Wazzup Pilipinas News and Events

Friday, February 6, 2015

Singapore Airlines Showcase and Travel Fair 2015

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Singapore Airlines continues to bring the best travel experience to their customers at exceptional value as they surprise us once again with so many travel packages and incentives that are too great to ignore.

Another milestone was achieved last February 5 during the launch of the SIA Showcase and Travel Fair 2015 held at the Glorietta Activity Center in Makati City. Not only did SIA share the privilege to preview and experience the exclusive Singapore Airlines Suites, but the airline's newest cabin class - Premium Economy Class and the airline's new concept SilverKris Lounge were on showcase, as well.

The SIA Showcase and Travel Fair, which will be open to the public from February 6 to 8, provides travelers access to Singapore Airlines and SilkAir’s exceptional all-in Business and Economy Class fares from Manila, Cebu, Davao and Kalibo to Singapore and various destinations around the world. Travelers may purchase their tickets at the Travel Fair from 6 – 8 February 2015 or at the Singapore Airlines and SilkAir Ticketing Offices and selected travel agencies until the 28th of February 2015.

Travel period is until the 31st of December 2015. The exceptional all-in fares are exclusive to BPI Credit Cardholders, Globe Platinum and Globe Blue customers, Glorietta, Ayala Center Cebu and Abreeza Mall Davao shoppers, and KrisFlyer members.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Driven by the passion to serve others, UP ALCHEMES organizes Chemical Engineering Students Summit Philippines (ChESSPH) – an annual gathering of Filipino chemical engineering undergraduates in celebration of the country’s growth and excellence in the field of chemical engineering. In aim to spur the minds of these promising Filipino chemical engineers, professionals of the field are invited to share their experiences, providing the students an extensive view of the field, and inspiring them to contribute to the development of chemical engineering in the Philippines.

Now on its eighth year, ChESSPH continues to share knowledge, to inspire ideas, and to spark change in chemical engineering students nationwide. This year’s summit aims to strengthen its roots and to uphold its legacy through a series of seminars and activities tackling the current issues, trends, and innovations in chemical engineering.

ChESSPH becomes timeless as it strengthens its foundation through talks about what lies ahead and how to be a step closer to that; interactive workshops about the skills and knowledge one needs to be able to conquer the larger world; an outdoor learning exposure essential to future chemical engineers; an escape to test strategic thinking; and of course, a networking celebration to cap off the whole ChESSPH experience.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Myth-making may be the key element to what transpired during the yesteryears of war and election. It was a generation when outright fallacies are often promised to people hopeful for change to experience a life that is better. But wait! Who am I kidding? It is still the present day scenario. We are still in a time when man would do all in an attempt to overpower or redeem.

People revolt when the change they long for are forgotten or taken for granted. Most of the times our emotions overpower our logic. Our first impulse is to undermine our faulty government or leaders as if expecting they are faultless and know-it-all.

The past years were never free of anger and raging emotions. There would always be appalling incidents when man attacks his fellow man due to various inexplicable reasons, mostly trivial, lots of times inhuman, due to excessive greed or misguided passion. I hate to accept the glaring impressions that man is naturally barbaric.

The Propaganda exhibit happening from February 6 to May 30 at the Lopez Museum (located inside the Benpres building in Ortigas Center) showcases several images of, as what artist Nunelucio Alvarado keep saying during our tour, "Puro-paganda" - the days of our grandparents from a long time ago that still evokes similarities of the present day.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Kaspersky Lab recently introduced its latest mobile application called Kaspersky QR Scanner. This program is compatible with Google Android and Apple iOS and can not only read information from QR codes, but also warn users about potentially dangerous links within them.

Fraudsters are constantly coming up with new tricks to lure users to their malicious sites. One dodge that has become popular recently is to encrypt a phishing link in a quick response (QR) code.

QR codes offer a convenient tool to send links to a mobile device, from computer screens or printed pages.

However, while experienced users can recognize fake URLs on screen, there is no way of identifying a rogue QR code with the naked eye.

This means cybercriminals are not only able to replace pictures with codes online; they can also physically glue their malicious QR codes over genuine ones on real-world posters and notices.

Phishing itself – the creation of fake pages in order to obtain users' personal data or infect their devices with malware – Is nothing new. It has been used by cybercriminals for many years.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

We all know Valenine's Day is one of those special days when boys get to have an excuse on becoming a little more intimate with the girls they are courting, or when lovers have that expectation that their partners will be giving them a bouquet of red roses, coupled with a box of Ferrero and a greeting card with loving dedications.

But in this digital age when greetings are now being sent via social media through PMs and mobile chats, don't be surprised if you receive the digital versions of the traditional Valentine's Day gifts. These are some of the times when technology becomes a bit insensitive and less sentimental. It takes away the romantic experience of swooning from the delightful display of affection. Is this the price we pay in exchange of economic development and advancement in technology?

Why do you think Cupid is depicted as a young child? He's not a big fat guy that looks like he's nine months pregnant. Because love should remain young and vibrant. It should not be replaced by a less personal digital greeting card of this time zone. It should remain a pure and sensible face-to-face interaction between two individuals sharing a bond that should last a lifetime. It should never grow old and fade away into nothing but memories of the good old romantic days. Just like the world of Peter Pan, there should always be love and passion in our own Neverland.

But why does Cupid shoot arrows to the heart? Because true love is not all fun and pleasure, it hurts most of the time. I guess we could assume that Cupid probably doesn't have a healthy 20/20 vision ... and it would help a lot if he would consider shooting both couples. Love is not really good if it's one-sided. Please bear in mind dear Kupido, that unrequited love is more heartbreaking than break-ups. Got it?

Wazzup Pilipinas!

I wonder if I'll actually end up seeing Fifty Shades of Grey. I'd say there's a 50/50 chance. I may be so rudely judged when I approach the ticket counter and ask "One ticket for Fifty Shades of Grey, please." People around might say "Would you like a side order of "self-respect" with that order?" Lol!

Now that E. L. James' book that glorifies abusive relationship and romanticizes a perpetrator of abuse has been turned into a movie, I guess acceptable sexual harassment may soon be a common sight especially for extremely liberal persons. The book may not be called as a great literary masterpiece but it is indeed a great artifact of female sexuality and expression. Nah! I was just kidding.

Why the need to make fun of the book? Fifty Shades of Grey is from the same writer of Saving Mr. Banks. There's a joke in there, but I didn't have coffee yet. Something about Poppin. Oh yea, now I remember. It's a movie so wild that your ants are bound to be Poppin!

The most anticipated erotic drama has been described as abusive, sadistic, unnatural, perverted, exploits women's longings, normalizes domestic violence, and more like pornography than a movie, despite being a consensual relationship between two adults. They say it should be called 69 Shades of Smut instead. Many sci-fi fans wished they just created a movie called Fifty Shades of a "Grey."

But Kim Kardashian seemed to liked it and I quote "OMG It was sooooo good!!!". No she hasn't added film critic to her resume but she and some friends got invited to s special private screening as part of celebrity perks. Hey! Bloggers have the same perks too. So here's hoping there will be one in our country.

Anthony Bourdain Travels To Familiar Cities and Discovers 'Parts Unknown'

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Chef, best-selling author and travelling gourmand Anthony Bourdain returns in an all-new season of the Emmy award-winning series ANTHONY BOURDAIN: PARTS UNKNOWN. Anthony travels to the lesser-known areas of beautiful Punjab, Thailand, Russia, Brazil, Lyon, Mexico, Mississippi and Las Vegas, steering off classic tourist tracks and traps, to expose and celebrate the people, unique culture, food, history and stories that make each place truly special. ANTHONY BOURDAIN: PARTS UNKNOWN premieres every Tuesday at 10 p.m. starting February 10, exclusively on TLC (available nationwide in the Philippines on every major cable, DTH and local provincial operator).

An eight-part series, each episode spotlights intriguing places, tastes, sights and sounds waiting to be explored. For insider tips and the best experiences, Anthony taps into the locals as well as a few friends and influential figures including world-renowned chef and restaurateur Daniel Boulud, famed nouvelle cuisine chef Paul Bocuse, magician Penn Jillette of Penn and Teller, and revered poet and award-winning peace activist Javier Sicilia.

In Thailand, Anthony explores Chiang Mai with award-winning chef and author Andy Ricker of Pok Pok restaurant fame. Anthony likens his experience in Northern Thailand to discovering a colour he never knew existed. “The food here is not pad thai or green curry chicken. There are complex layers of flavour, sophisticated balances, spicy, sour, a little bitter, salty, herby. Colour and texture are important. Crispy, soft, cold, hot. It's exactly this interplay between elements that makes Northern Thai food so thrilling and so addictive,” he says.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

MASKeteer Productions - a group of marketing students from Polytechnic University of the Philippines is pleased to announce that an exciting, edifying and up-to- date marketing seminar is taking a giant leap on February 6, 2015 at SM Sta. Mesa, Cinema One from 11 am to 4 pm.

The seminar entitled “ExVi: Dominating Market thru Experiential and Viral Marketing” that aims to provide a real-life and timely marketing education for the students where they would be able to learn different techniques of marketing and how brands survived the competition through experiential and viral marketing strategies.

Exvi is an integrated term for Experiential and Viral marketing strategies that companies of 21st century utilize as their maneuver or tactics in dominating the market. It is a well-placed, calculated and provocative type of campaign wherein the companies balance the power of brand awareness through the rebirth of traditional marketing strategies.

With the new platform of advertising and how consumers lose interest on traditional way of pioneering a product, marketers of today’s generation reroute their strategies to adapt the fast paced of global market competition without filling the brim. When the number of products and services are array in different form then the market becomes crowded thus companies’ needs to generate new marketing strategies to be the framework of their business. Exiting to the virtual wall of the business is effective way to understand what the people are looking.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Benitez family, and their schools, namely Philippine Women's University (PWU) and Jose Abad Santos Memorial School (JASMS), have recently been under online siege in the last few weeks. There were quite a number of unverified rumors spreading online and it was sort of difficult to verify the veracity of the accusations coming from questionable sources.

This controversy actually got me remembering about my former female colleague back when both of us were still working our way through college as service crews of one of the very popular fast-food chains in the country. She was a student at PWU, and I remember that so vividly because she would often report to work still wearing her school uniform bearing the school logo before she would change to our service crew outfits.

It was very evident that she was determined to finish college since it was quite difficult for women to be working students. It was hard enough for men to squeeze in some study time in our work schedule, what more for women who are more fragile. Unlike today when you can simply research online for some information, back in our days we would have to spend a considerable amount of time in the school library looking for those very elusive books containing the information we need.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Your friendly neighborhood Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas got an invite to try out a restaurant called Gumbo with a sub-line of "A New Orleans Restaurant" at its branch located at SM Megamall. Their very first branch was at SM Mall of Asia but since the branch in the said Mandaluyong mall is conveniently located at the center of the metro, the organizers decided to have the bloggers' event there.

While having our lunch, Mr. Albert, the Managing Director of both Gumbo and its sister restaurant Burgoo, informed us of some of the trivial information about the Gumbo restaurant, including where it got its name. I was surprised to know that the word Gumbo was derived from the African word for "okra," a pod like vegetable that was introduced by African slaves to thicken the stew we now call Gumbo. It has an incomparably rich flavor and texture and was derived from the cooking of French, Spanish, Indian, and African residents of the area.

When asked for my preferred drink, I had the urge to order for the drink with most unusual and intriguing name - the Elephant Charger. I don't really know why they call it that way but there's definitely no elephant harmed in the preparation of this concoction. It was a refreshing blend of a few fruits that go smoothly well with the sumptuous dishes served.

Another very interesting fact about the restaurant is that whenever customers order for their Gumbo or their other specialty called the Jambalaya, the restaurant crew will shout the dishes name as soon as they come out of the kitchen.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

WeChatters are busy – sometimes you need to multi-task, send a message at work, or use a keyboard to type quicker and longer messages. That’s why three years ago, WeChat launched the Web WeChat, a web-based client, and have been improving it ever since. So you can WeChat with your friends and family directly on your desktop.

Have you checked out Web WeChat?

· It’s available for all WeChat Users – iOS, Android, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows.

· And is supported on multiple browsers. For example, Chrome, Firefox, Safari.

To access:

1. Visit https://web.wechat.com/

2. With your WeChat QR code scanner, scan the QR code shown

· iOS users: Tap “+” in the upper right corner -> “Scan QR Code”

· Android users: Tap the three dots in the upper right corner -> “Scan QR Code”

3. On your phone, confirm your web log-in

Firgun: A Book Swap Event For A Cause

Wazzup Pilipinas!

In this digital age when e-books, social media and blogs are the "in" thing to read, it is quite surprising to know that there are still a significant few that collect and read the printed book versions that many would probably refer to as the old school style of reading.

I remember the earlier days when I used to roam around all the bookstores in search of bargain books and magazines. I was a collector of the sci-fi, detective and adventure literature and glossy magazines of the same genre. But when e-books started becoming popular and many blogs started posting a lot of interesting readings, that passion of collection diminished.

However, I still collect a few rare ones that usually pops out as sensational or controversial but unfortunately, not entirely for reading but more on collecting. I'm not sure if I can still be called a bookworm, but I have to admit that the feel of turning the pages of a real book is a lot different from swapping of pages on the tablet. There is something about the touch, and smell, of the printed form that excites the senses.

This coming February 21, The Dream Shirt, an online shop that sells book inspired t-shirts, will be having its first book swap event called “Firgun”. It will be held at Local Edition Coffee and Tea in Makati City from 1PM to 4PM.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Art has embraced the use of science and technology to create more engaging displays of creativity and the imagination. With the fast-paced developments in the scientific and technological fields, it is not surprising that other fields are tapping the opportunities to collaborate to reach out to more people and get the much needed attention towards the appreciation of art.

A partnership in presenting to the public more vivid and detailed masterpieces is more than welcomed by many artists and art enthusiasts. We all know museums should become one of the many preferred destinations by both local and foreign tourists who value both the nation's culture and artistic means of expression whether through traditional paintings and sculptures or modern craftsmanship aided by technology.

This is why I am excited about the partnership between the Lopez Museum & Library and Samsung as it opens its first exhibition for 2015. The exhibition is entitled 'Propaganda' and will be held on February 6, 2015.

The exhibition fleshes out the idea of myth-making and its capacity to inspire change or derail genuine national progress. Using state-of-the-art Samsung equipment and programming to enhance the museum-going experience thru digital technology, it is an exhibition that challenges not just our notions of art and history, but also how we view museums and libraries.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The season to be more intimate brings out a plethora of special promos and personalized packages for all the couples out there that would like to make their Valentine's Day celebration truly memorable and romantic. Aside from the traditional bouquet of flowers, huggable bears, sweet chocolates and heart-shaped treats, I guess the day would become a lot more unique and better if we could become a little more creative and at synch with the times.

Life is truly good as Techbox Philippines, the fastest growing gadget retail chain in the country, launches the “Sweetheart Promo” in time for ‘love month’ this year. This is an opportunity to go techie with your lovey-dovey especially for the young generation who simply couldn't stay away from their favorite gadgets like smartphones while posting status updates or selfies on their social media accounts.

Featuring an exclusive offer for Valentine’s, Techbox Philippines is launching a Buy-1, Take-1 deal to its customers. From February 12 to February 28, those who buy an LG G2, LG P713, or an LG E425 at Techbox Philippines stores will get a similar handset for free.

“Techbox Philippines is the go-to lifestyle gadget store of Filipinos. We understand how important it is to show your affection to your special someone this Valentine’s Day, and what better way to do that than to always be connected to your loved ones?” said Angela Gutierrez, Business Unit Head for Techbox Philippines.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Who doesn't want to go to Italy? Traveling in this 'bel paese' would always be welcomed any day of the year. I would quickly pack my bags carrying even just a few shirts and jeans just so I won't miss the chance of returning to this beautiful country. Given any opportunity to attend an event or special occasion, I will immediately drop everything that I'm doing just to experience Italy all over again.

Aside from their seemingly exquisite and sophisticated manner of speaking, the Italians are very much well-dressed and family-oriented. The passion and flair that Italians are known for are evident, not only in their culture and the arts, but in their cuisine as well. Italy has a rich culinary history that has been developed with a variety of influences. Antipastos and primos lovingly tease the palate ; secondos are savory, they immediately satisfy while dolces are decadent, you could not afford to miss a mouthful.

The delectable dishes of Italy come alive in Italianni’s new offerings collectively known as “Tastes of Italy.” Created by Bistro Corporate Chef, Josh Boutwood, these were inspired by the authentic flavors of the region using fresh ingredients. What’s more, they are available in big servings that are made for sharing, staying true to the Italian tradition of celebrating with family and friends over mounds of food on the dining table.