KAI MONTINOLA, KYLE ECHARRI, MARIS, ARTHUR NERY, ADIE Headline ONE ILOCOS SUR Festivities

Ilocos Sur knows how to really party as they did another round of the Ilocos Sur Festival. Imagine, a party for 12 straight days of people enjoying culture, faith, community, all in one place where every Ilocano, Ilocana, their friends, and family would enjoy from sun up to sun down in this province in the north. 

They started with the Ilocos Sur Trade and Food Fair where they set up various booths with the help of local entrepreneurs, artisans, making us all feel that the industry is thriving in this region and gave us reasons to come back. Caoayan won Best Booth and also featured products like Double Cacao Delight, Ube Vinegar, and tons of other things. They also had processions to celebrate the Eucharist, the Los Patrones for the faithful and the clergy. They also did a Grand Parade where they featured floats from different municipalities, and where Sinait, Sigay and Narvacan won best in class. They also did a full on drone show at the Quirino Stadium where ABSCBN stars Kai Montinola and Kyle Echarri performed to the delight of Ilocandia. Mind you, the crowd there went to 40,000 which is a big turnout compared to previous years. 

They also did a few days of homage to fisher folk and farmers, putting those tractors and produce in a parade, plus a program for those who went back to the province and the tourists too. They also did a blackout bingo for a whopping 100K no joke!

They also held a Tattoo Expo called Tinnatoan where Apo Whang Od's descendants did a lot of mambabatok skin work, and several of them won Best in Show in a competition done just on this festival. They also did Mister Ilocos Sur where Aries Patis won for his hometown of Santa Cruz. They also did sea based comps and a motocross plus Ilocos Sur Pride Queen 2026 where Luivie Bitongan won for Candon City. At the Miss Ilocos Sur 2026, gorgeous Nathalie Clarin won for the town of Narvacan. It was absolutely fun to see all of it happen at One Ilocos Sur! 

Forging Bonds During Lunar New Year Festivities at the Beautéderm Headquarters

Being in the midst of celebrities was not on my plans for Lunar New Year, but the good CEO of Beautéderm Ms. Rei Anicoche Tan made our day special by bringing in some of the country's brightest stars at their headquarters in Angeles Pampanga as they celebrate the Year of the Fire Horse!

I've been informed that this year is going to be very fast paced and dynamic, and we've all got to have more patience, more energy, do more bold moves so we could achieve our dreams and experience more things. While Ms. Rei didn't have any plans to do an event, she knew this yearly bonding activity would be something good for their brand but their numerous endorsers, so they could get to know each other, especially off the stage, on a very personal level. It was something important for her and the Beautéderm Corporation, so she made it happen even in the midst of a very busy month. They made tons of arrangements, Lion and Dragon dance, took photos of them in different floors, and showcased them outdoors for the public to see. 

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Ms. Rei says "Happy Chinese New Year! As I look around this room, I see our influencers, press and Beautederm ambassadors. We are driven, fearless and this has become a tradition for us. We give thanks, and doing it in this building means a lot for us. We continue to grow together, share even great success. May this year bring abundance to all of us!"

The event was also graced by GMA's prime actor Dennis Trillo, Board Member Aaron Villaflor, the iconic Lorna Tolentino, hunky Vice Governor Ejay Falcon, Sexbomb and Bulacan Queen Sunshine Garcia Castro, the hilarious Sugar Mercado (who's both doing RAWND 6 soon!), Darla Sauler, Thou Reyes, Dental Diva Kakai Bautista, actress Thia Thomalia, your Baby Boy Kimson Tan, the beautiful Nadine Samonte, beauty queens Rochelle Barrameda, lovely Chanel Morales, Pepita Curtis, Jennie Gabriel (her Angel Locsin impersonation was super good!), Buboy Villar (who was with his family and cute baby!), and a whole lot more. I've seen PBA pro Terrence Romeo and a few of his friends during dinner, it was so nice to see them in the flesh! Plus the whole family of Ms. Rei Tan was there to support and celebrate with her. 

 

I'd like to take this bit to thank Beautederm and Ms. Rei for making us part of the festivities! May you continue to be a blessing to not just yourself, but to other people. Happy Lunar New Year! 

DESTARA APP To Be Featured at Year of the Fire Horse Event

Queen of Feng Shui Ms. Marites Allen will be holding a Year of the Fire Horse Welcoming Ritual and Prosperity Event at BGC this Lunar New Year. People will be celebrating with welcoming and wish rituals, energy cleansing, and of the highlights of the evening, the introduction of the first Feng Shui AI Guidance Platform called DESTARA. 

It has been created from digitizing her knowledge of Chinese Astrology which she has practiced for over 30 years, and now it's going to be easy to get guided decisions for Health, Wealth, Love and your Career in it. It is currently on Alpha stage which means only a few get to test the platform as further enhancements are planned for it. This will be released on Beta soon and will be on the App Store or Google Play once it is finalized. 

You can try it by scanning this QR code and registering on the platform. I did this a couple weeks ago and a LOT of people are enjoying it already. 

Subscription plans will be available soon (to get more features to happen) but you can try it now and get the guidance you need on your phone, tablet or laptops. Sign up and get your AI DESTINY MENTOR created so you can read daily reminders before you start your day!

NEXT ON NETFLIX: KATHRYN BERNARDO, ANNE CURTIS, GERALD ANDERSON, JANINE GUTIERREZ and More Filipino Movies, Series and Shows!

Home of the most compelling actors, the Philippines has been home to Netflix for 10 years, and recently, they announced what's NEXT for the brand. 

For starters, they've got more Filipino content coming. Vito Lazatin head of content in the PH says "This is the first NEXT in the country. 2026 is a very special milestone and it's been 10 years of your favorite stories and yes, more homegrown stories that is authentic and ambitious. The best of local storytelling, creative collaboration and working with the best in the industry so we could support from script to screen. Since 2022 we partnered with ABSCBN and GMA to bring their titles to the platform. As of date, 32 have been in the global top 10. This 2026 we are going bigger and bolder, 5 Netflix originals, we are so lucky we got to work with the best in the industry who share their vision, they believe Netflix is a place to realize what Filipino storytelling would be."

Then when a video played I saw Balaraw, Buy Bust: The Undesirables, 18th rose, (I thought there was a TGIS the Reunion movie), Ganito Ganyan Ganoon, just a few of the things they showed on screen after his speech.

18th Rose is a coming of age romance by Dolly Dulu, Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri.

Ganito Ganyan Ganoon is a family tragedy, director is Cholo Laurel. Stars Agot Isidro and Jodi Sta Maria. 

Paskong Pinoy is a Holiday Anthology series featuring 4 different stories that define Filipino Christmas from director Mark Reyes, starring Bobby Andrews, Angelu De Leon, Rica Peralejo, Barbie Forteza, and Enchong Dee.

Grit heart and high paced action, The Master Cutter from GMA, an action drama of a scout ranger doing a life of a Tailor by day, bounty hunting by night. The director is Dominic Zapata and stars Dingdong Dantes, Shuvee, Max Collins, and more. Dingdong says "There are costumes, you have to be mentally and physically fit to get into character. I'm with pro actors and the scene will take you there!"

 

Someone Someday is from ABSCBN which is a movie about a dating app, rediscovering love and second chances by Chad Vidanes and Dolly Dulu. Stars James Reid Maja Salvador and Kathryn Bernardo.

 

Netflix also highlighted BALARAW, a series made from Filipino folklore telling a story of a woman finding her mother in an uncharted island. Directed by Ray Red and Stars Agot Isidro, Charlie Dizon, Janine Gutierrez. Janine says "We have been keeping this a secret for a year, and now we are sharing this to the world."

Buy Bust: The Undersirables talks about another installment of Erik Matti's series. This stars Gerald Anderson and Anne Curtis.

Here's our coverage on video!

 

This is just the tip of the iceberg because certainly, there will be more. International titles include One Piece, The Last Airbender, K Dramas, WWE. It's all happening on the app! Congratulations Netflix!