Popular culture says Mardi Gras and New Orleans are synonymous. However, New Orleans is also synonymous with jazz music, a music genre that, in my opinion, was created by the “citizens” of New Orleans in the late 19th to the first few decades of the 20th century by experimenting with rhythms and harmonies from blues,…
Tag: Travel
Hello, Philly! or Where the US of A was born
When I think of Philadelphia, I think of a sandwich made of thinly sliced beef, melted cheese, and often sauteed onions, all served on a hoagie roll. That beef is usually ribeye! The cheese – oh all American – what else – Cheezwiz! But other Philly (how Philadelphia is called in the US) locals use…
New York City Theatre District: A World Heritage Site?
“Aren’t you glad – you are walking on the streets of your dream city?” commented my good friend and former officemate at the University of the Philippines Los Baños, who was visiting New York City for a few days en route to Winnipeg, his new home since more than a decade now. My friend and…
Mary, Joseph, and Jesus in Bethlehem
Two years ago, my family and I embarked on what was publicized a “life-changing journey” to the Holy Land. Our travel agency identified three countries belonging to the Holy Land cluster: Jordan, Israel, and Egypt. However, we actually visited four. The agency missed Palestine. The State of Palestine is literally and figuratively at a crossroads….
Kutná Hora, an alternative to the tourist-heavy Prague
When we planned to visit Prague, a part of it was to see a nearby city. Most likely, every well-versed person in geography knows that it is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic, and it used to be the capital of Bohemia or one of the largest kingdoms of the Holy Roman…
Celebrating the All Saint’s Day in Kutná Hora
Today is the last day of our Germany-Czech tour before returning to Frankfurt for our flight to Manila. It’s the 31st of October. Commonly, on this day, the Philippines is really busy – cleaning the nitso, the puntod, and the mausoleum of dead loved ones. The next day is All Saints’ Day, and on 2…
Dramaturgical Notes: Pumpon ng mga Gunita/Bouquet of Reminiscences
Pumpon ng mga Gunita: A Reminiscence Theatre and a Documentary Theatre Staged at various locations in Wilhelmsfeld on 27 October 2024, Pumpon ng mga Gunita / Bouquet of Reminiscences is a performance of memory, retracing Jose Rizal’s reminiscences of, in, and with Germany. We think of the Pumpon ng mga Gunita as an experiential-learning performance about Jose Rizal’s…
Once upon a time, there was an “Artist Playground,” somewhere in Germany
They call it a colony, a space where people with a shared interest live together. The interest: German modernist art, particularly art nouveau. It was my second time in Frankfurt—for the same reason: to participate in the Frankfurter Buchmesse. I was here in 2017 to launch a book at the Philippine stand (there was not…
Ayutthaya: The Interplay of Hindu and Buddhist Creativity
Ayutthaya is located in central Thailand, about 90 km north of Bangkok, the gateway to this popular SEA destination. The city, also known as the Historic City of Ayutthaya, is home to magnificent temples and other structures that are important both historically and architecturally. As one of the world’s largest cities of its time and…
Corregidor Island: Performance, Cultural Memory, and Heritage (Part 2 of 2)
Quoting American poet, orator and Catholic priest Abram Joseph Ryan, our tour guide pointed the significance of Corregidor as an “island-striving-in-ruins.“ He proclaimed in jest “a land without ruins is a land without memories – a land without memories is a land without history.” In relation to the quote, the tour guide also explained that…
Tanghal Kultura 