June Is (Almost) Bustin' Out All Over

We're already halfway through 2021 and we (meaning most of humankind) are in a much better place now than we were this time last year. Though we are not completely out of the woods yet with the pandemic, the fully vaccinated in the US are now able to do "normal" things like visit with people we love, eat in our favorite restaurants and get on flights, albeit with masks, sanitizers and just the right amount of squeamishness to keep us on alert.

This breathe of freedom that we hope is permanent, is not the only reason we celebrate this summer solstice month. There's Philippine Independence Day (June 12), Jose Rizal's birth anniversary (June 19), LGBT Pride (we expect those most awaited parades, cancelled last year, will resume this year) and Father's Day (June 20), which Positively Filipino will mark with a webinar on June 16 featuring famous fathers being honored by their children (much like how we honored mothers last month). 

Best of all, we shall be bringing you travel stories -- some held back from last year -- that will hopefully transport you to places that can make you dream of traveling again. Here's one of them, a story that will set any biker's heart a-flutter: "Reflections of a Long-Distance Motorcyclist" by James Sobredo. 

H. Arlo Nimmo may not be a familiar name for most Filipinos but this American writer/ethnographer wrote some of the most beautiful stories of Tawi-Tawi and Jolo, and the lives of the Badjao people with whom he lived during his research stint as a young man. Two of his books, The Songs of Salanda and A Very Far Place, are must-reads for those who dream of exotic isles in the Philippine archipelago. PF Correspondent Criselda Yabes pays tribute to this gentle man, her friend, who passed recently.

And here's another installment of Fil-Ams Among the Remarkable and Famous. This is already Part 20 and our publisher Mona Lisa Yuchengco's list continues. Just proves that Fil-Ams are making it big in this country.

To bookend the month of May, our Partner post comes from the Fil-Am Veterans Research Project as they honor some outstanding Filipino veterans. 

There's nothing like a refreshing cocktail drink to welcome the warmth of June. How about savoring this recipe again from Elizabeth Ann Quirino. http://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/the-happy-home-cook-mango-tango-cocktail-drink

This Week’s Stories

Reflections Of A Long-Distance Motorcyclist By James Sobredo

H. Arlo Nimmo’s Very Far But Special Place By Criselda Yabes

Fil-Ams Among The Remarkable And Famous, Part 20 By Mona Lisa Yuchengco

[PARTNER] Reflecting On Our Nation’s Past: The Story Of The Filipino Veterans Of World War II

By Jon Melegrito

[Mix It Again] The Happy Home Cook: Mango Tango Cocktail Drink By Elizabeth Ann Quirino

[Video of the Week] 1954 Student Exchange

In The Know

The perpetual foreigner: What it's like to be Filipino American in a time of hate
https://www.rappler.com/moveph/what-it-is-like-filipino-american-time-hate-united-states?utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR1-7mqW30fpZeZcFe09DyIZsXW-7R8P1KqRuxwg4UvdmmiabkK33mXjnh0#Echobox=1622506002

From AIDS to COVID-19, America’s Medical System Has a Long History of Relying on Filipino Nurses to Fight on the Frontlines
https://news.yahoo.com/aids-covid-19-america-medical-110030334.html?soc_src=social-sh&soc_trk=ma

The Three Kings of Biscuits – M.Y. San, M.P. San and Pacific
https://industrialhistoryhk.org/the-three-kings-of-biscuits-m-y-san-m-p-san-and-pacific/?fbclid=IwAR1-M4XYKsM0lI6MQQPsUBI-at2DODo3RgJAhkDqeN6MXzBorZV7vY5jMZ4

Magical Manila: This hobbyist takes enchanting shots of the city
https://mb.com.ph/2021/05/24/magical-manila-this-hobbyist-takes-enchanting-shots-of-the-city/?fbclid=IwAR1A5x6_rlAyVL1UpDzGUu1Izil-hRZaqSvqhwhRd73VhrGVrb6-fZxstSA 

PH ‘Prehistory’: 500 years of Indigenous erasure
https://usa.inquirer.net/72363/ph-prehistory-500-years-of-indigenous-erasure?fbclid=IwAR2HOEb_No-z1VS3sq6u3Ee-Sn9y3rCE7-wiNyqfqYqWGgWyy3FhHE8TZos


Gemma Nemenzo

Editor, Positively Filipino

A Colonial Urbanization

Knowing a city's colonial history is important when planning its rehabilitation and restoration. Thus our lead article this week, "Colonization's Impact on Manila," written by urban planner Nathaniel von Einsiedel offers valuable knowledge and guidance for those who seek to bring back Manila's former glory,  a goal of the capital city's current mayor, Isko Moreno Domagoso. 

Spanish food in Metro Manila has become a thing, thanks partly to the efforts of Marilou and Pablo Garcia-Morera, whose enterprise Espa-Fil has made available the crucial ingredients of Spanish cooking to the Philippines. PF Correspondent Cherie Querol Moreno writes about the couple and whets our appetite for the cuisine of our former colonizer in "To Dine in Madrid, By Way of Manila." 

Marilou Morera is also a cookbook author and she shares her recipe for "the true paella" for the Happy Home Cook this week.

From Toronto's Bank of Montreal comes Annella Manalo Mendoza, a digital assets manager and librarian. Christian Gabriel Pareja profiles her in "Old Fashioned Values in a Digital Career."

Our In The Know links this week:

Black History and the Filipin@ Community

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/unseen-and-unheard/201602/black-history-and-the-filipin-community?fbclid=IwAR0KReXkWJrM_-fXnxcOQRzKnyhcdQA9ge78UHAkGhjLM53tnHEg_67lPGc

Just how bad was corruption during the Marcos years?
https://www.rappler.com/thought-leaders/240477-analysis-just-how-bad-was-corruption-marcos-years?fbclid=IwAR2RLmmhLUHbGaFruyfGYmSAaEBTiXkwybXYjix8e0x6sX9T77TjZ2fR1rQ

Meet 11 Year-old Filipino Cellist Damodar Das Castillo, Champion Musician in Estonia
https://www.goodnewspilipinas.com/meet-11-year-old-filipino-cellist-damodar-das-castillo-champion-musician-in-estonia/?fbclid=IwAR2KlSv3O-MbHd5z09Od_hOlFPCcq4JaNvIS4w1j30vCCKl_zFRM9nLpM1Y

World’s greatest concentration of unique mammal species is on Philippine island
https://www.fieldmuseum.org/about/press/worlds-greatest-concentration-unique-mammal-species-philippine-island?fbclid=IwAR34pe6inxzGI-G9N0bydSZ4UjoMBG4IQltcghyZHEBSs0zO1odVkKsUj6E 

For Video of the week, GMA Public Affairs’ I-Witness features Solana Perez, who wants to be the first Filipina to compete in the Mongol Derby, the hardest horse race in the world.

Gemma Nemenzo

Editor, Positively Filipino

Current Realities, Past Glories

Current realities and past glories - so goes our issue for this week.

First off, poet/cultural activist Tony Robles reports on the recent talk of Jose Antonio Vargas, the FilAm community's foremost immigration activist, in Asheville, North Carolina. ("'I don't want to have hope. I want to be a Hope.'")

Then we have three brief profiles of FilAm history trailblazers, unsung heroes of the community who should be rightfully honored. Cecil Bonzo, who started the farmers' markets movement, is given tribute by Stockton, CA community leader Elena Buensalido Mangahas. Arlene Lagrimas Dark, Forbidden City "showgirl" and Salvatore Baldomar, Filipino-Italian seafarer, are introduced by fellow Bridge Generation champion, Peter Jamero. ("Filipino American Trailblazers")

LA-based PF Correspondent Anthony Maddela writes about ReWeave LA, an entrepreneurial enterprise of Fil-Chinese Debbie Ouyang that creates quilts, throws, etc. from recycled fabric. ("ReWeave LA: Recycling Fabric Samples Away from Landfills")

For the Happy Home Cook, another vegan recipe (Vegan Laing) from Richgail Enriquez.

Our In the Know links for your reading pleasure: 

This Philippine Library Keeps 30,000 Ancient Books Worth Billions
https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/heritage-library-keeps-ancient-books-worth-billions-a00293-20190528-lfrm?fbclid=IwAR3ta3MffV-rgKL0jdXUiDEY93lRU9Xan2H0xkXckV5OIVnlDy_KKeWnqYI

Why are There So Many Filipino Nurses In California?
https://www.zocalopublicsquare.org/2019/09/30/why-are-there-so-many-filipino-nurses-in-california/ideas/essay/?fbclid=IwAR3rkmx30Wujev97hmWp0PIe6X32N_XNvq7T2_I_2qo8mU3wxbT2Fvpulow

The Uniter: Rudy Corpuz Jr. Reflects On 25 Years Of Community Building & Youth Empowerment Through United Playaz
https://sanfran.com/united-playaz-rudy-corpuz-jr-october-cover-story?fbclid=IwAR2k6zBxXTMYVRhQBlPpOiBTT6gu-uHi7u_VYl2w6WQgZaE4nJigV6HJ92E

8 World Cities That Could Be Underwater as Oceans Rise [Ed note: Manila is one of them.]
https://www.ecowatch.com/cities-vulnerable-sea-level-rise-2610208792.html?xrs=RebelMouse_fb&ts=1538753678&fbclid=IwAR3S1sRtpeA-8-NBBVIEiRly3ZkpT8FRwRzxiNGgLKcB0SsBu4-hf7P_Geo

Spoon Over Fork
https://www.tastecooking.com/spoon-over-fork/?ref=PRHCE30927C7B1D&linkid=PRHCE30927C7B1D&cdi=382BD9807FDB49AFE0534FD66B0A5889&template_id=14339&aid=randohouseinc36030-20&utm_campaign=taste&utm_source=Crown&utm_medium=Email&cid=101930&mid=1643240115

Eulogy for a Gadfly (Remembering Carlos Celdran)
https://www.esquiremag.ph/politics/opinion/carlos-celdran-eulogy-a00226-20191009?fbclid=IwAR0PIYYvlGXo3z2vLtqHsJ1YrBuvA8LgSuigsHaOIT7iIk_tA22oGvGL3Lw

Our Video of the Week is the outstanding winning performance of Filipino gymnast Carlos Edriel Yulo at the recent World Artistic Gymnastics Championship, the first Filipino and Southeast Asian to do so. 

Gemma Nemenzo

Editor, Positively Filipino