Whenever I am in a new place, I usually take a walk around the area where I am residing or staying. My walks usually take me around the neighborhood, allowing for some exploration of sorts. I usually look for interesting features like shops, restaurants, or some other tourist attraction like maybe a temple or park. Some areas have a history and would have markers in certain locations where something important happened in the past.
In the Philippines, I would surely be going to the local market and try to check out the town's products. Shops in or near the local markets would usually be my source of souvenirs. Also, in the Philippines, I would usually go to the church, or cathedral in the case of the larger cities or towns, where, if the church structure happened to be old enough or had a distinct architecture about it, I would probably take a few photos for my collection. If it were safe to go around at night, I would usually explore the city. Unfortunately, it wasn't always safe to go around after dark even in the bigger cities.
While in Japan, I would try to walk along the main street where many things of interest would usually be present. It was this way that I found some nice shops or restaurants and souvenir shops that featured local products. If I happened to be in another city on a Sunday, I would also search for the local Catholic Church. Unlike today when information is usually readily available from the internet and the search can be facilitated by tools such as Google or Yahoo Maps, I would try to get my hand at a local tourist map. I also usually asked my parish priest, Fr. Burke if he knew about a church with an English Mass in its Sunday schedule. I remember he had a directory with him by which he was able to give me an address and a phone number of the local church. This way, I was able to hear Mass whenever I was out of Yokohama or Tokyo. I will be writing more about my adventures in Japan in future posts.
Since we're practically new in Singapore, even though the Clairvoyant has been here for almost two months, we have been exploring the city state in our free time. This afternoon, we finally got to walk around our neighborhood near Lorong Chuan Station. Our walk took us along Serangoon Avenue where we found other residential developments including HDBs (government housing) and new buildings in exclusive enclaves. There are many schools in our area and some of the schools seem to be the top-notch kinds given the kind of neighborhood we are residing in. We also discovered that we were a 10 to 15-minute walk from the NEX mall as we were able to trace the origin of fellow walkers whom we saw carried the distinctive grocery bags of Fair Price. Near the junction of Serangoon Avenue, the HDBs featured shops including a Seven Eleven, and restaurants and eateries filled with customers. These were usually families or friends or both having their dinners out instead of at their homes. The Clairvoyant tells me this is quite common in Singapore and not just during the weekends but especially the weekdays when people even bought dinners from the many shops you'll find around in malls, transit stations or the neighborhood.
I look forward to exploring this city-state when I am in Singapore. Perhaps I will be maximizing the coverage of the city's transit system much like what I did when I was in Japan. I was also able to do the same thing in Bangkok and San Francisco, adventures that I still haven't gotten to write about. This time though, I am sure that I have more time for exploration and familiarization. After all, this city will be a second home for us for the next months or years.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Sacred Heart
When I was a student in Japan from 1996 - 1999, I was introduced to this beautiful cathedral in Yamate in the Naka District of Yokohama. I don't exactly remember if I wrote about the Yamate Catholic Church, but is also known by its other name - Sacred Heart. I attended Sunday Mass at Sacred Heart and eventually became involved in the parish. I started out by volunteering to read at the Mass. There was a clipboard at the main door of the church and parishioners were encouraged to sign-up to read at Mass. The choices were quite easy as there were only two readings during High Mass. The one assigned to the First Reading, however, had to speak at the start of the Mass by introducing the celebrant priest and also had to read the Responsorial Psalm. The response was usually sung by the choir. The second reader was also assigned to read the Prayers of the Faithful.
At first, I was very nervous but I tried my best not to show it and I think I did pretty well my first time. This was the start of a long and rewarding experience as an active member of the parish and the Sacred Heart Guild that invited me to help out more in the activities of the church. My work with the Guild deserves its own write-up and I shall do so soon if only to reminisce about the bazaars and picnics we helped organize and hold successfully. Indeed, as people say, those were the days.
When I read at Mass, I always started by first reading the introduction. I had observed that this part was usually omitted by other readers but that the content was valuable in setting the tone for reflecting on a reading. Eventually, other readers adopted what I practiced including my friends at the Guild who were among the first who appreciated what I did. In fact, this was encouraged by the parish priest at the time, Fr. Alfred Burke, OSA, who was always there to guide us. I always have fond memories of Sacred Heart in Yamate and have always returned to hear Mass there whenever I could like when I was in Japan for stints at Saitama University when I was visiting researcher under the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS).
It is a pleasant coincidence that as we settle at our second home in Singapore, we found and have started attending Mass at the Church of the Sacred Heart in Singapore. It is an old church and the congregation seems warm. There are also similarities with Yamate since many or most in attendance for the English Masses are Filipinos. I shall write in detail about my experiences in Yamate as it is the people and not the structure which compose a church. And there are just so many stories told and that need to be related again about life in Japan back in the 90's that still seem to be so relevant today even in another setting.
At first, I was very nervous but I tried my best not to show it and I think I did pretty well my first time. This was the start of a long and rewarding experience as an active member of the parish and the Sacred Heart Guild that invited me to help out more in the activities of the church. My work with the Guild deserves its own write-up and I shall do so soon if only to reminisce about the bazaars and picnics we helped organize and hold successfully. Indeed, as people say, those were the days.
When I read at Mass, I always started by first reading the introduction. I had observed that this part was usually omitted by other readers but that the content was valuable in setting the tone for reflecting on a reading. Eventually, other readers adopted what I practiced including my friends at the Guild who were among the first who appreciated what I did. In fact, this was encouraged by the parish priest at the time, Fr. Alfred Burke, OSA, who was always there to guide us. I always have fond memories of Sacred Heart in Yamate and have always returned to hear Mass there whenever I could like when I was in Japan for stints at Saitama University when I was visiting researcher under the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS).
It is a pleasant coincidence that as we settle at our second home in Singapore, we found and have started attending Mass at the Church of the Sacred Heart in Singapore. It is an old church and the congregation seems warm. There are also similarities with Yamate since many or most in attendance for the English Masses are Filipinos. I shall write in detail about my experiences in Yamate as it is the people and not the structure which compose a church. And there are just so many stories told and that need to be related again about life in Japan back in the 90's that still seem to be so relevant today even in another setting.
Friday, February 25, 2011
MNL-SIN-MNL
I practically have two choices when shuttling between Manila and Singapore. One is Philippine Airlines and the other is Cebu Pacific, both Philippine flag carriers. I say practically because there are other alternatives including Tiger and Air Philippines. Both have many daily flights allowing for flexibility in the schedule. Ceb Pac is usually cheaper as it is classified as a budget airline and has many promos. However, this difference is only marginal since PAL has responded to the competition with their own promos. There is also PAL's advantage of being able to field larger planes as they have a more diverse fleet of aircraft that includes wide-bodied Boeing and Airbus planes.
Perhaps an odd and unexpected consideration is also the in-flight meal, which, despite the bad take on airline food, is still a decent meal. The choices, of course, are usually limited unless one happens to be in business class, Mabuhay Class in PAL's case. I say it is a consideration because if one was to purchase a meal at the airport or in flight, like in Ceb Pac's case, one would end up shelling out the equivalent of price of the same meal or even more depending on the purchase. This because of the typical jacked up prices of food and drinks at airports and on the airplane.
It is my first time to use Ceb Pac for an international flight. PAL I have flown on many times including long haul, non-stop flights to and from the United States, so I have a very good idea of their quality of service and I use it as my benchmark for when I take other airlines. The flight via Ceb Pac would allow me to assess future travel using the airline not just between Manila and Singapore but possibly for other international destinations as well. For domestic flights that are usually 45 (Roxas City) to 90 (Davao) minutes long, I don't mind the no frills approach but for longer flights, I do mind a little more comfort even if it appears to be marginal to some people. I am considering taking Ceb Pac for traveling to Japan, for example, and in the future maybe even to the U.S. in the remote possibility that restrictions imposed by the FAA on Philippine carriers are lifted and Ceb Pac is allowed to fly long haul to U.S. destinations. In that same case, PAL would probably also increase the number of U.S. cities that it will be serving including Chicago and New York where there are substantial Filipino populations translating into sufficient demand for flights.
The verdict from last night's flight is a satisfactory rating. It is basically a passing grade but not pasang awa as we usually refer to hurdling something by the skin of one's teeth. I was satisfied with the service but wasn't particularly impressed given that there was no in-flight entertainment (even some music could have helped) and I couldn't help but notice that we and other flights had to shift from one gate to another at NAIA3. This is something that should probably be on the airport and not the airline but given the set-up at Terminal 3 where Ceb Pac is the dominant airline, I believe that they could do better with coordinating gates with the airport authorities. Finally, it was also my first time to use the budget terminal of Changi and I would have to say that though I was impressed by the terminal's design, it is something that is ideal for domestic airports like what should be for trunkline domestic airports in the Philippines. I would prefer to use the main airports anytime. And the next time will be on April when I will again be taking PAL.
Perhaps an odd and unexpected consideration is also the in-flight meal, which, despite the bad take on airline food, is still a decent meal. The choices, of course, are usually limited unless one happens to be in business class, Mabuhay Class in PAL's case. I say it is a consideration because if one was to purchase a meal at the airport or in flight, like in Ceb Pac's case, one would end up shelling out the equivalent of price of the same meal or even more depending on the purchase. This because of the typical jacked up prices of food and drinks at airports and on the airplane.
It is my first time to use Ceb Pac for an international flight. PAL I have flown on many times including long haul, non-stop flights to and from the United States, so I have a very good idea of their quality of service and I use it as my benchmark for when I take other airlines. The flight via Ceb Pac would allow me to assess future travel using the airline not just between Manila and Singapore but possibly for other international destinations as well. For domestic flights that are usually 45 (Roxas City) to 90 (Davao) minutes long, I don't mind the no frills approach but for longer flights, I do mind a little more comfort even if it appears to be marginal to some people. I am considering taking Ceb Pac for traveling to Japan, for example, and in the future maybe even to the U.S. in the remote possibility that restrictions imposed by the FAA on Philippine carriers are lifted and Ceb Pac is allowed to fly long haul to U.S. destinations. In that same case, PAL would probably also increase the number of U.S. cities that it will be serving including Chicago and New York where there are substantial Filipino populations translating into sufficient demand for flights.
The verdict from last night's flight is a satisfactory rating. It is basically a passing grade but not pasang awa as we usually refer to hurdling something by the skin of one's teeth. I was satisfied with the service but wasn't particularly impressed given that there was no in-flight entertainment (even some music could have helped) and I couldn't help but notice that we and other flights had to shift from one gate to another at NAIA3. This is something that should probably be on the airport and not the airline but given the set-up at Terminal 3 where Ceb Pac is the dominant airline, I believe that they could do better with coordinating gates with the airport authorities. Finally, it was also my first time to use the budget terminal of Changi and I would have to say that though I was impressed by the terminal's design, it is something that is ideal for domestic airports like what should be for trunkline domestic airports in the Philippines. I would prefer to use the main airports anytime. And the next time will be on April when I will again be taking PAL.
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