Philippines: Parul & Maggie Aim to Stay in the Game

Wazzup Pilipinas!

It’s the eighth leg of The Amazing Race Asia and teams must depart Singapore and head to Yogyakarta, Indonesia where they must make their way to Jomblang Cave to retrieve their next clue. The first team that reaches the Garuda Indonesia check-in counter in Singapore gets special access to the Garuda lounge.

JK & Mike are first to reach the airport and they decide to gift the special access to the other teams via a simple lucky draw. Rona & Eric win the pick of the draw and they gleefully make full use of the lounge.

“What a bunch of sweethearts!” exclaimed Eric, touched by their action.

At Yogyakarta, the teams rush out to grab a taxi to Jomblang Cave. Drama ensues as Treasuri & Louisa squeeze through the other teams and forcefully get their tickets first. The other teams look on with disdain and shock.

“We have a pact with Eric and Rona, and that’s to get rid of Treasuri and Louisa. That’s the goal,” says Parul and Maggie revealing their strategy.

While the other teams make their way to Jomblang Cave, Eric & Rona have to perform their Speed Bump penalty to make up for the last leg’s non-elimination. At this Speed Bump, Eric & Rona have to drink a traditional Indonesian herbal concoction while being blindfolded and guess which one it is. The duo bravely down the concoction and using its bitter taste as a gauge, they manage to guess the correct bottle in just a few minutes. 

Another Top Podium Finish for Team Suzuki Pilipinas as the SAC Concludes

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Team Suzuki Pilipinas once again made the country proud as they conclude the Race 2 of the last leg of the Suzuki Asian Challenge (SAC) at the top spot. The Philippine national anthem was played for the first time at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand as Mario Borbon gave the Philippines its very first win in motor sports at the said track. This is also Team Suzuki Pilipinas’ 2nd championship title at the SAC this season. 

Team Suzuki Pilipinas’ performances have improved greatly over the months. With a podium win at every leg of the race, they proved to be a strong force to reckon with. Held last December 2 to 4, 2016, the team showed an overall impressive race. 

30 year-old Mario Borbon proved that his years of experience and perseverance at the race track will one day bring him his 1st top position at the SAC podium finishing with a time of 2:16.781. Coming from behind during the practice race, the Visayas rider showed his improvement during Race 1 as he led the pack in one of the laps of the race. More hopeful on the second and final round, he was able to maintain a good position during the race together with EJ Sobretodo who was also leading during the 5th and 6th lap. However, Sobretodo crashed due to a collision with a Sri Lankan rider during his last turn leaving Borbon to lead the remaining of the race. 

Meanwhile, the very strong Mindanao rider April King Mascardo managed to stay at the 6th Place. Sobretoto, Mascardo and Borbon’s final standing is at 5th, 6th and 7th place respectively. The final round of the SAC ended gloriously for Team Suzuki Pilipinas with a sweet victory for our fellow Filipinos. -

Okay na si Lolo: Coca-Cola Agos Program Brings Renewed Hope to War Survivor

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Japanese airplanes were dropping bombs across Pili, Camarines Sur. People in the city fled the plains and went to different areas to save themselves, to save their families. Some ran to the fields, while the others decided to settle and create homes near or at the mountains. However, the safety of one’s life had a price to pay: there was no water.

Barangay Del Pilar is one of the communities that cradled the families who escaped the horrors of those bombings. Located at the upper section of the mountain in Baao, Camarines Sur, it is divided into three zones. As of 2014, it has become home to a total of 75 households, with a population of 384.

Among the residents is Cenederio Lopez. He is 74 years old, lives alone, and has never left Del Pilar since he was born. More than knowing the barangay like the back of an old friend’s hand, he never imagined in his lifetime that water would someday become easily available to them.

“It was really a sacrifice just to fetch water,” Lolo Cenederio shares. He recalls that it was a daily dilemma for most of his life, rooting back to when he was still a child. Whenever his family would run out of water, his father and older brothers would be up before the crack of dawn to fetch water with their containers and a carabao. Years later, it was still a problem, and it became part of the routine that Lolo Cenderio became accustomed to.

Because of his old age, he could no longer hike the way he did when he was younger. What he would do is to buy a water container worth PhP20 from his neighbors, however, this exchange came with a price, he still needed to do an hour’s worth of walking. The situation was simple: he either walked and carried the containers on his shoulders, or there would be no water at all.