Rizal's 151st Birthday

Rizal’s cravings for sumptuous food tell that he’s human after all

By Ma. Teresa Yosores

Dr. Jose Rizal

(Photo courtesy of
the Order of the
Knights of Rizal)

MANILA, June 17 (PNA) -- Dr. Jose Rizal’s serious side have always been at the fore. The national hero’s writings helped in the Philippines’ liberation in 1898 from Spain’s imperialism, tyranny and cultural suppression. We know of him as the author of the all-time popular novels El Filibusterismo and Noli Me Tangere. He wrote letters to his family which were collected, preserved and published by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) under the titles “One Hundred Letters of José Rizal to his Parents, Brothers, Sisters, Relatives” in 1959 and “Reminiscences and Travels of José Rizal” in 1977.

But since it's Rizal’s 151st birthday on June 19, featuring his favorite dishes could be more delightfully appropriate for a celebration.

Knowing these dishes would make us understand how he was like as an ordinary person. His writings were very much instrumental as they reveal those dishes that he craved for.

Thus, the “Kulinarya Kalayaan” food festival, which has been running from June 10 until June 20, has the theme called “Rizalian” menu. The management of participating hotels and restaurants read books and researched, particularly about Rizal’s favorite dishes and came up with their own versions, highlighted with a twist.

Examples of the food that Rizal craved for were Laguna cheese, mangoes, anchovies, tinola and monggo soup which Rizal repeatedly requested in his letters to his family while he was in exile in Dapitan, Zamboanga del Norte from 1892 to 1896.

Mongo Soup with Tinapa

Chef Rudy dela Passion of Century Park Hotel said that he and his culinary team prepared “a diverse gastronomic journey” for their guests. He presented to the media his unique version of five dishes such as the Monggo soup with “tinapa” (smoked fish) meat.

Aside from Rizal’s favorites and other local dishes, they are also offering Mussels Mariniere from France (mussels sautéed in white wine, onion, celery, leek, and butter); Cocido from Spain (boiled chicken, beef, bacon, sausage and vegetables); and Hong Kong (crispy) Fried Noodles.  Apparently, these dishes originated from the countries where Rizal had traveled.

Mussels Mariniere

Cocido

Hong Kong Fried Noodles

Dela Passion said there are still other dishes he included to connect with Rizal’s works abroad. Among them are Lengua Estofado from Spain (where Rizal practised his medical career and wrote his first essay), Fish Cordon Bleu from France (where Rizal served as an ophthalmologist and honed his skills in music), Sunday Roast from England (where Rizal co-founded the Asociacion Hispano Filipino), Sauerbraten from Germany (where Rizal came up with his Noli Me Tangere novel), Chinese Dimsum from Hongkong (where Rizal began to be recognized as an excellent eye surgeon), and Belgian Meatballs from Belgium (where Rizal finished his second novel, El Filibusterismo).

Philippe Bartholomi, the hotel’s General Manager, said that they have allotted a great deal to prepare for the food festival. “We brainstormed quite a long time to try to do something different. So we thought that going around the world with Jose Rizal was really a good way of having something special on the menu,” he said.

According to Eric Beza, the hotel’s Public Relation Assistant, they learned that the other participating hotels and restaurants presented dishes from the country’s regions. “I think we’re the only hotel featuring dishes from the different places, those from the travels of Dr. Jose Rizal,” he said, adding that the hotel usually prepare theme buffets – Chinese on Mondays, Filipino on Tuesdays, International on Wednesdays, Asian on Thursdays, Seafood on Fridays, Mediterranean on Saturdays and Filipino Family Fiestas on Sundays.

Meanwhile, Sous Chef John Philip Gomez of Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila, beamed that it brings him so much honor to be doing the Rizalian presentation of his dishes. He wanted to come up with a menu combination showcasing what Rizal liked in real-life and as his fictional character. Gomez also included other dishes which are “hyped” like his "escabeche," cooked in his own standard.

“I found out that this guy (Rizal) is amazing. He was what a food blogger should be – he wrote well, spoke well and ate well. This is a guy with the Filipinos in his mind. He is an icon for me. So when I had to this (Rizalian menu), I said ‘I had to do this right’,” Gomez said.

The “Kulinarya Kalayaan” food festival is a joint undertaking of the Department of Tourism (DOT), the 114th Independence Day celebration Inter-agency Committee and the Hotel and Restaurant Association of the Philippines (HRAP).

As the DOT’s function is to promote tourism in the country, not only will it feature beautiful places where tourists can rest and satisfy their hungry tummies, they can also learn some historical facts while feasting on dishes being showcased by the participating hotels and restaurants.

DOT has received the support of 10 hotels and seven restaurants in the country’s key cities. These are Bayview Park Hotel, Century Park Hotel, The Bellevue Hotels and Resorts, Makati Shangrila Hotel, Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila, Waterfront Insular Hotel Davao, Golden Orchid Hotel (Zamboanga City), AIM Conference Center Manila, Waterfront Manila Pavilion Hotel and Casino, and The Heritage Hotel Manila;

Illustrado Restaurant, Harbor View Restaurant, Cravings Group of Companies (Casa Roces), Serye Café Restaurant, LJC Restaurants (Café Adriatico), Bacolod Chicken Inasal and Tamayo’s Catering and Restaurant. (PNA)

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Food Trip

DOT, HRAP cook up “Kulinarya Kalayaan” for Independence Day celebration

By Ma. Teresa Yosores

(Photo Courtesy of the Department of Tourism)

The Department of Tourism (DOT) has collaborated with the 114^th Independence Day celebration Inter-agency Committee and the Hotel and Restaurant Association of the Philippines (HRAP) to prep up a food festival in observance of the June 12 historical event. 

This is in line with the commitment of the various government agencies and private companies to drum up the significance of the celebration that commemorates the declaration of the Philippines’ independence from Spain in 1898.

Consequently, this historical event gave birth to the Constitutional Convention or Malolos Convention, thus, establishing the First Philippine Republic – the foundation of the Philippine government.

As the DOT’s function is to promote tourism in the country, not only will it feature beautiful places where tourists can rest and satisfy their hungry tummies, the tourists can also learn some historical facts while feasting on dishes being showcased by the participating hotels and restaurants.

Adobo with Fried Rice and Achara 

(Courtesy of Café Adriatico)

Monggo Soup with Chicharon and Crispy Fish

(Courtesy of C2 Classic Cuisine)

 Tahong 
(Courtesy of Century Park Hotel)

 Turon and Vanilla Ice Cream Dip
(Courtesy of C2 Classic Cuisine)

The food festival, dubbed as “Kulinarya Kalayaan Festival”, will kick off tomorrow, June 10, and will run until June 20.

DOT has received the support of 10 hotels and seven restaurants in the country’s key cities which will feature delectable dishes that are truly Filipino – some of which were favorites of Dr. Jose Rizal and other prominent and important figures in Philippine history books.

The participating hotels are Bayview Park Hotel, Century Park Hotel, The Bellevue Hotels and Resorts, Makati Shangrila Hotel, Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila, Waterfront Insular Hotel Davao, Golden Orchid Hotel (Zamboanga City), AIM Conference Center Manila, Waterfront Manila Pavilion Hotel and Casino, and The Heritage Hotel Manila.

While the restaurants are Illustrado Restaurant, Harbor View Restaurant, Cravings Group of Companies (Casa Roces), Serye Café Restaurant, LJC Restaurants (Cafe Adriatico), Bacolod Chicken Inasal and Tamayo’s Catering and Restaurant.

Sous Chef John Philip Gomez

of Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila 

answers queries from the members of the media

According to vivacious Sous Chef John Philip Gomez of Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila, the management gave him the rules set by the festival organizers and then the freedom to present the menu.  Gomez said that he read books, did some research, and even tried to read Dr. Jose Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere again amidst difficulty in the Filipino language. “I found out that this guy (Rizal) is amazing.  He was what a food blogger should be – he wrote well, spoke well and ate well.  This is a guy with the Filipinos in his mind.   He is an icon for me.  So when I had to this (Rizalian menu), I said ‘I had to do this right’,” Gomez stressed.

Among the food Rizal liked were Laguna cheese, anchovies, tinola and monggo, Gomez said.  The chef beamed that it brings him so much honor to be doing the Rizalian presentation of his dishes.  He wanted to come up with a menu combination showcasing what Rizal liked in real-life and his fictional character.  He also included other dishes which are “hyped” like his escabeche – cooked in his own standard.  “I’m really proud of what I’ve presented. I’m happy with that,” Gomez averred.

The "Gastronomic Journey" poster 

that greets guests at the lobby of 

Century Park Hotel

Meanwhile, Chef Rudy dela Passion of the Century Park Hotel, said he and his team have prepared “a diverse gastronomic journey” for their guests.  Aside from Rizal’s favorites and other local dishes, they are also offering those that originated from the countries where Rizal had stayed.  Among them are Lengua Estofado from Spain (where Rizal practised his medical career and wrote his first essay), Fish Cordon Bleu from France (where Rizal served as an ophthalmologist and honed his skills in music), Sunday Roast from England (where Rizal co-founded the Asociacion Hispano Filipino), Sauerbraten from Germany (where Rizal came up with his Noli Me Tangere novel), Chinese Dimsum from Hongkong (where Rizal began to be recognized as an excellent eye surgeon), and Belgian Meatballs from Belgium (where Rizal finished his second novel, El Filibusterismo).

On the other hand, Ilustrado General Manager Bea Pimentel said that the management has tapped the expertise of a Malolos-based artist, historian and food expert, Dez Bautista, in the preparation of a menu inspired by the inauguration of the first Philippine Republic.  This, Pimentel said, is also the restaurant’s tribute to the Malolos culinary heritage.

Dez Bautista belongs to the Bautista clan who owns an ancestral house in Malolos which has become a famous historical landmark.  The house, considered a present-time neoclassical masterpiece, was built in 1855 and was reconstructed in 1877.

Ilustrado Restaurant's menu 

for the Inaugural Feast

“Ilustrado Restaurant is a staunch supporter of preserving our Filipino-Spanish past not just through its excellence in providing culture-rich fine dining experience but also through its continued efforts to discover and bridge links in the arts, history and tradition of the past to the discerning taste of Filipinos today,” Pimentel explained.  The restaurant, located in Manila’s walled city, Intramuros, was named after an elite class of educated and well-travelled Filipinos during the Spanish era.

                                           

Pimentel said that they will present a unique menu “highlighting the well-preserved and traditionally-rich Spanish-Filipino dishes that delighted the palates of the very Filipinos that established and celebrated the Philippines’ first republic.”

Happy eating!

Lack of competent teachers may doom K-12 program – senator

(With a report from Maria Teresa Yosores)


THE Kindergarten to Grade 12 (K-12) program may fail if the Department of Education will not have enough “quality” teachers who can help implement it, Sen. Edgardo Angara warned on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, an official of a personality-development school has expressed support for the program, saying that it would enable Filipinos to compete in the international arena.

According to Angara, the chairman of the Senate committee on education, arts and culture, more world-class educators are needed to implement the program and improve the country’s educational system.

There are about 510,629 teachers in the country, but about 99,628 more are needed, data from the Education department revealed.

Figures released by the National Statistical Coordinating Board (NSCB) showed that the number of Education Science and Teacher Training graduates declined over the past decade, from 71,349 in schoolyear 2000–2001 to 56,209 in schoolyear 2009–2010.

“We cannot afford to forget our teachers amidst all the changes that are about to take place,” Angara said.

“They will be at the forefront of our efforts to reform education, so we must do everything we can to prepare and support them,” he added.

The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) and the Board for Professional Teachers (BPT) recently announced that only 13,925 elementary teachers out of 32,798 examinees (42.46 percent) and only 7,149 secondary teachers out of 28,764 examinees (24.85 percent) passed the Licensure Examination for Teachers (LET) for 2012.

“These percentages do not sit well with the national drive for global competitiveness and are a clear sign that a lot more needs to be done to educate our educators,” the senator said.

“Within the next decade, we must invest more time and effort to training our teachers,” he added.

The lawmaker noted that about P100 million in the 2012 budget of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has been earmarked for scholarships in teacher development.

“This is a good step, but for sure, more will have to be done to catalyze the reform process towards raising the bar of our teaching standards,” Angara said.

“More of our resources—such as ICT and social media—can be directed toward creating a national network where teachers can help train other teachers, share their experiences in implementing K-12, and receive input from education experts in other countries,” he added.

Also on Tuesday, Monet Ibanez, the school director of the John Robert Powers personality and image-development school in Muntinlupa City’s Alabang suburb, voiced her support for K-12 and similar programs like it, believing that it would make children more competitive later on.

“We at John Robert Powers believe that to succeed in the global economy, one must be equipped with the necessary tools to compete and build solid business ties,” Ibanez explained.

“Those who are poised to take advantage of these emerging and progressively transforming global opportunities will fully realize success,” she said.

Her only child, Jenina, took her basic education in an exclusive school in Muntinlupa that already implemented a kindergarten and Grade 7 curriculum.

Ibanez observed that children who went through these additional educational levels are more mature and surer about what college course to take.

“The child is not only more knowledgeable, but more emotionally matured to go through the rigors of college life,” Ibanez said.

According to her, K-12 would be advantageous to Filipinos, “so that kids are both locally and globally competitive. It’s an investment that parents should provide for their children so they can have the chance to be successful in their careers.”

Filipinos learn to rescue whales, dolphins

MANILA, May 22 (PNA) -- Swimming on the beach, you quickly notice something huge thrashing in the water. Panic vanishes as you realize it is a whale, stranded by the tide. What do you do?
To address rising incidents of whale and dolphin strandings, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF-Philippines) recently conducted a two-day cetacean stranding rescue workshop at Hamilo Coast in Nasugbu, Batangas. Over 40 staff and officers from Hamilo Coast underwent classroom and field sessions on cetacean biology, identification, threats, conservation and actual rescue techniques.
“Few Filipinos realize that whales are found right here in the Philippines,” explains WWF-Philippines Hamilo Coast Project Manager Paolo Pagaduan. “Training local residents to rescue cetaceans far more than ensures the safety of stranded whales and dolphins -– it cultivates their natural sense of stewardship.”
Cetaceans include all whale, dolphin and porpoise species, divided by type: Odontocetes or toothed whales feed primarily on fish and squid. Mysticetes or baleen whales have fringed strips of hair-like plates in place of teeth and feed primarily on plankton, krill and tiny fish. Twenty eight – a full third of all known species – have been recorded in Philippine waters as of 2012.
Since 2007, Hamilo Coast has been working closely with WWF to restore and protect the degraded coastlines and marine resources of Nasugbu, Batangas. The 8,000-hectare eco-tourism project has fused tourism with sustainable land development by balancing conservation and land conversion.
Each year, thousands of cetacean strandings are reported worldwide. Some die at sea and washed ashore, while others become trapped in shallow water. Left unaided, many die within a day or two.
About a dozen stranding events are reported in the Philippines yearly, most occurring during the "amihan" or north-eastern monsoon from November to March. During this period, strong winds generate stronger-than-usual currents.
WWF-Philippines Vice-Chair and CEO Lory Tan says, “Our priority should be to return stranded cetaceans to their natural habitats as soon as possible. WWF conducts these workshops so local leaders would know just what to do.”
Cetacean stranding causes include the presence or a lack of food, predators, stress, injuries, disease, pollution, rough seas, tidal fluctuations, undersea quakes, seismic testing, blast fishing or the disruption of magnetic fields used by some cetaceans for navigation.
On 10 December 2009, a stranded 29-foot Bryde’s Whale (Baleanoptera edeni) was towed and set free by locals in nearby Barangay Calayo, Nasugbu.
On 10 February 2009, 300 Melon-headed Whales (Peponocephala electra) were stranded off the towns of Pilar and Orion in Bataan, in the largest recorded stranding event in Philippine history. Three of the whales died but the majority were herded to deeper waters by volunteers.
On 3 March 2009, another pod of 100 Melon-headed Whales was ushered back to deeper waters in Odiongan, Romblon.
"When I was young, beached dolphins used to be slaughtered for meat," recounts Hamilo Coast Security Officer and Barangay Calayo resident Zaldy Flores. "The skills shared by WWF have given us both the competence and confidence to deal with future strandings. We’re now ready to rescue all stranded whales and dolphins in Nasugbu.”
The training team was composed of Paolo Pagaduan, AG Saño, Marlyn Santiago, Vanessa Vergara, Joanne Arnaldo and Gregg Yan.
WWF has been collaborating with leading Filipino marine mammal experts and conservationists to conduct marine mammal training programs with local governments, coastal communities and private sector allies since 1997.
So what to do in a stranding situation? “Immediately contact WWF-Philippines, the Marine Wildlife Watch of the Philippines or local authorities. WWF-Philippines alone has a 25,000-strong following on Facebook and pools volunteer experts from a wide range of disciplines to accomplish conservation goals. We’re just a Facebook message or a text away,” says Pagaduan.
“All Pinoys can do their part,” shares Saño. “When at the beach, throw your trash in bins. Here and abroad, never order whale or dolphin meat. Finally, we call on everyone to boycott dolphin shows. If you love dolphins, then please watch them in the wild. Palawan, Bohol, the Tañon Strait and the Davao Gulf are excellent places to see them in their natural element.” (PNA)
LAM/MTY/utb

German designers hope to reawaken creativity among Filipinos

MANILA, May 15 (PNA) -- German designers have travelled to the Philippines to exhibit around 150 objects that showcase their conventional design in an unconventional and quirky or “somewhat different” way. 

'Oplan Balik Eskwela' to ease the opening of classes on June 4 -- DepEd

MANILA, May 14 (PNA) -- The Department of Education (DepEd) is scheduled to initiate an inter-agency task force that will ensure the smooth opening of classes for school year 2012-2013 on June 4.


DepEd Secretary Armin A. Luistro said that in connection with this, the task force shall conduct “Oplan Balik Eskwela” (OBE) from May 28 until June 8.


According to the DepEd chief, the OBE is the department’s solution to the problems commonly encountered during the early part of the school year, especially concerns on the enrollment process, and if the students would be able to attend school.


DepEd Memorandum No. 83 stipulates that this year’s OBE shall include convergence, information dissemination and information and action center (IAC).


Convergence means the involvement of government agencies which have concerns on school opening matters.


The inter-agency task force shall be composed of the Departments of Trade and Industry (DTI), National Defense (DND), Interior and Local Government (DILG), Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Health (DOH), the Philippine National Police (PNP), Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), and Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA).


As for information dissemination, DepEd shall distribute press releases, conduct press conferences, media interviews, website posting and other available medium to update the public on important information. The department can also be reached by the public through its DETxt facility.


For the "Oplan Balik Eskwela" duration, information and complaints processing and routing mechanism shall be done at the information and action center that will be located at the DepEd Bulwagan ng Karunungan, DepEd Central Office, Meralco Avenue, Pasig City.


The action center will be manned by representatives from the Office of the (DepEd) Secretary, the Office of the Undersecretary for Regional Operations, Office of the Undersecretary for Legal and Legislative Affairs, Office of the Undersecretary for Programs and Projects, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Programs and Projects; Bureaus of Elementary Education (BEE), Secondary Education (BSE), and Alternative Learning System (BALS);


Health and Nutrition Center (HNC), National Education Testing and Research Center (NETRC), Educational Development Projects Implementing Task Force (EDPITAF), Instructional Materials Council Secretariat (IMCS), Administrative Service (AS), Office of the Planning Service (OPS), Technical Service (TS), Employees Welfare and Benefits Division (EWBD), and Accounting/Budget Division. (PNA)

Hackers’ glory days come to an end

MANILA, May 8 (PNA) -- Have you ever been attacked by hackers? Or have you heard of high profile websites in the Philippines recently attacked by hackers such as the case of the University of the Philippines?


Hackers may seem to be spreading like a disease but, luckily, a cure has already been formulated to fight them before they totally consume the cyberspace.


Such cure has been formulated by the IP Converge Data Center, Inc. (PSE: ‘CLOUD’), the country’s first and only publicly-listed Internet data center and cloud services provider.


IP-Converge offers the world’s most advanced cloud-based Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) mitigation services through its partnership with US-based Prolexic Technologies, the world’s pioneer and leading solutions specialist for the mitigation of DDoS attacks.


DDoS attacks are probably the most expensive of all cyber crimes. They are same ones recently used against gov.ph websites purportedly by a group of Chinese hackers in relation to the two countries’ current Scarborough Shoal standoff.


DDoS is able to cripple a network for a period of time by using multiple computers that have been infected to send out bogus traffic to a specified target.


This bogus traffic floods networks causing them to go offline – resulting in lost revenues and harmed reputation.


”With the right people to support you, the worst DDoS attacks on your network or websites can be mitigated easily, allowing you to focus on your business.


No need to be a hapless victim to cyber criminals,” Percival C. de los Reyes, IP-Converge SVP for Managed Data Services, said.


Prolexic created the cloud DDoS mitigation space nine years ago. IP-Converge started providing Prolexic’s DDoS mitigation services in 2007; it has remained to be the only company in the country offering this kind of service.


“It is typical for government websites all over the world to experience DDoS attacks. As proven in the past, Prolexic can handle the most damaging attacks that government institutions can ever encounter,” de los Reyes said.


Prolexic has unparalleled experience fighting DDoS attacks against companies especially in the gaming and banking verticals.


According to Prolexic, companies in these industries are most susceptible to hacking attempts. Currently, more than 10 of the world's largest banking organizations rely on Prolexic to fight complex DDoS attacks.


Moreover, because it services a large number of banking clients, Prolexic is most often the first to become aware of the types of attacks being used in campaigns against companies in this sector.


Prolexic's Security Engineering and Response Team (SERT) is also constantly researching threats against the banking sector.


During its seminar on DDoS mitigation aptly entitled “Banking on Prolexic” held at Makati Shangri-la Hotel, IP-Converge and Prolexic discussed the dangers of DDoS attacks and how it has become more rampant in Asia over the past years.


Oliver Kwan, Prolexic vice president for sales – Asia, further equipped IT decision makers in attendance with knowledge on how to address the worst threats on online security especially in the banking and government sectors.


Notably, Prolexic offers the most sophisticated Time-to-Mitigate service-level agreement (SLA) of any company offering DDoS mitigation services.


Among other things, this means that Prolexic does not stop fighting attacks until they end.


Contrast this to other companies that offer DDoS mitigation services only as a part of existing business lines like domain name systems (DNS), content delivery networks (CDN) or IP transit services, and as such offer SLAs that have clauses that limit the extent they can and will fight attacks.


“With IP-Converge’s global network infrastructure and market reach, combined with Prolexic’s unique technology, our customers from government and across verticals can have peace of mind knowing that what they have is a secure hosting environment,”de los Reyes said. (PNA)
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