Elmer Blogger

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

Fair Games

It's humiliating to hear not so nice words from a high ranking public official about the officiating of the SEA Games. Thailand Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra called for fair games after hearing news about unfair judgement on subjective events (sports disciplines that rely on the judges rather than the Olympic motto of faster, stronger, higher) like wushu, gymnastics and diving.

I also feel this is something that has to be looked upon because it disconnects athletes from the real aim of the Games, unity amongst the ASEAN countries.
One Thai taekwondo player had one complain against a local competitor whose back kick earned her points while the Thai's solid ones did not merit such credits.

Same as the Malaysian divers. I expect to hear this type of problems. The Philippines have been blindly cheated in boxing on many occasions but it does not mean it should take its turn to cheat just because the Games is played in its home turf.

I hate the official SEA Games Manila 23 website but often find myself coming back because I could not find an alternative to the thrice a day updated medal tally.

But on the other hand, I like the simplicity of Cebu SEA Games web site and Bacolod's SEA Games web site.

The best SEA Games-related site I see is Team Singapre.

Tuesday, November 29, 2005

Insulting Philippine Football

As a fan of Philippine football, I am fuming when I read this article from New Straits Times this morning. The capital letters "SURELY" seems convincing that the Malaysian team is invincible, full of ego and too stubborn to find excuses when it conceded two goals to Thailand in a crucial loss the previous game.
The author was too scared to publish his name and he should be scared for he is brandishing the journalism seasoned with patriotic editorial at the expense of an (un)worthy opponent. Call me overly sensitive and I may be overreacting but I think the guy or lady who wrote this article has no class.

It's okay to be underestimated, but by saying "The players must remember that the Philippines are not in their league, never were and never will be." Will never be? How dare you say that?

Yes, the Philippines is an underdog to Malaysia in football so I won't be surprised if we lose the games tonight. But remember, my Malaysian buddy that your team, the defending champion in 1991 SEA Games, ate dirt and was so sorry to find themselves losing to traditional minnows of football, the Philippines.

SURELY Malaysia will not fail against hosts the Philippines today and will qualify for the Sea Games football semi-finals.

The heartbreak against Thailand on Sunday was of their own making but the national Under-23 team must not let that affect them against the Philippines.

Detractors are saying that Malaysia will struggle against the Philippines but there is no reason for this.

Yes, Thailand only managed a 1-0 win over the hosts but that doesn't mean Malaysia will struggle. The players must remember that the Philippines are not in their league, never were and never will be.

The players must also remember that they can't afford to lose to the Philippines, as the squad of 1991 did, for football in this country is a mere game.

For the Malaysians, it is a national obsession and for the players, their livelihood.

Coach Norizan Bakar, in his short time with the squad, has managed to instill urgency and competitiveness into the players but the rest is up to them. The players were to blame for conceding a stoppage time goal against Thailand, resulting in the 2-1 defeat on Sunday.

But the defeat will not be as costly as failure against the Philippines today will be.

The players must remember that.

http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Tuesday/Sport/20051129081756/Article/indexspot_html


You only need a draw and you can move into the next stage; we need to win to proceed to semifinals. Be careful what you write. I am.

Monday, November 28, 2005

Davao Is It!

Whoa, SEA Games hostilities is underway and I am too proud to relay the news that one of the early gold medals won by the Philippines is from Davao City girls.

Divers Sheila Mae Perez and Ceseil Domeinos teamed up to bag the 3-m synchronized diving gold at the Trace College Aquatics Center in Laguna. Ceseil's brother Zardo won the bronze in men's 1-m springboard competition.

Davao City is a powerhouse in many sports disciplines such as football and swimming; Davao's Alamara brothers Ali, Norton and Frazier contributed to the Philippines' first medal in the Games -- a silver in water polo.

Lee Van Corteza, who lives not far from my Davao City home, is campaigning for billiards and a cyclist in the national pool is from Davao City as well.

While I am very critical of the organizers, I have all my praises to the athletes who will serve as inspiration to the Filipino people.

Sunday, November 27, 2005

Being Busy

I had been announcing the launch of www.cagape.com before the end of the year. It's been a struggle but I have no plans of delaying it. I will be having a homecoming on 17 to 27 of December to be with family and friends which definitely gets my hands off the keyboard to take a break from article writing and scripting in favor of listening eyes and talkative lips during the Yuletide season.

The weekend was rather busy and enjoyable, in contrast to the structured weekend activities I have been imposing the previous weekends. Friday night was a rare night out with the guys and I got to know Jan for the first time after my sorry "ignores" on her initial e-mails. whom I initially thought was a guy (I have a male colleague whose name is Jan). Fun to be with and intellectual, I thought Jan is a little bit like Barbie, Karen and Candice Joan. The guys had fun definitely.

It's been Gino whose become my busy buddy over the weekend too. Long OEC queues at Bayanihan, buying perfumes at Watson's at Melissa's request, dinner at Pacific Place and Yoshinoya, Gino's a no nagger type of companion who lets me do the decision all the time.

Home has been a mess but thanks to an earlier weekend planning I got something in order: laundry has been pressed and delivered home by Saturday morning, Marilyn's haircut chores and the weekly Wellcome grocery invasion took place before midnight.

Still at the time of writing I am staring at the long list of to-dos, some of them long overdue (speaking of overdue, I have six items overdue at Hong Kong Public Library!!!).

The workweek begings in a few hours.. still I wish it was Friday night.

Patriotic Journalism

Reading online copies of SEA Games news from web sites of participating countries game me a glimpse of what a patriotic journalism is. I did not read it elsewhere and haven't even tried to Google it but the term is exceptionally obvious. Masquerading in the disguise of half editorial, half info sharing, newsmen stir citizens to show their support through news items filled with emotion more than anything else.

Read this one from Gary Lim of The Electric New Paper on the eve of Singapore-Indonesia football game:

THE Young Lions are in defiant mood as they warm up for their do-or-die clash against Indonesia today.

The Young Lions say they are ready for their next do-or-die match with Indonesia.

After Sunday's 2-1 defeat to Vietnam in their opening match at the South-east Asia
(SEA) Games in Bacolod City, anything less than a win in their remaining three matches is likely to dump them out of the semi-finals for the third time in a row.

Skipper Baihakki Khaizan knows all about Indonesia. He was in the Tiger Cup team that defeated them in the final in January.

He told The New Paper: 'Yes, they have a formidable team.

'But I can tell you, bring them on. It won't be easy to beat us.

'If we are scared of them, we might as well just pack up and go home.

'We have three important matches to play in the tournament.

'But the result of tomorrow's game will decide if our final two matches are of any significance.

The very next day, Gary painted rather a bleak picture of what Singapore's chances in advancing the SEA Games football tournament. After two matches, Lion City team only came up with a point, which means they are in danger of missing the semifinal mathes.

They did not lose to Indonesia; they did not beat Indonesia either. That meant after two games, Tiger Cup champions were in danger of not making past the eliminations.

JUST what is wrong with the Young Lions?
The players after their opening match against Vietnam ended in 2-1 loss. The faced disappointment again yesterday.

They had travelled to the Philippines with high hopes.

After all, Singapore had won the Tiger Cup, supposedly South-east Asia's top prize in football, not too long ago.


Players seemed to reassure the press that they have little trouble to appease the constant pressure by countrymen and the high expectations from Koreans are.

Saturday, November 26, 2005

Filipino Hospitality Cannot Be Found

Embarrassing.

A word I often described on what I felt many times. From embarrassing school and SEA Games web sites to embarrassing personalities in the Philippine government, I have all the space to rant about how bad I felt, not to mention the outright maddening feeling of almost cursing some people.

* Government employees playing computer games or chatting during office hours in a government office in Metro Manila (and probably on other provincial government offices)

* Web sites that promote professionalism and usability, yet is the biggest violator of such advocacies.

* Basketball's mess in the Philippines

Reading through Google News feeds about SEA Games, I read on Thailand and Malaysia news websites the sad tale of their athletes, placed on filthy, small accommodations in Manila. There are no one to assist them when they ask for help.

When the news brought out that volunteers were threatening to boycott the Games because of failure to address their basic needs (as volunteers they don't need to be paid but still need to eat) by the organizers, I had a bad impression of the leadership of the SEAG Organizing Committee.

While Vietnam's goodwill gesture to lend the wushu scoreboard is a humble admission of the Philippines that it faces logistical problems, it is a nice gesture that we Filipinos don't pretent to flaunt when there is nothing to show.

What disheartens me is the fact that we were known to be hospitable types of people. Yet now, the characteristic may seem to have lost.

Saturday, November 19, 2005

Impressions of Japan - Part II


1. Karaoke
Tokyo's karaoke shops are typically similar to the ones found in Hong Kong; small rooms, with space optimally built for everything necessary to fit inside: a sizable cupboard with large television screen, dvd/cd players, amplifiers, a small table and comfy sofas. But Hong Kong's shops are typically made for Hong Kong's fun loving youngsters who prefer to belt out favorite Hong Kong and Taiwan popstars. But wait until you get to browse over Shibuya karaoke's songbook table of contents.

I was singing with Joanne songs from Lionel Richie-Diana Ross duet to Hikaru Utada and from the Eraserheads to Gin Blossoms. I am especially fascinated with the lineup of Original Filipino Music (OPM) titles. While they are not that complete -- You Won't See Me Crying by the Passage was not there -- it still shows the respect of the Filipino talents by the Japanese people.

2. Odaiba
Overlooking Tokyo Bay and the splendid Rainbow Bridge located at Daiba in Minato-ku was a great opportunity for me to see Tokyo with unobstructed views. Not as majestic as Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour, the place somehow exudes less offensive odor than Hong Kong's premier attraction. Walking towards the Telecom Center direction led us to Venus Fort, a theme park-like shopping mall built in 1999. An impressive roof design emulating blue sky and fluffy clouds is something not to miss. Not far from the location is the headquarters of Fuji TV built in a futuristic architecture. I did not get inside but I did not have to because of my self-imposed four-hour time limit and the plenty of views outside, which even started during my train ride through the Yurikamome line.

3. Yokohama
Jun and I went around Minato Mirai and especially got great shots of Kishamichi Promenade which featured views of the giant clock ferris wheel and sea attractions situated nearby a little family recreation area. On the waterfront, little boats for rent are also available. I wasn't interested to ride it, and when we felt a little tremor on that cloudy afternoon, Jun got discouraged as well. Japan's tallest building, the 70-storey Landmark Tower, is located here. This is probably the only time my outdoor sightseeing was not threatened by impending rainshower.

4. Hibiya Park
In the morning of my last day in Tokyo before returning to Hong Kong, I was in trouble locating areas through the map. I intend to go to Hibiya Park and for some reason alighted at Nagatacho station. I had communication problems talking to guards and Filipina scholars walking around were not much of help either since they just got into the city two days ago. Good thing Tokyo is sprinkled with great English-speaking people and I got help from one lady who walked past a koban (police outpost which appears more like a tourist answering booth) and heard the miscommunication. After an hour of walking, photo taking and asking office people where to go, I finally reached my destination. An oasis of the city, Hibiya Park is home to fountains, ponds, trees and people seeking refuge from the typical city life. I see several office workers bringing their bento boxes and take their lunch on various points in the park. Good thing most sign posts and entrance display maps do have English translations. And given that I was unable to go to Hamarikyu Garden, this visit is very much worthwhile.

5. Shibuya
Comparable to Mongkok and Causeway Bay crowds, Shibuya is cramped and busy part of Tokyo's metropolis. Compared to Shinjuku, Shibuya is cleaner and has a safer reputation. Definitely a must see is the statue of Hachiko, the legendary dog. A tear-jerking true story of a master-slave relationship, Hachiko is the dog who waits for his owner every night before going home together. Not known to the dog was that the master died of an accident, Hachiko continues to wait until his ultimate demise on 8th of March, 1935. Many hearts were touched and the dog was honored with a statue found here. I only found myself taking photos at Shibuya Crossing with Jun or waiting for Joanne. I never got to see the gymnasium which hosted the 1964 Olympics, among other interesting places due to the inclement weather conditions.

6. Shinjuku
After Hibiya Park, I headed to Shinjuku aiming to take shots of the great structure of Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, designed by Kenzo Tange. I think it's inspired by the Gothic designs usually found in Europe. Seen better closer than from a distance, Tokyo Metropolitan Government Offices appears like a bunch of boxes intricately packed one after the other. And just like in many places in Tokyo, the building is located on spaces filled with greeneries of Shinjuku Chuo Park, with a refreshing backdrop of trees aligned and leaves still intact just before autumn season starts to paint the area with a more sober look.

Once I arrived at Narita, I was instructed by Jun to take the airport limousine which basically is a bus coach and alight at Shinjuku. So my first impression of Japanese city life was built in this area. A colossal Shinjuku train station handles a mammoth two million passengers everyday! That's four times the entire capacity of Manila's MRT 3 in 2001 (according to its official web site). Shinjuku Dori Avenue and Yasukuni Dori Avenue are probably the largest shopping streets in the area but as the night grew chilly and advancing my watch by an hour, I have to be wary if Jun was more on-time in meeting up. I decided not to wander farther on my first day in Tokyo; I sat at the pavement after a few "shashin" favors from fellow strangers, munching the 90 yen McDonald's burger.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

A Defining Moment

Almost five years ago saw me leaving Philweb.com in Cagayan de Oro which was arguably the place I found the best colleagues in the industry.

Laid back life vs the hustle in the Big City, I chose the latter. I gave up the weekend Starcraft games with Edward, Alex, Candice, Roy, Shelley, Rizza and Chui. I had to give up the dinners together at someone's place or at a nearby open air seafood restaurant.

Cagayan de Oro's simplistic life is what I longed for. The jeepney ride from my aunt's house takes 25 minutes. My lunch is prepared at my choice of food. Or we order at a neighbor's home made green bean vegetable or young jackfruit in coconut milk.

My weekends are spent with my neice, nephews and cousins, watch TV, explore the Gaisano and Limketkai and regularly do the grocery chores.

If I want to go to Davao I take the overnight bus and reach home by 8am, fall asleep until noon and talk to my folks later. I take the bus back to Cagayan de Oro at 12 noon Sunday and by 9pm, I am in bed preparing for work the next day.

I miss going to San Agustin church where often times I am alone, standing at the doorsteps. Or at Xavier University's serene location. I also miss walking around Cogon Market where I still find myself lost at times, looking for R1 route to get back home.

Of course I miss my dutiful relatives who never let me feel I was away from Mintal. And friends who at times remind me of my wonderful grade school peers.

All in the name of opportunity.

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

Friendster For Sale?

I just found out that Friendster is apparently for sale when it sought help from a banker it recently commissioned to facilitate the transaction.

In my previous post, I cited some features Friendster is accelerating the excitement factor by adding features that will keep members from getting bored. These features include photo and video sharing, photo slideshows, shoutouts and Who's Viewed Me.

But while the idea is indeed very innovative, its marketing strategy seemed to be a letdown. And after a few leadership changes, it's about time to hand it over to a company which has decent background of running ailing projects.

Friendster hired Montgomery & Co. to shop for buyers. Neither parties commented on rumors. As the first popular social networking online, Friendster's initial price was thought to be 200 million dollars. That amount subsequently went down to around $50 to $100 million.

Impressions do have lasting effects and if someone whose a member tries to login and does not get a decent error message, the reputation gets tarnished a bit. And while marketing efforts did not seem to work properly, it's the network problem that presented a glaring evidence. Due to its popularity, huge traffic brought it down at times and prompted it to change its backend coding from J2EE to PHP (something that a web developer discussed in her blog before she got fired). I did not like the layout though gray has been my favorite color, and even with those customizable templates, the overall layout does not seem appealing to me at all.

But somehow, Friendster remained to be my choice social networking hub; I have five requests for contacts at hi5 which I never bothered to activate. Myspace is an intriguing proposition to me. Initially a portal for music lovers, it has grown to a full blown Friendster clone, amassing 33 million members in two years according to CNET. In contrast Friendster's unique visitors have been steadily falling, with 585,000 unique visits last September.

I have read a lot of faux messages about Friendster deactivating an account if the owner fails to forward some hidden motives veiled in a worthly messages. Old gimmicks don't die easily. Those are untrue. But even with the imminent sale of Friendster, it does not mean we are going to lose our accounts unless we violate the terms and conditions. Friendster needs each and everyone of us after all.

Monday, November 14, 2005

Impressions of Japan - Part I


It would be unfair to consider my findings and observations in Japan accurate considering the fact that I only visited Tokyo and my stay only lasted six days. But it does not prevent me from noticing its cosmopolitan beauty with a touch of a genuinely alluring classical Japanese culture.

1. Tokyo Subway
I counted 271 stations composing 12 subway lines: Ginza, Tozai, Hibiya, Morunouchi, Chiyoda, Namboku, Hanzomon, Yurakucho, Asakusa, Mita, Shinjuku and Oedo. The count does not include JR lines and other privately-operated lines. This makes Tokyo among the busiest subway lines in the world. My familiarity with Hong Kong, Manila and Singapore did not help much because of the station signs mostly in Japanese and merely looking at the subway map instill some confusion factor.
As with a number of subway train lines, not all of them use one single type of ticket to take the ride, which left me wondering. Unlike KCR and MTR in Hong Kong -- two different companies that share fare system methods, pedestrian access points, among others -- Japan's railway systems somehow need to exist homogenously as the primary method of transport within Tokyo. Inside the train is a haven for sleepyheads during off-peak hours. A curtained set of ads are all over the place, often promoting magazines (the only recognizable face in the job ad was Koyuki, a starrer of Tom Cruise's Last Samurai).

2. Roponggi
I think this is an area more known as a fusion of Japanese, Asian and Western influences. Embassies, consulates and foreign companies are often located here which is why it's not surprising to see a lot of foreigners here. A spanking new development at Roppongi Hills, the masterpiece of Mori Building, exudes a vibrant picture of modern Japanese architecture. I had a delectable dinner with Jun and Wenee at one of the Japanese restaurants here and could not help but notice the authentic Japanese way of preparing food, complemented with uber-excellence hospitality.

3. Harajuku
The face of extreme Japan whose influence spills out in Hong Kong -- fashion-conscious teenagers in one oxymoronic melange of youth culture. Extreme hairstyle, extreme make up, extreme Gothic and Lolita clothing fashion which favorably ranges from your favorite Disney characters to the Zoids and the Astroboys. Found mostly in the confines of Takeshita Street across the subway station, by the impression I got from their appearance, I hesitated to take a photo of them.

4. Meiji Shrine
Not too far away from Harajuku's ultra experimental dress codes and anime fashion shows is a place that takes you back to the natural world. The Meiji Shrine is a secluded and serene place in the heart of Tokyo that exemplifies the extremes of what Tokyo can offer. Right after crossing the mighty torii gateways, it's all covered with vast array of trees and wide pebblestone pathways leading to shrines I used to tell my students at Philippine International School about this place, and now it's a reality of what was just described by the book. It was raining when I got there and the atmosphere further added up to the feeling that I was on rare flatland on my way to scaling a moderately steep hill. I was expecting falling orange leaves where I could lie and stare at the sky; the leaves were still in the shades of summer and the rain kept me on my feet.

5. Omotesando
I did not know what France's Champs-Elysees would look like until I was told it has resemblance to Omotesando, while walking towards the huge GAP shop at the end of the corner. Big name fashion botiques are lined in harmony with the tiled passages and slender trees. The weather was in late teens and having a walk in this place is at it's ideal, brushing elbows with the elite Tokyo shoppers hopping from one shop to another.

Thursday, November 03, 2005

The Japan Ordeal

Two weeks before Alma Moreno and Company figured in a detention and deportation, I was at the very same immigration counter where they were also queuing up to finally get their passports the confirmation stamps allowing them to stay in Japan.

The place is not the best you can have for an immigration counter. Just like the famed string cords often seen on Philippine offices that anticipate long lines of taxpayers, bank depositors or passport applicants, it is also used to divide the long lines into a series of shorter ones to efficiently manage a large number of people in a relatively small room.

When I arrived at Narita Airport it was about 1pm local time as my Dragon Air flight from Hong Kong got delayed for an hour. Our group was already occupying the end of the queue and with the looks of it I will probably take 20 minutes to reach the counter. We were in the waiting line for non-Japanese which is similar to what tourists to Hong Kong might have experienced standing for quite a while when the Hong "Kong Residents" or "Permanent Card Holders" lines have half a dozen in each queue.

The guy in front of me spent his waiting time equally mumbling of the long line and staring at a pocketbook. There were many Taiwanese and a handful of Americans but no sight of a Filipina entertainer, Japan's counterpart to Hong Kong's Filipina household worker.

Along the line, I can see signs in Korean and Japanese but no English nor Chinese. On the other end I saw an African man asking questions to young Japanese attendants and by the look of their faces they don't seem to understand each other. I never saw a heavily armed man on deck for a possible subduing of an unauthorized person trying to enter Tokyo. All I see visibly enough was the elderly guide who shows the people what immigration counter they should go to.

The memory was still vivid. I cannot imagine if one actress or actor can receive such treatment if their offense was allegedly bringing someone who was a last-minute inclusion to the entourage and believing a hoodlum who sends fax as if Narita is going to explode once they are allowed to pass through the immigration. But that's how we see things go in Japan and in other countries. Celebrity or not, once you have been suspected of something sneaky, you'll never get off unscathed.

How embarrassing not just as a respected actress but as a citizen of the Philippines. That's the law. In the Philippines, airport employees from airline staff to cleaners have the privilege to see celebrities first hand. Guess who were the most pathetic fans who saw Taiwanese quartet F4 first land in Manila for a concert. You are correct.

Japan is a beautiful country. But with the history telling us that it used to be our staunchest enemies who brought our elders the jitters and the pains of a traumatic childhood. Remember though that the younger generation of Japan asked for forgiveness for the "mistakes" of their elders and even lavished us with aid, financial, logistics and jobs.

What's important is that someone must know and admit he/she is at fault and avoid same occurence again. Whether it's the Japanese immigration or Alma Moreno's group, I do not know.