15- Phantom of the Opera

Music of the Night

Night time sharpens, heightens each sensation
Darkness stirs and wakes imagination
Silently the senses abandon their defenses

Slowly, gently night unfurls it's splendor
Grasp it, sense it, tremulous and tender
Turn your face away from the garish light of day
Turn your thoughts away from cold unfeeling light
And listen to the music of the night

Close your eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams

Purge your thoughts of the life you knew before
Close your eyes, let your spirit start to soar
And you'll live as you've never lived before

Softly, deftly, music shall surround you
feel it, hear it, closing in around you
Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind
In this darkness which you know you cannot fight

The darkness of the music of the night1

Let your mind start a journey to a strange new world
Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before
Let your soul take you where you long to be
Only then can you belong to me

Floating, falling, sweet intoxication
Touch me, trust me, savour each sensation
Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in
To the power of the music that I write
The power of the music of the night

You alone can make my song take flight
Help me make the music of the night

This lyrics is entitled “Music of the Night” if you are familiar with the Phantom of the Opera then I’m sure you’ll be able to sing this song.

For me, The Phantom of the Opera is my favourite of all the plays I’ve ever watched the second is of course Les Miserables. The reason why I love The Phantom of the Opera is because of the story. Especially the love story between Christine and Raoul but personally I would ship Phantom and Christine. Another reason is because of the songs since it is nice and the lyrics are wonderfully made and it really portrays a lot. And another reason why I love Phantom of the Opera is because of the Fan fictions especially when I read one about Phantom and Raoul and no it is not about shipping them but rather it is where they became brothers due to an incident but fan fictions aside. These are the reasons why I love Phantom of the Opera it may seem an old story but the story and the plot itself is really magnificent and you would not notice that it is an old play.

Overall, I would recommend you to watch The Phantom of the Opera especially the 25^th anniversary since it is really amazing.

14- Speech Choir Competition

The Part two of the program was the Ignite Speech Competition and Speech Choir Competition. For our Ignite Speech our representative was Laine Antonio she presented a speech on how to understand women and how you can relate with them. One of y favourite ignite speaker is the guy since he talked about the different kind of people in the class such as the Bully who always bully, the donkey who is hardworking and really helpful , the phocopy machine which always copy, the hyperactive who is active, the musicians who always brings guitar and a lot more. And as for the Speech Choir competition all of us recited the poem “At Christmas” By Edgard Albert Guest

Here is a copy of the speech

At Christmas

Edgar Albert Guest

A man is at his finest towards the finish of the year;
He is almost what he should be when the Christmas season's here;
Then he's thinking more of others than be's thought the months before,
And the laughter of his children is a joy worth toiling for.
He is less a selfish creature than at any other time;
When the Christmas spirit rules him he comes close to the sublime.

When it's Christmas man is bigger and is better in his part;                                           
He is keener for the service that is prompted by the heart.
All the petty thoughts and narrow seem to vanish for awhile
And the true reward he's seeking is the glory of a smile.
Then for others he is toiling and somehow it seems to me
That at Christmas he is almost what God wanted him to be.

If I had to paint a picture of a man I think I'd wait
Till he'd fought his selfish battles and had put aside his hate.
I'd not catch him at his labors when his thoughts are all of pelf,
On the long days and the dreary when he's striving for himself.
I'd not take him when he's sneering, when he's scornful or depressed,
But I'd look for him at Christmas when he's shining at his best.

Man is ever in a struggle and he's oft misunderstood;
There are days the worst that's in him is the master of the good,
But at Christmas kindness rules him and he puts himself aside
And his petty hates are vanquished and his heart is opened wide.
Oh, I don't know how to say it, but somehow it seems to me
That at Christmas man is almost what God sent him here to be.

Overall, the program was a success although my block mates and I were sad since we did not win any single competition but we are glad since it is already finished and we can enjoy our Christmas vacation.

13- Speak Sense Season 2: Inter High School public speaking competition

Last November 27, 2015, The Asia Pacific College invited 10 high school students to join the Inter High School Public Speaking Competition with the APC Speaks as the main organizer for the said event. The mechanics of this competition is to make a speech that has a relation with the theme “The Best of Times or Worst of Times. It’s the only time we’ve got”. Each speaker presented a speech that has something to do with their own life experiences or perhaps a life-and-death-situation. After delivering their speech, they are given some question from the judges that they should answer.

One of my teacher told me that he favoured the speaker who had a life-and-death-situation with a hotdog and a cola. I know it seems funny hotdog and cola with life-and-death-situation. Anyway, my teacher favoured this one since his speech was good although the content still needs to improve.

Another speaker delivered a some sort of poetry that has connection with the theme although I find myself confused at some point since he delivered too fast and he even forgot some of the lines which earned a chuckle for some audience.

 As for my favourite, It was the last speaker which I have chosen. Her speech was really intense since she talked about her dysfunctional family, her fears for her parents and sibling, and her life. She even talked about committing suicide since she couldn’t bear the pain but she stop and think of the consequences after that. Her speech was really inspiring even though I do not have a dysfunctional family I could empathize with her problems.

 After all the speeches the APC Speaks presented a game which is called Speed Speech. A game where you should give a speech about the topic assign to you. For example, your first topic is juice you have to tell us about juice and 15 seconds later the emcee would give another topic which is not really related to the first topic which i why this game was a fun to all of us since we chuckled and laughed at some players.

Overall, the program was a success and it was a fun and a good learning experience.

12- Public Speaking Competition

Public Speaking Competition and Speech Choir Competition

Last December 21, 2015, The APC Speaks organized the event Public Speaking Competition wherein six representatives from each block were chosen to give a speech that has a relation with the theme “The Cult of Celebrities and Fantasies... A Filipino Obssession?”. 

After a few minutes of waiting, the program started and each representative where assign to different rooms for the elimination round. While waiting, the APC Speaks presented a game which is called Speed Speech wherein they would give you several topic and your tasked is to make a speech to connect all of them. This game was really hilarious since the topics are not connected to each other. One topic is all about cactus then Manila Zoo then Drugs with Hamburgers and many more.  Another game was also presented which is called “Ignite” this game is basically the same with Speed Speech but this time they are two players for each representative of the block. The topic where Lady Gaga, Darth Vader, Laptop, Watermelon, Dustpan, Taylor Swift, and a lot of words which I couldn’t remember due to laughing so hard. And, the last game which is for the whole block has something to do with Christmas song in short we are battling by singing Christmas song and if we repeat a Christmas song that was sang by the other block then we are out.

After all, this game the program proper started. It was really fun since three of m y classmates were included for the final round. Their names are Allysa Biona, Carmena Tabalan and Dea Rose Mahinay. Allysa Biona presented with a speech that has something to do with love and being heartbroken. Carmena Tabalan presented a speech that has somthing to do with her boyfriend who had cancer and Jamitch. And Dea Mahinay presented a speech that has something to do with her life experiences.

My favourite was Dea’s speech since she talked about her life of being a disabled person since her left leg is three inches shorter than the other. The reason why I love her speech is because it was really inspiring especially when she said that you can achieve happiness with self-acceptance. I could really relate well with her quote.

Overall, the program was a success and we are still nervous since after this competition the nest day would be Ignite Speech and Speech Choir.

11-Media Literacy: Mobilizing the Millennials as Socially Responsible Prosumers

 Social Media has been the greatest source of entertainment for every millennial youth nowadays but due to us being into social media we tend to forgot what really matters the most to all of us and we tend to get easily influenced on what we see.

Before the seminar started they let us watch a video which went viral years ago and has the topic of Ferdinand Marcos, Ninoy Aquino, Cory Aquino, and Power People Revolution. The video itself was actually breathtaking since the presentation was good and the information was a bit helpful. 

The seminar started with Asia Pacific College invited three female guest speakers, who works as journalists, and was given the chance to speak to students about Social Media nowadays and how it blinds us to our society.  What shocked me is that the three of them worked for Jessica Soho, a known TV program, which I really watched since it is interesting.

The First Speaker shared to us some tips on how to write an effective story or news article and what to avoid. She even discusses on how the journalist works in everyday life.

For the Second Speaker, she shared to us about Social Media and how it blinds us to what matters the most. If anyone still could still remember the Aldub concert titled “Sa Tamang Panahon” that concert has reached 40 million tweets while the Lumad Killings has only got 100+ tweets. The speaker told us that we are so focused on the things that does not matter the most or than the thing that should really matter. She even shared another story wherein a guy was falsely accused in the social media for bombing a place. That guy was bashed and always received death threats even though he was innocent but what shocked me is that when he was killed the same people who falsely accused him had the guts to apologize and offer their condolences.

Lastly, the third speaker shared some trivia on journalism and its perks but somehow it seems a bit boring to me or maybe because it was already nearing lunch time.

My favourite part of the event s when they give us tips or the strengths and weaknesses of the running presidential candidates for 2016. 

Overall,  the seminar is great and I have learned a lot because of them.

10- Plagiarism

What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism came from the root word “plagiarize” which means “to copy”. Nowadays plagiarism is one of the major problems in terms of schooling since we tend to copy the work of someone without crediting the author of the work or we tend to forget to site the sources. Another problem that arises is the accidental plagiarism, a type of plagiarism, in which you accidentally copied someone’s paragraph or work without you knowing about it. I remember asking one of my teachers in the English term about this plagiarism cases.  I told him that what if a student accidentally wrote the same paragraph from another work. He answered that the professor always assume that a student would research on his/her topic very carefully which means that the student has the responsibility not to copy a paragraph from another work and they also have the responsibility to site the sources.

And to avoid plagiarism I listed four tips that you must remember in order to avoid plagiarism.

1. Paraphrase

                Paraphrase helps a lot since all you have to do is read and understand the work of someone and make your own by your own words.

2. Site your sources

                If you are not good in paraphrasing then you can site your sources since it makes your work would credible enough to impress your reader and at the same time giving credit to the person who made that idea.

3. Research the topic very well

                Some would agree that research is a boring thing to do but it will help you a lot in order not to plagiarize because if you know your topic well enough you can easily make ideas and transitions for your work.

4.  Socialize

                Socialize is another thing that you can do to avoid plagiarism. How does socializing helps in avoiding plagiarism? It helps us in a way that you would be able to know more about your topic and you would be able to get more feedback or ideas from others.

These are the four tips to remember. Some of them may look common or may sound legit to you but I can definitely say that these four tip would be able to help you avoid plagiarism and at the same time learn more about your topic.

09- Isagani R. Cruz

I still remember the day that our teacher assigned us work to do during the APEC week and one thing for sure is that I sighed I did it not because I hate making blogs but because my work is piling up including the household chores. But I was shocked when I saw what we were going to research about and that is about Filipino writers. I shook my head and sit myself straight and that time our teacher passed around a sheet of paper wherein we would sign our name to indicate that this is our chosen Filipino writer. I as stare at the paper I could not help but find the name “Isagani R. Cruz” interesting since  I had this sense of déjà vu when I saw it without any hesitation I signed my name and passed the paper around.

Who is Isagani R. Cruz?

Isagani R. Cruz is a Filipino short story writer, critic, educator, publisher, advocate and a multi-awarded and prolific poet. He was also the former Philippine Undersecretary of Education and currently the Academic Publications Executive Publisher of De La Salle University, Director of the Teachers Academy of Far Eastern University, and a visiting lecturer at the Ateneo de Manila University and University of Santo Tomas.

He won the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature several times and was included at the Palanca Hall of Fame due to his works written in both Filipino and English language. He also won SEAWRITE Award, Centennial Literary Contest Award, and the Balagtas Award as a writer. Mr. Cruz is also known for his drama and film reviews.

He is also worked with the famous universities in the Philippines. He is the publisher and the Alfredo E. Litiatco Professor of Literature in De La Salle University.  In De La Salle, he taught Science Fiction, Advanced Writing, The Teaching of Literature, Rizal, and Bridge. And now, he is teaching Philippine Literature in English at Ateneo De Manila University.

As an advocator, he is a member of many institutions and groups that promotes Literature and Art. He is a member of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers, the Concerned Artists of the Philippine. He is the founding chair of Manila Critics Chair. He is also the former president of the Philippine Studies Association, the University of the Philippines Writers Club, and the Cultural Research Association of the Philippines. He was also the Philippine bibliographer of the Modern Language Association of America.

His works:

Stage Plays:

·         
·         Talong Api (Three Vicitms)
·         Wedding Night
·         Ms. Philippines
·         Moro-Moro
·         Delilah
·         Bienvenido, My brother
·         And Etc.

Stage play/Translations:

·         Leron Leron Sinta

·         Ang Tatay Mong Kalbo (the reason why I got a Deja vu)

·         Mga Bisita sa Kenny Hill (Visitors at Kenny Hill)

·         And Etc.

Since he has a lot of work, it would be tiring to list every single one of them so I would just give one example of his translated work named “Pansinin Mo ang Sarili Mong Krus”

Pasanin Mo ang Sarili Mong Krus

By Benigno Aquino Jr.
Translated by Isagani R. Cruz

Pasanin mo ang sarili mong krus.
Lakarin mo ang buong bayan.
Ikalat mo ang balitang may pag-asa.
Gisingin mo ang iyong mga kababayan
mula sa kanilang di-mapakaling pagtulog.
Hamunin mo sila, tulungan mo silang
itakwil ang pagkaalipin.
Alalahanin mo ang ating kasaysayan
ng kalayaan at katarungan,
ng pag-alay ng dugo ng ating mga bayani,
ng luhang nagdilig
at nag-alaga sa puno ng kalayaan.
Ipaalaala mo sa kanila na ang puno ng kalayaan
ay magbubunga lamang kung pinatataba
ng bangkay ng mga nang-aalipin sa kanila —
mga bangkay na pataba sa lupa!
Kung walang makikinig sa iyo,
kung walang sasama sa iyo
sa iyong dakilang pagkilos
dahil sanay na sila sa pagiging
tahimik at duwag na alipin —
maglakad ka pa rin,
pasanin mo pa rin ang krus ng bayan
kahit na mag-isa kang naglalakad!

Source:(Wikipedia)

08-Giselle: A Romantic Ballet

(Giselle)

Last summer, I happened to stumble upon a manga named “Coda” because I was really bored and I had nothing to do. I decided to read it since I was really curious and while reading I couldn’t help but laugh at the main character, Kunisada Haruichi, because he was forced to dress and act like a girl since Yuri Arbatov, the ballet prince, wouldn’t perform in the show without him dancing the part of Giselle. (Yes, I know it sound surreal but a boy would be dancing the part of Giselle) And the reason why Yuri was hesitant in taking another dance partner was because his last partner got an accident while dancing the pas de deux. And he believed that only Haruichi can dance the part.

And this was the reason why I came to know Giselle. 

At first, I was really curious on what Giselle was and after researching I found out that it was a romantic ballet with two acts:  First Act and Second Act.

The First Act starts with Giselle, a shy and beautiful peasant, who met Albrecht, the Duke of Silesia, who is currently disguised as a peasant named Loys. Albrecht fell in love with Giselle and wishes to marry her but sadly there are a lot of hindrances to his way to romance. First, he was betrothed to Bathilde, the princess of Courland, which he would marry on a sooner date. And second, he is of a high position and marrying a peasant girl would cause a ruckus. And so, he decided to disguise and ask for the help of his trusted man. He moved to the village and removed his possession and dressed like a peasant. Then he introduced himself to Giselle and his mother, Berthe, as Loys.  Hilarion, a gamekeeper, and also one of Giselle’s admirers became jealous of Loys and Giselle’s relationship. He was also suspicious of Loy’s identity and he vows to himself to find out about Loy’s identity and to expose him. Even Berthe, Giselle’s mother, was also suspicious of Loys’ identity and told her daugther to be very careful since she was protective of Giselle due to her weak heart that causes her to have a poor body condition.

 One morning, Loys’ trusted man returned and told him to stop the treacherous act of pretending and return to the castle but Loys refused and told him that he returned to the castle. Until one day, the sound of hunting horns was heard and in came the Prince of Courland together with his daughter, Bathilde, the betrothed wife of Albrecht. The prince and princess were welcome with joyous festive, refreshments and several dances. Princess Bathilde got interested with Giselle’s shy and sweet nature and offered her necklace to Giselle. Though, the joyous festive was interrupted with Hilarion’s abrupt entrance while carrying Albrecht’s sword and declare that Loys was actually not a peasant but is actually of high standing. Loys entered the festive and Bathilde was shocked because she recognized him as Albrecht, the Duke of Silesia, and her betrothed husband. Giselle was overcome with grief and sadness and so she took the sword from Hilarion’s hands and stabbed herself in the heart. Giselle died in her mother’s arms.

(Wilis)

The second act starts with Hilarion mourning over Giselle’s grave but was suddenly got scared over the Wilis, the spirits of women who were abandoned on their wedding day. The Wilis were led by their queen, Martha, who haunt the night and forces man who came upon their sight to dance all night until they die of exhaustion. Queen Martha uses her magic on Giselle’s grave and turns her into a wilis. Albrecht who also turns up on Giselle’s grave and mourns on it was surprised to see Giselle above her grave in her wilis form. Albrecht begs for his forgiveness and Giselle forgives him as she went into the forest to join her other mates. Albrecht followed her in desperation while Hilarion was forced by the other wilis to dance and he died from exhaustion. His body was thrown into the river and Albrecht was also forced to dance but Giselle pleads for Martha, queen of the wilis, to spare Albrecht. But Martha coldly refused and Albrecht was forced to dance but Giselle’s love broke through the wilis magic and saves Albrecht life. The other wilis return to their grave due to sunrise and Giselle bade Albrecht farewell leaving Albrecht alone and Giselle rests in peace.

For those who still want to know more about Giselle, Giselle is a romantic ballet piece made by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Théophile Gautier. Gautier got the idea of Giselle from Heinrich Heine’s description of Wilis in De l’ Allemagne as inspiration for Act II and from Victor Hugo’s “Fantômes” since the verse is about a fifteen-year old Spanish girl who loves to dance and she became too warm in a ball and died of a chill in the cold morning. Gautier thought that it would make a good ballet story and proceeded to make one but he was not satisfied of the outcome and asked for the help of  Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges, who had written a lot of ballet librettos. And then after writing the story it was brought to Léon Pillet, the director of Paris Opera and asked Carlotta Grisi if she approved and Grisi approved.

Source:(Wikipedia)

(Giselle and Albrecht)

Overall, Giselle is a really beautiful masterpiece and one that I would really recommend watching. Even though I am not fond of ballet and I couldn’t help but fall in love with Giselle.

07-SOM Week: SOM is the new SOAB

Last October 26 the Asia Pacific College launched the SOM Week or School of Management Week with the theme SOM is the new SOAB (School of Accountancy and Business) to declare the unity of the different courses such as: Tourism Management, Marketing Management, Business Management, and Accountancy.  The program started with a parade of the different courses followed by the dance number of the APC dance troupe, and the presentation of the candidates for Mr. and Mrs. SOM. At the afternoon, the TM Mystery challenge started with a lot of participants. Their objective was to find clues and solve the mystery of the family.

Of course it would not be a week if I am only mentioning October 26.The following days until October 30 the programs were Faculty Bluff where the faculty members would play and one thing for sure that it was a very funny sight to see, the seminar with the theme “CSI: Awareness on the Digital Environment” where they invited a speaker who has an experience with cyber scam and various viruses or malwares and taught us how to be conscious and be aware of what is happening when we surf the net, SOM night where students would hang out and enjoy the remaining SOM week, Intramurals where in students would compete with another students from a different course to win the championship, and last but not the least the SOM Pageant where the Mr. and Mrs. SOM candidates competed with to win the throne of the 2015 Mr. and Mrs. SOM.

Overall, I was actually disappointed that they changed the name because I was expecting SOAB week not SOM week but I am glad because we were the first batch that celebrated the very first SOM week and although the events were little I still had fun cheering and laughing at the various antics that SOM students would do during the SOM week. 

06- Parasyte-the Maxim: Live Action Part 1

The movie is actually based on a manga called “Kiseiju: Sei no Kakuritsu” illustrated by Hitoshi Iwaaki. An Anime television series was aired by Madhouse on Japan during October 2014- March 2015. 

The story starts with an alien trying to invade Shinichi Izumi (Sota Sometani) who was

Anime Version

falling asleep by going inside his ear but the alien found out that it was being blocked by an earphone. In order not to risk its life the alien decided to enter through his right hand. Shinichi woke up feeling something not right until he saw something moving in his right hand. The next morning, he found out that an alien invaded his right hand and called him Migi (Sadao Abe).  As the story goes on, Shininchi finds more information about parasite through Tamiya Ryoko (Eri Fukatsu) while exacting revenge against Mr. A who killed his mother.

While watching this movie I can definitely say that it was very amazing and the graphics is really good. It sure was a bit gory especially when they are eating human and I was sure that it would make a good Halloween movie. But I could not help but ask in confusion where Shinichi’s father was since in the anime version of Parasyte his father was present but in the live action he was not. 

At some point, of the movie I remembered Shinichi and Migi’s conversation. Where in Shinichi said that Migi is an Akuma (Demon) and Migi searched for the meaning of Akuma and told Shinichi that the closest thing to an Akuma was a Human. It was funny when Migi said that but when you think about it you will realize that what Migi said might be true at some point. And the other conversation where in Migi is trying to say that the parasytes are just like human. A human sustains theirselves by eating food and parasytes sustain themselves by also eating humans. It was quite creepy to hear but Migi do has a point but just erase the human eating part.

To those who are fanatic of watching scary or gory movies then I would definitely recommend watching Parasyte-the Maxim Part 1 and if you ever find yourself having a cliff-hanger moment then you may purchase the Part 2 at Japan since it was already released.  

05- Turn Left, Turn Right

One's a coincidence, Two's an accident, Three's a pattern

This is the only thing that I can say to describe the movie.

Turn Left, Turn Right is a 2003 movie directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka Fa with the stars Takeshi Kaneshiro (John) and Gigi Leung (Eve). It was actually based on a novel named “A Chance of Sunshine” by Jimmy Liao The movie was really wonderful and honestly saying I am really not fond of watching romance movies but I can make an always make an exception. The movie depicts the love story between a struggling violinist named John and a translator who works for a publishing company named Eve.  

One’s a coincidence: Why coincidence?  They actually live right next to each other but only separated by a wall; they even go out of their houses with John going on the left and Eve going on the left. Even the author of the book makes a cameo appearance with his family in the movie. What a coincidence right?

Two’s an accident: Why accident? Well they finally meet because of an accident where in Eve’s manuscript fell in the water and John picks it up to help her but Eve accidentally knock down John’s music sheets that lead them to picked up every papers on sight. As they were talking, they finally realize that they were searching for each other since they were little kids. Excited, they exchange their telephone numbers but it got smudged by the rain.

Three’s a pattern: Why a pattern? As the movie goes on, they were kept on looking for each other and waiting in a place where they met. Where John was, Eve would be there and where Eve was, John would be there. It was a cycle watching them go here and there but not even meeting once.

One’s a coincidence, Two’s an accident, Three’s a pattern…

Four’s a warrant right?

But for this movie

Four’s a destiny

Four’s a destiny: Why destiny? They finally meet other with the help of an earthquake that destroyed the wall that blocks their view with each other. The quote from the movie “Life’s full of coincidence, even two parallels might someday meet” is a great one indeed.

The movie might be a bit cliché but I would definitely recommend watching this movie especially to those people who loves watching romance.

04- Heneral Luna: Bayan o Sarili?

“Mga kapatid mayroon tayong mas malaking kaaway kaysa mga Amerikano- Ang Ating sarili” – Heneral Luna

This quote is one of my favourite quotes in the movie that made its way into my heart. In English, it can be translated as “My brothers it is not the Americans that is our greatest enemy but our kin itself”.

Heneral Luna is a historical movie made on the year of 2015 that shows the leadership of General Antonio Luna of the Philippine Revolution Army during the Philippine-American War. The movie was directed by a Filipino movie director, Jerrold Tarog and partnered with an ending song named “Hanggang Wala ng Bukas” by Ebe Dancel. 

As I was watching, Heneral Luna I could not help but gasp in amazement with each and every scene.  And I was very sure that even if it was a historical movie it is not boring as I thought since the movie is a bit modernized and they added some funny scene which would make people laugh. Also as I was watching the movie I could feel the irony at some scene especially when General Luna was killed by some Filipinos and those Filipinos where the ones who had given General Luna honours as he was being buried.  The movie was really great because it shows that even if Luna is a bit superior he was still a human who makes mistakes and has flaws and to be honest I cried when General Luna was killed mercilessly by his own kin nonetheless.

To those who did not know Antonio Luna or General Luna. He was a Filipino general who fought during the Philippine Army Revolution. He was also the brother of the famous painter, Juan Luna. And from what I heard from a Mr. Xiao Chua, a historian, Antonio Luna’s profession was Chemistry and his hobby was to play the guitar. 

03- Anti-Smoking Campaign Seminar

Last October 21, 2015, at Multi-purpose hall number of Asia Pacific College (APC) the school had launched the Anti- Smoking Campaign seminar for the APC students to know and understand the risks and dangers of smoking to their health. The APC invited two guest speakers for the said event. One of them was a former chain smoker and the latter is a doctor that came from a prestigious hospital.

The first speaker, whose name will not be mention, was wearing a robotic device near his throat that allows him to speak. He told the APC students about his unhealthy smoking habits until he got his vocal cords remove due to his continuous smoking that caused him to get a tumour. As, he end his speech he advised the students not to smoke anymore because it will not only damage their lungs, throat, or heart  but it may also be the cause of their early death.

The second speaker, whose name will also not be mention, told the APC students the dangers of smoking. He told the APC students that a cigarette contains dangerous chemicals especially Carbon Monoxide and Nicotine that causes a lot of harm to a person’s body.  He also said that continuous smoking can cause a person to become irritable, impatient, hostile, anxious, depressed, and restless. It may also be the reason why they have difficulty in concentrating, decreased heart rate, and weight loss. He also said that he takes part in a project where they would post pictures of lung cancer or gross images at a cigarette boxes like Marlboro so that people who buys them would know what will happen if they continue smoking. As he ends, he also advised the students to stop smoking so that they can have a healthy lifestyle and to lower the chance of dying at a very young age.

The seminar ended with APC students knowing the risks and dangers of smoking. They have learned their lesson which is to avoid or stop smoking so that they would not have complications with their health and for them not to die at a very young age.  

02- Theatrical Play: "Ang Tatay Mong Kalbo"

 Last October 10, 2015, my friends and I watched a theatrical play called "Ang Tatay mong Kalbo" at Asia Pacific College (APC), MPH1, 1:00 p.m. The first thing that you would probably say as you watch this play would be “What?" or “Does anyone even understand this?". But that is the gist of the play since “Ang Tatay mong Kalbo” is classified as an Absurd play. Absurd in a way that some words or sentences repeat over and over again or some of them are quite ironic that may confuse the audience on what they are really talking about and what message are they trying to express through.

My friends and I waiting in line

The play tells a story about a couple named Mr. Santos and Mrs. Santos who were conversing with each other at their house. During the conversation, Mr. Santos and Mrs. Santos would often argue at some point until their maid, Maria, announce that their friends Mr. Reyes and Mrs. Reyes have come to visit them. A truce happened between the two as they invited Mr. Reyes and Mrs. Reyes. The two couples would share random stories until General Hepe, a local fireman and Maria's love interest, arrived at the scene and asked if there was a fire at the place. The two couples gave a resounding "No" which made General Hepe cry hysterically and tells a story about fires and firemen. As the story goes deeper, the characters would often share stories until General Hepe announce that he should go home and the play ended with General Hepe asking “Nasaan ang tatay mong Kalbo?” in which Mr. Santos replied that he is still there combing his hair repeatedly.

An aftershow photo with General Hepe

After watching it, I couldn’t help but feel happy at myself for understanding some parts of the play since the play talks about Life. And I was also amazed by the actors since acting is a very difficult thing to do.

To those who still haven’t watch this play I recommend watching this since it is a great play although a bit confusing but if you squint hard enough you will definitely understand the message of the play. 

01-The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher: The Murder at the Road Hill House

 

(The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher or the Murder at Road Hill House 

by Kate Summerscale)

The very first time I held this book I couldn't help but feel awe for finding such a treasure. One would have thought that this book is only an old mystery fiction novel but imagine my surprise when it was actually based on a true event that happened on 1860 at a house on an English country. The title "Murder at the Road Hill House"is actually an obvious hint. 

The book tells a story about a disturbing murder of Saville Kent, the 3-year old son of Samuel and Mary Kent, who was found dead at the servants' outdoor privy with his throat cut. The murder can be considered as mysterious since there were no witnesses (the murder happened at an early morning), no motive (who could have murdered such an innocent child?) and clues were lost. Due to the seriousness and mysteriousness of the case Detective Jonathan Whicher is called to aid and to solve the death of an innocent child. And as the story goes deeper, long-buried family secrets are slowly being unveil and the unexpected event that happened to all the great Victorian age detectives will make you relive the past.

 

(Detective Inspector Jonathan "Jack" Whicher)

For those who did not know Detective Whicher I added a brief biography about him.

 According to my research, Detective Inspector Jonathan "Jack Whicher" was one of the original eight members of the Detective Branch in Scotland Yard in 1842. Due to his accomplishment, he was used as inspiration for the character of the famous authors such as: Charles Dickens (Inspector Bucket), Colin Dexter (Inspector Morse), Wilkie Collins (Sergeant Cuff), R.D. Wingfield (Jack Frost), and many more. 

He was regarded as "The prince of detectives" by a colleague and was famous for solving difficult cases until the Road Hill Case. He was born on October 1, 1814 and died on June 29 1881.

Source: Wikipedia

The reason why I love this book is because Kate Summerscale, the author of this book, has written it in a way that when the readers read the story it makes you feel like a real detective. She also added some illustrations like the Road Hill house floor plan not just to add pictures in the book but for the readers to imagine the what the house look like and where the crime scene took place. Though for a book based on true event it feels like your reading a very famous mystery novel that hooks your hidden detective senses and makes you want to solve the case.

(Road Hill House Floor Plan)

To all avid fans of reading mystery novels I recommend you to read this book because it is as amazing as Sherlock Holmes and an interesting book to read during past time. You may like it or not but hey there is no harm in trying.