In a Hindu Temple in KL

Well the title pretty much says it. I took this while on vacation in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

As luck would have it, I was there on the eve of the Thaipusam, a Hindu religious festival that basically involves the faithful parading in the streets while bearing huge metal arches pierced (yep!) into their skins. Would post Thaipusam pics soon. xoxoxo.

Good luck!

Back from a LOOOOONG hiatus. (How's everyone doing?) Keeping up with this blog is becoming a chore and I need all the good luck I could get.



So here, loyal readers, is a video I took when I was in Kuala Lumpur of Malaysian Chinese offering incense to gods. Let's hope that there'll be more regular updates from this corner of the blogosphere from here on now.

Lukayo

Today, May 17, marks the start of the annual fertility festival in the town of Obando, in the province of Bulacan in honor of its three patron saints: San Pascual Baylon, Santa Clara de Asís and Nuestra Señora de Salambao.

While this ritual dancing is well-documented (José Rizal's Noli Me Tangere talks about how María Clara was conceived after her mother Pía Alba danced in Obando), there are more fertility rituals all over the Philippines that our textbooks and national consciousness fail to notice.


(Part 1 of 6. Finish watching the entire video in Youtube)

In 2006, the late Ramon Obusan, Philippine National Artist for Dance, did a documentary with GMA 7's Howie Severino on the phallic rituals in Kalayaan, Laguna. Called Lukayo, the dance involved women dressed up in gaudy costumes, dancing with artificial penises on the wedding day of a lass in town and singing songs with a lot of sexual innuendos outside the church.

A related ritual, called Baliw-Baliw, used to be performed in Cebu. It involves cross-dressing, throwing animal manure in the chapel and putting on more improvised penises in honor of San Vicente Ferrer. Both rituals are steadily being erased by Church authorities, who look down upon such traditions for their "inappropriateness".

Eid al-Fitr

This is video I took in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia right when the Moslem call to prayer was being sounded at 12 noon. Today marks the end of the month of Ramadan according to the Moslem calendar, a day marked by members of Islam with the feast called Eid al-Fitr.



Happy Eid everyone!

Braving a cold Sevillan morning to watch the Macarena

This is a video I took in 2007 when I was in Sevilla, Spain for Holy Week. Seville's most attended procession is called the Madrugá, the dawn procession on Good Friday. My hostel was right in the heart of the procession route on Calle Sierpes, so I was able to see one of Spain's most famous images of the Virgin Mary, the Esperanza Macarena.

A budget traveler's guide to surviving KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA

With the low-cost airline Air Asia making a lot of impact in the Southeast Asian travel scene, cities that are generally considered exotic are now within reach at an affordable price. Of course, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital city and main hub of Air Asia, has got a lion’s share of visitors from all over the world and is proving to be an exciting destination for people in search of Asian cultures in one compact site.

Whether as a stopover on your way to continental Southeast Asia or a visit done because of low fare rates, Kuala Lumpur (or KL among people in the know) may just be that very elusive hideaway that you are looking for. So wanna visit KL, Malaysia? Take out those passports and say a big “Halo! Apa khabar?”

1. Ride. Whether you’re in a low-cost flight or in a normal transnational airline, you would have to go to the KL International Airport that is about an hour and a half from the city center. Transport is incredibly easy since you could take a cab (about RM 80) or a bus (RM 9) that takes you to KL Central Station, depending on your budget. Whatever you choose to ride, it would be a wise move to have a lot of leeway in both time and money especially if you’re backpacking. Buses start their operations from the KL Central Station at 3:15 AM while the Metro starts at 6 AM.

2. Fall in line. KL’s main attraction for most tourists is the Petronas Twin Towers, which could be visited for free. About a thousand tickets are distributed daily for visits that start at 9 AM with a 15-minute interval for each visit. Do be there early (around 7:15 AM) if you don’t want to spend half a day in the queue. You may also want to visit Menara KL near the Petronas, but you have to pay for this one. The view is more spectacular here but if you only want to be in some tall building in KL and stare at the city, Petronas is more than enough.

3. Savor. What’s KL without its yummy delights? If you’re big on spices and flavors, KL may just be the right place to splurge. There are many self-serve canteens in the city where you could have your binge (and I mean, scoop to your heart’s content) and then the waiter gives you the bill; alternatively, you could just sit and have someone take your order if you totally cannot relate with the procedure. Do try the curries (ask for the least spicy if you can’t stand the heat), and seafood. And please do yourself a favor and drink Malaysian coffee (plain or with milk, hot or cold), the best coffee there is.

4. Shop. Malaysia seems to be placing a lot of emphasis on shopping. Now most people prefer to go to Jalan Petaling in Chinatown to shop for souvenirs, imitation bags, sneakers, belts and electronics, or even to the Saturday night market in Little India. I personally recommend, however, going to the Central Market instead. The items may be a bit pricier but you get to shop in an airconditioned place, something which would prove to be valuable on KL’s intensely hot days.

5. Revere. Malaysia breaks the stereotype most people have on Moslem nations for its being very tolerant toward a lot of faiths. Go to the Masjid Negara (National Mosque) to see how Moslems do it, then to any Buddhist temple especially on a Saturday to see people offering incenses and food. In the outskirts of KL you could visit the Batu Caves, a stronghold of the Hindu religion in the city. There’s a bus that goes there for RM 2 (which could take a lifetime). What I did was to take the Kelana Jaya Line of the Metro to Terminal Putra (about RM 2) and then a cab to the Batu Caves (RM 10). After climbing its 270 steps and ogling at the monkey-filled shrines, I took the bus toward the city center.

Marlon’s Kuala Lumpur Route (1-2 days): Start with Petronas. Then walk toward Menara KL either for a pic or a climb. Then off to the Batu Caves. The period from 1PM to 5PM is hot so either do your shopping in Central Market or the KL Shopping Mall, or eat and relax in Jalan Petaling. Try visiting the National Mosque and taking a pic in the nearby Old Train Station. And then go back around 8PM to the Petronas area to see the Twin Towers all magnificently lit up.

Marlon’s Budget Tip: It’s tempting to think that KL doesn’t have to be a budget destination because it’s budget in itself. But please don’t get too excited with the shiny and sparkly things you see in the bazaars or the insanely low prices for watches and the like. Look for quality and for something which you *really* need.

Season of fireworks

W.A.M. bids farewell to 2008 with this music video of the song Season of Fireworks from the Taiwanese pop group F4. It has been a year of ups and downs, of many events and places we've shared and marvelled at, like the fireworks that dot the skyline on this festive eve, a proof that life, indeed, is a journey and we're all tourists making the most out of it.


As the words of this F4 song go, "I want to hold your hands and share with you this splendid season of fireworks with our beautiful memories."

HAPPY 2009 TO ALL READERS AND FRIENDS OF The World According to Marlon!

Maligayang Pasko!

W.A.M. wishes all readers and bloggers the world over a very Merry Christmas! Maligayang Pasko sa inyong lahat (or, so says this greeting posted on the doors of the Centro de Idiomas of the Universidad de Valladolid).

Nativity scenes

As a kid, one of the things I tremendously enjoy was setting up the family belen, the scene that depicts the birth of Jesus. It has an all-star cast: the Holy Family, the Three Kings, the shepherds with their sheep, the ox, the mule and the angel.

So imagine my surprise when, as a student in Europe, I saw that many people love their creche and that they have bigger sets, including anachronic figures such as Renaissance farmers, chandlers and butchers. Here are two of the most memorable I've seen:


Rome, Italy. I forgot the name of the church dedicated to the Virgin but my friend always frequents this place to drink the healing water that wells from beneath the place. Its presepe, for me, was the best feature of the church. It's displayed during the entire year in a room at the left-hand side of the altar under the soft and romantic shimmer of blue lights.


Barcelona, Spain. This guilded belen was located outside the Generalitat of Catalunya. It's a simple set with the Holy Family and the ox and mule, but its glimmer beneath the winter sun was simply divine. It's encased in a glass box which in turn is covered with tall reeds and bamboo-like plants.

Happy Holidays!

Dying with class

Great people, it is said, are immortalized only upon their death. This becomes even more palpable when they are placed in one single place for future generations to see. This is the case of the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence, Italy, a haven for great Florentines who through their works have moved the world.

Michelangelo Buonarroti. The great sculptor of David and the Pietà, the painter of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, and the great inspiration for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (hihi), found his resting place in this ornate marble tomb.

Niccolò Machiavelli. The great political thinker whose most famous work is The Prince has this cenotaph erected in his honor, with an inscription in Latin that can be translated as, "No honor is enough for such great a name."

Dante Alighieri. The author of the Divine Comedy, Italy's Sommo Poeta and Father of the Italian Language, he has this tomb in his honor, though his mortal remains are enterred in Ravenna, Italy.

Galileo Galilei. The great thinker and proponent of the heliocentrism, for which he was unjustly accused of heresy, is today honored and acclaimed in this befitting memorial.

Nuestra Señora del Pilar

The feast of Nuestra Señora del Pilar merges a religious observance and a secular holiday. Aside from being the patroness of Aragón, Our Lady of the Pillar is also the patroness of Spain and the whole of hispanidad, the term used in reference to all the lands that once belonged to the Spanish Empire, where, it was said, "the sun never sets."

Her feast on October 12 is also the Día de Hispanidad (or, Día de la Raza in some places in Hispanic America, the day Columbus "discovered" the New World), a time when we celebrate the common tie that binds many countries in America, Europe and us here in Asia.



Here's a video I made when I visited the Basilica of the Virgin last year in Zaragoza, Spain on August 15, the feast of the Assumption. You would see the age-old tradition of letting children who have not received their First Communion kiss the cape that covers the sacred pillar where the Virgin Mary was said to have appeared to St. James the Great (Santiago el Mayor) when the latter was evangelizing Iberia. Other than youngsters, ranking members of the Catholic clergy and the Spanish Royal Family, no one is allowed to enter the camarín of the Virgin.

The pillar, made of jasper 1.70 meters in length and 24 centimeters in diameter, is covered with bronce and silver. It remains covered throughout the year except during the feast of the Virgin.

(Va dedicada esta entrada a todas las Pilares de mi vida, en especial a AlmaLeonor que a pesar de la distancia sigue siendo una gran amiga.)

Papal audience

I distinctly remember this day, October 2, last year. I was in Rome, spending my last few days in Italy with friends and with the sole intention of attending a Papal audience. A Papal audience, for those who want to know, is the time when the Pope meets Catholic pilgrims in Rome.

I had been in Rome two years back, but I didn't know that audiences are held on Wednesdays so between catching my plane back to Spain and staying to see the Pope, I chose the former. Now many people think I'm overly religious (I think I'm not) but I am fascinated with the Catholic faith and Rome on a Wednesday teems with it. Besides, it's one of those events you could look back to when you're old and grimy and say to yourself, proudly, "I was there."


So on this fateful day of October last year, I was so eager to spend my Wednesday in Rome and be in the audience... But there's just one teensy-weensy problem: I DIDN'T HAVE A TICKET! I had tried talking to some Filipino nuns in Valladolid, Spain before going to Italy and they referred me to a Filipino priest who was supposed to be in the same audience. I waited for the (insert expletive here, ehehe) priest for about one hour and a half but he didn't show up.

It was nearly the start of the audience so I shifted to my Plan B, devised about 10 hours before the actual event. I went to the Philippine Embassy to the Holy See, just a few meters away from St. Peter's (it's probably the Embassy closest to the main square) and asked for tickets. I did get tickets (plural, since I got three just in case two forlorn souls had the same problem as I did) and went in, sat in a place that seemed faraway from all the action since people had wolfed all good seats by then while I was outside waiting for the (insert expletive here, ehehe) priest for about one hour and a half (have I told you this bit yet?). As I was fretting over not being able to see the Pope -- lo and behold! -- he came out right next to where I was seated. Talk about divine justice.

Men in tights

I was so fortunate when I studied in Florence, Italy last year because I was able to see the opening of the annual Florence Wine Event. The festival featured some of the best wines of the nearby Chianti region.



The ceremony started with a parade of men dressed in the typical Renaissance costume of Tuscany. They marched toward the Palazzo Pitti and then began a very interesting perfomance with flags and music. Once satisfied with all that flag-throwing, kibitzers could get a total of 16 glasses of wine for only 15 euros (if I remember it correctly), in makeshift stations ceded to Chianti's most outstanding winemakers. You gotta love Florence for this, really.

A Pucela, en grato recuerdo...

September 8 is the Nativity of Mary, Mother of God, and her representation as the Nuestra Señora de San Lorenzo is the major feast day in the city of Valladolid, Spain. And to be honest, there's no other place you should be in on this day other than Valladolid.

Heos aquí algunos videos (uno sacro y el otro, un poco más profano) hechos el año pasado por alguien que de por vida ya quedará encantado de esta ciudad castellana. La guarda siempre en su corazón y está convencido cada vez más de que una gran parte de él se ha trasformado ya en pucelana. ¡Aúpa Pucela!


This is the procession of the Patroness of Valladolid toward the Metropolitan Cathedral for the high mass. She is escorted by honor guards and is showered with roses on her way.


It's also an occasion for street parties and endless beers and food. Here's the start of the merrymaking, with the members of social clubs called peñas imposing the pañuelo de fiestas to the statue of Conde Ansúrez, founder of Valladolid, in the city's main square.

An afternoon of Chinese tea

If we are to make a gross simplification of things, tea is to China as Coca-cola is to the rest of the world. The Chinese love affair with tea (whatever kind it may be) trascends history, age group and other prejudices; it is not strange, thus, that they have developed and perfected the cult -- the way of life, even! -- that revolves around tea.



Here's me and my family having a crash course on Chinese teas during our trip to Beijing, China some months back. Cheers!

Iacobvs

Tomorrow, July 25, is the Catholic feast day of St. James the Great, the first martyr among the apostles of Jesus and the patron saint of Spain and of pilgrims. Incidentally, St. James is also my personal patron saint (I owe my second name to him) and when I was in Spain, my stop in his shrine in Santiago de Compostela to venerate his tomb has been obligatory and enriching.

Legend has it that decapitated body of the martyred saint was washed ashore in Galicia. The place where it landed was illumined by a star, hence the name Compostella, which came from the Latin Campus Stellae, Field of the Star. The Cathedral of St. James was later on built on the site where his remains were found and the body was buried in a silver coffin beneath the main altar.

Sancte Iacobe, ora pro nobis.

Noche de San Juan

The summer solstice, the day when daylight is at its peak, coincides with the Catholic feast of St. John the Baptist.

In Spain, the day of San Juan de Bautista is observed in a bombastic fashion, combining water and fire (and lotsa beer!) as people wait for the sunrise on the 24th of June. It's a night of magic, which many associate with witchcraft and pagan rituals that indeed precede this Christianized celebration (here in the Philippines, too... remember Tatarin?)

In Valladolid, Spain, for example, the Noche de San Juan is celebrated on the Playa de las Moreras, beside the Pisuerga River. At the stroke of midnight, the main bonfire is lit and the people get the embers from the principal fire to light their own mini-bonfires. They then jump over the fire amid the sounds of partying and merrymaking.

Feliz Noche de San Juan a todos!

Pahiyas

As we watch the flowery month of May ebb away, we also bid farewell to the interminable fiestas that dot Filipino calendars everywhere. This year, I was able to fulfill my lifelong desire to see the Queen of Philippine Fiestas, the Pahiyas Festival in Lucban, Quezon.





It's celebrated on May 15, the feast of San Isidro Labrador, the patron saint of farmers, in whose honor the townsfolk decorate their houses with produce and other things they harvest from their lands. Colorful leaf-shaped decors made of rice powder (kiping) are placed as accents in the already gorgeous home.

Liputan's Maytime fluvial festival

Although the Holy Week processions of Meycauayan, Bulacan are among the best in the Philippines, the Department of Tourism does not take notice and only promotes the island of Liputan on its website. While W.A.M. wishes that tourism officials in the country update their website, it is also proud that this island barrio within the bounds of the City of Meycauayan has got the promotion it so richly deserves.

For a typical citizen of Meycauayan (like moi), Liputan is best associated with the fluvial parade that usually happens on the second Sunday of May. This year, however, it is celebrated on the first, given that it is only now that we have low tide for the entire month.

Of all fiestas in Meycauayan, the fiesta of Liputan is the most extravagant, lively and well-known. It starts early in the morning when the images of the Holy Cross and the Virgin are placed on their carriages and then taken to the city on a big makeshift boat called a pagoda.

Once loaded in the pagoda, whoever would still fit it could come along with the patron saints. Others opt to take their own boats, called bangka, with them. The retinue moors by the docks of Barrio Saluysoy, in the city market, and from there the entire fishing village with its patrons, marching bands and escorts parade toward the main church, the Parish of St. Francis of Assisi, for the 9 AM mass.

What happens after the mass is up to anyone's imagination... although one should take into account that fisherfolks are a generous lot and May is the best time to eat crabs and shrimps and drink lotsa beer (Mmmm...)

I soooo love the month of May! Happy Fiesta!

Meycauayan's Mater Dolorosa in a Spanish digital newspaper

Spanish newspaper 20minutos has recently published a picture I took of the Mater Dolorosa (Sorrowful Virgin) of Meycauayan during Semana Santa. The last time I looked the picture appears here. But since they keep on adding new photos at the beginning of the album, you might have to browse through the gallery to see the pic I sent.

The caption reads, "Esta foto es de los 45 pasos que tenemos aquí en la ciudad de Meycauayan, Filipinas. En lugar de cofradías como las que tenéis vosotros en España e Hispanoamérica, son las familias adineradas quienes se encargan de sacar estas imágenes en las procesiones, con lo cual las imágenes antaño 'heredaban' fincas y propiedades para poder participar cada año."

(This picture is one of the 45 karos that we have in the city of Meycauayan, the Philippines. Instead of cofradías like the ones you have in Spain and Hispanic America, it is the rich families who take charge of bringing these images out on processions. Therefore, the images used to "inherit" lands and other properties to be able to join the procession each year.)