Biographies of world figures

What valuable object is Crown Regency Hotel hiding in plain sight? And what does it have to do with Jose Rizal?  One Saturday morning, I embarked on a quest to search for a nugget but I ended up with a treasure instead. And this is how it all went down... Crown Regency Hotels and Towers Fuente Cebu is more known for their Sky Experience Adventures like the Edge Coaster and Skywalk. It's also the tallest building outside of Metro Manila.  The ever busy lobby of Crown Regency Hotel in Fuente Osmeña Over the years, I have been to Crown Regency several times. It's one of the busiest hotel lobbies I've seen in Cebu. I've passed through this lobby each and every time but it was only today that I discovered the greatest hidden gem of the hotel. And it happened in the most unexpected way. I had an appointment in Crown Regency on that Saturday morning and after an hour or so, I was about to leave the hotel when I decided to go around the lobby. I was surveying the place, lookin

When the 65th Miss Universe pageant was held in January, at least 19 contestants lent their time and creativity in customizing their own pair of Converse sneakers.  Miss Philippines, Maxine Medina's personal design These personalized Chucks will be silently auctioned off to interested buyers, patrons and admirers.  Proceeds of the auction will go to Positive Action Foundation, HIV/AIDS foundation supported by the Miss Universe organization. The sneakers were designed by the contestants when they flew in to Cebu last January 17. They spent almost the entire day painting and constructing their works of art. The beneficiaries of the Auction are persons living with HIV/AIDS and their families. Some of these individuals were displaced from their employment because of their illness. Cebuanos are lucky that these specially designed Converse sneakers will be displayed starting today, March 25 until March 27 at the Atrium of Robinsons Galleria. Bidders may submit their bids, names and conta

Have you ever experienced walking around aimlessly at the mall searching for a good place to eat?  You're hungry, you're cranky, and your tummy is making those awful growling sounds. You just want to decide what cuisine to have to satisfy your appetite.  Going Thai on a Saturday afternoon Nowadays, Filipinos are becoming a little more adventurous with their palate. And one of the Asian cooking styles that is gaining traction among Filipinos is Thai cookery.  When you look at the staple ingredients of Thai cooking, we have something in common. We use a lot of fish sauce, chillies, fermented shrimp paste (bagoong), star anise, ginger, coconut milk, lime, and vinegar.  But there are also differences in the flavor. They use spices and herbs that we don't normally add to our cooking like coriander, cinnamon, nutmeg, basil, or curry paste. Some of their dishes have that strong herb flavor. You'll taste it distinctly in their soup-based dishes. If she had a choice, my Mom w

In a tweet that was heard around the Twitter world, "Riverdale" actor, Cole Sprouse expressed his dismay on being on the cover of a Filipino romance pocketbook without him knowing. If you're familiar with the Publisher of these books, you all know that this is something that they frequently do. Their novels are popular with the reading public. They actually used to have a TV series based on their published works.  I went to one of our local bookstores and checked their inventory of Pinoy Romance books. I wanted to see if I could find other Hollywood celebrities on book covers and it didn't take me more than a minute to find six more celebrities.  Katherine Heigl The former star of "Grey's Anatomy" is featured on the cover of "Dog Tags and Promises".  Will you fall in love with a girl lile Katherine Heigl? Angelia Jolie  Academy Award Winner Angelina Jolie is "Persefere, the enticing doll". Angelina, the heart stealer Ian Somerhalder W

While staying at my parents' house, I was rummaging through my old bookshelf when I found a book that I bought years ago. The coffee table book, Philippine Picture Postcards, is a compilation of postcards of Filipiniana scenes made during the American Period, 1900s to 1920s. The author, Jonathan Best, curated postcards from his own collection and that of his friends and acquaintances.  There was an increase in the popularity of postcards in the late 19th Century as photographic technology and printing improved. Most of the scenes that are in this article shows the chromolithography method of multi-color printing. Black and white photos are shot and then printed in color using this innovation. Chromolithograph saw a decline when World War I started in 1914 due to European printing companies, particularly in Germany, being affected. I got this book when the annual Philippine Book Fair was still small and could fit in SM Megamall's exhibition area. But now, the book fair has becom

London has it's Hyde Park. Central Park is synonymous with New York City. Chicago's Millenium Park attracts thousands of visitors. And Manila is known for Luneta Park. Urban areas need wide open spaces for its citizens to enjoy and feel a sense of community.  Wide open spaces of Plaza Independencia Plaza Independencia is the oldest and largest park in Cebu City that can be dated as early as the 1600s. In its four hundred years of existence, it has been called by several names. It was originally called Plaza de Armas when it was used as a Military training and parade grounds of Fort San Pedro. When the area extended to include other civic buildings like the Gobierno Provincial and properties of the Cathedral of Cebu, it was named Plaza Mayor . In honor of the regency years of Queen Maria Cristina of Spain (1833-1840), it was renamed Plaza Maria Cristina. The American Colonial Period brought another name change. To celebrate the chains of Spanish rule, it became Plaza Libertad