Yup, you read that right, San Miguel Pale Pilsen is bringing Third Eye Blind to Manila for the grand opening of this year’s Oktoberfest. On September 5, this world renowned rock band, along with Philippine’s top bands will be gracing one of the four stages along San Miguel Avenue. San Miguel is aiming to break two Guiness records with this year’s grand Oktoberfest: the most number of people toasting, and the longest bar. Apart from the copious amounts of beer, participants can also interact with SMB’s personalities, like Efren Bata Reyes and PBA players.

Through the years, San Miguel Oktoberfest has been enjoying strong support from the Filipinos, that the Department of Tourism now recognizes the event as a local Fiesta. Aside from the grand kick off party at the Ortigas Center, there will also simultaneous parties all over the Philippines: in Olongapo, Sta. Rosa, Lapu-lapu (Cebu) and Davao. San Miguel Oktoberfest 120 (siento bente) will span for 120 days, starting September 5, until December 2008. The kickoff party is open to the public. For only Php120, you can watch Third Eye Blind, Rivermaya, The Dawn, After Image, Rico Blanco, Pinikpikan and 35 other Pinoy bands.

San Miguel Beer is also premiering its limited edition beer, the San Miguel Oktoberfest beer. This beer is 100% malt, meaning it’s full flavored, light bodies, sweet to the taste and promises a smooth finish.

So… where will you be on September 5?

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Third Eye Blind on San Miguel Oktoberfest 2008!

Popularity: 2% [?]

After much excitement over the NAIA Terminal 3 opening, I was finally able to experience the terminal personally last weekend and yesterday night. Together with Eric and Melo, I flew out of Manila and into Cebu to watch (and shoot!) the Pasigarbo sa Sugbu, a festival of all Cebu festivals (which is different from Sinulog).

Plenty of open check-in counters

 
Now, I heard of horror stories about the terminal: flights getting delayed because they can’t assign a gate to use because most of it are broken, facilities not working properly, etc. Fortunately, none of these things happened to us. I guess the two weeks that the terminal has been in operation have helped them find solutions on making the most out of the huge airport.

The empty immigration booths

 
The first thing that would greet you when you enter the airport premises are the seperate lanes for private and public transport. Then, as you enter the cavernous terminal, you’re met with a blast of cold air. It’s too cold inside! Unlike the other airports, well wishers can accompany the passenger inside the terminal. There are food kioks in the outer area (Kopi Roti, Jollibee), so families and friends can spend some more time together before parting. Starting at the check-in counters, passengers are on their own. Well wishers, however, can go up the viewing deck and have a bird’s eye view of the area after the Immigration booths.

Plenty of wide open spaces

 
The airport was huge. Because not all flights have been moved to the terminal, the only crowded places are the waiting areas near the boarding gates. Beyond the Immigration, there’s a Delifrance, Go Nuts Donuts, and a convenience store, ensuring that you don’t go hungry while you wait for your plane. Smokers can likewise enjoy a stick or two inside the smoking area (which is basically an empty room with a window open and a view of the Makati and Taguig skyline).

Walkalators!

 
Lavatories are clean and have plenty of stalls. I saw some water fountain in some places, but wasn’t able to check whether they’re already functional. There are also power points around the waiting area, so you can charge your cellphone and camera batteries or plug in your laptop while you catch up on work (not sure if there’s Wi-Fi inside the airport though). And to further empahsize the size of the airport, there’s a walkalator, a standard feature in some of the world’s biggest and busiest airports.

Aquarium?

 
Each gate has facilities for front and middle loading. Unfortunately, these aren’t being utilized. We had to walk down a flight of stairs and into the tarmac to board the planes. It’s the same for arrivals. Depending on where your plane parked, there’s a pretty long walk from the plane to the terminal entrance. It’s fairly easy to find your way to the exit, as there are signs along the way. On the way out, we passed through the un-manned immigration booths and Customs inspection tables. Beyond that, are the doors that takes you out into Manila.

No lines at the loos

 
Similar to the old international terminal, passengers are advised to exit on the doors specified for the first letter of their surnames. This is to make it easy for friends and family coming to pick up their loved ones. If you’re taking a cab home, you have three options: take the expensive Airport Taxi, which has a fixed price (super expensive), a “metered” yellow taxi (I hear from Melo that they were charging a flat rate of Php 400. What the heck, right?), or the regular (and true) metered taxi. The first thing you’d see when you step out of the terminal are the airport taxis. Keep walking to the right and you’d see the line of Yellow taxis. I had a bad feeling about these yellow taxis, as I saw a huge concentration of their ilk in the airport parking lot, so I kept on walking, knowing that there should be a line for regular taxis, since I saw an MGE taxi pass by as I stepped out of the airport doors. True enough, there was a line of MGE and EMP taxis at the very end of the terminal, with nobody else lined up, since everybody’s already queued up for the airport or the Yellow taxi. Not only did I have to line up for a cab, the driver didn’t even give me a spiel about adding Php50 to the meter or trying to bargain a price for the ride to Quezon City.

Conveyor belts

 
All in all, I’m quite happy with my NAIA T3 experience. I can’t comment on the effectivity of the conveyor belts though, since I didn’t check in my bags (which was a boon, because I was able to get out of the airport before the hoard went out and a long queue formed at the taxi stands). I just hope my experience the next time I use the airport would be just as good.

Popularity: 34% [?]

There has been so much hoopla over the World Pyrolympics since it first started in December 2005. I never really had any interest to watch because 1) there is sure to be LOTS of people watching, and 2) it’s held in the Mall of Asia. I’ve nothing against Henry Sy’s ginormous mall, but it’s just too far from where I live, and it involved two jeepney rides, one bus ride and one MRT ride. So I was surprised when I found myself accepting Eric’s invitation to watch last Saturday, May 17.

All the signs were there — a full day schedule which meant no sleep for me, and a storm signal number 1 for Metro Manila meant rain. But my desire to take photos of colorful fireworks and to try out my Genki Umbrella was too strong, so I just dressed to the weather and hoped for the best.

I should’ve listened to my instincts and stayed at home — the Pyrolympics was cancelled for that night. The strong winds made the seas rough, and may even have adverse effect when the fireworks are fired into the sky. I couldn’t blame the coast guard and La Mancha for making that decision, but it was pretty disheartening. The show was re-scheduled for the following day, May 18th.

A deep 14-hour sleep was enough to recharge me, and I decided to give the Pyrolympics a second chance. The weather was getting better, and there were hardly any rain the whole day. The moment I stepped out of the house though, I had a feeling that it was going to be cancelled. The wind was blowing quite strong in Quezon City, what more in Manila Bay? Ever the optimist, I set out for MOA, knowing I’d kick myself if I don’t go and miss this chance.

True enough, as soon as I boarded the MOA-bound jeep at the Taft MRT station, Eric texts: the Pyrolympics was cancelled again. I might as well head to Mall of Asia, I thought, since I’m almost there. Over cups of coffee and tea, banana loaf and coffee buns, Eric and I lamented the unlucky streak of this year’s World Pyrolympics. First, it has been re-scheduled several times. The first pyrolympics was held in December 2005, the second in January 2007 (it was originally scheduled for December 2006). I have no idea why La Mancha Productions delayed the event for so long, but May isn’t really the best time to have an event that’s heavily dependent on the weather. It rained heavily during the first two shows, which delayed the program for an hour. This week, it was typhoon Cosme that completely cancelled the show. Italy and Venezuela, who were scheduled to perform last weekend has been re-scheduled to perform next Saturday (May 24) instead. To add to the Pyro Olympics’ misfortune, I heard that some countries have backed out and the Fellowship of Fire will be performed next week, instead of the 31st. Of course, due of this recent cancellation, the schedule will probably be moved back to its original schedule.

So the question now is, will I still go to the next two shows? I don’t know. I’ve been so disappointed with this two wasted trips to the Mall of Asia (using up time which I could’ve used to work on my huge backlog), that I find it hard to muster up any enthusiasm for the event. Maybe if it was suddenly re-scheduled to January or February (or even April), where the weather’s more predictable…

Popularity: 37% [?]

The plan was to meet at the Quirino Grandstand at 1pm to take portrait shots of the contingents. I have been sleeping in for the past couple of days, and when Saturday finally rolled in, I found myself still awake at 8:00 am. Hearing the household showly waking up, I got out of bed and joined my sister and her kids at the table for breakfast.

Flying high

 
After an hour, I resumed my attempts in getting some sleep. I finally did doze off — at 10:30 am. My alarm went off at 11:30. Stumbling out of bed, I went to the bathroom to wake myself fully with a cold, refreshing shower. Of course, a cold shower during summer in the Philippines can only do so much. A couple of minutes out in the sun waiting for a jeep, fx or a cab had me sweating.

These boots are made for dancing

 
I barely made it in time for our 1:00 pm meet. Eric was already at Quirino, taking pictures. We meet up at the food stalls across the Manila Ocean park entrance. After downing a glass of cold mango shakes, we headed off to take pictures before it got too dark.

Laoag’s prize winning float

 
We first went to the area where the floats are parked. You can really see the effort each contingent poured into their entry. Both the dancer’s costumes and the floats have been given a lot of attention, and were fine tuned to the last detail. After all, there was a Php500,000 prize for the best float.

All smiles

 
Afterwards, we went out to the field where the dancers are assembled and waiting for the cue to start the parade to the Aliw Theatre. I overheard one dancer telling Eric that they put on their make ups as early as 10:00 am. That meant they were probably changing into their costumes at 9:00 am, and up at 7:00 am. They have been up for close to 8 hours at that point, yet you can still feel the energy emanating from them (and from the pile of empty energy drink bottles in the middle of the field).

Waiting for the go signal inside one of the floats

 
They all look so young. There were kids as young as 8 or 9 years old, high school teens and probably some in their early 20’s. They were all dedicated to their craft, and you can just see how much they love their province and their heritage.

You can clearly see the passion in their eyes, the pride in their hearts and the braces on their teeth

 
After shooting for close to two hours, Eric and I had a quick bathroom break, then we each bought a can of cold soda. Laguidly walking back to the area where the contingents are lined up, we were stopped by a barricade guarded by a bunch of burly men. We have to be authorized to enter the area, they said. We didn’t really mind; we had our pictures. Just as we were discussing whether to make our way to the Aliw Theater, where the performances will be, huge drops of rain started falling from the sky. Our decision was made: we’re riding a taxi to the CCP complex.

Dahil saging lang ang may puso

 
Luckily, a cab just drove into the Quirino Grandstand, dropping off its passenger. We quickly got in, and told the driver to take us to Aliw Theatre. It started pouring in earnest, and we wondered what happened to the gorgeous floats and to the make up and body paints meticulously painted on each dancer.

Another smile for another photographer

 
Understandably, the parade was delayed. To while away our time, we paid a Php 60 entrance fee to go inside Star City. A lot of people were there, waiting for the rain to let up, so all the restaurants facing the performance area was packed. We passed the time having heavy merienda and buying snacks, knowing that once we took at place at the press box, there would be no going out.

With Sto. Niño, their patron saint

 
The rain finally let up around 6:00 pm. We eagerly went out and saw that several hundred other people had the same idea. The rain was definitely not in their agenda, and the organizers were doing all they can to drain the puddles (or mini rivers) that formed thanks to the sudden downpour. As the water slowly receeded, the rain started up again several times, though not as hard as it did earlier.

Piyesta ng mga Photographers

 
Soaked with sweat and rain, feet squishing inside wet shoes, exhausted due to lack of sleep and tired from standing up for more than an hour, I was elated when the announcer said the first contingent were already in Vito Cruz. Finally at 8:00 pm, the program started.

They never tire of smiling

 
It was amazing to see the groups perform. After hours spent baking in the sun, getting drenched by the rain, parading from Rizal Park to the CCP complex, they still have the energy to dance so beautifully during their performance. There aren’t any traces of fatigue in their eyes, only their dazzling smiles as they go through each step.

Wave your hands in the air like you just don’t care

 
Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to revive me. I mustered up the energy to watch four groups, but gave up afterwards. I wanted to at least watch up to contingent number 9, but I really couldn’t take it anymore. Stumbling from the pressbox and squeezing through the crowds, the only exit I found required one to go under the bleachers and stepping through a rather high rail. What an experience! Can’t wait for next year

Bonus picture: Bloggers Da Who!

 
Da Who itong blogger na na-ispotan namin sa Aliwan Fiesta na nag papapicture kasama ang isang hybrid na zebra/baka?

Popularity: 43% [?]

This weekend seems to be packed with events that you’re spoilt for choice. Rather, make that overwhelmed with options that you wouldn’t know which one to attend!

I will be going to two: The Aliwan Fiesta with Mr. Byahilo.com, and a bunch of Couch Surfing Manila members. Afterwards, we’ll be headed to a CS Manila birthday bash. My first CS party!

The Aliwan Fiesta is a yearly event anticipated by the many. Organized by the media outfit Manila Broadcasting Company (MBC), the Aliwan Festival aims to promote the rich, colorful and vibrant festivals of the Philippines. Through the Aliwan Fiesta, one does not need to hop from one island to another just to experience the non-stop streetdancing, and the loud drumbeating. No need to take a bus and roam all over Luzon and fly to Visayas or sail the high seas going to Mindanao. It’s all being carried here in the country’s capital, Manila. Get the chance to see Cebu City’s Sinulog Festival represented by the Lumad Basakanon perform their Dance ritual. See the Tribu Paghida-et of Iloilo City’s Dinagyang Festival perform their dance routine. It’s also your chance to see other equally colorful and beautiful festivals like the General Santos’ Kalilangan Festival, Zamboanga City’s Hermosa festival, Baguio City’s Panagbenga Festival and Maguindanao’s Padang-padang Festival. Its seeing all the country’s best all in just one sitting.

Source: Byahilo.com

Since the the CS party would be held at the pool deck of one of the condominium buildings lining the Roxas boulevard, I was wondering if we’d be able to see the fireworks at the 3rd World Pyrolympics at the Mall of Asia?

WORLD PYRO SATURDAYS OF MAY
May 3
7.30pm China’s The Glorious Group
9.00pm Germany’s Nico Lunig Event

May 10
7.30pm Canada’s Pyro Studios
9.00pm France’s Fetes et Feux

May 17
7.30pm Italy’s Parente Fireworks
9.00pm Venezuela’s Venefuegos Fireworks C.a.

May 24
7.30pm South Korea’s Hanwha Corporation
9.00pm Australia’s Explosive Productions Pty Ltd

May 31
7.30pm Fellowship of Fire - Collaboration of all Countries with Philippines
9.00pm Philippines! La Mancha Pyromusical Grand Finale

Source: Our Awesome Planet

On the otherhand, a lot of bloggers I know are headed to Greenhills this Saturday, for the Man Blog’s Banana Gangbang Rock Festival.

To the truckloads of fans of The Man-Blog (TMB), here’s your chance to see this awesometastic blog’s denizens do something other than entertain you with finely written dickery. TMB will be having a gig dubbed “The Banana Gangbang Rock Festival” happening on May 3, 2007 at Bela Bar in Greenhills, San Juan.

Marco Palinar, Mike Villar, Ade Magnaye, and Lauren Dado’s bands will be performing. BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM! You’re bound to eargasm four times right there and right then!

Source: Fritzified.com

Or if you choose to stay at home, why not work on your Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf story? Who knows, you just might end up winning a trip to Hollywood!

Share and inspire others with your passion.

Remember your first date over soul-warming cups of Chai Latte? Or when you landed that important business deal over Cappucino? And how relaxing your Me-Time felt curled up in the couch with your Double Vanilla Ice Blended?

The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf invites you to share your most memorable experiences at The Bean online by joining My Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Story. Tell us what’s brewing and get a chance to win a trip to Hollywood, Los Angeles, USA for 4 days and 3 nights, with accommodations and pocket money.

Source: What’s your Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Story?

So, where are YOU going this weekend?

Popularity: 35% [?]