No Hobbits Here!

"Pasalubungan mo nalang ako ng hobbit. Kelangan ko ng tagalinis ng kotse,"

Jeof STed me. Much to his disappointment, I was not only back in
Manila, but I definitely did not see any hobbits left in New Zealand. I
told Jeof they probably went back to Hollywood.



Even if I didn't really want to go on a business trip on the weekend of
our Pisay Jubilarian Homecoming and I totally hated the long sleepless
plane ride, I'm glad I got the chance to go to Auckland. The
misadventures with our trusty car were classic. Our dinners at the Sky
Tower were the best. Not to mention the view of Auckland. My trip to an
underwater world with Jeka was fun with the cute kids, stingrays,
sharks and cutie penguins. The chocolate rivalry in the office was...
childish and very funny. We were giddy whenever we saw cows. We all
wished Krizel was there with us. And of course, we took lots and lots
of pictures.

I love New Zealand just as much as I love Australia.
I love the cool weather. I love the city -- its sloping roads
reminiscent of a cable carless San Francisco. I love the people, most
of them of European descent (the guys were very good looking. )

I must
admit, I love traveling. The only downsides to traveling are being away
from home, air turbulence, and jet lag. Other than that, I love going
to places I've never been to before. I love taking pictures and
actually experiencing being in a foreign place. I even took pride in
myself for walking in Auckland by myself and navigating my way to the
hotel one afternoon. As a kid, I never imagined myself even going
abroad. Now, I walk in streets of different places in the world. And I
sure hope I walk in many more.

Shock Value

I thought of so many things to write for a blog entry. I thought of
writing about Auckland, about UAAP (the hunks and maybe the games), and
maybe about Yael Yuzon's voice (Yes, nowadays I crush on a new one
every morning. It lasts til just about the time the sun sets). But no,
I want to blog about a play by Dulaang UP. Maybe because it was a
spontaneous but pleasant Thursday night surprise.



Shock Value is a play written by Floy Quintos.
The play focuses on what goes on behind the camera of Filipino TV --
from Sunday chismis talk shows, to rising stars, and network wars. It's
about the life of a prominent host and producer whose career was ruined
by a sex scandal.



Shock Value was superbly written. Every line piqued the audience's
interest. It captured everything you hear on Pinoy TV. The playwright
did an impeccable job in building the characters. And of course, the
actors did the best job in putting them to life.



It was a fun play to watch.
I was laughing my head off from start to finish. The comic timing and the
surprising bluntness of the acts made the audience love it more and
more. The production numbers were great as well. I felt as if I've watched That's Entertainment presentations for the Monday to Sunday
groups. Honestly, it was so great a show that I would love to watch it
again. It was so great a show that my mom and my cousin were also
raving about it and would not hesitate to watch it again. It was a
great way to spend my Thursday night.



Lucky for us we got to catch it on the last night of its extended
showing, even if we stood the whole time. But I wouldn't mind if they
had an extended extended showing.



Congratulations, Dulaang UP!



Lastly, this play really proves that television has a lot of gay
influence. The leading character is gay, and there are 3 other gay
characters. To top it all off, Boy Abunda was in the audience. Well, I
guess this
was no problem for them to digest. As for me, I was shrieking with
surprise and oh-that-gwapo-guy-just-kissed-another-man! feeling.

Auckland, New Zealand

My favorite shot with towers. haha.

NZ Distributor Delayering
Matching & Prototyping
September 3-8, 2006
HP Team: Alice, Jocy, Gene, AR, and me! :)
P&G Pinoys: Angelica and Robert