Burnham

The last time I saw the fountain activated at Burnham Lake was in the early 80s.  I heard that the multi-coloured lights are on as well in the evening.  Something to look forward to when we visit the park soon.

The football field is constantly being rid of its grass because people usually cross the field from the lake to Harrison Road at right as a shortcut.  The big building at right is the Baguio Patriotic School, also popularly known as Chinese School.  A new establishment on this road is Jollibee, which seems to have sprouted in a number of other places in the city.

as taken from SM.  27 December 2010
Technorati tags: Baguio

Merry Christmas!

Photo credit: The Catholic Hack

Butterfly Type III Kudusama revisited

This is how the Butterfly Type III Kudusama looks like when you use patterned paper.  Looks really nice.

Technorati tags: Kudusama

Snow show no show

Looks like the sNOw show in Baguio City isn't taking off anytime soon as it faces one hurdle after another.  This is starting to sound like a conspiracy was involved, especially since the winner was a supplier of SM (who seems to be having a LOT of vested business interests in the city - think forest cover along Convention Centre) and the two other bidders were disqualified.  I would very much like to know what disqualified the two other bidders, and the breakdown of expenses for the 420,000 project.... this will be an avalanche.

Inquirer.net article: Another let-down over "snow show"


Technorati tags: Baguio

Butterfly Type III Kudusama

 

Still on the search for a Kudusama that I can use for my Christmas Parol (lantern) project, this design by Tomoko Fuse caught my eye.  It looked so much like a traditional parol, with its star centre and fluttery extensions (hence the 'butterfly' in the name).  If you will notice in the instructional video below, the fluttery things were simply left as is.  I imagined the wings to be connected together to simulate the look of the Parol.  So I taped them together and voila.  An incredible Parol project! 

Just add a tail and you have a wonderful Parol, without having the need for the bamboo frame (which I found hard to source out here).  Have a go at this kudusama.  It's quite an enjoyable project.

Technorati tags: kudusama

Snow in Baguio?

The first time I heard of this was three years ago: snow was going to fall in Baguio City's Session Road. This was going to be artificial snow, of course. The image that I immediately conjured in my mind was that of snow falling through the entire length of Session Road. A major snowfall that will actually turn the street white is a major undertaking (plus, it will be a major cleanup as well). So realistically speaking, a light snowfall will really work great. At least half an hour's worth of snowfall will be wonderful.

I learned through FB that this was going to materialize yesterday (Sunday). There was not really a lot of buzz there, so I thought only a few people will turn up. The above photo was a surprise. A lot of people were expecting this to be huge.

Unfortunately, there was a lot of hype to the event that did not live up to the expectations of many people. For one thing, the snowfall as only going to be in the Porta Vaga area. But the masses covered the entire length of main Session Road. What would the rest see?

Secondly, it was only going to be a 5-minute show (source: the Manila Times). What would you expect out of a 5-minute snowfall coming from one rooftop?

Third, apparently there was a problem with the snow machines (source: Inquirer.net), making soap suds instead of smow.

Of course, it will be useless to cry over spilled milk (or snow?) now, but what would have been a more effective marketing campaign is, they should have not broadcasted this first snowfall, which happens on the same night as the SLU Lantern parade anyway and so there will be a lot of people along Session Road.  Also, disperse the snow making machines to other "rooftops" so that the overall effect will be more pleasant and not just coming from one place.  Makes it more realistic.

People would wonder if it was truly snowing in Session Road.  Then let social networks do the work of promoting the event, before announcing what it is all about.  It would have been more of a pleasant surprise than a staged show where expectations can really run high.

Oh, and can it run for more than 5 minutes?  It's too short, in my opinion.

The snow fall will run through most of the days of December... let's see how it comes along.  I think it's a good idea, but the execution needs major tweaking.


Photo credit: Harley Palangchao

Technorati tags: Baguio

Irvin Kershner - May the Force be with you

While a big fan of Star Wars, I did not know that somebody other than George Lucas directed an installment of the series. I had repeatedly watched the trilogy in my youth but never really took note of the end credits. It was only much later on, when somebody pointed it out did I find out.

They say that the Empire Strikes Back is the best in all the series, and overall I agree. Admittedly, I would tend to play the space battle scenes in Return of the Jedi (my favourite segment) over and over, but when it comes to overall impact the Empire Strikes Back is definitely the top.

The story starts with the Hoth System, in a cold and isolated ice planet.  This immediately gave us the impression that times have been hard with the Rebel Alliance since their victory over the Death Star.  The story then progresses through a chase into space, into asteroid fields, Dagobah System, the mining colony in Bespin.  We experience the character development of Han Solo, the introduction of key characters Yoda, Boba Fett, and Lando Calrissian, C3PO and R2D2 gets lots of airtime, and who could forget the climactic twist to the story when Luke is revealed to be Darth Vader's son?  Whoops... you'd know that by now, wouldn't you?

Irvin Kershner truly did the Star Wars universe proud.  I am very lucky to have seen his work at such an impressionable age and time.  May the Force be with you, Irvin Kershner (1923-2010).

Photo credit: Green Tea movie

Technorati tags: Star Wars