Heroes

We celebrate Bonifacio Day on November 30 this year in the wake of the market success of "Heneral Luna," the movie. We'd like to think there is a resurgence of interest in the lives of the men and women who helped shape our nation and heritage, so how about reading again "Andres Bonifacio, the Other National Hero," Dr. Penelope V. Flores' timeless tribute to the man whose 152nd birth anniversary we celebrate this year.

We join the Philippine American Press Club in urging justice for the victims of the Maguindanao massacre (aka Ampatuan massacre). It has been six years yet there have been no convictions. We are publishing a joint editorial with other Filipino American media to press the point.

Moving to the present, Filipino American artist Lewanda Lim wowed the audience at the Columbus (Ohio) Arts Festival with her exhibit called Intersection. Positively Filipino Correspondent Rey E. de la Cruz profiles Lim, known for her socially conscious paintings and collages, in "Lewanda Lim's Socially Conscious Art."

In sports, Los Angeles Lakers' Jordan Clarkson visited the Philippines recently in his capacity as part of the NBA All-Rookie First Team. It was an eye-opening visit for this grandson of a Pampanguena, as Positively Filipino Correspondent Anthony Maddela reports.

For those who are intending to visit Australia, regular contributor Larry Ng tells us about Uluru, Australia's crimson mountain which is really a rock, the largest in the world. "Climbing Uluru" is a fascinating story about an unconquerable natural wonder right smack in the continent's Red Centre.

Working on your Christmas menu? Try out Positively Filipino Correspondent Elizabeth Ann Quirino's recipe for "Suman sa Ibus" or Rice Logs. No Filipino Christmas is complete without a kakanin, and this easy-to-make recipe fits the bill.

Our Video of the Week is a feature by CNN Philippines on an inspiring organization that is making waves in education: Teach for the Philippines.

From Russia, France and Benguet

Sometime this month, White Russian refugees and their descendants, who temporarily settled in the Samar island of Tubabao from 1948-51 after the Communist takeover of China, will gather in the Philippines to celebrate the anniversary of their escape. The White Russians were the supporters of the czar who fled Russia after the Revolution of 1918 and settled in China. Their moving to the Philippines is an episode in our homeland's history that is not well known, but the noble humanitarian gesture of the Elpidio Quirino administration in accepting the refugees is something we can be proud of. Positively Filipino Correspondent Myles Garcia tells the compelling story in "When Russians Came to Tubabao," a timely one because coincidentally, Russian President Vladimir Putin, was supposed to attend the APEC Summit in Manila almost at the same time, until he cancelled.

As the tragedy in Paris makes our hearts bleed, let's join Positively Filipino Correspondent Criselda Yabes as she takes us on a virtual tour of the peaceful, soothing village of Haybes in France's Les Ardennes region which shares a border with Belgium (where the terrorists seemed to have originated). "My French Village" introduces us to another side of France, away from the chaos, grief and danger in Paris.

Meanwhile, in Manila, two lady entrepreneurs embark on an online venture selling Benguet coffee to the world. "Kalsada Coffee's Long and Winding Road" by first-time contributor Rexy Josh Dorado, relates how a Filipino American scholar, Carmel Laurino, unearthed a 1909 photo of Filipino coffee being sold in Seattle, which led to her partnering with coffee specialist Lacy Wood to set up Kalsada, an ambitious undertaking that aims to put Benguet on the world's coffee map.

It's 37 days before Christmas, and I'm sure many of you are already thinking about culinary gifts and special treats for the family. Thus, in the next weeks, we'll be posting recipes of goodies that you might want to bake. This week, we have Calamansi-Lemon Muffins from Positively Filipino Correspondent and food expert Elizabeth Ann Quirino.

Our Video of the Week focuses on artist Peter De Vera who built an art museum called Bale-Balayan for the underprivileged. Another feature from CNN Philippines: The Story of the Filipino.

I hope you enjoy my blog this week on Backyards.

Genuine Ilocano Cooking

Ilocano cuisine has been hailed as both healthy and exotic, chock-full of fresh vegetables and some "strange" ingredients such as bile and blood. Food expert and columnist Micky Fenix writes about her encounters with the food of the Ilocos and provides us a primer from her book, Country Cooking: Philippine Regional Cuisines. A fascinating, mouth-watering read that Ilocanos will love and non-Ilocanos will savor.

Another Filipino dish that's taking center stage is dinuguan, which takes a star turn in the November 16 episode of "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend," the romantic comedy that stars a Filipino hunk named Vincent Rodriguez III playing the lead character, Josh Chan. Positively Filipino Correspondent Anthony Maddela gives us a sneak peak in "'Crazy Ex-Girlfriend' Goes Gaga for a Filipino." What's dinuguan doing in a rom-com? Mark your viewing calendar for 8 p.m. on Monday at CW Television Network and find out.

Our featured young achiever in our regular section, Watch Out World This Is A Filipino is Mikey Ilagan, who runs the highly successful website for geeks in Philadelphia, aptly called Geekadelphia. Positively Filipino Correspondent Elizabeth Ann Quirino reports.

We have another Pinoyspotting feature, this time from Fiji and New Caledonia where Positively Filipino Correspondent Rey de la Cruz traveled last year and met some interesting Filipinos.

Our Happy Home Cook recipe this week is for "Igado," the Ilocano version of menudo from Micky Fenix's article mentioned above.  

In our Video of the Week, CNN Philippines' The Story of the Filipino features graphic designer Dan Matutina, who developed a game to inform people about disaster preparedness in the wake of Typhoon Sendong back in 2011.