Conde Nast Traveller picks PHL a hot travel destination for 2013

An influential global travel magazine named the Philippines “new flame,” listing it among the 10 “hot destinations to watch” this year.

Conde Nast Traveller included the Philippines in its Top 10 “Destinations to watch in 2013” list, with the country cited for having “around 7,000 of the most heavenly islands in the world.”

Some of the Philippine destinations mentioned in the article include Bicol, Siargao, Palawan and Manila.

“Sorry, Maldives… We love you, but we’ve got a new flame,” said the magazine’s Laura Fowler in her piece.

“It’s becoming particularly popular among serious divers, who come for the incredible underwater life, unspoilt coral gardens with rainbow-bright fish, green sea turtles and dugongs,” author Laura Fowler wrote in an article published on CNT’s website.

“Sorry, Maldives… We love you, but we’ve got a new flame,” Fowler added, referring to the island known for its pristine beaches.

Conde Nast Traveller’s nine other choice destinations for the new year are: Brazil, Amsterdam, the Congo, The Galapagos Islands, Kashmir, Mayan Riviera, New Zealand, Panama, and Oman.

Late last year, three hotels and two resorts in the Philippines made it to CNT’s “Readers’ Choice Awards” — Makati Shangri-La, Edsa Shangri-La and Manila Hotel, and Shangri-La’s resorts in Boracay and Mactan.

Luzon, meanwhile, was named as the third best island in Asia.

Top 12 Pinoy achievers for 2012

The year 2012 was a great year for many Filipinos abroad, especially those who joined international pageants and sports competitions.
Five Filipino pageant winners, including 2012 Miss Universe first runner-up Janine Tugonon made it to the Pinoy Abroad section's list of top 12 Filipino achievers for 2012.
Rounding up the list are international singing sensations Jessica Sanchez and "Random Girl" Zendee Rose and boxing greats Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao and Nonito Donaire.
The top achiever on our list, however, is relatively unknown -- 13-year-old Kesz Valdez, who won the 2012 International Children’s Peace Prize for his work to improve the lives of his fellow street children.
Here are the top 12 Pinoy Achievers for 2012:
(1) Cris "Kesz" Valdez
13-year-old Kesz Valdez wins 2012 International Children's Peace Prize
In September last year, 13-year-old Kesz Valdez was named an awardee of the International Children's Peace Prize.
Valdez won for his work as head of a charity organization that educates and hands out gifts to thousands of youngsters in his poverty-plagued hometown.
South African human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu gave Valdez his award, declaring him a "voice for the voiceless" and a "true inspiration".
Valdez is the first southeast Asian to receive the International Children's Peace Prize. He was also the youngest among the three finalists nominated for the recognition. The two others were Amina,15, of Ghana and Anwara,16, of the West Bengal region of India.
Valdez dedicated his award to his guardian Harnin Manalaysay, who cared for him after running away from his family due to abuse and maltreatment.
During his acceptance speech, Valdez likened one of his experiences of maltreatment — being scorched in a pile of garbage — to a "baptism of fire."
  
"The day I suffered the burns on my body was like my baptism of fire. It was so painful that night at the dumpsite, the hospital and the days that followed. I cried out of pain. On the other hand, that was also the day I was rescued," he said of his ordeal.
    
"The fire that burned my skin and flesh is the same fire that started a flame in my soul. A flame that would warm cold hearts, a flame that would shed light to the path of the lost, a flame that would spark hope, lighting an entire sea of darkness and desperation. Mr. Harnin, the father I look up to, taught me these principles and keeps on reminding me daily by his own life's example," he added.

(2) Janine Mari Tugonon
Miss PHL named first runner-up in Miss Universe 2012
In December, Miss Philippines  placed second in the Miss Universe pageant held Wednesday (Thursday, PHL time) in Las Vegas.
This is the closest the country has come to winning the crown since Miriam Quiambao in 1999.
This is the third year in a row that a Filipina has been in the Top Five of the Miss Universe pageant.
  
In 2011, Miss Philippines candidate Shamcey Supsup was the third runner-up in the Miss Universe competition held in São Paulo, Brazil. The crown was brought home by 26-year-old Angola stunner Leila Lopes.
  
The previous year, Bicol beauty Maria Venus Raj, who was 25 years old during the competition, ended up in fourth place. The crown was bagged by Mexican Ximena Navarrete in Las Vegas,
Nevada.

(3) Rep. Manny Pacquiao
After loss, Manny Pacquiao ready to fight again
Saranggani Rep. and “People’s Champ” Manny Pacquiao might have lost to Mexican boxer Juan Manuel Marquez during their fourth fight in December, but the man’s place as a Filipino icon apparently cannot be swayed.
'You're still our champ!'
This was the message of Filipino fans to boxing champ and Sarangani Rep. Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquiao as he returned home early Wednesday following his loss to Juan Manuel Marquez.
Many Filipinos waited for Pacquiao outside the Ninoy Aquino International Airport to cheer him upon his arrival in the Philippines after the fight.
Pacquiao thanked his countrymen for their support despite his loss, and said that he had become emotional after learning that many Filipinos wept upon his defeat.
"Talagang ganoon ang buhay natin. We'll rise again," he said to loud cheers from the crowd shortly after arriving in Manila.
http://gmanetwork.com/news/story/286012/sports/boxing/pacquiao-arrives-to-warm-welcome-vows-to-rise-again
ESPN even called the fourth Pacquaio-Marquez match its Fight of the Year.

(4) Nonito Donaire

Donaire named Boxer of the Year by ESPN
ESPN, one of the world’s most popular television sports networks, named "Filipino Flash" Nonito Donaire as their selection for Boxer of the Year, in an article by Dan Rafael, in December.
"It might sound strange, but no, Manny Pacquiao was not the best fighter from the Philippines in 2012. That honor goes to 'The Filipino Flash,' junior featherweight titlist Nonito Donaire, who had a year for the ages," Rafael wrote.
Donaire had moved up to junior featherweight at the start of the year and showed no ill effects, "winning all four of his fights in dominant fashion," the last being a third round KO, courtesy of a devastating left hook, of Mexican Jorge Arce last December 15 (December 16, PHL time).
The Filipino was also cited for his strong anti-performance-enhancing drugs stance, coming to terms with the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association, which allows the group to randomly test him for steroids at any time, whether or not he is training for a fight.
(5) Jessica Sanchez
Sanchez is first runner-up in American Idol Season 11
Filipinos went wild when Filipino-American-Mexican singer Jessica Sanchez was named the runner-up of the mega-hit singing competition American Idol in May 2012.
From then on, Sanchez’s career has gone far, including singing during the fight of Saranggani Rep. and “People’s Champ” Manny Pacquiao in June against American boxer Timothy Bradley in June, and as well as performing for Filipinos during the Manila leg of the American Idol concert in September.

(6) 11 Pinoys in London 2012 Olympics
11 Pinoys hope for Olympic glory in London
Eleven of the country’s best athletes all attempted to sought gold at the London 2012 Olympics.
The athletes were: Jhessie Khing Lacuna (Swimming), Jasmine Alkhaldi (Swimming), Marestella Torres (Athletics), Rene Herrera (Athletics), Paul Brian Rosario (Shooting), Tomohiko Hoshina (Judo), Hidilyn Diaz (Weight lifting), Daniel Caluag (Cycling), Rachel Ann Cabral (Archery), Mark Javier (Archery), and Mark Anthony Barriga (Boxing)

The Philippines first sent athletes to compete at the quadrennial Games in 1924. Since then, the country has amassed nine medals, two silver and seven bronze. However, no Philippine athlete has made the trip to the podium since 1996.
For the 2012 Games in London, the Philippines sent 11 athletes: the country’s smallest delegation yet. The small contingent prompted Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta (PBA) party-list Rep. Mark Aeron Sambar push for the creation of a new Department of Sports.
The members of the group recorded as the smallest delegation the Philippines has ever sent were unable to attain their quest for gold, but that did not make the country’s pride for them lessen at all.
(7) Rizzini Alexis Gomez
Cebuana beauty closes 2012 by winning Miss Tourism Int'l 2012
Rizzini Alexis Gomez ended 2012 with a bang and kicked off 2013 on a high note for the Philippines after she was named Miss Tourism International 2012 on December 31.
Gomez bested over 50 candidates from other countries in the pageant held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
She won Mutya ng Pilipinas 2012 Tourism and represented the Philippines in the international pageant.
Aside from the crown, the 22-year-old also bagged the award for best in evening gown.

(8) Zendee Rose
“Random girl” rises to stardom
Zendee Rose Tenerefe, who earned the nickname "Random girl" after a video of her singing in a mall became viral on the Internet in 2012, rose to stardom and gained fame even more after, among other ventures, becoming a guest on the hit TV show "Ellen" in the United States in October.
There, she mentioned of dreaming of becoming a famous singer so that she could improve their family’s living conditions and send her cousins to school.
  
She caught the media's attention when a mall passerby recorded her on a camera phone singing an impromptu but "performance-level" rendition of Broadway torch song "And I'm Telling You" outside a store that sells videoke equipment, and posted the video on YouTube.
  
Posted in July, the video became viral and now has 2,271,468 hits.
  
Zendee Rose now guests on GMA Network television programs like “Party Pilipinas” and “Manny Many Prizes.”
(9) Andrew Wolff
Andrew Wolff clinches second place in the Mr. World competition
The Philippines’ contestant in the Mr. World competition, Filipino-British rugby player and model Andrew Wolff, came in second during the finale in Kent, England, in November.
According to the contest’s website, Columbia’s 21-year-old entry Francisco Javier Escobar Parra, was the night’s big winner as he was declared Mr. World 2012. Ireland’s Leo Delaney came in third.
Wolff won the Mr. World Multimedia award “with his energetic and engaging creations on his social media pages. He was deemed to have created the most exciting, informative and inventive news stories.”
(10) Kevin Balot
Transgender woman Kevin Balot crowned Miss International Queen 2012
A 21-year-old transgender beauty from the Philippines — Kevin Balot — was crowned "Miss International Queen 2012" in Thailand's seaside resort Pattaya in November.
  
One Filipino fan said that winning a transvestite contest in Thailand, the land of "lady boys," was like winning a soccer tournament in Brazil. An emotional Balot told reporters that she hoped the win would help her gain acceptance from her father.
  
        
"I'm very proud to be first here, and I hope my dad will accept me. Because in the family I'm the only boy, and my dad has big expectations of me. I made it. I won the International Queen Pageant, and I believe that my dad will accept me not only as his son but also as his daughter," she said.
(11) June Macasaet
June Macasaet named winner of the Manhunt International pageant

 

In November, model June Macasaet emerged as the winner in the Manhunt International 2012 male pageant in Bangkok, Thailand, besting more than 50 contestants to become the 16th winner of the contest and the first Filipino to claim the title.
    
“Congratulations June Macasaet from the Philippiines! You now join the elite group of Manhunt International winners as the 16th winner. We hope you will work hard to prove yourself worthy of the title. Well done. Your journey starts tonight,” a post from Manhunt International’s official Facebook page said.
Macasaet’s victory came a week after a Pinoy transgender, Kevin Balot, was crowned the winner in a pageant hosted also in Thailand.
(12) Carlito Floro Rosadino Jr.
Carlito Floro Rosadino Jr. wins 2 awards in Gay World competition
A Filipino bagged two awards in the Mr. Gay World competition in South Africa in April.
Carlito Floro Rosadino Jr. won the best national costume award for his sarimanok-inspired outfit, complete with a gold headdress and mechanical wings on the finals night of the competition held in Johannesburg.
The 27-year-old representative of the Philippines was also chosen as one of the Top 10 finalists.
He likewise won the People’s Choice Award after besting 21 other competitors in terms of online votes.
- VVP, GMA News

Black Eyed Peas' Fergie wears Pinoy design at New Year show

HOLLYWOOD, California -- Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas co-hosted the biggest New Year's Eve TV show in America, "Dick Clark's Rockin' New Year's eve." The pop star wore a stunning one-shoulder yellow silk chiffon gown.

Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie poses in her Oliver Tolentino gown. Photo courtesy of Tolentino's Twitter account

It was Filipino Designer Oliver Tolentino's creation.

Earlier in 2012, at a Hollywood party, Tolentino met Fergie, who is familiar with Filipino talents because of bandmate apl.de.ap.

Fergie is just the latest Hollywood star to earn praise for wearing an Oliver Tolentino design.

The year 2012 was a banner year for the designer who has boutiques in Makati and Hollywood.

Tolentino's clients include actresses Anna Paquin, Emmy Rossum, TV host Maria Menounos and "Big Bang Theory" star Melissa Rauch.

"He's just phenomenal. His color is amazing, his fabric is amazing. His design and construction is really incredible," said Rauch.

"Taken" actress Maggie Grace also shone in a Tolentino creation.

The dress made of pina and abaca was a hit at the Global Green USA's 13th annual Sustainable Design Awards.

Fil-Am places fifth in 2012 World Latin Dance Cup

A Filipina-American and her partner landed fifth place in the Cha-cha-cha category of the 2012 World Latin Dance Cup in Miami, Florida in the United States.

According to US-based publication Filipino Reporter, Maria C. Humphrey is a Fil-Am nurse and wellness manager.

The site also published photos of Humphrey and her dance partner, whose surname in the article was listed as Soto-Cordowin.

According to the World Latin Dance Cup site, Maria Humphrey and her partner, Joshua Soto, finished fifth with a score of 70.31.

There were at least 20 categories in the World Latin Dance Cup finals, which included the cha-cha-cha. Besides hailing from the US and neighboring Mexico and Canada, contestants came from countries such as Japan, Peru, and Romania.

According to the World Latin Dance Cup site, the event was organized by producer Albert Torres, whose eponymous production outfit founded in 1992 has churned out and co-produced over 350 dance events. - VVP, GMA News

Austrian Minister for Women & Public Services lauds Pinoy nurses

An Austrian federal minister only had praise for Filipino nurses working in Austria.

Austrian Federal Minister for Women and Public Service Minister Gabriele Heinisch-Hosek joined the Philippine Nurses Association Austria during their Thanksgiving and Pre-Christmas dinner reception at the Marriott Hotel Vienna.

The minister expressed her gratitude to the Filipino nurses in Austria, mostly women, for their contributions to the country’s healthcare system, while at the same fulfilling their respective duties as mothers and spouses.

Ambassador Lourdes O. Yparraguirre also gave an inspirational message to the Filipino nurses and to the members of the Filipino community at the event.

Yparraguirre thanked her “kababayans” for the excellent service they render to their Austrian patients.

“There is indeed so much to be thankful about. In virtually every corner of the globe, there is nothing but praise for hardworking and dedicated Filipino nurses, who are able to provide outstanding care and maintain excellent relationships with their patients and their hospital colleagues. Filipino nurses are a constant source of pride for the Philippine Embassy and the entire Filipino nation for they are regarded as the pillar that supports the country’s respected healthcare system,” she said.

Recently, Sonja Wehsely, head of the Vienna Health Sector said Filipino nurses possess professional training which is why they are very much loved by the Austrians.

Filipino nurses in Austria first arrived in the early 1970s and were among the first migrants from the Philippines.

About 90% of the total population of Filipinos in Austria are working as nurses, midwives in hospitals and old folks homes around the country.

Hero dog a cancer survivor

DAVIS, CALIFORNIA—A veterinarian has some good news about a dog from the Philippines that became an international hero after losing its muzzle in saving two young girls.

Gina Davis, a veterinarian with the University of California at Davis, told the San Francisco Chronicle that the dog named “Kabang” appears to have beaten the cancer it was suffering from.

Kabang, a 2-year-old female street dog whose name means “spotty,” still faces treatment for heartworms in her arteries before she can have the gaping wound on her face closed.

She got that wound when she threw herself between a speeding motorcycle and two young girls in Zamboanga City on Dec. 14 last year.

The girls—Dina Bunggal, 11, daughter of Kabang’s master, and cousin Princess Diansing, 3—were unharmed, but the dog lost the top of her muzzle in the crash.

News of Kabang’s heroism attracted international attention and offers of help to restore her muzzle.

A nurse from New York state led a fundraising campaign to bring Kabang to the United States.

Despite her injury, Kabang gave birth to six puppies in April.

After thousands of dollars had been raised, Kabang arrived at UC Davis in October and was prepared for the operation.

Other problems

But veterinarians found that Kabang had tumors and heartworms and these needed to be treated first.

The veterinarians put Kabang through chemotherapy and they announced on Wednesday that they had eliminated her tumors and she only needed to be treated for heartworms and then she would get the surgery for the restoration of her muzzle.

Surgeons are planning to perform two or three procedures for dental work, extractions and covering exposed roots.

They will then try to close Kabang’s wound and restore nasal functions.

Kabang’s bony structures are currently exposed to air, increasing the chance of infection, Davis said.

Kabang may return to the Philippines in May or June.

The bill for her treatment is expected to top $10,000.

Davis said that despite Kabang’s many conditions, the dog appeared in good spirits.

“She has come through everything very well,” Davis said. “Her appetite is still good. She’s still bright and happy.”—Reports from AP and Inquirer Research

Cebuana beauty wins Miss Tourism Int'l crown

MANILA, Philippines - After the first runner-up finish of Janine Tugonon in the Miss Universe competition, another Filipina beauty steals the limelight.

Rizzini Alexis Gomez was crowned Miss Tourism International in Malaysia, Monday night.

The Cebuana beauty bested more than 50 other contestants from all over the world.

Coming in at number two was Miss Venezuela, followed by Miss Australia and Miss Paraguay. - ANC