From Underdogs to Dark Horses: The Azkals in the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup

It all started February of 2011 here in Bacolod City. I was able to witness with my own eyes how our Philippine National Football team, popularly known as the Azkals, won against the Mongolian Blue Wolves in a 2-nil game in Pana-ad Park and Stadium (just a 10-minute walk from home) in the Qualifying Playoffs for the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup. The Philippine team pave its way to the qualifying stage beating Mongolia by an aggregate score of 3-2, in favor of the Azkals.

The fairy tale run continued as the team made it to the qualifying group stage held in Myanmar. The match against Myanmar and Palestine all ended in a draw. However, it was the game between the team and Bangladesh which ended in 3-0 that qualified them for the Final tournament. They were the runners up for Group A, where Palestine lead the pack.

The Final Tournament for the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup is composed of 8 teams, all winners and runners up for the qualifying group stage. The tournament was held in Kathmandu, Nepal last March 8-19 2012. It was a great challenge for the Philippine team since the group where they belong for the initial tournament was a pool of former winners for the said cup: North Korea (2010), Tajikistan (2006) and India (2008). The first game was against North Korea where the Azkals loss into a 2-nil score in favor of the North Koreans. But this did not stop the team and they fought back on their way to the final 4, beating former champions India and Tajikistan.

The greatest upset most probably for all Pinoy football fans was when the Azkals battled for the spot for the Knockout stage or the Final round. The first 80th minute of the game against Turkmenistan had them on the lead by 1 point but backfires on the last 10 minutes when the opponent was able to surpass them with a score of 2-1 in favor of Turks. So it was then a battle for the third place where they have to face again a former opponent, Palestine.

Philippines beats Palestine for 3rd place in 2012 AFC Challenge Cup
(photo courtesy of AFC official website)

The battle for the Third place was a very thrilling game I may say. The game ended 4-3 in favor of the Philippine team. This is the first time that the Azkals made it this far in the said competition and also the only Southeast Asian country for this year's Challenge Cup. The Golden Boot Award (highest scorer of the competition) also was given to Phil Younghusband, having 6 goals throughout the competition. The 2012 AFC challenge Cup champions was North Korea, followed by Turkmenistan, then the Philippines and in fourth place, Palestine.

Phil Younghusband bagged the Golden Boot Award after garnering 6 points in the whole competition
(photo courtesy of Neil Etheridge via Twitter)

This is definitely gonna be written in Philippine football history. It has been years since the Philippine team made it in the international scene and this year was a new beginning for the sport to be recognized in our country. Despite the issues about Moy and Guirado's sexual harassment (verbal) incident with former President Fidel Ramos's daughter Christy, and the racist remarks (in my own opinion) of GMA 7's Arnold Clavio on the ethnicity of half Pinoys (he said they are "mapagpanggap na kayumanggi" at "hindi tunay na Pinoy" against half-Filipino athletes of the team), the Azkals proved to themselves and the country that they are but one great team that cannot pulled down by such issues. I believe it was also a fuel for them to work harder on the said competition, a drive that helped the team prove they're worth to be called as a national team. I feel saddened however that despite their achievements, many are still putting them down, worst is they are fellow Filipinos. But still this is one of the greatest achievements that we had for Philippine football.

Dance for Passion: The TPDC Bacolod Dance Class for a Cause 2012

Following the initiative of Teleperformance Dance Crew Manila Chapter to perform dance classes in Manila last November to December 2011 in support for TP Citizen of the World, our very own chapter started our own dance classes here in the TP Bacolod site last February 11, 18, 25 and March 3.

February 11, 2011 - Vogue by Mark Rainier Agapito

The first dance class took place just a week after my Davao Adventures. The main facilitator and choreographer for the said class is my Adobe colleague Mark (we often call him Marky). The song used was "Can't Nobody" by 2NE1. The choreography was based from Kaba Modern's dance in Kallusive's EnKore 2010 and made a simple modification on it.

** Vogue or Voguing a style of dance characterized by model-like poses integrated with angular, linear, and rigid arm, leg, and body movements. Vogue fFmme is fluidity at its most extreme with exaggerated feminine movements

February 18, 2012 - Basic Latin by Mark Ramiro Lavaro

The following Saturday, one of our ballroom dancers, Marc, focused on basics of Chachacha and Samba in the beat of "Papi" by Jennifer Lopez. Base on my experience, it was one of the routine to perfect. I may know how to dance Latin but I do it incorrectly especially the hips part. But nonetheless, we took the challenge and happily ended the session with some basic knowledge of the dance

** Samba is a Brazilian dance while Cha-cha-cha is Cuban in origin.

February 25, 2012 - Lyrical Hiphop by Joeluz Gato

I wasn't able to attend this class due to our teambuilding in Lakawon Island in Cadiz. However, the class was done by Joeluz, one of our new members and best choreographers in the group. The song used was "What Makes You Beautiful" by One Direction. Good thing we were taught with the routine by our colleagues the next Saturday.

**Lyrical hip-hop is a style developed by So You Think You Can Dance in-house choregraphers Tabitha and Napoleon D'umo. The term was first coined by Adam Shankman after the Nappytabs routine of Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis in the season 4 of the said show.

March 3, 2012 - Pop by John Earl de Juan

I handled the last class for the said event where I taught choreography to one of my favorite disco-pop song "Moves Like Jagger" by Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera. The routine I used was the same routine me and Yza created for a dance routine by Metrobank employees whom we choreographed last December for their Chrsitmas Party. The said class closed the four Saturdays for our TPDC Dance class for a Cause

** Pop Dance is an up-tempo, upbeat type of dance intended for clubs and has a strong emphasis on beats and grooves. It is basically a dance to a popular song.

It was a mere beginning of the many projects in store for Teleperformance Dance Crew Bacolod. We are hoping for more dance classes soon for us to learn more genres in dance.

Lakawon Island: Team Proto and Revel Unite

February 25, 2012. After my team (Team Proto under TL Angel) and TL Bhang's team (Team Revel) received incentives from team performances at work, both teams decided to take the days-off to the beach. It was a two hour drive north of Bacolod until we reached the port of Cadiz Viejo (a small port for motorboats).

It was a short 15 to 20 minutes ride when we reach small island of Lakawon. It is just a small banana shape island with a family-owned resort. The white sand beach resembles that of Boracay Island. It is still uncommercialized though, which has it's pros and cons.

The beach front, facing the mainland Negros

Since it is not yet fully developed, the place could be a great spot for rest and relaxation. The beach has clear waters although some parts are filled with vegetations. The beach is full of corals as well as starfishes. The problem, however, is that dried seaweeds as well as small litters that scatter by the shoreline. This is more likely because of a small community residing at the far end of the island. The back part of the island facing Concepcion, Iloilo and the Visayan Sea is bringing strong but cool breeze. The sand bars are awesome so we immediately took advantage of this by taking our small pictorial sessions. We also played volleyball by the beach front to enjoy ourselves.

Me doing a cartwheel

The accommodation is not that impressive in my opinion. There is no electricity during the day. A generator only provides power at night, starts at dusk and is turned off at daybreak. Since the area is near the mainland, cellphone signals are still strong. The cottages and huts are small. If you intend to have an overnight stay, make sure to bring blankets or mosquito nets. There is no phone system so you have to go to the small restaurant if you have request to the resort crews. The food is also expensive and bringing of food also has a corkage of 50/head.

Edz, me, Amci and Julz doing the jump shot
taken at the back part of the island facing Concepcion, Iloilo

As an overall review, commercialization of the island would be a very good move to be able to provide excellent service and accommodation for tourists. But there is no question when it comes to the relaxing ambiance that the white sand and clear water beach Lakawon has to offer. Once these are implemented in the future, I'm pretty sure Lakawon would also rise into fame same as it's rivals Boracay, El Nido, Guimaras, Siquijor and Puerto Gallera to name a few. We went home to Bacolod the next day, and as for me, maybe a future family outing would do, but we will only have a day trip for it.

The team before going back to Bacolod City

Spotlight: El Gamma Penumbra

It is exactly 4 months as of today that I felt a bit of frustration watching the grand finals results night of our very own franchise of Got Talent on it's 3rd season, which is basically called Pilipinas Got Talent. Despite the positive reviews and critics that were given by the media about the group El Gamma Penumbra sad to say but they were overshadowed by 3 finalists who were all singers. It was Maasinhon Trio from Leyte who grabbed the title. I may say I'm one of those who criticize the said show alot and often tag it as "Pilipinas got Singers" considering that all three grand winners for three seasons have the singing talent to garner public votes. Anyways, we have to deal with that since that's how the game is played. But I am happy to know that even if this group did not win, they are given project post-PGT that showcased their talent that we can proudly show the world. The plus factor is that they promote our country for tourism.

El Gamma Penumbra

El Gamma Penumbra is a shadow play theater group best known as one of the grand finalists in Pilipinas Got Talent Season 3 in ABS-CBN. The group hailed from Tanauan, Batangas City. The group is highly praised for their performances which focuses on promoting the Philippine tourism. During the grand finals of Pilipinas Got Talent Season 3, they landed 4th place (8.05% via public voting).

The video below is the newest video promotion of CHOOSE PHILIPPINES through the creative initiatives of ABS-CBN Regional Network Group that was first seen on national TV last Sunday, February 19, 2012 on ASAP 2012. It again showcased the dynamics of the group by adding new shadow plays to their presentation, with the return of their trademark figures such as the giant shoes, harana, carabao, etc. The most striking part for me was the representation of Muslims and Christians praying to Allah and God, respectively. This has a huge impact because despite different religions, the Filipino people are still one family.

The lyrics for "Piliin Mo..." were written by Robert Labayen, the vice president of ABS-CBN's Creative Communications Management (CCM). The song was sang by Angeline Quinto, grand winner of "Star Power: The Search for the Next Pop Superstar" and Vincent Bueno, grand champion of "Musical! Die Show" in Vienna, Austria.

Looking forward to see more about this group. This is one talent that we Filipinos should be proud of.

Madayaw Davao!

Among the many places I have traveled around the country, I was never given a chance to visit any cities down south in Mindanao. More likely because before when I was in my high school or college years, I was one of those afraid of being abducted by Abu Sayaff (feeling foreigner) or maybe just because I was not allowed by my parents to travel (with their shouldered expenses of course). I always wanted to visit at least two or three places in Mindanao, and this year, that dream finally came true.

One of the promotional posters of Davao featuring the Philippine Eagle

It was early August of last year when my girlfriend fo und seats for me, and two of our friends Janah and Godfrey (who are also in a relationship) via Cebu Pacific from Cebu to Davao; thanks to the Piso Fare promo. Our flight was scheduled originally 8AM of February 3th but was canceled and was changed to 8:45PM of the same day. so we decided to leave Bacolod 11PM February 2nd. It was a long bus trip, around 8 hours via Toledo City. We arrived at Cebu City around 8:30 AM.

The Heritage Monument of Cebu

The Magellan's Cross

Since our air flight is gonna be in the evening, we had our little side trips in the city by visiting the Heritage Monument of Cebu (where Janah's sister's apartment is near), Basilica de Sto. Niñ0, Magellan's Cross and had lunch at Hukad in the Ayala Terraces. We went to the Mactan International Airport around 6 in the evening and just had our dinner there. As expected ther e was a short delay on our flight, but we arrived safe and sound in Francisco Bangoy International Airport in Davao. It was a bit late so we decided to rest in Green Windows Dormitel.

Arrived at the Francisco Bagnoy International Airport late at night

Where we stayed on our first night in Davao

Kuya Jeremy, one of my close friends in Davao, together with his friend Nom greeted as the next day and offered to join us in a city tour. We then transferred to Sampaguita Tourist Inn since the room we stayed in Green Windows were reserved for the weekend and there were no other rooms available. Kuya Jeremy then showed us the places in the metro like the St. Peter's Cathedral, Ilaw ng Kalinaw, Davao City Hall and Matina Town Square. We had our dinner at Jack's Ridge. The place was actually great at night for it's scenic view of the city lights but we decided to have lunch there since we are gonna visit the Davao Crocodile Farm and Tribu K'Mindanawon for a Fire Dance Exhibition show in the late afternoon. The show was spectacular. Not only that the dancers utilized the basic poi but als o had fire hoops and staves during the performance. The first day of the Davao trip was amazing but we called it a day after having a massage at Paradise Spa. We called it a day.

Catedral de San Pedro

Ready for lunch @Jack's Ridge Resort

A view of Davao City from Jack's Ridge

Davao Crocodile Park

Tribu K'Mindanawon fire dancers

The next day was Beach day! Although I wished it was either Pearl Farm or Maxima (where they have the longest water slide), we opted to visit Paradise Island. Samal Island is a five to ten minutes boat ride from the city. We had our lunch, and did a 30-minute kayaking. We went back to the city in the afternoon, took a quick rest and had dinner to NCCC mall for dinner. We then tried some the food and drinks Davao has to offer, from Durian Halo-Halo by Aling Foping, as well as Durian Coffee in Blugre Coffee. Even if most of the people I know doesn't love the smell and taste of the "king of fruits" . But I am one of those who greatly appreciates the odor precisely, thus it is one of my favorite fruits I may say. We then visited People's park at night.

Kayaking @ Paradise Island Beach Resort, Samal Island

Durian Halo Halo ni Aling Foping

Durian Coffee @ Blugre Coffee since 1988

People's Park

I also had the opportunity to meet up with some of my Davao friends for the first time. We were introduced via online networking sites and had been friends for a number of years so I took the opportunity to meet them since I was already there. I was able to meet Rgem, Nat, FG, Renz, Doods, a nd was introduced to one of their friends Agnes. We had small chats in Starbucks Abreeza, and decided to go back to Matina Town Square to continue the small chats, this time with bottles of beer.

Nate, Renz, Agnes, me and Rgem

The next day, the four of us decided to visit the Butterfly Garden and get a ride in Davao's Zorb Park, unfortunately the later was closed during Mondays. It was at the same time also that we received a bad news back in Negros that they were struck with a magnitude 6.9 earthquake, but fortunately our loved ones were safe. We shook off the worries and continued with our city tour by having lunch at Penongs Chicken BBQ, just a five minute walk from our hotel. We also decided to purchase our pasalubong in the afternoon at the ALDEVINCO Shopping Center where we purchased malongs, sarongs, Davao key chains as well customized Davao tees for ourselves. We had a buffet dinner at Wild Safari Grill, were I indulge myself to unlimited durian ice cream.

getting up close and personal with a butterly @ Butterfly House

Unlimited Durian Ice Cream @ dinner buffet in Wild Safari Grill

Tuesday was our last day in the city. Me and my girlfriend went to G-Mall, one of the largest malls in Davao to check for any other pasalubong we can purchase. Went back to the hotel and decided to go to Abreeza to have lunch and spend the whole afternoon before going to the airport for our flight back to Cebu. To kill the time, we watched a movie (Journey 2 starring The Rock and Vanessa Ann Hudgens) in 3D which is 50Php cheaper than in Bacolod, played arcade games in Timezone, and purchased the last pasalubong for my brothers back home. We then went to the airport and was bound for Cebu then. We arrived in Bacolod the next day Wednesday.

Davao was really a stress reliever from all the hard week's work we had at the office. It was really a great way to unwind for all of us. Here are some things I really like about Davao.

1. Traffic rules are implemented. No jaywalking. Every street has its own pedestrian lights to give a go signal to cross the street or not.
2. It's safe to roam around even at night. Every now and then police are roaming the streets to secure the areas
3. The routing system is much easier than Cebu. Taxi drivers are very honest. No transactions for fare, they follow what's on the meter
4. Durian heaven!

Davao city has really lots to offer. These are the reasons why I still need to visit Davao again this year:
1. Zip Line in Eden's Paradise. The resort is an hour away drive from the city so due to time constraint we were not able to visit it.
2. Jack's Ridge at night. Wanna try having dinner while looking over the city lights.
3. Night life. I wasn't able to experience partying with my Davao friends.
4. Kadayawan Festival. Although we have specific plans to go to Manila this August, hopefully the festival in Davao would not fall on the same date.
5. Maxima or Pearl Farm. I want to experience the long water slide and scuba diving as well.
6. I wasn't able to visit the Philippine Eagle Institute. I was planning to buy a stuffed toy eagle for my brother as he requested but it can only be bought there.
7. Mt. Apo. we'll I might be able to go for a hike there in the future.

It may be a short list but it would definitely something I would watch for once I decided to revisit the "Crown Jewel of Mindanao".

Spotlight: Alvin de Castro

I decided to create this blog entry because this tells about one great experience I have last year, and actually one of the best experiences I had. August 13, 2011: I was in Manila to attend one of Alvin De Castro's master classes held in ACTS Dance and Arts Academy (Mezzanine Floor G.A. Tower 1 Boni Edsa Mandaluyong City). Now here's a short background of who he is.

Alvin de Castro (Dancer/Choreographer)

Nationality: Filipino

He is one of Australia’s most recognized urban choreographers and continues to turn heads internationally with projects in Asia and the United States. He become the first dancer on So You Think You Can Dance in the world to be invited as a choreographer whilst a contestant in the top 100. His choreography is featured in Season 3 of SYTYCD Australia (Hiphop routine, Down by Jay Sean danced by Top 20's Gaz Griffiths and Ivy Heeney). He is the founder of two-time Australian National Hip Hop Champions - "Beatphonik". His career in dance began following a successful run in Hip Hop dance competitions and an opportunity to support Sean Paul during his Australian tour. His background in both the crew scene and industry make him a favorable judge in dance competitions around the world. Alvin is now the resident Hip Hop coach at Brent Street Studios. He is based in Sydney, Australia.

Source: http://www.alvindecastro.com/ <-- direct link, visit his website =)

Me and colleagues at Alvin's last class for his Manila tour

I get to knew him from his Youtube video uploads including hiphop choreographies in his dance classes in Australia as well as his group Beatphonik. So when I knew he would provide dance classes in Manila, I never doubted to grab myself a plane ticket, travel to Manila and attend one of his classes. I said to myself it would be a once in a lifetime chance and I never regretted it. We were taught of a hiphop routine for Monica's Still Standing. Although I would like to post the class session (on video) that we had for the said class, I would like to ask permission first from him since he mentioned we cannot post it on either Youtube or any public websites (that was a 5 month ago reminder, dunno if it's still applicable now hehe). It was a quick 2-hour class with a very fast pace choreography.

Me together with Master Alvin DC =)

It's Raining PAINT! - The Dinagsa Festival 2012

It's my 6th year to attend the annual Dinagsa festival in Cadiz City, 65 kilometers north of Bacolod City. The festival name was coined after an event in the past where several whales arrived in the shores of the said city; the word "dagsa" means driftage. This is also why Cadiz city is tagged "The city of Whales". Dinagsa Festival is also one of the country's celebrations in honor of Señor Sto. Niño.

Among the three festivals I have went to this January (Sinulog and Dinagyang were the first two), this was the most exciting festival I was waiting to happen. Other than the dance parade of Atis just like in Kabankalan and Ilo-ilo, this festival also offers another twist which is called "Lamhitanay Festival". This is celebrated on the day of the highlights where people roaming the streets will wipe each other with latex paint , this in contrast to Kabankalan's charcoal paste. This adds more color to the said festival.


It was only last year and this year that I wasn't able to go there a night before the highlights. The night before the main festival usually is filled with concerts from either local or international bands. We go drinking in different kiosks surrounding the plaza while jamming with music surrounding the vicinity. I remember two years back I was able to jam with Sponge Cola, one of the best rock bands in the country.

me and colleauges at work enjoying the Lamhitanay festival

This year, we went to Cadiz for lunch at a friend's house on the same day of the festival. We then started to join the crowd in painting each other with colorful paints. You usually see lots of people from Bacolod compared to a number in Kabankalan, more likely since Cadiz is accessible to the city than Kabankalan way down south. We went home early since we know that people will flock by the bus stations usually during peak hours (6PM - 8PM) heading back to Bacolod since the next day would be a regular school and working day. We do not want to stand all the way from Cadiz to Bacolod just to get a ride home. Lucky we were able to seat in an airconditioned bus going home. I was unfortunate however for not being able to party Sunday night with the sexy model/DJ Ornusa Cadness. A friend informed me she was the guest for the night's closing ceremonies. Well, there will always a next year.

DJ Ornusa Cadness..too bad i wasn't able to party with her :'(