ILOILO: HEART of the PHILIPPINES

The following write up is sourced from the Bonifacio @ 150 Exhibit of the Santa Barbara Centennial Museum which will run until December 31, 2012 at the Museum Lobby. Afterwich it will be transferred to the Sta. Barbara Central Elementary School. Andres Bonifacio was born on November 30, 1863 in Tondo, Manila. His father Santiago was a tailor, a local politician and a boatman who operated a river-ferry; his mother, Catalina de Castro, was employed in a cigarette-rolling factory. The couple worked extremely hard to support Andres and his five younger siblings, but in 1881 Catalina caught tuberculosis  and died. The following year, Santiago also became ill and passed away. At the age of 19, Andres Bonifacio was forced to give up plans for higher education and begin working full-time to support his orphaned younger siblings. He worked for the British trading company J.M. Fleming & Co. as a broker or corredor for local raw materials such as tar and rattan. He later moved t...

Located along San Jose Street in Molo, Iloilo City is the ancestral house of former Iloilo Governor Raymundo Melliza.  He was also a close friend of Dr. Jose Rizal who stopped by Iloilo City on his way to Manila from Dapitan. Rizal stayed in this house thus the name "Casa Rizaliana".  Another heritage attraction in Iloilo City, Casa Rizaliana, popularly known as the Arcenas- Lazaro ancestral house, will soon open it's doors to the public where tourIsts and locals alike can don in period costumes for photo ops. Read more about Casa Rizaliana (Photos courtesy of EUGENE JAMERLAN of ICCHCC)

With sultry actress-singer Lovi Poe on the cover, V Weddings Magazine launched its third issue a few days ago over cocktails at The Venue Function Rooms . The issue dubbed as " Ideas and Inspirations " helps it readers find the perfect components to make their nuptial day unforgettable.  Lovi Poe was photographed by Cholo Dela Vega wearing a gown by Vania Romoff. Styling was done by Myrrh Lao To with production design by Omie Herrera-Martizon. Makeup was provided by Paolo Maranan for Clinique,  Hair by Marivin Eustaquio for MUD. Furthermore, Lovi's Ring wasby Karat World,  Earrings by Eric Manansala, Nails by Nail.a.holics Nail salon and Spa for Orly. The bi-annual magazine  is the first and still only wedding magazine and suppliers guide based in the Visayas but distributed nationwide. Founded by Joanne Marie Combong-Pijuan and Georginna Marie Jarantilla-Desuasido, V Weddings is distributed in key areas in the Visayas (Panay: Iloilo, Antique, Roxa...

Inspired by the Dinagyang Festival and the paraw (double outrigger sailtboats used by Ilonggos), the Iloilo Convention Center rises at Megaworld Corp.'s Iloilo Business Park in Mandurriao, Iloilo City. The PhP450-million edifice is through the effort of Sen. Franklin Drilon, the Department of Tourism and Megaworld Corp. The senator will allot PhP 250 million of his PDAF for the realization of this project while the remaining will be funded by TIEZA (Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority). Megaworld Corp. donated 1.7 hectares of it's 54 hectare property in the old Iloilo airport for this project. Designed by Ilonggo Architect Willy V. Coscolluella, the design features 15 exteriors fins that evoke the beauty of  Iloilo's paraw sailboats. The glass facade will feature abstract designs reflecting Iloilo's vibrant Dinagyang festival - printed with ceramic paint laminated in glass. Indigenous stones will be used predominantly in teh exterior and interio...

As part of SM Supermalls’ continued direction towards corporate social responsibility, SM City Iloilo held a   simple program to launch the latest edition of the SM Eco Bag for for the Ilonggos last November 12, 2012.  With the theme “Engage to Change”, SM Supermalls challenged and encouraged the Filipino youth to express themselves through creating the next edition of Eco Bag designs. Of the hundreds of contestants that participated across the nation, four winning designs have been selected and are ready to be revealed to the public. Winning set of entries from LUZON Winning set of design from Metro Manila There were four set of winning designs, each chosen from entries from Metro Manila, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Mindanao's winning set of design Winning set of SM Eco -Bag design for the Visayas In line with this effort, business partners, students, figures in the Philippine environmental movement, and tenants of SM Supermalls are invi...

The Grand Christmas Launch held last November 11, 2012, 5pm at the Event Center signals the start of the Christmas season as well as the yuletide activities in the mall. SM City Iloilo mall manager Girlie Libo-on and 1Meal's Nene Chan unveil the Christmas 2012 Centerpiece  The unveiling of the Christmas centerpiece took place to the surprise of shoppers especially the children. SM City Iloilo has come up with this special occasion to bring joy and happiness to families, the mall being a gathering place for bonding moments, celebrate special occasions and simply enjoy the company of loved-ones. Vincent Bueno wows the Ilonggos with his talent that won him a talent search in Austria. Aside from the grand unveiling, SM takes the opportunity to be of help to indigent schoolchildren reach their dreams, by embarking on a project that will raise funds for the continuous feeding program for these children. Statistics show that there are about 5,000 underprivileged ch...

Megaworld, DOT ink deed of donation today; Drilon allots PDAF to build Iloilo convention center    Business tourism in the country will get another big boost after Senator Franklin M. Drilon vowed to allot a bulk of his annual priority development assistance fund and sealed the commitment of the Megaworld Corporation and the Department of Tourism (DOT) to construct a state-of-the-art convention center in Iloilo. From Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog's Facebook Page With the signing of the deed of donation held today between the multinational corporation and the DOT for the much-awaited multi-million peso Iloilo Convention Center, Drilon, the one who envisioned the construction of said new edifice, said Iloilo is a step closer to becoming a conference hub of Western Visayas and nearby regions.     “This is a realization of a lifelong dream of the residents of Panay Island to have their own highly impressive and sophisticated convention center at par with t...

Highlights of the 2013 Dinagyang Festival will be concentrated at the city proper district after the organizers decided to revert to the old carousel instead of parade type for the Kasadyahan and Ati-ati competitions. Ramon Cua-Locsin, president of the Iloilo Dinagyang Foundation Inc., the implementing arm of the festival disclosed, that the consensus was met during a meeting with Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog. The performances will be held in four judging areas namely the Iloilo Freedom Grandstand, Iloilo Provincial Capitol, Quezon-Ledesma Streets and the Ma. Clara Street. With the carousel type, the start and finish of the performances will be simultaneous in all stages thereby allowing spectators more time to experience other excitement being offered during the festival. Currently, 10 tribes have signified participation to the Ati-ati tribes competition, which will be held on Jan 27 while the IDFI is now open to groups that are interested to join the cultural presen...

The best things in life are free and one doesn't have to splurge that much to enjoy. Here are 12 things you can do and see for free when in Iloilo City. Have fun and enjoy what the city and province has to offer - fun, fiesta, festivals, faith and food. This brochure is courtesy of the Department of Tourism Region 6.

Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog announced today, October 24, that a communication he received from Senator Franklin Drilon indicate the ceremonial launching of the Iloilo City Convention Center Project will be held November 22, 2012 at the old Airport in Mandurriao district. Mayor Jed said the proposed convention center, whose construction will start next year, will cost P450-million. The center will sit in a 1,600-square meter parcel donated by Megaworld Developers which acquired the old airport area in 2010. The cost of the donated land was pegged at P100-million, giving the proposed convention center a whopping value of P550-million. The city chief executive said the center will be a 3,000-seat affair with an exhibit hall and is expected to be completed in ten months after construction starts. "Ilonggos should thank Senator Drilon for bringing our dream of having a convention center here closer to reality than ever before," Mayor Jed told city government department...

The Iloilo Bloggers Inc . in cooperation with SM City Iloilo will organize the 1st Iloilo Zombie Run on October 20, 2012 at the parking and back lot area of the said mall. Here's the press release from the Iloilo Zombie Run events page The Iloilo Zombie Run will be an obstacle course within a race. Runners will have to navigate rough terrain and obstacles while trying to escape those ugly zombies and come out of the race alive. THIS IS NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART. Please take note: The event will be run on rough terrain. You will be running amongst tall cogon grass on rocky, uneven ground. No smooth, paved roads for you! You will get dirty. You will get scratched and bruised. Your manicure and pedicure will get destroyed, as well as that pretty hairdo of yours. YOU. WILL. FALL. DOWN. The question is... can you get back up and running? Can you survive? The Iloilo Zombie Run is going to be a tough race, and we're not even talking about the zom...

Here's a very timely article written by Perla Lena of the Iloilo City Tourism office and Philippines News Agency as published on Panay News dated August 25, 2012 Heritage buildings in Iloilo City have stories to tell and the Iloilo Cultural Heritage Foundation, Inc. will see to it that they stay long enough for more generations to share their stories. “Iloilo City can once become the Premier City of the South” said Manny Villa, Jr., president of ICHFI. He gathered enthusiasts who share his passion for rehabilitating and restoring the city’s cultural heritage. The southern metropolis boasts of heritage buildings – structures which are 75 years or older, as defined in a city ordinance. First to be restored are the facade of 40 old buildings downtown, the Central Business District popularly known as Calle Real, which includes JM Basa, Iznart, Aldeguer, Guanco, and Mapa streets. “This is very significant. This is the only way to restore our heritage for people to know...