From Cuba to Tagaytay

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As the US and Cuba prepare to restore diplomatic relations, Latin America specialist Chibu Lagman's photo essay gives us a peek into the mysterious island nation before the deluge of American businesses alters its landscape. Cuba is the Philippines' historical kin as both countries were ceded by Spain to the US in 1898 under the Treaty of Paris that ended the Spanish-American War.  "Eternamente Cuba" illustrates the endurance of this kinship despite the two countries following divergent paths in the past five decades.

In Makati, the sordid tale of the Binay political dynasty is given a new twist in Rene Ciria Cruz's satirical piece, "The Grabfather (Excerpt)." Originally published in Inquirer.net, it is some sort of “remake” of Mario Puzo’s hit novel — a part of it, at least — Makati-style.

Speaking of altered landscapes, when visiting Tagaytay, make sure you visit Museo Orlina, a new and beautiful structure built by internationally acclaimed glass sculptor Manuel Orlina over his ancestral house. Regular contributor Omar Paz visited the place -- Tagaytay's answer to Baguio's famous landmark, the BenCab Museum -- and shows us yet another reason to enjoy Tagaytay.

In Chicago, when craving for homemade Filipino food, hie over to Merla's Kitchen where fresh is always the operative word. In "It's Always Fresh at Merla's Kitchen," Rey de la Cruz introduces us to Merla Birondo, the owner, from whose skillful hands come such delicious dishes as her version of pork menudo, the recipe for which she shares in The Happy Home Cook this week. 

Also, we feature another recipe of a Filipino favorite: Mamon from Goldilocks.

We have a Partner post this week from the Asian Journal: Teach For The Philippines: Committed To Nation-Building Through Education

In our Video of the Week, the Department of Tourism's Postcards from Paradise campaign aimed at former Beatles drummer Ringo Starr, picks up steam as more Filipinos join in to invite him back to the Philippines after the band's disastrous exit after their 1966 tour in Manila.

Lakes, Indigenous Art and the Beatles

A warm welcome to those who are getting this weekly newsletter the first time.

Positively Filipino has been publishing exclusively online since January 2013 and since then, has 500 or so stories on the myriad aspects of Filipino history, culture and politics to its name. If you click this link, you'll have access not only to the new stories we have this week but also to our archives, categorized according to general topics and through the authors' names. Just scroll down to the categories on the right side of the page. Everything is clickable so you can go straight to an author's work or the category you want to read.

Don't forget to check out our Global Briefs also for capsule reports on the goings-on in Filipino communities and Filipinos in different parts of the world.

This week, we feature the incredible art and culture of the T'boli people of Cotabato, one of the Philippines' indigenous tribes that should make us all proud, if only we know more about them. Patricia Araneta traveled to Lake Sebu in T'boli-land and wrote a compelling report, "T'boli: It's Better to Weave Than Leave," that includes pictures that showcase the exquisite work of the T'boli women weavers.

In Baguio City, the art of the Ifugao carvers take center stage as the Philippine Bamboo Foundation Inc. promotes the native product as a source of livelihood and as a means to protect the environment. Baguio-based writer Desiree Caluza explains in "You Take A Stick of Bamboo."

For writers in the midst of crafting a novel or a nonfiction book, nothing is more welcome than a respite from the demands of daily existence to be able to focus exclusively on writing. Maria Carmen Sarmiento, a Manila-based author, was able to do just that when she was chosen to spend a month in Bellagio, Italy by the banks of beautiful Lake Como. She tells us about how it was to write and interact with  an elite group of writers from all over the world in "My Month By the Lake."

Our recipe this week in The Happy Home Cook: Slow-cooked Sirloin Pepper Steak over Rice from Rene Astudillo, also known as the creator of The Adobo Chronicles.

For our Video of the Week, a group of Filipino fans seeks to reverse the Beatles' bad memories of Manila with "Postcards for Ringo"