victorian

 

"Queen Elizabeth II may rule England, but Victoria still sits the throne in America!"

Lovely quote !!!!
and oh so true :-)
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M for Malaysia

 

this picture speaks louder then a thousand words :-) M for Malaysia is taken over by M for McDonalds :-) Is Malaysia another part of the US of A?
And how is that in your country?
Lovely questions :-)
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Petaling Street, KL

 

This street vendor stretches, which shows his tatooted arm. No clients, business is quiet. Nobody wants to buy a fake watch.
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colonial & British

 

architecture marks a location. Colonial architecture is not different, and it's interesting to see how countries value their colonial heritage. Such as the old railwaystation in Kuala Lumpur. The spirits of the past seem to be still lingering here.
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are you forgotten?

 

these cars and motorcycles were obviously seized a while ago. Nature takes over. In a while, nothing but greenery will be visible.

Make sure you are not forgotten when seized.
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Chinese New Year

 

Christmas is gone, all the decorations are removed. Although still a month to go, Chinese New Year is coming.

This shop dressed all the mannequins in red. Lovely sillouette! The bulges are exactly where they are supposed to be :-) Long Live Chinese New Year!
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A Vatar !!!

 

being in a city that shows Avatar in 3D, we couldn't resist :-) a beautiful story, good vs bad, spirit vs money, sharing vs greed. Eternal values. And the technology behind the movie is breathtaking. Another bonus!
HL was crying at the end. He's such a gentle soul :-)
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waterbugs

From 1001-Cebu

From our room at the Hilton - Maktan Island (Cebu), we had a magnificent view on the boats at sea. At daytime, they hit for the shore; in the night, they move back to the sea. Like a flock of insects, gracefully highheeled walking over the surface of the water. Fascinating.

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airports

Airports - although inevitable - are a horrible place to be. Especially in the Phils! Just some examples:

* Davao: it's forbidden to smoke OUTSIDE of the airport. In the airport, there are smokers zones. Funny.

* Cebu: exactly as last time, there was a HUGE queue, due to the fact that all the luggage must be scanned at the entrance of the airport, and there is only one scanner functional. The above picture is funny because it's 3 pictures stitched together, so you see some persons 3 times in the same picture. The waiting line was not so funny though. If you need to board a plane in Cebu, calculate at least 30 minutes queuing time!

But after all, we managed to survive the airports :-)
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Ng

We were so privileged to meet the famous photographer Mr. Ng. His work is most impressive: technically perfect, and filled with joy and human intensity.
He lived in Manila, but choose to move to Davao: close to the mountain (he loves mountainclimbing) and the beaches. And much better quality of life.
Admirable guy !!!!
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the T'boli Bag

unique! this bag is fully made of fiber from the pinapple. Strong and beautiful, a specialty from the Tboli tribe. HL couldn't resist buying one!

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midnight streetsleepers vs midnight dancers

On HL's birthday we went out, bars, gogodancers (the so-called "midnight dancers"). While we were amusing ourselves, the streetkids were enjoying a quiet rest on the comfortable and refreshening clean tiles. Nobody disturbed them.

Our friend N. told us that those streetkids actually have shelter and food in government houses, but then they have to follow rules. They prefer freedom. I'm sure he's right!
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the national fish ...

the national fish of the Philippines is the BANGUS. Its quality mostly is that it's boneless. It's available on the market in such huge quantities that one wonders how long the Bangus will last!
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baby for sale?

so funny, during our stroll in the (huge) open-air market: while mama & papa are working (making sausages), the baby hangs there, sleeping in a net. No need for a nanny: the baby is at work. Hopefully not for sale!
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80

8O students per class ... that's the usual practice in this government school. Not enough teachers, not enough classrooms. But they manage, they say, although they welcome private sponsorship. Anyone to sponsor a class?

save on swimwear and earn money!

this boy was so cute. He knew that nudity sells, so he was running around in the water, nude to the butt, exposing himself to everyone who wanted to watch, and asking only ONE PESO for his beauty. And he was so proud when he got rewarded. Plain lovely. I don't dare to post the pictures on the net, but this one might be acceptable for the Law: there's nothing to see :-)
Do look at the reflection of the boy's face and body in the water! Amazing!
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the pearl in the oyster

most oysters are ugly on the outside. This boy is not an oyster, although he seems to have a pearl in his mouth!
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homemade!

what's in the bottle? it's home-made!!! Must be yummy :-) and look at the expression on the faces of the drinkers .... even extatic !!! But what is it?

streetkids

I didn't expect to see them in Davao, but the streetkids are plentiful here too. Nobody seems to give a damn.

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orgastic fireworks

never ever seen something like this ... for more then 2 hours, the whole city of Cebu was one huge display of fireworks, far and near, a seemlessly endless fantastic orgasm of sound and light. It must be said, when the Pinoys go crazy, they really have no limits!

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