(Continued on page 24)(Continued on page 2)(Continued on page 3)

Snaphot of Philippine Life

(Continued on page 4)

WOW dancer

- A young dancer is hoisted on a bamboo pole dur-ing the WOW Grand Parade showcasing the different festivals inthe Cordillera region in Baguio City recently. The Department of

Tourism’s regional ofce headed by director Purita Molintas spear

-headed the event. Andy Zapata Jr.

A sea of Sto. Nino devotees in Cebu. Photo by Ferdinand Edralin.

Twins that share the same body and the same affec-tions for one man, mysticalcreatures that inhabit thenight, potentially cataclys-mic clashes between humansand Engkantos, and a lovethat may conquer all – HeartEvangelista has her handsfull with LUNA MYSTIKA,her second project for GMA.LUNA MYSTIKA is ahome-grown and originaltale full of enchantment,revelations, transformations,and that most potent magicof all – love. The brand-newGMA Pinoy TV show wasinspired by stories of themythical creatures calledEngkantos and their mysti-cal world from Philippinefolklore.The show’s castingis similarly exciting andintriguing as it features thecountry’s most promisingstars in plum roles. Lead-ing the powerhouse cast are

Love and Magic Shine in GMA Pinoy TV’s LUNA MYSTIKA

Mark Anthony Fernandez and

Heart Evangelista.

(Continued on page 2)

two of GMA’s most bank-able and sought-after stars – Heart Evangelista and Mark Anthony Fernandez – whoare paired as love teams for

the frst time on television.

Heart plays the dual titleroles of Luna, a kind-heartedgirl born with a hideousface, and her mystical twinsister Celestina; while Mark portrays Dexter, a blind lad

It’s junkettime again

By Jess Diaz

Philstar

All their bags are packedand they’re ready to go. It’s junket time again for lawmak-ers who begin their month-long break today.Speaker Prospero Nogralesis leading a nine-member House delegation to an Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)conference in Geneva, Swit-PASACAT is proud to present the 12th annual ParolLantern Festival on Satur-day, December 6, 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM at St. Rita’s SchoolAuditorium, 5115 Church-ward, San Diego. Theevent will be highlighted by performances of the PASA-CAT Philippine PerformingArts Company in the Makingof the Parol, a dance whichwas learned by PASACATmembers in October, 2007at workshops given by Peter Devera in Pampanga.The festival opens withmerienda, a festive meal of pancit (noodles with vegeta- bles and meat), lumpia (egg-roll), pandesal (sweet bread)and turon (sweet bananafritter). PASACAT’s 38-year collection of textiles, cos-

PASACAT’S 12

Annual ParolLantern Festival on December 6

PASACAT Dancers perform the making of the parol at the Parol Festival

December 6.

tumes, instruments, and bookswill be exhibited, including a bahay kubo (native thatchedhut) and two life-size carabao(water buffalo) made of paper mache constructed by RudyA. Alquero.In addition to PASACAT,the inter-generational event

(Continued on page 13)

Ambassador Preciosa S. Soliven (second from

left), widow of the late STAR publisher Max V.Soliven, poses with Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim

(second from right) and the publisher’s siblings

Victorio and Ethel after the unveiling of a monu

ment in honor of Mr. Soliven in Manila’s Baywalk last Monday. MIKE AMOROSO

By Cheeko Ruiz

Philstar, Novem-ber 25, 2008

Exactly twoyears to the dayhe wrote 30,another tributewas offered for journalism iconMax V. Soliven.His statue wasunveiled yester-day afternoonat the Baywalk along Roxas

Soliven lives onin monument

FUNFARE By

Ricardo F. Lo

Philstar, November 26, 2008

When Ruffa Gutier-rez accepted the roleas Daniella in theABS-CBN soapI Love Betty LaFea, she wasa bit appre-hensive that, because Dan-iella is mataray(reminiscent of Meryl Streep’s bossy/pushy

Ruffa tired ofbeing fashionista

fashion-mag editor role inThe Devil Wears Prada), shemight scare the children outof their wits.“Luckily,” said Ruffawith relief, “that’s notwhat happened. WhenI went around, I wassomewhat worriedthat the kids mightstay away from me baka sigawan ko silang ‘Go!!!’ but whathappened was theopposite. The kidswould smile at me

November 28 - December 4, 2008

Msgr. Gutierrez

Miles Beauchamp

Entertainment

So just how smart are you?

What excites Vilmaabout latest movie?

Be Alert! Be Prepared!

By Ma. Elisa P. Osorio

Philstar, November 26, 2008

Foreign businessmenremain upbeat about thecountry’s economic situationsaying that the Philippineswill not enter into a recessionnext year and will even grow

by three to fve percent.

“The agriculture sector will be one of the pillars of the local economy next year together with the remittancesfrom overseas Filipino work-ers (OFWs), business processoutsourcing (BPO) and min-ing,” Robert Sears, AmericanChamber of Commerce of thePhilippines Inc. (AmCham)executive director told TheStar in an interview.According to Sears, therewill be a slowdown in theeconomy as a result of theworldwide economic crunch but said the Philippines issomewhat protected.“The country is a bit in-sulated. Some sectors will bemore affected like exports,”Sears said.

Foreign businessmen remain upbeat on RP

On this Thanksgiving Day

Despite our economic woes,there are still a lot of thingsto be thankful for

This Thanksgiving Day may be different, but then again, itmay not be. Just likeThanksgivings inthe past, wehave a lot of things to bethankful for.All we need todo is to look deepdown inside of us to re-alize the really important things, not wealth or fame, that we should be grateful for.

Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.,

Publisher & Editor

San Diego Asian Journal

See page 5

Page 2November 28 - December 4, 2008 Asian Journal - (619) 474-0588 Visit our website at http://www.asianjournalusa.com

who is torn between the love of Luna and Celestina.Completing the cast are DanteRivero as Joaquin Sagrado, ChandaRomero as Benita Alejandro, SherylCruz as Alice Sagrado, Romnick Sarmienta as Dominic, Rita Avilaas Diana Sagrado, Gardo Versoza asDante, Ariel Rivera as Simon, Mark Herras as Kamilo, Luis Alandy asAndoy, Kris Bernal as Malou, Aljur Abrenica as Libado, Iwa Moto asDonita, John Lapus as Karya, BethTamayo as Lanie, Pauleen Luna asAdita, Michelle Madrigal as Anata,Hero Angeles as Alguwas, Mosangas Piryang, Marky Lopez as Efren,Bearwin Meilly as Bikodong, JadeLopez as Susira, Paolo Avelino asJohnny, Prince Stefan as Henry, andJace Flores as Lucas.The story begins in the outskirtsof Baryo Mausok where the townfolks still believe that Engkantosdwell deep within the forest. There

lives the afﬂuent Sagrado Family –

Joaquin and Benita, and their two beautiful daughters Alice and Diana.Diana attracts more suitors and thisearns Alice’s ire; especially after Dominic, her lover, also falls for Diana. Diana, however, is in love

with Simon, a disﬁgured young man

who is believed to have descendedfrom the Engkantos. Diana’s parentstry to end their romance but theydiscover that she is already preg-nant. Diana, with Dominic’s help,runs away from home to escape her parents who want her to get rid of the baby.Unknown to Diana, aside fromthe human baby Luna, she also

Love and Magic Shine in GMA Pinoy TV’s LUNA MYSTIKA

(Continued from page 1)

gave birth to a baby in the form of a shadow. Diana leaves her baby inDominic’s care to go looking for

Simon. Luna, who is disﬁgured like

her biological father, grows up anoutcast. Celestina, her twin shadow,is her only friend. Around this time,Luna will meet Dexter, a blind boywho detests the Engkantos.When Luna turns seven, Dominicdecides to bring her back to her relatives in Baryo Mausok. Luna’snightmare begins: Alice and her equally cruel daughter Donita tor-ment Luna every chance they get.When the twins become teenagers,Celestina begins to yearn to have a body of her own. On their visit tothe forest, Luna eats a fruit from anenchanted giant tree. This fruit turnsout to be key to their mysterious ori-gins. When the moon shines brightlyat night, Celestina transforms intoa fair-skinned and alluring womanand Luna becomes her shadow but during the day, Luna will onceagain regain her body and Celestinareturns to being a shadow.Dexter returns to Baryo Mausok

searching for Luna, his ﬁrst and

only love. Fearing Dexter’s rejec-tion, Luna hides her horrible appear-ance from Dexter and waits for thenight to come so she can appear tohim as Celestina. Eventually, Ce-lestina falls for Dexter. In no time,Dexter sees through the deceptionand he discerns who the real Luna,the woman he loves, is.Following Dexter’s rejection,Celestina schemes to destroy her twin sister.Will the twins’ common affectionfor Dexter destroy their relationshipas sisters? How far will Celestina’s

selﬁshness drive her to evil? Will

Luna ever get a chance to be withthe one she truly loves? And willCeletina’s wicked plans prevail?Experience love, magic, and trans-formation with LUNA MYSTIKAonly on GMA Pinoy TV. Call your preferred pay TV operator now tosubscribe.

zerland.At least 10 senators are go-ing abroad either as part of their

ofﬁcial functions or personal

vacation.Senate President Manuel Villar Jr. will also lead the PhilippineSenatedelegation to the IPU where heis expected to discuss with foreign parliamentarians pressing interna-tional concerns.Joining him are Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr., SenatorsJuliana Pilar Cayetano, GregorioHonasan II, and Rodolfo Biazon.They will be accompanied byCarmen Arceno, director general,

Senate Ofﬁce of International Re-

lations and Protocol, and lawyer Edwin Bellen, deputy secretaryfor legislation.Pimentel and Pia Cayetano bothleft for Geneva yesterday.Pia’s younger brother, Sen. AlanPeter Cayetano, said he is going toa “long planned” vacation abroad,while Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiriis going to Russia with Senatemajority leader Francis Pangilinanon Oct. 16.Senators Juan Ponce Enrile andMaria Ana Consuelo “Jamby”Madrigal have also planned their separate vacations in Europe.Other congressmen and sena-tors are attending the World Bank meeting in Washington D.C.,together with some Cabinet members.Senators adjourned their ses-sion for the month-long break lastWednesday night. Some of themhave already reportedly left for Geneva.The House, on the other hand, isscheduled to adjourn session after the expected approval of the 2009 budget today. Nograles was originally setto leave also today, but Major-ity Leader Arthur Defensor toldThe STAR that the House chief decided to delay his departure by one day to await the approvalof the proposed P1.415-trillion budget.Registration for the IPU confer-ence begins today.Members of the Nogralesdelegation are RepresentativesMark Cojuangco of Pangasinan,Jesus Crispin Remulla of Cavite,Amado Bagatsing and ZenaidaAngping of Manila, Rodolfo Plazaof Agusan del Sur, FerdinandMarcos Jr. of Ilocos Norte, Victor Ortega of La Union, and MitosMagsaysay of Zambales.In the case of Villar, it couldnot be ascertained if he wouldagain treat congressmen belong-ing to the Nacionalista Party (NP),which he heads, to an expensiveriver cruise after the Genevaconference.Last year, after an IPU meet-ing in Geneva, he and about 20 NP congressmen, including their wives, went on a 10-day cruisealong the Nile River in Egypt.Before that, Villar, who is facingan ethics committee case for al-

leged conﬂict of interest, gave his

NP loyalists a Three Gorges Damtreat.The dam, which impounds water from the Yangtze River, is reputedto be the largest in the world andhas become one of the newesttourist attractions in China.Defensor, referring to the budget, said: “We are on track toapprove it tomorrow. We will bedone maybe by 9 or 10 p.m. As of today, we are already 80 percent

ﬁnished.”

The House was scheduled lastnight to approve the budgets of several agencies, including theDepartment of Agriculture (DA).Last Wednesday, Nograles saidhe would like the DA outlay to beincreased “since it is one of our frontline agencies in cushioning

the adverse effects of the ﬁnancial

crisis in the United States.”“We should ensure easy andaffordable access to food, par-ticularly rice, which is our basicstaple. We can survive any crisisas long as we have food on thetable,” he said. The budget of two

big agencies – the Department of

National Defense and the Depart-ment of Public Works and High-

ways – would be tackled beforethe month-long break. – With

Christina Mendez

It’s junkettime again

(Continued from page 1) IN MY BASKET By Lydia D. Castillo Philstar

Who would not remember the lo-cal mamang sorbetero peddling icecream in many neighborhoods! Theapa was always crispy and sweet.

The ﬂavors? Ube and mantecado.

Even if the big players came, em- ploying more modern techniquesto produce this all-time favoritedessert, the kariton continued, eveninvading the glossy areas such as theMakati commercial district. One ex- pat airline manager was wide-eyed,

amazed, at seeing some ofﬁce work-

ers ‘sandwiching’ their ice cream in pan de sal. A prominent gentlemanwould always ask, “Okay, where dowe get our ice cream?” even after ahearty meal.“Memories” was the theme of the “Ice Cream Journey” recentlymounted by Selecta, the ManilaPeninsula and Unilever Foodsolu-tions, who asked their guests tocome with someone special. Memo-

ries of the ﬁrst multi-ﬂavored bowl

of Pen Pals ice cream (seven fullscoops in one large glass then, 17 to24 now) offered by the hotel shortlyafter it opened its doors to Manilans

in 1976. Guests – foreign and lo-cal – marveled at this sumptuous

concoction, sometimes skipping ameal to enjoy the giant dessert. And

the Pen halo-halo – who can forgettheir ﬁrst huge bowl of ice cream

and sweetened fruits at the lobby of the hotel? Sharing, the inevitableelement in eating these desserts,

deﬁnitely strengthened family and

friendship ties.Through the years, and for still along time to come, these concoc-tions’ main element has been sump-tuous servings of Selecta ice cream,which has, in the span of 60 years,evolved into the preferred item tocap a meal. We have fond memoriesof lunch at the old Selecta restauranton Roxas Boulevard where we once

held ofﬁce, always punctuated with

ice cream. A sibling, on the other hand, would not settle for anything but Selecta’s cheese ice cream.And so it was that the threesponsoring companies laid out the

Rigodon ballroom with fresh ﬂow-

ers, white table cloths and napkins,and bright lights. It was like being

Ice cream andmemories

in a Spring event, lively and refresh-ing. From the start of the month,the Pen Lobby has served the newconcoctions by the youngish execu-tive chef Adam Mathis. He createdan expanded line that focuses on thelegendary quality of their chosenice cream brand, that allow the

“ﬂavors to speak for themselves.”

The resulting collection is beauti-ful in presentation and delightful intaste. Try their Pinoy with pistachio,choco hazelnut brownie and nutty pageboy. You’ll not leave your seatuntil the last drop is consumed. Now for a memory of the meatykind. For years, our selected foodstuff would always include Pure-foods Fiesta Ham, not only duringthe holiday season, but anytimethe cravingfor somethingspecial wouldcome up. Wehave beenusing this for breakfast, inour paella,embutido andother dishes.Recently, at thecompany’s cu-linary center inUgong, Pasig,we discoverednew ways toserve their Fiesta Ham,which nowcomes withthe sweet pineapple and pine-raisinsauce.Can you imagine an open-facedFrench toast? They call this newtreat ham and eggs benedict onFrench toast. You need 12 slices of bread (any type), 3 whole eggs, 2cups milk, one half teaspoon cin-namon, one half teaspoon salt, 1 cup butter, 24 slices of ham, 12 poached

eggs. For the glaze – one half cup

maple syrup, one half cup water, 1tablespoon brandy, a pinch of cin-namon and one fourth cup raisins.Beat the eggs in a bowl, add milk and salt. Dip the bread, one at atime, and fry in butter. To assemble, place two pieces of cooked ham ontoasted bread, top with poached egg.To make the glaze, mix all ingredi-ents (except the raisins) in a sauce- pan. Allow to boil, then simmer toslight thickness. Add raisins just before removing from heat. Drizzleover the toast, ham, and eggs.Another unusual recipe is the meatyham cupcakes, each topped with aswirl of mashed potatoes. We might print the recipe in the next issue.Every time an announcement of price reduction is published in the papers and every time we call theattention of sellers to this, the replywould always be, “Sa dyario lang po iyan.” True enough, for an LPGreplacement tank that was deliveredvery recently to us, we got only P40discount instead of the proclaimedmore than P100 reduction. Canthis and other industries be better monitored?

Page 3 Asian Journal - (619) 474-0588 Visit our website at http://www.asianjournalusa.comNovember 28 - December 4, 2008

Boulevard in Manila, rightacross the Aristocrat restaurantwhich became a witness to severalmajor events in his life.The unveiling of the monu-ment sculpted by Julie Lluch waswitnessed by Soliven’s family,the public and his closest friends,including diplomats and past and

present government ofﬁcials,

among them former vice president

Teoﬁsto Guingona and Manila

Mayor Alfredo Lim.His widow Preciosa relates thatwhen the idea to build a statue inhonor of her husband was sug-gested to her by Lim, she said, “If it’s along Roxas Boulevard, I’dwant it to be across the Aristocratrestaurant because it is where wedated.”

His brother Guillermo Soliven

said in his speech it is their fam-ily’s fervent wish that those whowill pass by the monument will beinspired “to always seek what is

right, to ﬁght for what they know

is right.”“Our father, a distinguished poli-tician, made Manong Max swear never to enter politics and instead,

ﬁnd his own star. So he chose

journalism and started as a police

reporter,” Guillermo shares.

But that was just the start.Soliven soon became a householdname as he went on to become “a

freedom ﬁghter, a fearless journal-

ist” who used his pen relentlesslyto right a wrong and take erring

ofﬁcials to task.

At 20, he became the associateeditor of the Catholic newspaper The Sentinel and was a police and political reporter for the ManilaChronicle at the age of 25. Later,he became the business editor of The Manila Times from 1957 to1960.At the age of 27, he was the publisher and editor of The Eve-ning News, which had the secondhighest circulation in the countryin 1960. He also spent more than12 years as foreign correspondent,covering events such as the Viet-nam War, the 1968 Tet Offensive,

and the Gestapu Coup in Indone-

sia in 1965.Soliven’s work here and abroadearned him the rank of Chevalier (knight) of the National Order of Merit of France, which was pre-sented to him in 1991 by FrenchPresident Francois Mitterand.He was also given Spain’s mostcoveted decorations in 2000, therank of Encomendero de la OrdenIsabel la Catolica, from SpanishKing Juan Carlos. Likewise, hewas named Journalist of the Year by the National Press Club.Soliven co-founded the Philip- pine Daily Inquirer and then ThePhilippine STAR where he servedas publisher until his death.His daily column published inThe STAR titled “By the Way”was one of the most widely readnewspaper columns in the Philip- pines.As Soliven always said, “Changecan come, change will come,”

Guillermo added.

Soliven lives onin monument

(Continued from page 1)

Cagayan extends state of calamity

- A young boy harvests corn of what is

left of their cornﬁeld after it was ﬂooded by continuous rains in Barangay

Fugo, North Tumauini, Isabela. Ernie Peñaredondo

Philstar, November 27, 2008

The process of making solubleor instant coffee was patented back in 1909 by a Japanesechemist. In this form, coffee be-came easy-to-prepare, and lastedlonger on shelves.However, it didn’t taste as goodas a freshly brewed coffee. In

1938, Nescafe ﬁnally produced

an instant coffee that woulddelight consumers’ taste budsaround the world.The key to that revolutionarymethod’s success was keepingthe coffee beans pure and natu-

ral, thus maintaining its ﬂavor

and aroma.After all the work done in thecoffee farms, green coffee beans

are roasted to bring out its ﬂavor

and aroma. During roasting, the beans turn from green, to yel-low, and then to different brownintensities. The coffee beansalso expand to almost twice itsoriginal size.After roasting, the beans areground into coarse powder toremove the coffee solids fromthe roasted and ground coffee.Similar to the percolator or cof-feemaker at home, the coffeeliquor is extracted from theroasted coffee using hot water.The next step in making instantcoffee is to convert the coffeesolution to a dry form, calleddrying or dehydration. Spraydrying is the drying method usedto produce soluble coffee pow-der. In spray drying, cool liquid

A coffee story

Pasasalamat

Salamat Panginoon sa pag-bibigay Mo ng buhay sa buhay na bigay sama ang bagsak at tagumpay sa tagumpay naman samaang galak at lumbay Panginoon sa piling Mo aybuhay na walang hanggan. Salamat Panginoon sabigay Mo na aking magulang si tatang ang nagmulat kung papaano mamuhay sa kahi-rapan si tatang ang nagmulat sa pagbanat ng buto at lakas ng katawan si tatang ang nagmulat sahalaga ng pag-aaral at ng katipiran. Salamat Panginoon sa bigay Mo na aking inang si inang ang nagturo sa araw-araw na pagdarasal si inang ang nagturo na sambahin ang Puongmaykapal salamat inang sampalataya sa Dios ay walang alinglangan. Salamat Panginoon sa pagtatapos ng aking pag-aaral salamat Panginoon sa propesion na matagumpay propesion natapos nakatulong sa paghahanapbuhay salamat Panginoon at nairaos ang apat namin inakay. Salamat Panginoon sa bigay Mo na asawa na maalalahanin salamat Panginoon siya ang ligaya sa pusong naninimdimngayon matatanda na at lumalabo na ang paninginSalamat Panginoon sa mga biyaya na bigay mo sa amin. Salamat Panginoon sa pagdadala Mo sa akin dito sa bagong bayan sa bagong bayan ay nadala ko ang aming buong angkan salamat Panginoon buong angkan ay nahango sa karalitaanangkan ngayon ang tumutulong sa kamaganak sa bayang ini-wan. Salamat Panginoon sa pagpapakita Mo kahit isang saglit nagsasalita Ka at meron binibigkas ang Iyong bibig binge ang tainga at sarado ang kakayahan sa pandinig bigla Kang naglaho dahil nagpumilit na Kita ay marinig. Salamat Panginoon sa Iyong pagpapakita salamat Panginoon sa pabubukas Mo ng likurang mata salamat Panginoon bagamat binge ang aking tainga Panginoon buksan Mo ang tainga sa muli natin pagkikita.

Happy thanksgiving,

Leo Gener

AHS 64is sprayed through a nozzle atthe top of a tall drying tower. Asthe droplets fall, they dry, fallingto the bottom of the cylinder as

ﬁne, rounded powder.

However, coffee would also in-evitably lose some of its essenc-es and aroma during the drying process. So Nescafe captures thegases released during the grind-ing process so it can be addedlater into the soluble powder before being packed.The packing of coffee powder into jars and sachets is carriedout in a special environment to prevent coffee particles fromabsorbing moisture in the air which would deteriorate the

ﬂavor or aroma of the coffee dur-

ing storage. Thus, Nescafe stays

fresh and retains its ﬂavor much

longer.“Nescafe makes sure that our process produces 100 percent

pure coffee from the ﬁnest

beans,” explains Marcelino Oca-mpo, Nestle vice president for coffee and beverages manufac-turing services. “This enables usto bring out the full, natural tasteand aroma of coffee in every cupof Nescafe.”