Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, 2008

Spent almost 4 days of our 10-day vacation in Cambodia. Looking back, the pictures turned out really nice. It's a country that makes you feel privileged that you live in Manila. At the same time, one can't helped but be amazed that despite the appalling road conditions and signs of poverty everywhere - the country has the angkor wat complex.

Tourism being one of the sources of economic wealth - one gets to really interact with the locals. I think more than the sites - I remember the grouchy guest house owner, the tuk-tuk driver and the taxi mafia touts at the poi pet border. Everywhere you go, you just feel privileged that more than the sights, you get to see the dichotomy of things and these make you appreciate the people living there more.

Ho Chi Minh, 2008

Last country in our 10-day trip. The bus ride from Siem Reap to this city lasted 12 hours (via Mekong Bus Company). Had a guide that gives us historical facts and points to interesting places along the 12-hour trip - barely can remember the facts - I was so tired from the Siem Reap-Angkor complex sight seeing that I chose to sleep the whole time.

Loved the city - Lea and I enjoyed their coffee! I kept on remembering Tranh Ha-san, Vietnamese batch mate from Kobe University, and how she thought me how to prepare an iced coffee or iced tea with milk and syrup. Even took some coasters from the Highlands Coffee shop and sampled the iced coffee sold on the side streets.

Aside from the food - pho, coffee, duck eggs and baguettes - Lea and I went around the city for a day and discovered their urban architecture - post office, notre dame cathedral, the opera, water puppets theatre, markets and their city parks.

Bangkok, 2008

Lea presented her paper on ground water vulnerability in the Philippines. It's a study of how ground water usage near an industrializing zone (Sta. Rosa, Laguna) is impacting on the lives of people in a local community - Pulong Sta. Cruz. I got to sit though the two-day conference with the hydro-geologists, geo-engineers and scientists from Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Philippines, Indonesia and Japan. Even joined the group in their cement-factory tour in Thailand and wine tasting in a vineyard.

After the conference - Lea and I are off to Cambodia and Vietnam for our backpacking adventures then back to Khaosan Road for our taste of the Bangkok nightlife.

HR Forum 2008

Forgot the official title of this live-in seminar at Antipolo, sponsored by USAID and PAGC but this really served as the HR Forum for the year. All HR officials from the national office and the regional offices of the bureau got to exchanged ideas and present their programs.

Going Away, Leaving Everything and Coming Back....

Strong in the Rain

Strong in the rain Strong in the wind Strong against the summer heat and snow He is healthy and robust Free from desire He never loses his temper Nor the quiet smile on his lips He eats four go of unpolished rice Miso and a few vegetables a day He does not consider himself In whatever occurs . . . his understanding Comes from observation and experience And he never loses sight of things He lives in a little thatched-roof hut In a field in the shadows of a pine tree grove If there is a sick child in the east He goes there to nurse the child If there's a tired mother in the west He goes to her and carries her sheaves If someone is near death in the south He goes and says, "Don't be afraid" If there are strife and lawsuits in the north He demands that the people put an end to their pettiness He weeps at the time of drought He plods about at a loss during the cold summer Everyone calls him Blockhead No one sings his praises Or takes him to heart . . . That is the kind of person I want to be © "Strong in the Rain" by Kenji Miyazawa; translation © Roger Pulvers

Taken from today's issue of the Japan Times Online.  Hopefully, I can go back from this trip with a clearer picture of who I want to become...

Happy Birthday

July is almost coming to an end.  I've been meaning to post a birthday entry but can't seem to find the time  - I have to take on most of Ipeng's house hold tasks; am now doing both JICA and USAID-funded projects at the office and so on.... Lot's of excuses to put off this birthday blog entry.  To make things easier for me, I decided to post all the SMS birthday greetings I got (also mo make room for other incoming messages) - here they are:
Gracie:  Monet, lapit na birthday mo.  Advance, hbd na.  Baka malimutan ko.  Watch tayo Mama Mia!  Sa Sunday birthday mo diba?  Watch tayo.  Hanggang ngayon, di ko pa rin napapanood, almost contacted her for dinner last July 23 when I was in Makati for the USAID workshop on Corruption Prevention - kaya lang tinamad ako....
Tito Richard:  Happy Bday po mam c richard po i2.  so san po gimik mo nyan?  enjoy d rest of d day ok gandang umaga po.  So nk simba knb nyan ha ning binati knb ni dona h? Ang galang dito ni tito richard!  Hmmmm.... notice he called me ma'am sa first text, yung mga sumunod I'm back to Nining....
Nova:  Happy birthday! :)  Parang standard birthday greeting ko ito sa lahat, except this one may smiley after the exclamation point.  di ba maganda? 
Melissa:  Happy birthday girl!  Anong activities mo today? I can't remember how I answered this - pero definitely na celebrate na namin ang birthday ko with matching meeting with her mom and dad - genki family ito talaga - lot's and lot's of gulay sa diet....
Raul:  Happy birthday Monet!  Have fun on ur special day U -
Aileen:  Happy birthday martina! U - Para ring kay Nova at sa akin!
Janet:  Hi martina.  happy birthday! musta na? san k clebrate ng bday m0? wish u gud health, love n happiness in lyf. God bless!mwah. - May presento pa ako from her, ha.
Monettee:  I WISH YOU   perfect health, lots of care, love that never ends, peace of mind and all d wondrful things in LIFE. Hapi bday!
Gracie (again):  Hi monet, happy birthday.  I wish you more blessings and good health. Have a great day!
Juliet:  Happy birthday ate monet - juliet
Lea:  Hoy happy birthday!  San kainan?
Lea:  Happy birthday din daw sbi ni xenia!
Tita Romie:  HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY nkkgrit na rin c tita gerrie
Janie:  The FOUR BLESSED LOOKS:  - Look back & THANK GOD. - Look forward& TRUST GOD. - Look aound & SERVE GOD. - Look for within & FIND GOD.  Maligayang kaarawan ninang monet!
I got birthday cards from Ma'am Zen, Mama Nima, Tita Gay, Juliet and from the TMD staff; birthday hug from Tita Zen; a BHB e-mail from Roseller, another e-mail greetings from Ma'am Zen and a PM from Marge.  Will try to post them. 
Birthday card greetings ---
Juliet:  Ate Monet... Thanks for the gift of you.  May your birthday be as special as you are. stay blessed.  Salamat sa lahat-lahat... salamat sa pagiging matulungin, matyaga at mapagpacensya, mapagbigay, maintindihin, mapagparaya, mabait at palakaibigang bossing (sana lahat ng boss ay kagaya mo para magaan at masaya lagi ang pagtatrabaho).  Muli maligayang kaarawan - ha! mabait daw ako sabi ni juliet.  anyways, kung hindi ako mabait para sa kanya - malamang di na lang ako nito sulatan, ok na ang bati....
Ma'am Zen and family: To our dearest Monet, Happy birthday!  May God bless you with his gifts of good health, good love, lots of friends and happiness.  Enjoy your day! Love, Zen, Nelson, kalel & Kyra
Tita Gay:  Dearest Monet, May our Mother of Perpetual Help Guide and Protect You Today and Always.  Wish you love and happiness, Love, Tita Gay
Mama Nima:  Celebrating your with joy Have a wonderful year Happy birthday!  

Now, it's Miyazaki's turn

His last anime, Hauro no Ugoku Shiro, was released in 2004 (a year before I arrived in Japan).  His current anime, Gake no ue no Ponyo, is currently showing - almost a year after I left Japan.  Another  Japanese movie event that made me wished I'm back in Kobe.....  

Agence France-Presse - 7/19/2008 5:01 AM GMT

Animator Miyazaki's new film hits screens in Japan

Hayao Miyazaki's first full-length film in four years hit screens across Japan on Saturday, putting aside speculation that the Oscar-winning Japanese animator had made his last picture.
A 650-seat movie theatre at Tokyo's shopping and business district of Hibiya was filled with his fans, mostly children and their parents, to watch "Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea," which the reclusive 67-year-old wrote and directed.
Inspired by the 19th-century fairy tale "The Little Mermaid" by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, the story centres around a tiny fish-girl, Ponyo, who rides a jellyfish to escape her home in the sea.
She meets a five-year-old boy, Sosuke, who vows to protect her, but Ponyo is taken back to the sea. Desperate to be a human and live with Sosuke, Ponyo heads to land again with help from her sisters.
Miyazaki is one of Japan's biggest cultural exports. His last film, "Howl's Moving Castle," broke opening box office records at home in 2004 before winning a cult following in Western and Asian nations.
Miyazaki has said repeatedly in the past that he wants to retire.
The 2004 release of "Howl's Moving Castle" was met by speculation that it would be his last film, raising concerns in Japan for the future of the lucrative animation industry.
But "Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea" has dampened such concern.
Miyazaki, who had used computer graphics since "Princess Mononoke" in 1997, decided to shun hi-tech effects in his latest picture.
Miyazaki's second to last film, "Spirited Away," won the Academy Award in 2003 for best animated feature, Japan's first Oscar for a full-length work in nearly half a century.