A walk through the Salcedo Weekend Market

Fresh organic produce and products from the different regions of the Philippines as well as international cuisine represented by Portugal, Italy, Japan, China, Spain, USA, Turkey, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, France , Germany and many others are available at the Salcedo Weekend Market, Salcedo Carpark, Salcedo Village, Makati City, Philippines every Saturday morning up until 2-3PM. A similar bustling weekend market of haute and organic products are also available at the Legazpi Weekend Market every Sunday around the same times.


http://www.time.com/time/travel/article/0,31542,1883233,00.html


A Taste of the World in Manila
By Lara Day Thursday, Mar. 05, 2009

If you're in Manila and looking for a culinary experience with a community feel, Salcedo Market is hard to beat. This lively event takes place on Saturdays between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m., and features food from the city's best kitchens, all in one neat, bustling, deliciously tasty location.

Established in 2004 with just 11 stalls, the market, located in the leafy Jaime C. Velasquez Park in the heart of the upscale Bel-Air district, has since developed into a vibrant gourmet gathering of over 140 vendors, all carefully vetted for quality and variety of product. With the exception of cooked-food vendors, everyone is required to offer something unique: for instance, there can only be one wine stall, one florist and one frozen-yoghurt stand.

The fare reflects Manila's cosmopolitan tastes. Authentic renditions of foreign staples include French crepes, German sausages, Malaysian laksa and Indonesian rendang, and people travel from across the metropolis to enjoy them. But they also visit to try Philippine flavors usually found locked inside the country's homes or tucked away in far-flung provinces. Look out for crispy-skinned lechon, or roast suckling pig, from Cebu (Filipinos make an art out of roasting whole animals on spits). Try the rich, fiery-hot Bicol Express from southern Luzon (a pork and vegetable dish with coconut and chili). And don't miss the Filipino-fusion creations, such as pasta sauces in flavors such as mussel adobo and creamy shiitake pesto. If you can manage it, wash it all down with thick, creamy tsokolate, a Spanish-style hot chocolate blended with peanuts and whipped to a heady froth. But be prepared to swap those afternoon sightseeing plans for another great Spanish import: a siesta.

Earth Hour 2009- Makati City, Philippines

Philippines had the most cities going dark

March 29, 2009 03:24:00

Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines — It was lights out at exactly 8:30 Saturday night in Makati City, as well as in most parts of the Philippines, as the city switched off electricity power for one hour in solidarity with 2,397 cities and towns in 83 countries all over the world to observe Earth Hour, a global activity to raise awareness of climate change and global warming.

Yeb Sano of World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in the Philippines (WWF) said the Philippines had the most number of cities and towns participating in the event. Hours before the countdown, he told Inquirer that a total of 647 cities and municipalities around the country had pledged to sign up for Earth Hour.

Ranked a distant second was Greece, with 484 cities and towns, followed by Australia with 309, Canada with 273 and the United States with 270.

As Earth Hour’s Official Flagship City in the Philippines, Makati led the country in observing the event, with the designated Earth Hour ambassador, Mayor Jejomar Binay, representatives of WWF and other environmental groups leading the countdown to the ceremonial switch-off at Tower One on Ayala Avenue, the heart of the country’s financial district.

“The city’s observance of Earth Hour is another testament to Makati’s wholehearted commitment to the global crusade to save our environment,” Binay said before the switch-off.

“The sight of various stakeholders — from the city’s ‘barangay’ [neighborhood districts], schools, civic-oriented and religious groups, the business community, led by the Ayala conglomerate, the diplomatic corps — gathered here for a singular purpose, clearly shows how seriously committed we all are. What we will do might seem a simple act. But this act done simultaneously in households and establishments in cities all over the nation and the world, when taken altogether, can make a tangible impact on global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

As sirens from fire trucks and police cars wailed and church bells rang on cue, street lights in the city’s principal roads and electricity in all public buildings were turned off. Business establishments like restaurants and fun venues dimmed their lights to express their support.

Launched in Australia in 2007, Earth Hour is a global event involving the voluntary shut-off of electricity in homes, offices, public places and commercial establishments for one hour from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. in all time zones to express support for environmental issues.

“The local response was astonishing,” said WWF’s Sano. Provinces from Cagayan in the north to Sulu and Tawi-Tawi in the south expressed their intention to participate, making it the largest environment-themed event in the country, he said, adding that their target was to save 500 megawatts [of electricity], or the equivalent of shutting down 10 coal-fired power plants, for one hour.”

After Earth Hour, what next?

“When the lights are back, we should think about switching onto a more sustainable future,” Sano said.

“Earth Hour is really a symbolic act,” he said. “We should be practicing energy conservation and environmental consciousness every day, and in any way we can. In our own simple way, each of us can contribute to being more conscious about our impact on the environment, and how much we could save on electricity and water.”

With the hoopla over, Sano said he hoped citizens would have “a brand new relationship with the true entity that gives us true light, and that is Mother Nature.” Alcuin Papa

REVERSE CHRISTMAS - Earth Hour Philippines 2009 Official Video

Update:

Makati was chosen amongst the global flagship cities of Earth Hour 2009

Earth Hour is supported by the Philippine Government with Malacañang Palace (Presidential Palace) switched off its lights last year. Earth Hour is also supported by the Church, Businessmen and all the major media networks.

Last year, 1M Filipinos switched off their lights in support, this year is slated to be bigger.

Switch Off to Support Earth!

====================================

From WWF Philippines:

Earth Hour Approaches
Filipinos Urged to Spread the Word

With days to go before the world switches off for Earth Hour 2009, WWF-Philippines calls on the social networking community to spread the Earth Hour message through e-groups, blogs, web videos and texts.

“The commitments of support grow with each day. We urge everyone to spread the word and join millions throughout the world by switching-off lights from 8:30 to 9:30pm on Saturday night, 28 March. This is our chance to show the world what our Bayanihan spirit can do, for only when we act as one will Earth Hour be successful,” says Earth Hour National Director Yeb Saño.

Earth Hour is a massive social movement aimed to mobilize action against climate change through the simple act of turning off lights.

Launched in Australia on 31 March 2007, Earth Hour moved over two million people and 2100 businesses in Sydney to turn off their lights for 60 minutes – hence the movement’s logo. This captured the hearts and minds of people all over the world, giving rise to Earth Hour 2008 – where 50 million people in 370 cities followed suit. New York’s Times Square, Rome’s Coliseum and even the remote Casey Station in Antarctica plunged into darkness.

The Philippines was the first Southeast Asian nation to pledge support. Its flagship cities of Pasay, Manila, Parañaque and Makati observed a switch-off ceremony and enveloped the entire Roxas Boulevard seaside strip in symbolic darkness. Popular landmarks such as the Cultural Center of the Philippines and Mall of Asia were blanketed in darkness. Lights-out activities were instigated by a million Filipinos in over 50 major towns and cities across the nation.

“Earth Hour 2008 remains the country’s largest environmental action. Last year, total power savings amounted to 80MWh. 56MWh was saved in Luzon alone – equivalent to shutting down a coal-fired power plant for one hour. More important than the power we saved was the awareness and positive action generated. This year, Earth Hour 2009 hopes to inspire at least 10 million Filipinos to unite and act for the environment,” explains Saño.

Earth Hour is an initiative of WWF, the Department of Energy, Green Army Network and SWITCH movement. Over a hundred corporations, schools, public and private organizations have now pledged support. The roster of supporters grows by the hour.

Numerous institutional partners such as the Archdiocese of Manila Ministry, Boy and Girl Scouts, CBCP, Department of Education, Earth Day Network, Gawad Kalinga, Habitat for Humanity, League of Corporate Foundations, National Electrification Administration, National Historical Institute, Outdoor Advertiser’s Association of the Philippines, Philippine Jaycees, Renewable Energy Coalition, Rotary Club and World Youth Alliance have also pledged support.

The Department of Energy has given its full backing for the movement. "This is a cause that should unite us as Filipinos and as citizens of the world," declares DOE Secretary Angelo Reyes. Adds WWF-Vice Chairman and CEO Lory Tan, “Will Earth Hour alone stop climate change? No. But it is a statement that we will not go down without a fight.”

The global aim of Earth Hour is to secure the participation of one billion people in 1000 cities globally. Already over 1500 cities in 80 countries including the United States, China, Russia and India have signed on.

“It is hoped that this global gesture will send a clear message for world leaders to take strong and decisive action against climate change,” explains Saño. Top leaders will meet in Copenhagen this coming December to craft a post-Kyoto policy for tackling the world’s mounting problems on climate change. “The strength of our message ultimately depends on how many Filipinos will join in.”

The Ayala Museum Website - Exhibitions - Gold of Ancestors

http://www.ayalamuseum.org/index.php?option=com_ayala_content&task=viewexhibitpage&id=14

ART
Going for the Gold

A new permanent exhibit offers tantalizing hints to the Philippines' precolonial history.

Jessica Zafra

The Philippines has long been regarded as an interesting sideshow in Southeast Asia. A former colony of Spain, then the United States, it seems to have more in common with Latin America than with its Asian neighbors. There are few existing written records of its precolonial history and culture. It has no temples like Indonesia's Borobodur or Cambodia's Angkor Wat to indicate what civilizations existed on the 7,107 islands before their Western conquest. Artifacts on display at the National Museum and at the Central Bank Museum in Manila offer clues as to the islands' original inhabitants, but the available scholarship leaves too many questions unanswered. More than a century after the Philippines became an independent republic, the debate over the Filipino identity continues.

A new permanent exhibition at the privately owned Ayala Museum in the financial capital, Makati City, only heightens the mystery. "Gold of Ancestors" features 1,059 precious objects that are believed to date back as far as the 10th century. Most were acquired by a private collector, and have never been seen in public. Among the pieces on display are cutwork diadems, funerary masks, ornaments and ritual containers. Their quality and scope suggest that ancient Filipinos had closer links to their Southeast Asian neighbors than is currently supposed. There is a gold vessel in the shape of a creature that is half-bird, half-woman: the "kimnari" of Hindu mythology. A plaque depicts a female figure in an elaborate headdress with a tree-of-life motif, her hands raised as if in worship. The centerpiece of the exhibition is an intricately crafted gold halter, weighing almost four kilograms, that is believed to be the Upavita, or Sacred Thread, of the sort worn by the elite Brahmin class in traditional Hindu society.

Hindu influences can be seen all over Southeast Asia, but the exhibit raises the burning question: who made these objects? Were they created by the inhabitants of the islands now known as the Philippines, or were they brought in by foreign traders? "The answer is, 'We don't know'," says Florina H. Capistrano-Baker, curator in charge of the exhibition. "One of the reasons the collection is so important is that it provides a large body of works for comparative study with similar objects from Southeast Asia, such as those found in Oc-Eo in Vietnam and the Wonoboyo hoard in Indonesia. We assume that they are locally made until proven otherwise."

To be sure, gold is abundant in the Philippines. When Spanish conquistadors first arrived in the islands, they noted that the natives were bedecked in gold ornaments from head to foot. According to colonial accounts, the Filipinos were so knowledgeable about gold that even children could accurately determine the purity of gold alloys. There was also a sophisticated vocabulary for gold and indigenous goldsmithing techniques, as recorded in the 16th-century Tagalog-language dictionary collated by Pedro de San Buenaventura. Another argument for local manufacture centers on a pair of gold "lingling-o," omega-shaped ornaments, featured in the exhibit. These ornaments, found in many Southeast Asian cultures, were long believed to have been manufactured in Vietnam. But the recent discovery by the archeologist Peter Bellwood of a lingling-o workshop with tools and fragments in the northern Philippine province of Batanes indicates that such ornaments were manufactured there some 2,500 years ago.

Still, the artifacts on display reveal plenty of other influences. Capistrano-Baker surmises that whoever made them was exposed to Hindu beliefs. Furthermore, "We can assume that there was social stratification, with sufficient food supply and surplus resources to support craft specialization," she says. "The patrons appear to have enjoyed great power and access to resources."

Where have the objects been hiding all these years? They were collected by the family of the late National Artist and architect Leandro Locsin, which for decades has funded archeological expeditions and research into the islands' past. Reluctant to flaunt gold in a country where most of the population lives in poverty, the Locsins have been sitting on the collection for 25 years, waiting for the right conditions to publicly exhibit it. They finally got the chance when the Zobel de Ayala family inaugurated the new Ayala Museum in 2004, providing an appropriate facility to house the collection. "This exhibition is not about present-day personalities and egos," says a representative of the Locsin family. "It's about our national patrimony and what it can tell us about who we are as Filipinos. The primary concern is its enlightened stewardship: ensuring that this knowledge develops in our people's consciousness in a manner that is sustainable, secure and relatively free from possible manipulation."

Scholars have long considered Filipino culture marginal in comparison with the better-known Funan, Angkor, Srivijaya and Madjapahit cultures of Southeast Asia. The "Gold of Ancestors" exhibit suggests that the islands may have played a larger role in regional affairs than previously thought. John Miksic of the National University of Singapore, an authority on Southeast Asian prehistory, has said that this collection represents the single most valuable tangible heritage of the Philippines. It may shine a light on the continuing discussion of Philippine cultural identity. To paraphrase that famous fictitious archeologist Indiana Jones, it belongs in a museum.

© 2008

(http://www.newsweek.com/id/134270)

Greenhills, Intramuros,Tagaytay, Ocean Park, Pinatubo, Makati

Destination: Makati, Philippines

Yes dear, we dont live in trees. ;)

Photo grabs from skyscraper city. ;)

If you find your photos here and wants proper crediting let me know. I will do that..

Makati Morning

Probably my shortest photo post ever. Just woke up this morning, and I snapped these photos up.

Subic, AIESEC, Makati, Bora