Hour long fireworks display on Potipot Island, Candelaria, Zambales

I know this might be a bit too late, but scores of families are prepping up for the New Year celebration at the beautiful Potipot Island in Candelaria, Zambales.

While the beach and the island alone more than makes up for the 3 hours travel from Subic Bay, the provincial government also promised an hour-long fireworks display on New Year's eve.


A festival was also organized along the Uacon beach facing the island to launch the 'festivities up north.'

Just in case, drop by. This could be a start of something big for the tourism industry of Zambales.

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Posted in: Zambales

Thousands of Pinoys change profile pictures for Kids

Cartoon character pictures flood Facebook this week after thousands of Pinoys used their favorite cartoon characters as profile picture to protest violence against children.

The movement urged everyone to remove human faces on Facebook but rather 'and invasion of memories.'


Scores of characters slowly filled the account pages. Snapshots of Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck to more violent characters such as Voltes V shoved out the usual family portraits, poses and close up photos.


Here is an article published by Yahoo Philippines.

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Posted in: facebook movement

US Navy crew saves five Filipino fishermen

Update: Tyhppon Basyang
This article caught our eye from the US Navy's website (www.navy.mil).
Thank you and more power to your crew USNS John Ericsson.



USNS John Ericsson Rescues Fishermen After Typhoon Passes Philippines

By Lt. Mike Morley, Commander, Task Force 73 Public Affairs

SUBIC BAY, Philippines (NNS) -- Fleet replenishment oiler USNS John Ericsson's (T-AO 194) crew of civil service mariners rescued five Filipino fishermen from the South China Sea 10 miles off the coast of Luzon, Philippines, July 14.

John Ericsson's crew rescued the fishermen nine hours after their boat capsized in rough seas as Typhoon Conson passed over the island of Luzon.

Ericsson had sortied from Subic Bay to sea July 13 to avoid the storm and was returning to Subic Bay when Able Bodied Seaman Charles Wright spotted the fishermen at 1:10 p.m., clinging to their overturned banka boat and waving a yellow flag.

At 1:33 p.m., Ericsson lowered its rigid hull inflatable boat into the sea, and 10 minutes later all five fishermen were safe on Ericsson's deck, where a physician examined them.

"They were a bit shaken up because the seas were rough, but otherwise were in good health and happy to be on our ship," said Tiffany Brockman, Ericsson's chief mate. "We gave them fresh clothing, new socks and boots and a nice meal."

A few hours after their rescue, the fishermen were ashore and handed over to the care of the Philippine Coast Guard.

"The crew was pretty excited to have played a role in helping these fishermen," said Brockman, noting that the Ericsson had several Tagalog-speaking members in its crew, making communication easy. "At first, nobody was happy that we had to sortie due to the typhoon, but being able to help these mariners in need made it all worth it."

Ericsson is a Military Sealift Command (MSC) fleet replenishment oiler, crewed by 92 civil service mariners working for MSC, who operate and navigate the ship, and three sailors who provide communications support and supply coordination. The ship provides underway replenishment of fuel to Navy combat ships and jet fuel for aircraft aboard aircraft carriers at sea.

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Posted in: typhoon

Coffee is good (and bad). Who cares!

I am a coffee lover. Nope, not the expensive kind. But I don't feel any guilt when I indulge on the 'unreasonable' cup.

Many of us who travel (love to travel, emphasis on the LOVE) enjoy a cup as a way of settling down our nerves.

Well, I enjoin you to read the article in this link (you might just see the coffee in a different light).

http://i.lifehacker.com/5585217/what-caffeine-actually-does-to-your-brain

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Subic revs up for summer

On land or in the sea, Subic Bay has it this summer.

This was how the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) painted the coming months as it gears up the sporting and tourist facilties here in preparation for the summer season.

“Subic is known for its unique blend of business and leisure. But this summer, we’ll be outdoing ourselves,” Marcelo said. “Tourists can forego some of the usual activities at the beach and forest trails so they can enjoy the more exciting sports activities,” he added.

According to Marcelo, watching is good, but joining the sports events 'is way better.'

Among the top sporting events scheduled this summer are the Tour of Luzon Street 6 and the Terry Larrazabal Bike Festival; the First Subic Experience Travel Card National Badminton Open; and the 2010 edition of the true-blue Filipino bike “Padyak Pinoy” bike competition.

Other activities include the Beach Football Tournament organized by the Beach Football Association of the Philippines (BFAP); 2010 SBMA Jet Ski Cup Series and a sport fishing tournament at the newly constructed container terminal.

Subic is now among the favorite venues of sports organizers for local and international events like the Asian Duathlon Championships, Subic Adventure Race, Taekwondo Open Championships, Bike Festival Asia, and Smart Communications’ Subic International Marathon.

“If you want peace and quiet, you can find that in Subic still. But if you want action and adrenaline-pumping events, then Subic is also the place for you this summer season,” he added. (30)

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Balloons lift up the spirit at the 15th Hot Air Balloon Festival

Clark, Pampanga --- I wish Subic Bay can do something almost like this. Wish!

Waking up at 3AM to travel one hour away isn't something I look forward to everyday. But the 15th Hot Air Balloon festival at Clark is worth every waking moment.

Here's a pic to prove my point.

Sunny Boy and Pong Pagong took center stage. Both raked in the ohhhs and the ahhhs from the thousands of attendees. See video at the right side of the blog ---->

How grand was the 15th hot air balloon festival? The only measure is to count the crowd. But because we got stuck in a VERY long line, let's just say there are at least 1,000 cars parked at around 6am. Our Totoya Corolla was packed with four adults and one 3 year old child. Do the math.

The crowd kept pouring in until we decided that the Sunny Boy wasn't worth the searing heat of the original one. That's around 10:15 AM.

Like I said, if only Subic Bay can do anything close to this, it would be wonderful. Here are some more pics that tell the story better than I could.

As a last note, I will be back there next year...promise. Thanks to David Bayarong of www.subictimes com for sharing the photos with the Subic Review.

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Posted in: Clark,tourism event