TravelswithCharie

I have no car here in Roxas City, my new (old) home. I have to depend on relatives to take me around the first week I was here. But this gets old so I am learning to take public transportation. There are two choices: a tricycle which is a Nazi type vehicle with motorcycle and side cab and there is the minicab. I am not tall but here in the island, I tower over people's heads. When I get inside the minicab, I must bend very low so I do't hit the roof. This small cab fits about 12 tiny local residents. One day I was pushed all the way inside the cab. I couldn't see my stop because the windows were below my eye level. When I saw the blur of my cousin's blue house next door, I realized I was way past my stop. Imagine getting out of this cab! When I asked the driver to stop, it was all too sudden, the people around me were taken by surprise with the unexpectef stop and my loud voice asking the driver to "Para" (stop). Then as I tried to get out of this cramped, mod

When I first heard about this exhibition, I was disappointed to learn that the works of Carlos “Botong” Francisco would not be part of the show. That said, the 38 paintings and sketches by Juan Luna, Fernando Amorsolo and Fernando Zobel, now on display at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, is an impressive collection spanning 100 years of Philippine Art. Each of these three artists studied and honed their craft in Europe or the United States. As such, their works reflect Western art trends of their respective periods. Juan Luna lived both in Madrid and Paris. His Woman with Shawl (1880-1890) and Lady at the Racetrack (1880-1890) show influences of the Impressionist style of painting. Impressionism had burst into the art scene in France in 1884, precisely the time Luna won the First Gold Medal for his painting, Spoliarium, at the Exposicion de Bellas Artes in Madrid. Luna’s later sketches of Ragamuffin and Study for People and Kings show his foray into the social realism genre

On my first day in Roxas City, my cousin took me to the appliance center where I bought a bed, an airconditioner, a fridge, a TV set, an electric fan and a stove. I had been traveling for 24 hours and wanted so badly to get some sleep. I asked the store owner to please deliver the bed to my apartment by noon so I could get some sleep. The delivery truck arrived as we had arranged. Rain was pouring heavily as the workers unpacked the crates of new appliances and installed the airconditioning unit and connect the stove to the gas line. By 3:30 p.m. they were done. I took a warm shower using the new pink, plastic pail I had just bought. My "butler" made some hot water and mixed it with the water in the pail. That was my warm shower. Shortly after I fell asleep in my air cooled room and woke up momentarily because my cousin came by to make sure all was well. The sound of the sea roaring as it lashed against the breakwater in the backyard woke me in the early morning hour

by Rosario Charie Albar The night was dark and dreary I was tired and weary The air was far from cheery I felt a little leery. I heard a faint knock, knock Like the tick tock of a clock Not the pounding of a rock But the turning of a lock. I went to open the door And beheld not one but four And in the distance many more Ghosts so scary I fainted on the floor. "Come with us for a jaunt" "To places we will haunt" I cowered and said "please don't" But they dragged me as was their wont. Our first stop was at a bar Where men were drinking by the jar Ghosts appeared and it was war But the drunks merely laughed har, har, har. To a parked car we went Where love was heavenly sent The ghosts screeched and gave full vent But the lovers were to each only intent. Then we crashed into a party Kids in costumes how teenie boppy The ghosts in unison howled eerily "Cool" said the kids and danced merrily. The night was being pared Yet not one victim had been sc

Great minds discuss ideas Average minds discuss events Small minds discuss people. Eleanor Roosevelt

In the rose garden of the Filoli estate, I have an amusing time reading the names of the hundreds of roses that are grown and bred here. There is an Ingrid Bergman, a Dolly Parton, Secret, Double Delight, Iceberg and yes, Bacardi. I’ll drink to that! And the fragrance that permeates the air is a French parfumerie ’s dream. The rose garden is just one of many in the property. There is the Knot Garden, the Perennial Border with rows of purple lavender, the Sunken Garden, Yew Allee with its stately yew trees, the Fruit Garden, the Walled Garden and meadows and terraces! Colors change with the seasons. The house and gardens with the Crystal Springs watershed at its backdoor couldn’t be better situated. But there’s more to discover about Filoli. When Shakespeare asked “What’s in a name?", little did he know that centuries later Mr. Bourn, the first owner of the estate, would pack so much into a name. Mr. Bourn’s favorite maxim was “ Fi ght for a just cause; Lo ve your fellow man; Li ve

I arrived in Honolulu late in the evening on Friday and all I could think of was saimin . From the airport my sister and a friend drove me to Zippy's where I satisfied my craving. It was as I remembered it. Slices of char siu, fish cake and green onions added a bit of flavor to plain noodles. After dinner I bought apple fritters from Zippy's own bakery. I was in Honolulu for the weekend to close a chapter in my life. Famished after two and a half hours of hard work emptying my storage space of 20 years (!), sweating as if we've been soaking in a sauna, my sister, her friend and I found ourselves in a dive in Kalihi for some heavy duty lunch on Saturday afternoon. The crab wonton was a revelation. Inside the crisp wonton was crabmeat dipped in cream sauce. After lunch we drove around the island, stopping to ring t he bell for good luck and happiness at the Byodo-In Temple in Kaneohe. Continuing along Highway 83, we got out of the car to view Chinaman's Hat rising from Pa