...the favorite countries among travelers

Philippines 8th favorite country among travelers

Christina Mendez/Catherine Talavera
Philippine Star
26 October 2019

MANILA, Philippines — Foreign visitors’ interest in the Philippines remains strong after the country was voted by readers of travel magazine Conde Nast Traveler as one of the favorite destinations in the world to visit.

Based on results of Conde Nast Traveler’s Top 20 Countries in the World: Readers Choice Awards 2019, the Philippines ranked eighth with a score of 90.63.

The magazine cited island hopping, surfing and shopping as some of the activities tourists can do in the country.

It also cited Palawan, particularly Coron, El Nido and Linapacan, as among the top destinations.

The Philippines joined the other favorite countries to visit that included Indonesia, Thailand, Portugal and Sri Lanka.

“Gaining yet another prestigious recognition as the 8th Favorite Country in the World speaks well of the concerted effort of the Philippine tourism industry stakeholders in nurturing the many natural wonders the country is blessed with,” Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said.

Department of Tourism New York attaché Francisco Lardizabal received the award in behalf of the Philippines during ceremonies at the One World Trade Center in New York.

“All these accolades that the country and our other island destinations continue to receive bode well for the country’s sustainable tourism development program as continuity is the very essence of sustainability,” Puyat said.

Malacañang lauded yesterday the DOT for efforts to promote the Philippines after the country placed 8th in the Readers’ Choice Awards 2019 of Conde Nast Traveler.

“The world has spoken: it is truly more fun in the Philippines,” presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said.

The Palace official is grateful to the readers of Conde Nast Traveler for making the Philippines eighth in their list of favorite countries in the world.

“We commend the Department of Tourism, their industry partners and other stakeholders for their splendid job. In its most recent report, the DOT counted a total of 5,554,950 visitors between January and August 2019,” Panelo said.

On top of this, Panelo noted that the Philippines registered a 14.08 percent year-on-year increase in the country’s international inbound traffic.

The recognition comes on the heels of two major awards the Philippines won at the recent 2019 World Travel Awards held at Phu Quoc island in Vietnam.

Readers of Conde Nast Traveler also voted three Philippine islands as the best islands in Asia, with Boracay grabbing the number one spot, despite the six-month closure of the island last year due to clean up and rehabilitation efforts.

“This itty-bitty island (just under four square miles) in the Western Philippines is as close to a tropical idyll as you’ll find in Southeast Asia, with gentle coastlines and made-for-Instagram sunsets,” according to Conde Nast Traveler.

“Fold in a thriving nightlife scene, and you have one of the top tourist spots in the region,” it added.
The magazine acknowledged the island’s closure and ongoing rehabilitation, noting that it has “become too touristed” in the past.

At present, the Philippine government is implementing a carrying capacity for Boracay, with only 19,215 tourists allowed to be on the island at any one time, and 6,405 tourists allowed to enter the island per day.

“The aptly named White Beach is Boracay’s main draw, with powdery white sand and shallow azure water ideal for swimming and snorkeling,” Conde Nast said.

Following Boracay is Cebu and the Visayas islands landing in second spot.

“Located in the center of the Philippines, Cebu draws nearly two million travelers annually for its pristine beaches and diving off the island’s northern coast. Spanish and Roman Catholic influences permeate Cebu City; Basilica Minore del Santo Niño houses a small statue of Christ that was presented by Ferdinand Magellan,” Conde Naste said.

The magazine highlighted Cebu’s Kawasan Falls near Cebu’s southwest coast, noting its popularity among locals and tourists.

...the Filipino culture in Lisbon

Filipino culture showcased in Lisbon


Business Mirror
25 September 2019

LISBON—The Philippine Embassy led the monthlong celebration of the 121st anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence in June at the Terras Sem Sombra, Artes â Solta Festival in Ferreira do Alentejo.

In collaboration with organizers, the embassy and municipality officials, the Philippine Day activity provided an inclusive experience on the richness and vibrancy of Filipino culture through food, music, traditional games and handicrafts. The embassy also took the opportunity to promote various tourist destinations in the Philippines by giving away anahaw-woven fans from Quezon province, dried mangoes from Cebu and 3D holographic destination luggage tags from the Department of Tourism. 

Filipina entrepreneur and Chef Jaymaylyn Galiza Day prepares Filipino-style fried lumpia. Guests also got to sample spicy sisig.

The morning program started in the Ferreira do Alentejo Municipal Garden with a Filipino fiesta setting with kiosk of street food, exhibited and operated by Jaymalyn Galiza Day, a Lisbon-based chef who owns Diplomata catering service. Filipina entrepreneurs and co-owners of GustoKO, Paula Figueras and Queenie Guzman, also showcased a selection of handicraft products.

Figueras and Guzman are recognized as the embassy’s “cultural entrepreneurs” for not only creating economic value to Philippine products, but for also pursuing Filipino culture and heritage.

The afternoon event gave participants an ultimate Filipino eating experience with Filipino favorites, such as pork adobo with rice served in coconut rice bowls, as well as local snacks from Alentejo like ferreirense (cake), chouriço (sausage), as well as traditional cheese and olives.

Visitors enjoy Filipino pork adobo served in coconut rice bowls.

Visitors got to play Filipino traditional games such as sungka, dama and patintero, while Filipino children also enjoyed participating in the traditional Alentejo games like paper kite making, rope jumping, walking with stilts and face painting.

Pundaquit Virtuosi, a 28-member youth string ensemble from San Antonio, Zambales, ended their 2019 European tour with an evening concert before a crowd of 500. It played a diverse repertoire of classical music masterpieces, popular original Pilipino music staples and contemporary standards. 

The show ended with the string ensemble and Portuguese all-male singing group Os Boinas (The Berets) performing the song “Amor Pelo Dois,” the winning Portuguese entry at the 2017 Eurovision singing contest.

Ambassador Celia Anna M. Feria expressed her appreciation to the Municipality of Ferreira do Alentejo and to festival organizers for allowing the embassy to showcase the best of Filipino culture. Members of the Filipino community in Lisbon also came to partake in the festival. 

The Terras Sem Sombra festival is held annually since 2013, bringing music, heritage and biodiversity together. This year’s edition also featured Madrid-based Filipina soprano Aniway “Manila” Adap, who performed a full-concert repertoire at the Igreja Matriz de Sao Vicente in Cuba Alentejo in May.

The Philippines also shared its best practices of biodiversity conservation in April for the “Resist the Invader: The Water Hyacinth and the Guadiana Basin” event in Elvas, Alentejo.

The Philippine Day Activity at Ferreira do Alentejo is a culmination of the Country’s participation in the 2019 Terra Sem Sombra Festival. DFA

...the PH seat in UNESCO body

Philippines wins seat in UNESCO'€™s World Heritage Committee

By: InterAksyon.com
November 21, 2013

The Ifugao Rice Terraces is one of the five World Heritage Sites in the Philippines designated by UNESCO. (Photo: Lira Dalangin-Fernandez, InterAksyon.com)

 

Tourism in the Philippines got an added boost as the country won a seat in the prestigious World Heritage Committee on Wednesday after elections were held during the 19^th Session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention.

This year’s elections brought together 22 country candidates who vied for 12 available seats in the Committee.

The Philippines garnered the second highest vote in the elections, having received 116 votes from the total of 173 votes cast. This was a clear indication of States Parties’ support for and belief in the country’s capabilities to perform the important mission of the Committee.

Together with the Philippines, Croatia, Finland, Jamaica, Kazakhstan, Republic of Korea, Lebanon, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Turkey and Viet Nam will now join the other 9 current members of the World Heritage Committee.
 
The Philippines will serve a 4-year term until 2017.

During her remarks before the General Assembly, Ambassador Cristina G. Ortega expressed appreciation for the trust bestowed upon the Philippines. She assured the Assembly that the Philippines will be an active and responsible member who will work hard for the interests of the world’s cultural and natural heritage. She also said “that this is indeed happy news for my country”.

The General Assembly of States Parties meets every two years and elects new members to the World Heritage Committee to replace the outgoing members and it determines the uniform percentage of contributions to the World Heritage Fund applicable to all States Parties.

The 21-member World Heritage Committee is one of the most prestigious bodies associated with UNESCO whose main responsibility is to implement the World Heritage Convention. The Committee decides on whether a property is inscribed in or deleted from the World Heritage List. It examines reports on the state of conservation of inscribed properties and asks States Parties to take action when properties are not being properly managed. It also determines the use of the World Heritage Fund and allocates financial assistance upon requests made by States Parties.

The campaign for the Philippine candidature to the Committee was spearheaded by the Permanent Delegation of the Philippines to UNESCO, led by Ambassador Ortega, with valuable support and coordination provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs and the UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines.

 

...the anthem singer for World Youth Day in Brazil

Pinoy vocalist to sing World Youth Day anthem in Brazil

 

GMA News

February 23, 2013

 

 

Ooberfuse, a London-based electro-pop band fronted by a Filipino-British vocalist, has been chosen to record the English version of the official anthem for this year’s World Youth Day from July 23 to 28 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Composed of singer Cherrie Anderson, keyboardist Hal St. John, and guitarist Nico Cox, the band translated “Hope of the Dawn” from the original Portuguese composition “Esperanca do Amanhecer.”

“We are very happy, honored and humbled to have been given the opportunity to sing the official World Youth Day song in English,” Anderson said in an e-mail interview with GMA News Online.

Translating the song was “daunting,” Anderson said, because the band members are not fluent in Portuguese.

“[The song] is as much a tribute to a trans-Atlantic spirit of collaboration as it is to the power of the Internet and modern media,” said Cox.

“After multiple Twitter and e-mail messages recommending improvements and refinements, and numerous large music-data file downloads and uploads in Rio and London, ‘Hope of the Dawn’ was eventually born,” Cox added.

The result: a version that “remains loyal to the Portuguese original, but still reflects the style and ambience of the group,” said Phil Ross, national coordinator for the UK World Youth Day attendees.

Ooberfuse was formed in 2010 when its three members met at a church event, started to play music together, and joined the “Live and Unsigned” competition, where it was named Most Original Band and One of the Best Unsigned Live Musical Acts in the UK.

After singing the youth anthem for Pope Benedict’s UK visit in 2010, the band performed before an audience of 2 million at the 2011 World Youth Day in Madrid.

Now working on its third album, the band will be performing in Portugal, the US, Germany, and Italy this year.

Filipino influences

With one band member being Filipino—Anderson’s mom is from Leyte—it’s inevitable that Filipino influences would weave their way into Ooberfuse’s music.

“In some of our songs, we incorporate a Filipino instrument—the kulintang—which many of the UK people love,” said Anderson.

Anderson, who confesses to enjoying Filipino food like inihaw na baboy, tortang talong, pandesal, and taho, regularly visits the Philippines, where her parents are now based.

“I admire Filipinos’ love for God and family, love for all things musical, and their positive outlook in life,” Anderson said. - VVP, GMA News

...the new creditor

Palace: $1B IMF pledge is a case of paying it forward

 

AMITA LEGASPI,

GMA NEWS

June 21, 2012

 

 

“Now that we (the Philippines) have been considered a creditor nation, we feel it is our obligation to assist those nations who require funding from then IMF,”  - Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda

 

 

Malacañang described on Thursday the government’s decision to extend a $1 billion pledge to the International Monetary Fund as “paying forward” the international organization as it has in the past assisted the Philippines during times of crisis.

 

“Now that we (the Philippines) have been considered a creditor nation, we feel it is our obligation to assist those nations who require funding from then IMF,” Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said at a press briefing.

 

He said the country had been a recipient of IMF assistance for the past 40 years.

 

Lacierda expressed confidence that the IMF “will act judiciously on the funds” which is expected to help in stabilizing the crisis in Europe.

 

He said there is now a $456 billion standby fund for that purpose and the “Philippines contributed one billion dollars to that fund.”

 

Lacierda said the fund is kind of investment in global stability.

 

“It is our responsibility; it is part of our obligation,” said Lacierda.

 

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said Wednesday that the $1 billion pledge extended by the Philippines will earn interest while helping other countries beset with financial problems.

 

The pledge to the IMF fund marks the third time that the country has extended a helping hand to other countries that were in troubled fiscal waters. 

 

Since 2010, the Philippines has lent $251.5 million to distressed European countries Greece, Portugal and Ireland.  The country also pitched in $4.55 billion to another buffer fund, the Chiang Mai Multilateral Initiative. — DVM, GMA News

..the best Director at Spain filmfest

Pinoy indie director wins in Spain film fest

 

ABS-CBNnews.com

 03/25/2012

 

 

MANILA, Philippines – Independent film director Eduardo Roy, Jr. is on a winning streak.

 

 

 

 

After his first directorial effort, “Bahay Bata,” won the Jury Prize at the Deauville Asian Film Festival in France early this month, Roy won the best new director prize for the same film at the recently concluded Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival in Spain, which ran from March 16 to 24.

The film festival posted on its website on Saturday that this is the first time the Jose Rivero prize for best new director award was given at the festival. The award comes with a cash endowment worth 12,500 euros or around P712,000.

“Bahay Bata,” written by Roy and Jerome Zamora, stars Diana Zubiri, Sue Prado, Mailes Kanapi, Peewee O'Hara and Jeoffrey Javier.

Zubiri has already won the best performer award from the Young Critics Circle for her performance in the film about a nurse working in a crowded maternity hospital.

“The Loneliest Planet,” a co-production of United States and Germany, won the top prize at the Spanish film festival, as well as best actress for Hani Furstenberg, who plays a young lover who travels with her boyfriend (Gael García Bernal) to the mountains of Georgia.

The second best film of the festival went to “Taboo” from Portugal.

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...the best secret beach

Panglao one of world's best secret beaches: magazine

ABS-CBNnews.com

03/13/2012

Panglao Island is included in Travel + Leisure's list of best secret beaches. Photo from Ananyana Beach Resort and Spa

MANILA, Philippines -- Panglao Island in Bohol is one of the best secret beaches in the world, according to an influential American magazine.

The island, a well-established tourist destination in the Philippines, is one of the 17 areas featured in Travel + Leisure's "Best Secret Beaches on Earth" feature, which is part of the magazine's March 2012 issue.

"An hour-long flight from Manila to Bohol island followed by a 25-minute drive across a 19th-century causeway brings you to this secluded Central Visayas isle," author David Keeps wrote in the Travel + Leisure article.

Keeps particularly cited the Ananyana Beach Resort and Spa, which "occupies a prime spot on a mile-long stretch of sand."

"The 12 luxe thatched-roof huts have bamboo-framed king-size beds; the al fresco restaurant turns out Filipino-Mediterranean dishes such as penne with pork adobo; and the lounge is outfitted with regionally made rattan and abaca furniture," he wrote.

"Hop a resort boat for dolphin watching, diving amid the drop-offs of Balicasag island, or, for the ultimate castaway fantasy, a sunset dinner on deserted Puntod Island," he added.

The article also recommended other sites in Bohol such as the Bohol Bee Farm, which serves dishes such as homemade ube (purple yam) ice cream, and the Chocolate Hills, which was described as "a surreal wonder of 1,776 dome-shaped hills formed from limestone covered in grass."

Meanwhile, here are the other beaches that made it to the list of Travel + Leisure's best secret beaches:

• Todos Santos, Baja California Sur, Mexico
• Puako, Big Islang, Hawaii
• Ibo Island, Mozambique
• Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam
• Salema, Portugal
• Bethany Beach, Delaware
• Palm Beach, Barbuda
• Cirali Beach, Turkey
• Koh Lanta, Thailand
• Grand Haven, Michigan
• Lord Howe Island, Australia
• Pyla-sur-Mer, France
• Cayucos, California
• Alagoas, Brazil

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...the borrower becomes the creditor

PH enters IMF creditor list, lends to EU countries

ABS-CBNnews.com

Posted at 02/21/2012

Gone are the days when the Philippines could only borrow from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).


MANILA, Philippines - Gone are the days when the Philippines could only borrow from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

With record foreign exchange reserves, the country became a creditor in the IMF system in 2010, lending to troubled nations in Europe, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported Tuesday.

As of end-2011, the country infused $251.1 million in the IMF's Financial Transactions Plan (FTP), a mechanism by which foreign exchange from members with strong external position are lent to borrowing members.

More than half of the amount made available by the Philippines went to European countries such as Ireland, Portugal and Greece, in an effort to adderss the financial crisis impacting the euro zone, the BSP said.

"By virtue of their participation in the FTP, emerging market economies like the Philippines have joined international cooperation efforts to mitigate the spillover effects of Europe's sovereign debt crisis by enhancing global financial safety nets," the central bank noted.

The Philippines' gross international reserves reached $63.4 billion in 2010, helping reverse its IMF membership status from borrower to creditor-country. This came four years after the country prepaid all its outstanding debt to the IMF, ending nearly 45 years of its use of the multilateral lender's resources.

As of January this year, the Philippines' reserves hit a historic high of $77.36 billion.

In the region, the BSP said the Philippines is also a contributor to the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM) facility, a $120 billion pooling arrangement among ASEAN countries that aims to provide quick liquidity access in case of balance of payments difficulties. The Philippines has committed to contribute $4.552 billion to the CMIM. 

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....the Emmy Gold awardee

'Impostor' gets medal from Int'l Emmys, loses best telenovela to Portugal

By KAYE VILLAGOMEZ

November 24, 2011

Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines — “Impostor” picked up gold medal recognition from the 2011 International Emmy Awards for having been nominated in its Best Telenovela category. However, Portugal’s “Laços de Sangue” (“Blood Ties”) snatched the Emmy from the ABS-CBN soap aired in 2010.
 
 
 

Nonetheless, “Impostor” production manager Rowena Benitez remained proud bringing home a gold medal honoring the nomination.
 
“We feel very honored because we made it to the cut. There were 800 judges, 67 countries [involved in the selection], so it’s already a feat being nominated,” she said on “Umagang Kay Ganda” Nov. 22.

Benitez, who attended the medal awarding ceremony Nov. 21 at Hotel Sofitel in Manhattan, added: “[We feel very] privileged and inspired that we can produce world-class dramas that can make it to the international market.”

While in Manhattan, she participated in an Emmy tradition by signing on its official poster, which all nominees do.

The news of the Emmy nod broke early October in Manila, but the gold medal made everything official for the Maja Salvador-Sam Milby starrer, which was the only Asian-made serial in the category.
 
“The honor only means that the passion of the people behind drama is there. At ‘yung hindi tumitigil para mag-produce at gumawa ng mga drama, na magiging proud tayo at kayang luminya sa programa in the international market,” Benitez said.

In a separate report on ABS-CBN’s online news, Bruce Praisner, president and CEO of the International Academy of Television Arts and Science, encouraged all nominees: “This group, partly speaking, is the winner. Everybody can’t win, but if you’re a nominee in a competition around the world with a thousand nominations and you emerge from all of that, well in our book, you’ve won.”

Based on the 11th installment of the Precious Hearts Romances about stealing a model’s identity, “Impostor” also stars Melai Cantiveros and Jason Francisco. Jerome Pobocan and Neal del Rosario shared directorial credits for the serial.

Other soaps that competed for the best telenovela award were “Contra las Cuerdas” from Argentina and “Destiny River” from Brazil.

The 39th International Emmy Awards was concluded Tuesday afternoon, Manila time. Among those who attended the event were Lady Gaga, Nigel Lythgoe, among others. Former “Beverly Hills 90210” star Jason Priestley hosted the ceremony for the second straight year.

...the Lisbon Ensemble

Lisbon ensemble includes PHL songs in album

07/26/2011

GMA News

Philippine songs were part of the latest album of Portugal’s prestigious Coro de Câmara de Lisboa (Chamber Choir of Lisbon), the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Tuesday.

The choir’s new album “Canções da Ásia" (Songs of Asia) included “Katakataka," a Tagalog kundiman composed by Professor Santiago Suarez, and “Mamayug Akun," a Maranao courtship song composed by Fabian Obispo, the DFA said.



It also said the album contains 17 songs from other Asian countries — Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, and China — where the Portuguese have had contacts since the 16th century.

The album was launched last July 15 at the Biblioteca Nacional in Lisbon, which opened with an a cappella rendition by the Chamber Choir of Lisbon of “Katakataka" under the baton of Professor Teresita Gutierrez Marques.

Marques first arrived in Portugal as a member of the University of the Philippines Madrigal Singers. She has been living in Lisbon for more than 30 years with her Portuguese husband.

She teaches choral singing at the Lisbon National Conservatory and at Nossa Senhora do Cabo Music School.

The recording is a joint project of the Chamber Choir of Lisbon and some Asian embassies in Portugal, including the Philippine Embassy in Lisbon. Portugal is celebrating this year its relations with Asia.

The choir has recorded several compact discs for the labels EMI, Milan, Movieplay, Numérica, and Virgin. It has participated in recordings, both in Portugal and overseas, for radio, television and cinema.

The Chamber Choir of Lisbon, which was founded in 1978 by Marques as Lisbon National Conservatory's chamber choir, is composed of 20 young musicians who perform Portuguese and foreign compositions a cappella or in collaboration with instrumental ensembles. — JE, GMA News

...the Portuguese museum

PHL takes spotlight in Portuguese museum

06/09/2011
GMANews.tv

  

As it marks its 113rd Independence Day on June 12, the Philippines takes the spotlight at the Museu do Oriente, Portugal's principal museum for Asian art and culture.



Museu do Oriente, Lisboa


The Philippine Embassy in Lisbon said the Portuguese museum made June a "Festa das Filipinas" to mark the Philippine occasion.

"It is the first collaboration between the Embassy and the Fundação Oriente, under whose aegis the Museu do Oriente operates," the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

The "Festa das Filipinas" at the Museu do Oriente has a painting exhibition and workshops on ethnic traditions, indigenous shells, the yo-yo and traditional costumes.

On June 3, an exhibition by Filipino artist Manuel Baldemor was inaugurated with a "vernissage" hosted by the Embassy. At a vernissage," invited people can view paintings before they go on show to the public.

The vernissage was organized by Ambassador Teresita Barsana and by the Fundação Oriente led by its president Carlos Monjardino.

The attendees included members of the diplomatic corps, Portuguese Foreign Ministry officials including the Chief of Protocol José Serrano and representatives of the art community in Lisbon.

Former Labor Secretary Marianito Roque, who was in Lisbon as a resource speaker at a migration conference organized by the Migration Policy Institute, was also present.

Among the other month-long activities is a workshop on Philippine gastronomy to be conducted by Filipino chef René Sandoval.

"The Museu do Oriente promotes the Philippines as an exotic country and a bridge between the east and the west, blessed with an abundance of natural beauty, rich history and hospitable people and offers never-ending attractions for the traveler´s next visit to Asia," the DFA said. - VVP, GMA News