I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS IS THE PHILIPPINES

I had not expected the island of Coron to be the most beautiful place I've ever been. In fact, I can't believe I didn't know this is what The Philippines looks like! Watch my reaction to Palawan as every single site blows me away in this Coron travel vlog. On our boat tour around Coron Palawan we visited:

Maquinit Hot Spring

Twin Lagoon

Coral Garden

CYC Beach

Balinsasayaw Beach

Skeleton Wreck

Barracuda Lake

Kayangan Lake & View Deck

Coron is full of must-see destinations, and I'm so grateful we got to see so many of the best things to do in Palawan!

© Claire Hawkins 2023

Spielberg channels inner child at Berlin film festival

by Agence-France-Presse

Steven Spielberg (AFP)

BERLIN (AFP) – Three-time Academy Award winner Steven Spielberg on Tuesday said childhood trauma had shaped almost all of his work as he prepared to accept a lifetime achievement award at the Berlinale film festival. 

Spielberg, 76, said he was “obviously… very traumatised” by the experience of conflict in his family home and his parents divorce.

That was why “I’d be attracted to subjects like ‘Empire of the Sun’,” in which a young boy is torn away from his family in China and sent to a Japanese war camp, he said. 

“I’m sure had my parents not gotten a divorce, I would not have chosen ‘Empire of the Sun’ as a film to direct,” he said. 

The Hollywood A-lister also spoke of still feeling the same inspiration he did “as a little kid” when he makes films today.

“All those decades later, I feel… the same level of excitement when I find a book or a script or come up with an original idea that I think could make a good movie,” he said. 

– ‘Heart of a child’ – 

French director Francois Truffaut had ultimately persuaded him to make “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” by telling him he had “the heart of a child”, Spielberg said.

“Truffaut was the one that said, you gotta make a picture with kids,” he said.

Spielberg is to collect an honorary Golden Bear for his life’s work on Tuesday evening at the Berlinale, Europe’s first major cinema showcase of the year.

The festival is also screening a retrospective of his work, including classics such as “Raiders of the Lost Ark”, “Jaws” and “Schindler’s List”, as well as his latest project, the semi-autobiographical film “The Fabelmans”.

“The Fabelmans” tells the mostly true story of Spielberg’s own childhood and introduction to film-making in post-war America.

The film, starring Paul Dano and Michelle Williams, has already received wide critical acclaim, picking up top nods at both the 2023 Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards. 

It has also been nominated for five Oscars.

Talking about the film, Spielberg said it was the “most emotional” project he had ever worked on.

“I was telling a story with a lot of funny parts but with a lot of parts that were very traumatising,” he said.

The star director also revealed that he is pressing ahead with a television mini-series about Napoleon, based on a screenplay by Stanley Kubrick.

The project, first floated in 2013, is being planned as “a seven-part limited series”, he said.

Germany working on new immigration law to attract more Filipino workers

Philstar.com

MANILA, Philippines — Germany is hoping to attract more workers from the Philippines through a new immigration law, citing the profound contributions of Filipino workers to their local industries who have since relocated there.

Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany Annalena Baerbock, in a joint press conference with Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo, said they are grateful that there are “many people in the past [that] traveled from the Philippines to Germany and stayed [there] in order to work.” 

“Thousands [of] skilled and qualified personnel from the Philippines work in Germany as I’ve said and we felt the qualifications and expertise of these people,” Baerbock said on Monday.

In 2013, Berlin and Manila inked a deal called the Triple Win Program, which facilitates the deployment of workers in the healthcare industry to Germany. 

More Filipino healthcare workers may be deployed to Germany as the two countries inked another deal that will open up more opportunities for Filipino healthcare workers, skilled workers, and other professionals. 

“As a federal government, we are drafting and working on a new law on immigration, especially with an eye to attracting skilled labor and qualified labor,” Baerbock said.

“Thus, our cooperation with you in that area is of the greatest importance. It’s also very much about ensuring equal conditions and standards for skilled labor.”

Manalo was in Germany to attend this year’s Munich Security Conference. While there, Baerbock also underscored the importance of following international law when it comes to matters related to maritime claims. 

Climate change support

Aside from labor and securing the rights of migrant workers, the two leaders also discussed the importance of climate change and its impact on the population.

“The Philippines, by virtue of its geographic circumstances and location, is one of the most disaster prone countries in the world, which is why making the country climate-smart and disaster-ready is a priority of the Philippine government and we know we have a reliable partner in this regard with the German government,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Manalo said. 

Berlin also pointed out that Manila, despite having “relatively low” CO2 and gas emissions, bears the brunt of its consequences. Baerbock noted the importance of putting up a loss and damage fund. 

She also said the Philippines is already among the priority countries of its International Climate Initiative, Germany’s climate financing commitment to help countries adapt to the impacts of climate change and over €50 million has been allocated to support the Philippines. 

“[The Philippines] also set out on an ambitious course in the field of energy transition and focus more on getting electricity from renewables,” Baerbock noted. 

Both officials also recognized other aspects of the bilateral relationship, such as working with Gemany on the peace process in Mindanao and in ensuring that international rules-based order is abided by parties in the West Philippine Sea, and in improving the human rights protections in the Philippines.