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Yet, even amidst the hatred and carnage, life is still worth living. It is possible for wonderful encounters and beautiful things to exist.

Hayao Miyazaki

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But the wind remembered when the sighs it heard here were only the sighing of the ripe grain, when the cries it heard here were only the crying of birds nesting in the reeds, for all these new suburbs in Makati used to be grassland, riceland, marshland, or pastoral solitudes where few cared to go, until the big city spilled hither, replacing the uprooted reeds with split-levels, pushing noisy little streets into the heart of the solitude, and collecting here from all over the country the uprooted souls that now moan or giggle where once the carabao wallowed and the frogs croaked day and night. In very new suburbs, one feels human sorrow to be a gross intrusion on the labors of nature. Even barely two years ago, the talahib still rose man-high on the plot of ground on Zapote Street where now stands the relic of an ambiguous love.

The House on Zapote Street by Nick Joaquin

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For those of you who missed the events commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Manila across the metro, we are fortunate to have the video recording of the lecture of James Zobel, archivist-trained Executive Director of the MacArthur Memorial Library, online. This upload is thanks to the efforts of the Ortigas Foundation Library. Zobel’s lecture answers the question “Was the Destruction of Manila in the Battle for Liberation necessary?” Watch and clear the misconceptions. 

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With Tourism Secretary Mon Jimenez. #Starstruck #VisitPH2015 #Philippines #Myanmar #ATF2015

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Represent! #ATF2015 #Philippines #VisitPH2015

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The best piece of advice from the #Philippines Queen of #Travel. Thank you for the opportunity and guidance. It was an honor working with you, ma'am. #TravelTime #Mabuhay

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Stairway to heaven. #Banaue #Philippines #VisitPH2015

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A post shared by Bryan Clemente Ocampo (@bryanocampo)

Baboybaboybaboybeybeh. The star of the Christmas table. #Philippines #Food #VisitPH2015 #LP #Travel #IntrepidTravel #PhilippineDiscovery

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Kahit Munti. Sabang Beach, #Palawan. #VisitPH2015 #Philippines

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In my cousin's office with her welcoming committee.😜 Drop by the Department of Tourism in Makati and check out their Christmas Countdown. #Philippines #VisitPH2015

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Kanya-kanyang Rizal. The Tagalog Christ. #RizalShrine #Manila #Philippines

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A tour in Intramuros with #Bambike. Highly recommended. 👏 #Manila #Philippines #VisitPH2015 #VivaManila

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Pampanga makes the best Christmas lanterns. #Philippines #VisitPH2015

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Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers (63) 

Judee Sill (46) 

Hank Davis (37) 

J Dilla (30) 

The Hives (26) 

Imported from Last.fm Tumblr by JoeLaz

via ifttt

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You, me and the sea. #Coron #Palawan #Philippines

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“With the new men that will spring from her bosom and the remembrance of the past, she will perhaps enter openly the wide road to progress and all will work jointly to strengthen the mother country at home as well as abroad with the same enthusiasm with which a young man returns to cultivate his father’s farmland so long devastated and abandoned due to the negligence of those who had alienated it. And free once more, like the bird that leaves his cage, like the flower that returns to the open air, they will discover their good old qualities which they are losing little by little and again become lovers of peace, gay, lively, smiling, hospitable, and fearless.” —Filipinas dentro de cien años by Dr. José Rizal

#Kalayaan #Kaginhawaan #Kasaganaan #Pagkakaisa #PHL116

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Rizal also stressed that if the revolution is not to degenerate into mob rule or a ruthless dictatorship and thus create more crimes and injustice than it had sought to remove, it is imperative that the enlightened class lead and direct it. At no other time than when the conflagration comes are reason and compassion most essential. The leaders and their followers must abide by the highest ethical standards and be subject to the strictest moral discipline. These considerations were precisely Rizal’s point in writing the Fili, after working on the Morga and his essays. Thus, from Rizal’s perspective, assimilation is an alternate, albeit longer, route to independence; the more direct route would be bloody and very risky. Either way, there was never any question in Rizal’s mind about the ultimate objective—national liberation. There was also no question that if assimilation is denied, revolution would inevitably follow to form a nation. And the best way to do this is to spread the idea of a Filipino nation and unite with the people at home, instead of engaging in futile debates with the enemy in Spain. This was the crux of his disagreement with del Pilar.

A Nation Aborted by Floro C. Quibuyen