The Anthem Philatelist

In my younger days I detest tatoos. I thought, why would someone desecrate his own body (the temple of the Holy Spirit ) for art's sake . But upon reading the book Bantugang Sugbuanon , Pigafetta mentioned the early Cebuanos had tatooed bodies as an expression of their craft and status. So tattoo artist are technically creatives using the skin as the canvas, thus making the person a walking work of art! But this will be my first and last tatoo. So glad I decided to pursue this daunting trip. Proud of our IP 's, cultural minorities and their traditions❤️ Thank you Whang-od . Thank you Grace and  Sunstar for the feature! Encounter with Apo Whang-Od: The Last Mambabatok The frenzy surrounding the April 2023 cover of Vogue Philippine edition drew my attention to the story of this famous 106-year-old cover girl. As we were already planning a trip to the Rice Terraces in the Cordilleras, I conferred with our tour operator on how to go about visiting Buscalan after Banaue and b...

 Thank you Emmanuel B. Villaruel and the Freeman .  click  here to view online article  CEBU, Philippines — Good things come to those who wait. This proved true for Cebuano gastroenterologist Vicente “Inting” Avanzado, Jr., who had long been wanting to personally meet his boxing idol Manny Pacquiao. His first best chance came after Pacquiao’s brutal and bloody ring war against Puerto Rican great Antonio Margarito on November 14, 2000 before a delighted crowd of 41,734 at the sprawling Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, USA. Delivering a spectacular performance in a blockbuster showdown billed as “The Eighth Wonder of the World,” Pacquiao dominated the bigger but slower Margarito to win the WBC super welterweight championship via a lopsided unanimous decision over 12 grueling rounds. Pacquiao, then 30 years old and congressman of Sarangani Province, prevailed round after round, opening a cut on Margarito’s cheek, closing his right eye,...

My first love was music, and in the 90's, I wanted to be musician more than being a physician. My dad desperately wanted me to proceed to medicine after graduating in Medical Technology in  Cebu Doctors University in 1989.   In the mid 80's, I already was the keyboardist, with regular weekend gigs at Danny Tan's Shaky's Mango , of the New Cebu Music pioneer with the only New Wave group in Cebu- "40" the Band, mostly playing American Top hits in Y101, then later keyboardist/arranger of ETU (Stay Close to Me, How Lucky You Are, Fading out of Distance), session musician/keyboardist of Local Gound concerts, RJ Jacinto, 12 Inch, The Monks and Topsy Turvy with Mylah, Barney, Rogerto, Emy and Mauro) so I initially resented his decision for me to take up medicine. He then testily told me, "Not all musicians can be doctors, but any doctor can be a musician if you got the talent for it"; and so I proceeded to medicine and eventually became a gastroenterol...

Sailing Beyond, 1983, Pencil sketch by Celso Pepito (using old signature)  Ph ilippines - A group of 12 Cebuano artists, collectively called Artistscebuex, successfully held an exhibit entitled Cebu: People, Places and Faces at the Galeri Dunia Seni Lukis, Jalan Pudu Ulu in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia last October 26. The exhibit was heldthrough the initiatives of Artmalaysia, in cooperation with the Philippine Embassy. The Cebuano artists who traveled all the way to Kuala Lumpur to join the exhibit were: Gabriel Abellana, Cesar Castillo, Audie Estrellada, Benji Goyha, Maxcel Migallos, Celso Duazo Pepito, Fe Madrid Pepito, Billy Pomida, Jose Brillo Villaver, and Jose “Kimsoy” Yap Jr. Malaysia-based Cebuano artists Aida Uy Sze and Lillian Loseo Tan completed the lineup of exhibitors. The exhibit formally opened with the unveiling of the painting entitled “Seeking Oneness” by Haned Masjak from the National Art Gallery Malaysia. He was assisted by Philippine Ambassador to Malaysia, Hon. Vi...