This might not be the typical expat blog, written by a German expat, living in the Philippines since 1999. It's different. In English and in German. Check it out! Enjoy reading!
Dies mag' nun wirklich nicht der typische Auswandererblog eines Deutschen auf den Philippinen sein. Er soll etwas anders sein. In Englisch und in Deutsch! Viel Spass beim Lesen!
You plan to move to the Philippines? Wollen Sie auf den Philippinen leben?
There are REALLY TONS of websites telling us how, why, maybe why not and when you'll be able to move to the Philippines. I only love to tell and explain some things "between the lines". Enjoy reading, be informed, have fun and be entertained too!
Ja, es gibt tonnenweise Webseiten, die Ihnen sagen wie, warum, vielleicht warum nicht und wann Sie am besten auf die Philippinen auswandern könnten. Ich möchte Ihnen in Zukunft "zwischen den Zeilen" einige zusätzlichen Dinge berichten und erzählen. Viel Spass beim Lesen und Gute Unterhaltung!
Visitors of germanexpatinthephilippines/Besucher dieser Webseite.Ich liebe meine Flaggensammlung!
The Philippine National Railways (PNR) will be temporarily shut down later this year, perhaps by the summer.
PNR (Wikipedia)
This was confirmed by Department of Transportation (DOTr) Undersecretary for Railway Cesar Chavez during a public hearing of the House Committee on Transportation on Thursday, Feb. 16.
Antipolo 2nd district Rep. Romeo Acop chairs the committee, which organized the hearing in order to get an update on all of the DOTr’s ongoing railway projects.
ADVERTISEMENT
Chavez said the planned closure of the PNR will allow for the faster construction of the South Commuter Railway Project.
According the DOTr official, the continued operation of the PNR has actually been delaying the South Commuter Railway Project.
“Kailangang ihinto ang operasyon ng PNR sapagkat gusto nating matapos ang proyektong ito (We need to stop the operations of PNR because we want to finish this project),” Chavez said.
“To contextualize, we need to stop the operation of PNR because our objective is to construct the South Commuter Railway in sustainable focus and speed based on the timeline and at a minimal cost,” he noted.
He said that, based on a study, shutting down PNR would save the government P15 billion in the construction efforts. This is because there would no longer be a need to relocated the needed utilities electricity and water, he said.
At any rate, Chavez said the riding public will be informed in advance about when the train line will be closed.
“In due time we will inform the public [about its closure]…sa operasyon nito sa loob ng taong ito at baka ho ngayong summer ho (about its operation within this year, maybe this coming summer),” he told the House panel.
BUTUAN CITY – The “One Million Malunggay” project was launched in Northeastern Mindanao or the Caraga region recently to help mitigate climate change.
MALUNGGAY (DA FB)
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Commission of Higher Education (CHED) to materialize the project.
The advocacy program aims to plant one million malunggay (Moringa oleifera) trees across Caraga which is composed of five provinces and six cities in one year with the help of all higher education institutions and partner-agencies in the region.
“The project really intends to help mitigate climate change, restore greenery within the surrounding environment, and for communities to have easier access to malunggay trees and their many health benefits,” DENR Caraga Regional Director Nonito M. Tamayo said.
“Hindi lang pangkalusugan ang bigay nito, pang kalikasan pa (It’s not only for the health but also for the environment),” Tamayo added.
Tamayo urged other government and private entities to plant malunggay trees in their vacant lands.
ADVERTISEMENT
Meanwhile, Tamayo and Gov. Santiago B. Cane Jr. turned over last month 7,667 armchairs to the Department of Education (DepEd) in Agusan del Sur represented by Schools Division Superintendent Dr. Minerva T. Albis and Bayugan City Schools Division Superintendent Dr. Imelda N. Sabornido in a simple ceremony at the Datu Lipus Makapandong Naliyagan Cultural Center, Government Center, Patin-ay, Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur.
These armchairs that will be used by students in 143 public schools were fabricated out of the 498.31 cubic meters of confiscated logs and flitches donated by the DENR to the Provincial Government of Agusan del Sur (PGAS) last year.
Tamayo signed the MOU with CHED led by Regional Director (RD) Dr. George M. Colorado at the Hero Auditorium of the Caraga State University in Barangay Ampayon, Butuan City.
As part of the office’s reorganization, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has led the oath-taking of seven new officials of the Presidential Communications Office (PCO).
President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. leads the oath-taking ceremony of the new Presidential Communications Office (PCO) officials in Malacañang, Feb. 16, 2023. (Malacañang photo)
Taking oath before the President in Malacañang on Thursday, Feb. 16, are:
Honey Rose Mercado, Undersecretary for Traditional Media and External Affairs
Franz Gerard Imperial – Undersecretary for Broadcast Production
Gerald Baria – Undersecretary for Content Production
Patricia Anne Magistrado – Assistant Secretary for External Affairs
Ma. Rhona Ysabel Daoang – Director for Traditional Media
Marvin Antonio – Director for Digital Media
Lois Erika Mendoza – Director for Content
The recent appointments filled all five undersecretary posts of the revamped PCO.
President Marcos reorganized the PCO through Executive Order No. 16, trimming the number of undersecretaries from seven to five.
Amid the reorganization, Emerald Ridao was retained as Undersecretary for Digital Media Services. At the same time, Cherbett Karen Maralit was also retained as Undersecretary for Operations, Administration, and Finance, based on the PCO website.
The positions of undersecretaries for media accreditation and relations; print media services and related GOCCs; special concerns; broadcast media services and related GOCCs and attached agencies; and operations, plans, and policies were effectively dissolved.
The EO stated that there would be 14 assistant secretaries, one of them “directly reporting” to PCO Secretary Cheloy Garafil.
Mercado, who was recently named undersecretary for Traditional Media and External Affairs, would be assisted by five assistant secretaries in charge of print, radio, television, external affairs, and media accreditation and relations. Mercado was Presidential Management Staff (PMS) undersecretary at the start of the Marcos administration.
Based on the EO, the restructured PCO would work closely with Director Paul Soriano, the Presidential Adviser for Creative Communications on communications and information dissemination.
Director Paul Soriano was named Marcos’ creative communications adviser in October. Soriano, a nephew of First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, helped in the Marcos presidential campaign.
Germanic (for example English, German, Dutch and Scandinavian languages)
Romance (for example French, Spanish and Italian)
Slavic (for example Russian, Polish and Serbian-Croatian)
So our “most unique language” would have to be one outside of these branches. Among the bigger languages, it could be Finnish (or its sister languages of Estonian and Hungarian)or Greek.
Among smaller languages Basque is worth noting, because it’s a “language isolate”. It’s not classified into any of larger language families.
Despite belonging to the Romance branch, Rhaeto-Romansh (spoken in South-Eastern Switzerland) deserves a mention, because it’s a rather unique and small language, but retains a (semi-)official status in Switzerland. The reason I find it interesting is that you can address the federal parliament in this language (and get an answer in its standardized version).
While we’re at it, we could throw Faroese and Icelandic in the mix. The reason Icelandic is worth mentioning is that it’s probably the living language closest to Old Norse (the language of the Vikings).
LOS ANGELES (AFP) – Raquel Welch, the US actress who became an international sex symbol after appearing in a deerskin bikini in “One Million Years BC,” died Wednesday, her manager said. She was 82.
Welch “passed away peacefully” after “a brief illness,” her manager said in an emailed statement to AFP, without providing further details.
The Golden Globe winner starred in more than 30 films — including “Fantastic Voyage” and “The Three Musketeers” — as well as some 50 television series in a career spanning five
But she would be forever associated with “One Million Years BC.” The fantasy movie’s poster of Welch’s bikini-clad cavewoman became part of cinema history.
In her 2010 autobiography “Beyond the Cleavage,” Welch admitted she had struggled to avoid being typecast, writing that her acting career became “eclipsed by this bigger-than-life sex symbol.”
But in a rare 2018 interview, Welch said she was at peace with being forever associated with her prehistoric bombshell heroine.
“I’m often asked if I get sick of talking about that bikini but the truth is, I don’t,” she told The Sunday Post.
ADVERTISEMENT
“It was a major event in my life so why not talk about it?”
Welch, born Jo Raquel Tejada in 1940, grew up in California, and won several beauty titles in her teens.
In her 2010 autobiography “Beyond the Cleavage,” Welch admitted she had struggled to avoid being typecast, writing that her acting career became “eclipsed by this bigger-than-life sex symbol.”
But in a rare 2018 interview, Welch said she was at peace with being forever associated with her prehistoric bombshell heroine.
“I’m often asked if I get sick of talking about that bikini but the truth is, I don’t,” she told The Sunday Post.
“It was a major event in my life so why not talk about it?”
Welch, born Jo Raquel Tejada in 1940, grew up in California, and won several beauty titles in her teens.
‘Glamorous beyond belief’
A lover of yoga, Welch later launched herself into the business of wellbeing, publishing her “Total Beauty and Fitness” program in 1984.
Having long hidden her Latino origins, she took on Hispanic roles in the “American Family” series on PBS in 2002 and “Tortilla Soup” in 2001.
She also appeared opposite Reese Witherspoon in hit 2001 romantic comedy “Legally Blonde.”
“So sad to hear about Raquel Welch’s passing. I loved working with her on ‘Legally Blonde,'” tweeted Witherspoon on Wednesday.
“She was elegant, professional and glamorous beyond belief. Simply stunning.
“May all her angels carry her home. Sending love to her family and her many fans.”
In later years, Welch continued to act in occasional films, such as 2017’s ensemble comedy “How to be a Latin Lover” with Rob Lowe and Salma Hayek.
She also developed her own line of wigs, hair pieces and hair extensions.
Welch married four times. She divorced her fourth husband Richard Palmer — who was 14 years her junior — in 2008.
Welch is survived by her son Damon Welch and her daughter Tahnee Welch.
A 6.0-magnitude earthquake was recorded by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology (Phivolcs) near Batuan, Masbate early Thursday morning, Feb. 16.
Phivolcs initially measured the quake at magnitude 5.7 but later revised it to magnitude 6.0.
It said the quake struck 11 kilometers southwest of Batuan, Masbate around 2:10 a.m.
Phivolcs said the tremor was felt at Intensity VII (destructive) in Masbate City; Intensity V (strong) in Dimasalang, San Fernando, and Uson in Masbate; Intensity IV (moderately strong) in Legazpi City in Albay, Aroroy, Cataingan, Esperanza, Milagros and Pio V. Corpuz in Masbate; and Irosin and Sorsogon City in Sorsogon; and Intensity III (weak) in Daraga, Albay.
Its instruments also measured the quake at Intensity IV in Bulusan, Sorsogon and Bogo City, Cebu; Intensity III in Tabaco in Albay, Iriga City in Camarines Sur, Bago in Negros Occidental, Alangalang, Calubian, Isabel, Kananga and Palo in Leyte, Ormoc City in Leyte, and Rosario in Northern Samar.
Intensity II was also recorded in Gumaca, Quezon; Daet, Camarines Norte; Ragay, Camarines Sur; Prieto Diaz, Sorsogon; Malinao, Aklan; Jamindan, and Tapaz, Capiz; Argao, Cebu; Can-Avid, Eastern Samar; Abuyog, and Dulag, Leyte; and San Roque, Northern Samar.
It was registered at Intensity I in Lopez, Mulanay and Polillo, Quezon; Boac, Marinduque; Pandan, Antique; City of La Carlota, Negros Occidental; and Saint Bernard, Southern Leyte.
Phivolcs said the earthquake may have caused damage to houses, buildings, and other infrastructures.
It advised the public to stay vigilant as aftershocks may occur.
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake also jolted Masbate province at 5:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 15.
Its epicenter was traced 11 kilometers northwest of Dimasalang, Masbate.
The magnitude 5.0 earthquake is a foreshock, while the magnitude 6.0 quake is a mainshock, according to Phivolcs.
A foreshock is an earthquake that precedes a larger earthquake, called the mainshock.
Phivolcs said the 6.0-magnitude earthquake was generated by the movement along the Philippine Fault-Masbate Segment.
The same fault has been the source of large-magnitude earthquakes, the most recent being in 2020 (6.6-magnitude) and 2003 (6.2-magnitude).
Filipino-Danish teen sensation Carren Eistrup got emotional when she recalled her first day as dabarkad (friend) in the longest-running noontime program “Eat Bulaga” on GMA Network.
“I’m scared of bashers. Noong first day ko sa ‘Eat Bulaga,’ umiyak po ako sa dressing room kasi I was disappointed in myself kasi feeling ko I didn’t do great. Feeling ko kasi hindi ko naipasa yung expectations ng mga tao,” said Carren, during her first media conference in Quezon City on Valentine’s Day.
(I’m scared of bashers. On my first day on ‘Eat Bulaga,’ I cried in the dressing room because I was disappointed in myself. I felt like I didn’t do great. I felt like I didn’t pass the expectations of the people.)
But Carren, 14, didn’t give up. Her disappointment became a challenge for her to do good on television.
“They told me panoorin ko ang sarili ko sa TV para malaman mo kung saan yung mga mali ko and kung saan yung dapat ma-improve. But it was my first day so accepted naman. Dapat masanay na ako sa flow nila. Gusto ko talagang matuto sa Eat Bulaga tulad sa hosting. Sobrang ad-lib po talaga nila as in,” she said.
(They told me to watch myself on TV so I will know where my mistakes are and where I need to improve. But it was my first day so it was accepted. I should get used to their flow. I really want to learn from Eat Bulaga like hosting. They really ad-lib as in.)
Following weeks of challenges on acting, dancing and singing, Carren was declared champion of “Bida Next” competition on “Eat Bulaga” last Feb. 4. It automatically made her the latest addition to the growing EB family.
“On Feb. 5, my first day ko as dabarkad, they gave me a cake kasi birthday ko rin yun. Medyo kinabahan ako noong first day ko kasi it’s a new environment at nag-aadjust pa po ako. They gave me pieces of advice katulad po ni Ate Ryzza (Mae Dizon). Sabi niya magreact daw ako, pwede ko rin kausapin ang mga writers at mag-ad lib,” Carren said.
(On Feb. 5, my first day as dabarkad, they gave me a cake because it was also my birthday. I was a little nervous on my first day because it’s a new environment and I’m still adjusting. They gave me pieces of advice like Ate Ryzza (Mae Dizon). She said I may react. I can also talk to the writers and ad lib.)
Carren also said that fans call her Miley Cyrus of the Philippines because of her similarities with the Hollywood star. And she doesn’t mind it.
“Noon pa nila sinasabi na kamukha ko raw si Miley Cyrus. I really appreciate it sa mga nagsabi na kamukha ko nga raw siya kasi it gives me an advantage na pinapansin ako ng mga tao. Pero sinabi ko rin noon na I want to have my own image na kilalanin ako ng mga tao as me,” she explained.
(Back then they said that I look like Miley Cyrus. I really appreciate it when they say I look like her because it gives me an advantage that people pay attention to me. But I also said then that I want to have my own image.)
Now that she’s joining showbiz, Carren said that she will never neglect her studies. Right now she’s in Grade 9 and she also dreams of becoming an interior designer or a businesswoman in the future. “I don’t have a boyfriend. Study first and career.”
“For Carren naman, we’re aligning everything with ‘Eat Bulaga.’ As you all know, ang galing ng ‘Bulaga’ na mag pasikat ng artists. So for now we’re aligning our schedules and plans with ‘Bulaga.’ We had a meeting already, we will first do the album of Carren kasi she’s a singer talaga. Tapos gusto namin ma-hone pa yung talent niya. She’s just 14. She will still go a long way. Then siguro yung acting will come in later. Endorsements we’re looking at also. Pero si Carren magte-training pa rin siya kahit singer siya. May dance, acting. Lahat yun ibibigay sa kanya ng Merlion and ng APT Entertainment. Mabait po si Carren. That I can attest,” said Maristel Fernandez, head of Merlion Entertainment, Carren’s talent management.
Carren admitted there’s pressure when she joined “Eat Bulaga” but she already felt accepted by the show’s other dabarkads.
“May separate room kasi yung mga mismong hosts ng ‘Eat Bulaga.’ Since official na akong dabarkad, kung makaupo raw po ako doon sa mismong dining table ng mga hosts, I belong na raw po ako as part of the EB family. So napaupo na po nila ako roon tapos kumain ako.
“Pressured po talaga ako kasi ang gagaling na ng mga kasama ko. Matagal na po sila sa ‘Eat Bulaga.’ I’m still adjusting and I think I’m doing better naman po everyday. I’m open naman for improvements,” Carren also said.
The “Bidang Cebuana Singer” also believes her hardwork paid off when she finally won the nationwide talent competition.
“August ako sinalang sa Bida Next. I need to wake up early. Pinakamahirap is to balance school and schedule in ‘Eat Bulaga’ kasi almost everyday yung schedule. Thankful ako sa school ko kasi adjustable. Kung busy ako sa umaga pwede naman ako sa evening classes. Meron din silang Sunday class. May ibang klase po ako na nasa Sunday. Another thing is yung bibigyan ka ng kanta na hindi mo alam and then you will perform it the next day. Mabuti na lang madali ako magmemorize when it comes to sing and dance. Sa rehearsals binibigyan ka na ng grade ng ‘Eat Bulaga.’ Pati attitude mo tinitignan na nila. I’m so grateful to ‘Eat Bulaga’ for this chance of a lifetime,” Carren said.
(It was in August when I joined Bida Next. I need to wake up early. The most difficult thing is to balance school and schedule in ‘Eat Bulaga’ because the schedule is almost everyday. I am thankful for my school because it is adjustable. If I am busy in the morning, I can attend evening classes. They also have a Sunday class. Another challenge (in Bida Next) is that they will give you a song that you don’t know and then you will perform it the next day. Fortunately, I can easily memorize when it comes to singing and dancing. In rehearsals you are given a grade of ‘Eat Bulaga.’ They are also looking at your attitude.)
Carren has been featured in various commercials and television shows such as Little Big Shots, ToppsSarap Topps Star Season 2, Centerstage and Tawag ng Tanghalan Kids.
In 2018, Carren brought home eight gold medals and seven division champion plaques when she sang and played the piano at the World Championship of Performing Arts (WCOPA).
Amid her successes and achievements, Carren vowed to stay grounded and humble. “Promise hindi po ako magbabago.”
GERMANY and the United Kingdom (UK) have joined three more countries in expressing serious concern over the alleged harassment of a Philippine Coast Guard vessel by a Chinese Coast Guard ship in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
Japan, Australia, and Canada had voiced their apprehension on the reported aggressive behavior of CCG against a PCG vessel which was on a re-supply mission to BRP Sierra Madre stationed in Ayungin Shoal.
German Ambassador to Manila Anke Reiffenstuel, on Tweeter, said, Germany "shares serious concerns about intimidatory action against Philippine vessels" in the West Philippine Sea or South ChinaSea.
"We call to refrain from any conduct that increases tensions. All states must abide by UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea)," she said.
"The 2016 Arbitral Award is final and legally binding," Reiffenstuel stressed.
In a separate tweet, the British Embassy in Manila said, "The UK supports and joins the Philippines in expressing our serious concern regarding the intimidatory actions towards lawfully operating Philippines vessels in the South China Sea. These dangerous acts are in violation of international law."
"The UK is unwavering in our position on UNCLOS and that the 2016 arbitral decision is final and legally binding," the embassy added.
In a landmark ruling on July 12, 2016, the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration found no legal basis for China to use its "nine-dash line" as basis for claiming the South China Sea but China refused to honor the ruling.
The said arbitral award recognized the Philippines' sovereign rights in its 200 nautical miles exclusive economic zone in the WPS, which is part of the South China Sea.
Manila on February 14 protested the recent "aggressive" action of the CCG in the WPS when it used a military-grade laser against a Philippine ship that was on a resupply mission in Ayungin Shoal.
IT’S interesting to note that while most miracles performed by Christ had instant effects, there was at least one miracle that took time and stages before the final effect took place.
This was when a blind man was brought to him, begging for a cure. (cfr. Mk 8,22-26) As the gospel narrates, Christ brought him first outside the village. And then he started to put spittle on the eyes, which enabled the blind man to see people like trees. And when Christ applied spittle a second time on the eyes, that was when the blind could see people and things clearly.
Obviously, the blind man who could now see was beside himself with delight. He must have been eager to broadcast the wonderful cure he just received. But Christ told him to keep quiet and to just go home, telling him not to go even to the village.
Somehow this gospel episode that God’s ways can take time and requires some stages. There are good reasons for that. It also reminds us that, like Christ, we have to learn how to be discreet and to pass unnoticed while doing something good to others. This is to reassure the purity of our intentions.
God’s ways can take time and can involve certain stages because the Christian ideals are eminently spiritual and supernatural in nature, although adapted, of course, to our human condition. As such, they usually are above our head, and cannot be attained simply using our natural powers. We need God’s grace which would take time and effort for us to correspond properly to it.
And that’s because in corresponding to God’s grace, we have to learn, for example, how to materialize the spiritual, how to put in the proper context the supernatural ways of God and messages of the gospel, etc. God’s gradual but supernatural ways are also in consideration of our human condition that requires us to correspond to God’s interventions in our life in our human and natural ways.
It is also a way of seeing to it that our intentions are pure when we receive his blessings, favors and miracles. That gospel episode of the blind man cured by Christ is teaching us that if we want to be truly Christian, we have to do a lot of good, with God’s help and our all-out effort, doing it without attracting unnecessary attention. It can only show how our intentions are pure, that is to say, that what we do is simply to give glory to God from whom all good things come, and not to ourselves.
Why did Christ cure the blind man gradually? I believe the answer lies in the fact that Christ wants to be known both as God and man, and as our Redeemer, not out of idle curiosity or for merely practical purposes, but really out of faith. We have to be wary of our all-too-human way of reacting to God’s favors for us. It usually tempts us to have an ego-trip.
And that is because our belief in Christ is often corrupted by merely human motives. It’s not faith, but some mixture of idle curiosity and other practical purposes that make us follow him.
And when these idle curiosity and practical purposes would already have their fill, or worse, are not met as expected, then that belief in Christ falls apart. The apostles themselves were not exempt from this phenomenon. Many times, Christ would lament over their lack of faith!
* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City
.jpg)