to ride a boat to reach the beach.

For now, I'll be happy that we got to go to at least one beach this year. :D I love the beach. When I'm filthy rich, which is soon, hehe, I'll buy the whole Boracay Island. Haha!

Anyway, on with the story...

Relaxing Day

On our second day in Puerto Galera (Sunday), our friends Paolo, Princess & Jenny left early in the morning for Manila because some of them needed to work the next day.

Liz, Bing and I agreed to spend the whole day relaxing. As opposed to the first day, we did not make any plans on the second day, we just swam around, slept and walked around the beach. The sun was still strong, and even though the sky was still a bit hazy, you wouldn't think that just a couple of days ago there was a storm here.

There was a host of things to do in Puerto Galera: aside from the normal snorkeling and island hopping, diving and swimming, you can also para-sail, kayak, ride a banana boat, hike up the mountains, visit the waterfalls, get a tattoo or a henna tattoo, get piercings, or get a massage on the beach. At night, they have a lot of bars and pubs along the beach coast, most of them play dance music, some with live bands.

In the afternoon, while the ladies were taking a nap, I went by myself and walked the length of White Beach. I took my camera and snapped away at the sand, the water, and the people. There was not a lot of people left that day so I got a good relaxing walk.

More shopping and more swimming after that, and a massage on the beach at sundown was the perfect way to end the day.

Sunset at Puerto Galera is one to watch out for. It begins like a candle light and then spreads quickly like wildfire across the sky. To me, watching the sun set is a rarity. Often, I come out of the office when it's already dark.

A good thing to note to non-Filipino readers is that sunset in the Philippines is very quick. It begins at around 6PM varying depending on the month, and it can be over in as short as 10 minutes.

Dancing the night away

More grilled food for dinner (yummy), and more drinks too! We tried the new Carlsberg drink, and danced around our table until we got sleepy. I find dancing is a great way to loosen up and relax and forget about the troubles at work. Too bad there's not enough good, clean, dancing places around (or maybe I just don't know about them haha!)

In the bar where we stayed, there was this gay waiter/waitress who did stunts (lol), he/she jumps and then lands on a split, or climbs this pole and hangs upside down. He/She looks like a bat! woot! Check it out ----

Hahaha!

Back to Reality

On Monday, we slept in, packed our bags slowly, and made our way to the beach to catch the 12noon boat to Manila. Tudoy (my really kind and good looking friend! hehe!) agreed to pick us up from the Batangas Pier. The trip back took longer than we expected, but we arrived safely nonetheless.

I leave you then with a couple more photos of Puerto Galera. You can click on any of the photos to see them in their original size.

And, if you're going to the beach, take me with you! :D

Back to Reyjr Travel Blog Log

Charice enters the Billboard Hot 100 at #44

Filipina singer Charice's first single, "Note to God" which she debuted on the Oprah show on May 18, enters the Billboard Hot 100 chart today at #44. The #1 spot is still held by the Black Eyed Peas' "Boom Boom Pow" who also has a Filipino member, rapper Apl de Ap.

Here's Charice's Oprah performance video in case you haven't seen it:




Charice will also be appearing in 20th Century Fox’s "Alvin and The Chipmunks 2," slated for December 2009...

Charice's singing is of the "birit" diva style reminiscent of other divas like Whitney Houston, Celine Dion and the younger Mariah Carey. She has a huge voice despite her small frame and can reach up to the heavens with her vocal calisthenics.

She became famous on YouTube where her video (and her story) was picked up by Ellen Degeneres and Oprah Winfrey. Charice's career was put into high gear when multi Grammy winning songwriter David Foster took her under his wing.

CONGRATULATIONS Charice! We are proud of you! :D Go Pinoy!