Quick Reaction

Yo!

Just came back home from an eco walk of sorts LOL.

Lesson learned!!! Always be alert and keep your camera on Hahahaha!

Imagine as we were all focusing on a certain object, i just tried to reposition myself to get a better angle and BOOM! There it was, a very rare bird. So what do i do? Alert my companions and tell them about it and risk that bird flying away once it notices the commotion? Or be selfish for the sake of taking quick photos of that rare bird?

Nyahahaha! I did the latter. Sorry guys but i just had to, or else that bird would have flown away. And so i was able to take three decent shots....well i was at speed shot mode, i actually got several but only three stood out. Its just sad because i couldnt move as quickly as i wanted since i didnt want to scare that bird away.

After showing my companions what i got oh boy they were a bit mad but i did explain. So as a sign of good faith i decided to turn off my camera and just accompany them. I sat down far away and BOOM! Bad idea. A really big butterfly landed nearby, i shouted and called their attention. They came running and the butterfly flew away.

"Did you get it?" they asked. Nyahahaha. Even if the GE X5 can turn on in two seconds, i was not able to get a shot since i called their attention. So i sat down again and another butterfly came close. Selfishness has its benefits ahahahahaha.

Ive been taking shots daily since Monday, so its time for me to sit back and go back to what i do best....

So i might not be blogging for a few days as March enters. I am going to be busy with comm works again. As for Bespren...well its just there. I got a new Bespren story by the way. Still thinking about names but definitely they will be best friends. The girl is an aspiring singer, while the guy is just there to always support her. It has a cool twist too ahahaha.

Resbak...its just there. I actually have another story in mind...its about Frank ahaha. Then a vampire, and a boxer and a love story between a human being and an angel or something like that.

I am so going to watch American Idol season ten weekly now! My favorites are Casey Abrams, Jacob Lusk, Scotty Mcreery and of course Thia Megia (Half Pinay as they say).

In terms of voice and belting it out i would go for Jacob Lusk, geez you should see this guy sing. He could go really low and then belt it out in a high pitch girly voice.

Casey Abrams is the musician. He auditioned with his blown organ ahahaha. I dont know what that thing is called and i am sorry. It has a piano and you blow it so its a blown organ ahahaha. Then in a solo performance he blew me away by singing and playing a bass. Oh yeah the traditional bass guitar, yeah the big one and not the electric. Damn! He was soooooo good.

As for Scotty, well he has a major deep voice. As deep as under the ocean voice ahahaha. You should hear him. But he is a cowboy of sorts, at 17 and with that voice oh man you should hear him and you wouldnt believe it comes from him. He is more of a country singer but hey he can trade punches if he goes out of his comfort zone.

As for Thia, well what can i say? Pinay yan e! She is really and it even seems she isnt trying that much. I would really agree with her voice coach in Vegas, that terror of a lady did really push her and it did wonders for Thia as she was praised by the judges.

Anyway thats it for now.

Ciao!

I do hope you like the pics. Most of them are at my FB account. Flickr can only accomodate 300MB a month so by March i might post my other pics there.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/paulitox/

Parade of Floats

Watch the live streaming of the parade here

http://www.livestream.com/panagbenga

Yo!

The sun was playing tricks a while ago. There were dark clouds but now the sun is cooperating LOL. There were supposed to be 24 floats for today's parade but one had an accident just a while ago as it was heading towards the starting area.

Well reports say that it lost brakes so the driver had to ram it elsewhere because they were going down a slope. So that leaves us with 23 floats but come on twenty three floats is already a lot. Well i do hope they are all eye candy worthy and not just a car or truck being covered with assorted flowers.

To be honest i didnt like the parade yesterday. It was utterly boring, sorry for being honest. The only part i liked was when the Northern Luzon college band performed. So to the organizers if you think upping the tempo of the theme would do you wonders then think again.

The parade was too fast! Geez! And even if they performed in the Athletic Bowl, seriously it was boring! Next year lighten up on the rules and themes. Just make the street dancers do what they want to entertain the crowd!

The parade of yesteryears were far better. Lighten up on the tradition themes!

So Enjoy the live streaming as i will go watch now LOL.

Ciao!

Panagbenga Live Stream

Yo!

Good day to all! Baguio City was designed for 25 thousand people only. Seriously that was the plan of the Americans who occupied this city years ago. Currently Baguio has 250 thousand residents, well not all are from here, there are lots of students from other places coming to Baguio to study.

You cant blame them since Saint Louis University is here, and its one of the best Universities in our country. I am not saying that because i graduated from there but trust me on this one.

But right now for Panagbenga...we do have double. Yep, as always during these days Baguio has 500 thousand people. So can you imagine how crowded it is up here? All hotels, motels, transient houses are fully booked and some even choosing to camp out. Well the latter good luck to you people because its too cold ahahaha.

Years ago the parades were scheduled in the afternoon but after one Panagbenga where it rained everything changed. I remember that certain festival, even if it was raining hard the parade went through. Even if the coordinators were telling the participants to stop and take shelter...oh no the Baguio peeps decided to continue with the show to entertain the tourists.

Majority of the contestants were children, oh yeah elementary children. Under the rain they strutted, danced and just kept performing. After the parade lots of them got really sick but you have to give them credit. Para sa ikakasaya ng masa sabi nila.

So after that coordinators decided to reschedule and now we do have the parades in the morning. That is why as early as 5 in the morning, Session Road is already crowded, literally. Oh and you cant just squeeze yourself, youre going to get hell ahahaha. Seriously, no one wants to move once they have a good spot. If you stand youre going to get bashed and picked on so better sit down so everyone can watch the parade.

My all time favorite participants...the PMA band! But they are already in the hall of fame but still they participate each year to entertain the crowd. Its best if you watch them at the Athletic bowl...Melvin Jones this year i think. The PMA band will never disappoint i tell you.

As for the floats...Baguio Country Club is already in the hall of fame, because they make really good floats!!! This year i dont know who is going to slug it out, it might be SM.

Funny fact, when we peeps here the parade of floats...we always imagine that giant swan ahahaha. Silver swan soy sauce ahahaha and their catch is alway Angelica Panganiban. I dont know if they still participate but years before they were always there.

Country Club Floats will still be the best...i cant forget their paradise float...geez it even had a waterfall!

Anyway stop talking about the parades. For some who get irritated with the crowd you can opt to go somewhere else. We do have resorts here by the way ahahaha. Try Asin Hot Springs. Yes they have hot water pools.

If you want you tons of waterfalls then proceed to Kennon road area. There are lots of them there. If you want some extreme adventure then proceed to Marcos highway, Tuba area i think and you will be treated to an eco park of sorts and some more surprises.

Try trecking to the top of the radars. Mount Sto Tomas is always a treat. If youre too lazy to treck dont worry there is a winding road to the top. If you want a little adventure then you can opt to go vertical ahahaha. Its not a difficult climb, its just alright but once youre on top the view is magnificent. Just dont say its still Baguio or else the people there would get mad ahahaha. Its a good photo op by the way and if you decide to be more adventurous, from the radars hike some more and you will end up at Kennon area and for sure youre going to see lots of waterfalls.

Now, if you really want to experience being above the clouds, hike to Mount Pulag. Oh boy youre going to get a major treat because that is one of the highest peaks in our country. Its too cold up there so dress up and never forget your camera trust me.

Forget about the popular scenic spots of Baguio. You can always come back for them. I would suggest opting for the less known because usually when other people see your photos they would be more amazed and be asking "Saan yan?!!!" ahahaha.

Anyway i just suggest you avoid the crowds if you want to have fun.

Hot coffee...channel 12 on TV showing Sessionroad now...yup too many people already. its only 7AM and parade starts in an hour.

Ciao!

Panagbenga Live Stream

http://www.livestream.com/panagbenga

Yellow Fever

Yo!

Little did i know that today was February 25. Seriously, lately i am not paying attention much on the date or even what day it is.

I promised myself that i would stay inside the house and write...after coffee...my GE X5 was strapped around my neck again and i was outside taking a stroll. My goal was to find a stash of Sunflowers and Pine cones.

After thirty minutes i did find some Sunflowers but they were too far away. Yes the camera has 15 times optical zoom but still the flowers were so small. I activated the digital zoom, now i got 85 times zoom but the price is even the slightest shake the picture would be blurry.

I do have a tripod but i was too lazy to take it with me and so i rolled out my connections ahahaha. I am close with few carpenters nearby, i asked them to deliver some Sunflowers to my home and so they did. The pine cone was easy since there are lots of pine trees around. I managed to find two on the ground so everything was okay now.

I will be posting some pics here and the rest would be in my FB album while the once i find nice will be posted on my Flickr account.

Yellow Fever Set

http://www.flickr.com/photos/paulitox/sets/72157626007285709/

Main Account

http://www.flickr.com/photos/paulitox/

I saw yellow today ahahaha.

Baguio peeps do stay home since a lot of people are flocking to the city already. Tomorrow will not be a good day to go around the city trust me ahahahaha.

Ciao!

Baguio Flower Festival

"Under the Sunflower"

"Electric Sayote"

Sunflower

Sunflower Shade

"Dead and Alive"

"Porcupine"

"She still isnt there..."

Yo!

Its February 24, two more days before the two grand parades of the city. Well for those who do not know the Flower Festival started last February 1st and its going to last up to March 6. Yup its not just two days like most of you know.

There was an opening parade last February 1, then lots of activities around the city after that. Most people know about the Street dance parade and parade of floats, so you missed a lot actually. People think the parades are the highlights of the festival but i would beg to disagree. I like the Session Road in Bloom much better. This year its going to happen on February 28 up to March 6.

So in line with the Flower Festival i will be posting some pictures. Please do take note i am just a beginner and i am not using a DSLR. I only have a GE X5 camera.

I waited last night for the moon, my tripod was ready but it was just too cold to stay outside for a long time. I gave up waiting for the moon around 10PM.

This morning around eight, the moon was there. The sky was so clear and the sun was shining brightly. So odd taking pictures of the moon at daylight ahaha but i did. Then my Energizer batteries drained, wow i cant believe it lasted a whole week.

I charged my new batteries last week, Wednesday to be exact in preparation of my trip to La Union. I brought along spare batteries just in case but my new batteries survived the whole La Union trip. Now that is Energizer for you. Its only 2300 mAh by the way. I saw an advertisement about Akira batteries, 2800 mAh and it says it can last 600 shots. Psst my energizer batteries gave me 700 solid shots with excessive use of the flash because of that moon photoshoot ahahaha.

So i will be posting of my daylight moon shots. I strolled around the neighborhood and i finally took a shot of a "Porcupine"! Now i can make that video story that i have been planning. And yes the famous Sunflower i did manage to take several shots too.

And there is one more....i present to you the Electric Sayote ahahahaha.

I managed to make a Flickr account and here it is

http://www.flickr.com/photos/paulitox/

Until next time...

Ciao!

Writing Groove is Back!

Yo!

Yeah you read that right. I finally got my writing groove back. I will finish Bespren! The copy on the blog is crap. Trust me on this one.

So i will just keep this short since i want to go out and shoot ahahaha. The sun is shining brightly and my writing can wait. There is no rush anyway since my story is just going to get shelved on my hard drive.

After Bespren i really am going to write Resbak.

So see how lucky i was this morning in my shoot session. Oh yeah butterflies and of course the "Penis" plant ahahaha.

Ciao!

Baguio Peeps Panic Mode

Yo!

Yup you read that right. We Baguio residents do go into panic mode as the Flower Festival parades nears. Most of us go to the market and groceries to stock on food already that will last for about a week to two weeks.

Why? Because the city does not become ours for a few days. We would rather stay at home and watch the lousy coverage of the parades on TV rather than squeeze ourselves in the thick crowd who go watch.

I do remember the first one, oh yeah it was so much fun watching since you could stand relaxed with much breathing space. You can even follow the parade as they go to the Athletic bowl. As years passed the tourists started pouring in and watching the parade was not that enjoyable anymore.

So we would rather stay at home.

Can you imagine some people already sleeping along Session road and even Burnham park just to get a good position as the sun rises. Can you imagine at 6 in the morning there is already a thick crowd along Session road. Oh boy if you thought coming around 7 since the parades starts at 8 is already early then think again.

Years ago the parade used to start in the afternoon. Me and my friends one time didnt know there was a parade and we were happily stuck on top of Session road. Why happy? Because we got the watch the parade up close. It was so much fun back then since "WALANG SIKSIKAN" ahahaha. You can enjoy watching rather than being paranoid that a pickpocket is beside you ahahaha.

So word of advice if you want to watch the parade on the 26th go as early as 5am and position yourself on top of Session road. If not choose to go early to Athletic bowl and get comfortable seats on the bleachers and wait for the parade to arrive.

Why athletic bowl? Because the contestants will perform one at a time on center of the field. Oh trust me sacrifice the up close view that you will get along Session road. Take note they are marching down so most of the time not all contestants will get the chance to perfrorm in front of your location. You will be lucky if the parade stops due to traffic.

If you want to watch them all perform better be at the Athletic bowl. The same goes to the parade of floats the following day.

Some people just come for the parade but they are terrible wrong. The parades are just eye candy. If you want to have fun then you better be in Baguio for Session Road in Bloom. That is one whole week where the whole stretch of Session Road is closed to traffic.

The streets will be filled up with outdoor restaurants and so much food stalls and souvenir stores. Lots of concerts every night and its just so much fun strolling along Session Road while eating assorted food.

How i miss those HUGE SWEET CORN on stick, the HUGE slices of pizza. Shawarma and siomai and so many more. Its like everywhere you look there is food ahahaha. But take note there are no portable toilets ahahaha so tell your stomach to cooperate.

There will always be something about Panagbenga...February 27 several years ago. Session Road was closed...we were supposed to meet around lunch time but she failed to show up or there was miscommunication. But in the evening...a red laser light hit my eye...it was her on the second floor of the restaurant across the street. Those mini laser pointers was the in thing years ago, i retaliated with my own laser and a few minutes later she came down and crossed the street and we finally met.

That was February 27, 1999

Tourists coming up to Baguio for the Flower Festival you wont enjoy the scenic scenes here since there are too many people. Give me a holler and i will point you to some secret scenic spots that seldom people know about.

I might be able to test shoot my camera because i do hate crowds. But maybe i will. Will do post some pics for those who are not able to come to the Festival.

Ciao!

Boredom Strikes...

Yo!

Woke up this morning feeling so empty. Rode the bike and watched tv but whatever they were saying i could not comprehend. Its just the story of the real Bespren floating around my head. Thirty minutes passed and i was perspiring and Nonito is being shown on tv.

Took a bath and had my coffee in front of the television but still my mind was far away and my fingers were twitching. They are raring to type something so i just took my camera and headed out. Lucky enough there was an eagle, oh yeah an eagle that landed on a nearby pine tree. The sad part is that the sun was so bright and i could not take a shot since it will just end up all dark.

Pissed off i was but my mind wandered off again, when i came back to my senses there was this white butterfly on my camera. Wow will someone please take a shot of me ahahaha. I didnt move and waited for the butterfly to move to a nearby plant, so it did. I quickly turned on my camera and was only able to take two shots. After that i was bored.

This is my body and mind telling me to write and complete Bespren already ahahaha. So i will do it and then let it rot on my hard drive. When i was getting ready my mind was flooded by ideas for another Bespren story and even Resbak.

Let me post some pics first. I said i wont write but my body wants to so i write...

Ciao!