Tag Archives: Philippines

Business, Economy, Human Interest, International, Language, Politics, Tourism, Travel

CHINA LAYS CLAIM ON WORLD’S OLDEST CHINATOWN LOCATED IN THE PHILIPPINES

Leave a comment

38f8c93f-0baf-4104-8ecb-1a266d3e5f91.Manila_Chinatown 004Beijing, China (The Adobo Chronicles) – Tensions continue to build in the South China Sea as China escalates both rhetoric and physical presence in the disputed territories in the Spratlys, a group of islands also claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The Spratly Islands are important for a number of reasons: the area holds potentially significant, but largely unexplored, reserves of oil and natural gas; it is a productive area for world fishing;  and it is one of the busiest areas of commercial shipping traffic.

News from various sources shows that China has not only started oil drilling operations in the area, but is also quietly attempting to build an artificial island, reclaiming parts of the sea to establish an aircraft runway.  Movements by Chinese supply ships have also been reported near at least two reefs in the disputed territories.

In yet another move by China to pursue what some world leaders are calling its “expansionist policy,” the Chinese government has formally filed papers before the United Nations claiming ownership of Manila’s Chinatown in the Binondo district, the oldest Chinatown in the world, established in 1594.

Sources close to the Beijing government told The Adobo Chronicles that if successful in its attempt to lay claim on Manila’s Chinatown, the Chinese government will build a wall around it and require passports and visas for non-Chinese citizens to dine or shop within what will be officially called Chinese Walled City.  The wall that will be built will mimic that of the Great Wall of China.

The government of Philippine President NoyNoy Aquino is still studying the matter and is not ready to issue a response or statement.

 

Business, Economy, Food, Health & Medicine, Human Interest, International, Religion, Tourism, Travel

INCREASED VAMPIRE SIGHTINGS REPORTED IN THE PHILIPPINES

Leave a comment
Garlic braids being sold at last year's Gilroy Garlic Festival. (Photo credit: Rene Astudillo)
Garlic braids being sold at last year’s Gilroy Garlic Festival. (Photo credit: Rene Astudillo)

Manila, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – Garlic, a common ingredient in Filipino cooking, has all but disappeared from markets and other retail outlets in the past few weeks. Where there is limited supply, prices have more than doubled or tripled to three hundred pesos (about $7) per kilogram for the imported variety and one hundred eighty pesos for local produce.

The garlic shortage and price hikes have prompted the Philippine  Agriculture Department to ration the all-important commodity and flood the markets with its limited inventory.

But that is not the big news.

Filipinos from all over the country have reported an unusual increase in sightings of vampires.  Garlic is known to be the most effective defense against vampires.  Most Filipino homes put up garlic braids in windows and  doors to repel vampires.

Meanwhile, the city of Gilroy in California, has offered to ship several tons of garlic to the Philippines to help ease the shortage and price hikes.  Gilroy is the garlic capital of the United States.  The city is currently gearing up for the annual  garlic festival scheduled for July.

 

 

Business, Economy, Human Interest, International, Law Enforcement, Military, Religion, The Media

CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE PHILIPPINES MANDATES METAL DETECTORS, SECURITY CHECKS AT WEDDINGS AND FUNERALS

Leave a comment

IMG_3547Manila, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – Everyone who lives in, or has visited Manila and other parts of the Philippines knows that metal detectors and security checkpoints are all too common in hotels, government buildings and shopping malls.  It has become a way of life post 9-11.  But wait, metal detectors and security checks in Catholic churches too?

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle on Saturday warned wedding couples and their guests to be wary of strangers posing as a relatives or friends from one side or the other of the newly united family. They are actually thieves.

Tagle said these shady characters usually strike during photo sessions following the church ceremony. “When family members of the bride or groom are invited to pose for photographs with the newly-wedded couple, they tend to leave their purses and belongings in the church pews,” Tagle said.  “When they return to their seats, everything’s gone.”

Nuptials are not the only target of these wedding crashers, they also victimize people attending church funerals, according to Tagle.

In a move designed to protect its church-going constituents, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has required all churches and parishes in the country to install metal detectors and implement security checks to weed out wedding and funeral crashers.  CBCP also advised especially women to keep their cash and credit cards in their bras, as is the old custom among elderly women in the Philippines. “They’re safer there than inside their bags and purses,” the bishops said.