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
Bonifacio’s birthday on November 30 is celebrated as Bonifacio Day (Filipino: Araw ni Bonifacio) and is a public holiday in the Philippines. This is the day to remember our hero, Andres Bonifacio, who led the Filipinos to fight for their freedom from the Spaniards in the late 1800s. Bonifacio Day is quite odd, because heroes — like saints — are often remembered more for their death rather than their birth. Rizal’s birthday, June 19, is a holiday in Laguna province, and the date of his execution, Dec. 30, is a national holiday known as Rizal Day. Anyone who knows Philippine history will understand why Bonifacio is remembered on his birthday, Nov. 30, rather than the date of his death, May 10, 1897. Unlike Rizal who was executed by the enemy, and other heroes who died in battle, Bonifacio was executed by fellow Filipinos.
FYI:
There are many monuments to Bonifacio across the nation, the most famous being two sculptures, one by Napoleon Abueva and the other by Guillermo Tolentino, both National Artists.Also, in current Philippine currency, he is depicted in the 10-peso bill (currently out of production) and 10-peso coin, along with fellow patriot Apolinario Mabini.
Edito “Peso” Alcala surfed his way to a victory during the recently concluded Billabong Cloud 9 Invitational held on September 27, 2008 at General Luna, Siargao Island. His win over defending champion Wade Goodall (Aus) is only the second time a Filipino has won the international event in Siargao, the first being back in the late 90s by Rodolfo “Osot” Alcala.The international competition held at Cloud 9, is among the most prestigious in Asia and is watched closely by surfers around the world. It attracts high profile professional surfers from Australia, Israel, Japan, Hawaii and France among others.
It was a dream come true according to Edito because he never expected that he would get a second wave perfectly in time after Goodall’s 17.77 point score. However, he did earn a total of 18.16 points thereby taking first place. He also added that through fervent prayers, an unbelievable divine intervention set in. As he was narrating the victorious story before the media, Edito said that he was ardently praying that he would hit a perfect trick and would excellently get out of the barrel with a tight two-minutes left. To his amazement, as well as to the crowd watching before him, Alcala made it with a standing-ovation performance. He knew he made a good turn when it barreled all the way down the reef and people couldn’t help themselves but to shout joyfully after he flicked off the wave. Alcala, merrily went home with pride and surfed away with $7,500 (USD).
A Dance Crew from the Philippines took top honors in their division at the 7th Annual World Hip Hop Dance Championship, held August 3, 2008 in Las Vegas.
Over 1,500 dancers from 22 countries competed in the electrifying event which brought the audience to its feet numerous times as dance crews presented dazzling routines blending old and new school moves.
The Philippine All Stars dance crew received the highest score of the night (8.94) and took home the gold medal in the Adult Division (ages 18+). The Pinoy dancers strutted their stuff in front of a crowd of approximately 2,000 rocking, dancing and jumping with unmatched intensity.
The Philippine All-Stars’ routine was based on Ken Jhons’ thrilling choreography. During one particular dance sequence, Jhons plucked a dancer from the ground and raised him above his head on a single on a single arm, holding him aloft like a hunter with a prize kill, before discarding him back onto the stage. The move drew astonished gasps and a standing ovation from the audience.
The bronze, silver and gold medals were presented by rap artist MC Hammer, who described the event as a “positive outlet for its youthful participants.”
Punahou senior Christel Simms, swimming for the Philippines, finished 47th out of 90 in the 50-meter freestyle heats today in the National Aquatics Center at the Beijing Olympics.
Simms finished in 26.64 seconds. The cutoff time for the top 16 advancing to the semifinals was 25.07. Cate Campbell of Australia led the heat qualifiers in 24.20.
USA’s Dara Torres qualified with the third best time in 24.58.
Simms, who completed her Olympics, also missed qualifying for the semifinals in the 100 freestyle earlier this week.
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.
