Welcome to Brown Nation! As you can probably see, we really do have pride in our culture, so if you got anything to show us about the Filipino Culture that you think we might be interested in posting, then feel free to send it over to:BrownNationCulture@yahoo.com
“Long Live the Fearless Man” by Aissa Peñafiel and Miguel Ocampo is one of six winners of the Democracy video Challenge, launched online and at the United Nations. The competition invited citizens around the world to engage in an online dialogue on the nature of democracy by submitting video shorts that completed the phrase “Democracy is…”
Peñafiel and Ocampo said they wanted their video to have a “truly Filipino message” and not just limited to the presidential elections and Charter change. “As filmmakers, we want our films to be socially relevant,”This video questions the way democracy is often operationalized, and how hunger and despair and fear and greed engulf and distort the practice of democracy. There is only one actor, and his body becomes a canvas for expressing the frustrations and tensions around democracy.”
Mic3 sends in a tattoo of a montage artwork by Samoan Mike from Sacred Center Tattoo which took 1 year in the making and still is in progress.
First and foremost, the portrait at the top is one of Jose Rizal inside the Sun of the Philippine flag that we know of now. Right below is a depiction of Lapu Lapu (Iliji Rajiki), protector of the Philippine Islands against Ferdinand Magellan and other Conquistadors. Lapu Lapu is holding a Balisong or Kampilan and a shield or Pestle, more known now as the Kalinga Apayao shield. Mic3 had the markings of the Kalinga tattooed on Lapu Lapu himself although that wasn’t so in reality.
Future plans to add on to this masterpiece are rice pattys off to the right side of his body and Eskrima Fighters/Warriors within the area. Also 3 stones below the portrait will be added, representing the 3 main islands of the Philippines, and within them will be the Hail Mary Prayer in Alibata/Baybayin. Lastly the Philippine islands will be shaded in.
The country’s biggest, grandest and most anticipated festival is set to take center stage once again—the Sinulog Festival 2009. The Sinulog is an annual festival held on the third Sunday of January in Cebu City, Philippines. The festival honors the child Jesus, known as the Santo Niño (Holy Child), patron of the city of Cebu. It is a dance ritual that commemorates the Cebuano people’s pagan origin, and their acceptance of Christianity.
In keeping with the spirit of All Souls’ Day, celebrated in the west as Halloween, Brown Nation wanted to reveal a video featuring several Philippines residents sharing their true-life sightings of the “White Lady of Balete” and “The Aswang “….
What is the “Aswang”?
An Aswang is a creature of Philippine myth. Sometimes called a tik-tik or a wak-wak because of the sound they may make as they approach, the aswang is typically a therianthrope with the appearance of a shy, elusive person during the day, and a monstrous, slightly anthropomorphic bird or bat at night. In some legends, the aswang is also capable of transforming itself into other animal forms, such as a pig, cat, or dog.
Besides the rice, pancit and chicken adobo, filipino cuisine also offers a strange assortment of foods that not all Filipinos know about. For example, did you know that animal bile is used in some Filipino dishes or that the chocolate in chocolate meat isn’t really what it seems? As disgusting as it may sound, some of these dishes are actually tasty and delicious.
Balut
One of the most widely known delicacies to Filipinos, the balut is a two-week-old duck embryo baked in their shell. It is eaten by cracking a small hole on the rounder part of the shell till it becomes the size of a bottle cap. Salt is usually sprinkled on top for seasoning, the juice from the balut is sipped and then voila, the small little duck is eaten.
Dinuguan
Also called dinardaraan in Ilocano, or chocolate meat in English. This dish is a savory stew of blood and meat simmered in a rich gravy of pig blood, garlic, chili and vinegar. The term dinuguan comes from the word dugo meaning “blood”. It is recognizably thick and dark, hence the Westernized euphemism “chocolate meat.”
Here’s a list of sites that we here at Brown Nation think you should know about. These are quick links to spots on the web that relate to culture, music, and arts, as well as a listing of random sites that we like.
