VIPs gather for the grand opening of Victoria's Secret at SM Megamall

 

By Jessica Pag-iwayan

Published May 7, 2026 10:34 am

On April 28, 2026, Victoria’s Secret opened its second store in the Philippines, located at SM Megamall. The brand continues to expand its presence in the region, bringing its signature collections and elevated shopping experience to one of the country’s premier retail destinations.

Executive director of Valiram Group Mukesh Valiram, director of Valiram Group Roshan Valiram, Pia Wurtzbach, SM Supermalls president Steven Tan, and president of Victoria's Secret International Arun Bhardwaj

Among the notable individuals who attended the opening night were Steven Tan, Pia Wurtzbach-Jauncey, a friend of the house, and actress Ina Raymundo. Executives from Valiram were also present.

“This is the opening of our most beautiful store in the Philippines here at SM Megamall,” xxx from Valiram said. “Together with all of you, we celebrate and welcome you to the store.”   

The new Victoria’s Secret store offers an extensive assortment of the brand’s most-loved collections, including signature bras, panties, and sleepwear from lines such as Very Sexy, Body by Victoria, T-Shirt, and Dream Angels. Customers can also explore a wide range of accessories and beauty products, including fine fragrances, body care, and the iconic Bombshell scent.

Meanwhile, Mukesh Valiram, executive director of the Valiram Group, thanked the Philippine market for supporting Victoria’s Secret for over 10 years. “Thank you, Manila. Thank you, Philippines, and thank you, SM. This store has grown into a flagship store, and we are so proud,” he said.

One ASEAN, one Filipino purpose

By Manila Bulletin Newsroom

Published May 8, 2026 12:05 am | Updated May 7, 2026 06:05 pm

Today, as the 48th ASEAN Summit formally opens in Cebu, the Philippines once again finds itself at the center of a defining regional conversation. Beneath the ceremonies, diplomatic handshakes, and carefully prepared speeches lies a deeper challenge. Can Southeast Asia move forward together amid uncertainty, conflict, economic disruption, and intensifying global competition? For Filipinos, this summit must be viewed not merely as a government event, but as a national responsibility and a shared opportunity.

The theme, “Navigating Our Future, Together,” carries a message that resonates well beyond diplomacy. It recognizes that no nation can confront today’s crises alone. Energy insecurity, food shortages, climate vulnerability, cyber threats, and the protection of migrant workers are realities now affecting millions of ordinary families across the region, including Filipino households struggling with rising prices and economic instability. ASEAN’s strength has always depended on cooperation, and this summit offers a chance to strengthen that principle at a time when unity is urgently needed.

In a country often divided by politics, ideology, religion, and social class, the ASEAN Summit reminds us that national and regional interests should rise above partisan conflict. Governments change, political camps compete, and opinions differ, but the long-term welfare of the Filipino people must remain a common ground. Hosting ASEAN is not about elevating one administration or one political figure. It is about presenting the Philippines as a responsible, capable, and forward-looking member of the regional community.

The government, therefore, carries a heavy responsibility. Beyond ensuring security and order, it must demonstrate competence, professionalism, and sincerity in hosting the summit. Infrastructure, transportation, communication systems, emergency preparedness, and public services must function efficiently because every detail reflects the country’s readiness and credibility. More importantly, Philippine leaders must use this platform to advance concrete solutions rather than symbolic declarations. Discussions on food security, renewable energy, maritime cooperation, disaster resilience, and labor protection should produce measurable commitments that directly benefit the people of Southeast Asia.

Yet the success of this summit cannot rest on the government alone.

The private sector also has a crucial role to play. Businesses, tourism stakeholders, transport operators, hotels, restaurants, and media organizations are ambassadors of the country’s image. Professionalism, fairness, honesty, and excellence in service will shape how visiting delegates and observers remember the Philippines. Investors and regional partners pay attention not only to official meetings but also to the overall environment they experience. A nation that demonstrates discipline, innovation, and reliability earns confidence that can lead to economic opportunities long after the summit concludes.

Equally important is the role of ordinary Filipinos. Hospitality is often described as one of our greatest strengths, but this moment calls for more than warmth and smiles. It demands civic maturity and national pride. Respect for public order, responsible use of social media, and a willingness to welcome guests despite political differences are all part of representing the country well. Every Filipino becomes a silent participant in diplomacy when the world’s attention turns toward our shores.

At a time when many societies are increasingly polarized, the ASEAN Summit offers a timely reminder that unity does not require uniformity. We do not need to agree on every political issue to stand together for peace, stability, prosperity, and regional cooperation. The Filipino spirit has always been strongest during moments that demand collective purpose.

As ASEAN leaders gather in Cebu, the Philippines has an opportunity not only to host a successful summit but also to affirm who we are as a people: resilient, peace-loving, democratic, and deeply committed to cooperation with our neighbors. If we seize this moment with wisdom and unity, the summit will become a statement of national character and regional hope.

Davao City Council honors SPMC for citations

 

By Ivy Tejano

Published May 6, 2026 10:53 pm

DAVAO CITY – The Davao City Council commended the Southern Philippines Medical Center here led by Dr. Ricardo B. Audan, on Tuesday, May 5, for receiving multiple national and international awards.

Audan said the awards represent more than institutional recognition. “They honor the dedication of thousands of healthcare workers, administrative employees, and support staff who continue to deliver service with compassion, excellence, and resilience.”

Councilor Trisha Ann Villafuerte, chairwoman of the Committee on Health, congratulated SPMC for being the Most Sustainable and Livable Hospital in the Philippines during the 10th Nation Builders and MOSLIV Awards at Okada Manila on April 22.

Villafuerte said the recognition reflects SPMC’s commitment to creating a hospital environment that is sustainable and conducive for both patients and healthcare workers.

Audan was named the Most Visionary Iconic Professional of the Year during the Grand Honors 2026 Asia Iconic Excellence and Innovation Awards in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The recognition placed Audan among Asia’s distinguished healthcare leaders and highlighted his role in steering the hospital’s growth.

The SPMC was also cited by the Philippine Hospital Association as first runner-up in the Most Outstanding Hospital Award for the government sector, Level 3 category, on Nov. 19, 2025, at The Manila Hotel.

The SPMC was ranked 29th in the Philippines in the list of the World’s Best Hospitals 2026 published by Newsweek and Statista on Feb. 25, 2026.

The hospital has maintained a five-star rating for four consecutive years under the Department of Health’s Green Viability Assessment program that measures environmental sustainability in healthcare facilities.

The SPMC ranked 142nd among 300 employers nationwide in the Philippines’ Best Employers 2026 survey.

“These awards are not just for SPMC. They are for every Davaoeño, every Mindanaoan, every Filipino who has ever depended on this great institution,” Villafuerte said.

These citations came as SPMC continues to deal with overcrowding and staffing shortages. Hospital officials have acknowledged these issues.

 

LET’S ENTERTAIN OURSELVES!

By

 Mindanao Daily News

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May 8, 2026

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Let’s absolutely entertain ourselves! Engaging in enjoyable activities—like streaming new films, reading, playing games, or learning a new skill—is essential for mental health, creativity, and stress reduction. It is a wonderful way to relax, feel productive, and take a well-deserved break.

Your body releases endorphins when you participate in entertaining or fun activities. This chemical is known to relieve stress and pain. Therefore, entertainment can bring a degree of happiness into your life. You can entertain yourself in different ways.

The most simple answer is to entertain yourself when you don’t have any energy left. Avoid spending time on entertainment when you’re most energetic if you have more productive things to do, like work, taking care of someone, school, etc.

Ask yourself what it is that you want to achieve in your life, your passion and dream. Once we will be able to feed ourselves with our own thoughts, then we will not.

Not a single day goes by without terrible news. It makes us tired and sick – mentally and physically. Many give up and withdraw in their loneliness. A legal solitude from “somewhere up there”.

Many wonder whether it is good for our future, for the economy, for education, and for our personal life and its surroundings. Well, I don’t want to swap with those up there ahd having to make the right decisions at the right time. You can already notice some things, people are becoming more and more aggressive, no matter where in the world.

Let’s entertain ourselves! Quite simply and clearly expressed. Since my retirement but staying longer  in my home office, I’ve been trying to entertain myself. I enjoy writing more – writing was and still is one of my hobbies. I enjoy playing my different instruments. I ignored that for years.

Pick up a book you’ve been meaning to read or explore new digital worlds through audible.

I enjoy listening to music from my incredibly large record collection back to 1936. I put my photo album collection in the right order. Incidentally, this is a wonderful task, since I am currently working on my  biography.

Go bowling, play LIFE, or do something you haven’t done since you were a kid. This can get people laughing and will keep them from taking themselves too seriously. Play a light game of basketball or volleyball. This will keep people entertained and active.

Entertaining means to talk with my wife and family personally too, and not only by messenger. Playing with the dogs, gardening, watching the daily TV-mass, praying … .

Yes, it’s our new abnormality we have to live with. We must not get down. Trust in God. It’s all in His hands.

Elisia Parmisano turns K-pop dream into reality with UNIS

 

By Carissa Alcantara

Elisia Parmisano of UNIS

It all started with a dream: making people happy.

Now, 17-year-old Filipina Elisia Parmisano is doing exactly that as part of a K-pop group representing Pinoy talent on the international stage.

During an intimate media gathering last May 2 in Quezon City, Elisia recalls the moment she decided to pursue her goal.

“I started in Philippine showbiz when I was 7 or 8 years old. Siguro around 11, I began getting interested in K-pop. That led me to train in Korea at 13—and now I’m here,” Elisia said, recalling her journey to becoming a member of UNIS.

Going into rigorous training, Elisia was able to adjust quickly thanks to the support of the other members of the group. “In Korea, the culture teaches us to focus purely on our craft," she noted.

Elisia feels no pressure carrying Filipino pride on stage as K-pop Idol.

"Instead of pressure, I feel pride as a Pinoy. I still carry that responsibility, na I have to do good in the name of my country. With all of my achievements, it comes with the Filipino name po talaga," she said.

Two years in with UNIS, Elisia said they are all happy with what they have achieved so far as a group.

"Being with UNIS for two years, super happy po kami po talaga kami as a group. Even though at first we had this different cultural stuff, we were able to adjust to that," she shared.    

Bridging the gap between two distinct entertainment worlds requires talent and a deep cultural understanding. Elisia’s ability to navigate her career in English, Filipino, and Korean allows her to connect authentically with a global audience. This trilingual fluency serves as her primary tool for storytelling, ensuring that the Filipino heart remains with her.

“There is a certain charming point po when it comes to our friendliness and our pakikisama po sa tao in general. We would never go unnoticed, I think, when it comes to being in the entertainment scene in another country. In a good way, we're a different breed; we're always so happy, we're always so bright. There's a certain charming point po talaga.” Elisia added.

She recalls practicing facial expressions in the mirror, inspired by the screen presence of Marian Rivera and the vocal prowess of Asia’s Songbird, Regine Velasquez. These influences, alongside the journey of her cousin, HORI7ON’s Marcus, have shaped her belief that performance is about soulful connection rather than just hitting the right notes.

“Siyempre Filipino tayo, we're always singing. Whenever I sing in karaoke, my family would always say, " You sing with feelings, you sing with your heart, not just with your voice. You put yourself into the song, so when it comes to the recording of songs, or interpreting the meaning or the message of the songs, Tina-try ko po talaga to give my all."

UNIS is an eight-member girl group under F&F Entertainment. They were formed through the SBS show Universe Ticket and debuted in March 2024 with their mini album "We UNIS."

The K-pop group held its first fan meet in the Philippines last October 2024 at the New Frontier Theater.

Why is the Filipino culture very loving, huggable, patient, fun, understanding, and warm?

Filipino Relationship and Dating

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Following

Answered by 

Ghemma Marie

If you ask those non-Filipino people who spend years living in the Philippines, you’ll be surprise why their answers can be a little different. It can be easy for me to say YES, but I wan’t to be realistic as well.

In general, yes, Filipinos are warm, approachable, generous and hospitable. They care more about what others think or say, which influences the social behavior so behaving as such (friendly, warm, being fun) makes others think of us in a positive way, and in turn has positive effect on our self steem or something. This is also why Filipinos in general hate confrontations.

I don’t want to brag, but Filipino have a naturally caring and sympathetic mindset, thus they’re hospitable. I can rate that 8 out of 10. You can noticed this overseas when they reach out to each other to help a Filipino in need. Most of the time its happening.

However, let me remind you that Filipinos are fierce. Criticise them and all hell will break loose. The “very loving, huggable, patient, fun, understanding, and warm demeanour” will quickly morph into a defensive snarling creature. Its something like this, you can’t make a criticism about us Filipinos, but we can about you.

The problem with Filipinos is we’re overprotective. Not of our culture, of our identity, of our resources – but of our pride. We have so much pride, we even made a tagline out of it #PinoyPride. We’ve become overly sensitive, easily offended at the slightest of criticisms that we end up refusing not to better ourselves because we’d rather be right and win an argument, than admit to be wrong and improve.

OUR BREAKING POINT(S)

 

By Klaus Döring

A breaking point is a moment when there's so much stress or pressure that mental or physical strength just can't hold up.

A breaking point is a moment of greatest strain. Interestingly enough, the breaking points are the moments in which we need to stay calmer. Research shows that trying to control every event increases our stress.

A breaking point is a moment of stress in which we break down — it feels like you are never going to get back up again. We are more than under pressure — the situation becomes critical for our survival. Everyone faces a breaking point — we all get there in distinct ways.

A breakeven point is when total costs and total revenue are equal. It's the sales level you need to reach to cover all of your costs. Your business cannot be profitable until it has reached this point.

"Breaking point" refers to the stage where an individual's ability to cope with stress, pressure, or a difficult situation is overwhelmed, leading to a loss of control or a critical situation. It can manifest as a mental or emotional breakdown, or as a point where a situation becomes untenable and requires immediate change.

 

Situational stress:
A relationship, a job, or a challenging project could reach a breaking point where it becomes unsustainable.
Cumulative stress:
A breaking point can also be the result of prolonged, low-grade stress that gradually builds up over time, eventually reaching a threshold.

 
In essence, a breaking point is a point of no return where the individual or situation can no longer withstand the existing pressure or stress. It can be a catalyst for positive change, forcing a reevaluation of priorities and leading to necessary adjustments. 

When I hear the word breaking point I usually think that it's like a bomb that could explode. For me, to be in my breaking point is the state of being exhausted in everything. Thinking that it's time to end something… Most people think that when we say we are in our breaking point it's easy to come up with a negative idea yet sometimes breaking point is not only to end something because you are exhausted, we can revise it in a positive thinking like breaking point can be a new beginning for us to be able to begin a new life with a weapon and that is our learning from our breaking point.

In human psychology, the breaking point is a moment of stress at which a person breaks down and is unable to cope with it. This obviously varies from individual to individual.

I got my first breaking point as a German expatriate in the Philippines as a result of culture shocks. This was a long time ago and very much different from today's situation.  Meanwhile I have been living here smooth and sound for several years.

Nowadays, many people are  experiencing mood changes. Indeed, the emotional effects of stress can have a serious impact on your day-to-day mood and mental health. Firstly, you may find that you’re feeling more irritated or pessimistic than usual. This mood change can then begin to affect your motivation to work, socialise with your loved ones or complete the things on your to-do list. If left unchecked, these feelings can threaten to completely overwhelm you, leaving you feeling apathetic, depressed, frustrated, panicky or trapped.

If you've been asking yourself, “How do I fix my relationship?,” you may already be at a breaking point. A breaking point is when an argument or disagreement starts to become invasive in your life. Is it impacting your other relationships? Is it impacting your work? Is it impacting your health?

A lot of people around me can’t seem to focus or concentrate properly. If you’re battling to concentrate, keep focused or remember certain things, this is a good indication that you’re feeling the effects of anxiety. These changes in thinking and memory (also known as “brain fog”) can occur when you’re trying to manage several stressful situations at once, which can make you confused and forgetful. These situations may include demanding jobs or emotionally-taxing tasks. Unregulated emotional exhaustion can really impact your attention, executive functioning (organising and planning), and memory.

A lot of people are expressing  difficulty with personal relationships. You’ll often notice emotional exhaustion from prolonged stress manifesting in your relationship and your capacity to connect with your family on a meaningful emotional level. You may find yourself picking fights over small things, feeling angry at or unsatisfied with your partner or being overly judgemental. Tension in your close relationships can cause you to feel anxious, detached, and withdrawn which can make it difficult to ask for emotional support when you need it or be there for those you love.

Low self-esteem is being reported a lot these days. If lately you’ve found your mind overwhelmed with negative thoughts, you’ve probably also noticed their impact on how you view yourself. Perhaps you’re feeling more cynical and hopeless than usual? Or maybe you’ve lacked confidence in situations where you would normally speak up. At times, you may even have found yourself wondering if what you’re doing even matters anymore. It is important to recognise these changes. If left unchecked, these feelings may progress into symptoms of depression.

To stay in balance you need to turn these behaviors around. The smallest changes make a difference, but pay attention to changes that aren't so small, like getting enough sleep (without drugs), dealing with your anger and anxiety before they erupt, moving around during the day, making time to play, eating sensibly and simply being with yourself.

I learned that prevention is the best medicine. Reaching your breaking point means that you've crossed into the red zone, from which it's hard to return. You won't get to your red zone if you apply the habits of self-care I've just listed. The choice is really yours. Medical research has abundantly validated that being in balance is the healthiest way to live. Spend the next two weeks getting back into balance. You'll be amazed and pleased with the results. I adopted a certain "Bahala-na"-emotion especially when it comes to "bad news". I enjoy playing my piano and listening to wonderful relaxing music. I enjoy staying together with my family. I talked to God... .

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Email:doringklaus@gmail.com or follow me on Facebook or Linkedin or visit my www.germanexpatinthephilippines.blogspot.com or www.klausdoringsclassicalmusic.blogspot.com .