1st Miss Earth Design Competition

Riyadh top fashion models showcase collections of Emil Santos (a fashion designer based in Riyadh) during the Ystilo Fashion Show at the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh

I received an email below regarding the forthcoming Miss Earth Design Competition and hopefully more fashion designers from Saudi Arabia will be encouraged to participate.

We in Carousel Productions recognize not only beauty and wit, we also discover and appreciate talents worthy of international acclaim. This year, for the first time in the Miss Earth pageant history, we are launching a project that will showcase the skills and creativity of professional or even budding designers here in the Philippines and even abroad, on fusing fashion and Filipino culture in coming up with timeless designs that are eco-friendly perfect for the Earth's most beautiful.

The 1st Miss Earth Design Competition is open to professional, non-professional and students who have experience, is learning or even just plain enthusiastic about the field of fashion design. You can join solo or form a design and implementation team of no more than 3 members. One important requirement is your ability to translate the sketches into real garments when chosen. Meaning, you will do it yourself or you have the capacity to outsource people to do it for you. The inspiration for the design is the Philippines; our culture, products, people, festivals, resources. Designs made in the past shall be allowed as long as it has not been showcased to the public (i.e. no media coverage, not shown in a national, local event).

Interested parties must complete the entry form which you can get by emailing cathyuntalan@gmail.com and submit the all the requirements in a short brown envelope to: 7 Ideal St., Shaw Blvd. Mandaluyong City on or before September 30, 2008. You can send as many sketches as you want.

Contents of the envelope:

1. Completely filled-out application form (please print multiple for teams) You can use additional sheets if the pages are not enough. Please submit comprehensive fashion design CV if you have one.

2. Sketches (back and forth) ideally colored or send pictures if they are already made

Top 90 sketches (or corresponding number of candidates) will be chosen to be worn by the candidates for Miss Earth 2008 to be showcased in the commemorative calendar made each year distributed to sponsors, franchise holders and made available for public purchase. The names of the 90 designers (or corresponding number of candidates) will also be featured. Not only that, the clothes will be worn by the Miss Earth beauties in a fashion show were the top 3 designs will be awarded.

Winners will be chosen based on the following criteria:

40 pts. Relevance to the theme and aptness of design
20 pts. Use of the latest fashion trends in materials, colours and trims
20 pts. Wearability and usefulness for purpose
10 pts. Accuracy of representation (of Philippine culture, products, etc)
10 pts. Over-all impact



With a grand total of 100 points.

Please feel free to pass this on to friends.

BJ Fabricante wins Mukha ng Pinoy!

We’re supposed to administer the month-long summer festival of a mall in Batha last night (actually, it was our 2nd week already) but we sneaked out early since two of our friends and protégées (JC Manuel and BJ Fabricante) will compete to the “Search for Mukha ng Pinoy 2009 para sa Kalendaryong Pilipino” in Al Fawaq Science International School.

JC was G. Pilipinas Riyadh 2005 and featured as one of the desert hunks. Actually, we always support him in all his shows and competitions. In return, whenever we need his expertise to fix our laptops/PCs and do some graphic designs, he is always there to help us.

Johnny “BJ” Fabricante was G. Maharlika Jeddah 2004. He was working before in a newly-opened Jeddah Hilton Hotel, which is owned/managed by our company. Actually, that time, my boss was trying to convince me to work in Jeddah Hilton. He offered me a hefty salary package, but I declined because I just feel not comfortable working in Western province.

We watched the show from the start while enduring patiently the terrible heat inside. It was already late afternoon, but the tremendous temperature was too extreme.

Seeing the candidates one by one during the first appearance in their regional costume, BJ and JC stood noticingly among the rest of the male contestants. I know one of them will be the winner. BJ’s handsomeness and lofty height (6’2”) and JC’s mestizo-looks were their matchless possessions.

During the final Q&A, JC was asked about the issue of divorce in the Philippines and he immediately said that he favors divorce in order for the couples to veer away from domestic problems and start new life, while BJ’s, without any qualm expressed his objection on the same-sex marriages because of religion. However, he asked for indulgence from the audience since some of the crowds may feel upset of what he believes. On the contrary, his answer was well delivered and made him the first Mukha ng Pinoy titleholder. JC’s got the 2nd runner-up title.

Well, the show might not be as grandiose and well-orchestrated compared to the G. PIlipinas Saudi Arabia search, but I appreciate the effort of Sining Pinoy. There were productions lapses, technical glitches and uncontinuity of the program, but I guess the Sining Pinoy should take their first show as a challenge to improve more.

More pictures of BJ once I officially proclaim him as a desert hunk soon…

Opray presents Charice!

Full video of Charice guesting in Oprah!
Youtube courtesy of: Charice PempengcO

My Heaven

I look deep in your eyes.
I see there what I feel inside.
We share something between us,
Neither one of us can hide.

I feel your lips touch mine,
I loose all my control,
All it took was a look and a kiss,
To know you were part of my soul.

I see your hands on my skin,
I want and need you to do more,
The passionate look you give me,
Tells me heaven is in store.

I feel your need against my thigh,
I know you will fulfill every wish,.
We were made to fit together,
And all it took was a look and a kiss.

I look deep in your eyes,
And I see heaven there inside,
You make me feel so beautiful,
What I feel for you I cannot hide.

Papaya Extreme Dance @ PGNKB entry from Riyadh

Last December 12, 2007 an entry from Riyadh was chosen by ABS-CBN's PGKNB. The video was taken in Red Sand, K.S.A.

Latest News! Donnie & Jintana: New Ginoo & BB. Pilipinas Saudi Arabia 2007

Male Candidate No. 7 (Donnie - Riyadh) and Female Candidate No. 10 (Jintana - Jeddah) was declared as the new Ginoo and Binibining Pilipinas Saudi Arabia 2007 last night at the Philippine Embassy Riyadh Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Both received SR1,500.00, Daewoo Appliances and other gift items.

More highlights during the coronation night will be posted soon!

Be There and Witness the Selection of 2007 G. & Bb. Pilipinas Saudi Arabia

Who among the contestants will be proclaimed this year's Ginoo and Binibining Pilipinas Saudi Arabia?




Peach Meg Tanael (Bb. Pilipinas Riyadh 2004) and Michael Quiambao (G. Pilipinas Riyadh 2004)


Liezl Ann Santiago (Bb. Pilipinas Riyadh 2005) and Junnifer Christ Manuel (G. Pilipinas Riyadh 2005)


Zena Marie Thirlwall (Bb. Pilipinas Saudi Arabia 2006) and Manolito Cobin (G. Pilipinas Saudi Arabia 2006)

DON'T MISS IT!

December 13, 2007
5:00 pm
Liwasang Bonifacio
Philippine Embassy
Riyadh Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

ADMISSION IS FREE!!!!

Official Candidates - G. & Bb. Pilipinas Saudi Arabia 2007

The annual search for Ginoo and Binibining Pilipinas Saudi Arabia 2007 will be held on December 13, 2007 (Thursday) @ 5:30 pm at the Liwasang Bonifacio Philippine Embassy Riyadh Kingdom of Saudi Arabia brought to you by S.E. Productions.

Limited edition of G. & Bb. Pilipinas KSA calendars are avaialable during the show.

Admission is free!!

Filipino-American actress makes waves in Star World tv show

Beyond the Break Left to right: Ross Thomas, Suzie Pollard, Tiffany Hines, David Chokachi, Natalie Ramsey, Sonya Balmores, and Jason Tam <> Photo by: Mario Torrez

Sonya Balmores was born in Hawaii in 1986, the second daughter to a Filipino father and an Irish/American- Indian mother named Malana.

Sonya, who first began modeling at age 13, came to the public's attention in May 2004 when she was crowned Miss Hawaii Teen USA (she later was runner-up to Miss Louisana Shelley Hennig in the Miss Teen USA pageant).

A year after enrolling in Hawaii Pacific University as a Communications major, Balmores won the role of Kai Kealoha on the popular surfing television show Beyond the Break. She credits her agent Cindy Kauanui of Jet Set Management Group Inc. with landing her the role, and continues to work as a model with the Kathy Muller Agency.

Beyond the Break, is shot entirely on location in Oahu, Hawaii and follows the ups and downs of the competitive surfing circuit known as Wave Sync, following the stories of four girls, the flirt, the native, the one trying to fit in, and the criminal.

Catch Sonya in Beyond the Break every Tuesday at 8pm (Philippine time) on Star World.

Have I Ever

(Thang Long Photo)


Have I Ever

Have I ever told you
that if I sit really still and silent,
sometimes. I like to think
I can hear your heart beating
in time with mine?

Have I ever told you
that when I watch you speak to me
through lines and cords,
and bytes and ram,
I imagine
your voice,
whispering into my ear?

Have I ever told you
that I wait out each day
in anticipation,
wanting
only an hour or two,
just a second in space and time,
to feel close to you?

Have I ever told you
that there has been times,
when I ached for you,
ached for you so badly,
that the emotions overwhelmed me..
and so I sat and cried?

Have I ever told you
that sometimes,
I will reach out,
touching your name
on this cold screen before me,
wishing
I could reach in
and pull you to me?

Have I ever told you
that after the first time I heard
the sound of your voice,
thousands of miles away,
I sat up all night,
turning the conversation over and over
in my mind,
examining it,
like some newly discovered species of flower?

Have I ever told you
that I would give everything up,
just for one night
to be able to lay near you,
to feel your chest rise and fall
with each breath you take,
just to know that you are real?

Have I ever told you
that I dream of you often,
I dream of you reaching out
and touching my hand,
simply to let me know
that you are there,
and everything is okay?

Have I ever told you,
have I still yet to tell you . . .
that I love you?








SAUDI FOILS OIL ATTACK PLOT

Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday it had arrested 208 militants for involvement in cells planning an imminent attack on an oil installation, as well as attacks on clerics and security forces.

A cell of eight militants led by a foreign resident planned an attack on an oil facility in the Eastern Province, it said. Saudi Arabia has been building a 35,000-strong rapid reaction force to protect installations after a failed al Qaeda attack in 2006 on the world's largest oil processing plant at Abqaiq. One of the cells was planning to smuggle in missiles.

SAUDI SUFFERING HUGE SHORTAGE OF ENGINEERS

Saudi market is in need for 240,000 engineers but that there are only 110,000 currently employed in the kingdom, of which Saudis make up only 20%.

Saudi Arabia is embarking on an ambitious economic plan to develop its infrastructure and construct six new cities that are expected to attract more than 300 billion Saudi riyals ($80 billion) in investment.

The Ministry of Labour has said that it has issued 878,737 working visas in the first nine months of this year, showing a 57% increase from a year earlier.

CHILD LITERACY IN ARAB ARE AMONG THE WORST IN THE WORLD

Morocco, Kuwait, Qatar and Iran, along with Indonesia and South Africa, take up the bottom six places in the study of ten-year-olds’ reading ability across 45 countries.

The study is another reminder of the poor state of education in the Arab world, which has frequently come in for criticism for not supplying enough qualified graduates to fill positions created by the region’s booming economies.

Bird Flu Update:



Recently, over 200,000 birds are being culled in Saudi Arabia following the discovery of a new outbreak of bird flu at a farm close to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia's Agriculture Ministry said on Wednesday.
It is the second table-egg farm in the Al-Kharj region to be hit by the deadly H5N1 strain of the disease, and the third in the Riyadh province in two days.

So far bird flu cases have only been detected in the central Riyadh area, but fears of the disease spreading are beginning to grow.

Riyadh’s municipality had closed down several restaurants in the city that sell chicken from unidentified sources.

Now I know what really happened to Joseph....

The one evening interpretative show, played by Artist League for Culture and the Arts artists last night, had to be really something!

The musical "Joseph, The Dreamer" has to be ALCA’s most successful show at the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh! After five months of sheer perseverance and hard work, the group presented an almost flawless professional production. Who wouldn’t believe that a more sensitive play concerning Christian religion can be staged in an Islamic countries, particularly Saudi Arabia.


Archie Garcia, former member of Xtreme Impact (Voyzvoyz) Dance Group in Riyadh was awesomely good in portraying the role of Joseph.

What surprised me most were newbies JR Cabigting as the Dough boy and the young lady portraying Mae East. I can’t imagine at their age, they were able to show their best magnificently.

The epoch story of Joseph, what he went through and what he became, has been an inspiration to mankind for thousands of years. For today his life remains an awesome contemporary challenge for any young, energy-driven Christian who wants to be all that he or she can be through Jesus Christ and the Christian way of life.

The life of Joseph is an example of success, courage, trust and the disciplined desire to honor God's principles of honesty, patience and loyalty. These are ideals to which all of us aspire. Joseph lived them all!

His story is tragic yet enthralling, charged with emotion and power. This a story of painful forgiveness and controlled triumph. Triumph over adversity by a positive, unwavering spirit.

To ALCA and the production staff, Congratulations and hope to see quality productions more.