my manila

i'm posting my DP theme day for the month of february earlier, "what your city is known for." i think when you say manila, you automatically conjured up the Jeepney in your mind, Jeepney is Manila's main means of public transportation and is a symbol of the Philippine culture. (Photo taken in front of Manila City Hall)

I believe that Manila can be a reflection of your state of mind. Being a city of extreme contrasts it’s easy to see how it can become an intense personal experience. Manila can be chaotic and spiritual, dirty and divine, gritty and gorgeous all at once. If you don’t find beauty and poetry here, you will never find it anywhere. ~ Carlos Celdran

P.S. I am taking a break from blogging and i dunno when I will post again (could be a week or more), but that doesn’t mean I am going to stop taking pictures of my beautiful manila. To my few regular readers thank you for your visits and comments I really appreciate it. I’ll be back I just dunno when, I’ll miss you all. To my first time visitors who miss manila or is curious about this wonderful place, please feel free to browse my archive, i have more than 200 photos in here.

please do visit these 130 cities participating:
Portland (OR), USA - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Memphis (Tennessee), USA - Manila, Philippines - San Diego (CA), USA - Anderson (SC), USA - New York City (NY), USA - San Diego (CA), USA - Mexico City, Mexico - San Francisco (CA), USA - Mumbai (Maharashtra), India - Mainz, Germany - Weston (FL), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Turin, Italy - Las Vegas (NV), USA - Hobart (Tasmania), Australia - Bicheno, Australia - Durban, South Africa - Joplin (MO), USA - Nashville (TN), USA - Stockholm, Sweden - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Brussels, Belgium - Chicago (IL), USA - Montpellier, France - Seattle (WA), USA - Mazatlan, Mexico - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Sharon (CT), USA - Sesimbra, Portugal - Toulouse, France - Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina - Susanville (CA), USA - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Prague, Czech Republic - Helsinki, Finland - Pilisvörösvár, Hungary - Lisbon, Portugal - Mexico (DF), Mexico - Trujillo, Peru - Dunedin (FL), USA - Albuquerque (NM), USAPort Angeles (WA), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - London, UK - Baziège, France - Jefferson City (MO), USA - Greenville (SC), USA - Selma (AL), USA - Mumbai, India - Naples (FL), USA - Norwich (Norfolk), UK - Silver Spring (MD), USA - Setúbal, Portugal - Stayton (OR), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Sofia, Bulgaria - Arradon, France - Montego Bay, Jamaica - Athens, Greece - Austin (TX), USA - Singapore, Singapore - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Jackson (MS), USA - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Budapest, Hungary - Rotterdam, Netherlands - St Malo, FranceChandler (AZ), USA - Melbourne, Australia - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Cleveland (OH), USA - Nottingham, UK - Kansas City (MO), USA - The Hague, Netherlands - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - Wrocław, Poland - Chateaubriant, France - Cheltenham, UK - Moscow, Russia - Monrovia (CA), USA - Saigon, Vietnam - Toruń, Poland - Grenoble, France - Lisbon, Portugal - New Orleans (LA), USA - Sydney, Australia - Boston (MA), USA - American Fork (UT), USA - Boston (MA), USA - Montréal (QC), Canada - Wichita (KS), USA - Radonvilliers, France - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Christchurch, New Zealand - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea - Wailea (HI), USA - Aliso Viejo (CA), USA - St Francis, South Africa - Port Elizabeth, South Africa - Seattle (WA), USA - Pasadena (CA), USA - Vienna, Austria - Orlando (FL), USA - Torun, Poland - Delta (CO), USA - Santa Fe (NM), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Haninge, Sweden - Paris, France - Stavanger, Norway - Niamey, Niger - Le Guilvinec, France - Bogor, Indonesia - Saarbrücken, Germany - Auckland, New Zealand - Wellington, New Zealand - Budapest, Hungary - Juneau (AK), USA - Bucaramanga (Santander), Colombia - Glasgow, Scotland - Chicago (IL), USA - Jakarta, Indonesia - Adelaide (SA), Australia

at the end of the road

i've walked within these walls countless times and i dont think i'll ever get tired of this place... i cannot give you the proper directions, which way to turn or how to get here but one thing's for certain my feet will always know the way...

martyrdom of dr. jose p. rizal

A sculpture by Ildefonso Paez Santos in collaboration with Eduardo Castrillo commemorating the martyrdom of our national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal. Located in the northwestern part of Rizal Park, near Jose Rizal's monument.

The marker says "Jose Rizal Y Mercado. Filipino physician, propagandist, writer, and patriot was executed within these hallowed grounds at exactly 7:03 in the morning of December 30, 1896 by an eight-man squad of Filipino riflemen from the 17th infantry regiment, the Magallanes of the Spanish Colonial Army. Those who witnessed Rizal's public execution included Lt. Luis Taviel de Andrade, his legal defender during his trial for alleged treason against Spain and the two Jesuit priests Fr. Jose Villaclara S.J. and Fr. Estanislao March S.J. who accompanied Rizal during his final walk before his execution. Rizal's martyrdom fanned the flames of the Filipino revolution of 1896 and inspired the Filipinos in their resolute and epic fight for freedom"

at world's end

what if after your endless pursuit you finally reach the world's end and find out that there is nothing in it and you can't go back?

philippine relief map

The Philippine relief map is located at the east side of Rizal Park / Luneta, seen along Taft Avenue. This relief map is the biggest and i could say is a very accurate copy of the archipelago, even the mountains and volcanoes are properly depicted here. Note: The smaller photo is taken from Google Earth.

what if

what if the world suddenly change into something you've never imagined and you wake up one morning and realize that you are looking down at the sky instead of looking up to see the sky?

perspective

can you make out the word

can you make out the word in these letters?

remembering mendiola

Today we are remembering those who were killed and injured in what is known as the Mendiola Massacre. 21 years ago, a crowd control troops open fired on a protest rally of about 10,000 peasant farmers demanding genuine land reform from the Philippine Government. Thirteen of the protesters were killed and hundreds more were injured in that incident.

during the 70s, Mendiola Street has been witness to violent confrontations between protesters and government troops. Under the regime of then President Ferdinand Marcos, Mendiola Street was the site of the Battle of Malacañang or The Battle of Mendiola Bridge on January 30, 1970 which resulted to four student demonstrators dead on the spot.

Mendiola Street is a short thoroughfare in the district of San Miguel, and starts from the intersection of Legarda and Claro M. Recto Avenues and ends just outside Malacañang Palace, the official residence of the President of the Philippines. Mendiola is famous for being the venue for protest actions against an incumbent government and is the site to some colleges and universities that form the area of Manila known as the University Belt. Because of the tight security at the Malacañang Palace, authorities decided to close half of Mendiola Street starting from the sentinel gate in front of the College of the Holy Spirit and La Consolacion College to protect the palace from different forms of threats.

related links :
luis liwanag's remembers his own account on the massacre that happened 21 years ago
senor enrique's photo essay on the mendiola massacre rally this year 2008

wildflower

"Nobody knows a wildflower still grows
By the side of the road
And she don't need to need like the roses
She's at home with the weeds
And just as free as the night breeze
She's got the cool of a shade tree"

... and "this wildflower" just turned 30 years old today =)