Bulacan’s Pastillas sets Guinness world record

Bulacan has once again captured the nation’s attention and imagination with a Guinness Book of World Records by making the World’s Longest Pastillas.

Stretching 202.6 meters long and measuring 5 inches in diameter, the record-breaking activity served as one of the highlights of this year’s Singkaban Festival.

The province chose the pastillas for its distinct and original ingredient–carabao’s milk–and because the product is one of the most famous and saleable Tatak Bulakenyo products.

Five hundred persons took part in making the world’s longest pastillas. These included representatives from different sectors of Bulacan.

In able to make the record-setting pastillas, the group consumed 12,800 liters of carabao’s milk and 1,600 kilos of sugar. The pastillas weighed over 4,000 kilos; its length is approximately equal to 500,000 regular size pastillas.

Aside from drawing thousands of fiesta goers, the Guiness attempt is part of the province’s efforts to aggressively market its products with the Tatak Bulakenyo seal, so as to increase distinction, preference, patronage, production, and profitability.

The week-long celebration of Singkaban starts every September 8, a day celebrated by the Catholic faithful as the birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and ends on September 15, which is the anniversary of the Malolos Congress and the day the first Philippine Republic was proclaimed at the Barasoain Church in 1898.

This year’s week-long celebration also featured exciting activities with cultural and historically relevant events. Marking the last day of the Singkaban festival was the 110th anniversary of the Malolos Congress which was followed by street dancing in the afternoon. The celebration was capped off with a grand aerial fireworks competition.

Source : http://goodnewspilipinas.com/wp/?p=2772

Bahay Kubo

Bahay Kubo Lyrics

Bahay kubo, kahit munti
Ang halaman doon ay sari-sari.
Singkamas at talong, sigarilyas at mani
Sitaw, bataw, patani.

Kundol, patola, upo’t kalabasa
At saka mayroon pang labanos, mustasa,
sibuyas, kamatis, bawang at luya
sa paligid-ligid ay puro linga.
(sa paligid-ligid ay puno ng linga.)

Sink Stink

I hate unclean and stinky sink. It annoys me.
My aunt want us to buy a designer Kitchen sinks,
But we doesn’t have enough money to buy one. And we are just renting our house, so why do we need to buy one?
I admit that I really want to have a designer kitchen sink, but do we really need one?

My aunt is such a luxurious woman. She wants everything in order. She prefer buying branded things than the usual one. She was here last Wednesday and criticized our mini little tiny house. She said that we need to decorate our house, that we should buy curtains, new pillows, Bathroom sink, sofa, etc.
Gosh! we’re not rich as she is. We don’t even own a house! That’s the reason why we don’t spend our money to those things.

She married a foreigner, that’s the main reason of her richness. Money is really powerful, it can change a person a lot. And my aunt is under its spell.
Haizt..

Anyway, she’s back in California and she gave me access to her credit card.
She e-mailed me a link to her favorite site when it comes to sinks! and she wants me to buy one of the Vessel sinks there. She said that there’s a huge sale, and I must grab the opportunity to buy an artisan and designer sink.

I was shocked. She really thinks that we need to buy a sink.

Here’s the picture of the sink in our back door :

And this is the one I decided to bought from sinksgallery:

Not bad right?

My Last Farewell by: Dr. Jose Rizal

My Last Farewell

by : Jose Rizal

Farewell, dear Fatherland, clime of the sun caress’d
Pearl of the Orient seas, our Eden lost!,
Gladly now I go to give thee this faded life’s best,
And were it brighter, fresher, or more blest
Still would I give it thee, nor count the cost.

On the field of battle, ‘mid the frenzy of fight,
Others have given their lives, without doubt or heed;
The place matters not-cypress or laurel or lily white,
Scaffold or open plain, combat or martyrdom’s plight,
T is ever the same, to serve our home and country’s need.

I die just when I see the dawn break,
Through the gloom of night, to herald the day;
And if color is lacking my blood thou shalt take,
Pour’d out at need for thy dear sake
To dye with its crimson the waking ray.

My dreams, when life first opened to me,
My dreams, when the hopes of youth beat high,
Were to see thy lov’d face, O gem of the Orient sea
From gloom and grief, from care and sorrow free;
No blush on thy brow, no tear in thine eye.

Dream of my life, my living and burning desire,
All hail ! cries the soul that is now to take flight;
All hail ! And sweet it is for thee to expire ;
To die for thy sake, that thou mayst aspire;
And sleep in thy bosom eternity’s long night.

If over my grave some day thou seest grow,
In the grassy sod, a humble flower,
Draw it to thy lips and kiss my soul so,
While I may feel on my brow in the cold tomb below
The touch of thy tenderness, thy breath’s warm power.

Let the moon beam over me soft and serene,
Let the dawn shed over me its radiant flashes,
Let the wind with sad lament over me keen ;
And if on my cross a bird should be seen,
Let it trill there its hymn of peace to my ashes.
Let the sun draw the vapors up to the sky,
And heavenward in purity bear my tardy protest
Let some kind soul o ‘er my untimely fate sigh,
And in the still evening a prayer be lifted on high
From thee, 0 my country, that in God I may rest.

Pray for all those that hapless have died,
For all who have suffered the unmeasur’d pain;
For our mothers that bitterly their woes have cried,
For widows and orphans, for captives by torture tried
And then for thyself that redemption thou mayst gain.

And when the dark night wraps the graveyard around
With only the dead in their vigil to see
Break not my repose or the mystery profound
And perchance thou mayst hear a sad hymn resound
‘T is I, O my country, raising a song unto thee.

And even my grave is remembered no more
Unmark’d by never a cross nor a stone
Let the plow sweep through it, the spade turn it o’er
That my ashes may carpet earthly floor,
Before into nothingness at last they are blown.

Then will oblivion bring to me no care
As over thy vales and plains I sweep;
Throbbing and cleansed in thy space and air
With color and light, with song and lament I fare,
Ever repeating the faith that I keep.

My Fatherland ador’d, that sadness to my sorrow lends
Beloved Filipinas, hear now my last good-by!
I give thee all: parents and kindred and friends
For I go where no slave before the oppressor bends,
Where faith can never kill, and God reigns e’er on high!

Farewell to you all, from my soul torn away,
Friends of my childhood in the home dispossessed !
Give thanks that I rest from the wearisome day !
Farewell to thee, too, sweet friend that lightened my way;
Beloved creatures all, farewell! In death there is rest !

Translated by Charles Derbyshire