Maniolas

Image via Maria Izobel Taguiam’s Facebook Page “Do you have a boyfriend?” As questions went, the one posed by Miss Earth 2008 Karla Henry to Binibining Cebu candidate Maria Izobel Taguiam was as softball as they get. Beautiful, smart, sexy: it was only natural for beauty queens to have relationships going into competitions. But for Taguiam, Henry’s question was an opportunity for her to be as honest and as truthful as she could about her sexuality and her partner. Without missing a beat, Taguiam replied: “Yes, but not a boyfriend but a girlfriend. Because I believe love does not see gender and if you love that someone, go for it.” It was the last answer that many people in the crowd expected from the 17-year-old high school student at the Southwestern University, but one that drew applause and cheers from the audience, Rappler reports. “Do you think that a woman who is single will make a better Binibining Cebu or that one who is a relationship?” Henry asked, as a follow-up question. “I think mas maayo jud na committed ka kay kung imong partner kahibaw mo support nimo sa tanan nimong desisyon, he or she will not hinder sa imong mga commitments (I think it would be better if you are committed because if your partner knows how to support, he or she will not hinder you from doing your commitments),” Taguiam replied. Taguiam, who has been with her current girlfriend for five months now is thankful for her partner. Read More …

This picture taken on October 6, 2017, shows a traditional Philippine wooden boat known as balangay sailing in Manila Bay. After conquering Mount Everest, Philippine adventurer Carina Dayondon is set to sail to China aboard a wooden replica of an ancient boat in the hopes of boosting national pride in a forgotten maritime prowess. Dayondon is planning to sail from Manila to southern China in early 2018, recreating trade and migration voyages made before Spaniards colonised the Philippines in the 1500s./ AFP PHOTO / NOEL CELIS / Philippine adventurer Carina Dayondon is no stranger to adversity. She, along with two other Pinays conquered Everest in 2007, the first Filipino women to ever summit the world’s highest mountain. But Dayondon is undertaking a new challenge: sailing to China in a replica balangay early next year, hoping to recreate trade and navigation voyages made by her ancestors before the country was colonized by Spain in the 1500s. “People tell me I am crazy. They ask: ‘Wow, why climb Mount Everest? Why go to China on this tiny thing,’” Dayondon told AFP in Manila Bay aboard one of the two boats that will make the expected six-day sailing journey. “I’m excited because our team will be more inspired realizing how good our forefathers were. We have to let people know we should be proud of being Filipino,” the 39-year-old added. The balangay she will be using is an 18-meter by 3-meter wide wooden boat that’s known as the oldest watercraft found in the Philippines. Read More …

Image via Rappler The name Maute has been a plague for people in Marawi, thanks to the two extremist Islamic brothers that led the attack on Marawi City on May 23, 2017.  The attack triggered a 5-month siege and a humanitarian crisis, and displaced nearly 5 million residents because of the fighting. But for one barangay in town of Balo-i, Lanao del Norte, the Maute name is carried by a village chief, a woman no less, now leading the efforts to help shelter thousands of evacuees from the besieged city. 32-year old Okura Samporna Pacalundo-Maute is the village chief of Barangay Pacalundo. Mother of 10, Okura is a widower, her husband gunned down by political rivals more than a year ago. She became village chief when elders led by sultans asked her to lead after the demise of her husband. But despite the events of May 23, she still doesn’t mind if visitors address her as Captain Maute. “It’s just a name,” she told Rappler in an interview. “Dahil tradisyon, tayong mga babae ang mga pangalan natin galing sa mga lalaki – sa tatay o asawa. Pero puwede namang hindi, puwede tayong mamili (Because of tradition, we women take the names of the men in our lives – our father or husband. But we can choose not to).” Her colleagues now refer to her as Cap. “My husband was a good man and public servant. I honor his name. But I will also strive to be a good human being, Read More …

Images from Rachel Grant’s Facebook account She was once a Bond girl, trying to seduce Pierce Brosnan in Die Another Day. But this Bond girl has never forgotten her roots, and is back in the Philippines documenting at least seven stories to boost the Philippine tourism industry. Rachel Louise Grant de Longueuil or Rachel Grant as she’s more commonly known, was born in the Philippines and starred with Hollywood heavyweights like Pierce Brosnan, Halle Berry and Jean-Claude Van Damme. She’s back in the Philippines to help promote the Philippines to counter the recent negative image of the country as a killing ground because of the war on drugs. “I am a Filipina and I love the Philippines. Abroad, there are reports on the killings in the Philippines because of drugs. I would like to counter it by producing a documentary that will promote the country as a fun destination. It’s more fun in the Philippines,” she said. Grant was born in Paranaque but was raised in the UK with her family. She’s currently in Boracay with a videographer to document her adventures in the island paradise, which you can see in her Facebook account here. The post Former Bond Girl Set To Promote PH As Tourist Destination appeared first on Good News Pilipinas.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stand between the countries’ flags as they review a guard of honor at Abe’s official residence in Tokyo Monday, Oct. 30, 2017. Duterte is on a two-day visit to Japan. Nicolas Datiche/Pool Photo via AP More investments are expected to pour into the Philippines in the coming years, as at least 18 business deals were signed recently between Philippine and Japanese firms that will yield at least $6 billion worth of new investments. Philstar.com reports that none other than President Rodrigo Duterte witnessed the signing of the agreements, which ranged from different industries like manufacturing, shipbuilding, iron and steel, agribusiness, power, renewable energy, transportation, infrastructure, mineral processing, retailing, information and communication technology, and business process management. “President Rodrigo Roa Duterte met several Japanese companies and witnessed several B-B MOUs (business-to-business memoranda of understanding) and letters of intent on Investment plans, joint ventures and expansion of operations in the Philippines,” Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said in a statement. “Total new investments (are expected to reach) $6 billion,” he added. While the full list of companies that signed the agreements are not available as of yet, a few companies included in the business deals are Steel Asia Manufacturing Corp. and Metro Pacific Investments, which forged agreements with Hitachi and Itochu. Lopez said he also met with his Japanese counterpart Hiroshige Seko to discuss ways to improve market access and lowering tariff of Philippine agricultural products like banana, pineapple and mango. Incoming Read More …