ILOILO: HEART of the PHILIPPINES

Part 2 of 2 Guimaras is still recovering from the impact of a recent oil leak that reached its shores from a damaged power barge from nearby Iloilo City. The island province, however, is no stranger to oil spills. On August 11, 2006, MT Solar I, an oil tanker sank off the coast of Guimaras.  It was carrying more than 2 million liters of bunker fuel - around 500,000 liters of which, leaked to the sea and engulfed most of the island. A deja vu from almost fourteen years ago, Guimarasnons applied their learnings and experience from the devastation brought about by the worst oil spill in the Philippines. Part 1 Oil Spill Amidst a Pandemic: Off the Beaten Path in Guimaras HOSKYN, JORDAN, GUIMARAS At Brgy. Hoskyn, Kap Kaiser Monreal led the immediate response as oil spill reached their barangay within two days. " When my tanods warned me that the oil slick was nearing our shores, we started making improvised spill bo...

Part 1 of 2 I always look forward to any visit to Guimaras - the beaches, island-hopping adventure, natural and man-made attractions, food trippin' and of course - the sweetest mangoes! But with the pandemic lockdowns and most recently, the oil spill off Iloilo City that reached the island, Guimaras seemed to be so near... yet so far. Or so I thought.... A good weather plus the lure of the outdoors after being on lockdown for the past five months help me decide this trip to mango island. Aboard a RoRo vessel that traversed the Iloilo strait in about 25 minutes, I found myself on Guimaras soil once again! HOSKYN: "Salty" Path to Heaven Brgy. Hoskyn  hosts Guimaras' only RoRo Port with hourly services to/from Iloilo City daily except Sundays.  It also serves as a gateway to one of Guimaras' landmarks - Bala-an Bukid . A pilgrimage destination during the Holy Week with its Stations of Cross trek and a gigantic cro...

Stringent safety protocols welcome moviegoers in the new normal for the exclusive advance screening of ' Train to Busan 2: Peninsula'  Megaworld Lifestyle Malls welcomes back moviegoers at Festive Walk Iloilo as Festive Walk Cinemas becomes the first-ever indoor cinema in the country to reopen under the new normal. To mark its reopening, Festive Walk Cinemas will be holding an exclusive advance screening of Train to Busan 2: Peninsula . the much-awaited sequel of the hit Korean zombie film Train to Busan. Currently the no. 1 movie in South Korea with the biggest opening day-record this year, the 2020 Cannes Film Festival selection starring Kang Dong Won, Lee Jung Hyun, Kwon Hae Hyo and Lee Re will have a two-day advance screening both scheduled at 5 p.m. on August 1 and 2, 2020 ahead of its nationwide release.  With safety of moviegoers as its top priority, Festive Walk Cinemas will be implementing stringent health and safety measures in...

Advocating art for all, SM City Iloilo hosts 120 Ilonggo artists to open the biggest art sale in this part of the region July 25, 2020 at the Northpoint. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, these Ilonggo artists find a way to help the community as well as find means to share and make a meaningful depiction of the present situation. In partnership with the Catholic Women’s League (CWL) of San Jose de Placer Parish Chapter and Museo Iloilo, this year’s exhibit aims to bring hope through art as well as support the Iloilo arts community and anti-COVID-19 frontliners. Mrs Mariejo Rivas (Catholic Women's League of San Jose de Placer Parish Chapter ), Dr. Cynthia Salcedo , Engr. Gilbert Domingo (SM City Iloilo Mall Manager), Dr. Glen Alonsabe (Epidemiologist, Department of Health Regional Office 6) and  Gina Sarabia Espinosa  (President - Museo Iloilo Cultural Research Foundation and President - Catholic Women's League of San Jose de Placer Parish Chapter) ...

Grounded on its advocacy of helping local restaurants nationwide, foodpanda, an on-demand food delivery service in the Philippines, partnered with three restaurants in Iloilo City so that Ilonggos could have a taste of specially made food and drinks at a reasonable price. foodpanda definitely has got your love for food covered by sharing the great stories of three of their restaurant partners and how the platform helped their business. Akamon Ramen Bar started out in 2018 as a small ramen shop in a food park located in Iloilo City. Back then, it was still called Ramen Raku until they decided to take a big leap and opened a stand-alone ramen restaurant in SM Strata this year. The new name, Akamon, means a red gate (door) in Japanese. Mr. Bryan Te, owner of Akamon Ramen Bar, started the business, wanting to serve authentic Japanese food to its customers in hopes of becoming one of the leading ramen chains in Iloilo City. ...