How was #Kadayawan2013?

Before I continue with this post, I would like to take this opportunity to greet everyone, Happy Kadayawan and Madayaw Dabaw!

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I started going out on the streets during the festivities of the city in the last year’s Kadayawan Festival, and was followed by the Araw ng Dabaw this March. Now that I have a better chance of joining the festivities, let me give a run-down of how I saw this year’s celebration with the theme: “Pagseguro sa Makanunayong Kaayo.”

(UPDATED) Cebu Pacific aircraft overshoots Davao airport runway

Photo of Cebu Pacific aircraft at Francisco Bangoy International Airport. Photo courtesy of Newsdesk.asia

UPDATE # 1: DOTC reports that PR-819 bound for Davao from Manila will be diverted to Cebu and will take its course back to Manila.

UPDATE # 2: A post by Atty. Ralph Samaniego on His Facebook account showing the plane after it overran the runway. Video by Jesse Ray.

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (UPDATED 12:00am, June 3) – A Cebu Pacific plane with 165 passengers have overshoot the runway of Francisco Bangoy International Airport, Sunday night at approximately 7:15pm.

First semester, first year college.

1 semester down, 7 more to go!

What made you busy in the past few days of semestral break? It is in the mindset of everyone that  students on semestral break go out of their houses, see their friends, stroll around the mall, watch a movie, or hop on to the nearby beach.  But I think not everyone can do that all in the semestral break.

The first pain of a college student: the grades.

Grades being online

I think it is a good thing for our school (and luckily, for most schools in the city) that grades are posted in their respective online student portals. This made the waiting more convenient for students, specially those who cannot wait for the paper results to be in and those students who travel to the provinces during the rest period.

My school’s online student portal.

But the not-so-good thing about grades being online is the state of being worried every single time you are to use the website. Our online student portal may look like a Facebook page due to its blue bar at the upper portion, but this website sometimes spell misery, especially for students who do not perform that well in school.

Also, our Student Information System (or SIS, as Ateneans call it) does not display the numerical grades of the student. Instead, the site shows you letters with a range of grade A to grade B, for example an A for grades ranging from 92 to 100. (I heard that older batches who are still enrolled in the university can see their numerical grades)

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My second personal pain: the yearbook.

I may have graduated high school with flying colors, but my responsibility as an editor-in-chief for our batch memento still exists and is being performed religiously. (Yes, religiously.)

When the break already started, my daily trip to the printing press started again. I had been in constant touch with our dedicated layout artists, staffers and school administrators, each one helping me out and finish it just in time before second year. (Hopefully.)

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Third on my list: love of alma mater.

Since I love my alma mater that much, I have dedicated my time and little expertise to students in need, specially for the radio broadcasting team in the Davao City Division Schools Press Conference, and for the debaters in the 2012 Philippine Schools Debate Championship (Hey, I was there last year!)

My presence was called by the trainors and me, who cannot say no to them, agreed to be there and help.

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Fourth and maybe the last, for now: rest and relaxation.

I need all the time I could have to rest and relax. College life has never been relaxing and easy for me, and I think I deserve that little rest I can get. Who among you would not want to rest even for two week’s time? I guess none.

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This time may be given to us for rest and relaxation primarily, but let us also use this time to be more productive at home: helping in the household chores, doing part-time jobs, and many more. Let us also take time to review the past 5 months of school and evaluate ourselves of our performance and our personal relationship with our colleagues.

How’s your semestral break so far? Leave a comment and let’s talk anything under the sun.

Tanduay Rhum Rockfest 2012 invades Davao!

Photo source: Tanduay Rhum Official page on Facebook

(UPDATED 12:22PM, October 19) – Hey guys! It was already long ago when I last published a post in my blog. And for this time, this will be about the event tomorrow, the invasion of Tanduay Rhum Rockfest Year VI in Davao at the Crocodile Park Open Grounds.

Actually, I didn’t have the intention of going there because of the crowd, but because a press pass was given to me, I felt I was more than privileged to attend such celebration, and this will be my first as a college student, a person of legal age and a future media practitioner.

Some of the bands that will perform tomorrow (in the photo above) include Parokya ni Edgar, Urbandub, Wolfgang, Kamikaze, Rico Blanco, Franco, Dong Abay, Up Dharma Down, 6Cyclemind, Wency Cornejo, Chicosci, Gloc-9, Typecast, Never the Strangers, and more.

Instagram-ish photo

Passes and gates; admission of minors

To those asking, gates will open at 5pm for all ticket holders. Tickets are available (I doubt they still are) at all Davao Central Convenience Store and NCCC HB1 outlets in Davao Region. Also, @tanduayrhumph offers 3 Press Passes for bloggers and photography enthusiasts, just tweet them for more information.

UPDATE 1: People below 4 feet, pregnant women and people with disability will not be permitted to enter, for safety and security purposes.

UPDATE 2: Tickets will be sold at the premises of the Davao Crocodile Park.

Minors would be allowed admission inside the open grounds, provided they will sign a waiver that will be provided in the gates.

Tip: bring a valid ID (preferably those with birthdays indicated) for age verification purposes.

Transportation

You may ride a taxi and tell them to take you to the Crocodile Park Open Grounds. Also, you may take a jeep from Claveria Street (downtown Davao), flag a jeep that has “El Rio (Vista)” route, and ask the driver if he can take you to the venue. Technically, the place is out of line for the jeeps, but the drivers had an agreement with the management (please correct me if I’m wrong) that they can pick up and drop passengers going to their vicinity.

Another option is to take a habal-habal either from El Rio Vista Village (if the jeepney driver does not go to the park, just go down in the corner of Bacaca Road and Pres. C.P. Garcia Highway (Diversion Road)), Buhangin or Ma-a areas.

Do’s and dont’s

• No to extremely rude behavior.
• Only Press Pass holders are allowed to bring professional cameras with their accessories. Holders of the VIP and General Admission tickets are only allowed to bring digital still cameras.
• Do not bring expensive gadgets and accessories. You may end up being a victim of thieves. Remember, Davao City may be a safe place in general, but there are also many visitors from the neighboring areas and also Davao residents who had bad intentions.
• Deadly weapons and sharp objects are also not allowed. Possession of these may result in the confiscation of the objects or the refusal of admission of the carrier by the guards on duty.
• Strictly no bringing in of foods and drinks. They are available and sold in the ground premises.
• You may not also bring large tarpaulins, posters or banners. This may distract the view of those at your back.
•  Be yourself!

Pieces of advise from me: bring a jacket, as it may rain in the evening (although it hasn’t rained for a few days now). Also, be at the venue earlier to avoid traffic and be in the front row. And lastly, secure your transportation home. Note that a lot of these public utility vehicles are not available in the area at night (in a general day) Maybe you would end up walking from the grounds passing by the highway, encountering large vehicles and putting yourself in danger.

See you tomorrow, and let’s rock and roll! 🙂

(P.S.: I am not paid by Tanduay or any of its sponsors to blog about the event. I just would like to blog about the event, and share some information that I find essential for concert goers.