Kris Aquino describes her home,”This is really me. Gusto ko talaga ng makulay, happy, bright colors. Ayoko ng minimalist!”
Jan 172015
Jan 172015
Devotee on seeing Pope Francis in person: ‘Daig pa ang tumama sa Sweepstakes’ Long walks, standing for hours, jostling for a better view — the experience may be gruelling, but fatigue was the last thing on the mind of those who trooped to areas surrounding the sprawling SM MOA in Pasay City on Friday afternoon to witness Pope Francis in person. “[We feel] overwhelmed kasi once in a lifetime lamang pupunta yung Pope. Isang malaking pribelehiyo para makita namin si Pope, para makapag-serve,” said Jimmy Banca, a choir head with National Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians – El Shaddai. He said 2,000 volunteers from different parishes lent their services to keep the area clean and safe even after the Pope left for the Nunciature. At least 13,000 people joined Pope Francis at the SM MOA for the meeting of families, an event where he got the chance to listen to touching stories on poverty, migration, and disabilities shared by Filipinos Keeping a more professional upkeep of the surrounding areas were Metro Manila Development Authority streetsweepers, some of whom already met Pope Francis while attending to their duties at Roxas Boulevard. “Ang saya, ang ganda ng pakiramdam, lalo na nung pagdaan kagabi. Parang ang lamig-lamig ng pakiramdam, ang sarap talaga, daig pa nun na tumama ka sa Sweepstakes,” said Anita Lucas, who has been with the MMDA since 1983. Even if they weren’t assigned to the event, Lucas and her fellow streetsweepers agreed that they would exert all their efforts Read More …
Jan 172015
Pope Francis returned to the Apostolic Nunciature in Manila at 2:55 p.m. Saturday, after his visit to Leyte was cut short by Tropical Storm Amang (Mekkhala). The Pope, who was aboard a black Volkswagen minivan, was greeted by cheering Filipinos waiting at the corner of Taft and Quirino Avenues. Amid the drizzle, people — young, old, and families leaving near the Nunciature — began lining up the streets as early as 12 noon or more than seven hours before Pope Francis’ expected time of arrival back in Manila from Leyte. Located at the corner of Quirino Avenue and Taft Avenue in Malate, Manila, the Nunciature serves as the embassy of the Vatican State in the Philippines. It also serves as the official residence of the Apostolic Nuncio or the Holy See’s ambassador to the country, Most Reverend Giuseppe Pinto. The late Pope Paul VI and the late Pope John Paul II, who was recently proclaimed as St. John Paul II, also stayed at the same Nunciature during their respective visits in the Philippines. For the Pope’s privacy and security, media and even government officials were not allowed inside the Nunciature. The roads surrounding it were also closed to vehicles as early as Wednesday evening. Earlier on Saturday, Pope Francis led a Mass in Tacloban City followed by a motorcade going to Palo town where had an intimate lunch with some survivors of Yolanda, the world’s strongest typhoon recorded to make a landfall. He also blessed the mass grave of the Read More …
Jan 172015
Pope Francis posed for a selfie upon his return to Manila, after his visit to Leyte province was cut short due to Tropical Storm Amang. The Pope approached well-wishers including children and senior citizens at Villamor Air Base. GMA News’ Ruth Cabal reported the pope gave his zucchetto to a member of the Philippine Airlines crew. He then boarded a black Volkswagen minivan en route to the Apostolic Nunciature in Manila. — Joel Locsin/VC, GMA News
Jan 162015
Danica, LJ, Jeck and RR share the joys and trials of life with a cager.
Jan 162015
popular Several roads in Pasay, Manila closed for Pope Francis’ visit Mayweather camp aide says May 2 fight ‘imminent’ Nothing to crow about Pope pays tribute to disaster victims, OFWs What did Pope Francis write in the Malacañang guestbook? Pope Francis tweets in Filipino Homily of Pope Francis in Manila Cathedral The ‘little Swiss Guards’ speak videos Pope Francis leaves Nunciature early Saturday for Tacloban ‘Yolanda’ survivors chill in rain as they await Pope Francis’ Mass Beermen head coach Leo Austria discusses PBA Finals Game 5 ‘Rock star’ Pope receives warm welcome from Filipino devotees at MOA Arena Palo folks excited for Pope Francis’ arrival Secretary Joseph Emilio Aguinaldo Abaya. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—After the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) announced that the airport terminal fee would finally be integrated in the price of an international airline ticket beginning Feb. 1, overseas Filipino worker (OFW) groups filed on Monday an urgent plea in a Pasay court to resolve all pending motions related to the terminal fee they had earlier filed. In a motion submitted to Pasay City Regional Trial Court Branch 109, the groups led by OFW Family party-list Rep. Roy Señeres said the MIAA had defied an earlier court ruling that the implementation was “unenforceable” for not having been published, and that respondents Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya and MIAA General Manager Jose Angel Honrado had “clearly resorted to unethical pressure and delaying tactics.” Get Inquirer updates while on the go, add us on these chat apps: Tags: Read More …
Jan 162015
Iya Villania on Nikki Gil’s virginity: “…it shouldn’t even have to be an issue because it’s what should be the norm.”
Jan 162015
NEW YORK — One of the world’s safest investments — the Swiss franc — has swung wildly this week after the central bank in Switzerland announced it would scrap its policy of limiting the rise of the currency. It may seem like an arcane move, but it’s not. The Swiss National Bank’s surprise decision on Thursday caused the franc to surge against the euro and dollar, sending shockwaves through the global financial system. Holders of Swiss francs profited handsomely, but many investors and brokerage firms, were pounded with losses. Two brokerage firms in London and New Zealand’s have announced huge losses and will have to close. A New York-based currency broker said clients suffered significant losses, and it needed an emergency loan to stay in business. The turmoil is all the more unsettling because, like U.S. bonds, the dollar and gold, the Swiss franc has been viewed as a haven for investors, thanks to the stability and wealth of the Swiss government. Here’s what happened to the franc and why it matters: How did we get here? Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Since 2011, the Swiss National Bank has had a program to keep its franc from appreciating too much against other currencies — most importantly the euro, says Ian Gordon, a currency strategist with Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The franc’s rapid rise makes goods and products produced in Switzerland more expensive and less competitive in other countries. The bank set a limit of 1.20 Read More …
Jan 162015
Pope Francis arrives for a Mass for the clergy and religious at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception during his visit in Manila, Philippines on Friday, Jan. 16, 2015. AP MANILA, Philippines — What ever happened to “turning the other cheek?” Pope Francis made headlines when he said en route to the Philippines that there were limits to free speech, especially when it ridicules or insults someone’s faith. But he raised even more eyebrows when he explained his point by saying that if a good friend cursed out his mother he could “expect a punch” in return. The Vatican quickly insisted that Francis was by no means justifying the terrorist attack against the satirical French magazine Charlie Hebdo, which had published inflammatory cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. And Francis, who has condemned all violence committed in God’s name, stressed that the attacks were an “aberration.” But his response did pose the question about Jesus’ famous exhortation to his disciples in the Sermon on the Mount — and whether for a pope of Italian origin, turning the other cheek only goes so far when the matter concerns his beloved “Mamma.” “Obviously he wasn’t justifying violence,” the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said Friday. “He spoke about a spontaneous reaction that you can have when you feel profoundly offended. In this sense, your right to be respected has been put in question.” The Rev. Robert Gahl, a moral theologian at Rome’s Pontifical Holy Cross University, noted that Francis didn’t say Read More …
Jan 162015
Pope Francis is now known to be hoping to have two church leaders declared saints. One is a bold, inspired choice. The other, unfortunately, is puzzling, even disappointing — especially for a pontiff known for advocating for the rights of indigenous peoples. The pope was on the plane on the way to Manila this week when he announced that he plans to canonize Junipero Serra when he visits the U.S. in September. Junipero Serra, who died in 1784, was a Spanish priest known to have been major figure in the Spanish colonization of California. The name, if not the person himself, is familiar to many Filipinos in California, particularly the Bay Area. A major freeway that cuts through the Pinoy-dominated Daly City, near San Francisco, was named after him. Heading further south, one could even see on a hill a giant statue of a smiling Serra pointing to the horizon. He is said to have personally started nine missions in California. According to a PBS website, “His Herculean efforts subjected him to near-starvation, afflictions of scurvy, and hundreds of miles of walking and horse riding through dangerous terrain.” But Junipero Serra is a controversial figure. Critics of the bid to canonize him point to his role in the oppression and exploitation of Native Americans in California. When Sierra was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1988, some Native Americans in southern California protested. “There are quite a few California Indians who think he shouldn’t be a saint,” Vera Rocha, Read More …