The Hot air balloons are back!

The annual Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta (PIHABF) is the country’s biggest aviation sports event today. Hot air balloon and airplane pilots from all over the world fly into the Philippines to join their local counterparts in this breathtaking event. In addition to daily flights of the hot air balloons, other activities include: skydiving, daily flag jumps (a skydiver jumps with the Philippine flag while the National Anthem is played to the start of the day’s activities); micro light demonstrations; small planes fly-bys and fly-ins; remote controlled airplanes exhibitions; aerobatics; light airplane balloon bursting competition; ultra-light formation flying and bomb dropping exhibitions; helicopter fly-ins and exhibitions; an air rally from Clark to Vigan; rocketry demonstrations; kite flying exhibitions; and races between ultra lights and motorcycles.

Be sure to be there early in the morning. Be there by 5am if you want to catch the Balloons being set up at dusk. It’s just awesome watching those balloons transform from flat pieces of linen to graceful and colorful flying balloons! The balloons are the real stars in the Fiesta. The sunrise and the morning sunlight is a show in itself as well! Thank you Lord!

There are other aviation highlights during the day. There will be kites, paragliders, parchutes, small planes, skydiving, choreographed kite flying and so much more. See the 12th Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiest schedule here.

In the evening, be there by 5pm when the balloons start making their way back to the field. Wait a while and you can watch the “night glow”. Night glow is like watching giant fireflies lighting up their behinds. The balloons are lined up, then they would light up the fire like giant christmas lights! It’s beautiful!

Here’s a mishmash of tips when you go to the Balloon Fiesta:

a.) Be there early, like 5am, if you want to catch the balloons being setup. Stay there late, like 5pm up to 7pm if you want to catch the “night glow”.
b.) Protect yourselves from the sun! Wear sunscreen, wear a wide hat, wear your shades. Bring an umbrella too.
c.) Hydrate yourself. Drink lots of water.
d.) Bring your camera! Keep on shooting! Fill-up the frame with the vibrant colors of the balloons. Get close!
e.) Bring a collapsible chair, banig, umbrella to rest your feet while waiting for the day’s next events.
f.) Take action shots, where the stillness in the photo you still captures “motion” in a sense that the subject was evidently moving when the photo was taken. Examples would be balloons lifting off, people running, airplanes zipping by, kites flying.
g.) Take videos. It’s also a good idea to take *videos* of flying things. When objects are way up in the sky, they end up too small in photos anyway. At least in videos, you get to see the movement of the plane or skydiver, for example.

Enjoy the show!

ka edong
up up and away on my beatiful balloon

The City if San Fernando in the province of Pampanga will once again shine in its brightest as it holds the annual Ligligan Parul or the Giant Lantern Festival. The highlights of the event will be held at the SM San Fernando Ampitheater at around 7PM. Be there early as large crowds are expected to witness this event.

Scene from the 2005 Ligligan Parul in San Fernando

See how the magic of the Kapampangan works when Christmas lanterns or Parol as high as 18 feet twinkle its lights to the tune of Christmas songs. See how thousands of lamp bulbs is tranformed into a visual masterpiece.

San Fernando, Pampanga is known for making attractive and very colorful Christmas lanterns known in Filipino as Parol. Because of this, the Kapampangan Capital City has been known as the Christmas Capital of the Philippines.

More travel tales here

Upcoming Festivals to watch out for!

Sinulog 2010
Ati-atihan 2010
Dinagyang 2010
Panagbenga Festival 2010
Philippine International hot Air Balloon fiesta 2009 Clark Pampanga

What should have been a boring visit to Clark Field Pampanga, turned into an educational tour of the Nayong Filipino in Clark.

It was an accidental trip to the Nayong Filipino at Clark Expo Center in Pampanga. My family and I were planning to visit a new ranch/farm called Paradise Farm but we couldn’t find it, until we saw a sign pointing to the direction of Nayong Filipino. At first we thought it was already a bygone place. No cars parked outside, no festivities whatsoever. But still we went inside the Nayong Filipino compound and was greeted by a nice looking place with lots of native Filipino houses and a grand old house that reminds us of the Spanish houses owned by famous Filipinos in Cavite, Ilocos and other historic places in the Philippines.

The Nayong Filipino in Clark is a cluster of replicas of houses, churches, Spanish type “plaza” with a grand old church at the center. As the place is not yet fully finished, a few more accessories and other historic artifacts would make it look more authentic and intesting sight to visit.

But on the adjacent area lies the good part about Nayong Filipino in Clark. Its a small community of Ifugao huts which are authentically constructed complete with traditional Ifugao furnishings. The place is surrounded by luscious greeneries that emits a cool and soothing environment. There was even a tree house where you can rest for awhile. While roaming around, we saw some groups having their packed lunch, it was your traditional picnic scene right in the heart of Nayong Filipino in Clark.

Googling for Nayong Filipino, I found a write up about it at the WowPinoy.net site. So, Nayong Filipino in Clark is set to open in November this year. Gives them more time to improve on the place.

Nayong Filipino in Clark is a potential crowd drawer as soon as it fully opens. One of the receptionists told me that they would soon host conventions, and other events as soon as they are formally open.

San Fernando, Pampanga is set to be the first of four Philippine cities to host the upcoming Shroud of Turin exhibit. After enlightening New Zealand, Shroud Exhibits International, Inc. presents the Philippine Exhibition of The Mystery of the Shroud of Turin, opening on July 20 at SM Pampanga.

Revered for hundreds of years as the burial shroud of Jesus Christ, the Shroud of Turin is locked away in a cathedral in Italy, publicly displayed only three or four times a century. On these rare occasions, pilgrims from all over the world troop to Turin to witness the exposition.

However, Filipinos need not wait until the next official exposition in 2025, as they have the chance to view the replica of this artifact together with over 80 other exhibit items from the collection of Mr. Barrie Schwortz, the Official Documenting Photographer commissioned by King Umberto II of Savoy, the Shroud’s previous monarch-owner.

The Philippine Exhibition of the Shroud of Turin begins in Pampanga and will then be taken to SM Mall of Asia from Sept. 8 to Dec.9; SM City Davao from Jan. 18 to Feb.3, 2008; and SM City Cebu from April 4 to 27, 2008.

Managed by Primetrade Asia, Inc., endorsed by the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and the Department of Education, and for the benefit of the Sisters of the Holy Face Congregation, The Holy One of the Lord Catholic Foundation, Inc., and the Diocese of Parañaque, the exhibit is a 45-minute lights and sound show that also features exclusive video clips and other special artifacts.

The exhibition allows visitors to journey with the Shroud’s history, discover the facts and myths behind the most studied archaeological artifact of all time, and unravel the mystery behind this treasured piece. Visitors will be taken on a module by module tour of the historical pilgrimage of the Shroud including the Way of the Cross, and the various theories based on art, science, technology, and the Bible that aim to shed light on this historical, scientific and ecclesiastical phenomenon.

A Reflection Room is also on hand for visitors who wish to spend some moments in quiet solace and prayer, while a special area of the exhibition is also set aside for special events, such as seminars and workshops, hosted by religious groups.

For more details, contact Shroud Exhibits International, Inc. at 895-2966 or 610-0870, or email info@shroudexhibits.ph.

Youth Tourism Response – Philippines (YTRiP), with the help of Alquimista, Inc. and the Sleepy Traveler is organizing a food trip to Pampanga this July.

Dubbed Viajeng Cucina Matua (The Old Kitchen Tour), the food trip is slated this July 22, 2007.

The Kapampangan cuisine is highly regarded as one of the most delicious in the Philippines . Discover their age-old secrets and explore the rich culture of Pampanga through this one -of-a-kind cultural culinary experience.

Itinerary

Departure from M.M. (6:30 )
Breakfast – Cucina ng Atching Lillian Borromeo
Merienda – Betis Crafts
Lunch – Cucina ng Kong Andy qng Alvis Farm
A Glimpse of Betis Church – dubbed as the Sistine Chapel of the Philippines
Merienda – Villa Epifania

Ocampo-Lansang Delicacies

Dinner – Cucina nang Atching May qng Gosioco House
Departure from Pampanga
Arrival M.M. ( 10:00PM)

Like they always say, the best dishes are the ones made at home – and we will bring you straight there.

Tour Fee is at Php 2, 500 for the whole food trip and cultural tour inclusive of the transportation and travel insurance.

* This also serves as a YTRiP fundraiser. If you would like more details and for reservations, please email youthtrip@gmail.com, clareamador@gmail.com, or text 0918-521-1087. Thank you!

Our Awesome Planet and Pinoy Travel Blog presents OAP and PTB Live in the 11th Intl Phil. Balloon Fiesta in Clark Field Pampanga!

Just join us if you want to witness these Awesome Balloons and have fun with photo hobbyists. Here are the details:

Meet up: 3.30am (Yes!) at Shell North Luzon Expressway, February 10, 2007 Saturday

4am enroute to Omni Aviation, Clark Field Pampanga

5.30-7.30am Hot Air Balloon Takeoff Shoot out

8.00am – Breakfast @ VMV along Friendship Road (a secret cozy american place in Clark)

9.00am — Enroute to Zoobic in Subic

12.00nn — Lunch @ Meat Plus in Subic

3:00pm — Go back to Omni Aviation, Clark.

5.30pm-7.30pm Hot Air Balloon Arrival and Night Glow (Bring your tripods!)

8:00pm — Dinner is a surprise

Call me @ +63928 558 8500 Anton

What to bring:

Jacket (it is freezing in the morning)

BYOT – Bring your own transpo — we don’t plan to arrange a common transpo we will do convoy throughout

Photo Camera and preferably Tripod (if you have one)

PAYO – Pay as you order — you manage your own expenses. Bring 1,000/ head as a budget for this day trip event.

Check out the Photos below. Simply Awesome as Sidney would agree

Related Posts:
Balloon Fiesta – 11th International Philippine Hot Air Balloon Fiesta
[10TH Hot Air Balloon Fiesta #1] The 5am Balloon Fiesta
[10TH Hot Air Balloon Fiesta #2] All Balloons Pumped Up, Up, Up and Away!
[10TH Hot Air Balloon Fiesta #3] What to do in the Balloon Fiesta?
10th Philippine International Hotair Balloon Fiesta (PIHBF) @ near Clark

Technorati Tags: Balloon Fiesta

From February 8 till February 11, 2007 the 11th Philippine International Hot Air Balloon will be held at Omni Aviation Complex in Clark. This festival features much more than just hot-air balloons and represents just about every imaginable form of flying activity.

Amongst the many attractions, visitors can enjoy hot-air balloon rides, aircraft displays, sky diving displays and kite flying competitions. One of the popular aspects of the festival is the stunning sight of the early morning balloon fly-out and late afternoon fly-in which fills the skies with balloons from all over the world.

The tentative schedule for the Fiesta 2007 will be as follows:

February 8, 2007 – FIRST FIESTA DAY

- Hot Air Balloon Flight 5:30 am – 7:00 am
- Paragliding/microlite/AOPA-P/Airlink airplane flyby opening6:45 am – 7:30 am
- ACFC Ultra-light aircraft formation flying 7:40 am – 8:15 am
- Ultra-light bomb dropping audience participation 8:15 am – 9:00 am
- Gyro Plane Flying Demonstration by Gyroplane Rotorcraft 9:00 am- 9:30 am
- Aerobatic show by Bill Wright and Meynard Halili 9:30 am -10:15 am
- Paragliding Exhibition by Team Malaysia 10:15 am -10:45 am
- AOPA-P Light Airplane Balloon Bursting Competition 10:45 am- 12:00 pm
- Kite exhibition by Kite Team Philippines 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
- RC Demonstration Flying by Joel Paje and UP Flying G 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm
- ACFC Ultra-light formation flying 4:30 pm – 5:20 pm
- Hot Air Balloon fly in 5:20 pm – 6:00 pm

February 9, 2007 – SECOND FIESTA DAY

- Hot Air Balloon Flight 5:30 am – 7:00 am
- AFP Sky Diving Exhibition 7:00 am- 7:30 am
- ACFC Ultra light Aircraft Flyby 7:40 am – 8:30 am
- Private aircraft airplane fly by AOPA- Phil. 8:30 am – 9:30 am
- Aerobatic show by Meynard Halili and Bill Wright 9:30 am – 9:50 am
- Gyro Plane Flying Demonstration by Gyroplane Rotorcraft 9:50 am-10:20 am
- AFP Sky Diving Demonstration 10:20 am -11:00 am
- Radio Control Aircraft Flying by N. Hedeki and A. Ishimura 11:00 am -11:30 am
- ACFC Ultra-light airplane bomb dropping 11:30 am- 12:30 pm
- Choreographed Kite Flying Exhibition by Kite Team Philippines 12:30 pm- 1:30 pm
- AFP Sky diving Exhibition 1:30 pm -: 2:15 pm
- Aerobatic Show by Meynard Halili and Bill Wright 3:15 pm – 4:00 pm
- Microlite air show 4:00 pm – 4:30 pm
- Hang Gliding exhibition 4:30 pm – 5:15 pm
- Hot Air Balloon Flights 5:30 pm – 6:00 pm
- Hot Air balloon night Glow 6:45 pm – 7:30 pm

February 10, 2007 – THIRD FIESTA DAY

- Hot Air Balloon Flight 5:30 am – 7:00 am
- AFP Sky Diving Exhibition 7:00 am – 7:30 am
- Ultra-light aircraft Fly-By from Angeles City Flying Club 7:30 am – 8:30 am
- Aerobatic Exhibition by Meynard Halili and Bill Wright 8:30 am – 9:30 am
- Helicopter Flying Exhibition 9:30 am -10:00 am
- HelioSTOL aircraft Demo by Summer Institute of Linguistic10:00am -10:30 am
- Paragliding Exhibition by French and Malaysian team 10:30 am -11:00 am
- AOPA-P Light Airplane Balloon Bursting competition 11:00 am -12:30 pm
- Choreographed Kite Flying demo by Fort Boni Sport Kite Com 12:30 pm- 1:30 pm
- Angeles City Flying Club Ultra-Light Flying display 1:30 pm- 2:30 pm
- Gyro Plane Flying but Gyroplane Rotorcraft 2:30 pm- 3:15 pm
- AFP Sky Diving Exhibition 3:15 pm – 3:45 pm
- Aerobatic Display by Meynard Halili and Bill Wright 3:45 pm –4:30 pm
- CTRM Flight display 4:30 pm – 5:00 pm
- Ultra Light Fly By of the Angeles City Flying Club 5:00 pm – 5:30 pm
- RC helicopter flying demonstration by Rufino 5:30 pm – 5:45 pm
- Hot Air Balloon Flight 5:45 pm – 6:15 pm
- Hot Air Balloon Night Glow 6:45 pm – 7:30 pm

February 11, 2007 – LAST FIESTA DAY
- Hot Air Balloon flight 5:30 am- 7:00 am
- AFP Sky- Diving Exhibition 7:00 am- 7:30 am
- Rocketry Demo by Arnel Noel 7:30 am – 7:45 am
- Ultra-light Aircraft Fly-By 7:45 am- 8:30 am
- Aerobatic Exhibition by Meynard Halili and Bill Wright 8:30 am- 9:30 am
- Missionary Helio- STOL aircraft Demo 9:30 am-10:00 am
- Helicopter Flying exhibition 10:00 am-10:30 am
- AFP Sky Diving Exhibition 10:30 am-11:00 am
- AOPA-P Light Airplane Balloon Bursting Competition 11:00 am –12:30 pm
- Choreographed Kite flying Demonstration 12:30 pm- 1:30 pm
- Ultra-Light Flour Bombing Competition 1:30 pm- 2:30 pm
- RC Airplane flying Demonstration by Alvin Alcantara 2:30 pm- 3:00 pm
- Aerobatic Exhibition by Meynard Halili and Bill Wright 3:00 pm- 4:00 pm
- CTRM Flight Display 4:00 pm- 4:45 pm
- Gyro Plane Flight Demo by Gyro Plane Rotorcraft 4:45 pm –5:30 pm
- Hot Air Balloon flight 5:30 pm- 6:45 pm
- Crew and award night party 7:30 pm

If you want to see more pictures of this event click here.

When: From February 8 till February 11, 2007

Where: Clark Special Economic Zone. Take the North Luzon Expressway from Manila and exit at Dau, Mabalacat. After which, a left turn towards Angeles City would bring you to within an easy right turn to Clark itself. The trip should take about an hour and a half from Manila. Try to arrive around 5 am.

My rate: 10/10. Excellent airshow.

Info from: My Sarisari Store and PIHABF

Pampanga’s pride is indeed its heritage and cuisine. Here are some of the places you might want to try out while you are there:

In Everybody’s Cafe, Kapampangan food is available everyday in their turo-turo style display. Try out the pako salad, calderetang baka, morcon, chicharon bulaklak, tortang bangus, inihaw na hito or bulalo soup. For the brave, go further and savor the buro with hito (fermented fish paste with catfish), betute (deep-fried stuffed frog), camaru (fried cricket adobo), dumara (wild duck adobo) or pindang damulag (carabeef tapa). They have branches in San Fernando along MacArthur Highway in Barangay Del Pilar, and Angeles City in Nepo Mart.

Also check out Aling Lucing’s at the Crossing (Henson Street, Angeles City) which is the birthplace of Pampanga sisig and the steakhouses in Marisol Subdivision, Angeles City. Luring’s of Guagua (with branches all over Pampanga) serves some of the best barbeque and other grilled meat products. Ikabud (the contracted form of ika kabud which translates as only you) is another restaurant that serves grilled food and is located in Hensonville, Angeles City.

Other must tries are the Kapampangan halo-halo places. In fact, there are three distinct halo-halo varieties in Pampanga. These are Guagua (Razon’s), Angeles (Corazon’s) and Arayat (Kabigting’s and Jurado’s) halo-halo. It must also be noted that Kapampangan halo-halo is distinct from the other halo-halo served in the country because it uses only three or four ingredients or sahog. However, the richness of these ingedients more than compensates for the number of types thrown in the glass. Arayat for example is distinct for its pastillas, crushed beans and saging combination; Guagua for its macapuno, saging, and leche flan; while Angeles is distinct for its mais, saging, pastillas and crushed beans combination.

If you want to try out everything, go for Smorgasbord, the buffet Kapampangan lunch and dinner offered at Partyland (MacArthur Highway and SM City Pampanga) and Holidayland (Gapan-Olongapo Road) both in San Fernando.

If you’re ready to splurge, go for the private lunches which can be booked for groups of 12 or more. Abe’s Farm is one option. It is actually the Mt. Arayat resthouse of restaurateur Larry Cruz of the LJC Restaurant Group which includes Cafe Adriatico and Cafe Havana among many others. The fabulous resthouse is in Magalang, Pampanga, the hometown of Larry’s father, journalist and artist E. Aguilar Cruz. Having lunch at his place requires arrangements made in advance.

Another must try lunch venue is Claude Tayag’s residence Bale Dutung in Villa Gloria, Angeles City. This P1800 per head Kapampangan feast has to be pre-arranged as well and you must have at least 12 persons in your group. Claude has a shop in his house where you can buy bottled buro and taba ng talangka but the Claude 9 brand is also available in Pampanga supermarkets such as Essel Supermarket. You can also pass by Tita’s or Pampanga’s Best along Gapan-Olongapo Road for even more Kapampangan delicacies.

The ensaymadas in San Fernando are made-to-order and you have to call them at least 2 days in advance. But Imang Salud Dayrit’s San Fernando ensaymadas are actually available in Manila. These melt-in-your-mouth wonders are six inches in diameter, made with the finest ingredients and topped with a generous serving of queso de bola. You can visit the Legaspi Sunday Market open every Sunday from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. behind the Corinthian Plaza building. Make sure you look for the Imang Salud booth. Also on sale are atcharang gule, atcharang ubud, balu-balo, tibok-tibok and burung mangga (pickled mangoes). Another signature dessert but made-to-order is plantanilla, sweet egg crepes with latik filing. Yummy! You can call (0920) 9478819 for orders.

C Italian Restaurant is among the many international offerings that line Fields Avenue and Friendship Highway beside Clark. You can check out Zapata’s (Mexican), Salvatore’s (Italian), Subdelicious (American), Country Kitchen (Cajun), and a host of Japanese and Korean restaurants among many others.

When in Pampanga, don’t miss the following places…
* Bacolor Church – this is the half-buried San Guillermo Church in Bacolor. Entering what was once the largest church in Pampanga, visitors enter the church through the choirloft windows, and are greeted inside by beautifully restored retablos dug up from several feet of lahar. The citizens of Bacolor take pride in their rich heritage which is why they painstakingly excavated the ornately carved wooden main and side altars which are now back to their pristine condition;
* Betis Church – a must visit church in Pampanga, the centuries-old Betis Church in Guagua is nicknamed the “Sistine chapel of the Philippines” because of its wall ceiling murals. It is the second oldest church in Pampanga and one of the 26 churches declared by the National Museum as national cultural treasures;
* San Fernando Heritage District – ride in a calesa and enjoy the many heritage homes along Consunji Street; and
* Center for Kapampangan Studies – a museum, archives, library, research center and theater rolled into one, the Center for Kapampangan Studies was put up by Holy Angel University in 2002 to preserve, study and promote Kapampangan history and culture. (Ivan About Town)

Also check out this entry on the Giant Lantern Festival and the Pampanga MTV on YouTube.

“Eat and be merry, for tomorrow you will…”

One drizzly Sunday, 5 friends and I drove to Clark in Angeles, Pampanga. We had lunch at the Canteen of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. Post 2495 (otherwise known as VFW Canteen). I ordered their famous Eggs Benedict. It came in two sizes – the half size and the full size. For a moment I forgot that I was in an American food joint so I ordered the full size. Lo and behold, the serving was gargantuan! I was shocked that I finished the whole plate — proving how good it tasted. Sarap! It made me feel full till 8 PM that day! One other thing — all 6 of us friends ordered a full meal each with drinks, and guess how much we paid? Total bill was Php 1,185. Less than 200 pesos each – that was definitely not bad at all!

Everybody was craving for coffee after that VFW lunch, so we trooped to Beatico Coffee in nearby SM Clark. The coffee was so-so, but it had the caffeine we needed to get through the afternoon. The price was like Starbucks (maybe the taste too) but the disposable coffee cup it came in shouted it was cheap — the coffee seemed like it would spill from the flimsy material. The place is cozy though and we enjoyed our brief stay there.

After a short drive around Clark (we went to Mimosa and, of course, the duty free shops), we found a perfect place to remind us of the quote above. “Eat and be merry, for tomorrow you will…” Clark Cemetery was so green with its grass (the rains the past days did its job) and it was great for some picture taking. See more pictures in my blog, fire.in.the.gut.

The Cutud Lenten Rites are world-famous for the re-enactment of the Christ’s Passion and Death culminating with the actual nailing of people on a wooden cross. The Catholic Church dos not approve the crucifixions.

Aside from the crucifixions you can see dozens of barefoot and shirtless men, their faces hidden by black hoods repeatedly whipping their own bloodied backs with thin bamboo strips tied on a rope.

When: Every year on Good Friday
Where: San Pedro Cutud, Pampanga
My rating: 9/10
Very spectacular. Not recommended for the faint-hearted. Maybe a bit too much commercialized with too many tourists and media people. It is loosing its original spirit of penitencia (penitence).

Info from: http://my_sarisari_store.typepad.com/