Planeta Pilipinas

Will brave the storm for travel. I had to take off the earphones and shove it inside my bag. I wanted to know how long I would endure listening to anything but my complete playlist. No Ke$ha. No Fun. No Angels and Airwaves. No The All-American Rejects. Just the sound of travel. A Bus Driver’s … Continue reading →

I happen to stumble upon a man and his daughter with a container full of  dyed chicks. They weren’t getting that much attention from the busy crowd. I remembered that back in elementary, there were also men selling colored chicks outside our school. They’re cute right? But for how long are you going to stare … Continue reading →

The first time I heard about the nutrients in maluggay (Moringa oleifera, or horseradish), I was in high school. Our Biotechnology teacher was selling Malunggay polvoron (shortbread). That was in 2008 (it may have started in 2007). My classmates and I even joked that someday there will be other products with malunggay as the main … Continue reading →

Today was fun. White Out, the symposium where students talk about how plastics (white pollution) affect the environment, and the creatures in it, was revived by new organizers. Last year, we started White Out: The Green-Minded Revolution. We’ve been in three Bicol University campuses and an elementary school in Sorsogon. Months after that, the ban … Continue reading →

It is no secret that there are many things confronting hospitals all over the Philippines. Problems range from financial matters, healthcare reforms, the safety of both the patient and their families, the facilities, and the shortage of personnel because of brain drain. This photo somehow tells a story of one or two of those problems. … Continue reading →

This is what I was talking about when I posted something about random people smiling at you here in the Philippines (especially in Bicol). This old man, tiyo, smiled at me even before I took my camera off my bag. When he saw me point the camera at him, he stopped and flashed the biggest, truest smile I saw … Continue reading →

Let me tell you something about what was running in my head when I took this picture. I figured it should run into the minds of  those who will see  this picture, too. As you can see, technically, everything is wrong with the picture. That’s because I did not have the guts to take a … Continue reading →

In support of all the advocates’ call for President Benigno Aquino III to “openly” push the passing of the Freedom of Information Act (FoI) in his third State of the Nation Address (SoNA), Journalism  students of Bicol University College of Arts and Letters wore red and black ribbons earlier. National Union of Journalists in the … Continue reading →

By Rey Anthony de los Reyes Ostria I am not going to lie, or exaggerate here. Everything in here is exactly what college made me realize. Some I guess, are things that college DIDN’T make me realize. Warning: This blog post would not make sense because I know I will finish this unorganized. But I’ll … Continue reading →

After thirty-three years of bringing unlimited fun, laughter and prizes to every Filipino home, a franchise of the longest running noontime variety show aired its first episode in the Indonesian television station Surya Citra Televisi (SCTV) last July 16, 2012, a month after a deal between the Eat Bulaga management and SCTV was sealed. Indonesian … Continue reading →

By Rey Anthony de los Reyes Ostria Friends, neighbors, enemies, don’t be sad/happy yet. The door of mortality is not yet closing on me. The HIV is not killing me (because I don’t have it, and I know how not to get it). I am still fully capable of things you can do. (I am … Continue reading →

You live here. That’s why you don’t see what beauty your country possesses. You only see the negatives. Now, that’s only normal. But that has to change. If there has to be someone who could first appreciate his yard, it should be the owner.  After all, ranting all about the negative stuff you see everyday … Continue reading →