RamaHari by Ballet Philippines

CCP. It's been a long time since I've been in that place. The last time was the centennial celebration of UP in 2008.

Fast forward to 2012, my colleagues and I saw Ballet Philippines' Rama Hari last Thursday. We got the best seats of the house but we did not get to see Karylle and Christian Bautista sing. Nevertheless, OJ Mariano was pretty good too. And he kinda looked like Jackson Avery from Grey's Anatomy. :)

source: ballet.ph

Truthfully, the first act was a bit of a bore. The Tagalog was so complicated that I had a little bit of difficulty understanding the story (I had to rely on my memory on what I remember about Rama Sita). And the english translation was a bit funny as some of it conveys a different meaning.

Act two was much more interesting. There were jazzy parts where the two black figures did great dancing. The black girl had a really expressive face. And her character made me think of a court jester. The funny monkeys were also in this act. The singers did an amazing job doing the monkey sounds. I can't help but smile as I watched them.

The stage was very simple. They just conveyed the change of scene with the use of sheets of cloth and handheld props. It reminded me very much of a scene from the movie 'The King and I'. And of course, there was the shadow dance. I noticed that it was always present in Rama Sita plays and movies. Is it really a part of the story?

And yes, about Rama and Sita: the dancers first. The dancers were good. Sita's facial expressions showed her beauty beyond the initial impression. As for the singers, they were actually pretty good. It's just a pity that Karylle and Christian were not there but they were good alternates. And for the other singers, the one singing as the mother of Bharata was awesome. She may have looked a little bit on the heavy side but it looked like it was just the clothing. And her voice was just amazing.

By the end of the show, most of the audience gave them a standing ovation.  I guess they did a good job. Dancing for hours is a feat and their steps, if that's what you call them, are not all that easy. But it just didn't give me that "wow, they're extremely good" feel that I would want to tell all my friends that they HAVE TO watch the show. And it was not something that left me with a "hangover".

Since Rama Hari is already over, the next time I watch a ballet show of Ballet Philippines, I'll just probably get a Balcony ticket. After all, CCP is not as big as I remembered it. 

Note: That's just my experience. I'm no art and dance critique. :)

Boracay 2012: Take Two

They say that third time's the charm. Well, this trip was a bit of a bore. For one, I did not do an adequate research so the resort, Patio Pacific Boracay, was not a beachfront resort. Nevertheless, it was a very relaxing place. The room was very comfortable and the amenities were good - infinity pool, gym, and there's even a wall for wall climbing. Since it's a minute's walk away from the beach, tamaditis got to me and all I wanted was to catch up on a month's worth of sleep. Of course, we still went to the beach to walk around, lounge and swim but we did not spend most of the time by the sea like the first two times I was there.

And by the way, the Caticlan airport is newly renovated. Nice!

The resort's check-in building

After spending three days in Boracay, we decided to head to Sampaguita Gardens in Aklan (about 10 minutes away from the airport). I left my wallet in Manila the last time I was there and I just had to buy something from that place. For those who are not yet aware of Sampaguita Gardens, it is owned by Samuel Butcher, the creator of Precious Moments. Anyway, I'll write a complete review on the place later.

So basically, this whole trip was all about relaxation and letting time pass by slowly without thinking about work (except for a few hours). Thankfully I achieved that!  And Boracay is still beautiful but not as stunning and captivating the first time I saw the pristine white beach. Plus, I don't have that beach body to flaunt and I just did not have the guts to slip into the bikini tucked away in my suitcase. Maybe that's why I was not that keen to go to the beach. Oh well, I still have to work HARD for that bod for my May 2013 trip to Boracay.

I guess this is my last trip for the year and I'm looking forward to more vacations in 2013!\\

Cigar rolling outside the art gallery in the mall. According to ate, the tobacco came from Ilocos, not grown in the Visayas.

Souvenir lane

More souvenirs. I was looking for the tiny bottles with sand art and they are no longer sold according to the vendors. The use of sand in souvenirs is now banned.

Share Tea