ICRC Worker Mary Jean Lacaba Freed!

Mary Jean Lacaba has been freed from her almost 2 month stay in the hands of dreaded Abu Sayyaf.She is now in the hands of ICRC doctors in Manila. Mary Jean Lacaba arrived 12PM together with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) volunteers after being freed from Abu Sayyaf in the town of Indanan, Sulu last night.

Philippine Air Force Spokesman Major Gerry Zamudio said that they did not pass Villamor Airbase anymore which was initially prepared but went to the domestic airport like an ordinary commercial plane. She left Jolo, Sulu at around 8PM through Zamboanga City together with Sulu Vice-Governor Lady Ann Sahidulla, Western Mindanao Command Chief Lieutenant General Nelson Allaga, PNP Directorate For Western Mindanao Chief Superintendent Felizardo Serapio and her friends from ICRC.

Senador Richard Gordon who is the current Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) Chairman confirmed these reports.She is also taken cared of by doctors from Geneva, Switzerland. Lacaba will undergo normal debriefing as with any victim of kidnapping. The doctors also wanted to make sure that she is safe and be in good health.An 8 hour rest was recommended by these doctors.

The Ideal Getaway!

Earlier this week, my Mom asked me if we could go for a vacation a couple of hours away from my hometown Manila. The Highlands as they call it was part of the itinerary but the deal is we could not do that unless we had some of our relatives that had membership in that exclusive club to pitch us in since they are the only ones who could only do that. The couple of hundred thousand dollar membership fee a year is really a hefty price tag to pay. I would not want to have that on my account considering the economic crunch is on its way to affect our part of the world. I'm sure people would want to have an alternative that would not hurt that much on their budget. There are better alternatives though if I want to take that road.



Have you heard of places where you can avail 5 star rated accommodation at a cost so measly you won't even bother looking at the bill? It's where you have too much to spend for other things than the club membership itself to begin with. It's a place where relaxation and recreation is so affordable that you will eventually spend only a couple of hundred dollars for everything. Check these Great Deals Now so your family would enjoy what was meant only for the rich and famous. Visit http://www.holidaytravelaccomodations.com and see what huge savings you can make in these locations. You'll surely love the packages and offers they have for the smart consumer in you. I'll check it out one of these days if my brother and I push through with our NY City trip early spring next year. See you there!

Tsip Tsao and his Public Apology

Just this evening I heard over the radio (while taking a bath) Mr. Tsao went to the consulate in HK and faced the media, Migrante International, the Filipino community and the consuls themselves. He personally apologized and bowed 3 times as a sign of his sincere apology. That was one of the things I was personally waiting for. I can forgive like any normal human would do... but I don't forget. Racism is a huge issue. I hope he learns his history first when the British were treating Chinese lower than dogs, and when they in the 50's and 60's begged to gain entry in the Philippines in hopes of a better life. If I were to start a word war with him, we should start there so he knows where he's coming from. Remember when we were portrayed INDIOS in books and their race was even lower than us? If we were to start racism with that, I'm sure they would not like to hear it at all to begin with.

I am a Filipino of Spanish decent, but I am still a Filipino. We all have an uncertain future. We may have one or more of these things to think about in our lifetime. We maybe on top or way below the poverty line that society dictates. The difference between us though is I'm not hypocritical in saying we all have our own way of saying things... but I'm not going to the path he chose of going overboard and insult a whole generation of impoverished people just because I am where I am. Cast the first stone at me and you bet your sorry A$$ I'll throw you the GRAND CANYON!


My other article about him is here. CLICK THIS

Land of the Rising Sun

Since HONG KONG has just been removed from my destinations this year, I need a more interesting place to go to. I was trying to get flight discounts at a local airline and from the looks of it, I'm going to Japan.

In the land of the rising sun, I plan to visit major tourist attractions like SHINTO Shrines and palaces of the empire. I would also like to see the Princess and her family because there have been rave reviews about the charity work she does for the country. I seldom see her in newspapers today so if there would be something I could do on this trip it would be to have the honor of seeing her. I know the history in some ways because I am an avid watcher of Japanese information commercials here in the Philippines. My fascination stands back way in high school where I started my MANGA addiction.

With all the cultural influences this country has brought to my life, I would really love to see what it is all about. I want to walk along the streets where SAKURA gently falls; I want to see each interesting HARAJUKU girl dresses up in. I may not speak the Japanese language that fluently but I try to learn phrases each day to at lease cope up with the group of friends I have now. They even attend conventions just to feel they belong to the genre modern Japan has to offer.

If there are some things that I don't know about, I could probably easily get them off from the Okinawa Travel Guide. This place of history and the popular martial arts form of karate always makes me smile. I wonder if I could find time and go there from Tokyo. Well maybe if time permits it, I'm surely going to enjoy my time there. I got ideas where to go from the popular site Okinawa-Information.com. They have hundreds of pages that contain destinations that only locals would only know. It's a great help for first time travelers there, and since I would want to stay and enjoy from day 1 all the no nonsense reviews of foreigners would be of great help! I'm in the process of reading the excellent BLOGS, Forum Posts and information pages there so you better do the same if you are planning to go soon!