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When a trip back to the Philippines brings back fond memories
It has been five years since the pandemic when we last returned to the Philippines. After a 13-hour straight flight via Philippine Air Lines, our first time to try PAL, we were expecting to be groggy. But the friendly and charming stewardesses kept us comfortable and relaxed with their constant pampering and offering delicious Filipino food from sinigang na baboy to pork adobo to pan-seared branzino. Breakfast was the best as you feel like you are already in the Philippines as they serve you arroz caldo, tapsilog or fresh seasonal fruits.
We landed at 4 a.m., 30 minutes earlier than expected. Thank you to PAL for the smooth flight and the early arrival. We didn't expect that and so did our friend who was supposed to pick us up. He arrived one hour later.
From the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, we were whisked to the Solaire Resort & Casino in Entertainment City, a complex built along the Bay City area of Paranaque in Metro Manila. It was our first time staying at Solaire and the grand and luxurious ambiance immediately impressed us. It was also relaxing to see the magnificent views of Manila Bay from our room.
Breakfast at Solaire's Fresh restaurant made us feel that we were given a mini tour around the world as food from Korea, Mexico, China, U.S., Japan, and the Philippines were being served.
We went home in November but of course, the hotel was already decked in Christmas decors and everywhere you went, Christmas songs were being played. If you don't know yet, Christmas celebration in the Philippines starts in the "ber" months (September, October, November). Yes, it is the longest Christmas celebration in the world!
Lea Salonga and Clay Aiken
That same night, we watched Lea, with Clay as a guest, in a concert entitled "Stage, Screen & Everything in Between," at Solaire's The Theatre. Lea surprised us by not only performing her Broadway showstoppers but also songs like "Staying Alive" which displayed her much more relaxed and playful side. Her brother, Gerard, was the musical arranger and conductor of the sold-out show that featured a curated set list by Lea herself.
The concert highlighted classics from "Miss Saigon," "Les Miserables," Disney's "Aladdin" and "Mulan" as well as from Lea's tribute show, "Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends."
I still can't believe that this is the Lea Salonga I first met when she was the star of "Annie" and her Dad kept telling me, "I am now known as the father of Lea Salonga." I also remember Lea asking me the name of my first daughter and I said, Bianca Nicole, and she remarked, "Nicole is a nice name!" Now, she is a mother to her daughter, Nicole.
Puey Quinones
One of our unforgettable reunions was with fashion designer Puey Quinones who invited us to have dinner at his well-appointed new atelier at Poblacion, Makati. There were a lot of quaint and beautiful collectibles in Puey's atelier that even came from Europe. Puey, who also has a shop in Los Angeles, loves to cook. But that night, he had his own personal chef cook for us some of his favorite dishes – paella Negra, callos, pasta, lengua, chicken adobo, apple salad and lemon meringue.
I remember when I first met Puey when he first arrived in LA. The very shy and soft-spoken fashion designer was starting a new life in the City of Angels. I am impressed how he was able to put up his own atelier located in the heart of the Fashion District in Downtown Los Angeles and then also open another one in Manila. He travels back and forth from LA to Manila and vice versa.
QCinema International Film Festival
One of the highlights of our first trip to the Philippines after the pandemic was being able to attend the QCinema International Film Festival opening night. We heard a lot of good things about the festival, and we wanted to show our support for Ed Lejano, the festival's artistic director. And true enough, it did not disappoint.
Now in its 12th year, the festival showcased during its opening, "Directors Factory Philippines," which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. So, it was exciting to meet the young filmmakers I met and interviewed in Cannes this time in the Philippines. The young international and Filipino filmmakers were also excited to share updates on their careers and lives since we met in Cannes in May.
This year, the festival had a coup with the screenings of such critically acclaimed and multi-awarded films like Sean Baker's "Anora," Payal Kapadia's "All We Imagine as Light," Albert Serra's "Afternoons of Solitude" and Francois Ozon's "When Fall is Coming." It also showed some movies that had their world premiere at the Venice Film Festival like Lav Diaz's "Phantosmia," Joshua Oppenheimer's "The End," and Alexandre de la Patellier and Matthieu Delaporte's "The Count of Monte Cristo."
It was also an honor to meet National Artist Ricky Lee again who attended the festival. It was also fun to be reunited with Cannes attendees who were present - actress Shaina Magdayao, producer Bradley Liew, actress Sylvia Sanchez, and cinematographer Jaime "Jimmy" Baltazar.
CineGang, Inc. is launched
We were honored to have the First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos invite us to the Laperal Mansion for a historic get-together and launch of the Cine Gang, Incorporation.
CineGang, Inc. is a non-stock, non-profit corporation that is composed of a group of filmmakers, broadcast executives, creatives, festival founders, film and TV executives who banded together to promote, enhance and develop the Philippine film industry by providing comprehensive assistance, training and seminars aimed at elevating Filipino films and talents on the global stage; to instill social, cultural consciousness among the public of future generations of Filipinos through the creation and support of programs, events, festivals, screenings and similar activities that celebrate and advance Filipino cinema.
Manila's who's who in tinseltown were present – actors Vilma Santos, Christopher de Leon, Tirso Cruz III, Dingdong Dantes, producers Joji Alonso, Perci Intalan, MMDA head Don Artes, FDCP head Joey Javier Reyes, ABS-CBN head Carlo Katigbak, incorporators Kevin Andrew Tan, Paolo Victor del Rosario, Pedro Laylo, Jr., Paolo Roberto Martel, and Rajan Uttamchandani, among others.
Visit to GMA Network
It has probably been 10 years or so since I last visited GMA-7, so I was excited that Mike Sadim was there to graciously show me around. It was nice to meet Tex D. Jimenez (News Desk Operations Head), Maria Eleanor "Mae" B. Trono (Marketing Activations Manager), Reina Anne "Queenie" S. Dimapawi (AVP and Deputy Head of Integrated News Operations) and others in the main headquarters and in the annex.
It was also a surprise to see Joseph Jerome Francia there who quickly said hello from his meeting. We usually see Joseph in Los Angeles for our many events, so it was good to see him again this time in the Quezon City headquarters of GMA.
Back to Entertainment City
We went back to Solaire Resort in Entertainment City to watch Raymond Lauchengco in his concert at The Theatre, celebrating 40 years in the business and reminiscing about his days in the entertainment industry as an actor and a singer. His Bagets gang came in full force to support him and even went onstage to sing and dance with Raymond – Aga Muhlach, Herbert Bautista, and former screen partner Eula Valdez.
Good friend Martin Nievera also dropped by just to congratulate Raymond on his 40th anniversary.
Aptly titled "Just Got Lucky", Raymond sang a number of his hits when he started in the industry at age 18 with the "Bagets" movie propelling him to stardom. He showed old clips of his era with the Bagets gang – Muhlach, Bautista, William Martinez and J.C. Bonnin.
Now 59 but still very boyish looking and charming, Raymond attracted his die-hard fans who followed him for years. They showed up in full force complete with banners and signs.
The special guest of Raymond during the show was the multi-talented Bituin Escalante. Kudos to director Waya Gallardo, musical director Marvin Querido, and Raymond's manager Girlie Rodis for a very memorable show.
Francis Libiran
It was a delight to see fashion designer Francis Libiran again, this time at his new classy shop at EDSA Shangri-La Mall. The well-appointed shop displays some of Francis' stunning wedding dresses, red-carpet creations and evening wear showstoppers.
We were thrilled that we were also joined by Libiran's manager Arsi Baltazar, fashion designer Nat Manilag and our good friend beauty queen-actress-model-singer Bessie Badilla who was in town from New York.
Dinner with this group was filled with laughter and a lot of catching up.
I love the story of Francis that he used to work for my architect brother Jun Rodriguez of Pimentel Rodriguez Simbulan & Partners (PRSP) Architects firm. Francis is an architecture graduate just in case you didn't know. What a small world, indeed!
But after two years in architecture, Francis' love for fashion won. He left architecture and concentrated on his passion.
PMPC Awards
At the invitation of our friend director Ma-an Asuncion-Dagnalan of "Blue Room," we attended our first Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC)'s Star Awards for Movies. It was exciting to see old friends again like producer Robbie Tan who received a Lifetime Achievement Award, and Mon Confiado who won the Best Supporting Actor award for the thriller "Nanahimik Ang Gabi." Soliman Cruz, whom we interviewed before virtually for his movie "To the North" which premiered at the Venice Film Festival, was also present since he was also in the movie, "Blue Room," of Ma-an.
Due to the global pandemic when the world stood still, the PMPC honored films in 2022 at the Winford Hotel and Casino in Manila.
MIFF and CineGang Panel Discussions
The Manila International Film Festival (MIFF) together with CineGang, Inc. hosted two panel discussions at the Mirax Building on Chino Roces.
The first panel, entitled "How to Award Season Your Film and TV Projects," had long-time Oscar member and president and CEO of David Magdael & Associates, David Magdael, and president at 42West, Annalee Paulo, discussing how filmmakers could promote and market their films. It was moderated by multi-Emmy Award winner Lisa Lew and Winston Emano, a principal of mano y mano Media.
The second panel, entitled "A Filipino in the Lead: An Afternoon with Nico Santos and Mark Dacascos," had Santos ("Crazy Rich Asians," "Superstore," "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3") and Dacascos ("Iron Chef America," "Hawaii Five-O," "John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum,") who shared their experiences about how they started in the industry, what kept them in the game and what their heritage played in keeping them there. It was also moderated by Emano.
Most of the attendees – filmmakers, producers, film students, and entertainment media – learned a lot from the panelists, bringing home a wealth of information provided to them by Hollywood insiders.
Chef Sharwin Tee's Treat in Tagaytay
A welcome break from the chaotic city was when Chef Sharwin Tee invited us for lunch at the Ezra Resort in Tagaytay at his Little Grace Popup where he cooked for us some of his favorite dishes influenced by his grandmother.
The feast started with Tiam Sim (Tsai Tao Ke, "Chicken Pie," Ba Wan), and then followed by lumpia (vegetable medley, hoti crepe, fried egg sauce, cilantro oil, banana catsup), Si Dit Misua (handmade noodles, carrot vinaigrette, blackened cabbage, 65 degree egg), Kiam Tao Din (soy milk, aged black vinegar, suahe, wood ear mushroom, spring onion), Pe Bok Ni (white fungus, wolfberries, lime), Tao Meng Tsai (hair vegetable, bearded tooth mushroom, fish maw, collagen broth, Tagaytay vegetables), "Beef and Broccoli" (Mayura Station wagyu, Sakura-smoked oyster, roasted broccoli, pickled ampalaya), Kiam Peng (salty/savory sticky rice dish with meat and veggies) and then ending it with Amah's Gulaman composed of orange scented pana cotta, pineapple frozen yogurt, pineapple curd and Milo "soil."
We didn't want to leave anymore after the culinary feast! It was nice that we also met the young and charming owner-entrepreneur of the new resort, Eric Alvin Po, who coincidentally also knew my architect brother.
After lunch, we proceeded to my younger sister Rebecca Mendez's house in Trece Martinez where we were welcomed with homecooked dishes whipped up by my brother-in-law Willy Mendez. But what made me more excited was the sight of a bowl of my favorite lanzones on their dinner table just waiting for me to devour them.
Pangasinan Revisited
Visiting Pangasinan, the hometown of my husband Ruben, is not complete without a stop and a prayer at the Senor Tesoro and Our Lady of Manaoag. Girls and boys selling sampaguita leis to offer usually stop you before you could even reach the altar. Lighting candles for your special intentions is a tradition.
Then, of course, stopping at the puto stands to savor the famous Calasiao puto is a must. Many years ago, when I worked in an office, I explained puto is steamed rice cake. I told my Latino friends who panicked and went to me, very concerned and asked, "What are you bringing to our potluck, Janet?"
We are grateful to Phil Hernandez for driving us to Pangasinan because we are not daring enough to steer the wheels on the road in the Philippines.
We finally enjoyed a much-needed break at my cousin-in-law's beach house in Binmaley – a welcome haven where you can watch the sunrise and sunset from your bedroom or go to the balcony and get some fresh air or just listen to the calming waves of the beach across the street.
The best part is having authentic Filipino breakfast and meals homecooked for you – garlic fried rice, tapsilog, tsokolate-e, dried fish, spicy crabs, sinigang na baka, coconut juice and lots of fresh fruits from lanzones, bananas to mangosteen. Thank you to Ate Imelda Estrellas, who drove from the city to Pangasinan just to make sure we were taken care of. That is Filipino hospitality for you!
At Station Zero in Boracay
After a whirlwind of reunions with my Varsitarian friends (hosted by my good friend Gigi Bautista Rapadas) at her beautiful home, Doris Torres of Columbia Records at Pandan Asia Café restaurant, the Wednesday Group hosted by Rudy Tee and Narciso Chan, the WEA Records family hosted by Ramon Chuaying, our New York friends hosted by SOHO International Film Festival president and founder Jorge Ballos in Rockwell and businessman Peter Go at a Korean restaurant, we finally had time to take another trip. We revisited Boracay.
The first time Ruben and I went to Boracay, there were still no hotels, no electricity and you took the regular bangka, not a speedboat. We have been back several times after that, and we saw how fast the white sand beaches of Boracay became so popular that more and more hotels popped up on the island.
We flew from Manila to Boracay via Philippine Air Lines, and it was a comfortable 53 minutes. As soon as we landed, the Crimson Resort and Spa Boracay staff welcomed us and brought us to the van that would take us to their own dock where refreshments were served. From there, they guided us to the boat that took us to the hotel which is located in Station Zero.
If you are like us, who long for a quiet, relaxing vacation and have already been to the busy side of Boracay, then being at Crimson Hotel in Station Zero is just the perfect getaway! No crowds, no vendors, no chaotic madness – just you and the beach.
We were also delighted to meet the charming and friendly General Manager of the hotel, Didier Belmonte, who never fails to keep us entertained with his amusing and interesting stories about life on the islands. Front Office Manager Nico Jhie Alejandrino also made sure that everything was okay with our stay. We had no complaints! Filipino service at its best!
From Boracay to Quezon City
From Boracay island, we proceeded to Solaire Resort North in Quezon City, my birth city. Although Solaire Resort North just opened in May 2024, it has already become one of the most popular hotels in the Philippines with its varied restaurants offering international dishes to its popular casino and interesting shows and entertainment offerings.
I went gaga over the champorado with toppings of dilis or tuyo at Fresh or the varied offerings at the Food Court from danggit and sisig at Inihaw, or pinakbet Tagalog or Bicol Express at Sandok. It is heaven-sent when you do not need to go out and deal with the heavy traffic since everything you need is in one place.
Thank you to Tristan Dela Paz, Senior Manager of Hotel Services, Fresh Assistant Manager Gabriel B Sicubam and Fresh Chef Jonathan Carranza for their hospitality.
Rodriguez Family Reunion
One of the main reasons why I wanted to go back home was to meet my Rodriguez family again, whom I have not seen in five years. And guess what, the clan has grown from a family of eight to a family of 35! It was fun to meet my siblings, nephews and nieces, grand nephews and nieces, girlfriends and boyfriends, and of course, my Dad, Vicente Rodriguez, the patriarch of the family who turned 92 years old last September.
We enjoyed the reunion held at The Perfect Pint at Rockwell and it became more memorable with our gifts to the clan - Stella Rosa Philippines bottles of wines - that we handed to each family.
While we were having our lunch reunion, guess who would walk in but Dingdong Avanzado, Jessa Zaragoza and their lovely daughter Jada who were entertaining some guests from Canada. Also dropping by was our good friend Senedy Que who lived in The Proscenium in the Rockwell area.
Paying Respect to Ancestors
While in Quezon City, I also paid my respects to my deceased ancestors as I visited the graves of my mother Mena Castro Rodriguez, my paternal grandparents Narciso and Cecilia Rodriguez, my paternal godparents Leonardo and Celia dela Cruz, my cousin Lourdes dela Cruz, and my uncle Salvador Rodriguez and cousin Ronnie Rodriguez.
I am grateful my late mother spent her last two years with me in Los Angeles, was with me when I gave birth to my younger daughter Rafaella Angelica, and helped raise my two girls – including Bianca Nicole – when they were very young.
I was the favorite apo of my Lolo Narciso and Lola Celing and they so practically had me in their house in Kamuning every weekend. Being the eldest child of six, I spent quality time with my grandparents, got to know them better, and became closer to them. I remember my Lola, who was the District Superintendent of Schools then bringing me along to her schools and proudly showing me around, even asking me to write an impromptu poem for me to read to all her teachers.
As for my Lolo, he used to work at De La Salle's carpentry department. He was so creative that I still remember that he and my Dad volunteered to do the set in our grade school during a production I was involved in.
Going back home to LA via PAL, we were surprised when we were welcomed by my charming niece Elgeen Nepales, who is a LAX/PAL ground staff member, with her lovely smile and a sign she made herself.
After three event-packed weeks in the Philippines, we felt re-energized, reinvigorated and ready to welcome 2025.
—MGP, GMA Integrated News
