The Songwriter & The Crooner

Oh yes, I like Jose Mari Chan. I grew up listening to his Constant Change album. I had a cassette tape of it that I repeatedly play in my stereo back then. I memorized the lyrics of all the songs. I was in grade school then, the era of Debbie Gibson, and JMC captured my fondness for love songs. Can’t We Start Over Again was my favorite.

Last December 2, JMC had a show with Richard Poon. After my beach trip, sound trip naman. I rushed to the PICC, excited to hear him sing live again after eons of waiting. The crowd was not my generation, well mostly. Majority were bejeweled ladies matronly dressed, hehehe.

Opening act was by Thor. I really don’t know him, I’m not even sure if I got his name right hahaha. He sang 2 songs, songs that were badly chosen. Nat King Cole and Lani Misalucha ba naman. 

the who?!

There were several empty seats at the start of the show, but were eventually filled up. Talk about Filipino time.

Danceable tunes were performed by the two artists as their opening number.

Then the stage was monopolized by Richard Poon.

Singing Christmas songs with the 3 ladies.

Singing wedding songs.

A surprise appearance from Pokwang and Mahal followed. Hahaha, it was funny. Pokwang and her “No Boyfriend, No Problem” song earned laughter from the audience. Believe me, I heard the song for the first time there.

Pokwang was up and around the venue, with her song.

JMC had the spotlight with the following songs: Constant Change, Tell Me Your Name, Can We Just Stop And Talk Awhile, and Refrain. 

We need more songwriters, we need more JMCs in the music industry. Look at his songs, still very pleasant to hear after all these years.

I finally heard Noelle Cassandra perform live. Such an angel, with her harp and voice! “Please Be Careful With My Heart” and “A Love To Last A Lifetime” became so heart warming with their duet.

Who could forget “Beautiful Girl”? It’s always Gretchen Barretto that comes to my mind whenever I hear the song. Speaking of Beautiful Girl, I spotted that night Kring-Kring Gonzales and Tin Bersola Babao.

Beautiful Girl was performed in two versions, in English by JMC and Chinese by Richard. Cute.

The show ended with JMC’s Christmas carols: Christmas in our Hearts and Perfect Christmas.

It was a lovely night, so romantic for couples.

Life is good! =)

P.S.

Let’s Face It was the major sponsor. Everyone got a loot bag, and other freebies.

 

Again, life is good.

I am So Back!

After a long hiatus, I am so back! Can’t wait to write stories again. I had a roller coaster ride the past months, chose to be incommunicado to some, and kept my life under wraps.

 A lot has been going on, from serious to silly…from politics to showbiz. There’s the story of Ramgen… the balls of Topacio… the Piolo-KC break up… the Operation Put the Little Girl to Sleep…the controversial Mo-Rhian affair… Pacquiao against Marquez… the ugly Angry Birds cake from Metrodeal… the expensive football ticket… De Lima against the Supreme Court… and my favorite, the screech of Midas.

I missed a lot of good movies and tv shows. And I haven’t seen a single episode of PBB, where my classmate in law school, Tol Chua, is a housemate.

taken from shirgie-story.blogspot.com

But I didn’t dare miss Breaking Dawn. I endured Bella’s pregnancy! You see, I’m not a fan of Bella, just Edward. Among the vampire stories now, Bella’s character is the most duh. Unlike Sookie of True Blood, Schuyler of Blue Bloods and Elena of Vampire Diaries… these ladies really rock with their roles.

taken from twilight-breaking-dawn-movie.blogspot.com

While away, a lot of people sent their love. My mom gave me these:

Clinique is love, being hypo-allergenic.

I had this for dessert (for a week!), all the way from Davao, also from Mom:

Yummy durian.

A friend in Jakarta sent this:

Scent is sweet-smelling.

A girlfriend gave me 3 boxes of Meiji:

And I won in the raffle of Chuvaness!

I was really elated when I got this box!

One of my favorite bloggers.

Inside the box:

Human Heart Nature products and Eco Bag, EOS lipbalm, Goody hairbrush, Carb Trim iced tea mix, and bag from Rootote.

Also, I got a clean bill of health. Tested negative on hyperthyroidism.

Thank God!

 Meantime, enjoy these signs:

Taken near La Salle Taft: CERTIFIED THRU XEROX COPY

Inside a cab: Just how difficult it is to spell UTILITY?

 

 

 

the use of "AS PER": redundant

Common mistake, or talagang dapat naka-costume si customer?!

I'm sure this is referring to a lane, and not to a person. Otherwise, it is kidnapping!

With such sentence construction, I'm sure it is a gimmick hahahaha!

 That's it, pancit!

 

Around Bohol

It took me a long time to feature the rest of my Bohol trip. Busyness *wink*. I am in between things I cannot forgo at the moment. That's another story. I'll blog about it soon.

Anyway, if there's any place I'd like to go back to, Bohol will be one of it. I'll never get tired of the province because of its various tourist destinations. There will always be things to do and places to see.

We visited 2 churches: the Cathedral Parish of St. Joseph the Worker in Tagbilaran and the Baclayon Church.

The Cathedral is right at the heart of the city, just across the Rizal Park. The original church was built by the Jesuit missionaries.

Inside the church: very dainty.

The belfry right in front of the church.

Most churches in Bohol have belfries.

The Baclayon Church, on the other hand, is the oldest church in Bohol, and the second oldest in the Philippines (next to San Agustin Church in Intramuros). It is made of coral stone.

Coral stone.

The statues of saints were very old, most dated back during the Spanish era.

It was beautiful inside.

The splendid altar.

The hand-painted ceiling.

A museum is open to the public within the church compound. Entrance fee is 50php. Unfortunately, taking of pictures is not allowed. You can find inside the museum the original candle holders and cups used during mass in the 18th century, the chairs of the priests, more statues made of ivory, the first piano installed, the clothes and other effects used to dress the Virgin Mary, paintings, and so much more.

This is the view from the second floor of the museum, the church belfry.

The church was well-preserved. It is still in its original state.

Back of the museum. The 2nd floor is made of solid wood. And there's a wishing well.

I made a wish!

Our driver slash tour guide pointed this:

The stains due to raindrops made a moldy formation of the face of Padre Pio! Can you see it?!


For lunch, we tried the Floating Resto aka Loboc River Cruise.

Good thing we got in the boat early. Fewer people, no long lines, and the servers were attentive.

375php for a buffet, with the following menu:

Camaron

Fish fillet

Ginatang talangka

Pork barbecue

Buttered chicken

Adobong kangkong

Eggdrop soup

Selection of desserts

Oh yes, the food looked good in pictures....only in pictures =)


But this was sooooo good.............!!!!!

Mangga with bagoong!!!!!