Wazzup Pilipinas News and Events

Monday, July 28, 2014

Relik Tapas Bar and Lounge: Delightful Dishes on a Laughter-Filled Night

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We had an invitation to watch a special show of the Comedy Cartel where they had an Open Mic Showdown called Laugh and Stack. Members of their group participated in a sort of competition to determine who among them can get the most votes from the audience and be declared as the winner for the night.

Haresh was the current champion and so he was defending his crown, but unfortunately somebody emerged as the most laughable comic for the night.

Nonong, or mamang pulis, took home the recognition as the top comic for the night who was able to convince the crowd to vote for him. What probably made him win was the fact that he made fun of himself all throughout his time on stage. He was also talking in Tagalog thus most of the Filipino audience was easily able to relate to his jokes.

But before we enjoyed all those humor on stage, we got to enjoy first a delightful meal courtesy of the host venue for the night - Relik Tapas Bar and Lounge.

17 Years in the Making: Full Airline Operations at NAIA T3 by July 31

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Seventeen (17) years after the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) awarded the concession agreement for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 project, the modern passenger terminal building (PTB) will finally be ready for full airline operations this coming July 31st.

“We are extremely pleased to confirm that full airline operations will begin at NAIA Terminal 3 next week. Our gateway airport will now be able to welcome 3.5 million more passengers with modern facilities every year, and Terminal 1 will now be considerably decongested to improve passenger convenience,” DOTC Secretary Jun Abaya stated.

“The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) has informed us that Delta Airlines will have its first flight out of Terminal 3 on August 1st, while KLM Royal Dutch Airlines will move within the first week of August. Singapore Airlines, Emirates, and Cathay Pacific will follow suit by the end of next month. These five carriers have the highest volume of international flights coming in and out of NAIA, so we look forward to giving them a new home,” Abaya added.

This project was awarded in 1997, for supposed completion in 2002. Legal issues related to its bidding process mired the project, however, delaying its opening until 2008, and even then it was only 52% operational. Faced with this situation, then-DOTC Secretary Mar Roxas initiated talks with Terminal 3’s original contractor, Takenaka Corporation of Japan, to complete its facilities regardless of the ongoing cases.

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The city named after a tree called “Dendrocnide meyeniana”, which is now commonly known as the lipa tree, is one of the emerging thoughtfully-planned commercial and industrial cities in the Southern Tagalog region. Recently, Lipa’s nickname as the “City of All Seasons” came about because of the locale’s cool weather, environmental consciousness, and because of the city’s 3-time mayor, now governor of Batangas province. Lipa City’s important and influential status dates back to the Spanish colonial era due to a flourishing coffee industry. This made Lipa the richest municipality in the Philippines. On October 21, 1887, the Queen Regent Maria Christina, who was acting in behalf of King Alfonso XIII, elevated it into a city. It was given the name Villa de Lipa. It was returned into a municipality in 1895, only to be once again declared a city on June 20, 1947 under the young Republic of the Philippines.

Now, Lipa City is a fast emerging key city in the province, becoming a major institutional/administrative center, medical center, commercial center, financial center, agro-industrial center and residential center.

Recently, the influx of business process outsourcing (BPO) firms, such as call centers, has contributed much to the growth of the local economy. BPO sites are scattered throughout the city, which ranked 6th out of 10 in the Top 10 next wave cities of 2010 named by the Commission of Information and Communication Technology (ICCT). This earned Lipa another nickname as the “Next Wave City.”

As a residential location, Lipa has much to offer to young urbanites and executives, starting and expanding families, leisure farmers, horticultural hobbyists, retirees and balikbayans.

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Traveling to the city known as the “Little Rome of the Philippines” is now easier and faster with the road improvements in the Southern Tagalog region. The SLEX extension or the Toll Road 3 connects the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) to the Southern Tagalog Arterial Road Tollway (STAR Tollway), cutting down travel time by bypassing the usually congested Maharlika Highway. Motorists can now reach Lipa City exit in a matter of minutes from SLEX.

As a bastion of the Catholic faith, Lipa City is home to several Catholic churches, convents, seminaries, catholic schools, and retreat houses. Lipa hosts an annual national Marian Pilgrimage at Our Lady, Mediatrix of All Grace Parish Church, which has become a year-round destination for Catholics and other pilgrims. The Archdiocese of Lipa, whose seat is at the landmark San Sebastian Cathedral, serves the faithful in the province of Batangas.

Lipa is one area that still offers spacious residential farm lots for young urbanites and executives, starting and expanding families, leisure farmers, horticultural hobbyists, retirees and balikbayans. Tierra Maria Estates, located at the heart of Lipa City, offers affordable lots, and a unique opportunity to build a dream home close to nature. With only 320 lots, Tierra Maria Estates, with residential estate farm lots that range from 750 to 1200 sq. meters, is designed to be a neighborhood with a serene environment that is very well within the reach of everyday comforts.

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Aquabest the country’s premier water refilling franchise is set to revolutionize the way Filipino’s experience drinking water as it launches its four exclusive water treatment technologies.

Utilizing its new technologies the company will enable the company’s 700 store network to produce Granderized water a type of water that is not only clean but also healthy. The company utilizes four unique technologies Grander, Tanwing, Nanogen, and Reverse Osmosis; that alters the very nature of water to make it better.

Tanwing Technology and Reverse Osmosis are filtration technologies that help eliminate practically all contaminants in the water making them safe and clean. Tanwing works by utilizing two wavelengths of ultraviolet radiation to help eliminate all biological contaminants. At the same time, reverse osmosis filters water at the nanometer level far smaller than a strand of hair to ensure that all impurities are filtered out.

The Nanogen and Grander Technologies work at the molecular level to infuse health giving properties to the water by affecting the molecular structure of the water. Nanogen is a Korean technology that utilizes nanotechnology to neutralize pure water’s inherent acidity. Acidic water is supposed to be a contributing factor to some diseases. Grander Technology from Austria alters the molecular structure of water to improve body's absorption.

Overall, Aquabest Granderized Water improves on the inherent cleansing and rejuvenating qualities of water. Each drop reaches deeper into the core of every cell in our bodies, allowing them to perform their functions better. Drinking Aquabest Granderized Water will rejuvenate the body at its very core helping people look and feel better.

All Set for Hundreds of FilAms’ Visit

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From the 28th to the 31st day of July, about 300 Filipino-Americans and their main- stream American friends will arrive from the United States for the 9th Ambassadors, Consuls General and Tourism Directors Tour of the Philippines (ACGTDT).

These visitors will be here to relax, enjoy and spend precious time with families and friends as well as explore investment and retirement possibilities here at home.

Launched in 2005 during the term of then Philippine Ambassador the United States and now Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, the ACGTDT is a joint project of all Philippine Foreign Service missions in the U.S. located in Agana, Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington D.C.

As in the past years, the ACGTDT is being implemented in cooperation with the Department of Tourism (DOT) and its marketing arm, the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB). In July 2011, it was designated as a banner tourism project under the DOT’s Pinoy Homecoming Program. Major sponsors include the Western Union, Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority, Duty-Free Philippines, and Philippine Retirement Authority.

Math Becomes Easy as 123 with Koobits

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Math is undoubtedly the meanest subject in school where many of our students are having difficulty of learning. Even adults cringe at the thought of having to solve math problems for their kids. It seems all those numbers keep jumbling up like crazy every time we are faced with the dilemma of solving a math problem.

Singapore children had an advantage having an online portal that was very useful in learning math the fun and easy way. Now, the Philippines is also fortunate that the people behind the project has also decided to launch it in our country.

The launch of Koobits Pte. Ltd. Singapore was held last July 15, 2014, Tuesday, 10 am at the Nostalg Ballroom of Oakwood Premier Joy-Nostalg Center located at 17 ADB Ave, Ortigas Center, Pasig City.

Multi-awarded speaker Mr. Stanley Han, author of the book Motivation Dynamics: From Gaming to Learning and Chief Executive Officer of Koobits Pte. Ltd. Singapore, led the launch of Singapore's top online math portal here in the Philippines.

With special guest celebrity G Toengi-Walters, KooBits Brand Ambassador, participating in the panel that were interviewed by the members of the press.

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I got a tasty invite to the 2nd run of a culinary tour within a continuously developing but balanced mixed-use district of residential, office, and commercial establishments with more than 240-hectare of urban development.

They say the Bonifacio Global City BGC EATS citywide food tour was cooked up by Passionate Minds for passionate Stomachs. I may have to agree, as we all experienced a very creative and scientific way of exploring the sights. There was Science in everywhere that we went to.

From the first stop at Gustare kitchen or commissary where their elite customers can also dine on not just sweet treats like the Strawberry Lemon juice, Canonigo w/ custard sauce, Calamansi sans rival but also on uniwue food like the Salabat cookies, the shamporado cookies, and the Santol Bagoong.

The second destination we visited was another delightful feast. Prost German pub was a great choice to dine on splendid sausages of all kinds - from the lengthy to the most stout! I heard there were also a lot of kinds of beers served especially during night time while watching your favorite sports on TV.

Our third and last stop was at the Mind Museum where everyone were treated to the weird stuff. Imagine biting on a jelly added with a whole locust prepared by Adobo Queen Chef Nancy Reyes Lumen, eating earthworms hidden within the banana bread prepared by Chefs Erik Capaque and Claudette Uy, trying out the milk and ice cream made from nuts, tasting the seaweed and cassava starch of Kyle Imao of Kyle's Lab, and feasting on soy and moringa treats, otherwise known as malunggay, prepared by tukayo Chef Sau Del Rosario.

Incidentally, there's going to be an event called Future Feast to be held at the Mind Museum on July 26, 2014 Saturday from 12 noon to 7 pm.

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Webcams let family members, friends and business associates connect face-to-face across the world.

Kaspersky Lab, a leading developer of secure content and threat management solutions observed that in the last decade, webcams become so ubiquitous.

The phenomenon of seeing someone as they speak with another person tens or thousands of miles away has gone from a pipedream to a commonplace reality that can take place in the palm of a hand, courtesy of smartphones.

But users are not the only people who can access the webcam on a computer.

Attackers with programs like Blackshades remote access tool (RAT), which was cracked down on earlier this year, can essentially hack their way into other computer and use the camera at will.

The program is sold for only USD40 (more than P1,500) at different sites.

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Your dream car is now just a tap away with a mobile app that can help you search for it!

Carmudi is the world’s fastest growing online car classified which offers buyers, sellers and car dealers the ideal platform to find cars, motorcycles and commercial vehicles online. The vehicle marketplace is all set to change the experience of shopping for car enthusiasts globally.

The online car classified has launched a mobile application which will allow users to browse thousands of cars on the go. Hosting over 200,000 vehicles online, Carmudi’s app will give users an excellent experience of buying cars while on the move, thus allowing them the same sense of ease and comfort out and about as they would experience in front of their PCs at home.

The app is available to Android users in 17 countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East and LATAM. For the convenience of customers, Carmudi has made the app available in 9 different languages.

The app features the same usability and filter functions as its computer counterpart www.carmudi.com.ph. Customers can filter searches by any means that they wish, from brand to model and year to price. Users can also share listings on various social platforms to gain opinions from friends and family if they are unsure. In addition, the Carmudi app allows for favoriting of listings so that they get instant notifications on their favourite rides.

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A person’s smile conveys happiness, pleasure and amusement. And the power of this smile has plenty to do with how clean one’s teeth are. That’s why people go to great lengths to ensure their oral hygiene with daily brushing and regular visits to the dentist.

“Oral health is something that people should not overlook. Clean teeth and gums not only look good, but also help us to avoid oral infections and even diseases,” comments Ms. Me-Ann Achacoso, Philips Business Development Manager for Health and Wellness.

To promote good oral habits, Philips is introducing its new Sonicare EasyClean toothbrush. Equipped with its very own patented sonic technology and ProResults brush head, the Sonicare EasyClean promises to whiten teeth by removing and reducing stains, with up to two times more plaque removal than a manual toothbrush.

According to Ms. Achacoso, the Sonicare EasyClean toothbrush produces 31,000 brush strokes per minute which results into a dynamic cleaning action that drives fluids between the teeth and along the gumline to remove harmful plaque. It features a Smartimer that helps ensure the recommended dental time for brushing, and a Quadpacer that encourages thorough brushing in all quadrants of the mouth.

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Gameloft are proud to announce the release of the #1 FPS on mobile, MODERN COMBAT 5: BLACKOUT!

Step into the action as the latest instalment in the best FPS series raises the bar for shooters once more! Create a squad, add your friends and test your individual and team skills against other squads!

4 customizable classes that you can level up across single- and multiplayer
Activate class-specific skills by earning and spending Skill Points
Epic team clashes in Squad vs. Squad multiplayer matches
Talk to other players in Global and Squad Chat
Fast-paced story missions with various challenges taking you from Tokyo to Venice

Available on App Store: https://itunes.apple.com/app/modern-combat-5-blackout/id656176278&mt=8

Get it on Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.gameloft.android.ANMP.GloftM5HM

Download from Windows Store: http://www.windowsphone.com/en-ph/store/app/modern-combat-5-blackout/21ed995b-239d-4ffe-b352-76fc11cd940c

Watch the Youtube trailer here: http://youtu.be/st7eMfykiVE

What Situation did the President Compare the Supreme Court Decision to?

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In President Benigno Simeon Aquino III’s speech last week addressing the Disbursement Acceleration Program, he compared the Supreme Court’s decision to make it unconstitutional to a motorist getting arrested just because he parked his motorcycle in a no parking zone because he had to save the life of a victim who either go ran over by a bus or stabbed by a snatcher. It is a sorry situation for the victim to say the least. However, this comparison is far from the truth. President Aquino is not exactly a Good Samaritan since the Filipino people know him too well.

You have to give credit to whoever outlined the speech of President Aquino because that is a good comparison to tell the people. The people will think that the president was treated unfairly by the Supreme Court since they made the DAP unconstitutional. It looks like Aquino is not going to give up on trying appealing the decision of the Supreme Court anytime soon so you have to admire the courage of the President for trying. He is trying to show that he has leadership in this country which makes him the boss but he has stated several times in his speeches that the Filipino people are his true boss.

The President should have compared the decision to yesterday’s event at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. It was poor decision making on the part of Manny Pangilinan to let the event with the NBA players go on when they were not allowed to play a 5 on 5 games against the Smart Gilas team back in April. Despite that, the event pushed through and a bunch of NBA players backed out at the last minute. If the president’s speech happened sooner, then that situation would have been a better comparison to the Supreme Court’s ruling of the DAP.

Did Mar Roxas Doomed his Looming 2016 Presidential Candidacy Because of DAP?

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It is pretty obvious why President Aquino defended DAP so much during his last speech. His best friend Mar Roxas just got P10 billion from it for a project that is not among the mandate of the DILG. The man responsible for giving him that amount is none other than Department of Budget secretary Butch Abad. The amount could very well give Roxas a good start for his presidential campaign com 2016. Mar is expected to be the leading candidate of the Liberal Party for the upcoming presidential elections. As early as now, he could be preparing for this since it is always an advantage over other opponents if you prepare early.

It does not appear that Mar Roxas is contented with his post as secretary of DILG as he is getting funds for other projects that are not under DILG. Now that it is made public that he was given P10 billion from the DAP, will Mar step out of the presidential race? He could still run for president in the upcoming elections since he has nothing to lose anyway. If you lose in the presidential elections then you won’t really lose much.

However, it is one thing to be addressed as the president of the country so it is understandable why a lot of people would love to become a president here. Mar Roxas was supposed to run for presidency in the last presidential elections but being a good friend that he is, he decided to give way to his best friend Ninoy Aquino in running for the post. When Pnoy’s term is over, Mar looks to become the next president. However, he should be careful with what he is doing during his term as the vice president since the people are watching his every move then decide from there.

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

The Last Home Stand Between Gilas Pilipinas and NBA All Stars: What Really Happened?

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The organizers, including PLDT (Panay Lang Drills and Tricks) and NBA (No Basketball, Anyare?), knows they did something wrong but they're not telling us the whole story. I was there at the "charity event" and stayed a little while. I was able to talk with some key personalities and they all seem hesitant to reveal everything they know of what really happened.

Many were screaming for a refund and obviously full of disgusts while watching the "charity event" that turned out to be the most expensive for the people who were all there to witness what they thought was a friendly competitive game between the two teams.

There was even a sign shown containing telephone numbers for people to contact for refund requests, and many also lined up to sign their name and mobile numbers only to find out later that nobody from PLDT was getting the list anyway.

The hallways of Smart Araneta Coliseum were full of frustrated basketball lovers all cursing the organizers for the perceived scam that they felt cheated them of their hard-earned money.
Below are the official statements released by PLDT and NBA.