Película Spanish Film Fest 2010 Official Trailer.

¡Hola a todos!

Película 2010 will run from September 30 to October 10 at the Greenbelt 3 cinemas. For more information on the Festival, log on to http://www.pelicula.ph brought to you by Instituto Cervantes Manila.

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Hispanofilipinos.com

¡Hola a todos! Are you interested in rediscovering a long lost body of Literature and to practice your Spanish comprehension at the same time? Check out the Clásicos Hispanofilipinos collection and own a piece of rediscovered Filipino culture.

¿Una literatura perdida?

No es sólo Rizal, han sido centenares los filipinos que han publicado en español. Se trata de un corpus literario que, tras la erradicación del castellano en Filipinas, ha quedado oculto, olvidado en las catacumbas de la literatura. Ahora, con la Biblioteca Clásicos Hispanofilipinos, el Instituto Cervantes de Manila se propone rescatar esas obras. Los dos primeros títulos ya se encuentran disponibles en el propio Instituto Cervantes y algunas librerías de Manila: Cuentos de Juana, de Adelina Gurrea (1896 -1971) y Los pájaros de fuego, la mítica novela “perdida” de Jesús Balmori (1886 -1948).

Para conocer más sobre Clásicos Hispanofilipinos, visita www.hispanofilipinos.com

A long-lost literature?

It is not just Rizal, there have been hundreds of Filipino authors who wrote and published their works in Spanish. It is a body of Literature that, after the fall of the Spanish language in the Philippines, has remained isolated, hidden in the catacombs of time. Now, through the collection Clásicos Hispanofilipinos, Instituto Cervantes de Manila is trying to bring back those literary works. The first two novels are already available at the Instituto Cervantes itself and some libraries in Manila (Php 400). The books are: Cuentos de Juana by Adelina Gurrea (1896 -1971) and Los pájaros de fuego, the legendary “lost” novel by Jesús Balmori (1886 - 1948).

For further information on Clásicos Hispanofilipinos please visit our website www.hispanofilipinos.com

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Ciclo de Cine para agosto: Madrid, una ciudad de cine.

¡Hola a todos! We're approaching the tail-end of our cultural calendar with Película 2010 rounding out an exciting year for Instituto Cervantes de Manila. The film festival is slated to take place in October, we still have two months to go and two cycles of Saturday film screenings. For the month of August, Instituto Cervantes presents our film cycle: Madrid, una ciudad de cine.

The theme gives us a broad look at the panorama of the capital of Spain as reflected in its cinema. Four films, set against the last half of the 20th century, highlighting the diverse history of Madrid: the post-war era, the 60's and the capital in its present day.

Tiovivo c. 1950
7 de agosto August 3
El amor perjudica seriamente la salud Love Can Seriously Damage Your Health
14 de agosto August 14
Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
21 de agosto August 21
Abre los ojos Open Your Eyes
28 de agosto August 28

August is also the month of the International Silent Film Festival in Manila. In this year's edition, Instituto Cervantes presents the silent film, La bodega on August 29, Sunday 2010 at Shangri-la Plaza.

Madrid, una ciudad de cine is organized by Instituto Cervantes de Manila in collaboration with the Spanish Embassy in the Philippines, and Spanish International Cooperation Agency for Development (AECID).

Admission to all the screenings is FREE on a FIRST-COME, FIRST-SERVED basis. For more information, please call 5261482 or visit http://manila.cervantes.es Instituto Cervantes de Manila is at 855 T.M. Kalaw St., Ermita, Manila.

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Ciclo de Cine para julio.

¡Hola a todos! The screening of Spanish cinema every Saturday afternoon at the Salón de Actos has been a long-standing tradition here in Instituto Cervantes de Manila. Every Saturday, at 6pm (on the dot!), films from Spain are projected on the big screen at the Salón. The films are open to anyone and everyone looking to catch a taste of Spanish cinema, seating is absolutely free but on a first-come first-serve basis.

So for a double dose of culture, a double dose of cinema, come to Instituto Cervantes every Saturday for the month of July.

Apartado de correos 1001 Mistery in Barcelona
3 de julio July 3
A tiro limpio Pistol Whipped
10 de julio July 10
La caja 507 Box 507
17 de julio July 17
Un oso rojo A Red Bear
24 de julio July 24
Heroína Heroine
30 de julio July 30

Immerse yourself in Spanish cinema, only here at Cultura en Manila. Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Recital flamenco on July 9, Friday.

¡Hola a todos! Enjoy an evening of the purest sounds of the Spanish flamenco guitar and cante in concert as Instituto Cervantes de Manila proudly showcases Recital flamenco on July 9, 7:30 p.m. at Instituto Cervantes’ Salon de Actos.

Featuring the music of Spanish flamenco guitarist Keko Baldomero and vocals by young flamenco cantaor David Palomar, this one-night only offering is more than just a guitar performance, but is a sound that is absolutely and unmistakable Spanish flamenco from Andalucía.

Palomar was born in Barrio de la Viña in 1977. With his Cádiz-style, he has performed with noted bailaores such as Javier Barón and Cristina Hoyos. In his journey as an artist, he has also performed with guitarists of such caliber as Vicente Amigo and Gerardo Núñez.
Recipient of two of Spain's Premios Nacionales, he has become a phenomenon in the world of flamenco through numerous artistic collaborations and musical productions.

Keko Baldomero, on the other hand, was born in 1984 and began playing the guitar at the age of 9. Influenced by his brother Juanma Baldomero and of course by his birthplace, the famous "Barrio de Santa María" where the music of Flamenco flows through its streets, he began his training taking classes from the best guitarists of the region like Oscar Lago, Andrés Martínez, Juan Antonio Gómez, and Román Vicenti.

One of the up-and-coming flamenco guitarists in Spain, Baldomero has played in numerous places, primarily in Europe and Latin America.
On July 9, at 7:30 p.m. at the Salon de Actos, experience for yourself an evening of fabulous Spanish music in a special offering brought to you by Instituto Cervantes.

Recital flamenco is organized by Instituto Cervantes de Manila in collaboration with Asociación de la Prensa de Cádiz, the Spanish Embassy in the Philippines, Junta de Andalucía- Agencia Andaluza para el Desarrollo del flamenco, and Qatar Airways.

Entrance to this concert is free on a FIRST COME, FIRST SERVED BASIS. For more information, please call 5261482 or visit http://manila.cervantes.es Instituto Cervantes de Manila is at 855 T.M. Kalaw St., Ermita, Manila. Subscribe here at Cultura en Manila.

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

The Lost Novel: Los pájaros de fuego de Jesús Balmori.

¡Hola a todos! As part of the Clásicos Hispanofilipinos, Instituto Cervantes de Manila presents the book launching of Los pájaros de fuego by Jesús Balmori. 7pm, Monday, June 28th, 2010. Join us in this momentous occasion as the collection brings recognition to the last batch of Spanish works written in the Philippines.

Majority of the classical Philippine literature was written in Spanish. Unknown to many, a great portion of Filipino nationalists were masters of the Spanish language and their works now bear testament to the nation’s Hispanic roots.

Clásicos Hispanofilipinos, a project by Instituto Cervantes de Manila aiming to preserve the works of Fil-hispanic authors from the beginning of the 20th century, is publishing the Spanish novel of Filipino journalist, playwright and poet, Jesús BalmoriLos pájaros de fuego (Birds of fire) on June 28, 7pm at Instituto Cervantes’ Salón de Actos.

Funded by Instituto Cervantes and the Embassy of Spain, Biblioteca Clásicos Hispanofilipinos seeks to bring recognition to the last batch of Spanish works written in the Philippines. It was launched last January with Adelina Gurrea Monasterio’s bookCuentos de Juana (Juana’s Stories).

A novel with remarkable historic and literary value, Balmori’s Los Pájaros de fuego is considered to be as the “lost novel.” All pages of the book, except the final chapter, were written by Balmori during the Japanese occupation. It miraculously escaped the repeated raids of the Japanese henchmen as Balmori stored each chapter in glass bottles and buried them under the garden of his house.

After the war, the manuscript was recovered from the ruins of Balmori’s house, finished and sold by the author to the Government, who committed to publish it. However, the manuscript of Los pájaros de fuego remained unnoticed for decades until three years ago in the National Archives.

Clásicos Hispanofilipinos is planning to publish two titles every year. Among the scheduled writers are Claro Mayo Recto, Antonio Abad, T. M. Kalaw and Evangelina Guerrero.

Biblioteca Clásicos Hispanofilipinos is organized by Instituto Cervantes de Manila in collaboration with the Spanish Embassy in the Philippines, the Spanish International Cooperation Agency for Development (AECID) and the Spanish Program for Cultural Cooperation from Ministerio de Cultura de España. Among the supporting universities are the University of the Philippines (Department of European Languages, UP Diliman) and the University of Alicante (Spain).

Entrance to this book launch is free. For more information, please call 5261482 or visit http://manila.cervantes.es Instituto Cervantes de Manila is at 855 T.M. Kalaw St., Ermita, Manila. Subscribe here at Cultura en Manila.

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

El Día E 2010 was a success!

¡Hola a todos! Instituto Cervantes de Manila would like to thank everyone for celebrating El Diá del Español! Last Saturday, June 19th, here at the Instituto grounds! The event was made bigger and better than the preceding year with the inclusion of El Juego del Español, outrageous prizes and so much more.

The program kicked off with the balloon drop, lluvia de palabras, where Spanish words were launched into the air with certain special words winning very special prizes; either a pastry with a Spanish word on it, come palabras, or a camiseta gratis. It continued with the palabras vivas, our very own version of Instituto's Got Talent wherein performers presented their skills based on a chosen Spanish word. With our very own panel of judges, it made for a very entertaining spectacle.

The place was packed with students, professors and all-around friends of the Spanish language. Similar to last year's celebration, with a new reincarnation of palabra que dura where the walls were once again decorated with cartoons and speech bubbles. This year's edition took inspiration from Saturday morning newspaper comics. ¿Qué chulo, no?

The fotos finalístas top 100 found themselves displayed during El Día E itself. Our ganadora for the Word Hunt in the City won a digital camera from Fuji for the word Maldita. El Día E ended with the grand finale of El Juego del Español, with a final match between two female students from Instituto Cervantes, with a trip to Andalucía at stake, the pressure was palpable. In the end, a winner was chosen; whittled down from a grand total of 144 participants. She will receive a week, all-expense paid, trip to the south of Spain. ¡Qué tengas buen viaje, chica!

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta el año que viene!

El Día E is coming!

¡Hola a todos!

Less than two weeks away from El Día del Español and the anticipation is building up to a fever pitch. This year's edition features old favorites from last year like the Palabra que dura (writing your favorite Spanish words and phrases on the wall), Palabras vivas (creative presentations from different groups all over Manila), Come palabras (Spanish words on pastries and cakes) and so much more. This celebration of the Spanish language will be a fast-paced spectacle of language, culture and all things fun; kicking-off with the cannon blast and balloon drop; Lluvia de palabras. This year, we are introducing a photo contest entitled Word Hunt in the City--details are in the previous posts. In addition to this, Instituto Cervantes presents El Juego del Español. Very, exciting.

¡Vamos! The game comes direct from Spain, an idea developed by Instituto Cervantes headquarters in Madrid. It is a simple game, a mix between Scrabble and Boggle--all in Spanish. The rules are very simple, all you need is a wide knowledge of Spanish vocabulary and you're good to go. This contest is open to everyone!

El Día E 2010 is going to be jam-packed with contests and chances to win big prizes, and I mean big so do not miss this chance. The grand prize for El Juego del Español is a trip to Andalucía, in the south of Spain: a week, all-expense paid in such places as Granada, Sevilla, Cádiz etc. So what are you waiting for? Join now, all you have to do is register at the reception or directly at the Cultura department. This contest is open to all, and everyone who joins will receive a shirt absolutely free. Venga.

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Juego del Español: un viaje a Andalucía

¡Hola a todos! El Día E ya está en camino, entonces, hay muchas oportunidades para ganar.

¿Quieres viajar a Andalucía, en el sur de España? ¿Quieres visitar las provincias de Sevilla, Granada, Almería y Cádiz? Pues ven al Día E, el sábado 19 de junio de 2010 y participa en el JUEGO DEL ESPAÑOL.

El Juego del Español es un juego de palabras cruzadas en el que se combinan el azar en el lanzamiento de dados de letras, la habilidad para componer palabras y el conocimiento del vocabulario español. Como Gran Premio, el ganador recibirá un viaje de una semana a Andalucía, con todos los gastos pagados. Pero todos los participantes también van a recibir una camiseta GRATIS!

Si te interesa, apúntate en el Departamento de Cultura. ¡El concurso es abierto para todos! ¡Nos vemos en el Día E!

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

FÚTBOL: World Cup film cycle.

¡Hola a todos! The diversity of language and culture are all linked by one game: football. With the much- anticipated World Cup kicking off this month in Johannesburg, South Africa, Instituto Cervantes de Manila is joining the football fever as it presents FÚTBOL, a film cycle which showcases movies and a documentary about the world’s most popular sport.

As part of its celebration of Spain’s presidency in the European Union (EU), Instituto Cervantes’ FÚTBOL has a special four-film line-up that offers the best Spanish and Latin- American films on the “beautiful” sport. Screenings will be held every Saturday,6 p.m. at the center’s Salon de Actos.

FÚTBOL opens on June 5 with “Amando A Maradona (Loving Maradona),” a documentary that follows the life story of Argentina´s legendary football player, Diego Armando Maradona. In this film, Maradona narrates his beginnings – from his impoverished childhood to his remarkable rise to stardom. The soccer star also bares details about the controversial ¨Hand of God¨ goal, as well as the places that have been part of his life such as Naples, Barcelona, Cuba, Rio de Janeiro, among others. This documentary is directed by Javier Vázquez.

On June 12, David Serrano’s comedy flick “Días de fútbol (Soccer Days),” about a group of unsuccessful men who find refuge in football as a solution to their problem, will be shown, while Hannes Stöhr’s “Galatasaray Dépor (One Day in Europe)” – a humorous story of the misunderstandings caused by intercultural differences and language barriers – will be screened on June 19.

And no football festival would be complete without a film about the most widely-viewed sporting event in the world: the World Cup Final. “La gran final (The Great Match),” showing on June 26, is a comical insight consisting of three parallel stories about the trials and tribulations of a group of men who have things in common: they live in remote regions of the planet and are determined to watch the final match of the 2002 World Cup between Germany and Brazil.

FÚTBOL is organized by Instituto Cervantes de Manila in collaboration with the Spanish Embassy in the Philippines, and Spanish International Cooperation Agency for Development (AECID).

Admission to all the screenings is FREE on a FIRST-COME, FIRST-SERVED basis. For more information, please call 5261482 or visit http://manila.cervantes.es Instituto Cervantes de Manila is at 855 T.M. Kalaw St., Ermita, Manila.

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Word Hunt in the City!

¡Hola a todos! As promised, here are the rules! Don't be shy, there are over 2000 borrowed words in Filipino from the Spanish language and the sheer abundance of Spanish names all over the city is indicative of the strong link between both cultures. Rediscover the Spanish soul of the city and capture it in a photograph!

WORD HUNT IN THE CITY PHOTO CONTEST:

In conjunction with the anticipated celebration of El Día E (Day of the Spanish Language) on June 19, 2010, at the Instituto Cervantes in Manila, there will be a photo contest called Word Hunt in the City. This contest is in celebration of the cultural link between Spain and the Philippines that is tangible in all corners of the city. The contest aims to rediscover the Spanish soul and heritage of Manila through the art of photography.

Everyone is invited to participate in the contest. The winning entry will be chosen by our panel of judges and the top entries will be displayed during El Día E on June 19, 2010.

Interested already? Here’s how the contest goes:

PHOTO SUBJECT:

The participant must scour the city and look for a Spanish word or a Filipino word with a Spanish root (e.g. aksyon from acción or sabon from jabón) and capture it in a photograph: be it on street signs, store names, art, newspaper headlines etc. The picture must convey a story or a sense of history of the chosen word depicted.

SUBMISSION AND DEADLINE:

· All entries must be received by 3:00 pm at June 17, 2010 atculturaenmanila@gmail.com

PRIZES

· Grand Prize: Fuji Digital Camera

· Top 100 Entries will be displayed during El Día E on June 19, 2010.

CONTEST RULES AND MECHANICS

1. The contest is open to the public
2. Photo requirements
1. 8 x 10 inches in size
2. 300 DPI
3. JPEG format
3. Photographs must be uploaded with a short descriptive text, name and contact details of the participant
4. Participants may submit a maximum of two (2) entries.
5. The top 100 entries will be displayed at the gallery area of Instituto Cervantes as part of the celebration of El Día E.
6. The Grand winner will be chosen on June 19, 2010 by our panel of judges based on the following criteria:
1. Originality 25%
2. Creativity 25%
3. Story 50%
7. Instituto Cervantes will have the right to use any of the submitted pictures, always crediting its author.

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

18 days to go until El Día E!

¡Hola a todos! El Día E is but 18 days to go!

Celebrate El Día E with a video by telling us your favorite Spanish word! It could be anything from abrazo to zumo, it doesn’t matter as long as you tell us why you like it! Entries will be uploaded on www.eldiae.es to be seen worldwide. Tell your friends to vote for you and your favorite word! ¡Venga!

If videos aren't your forte, join the Word Hunt in the City photo contest. Submit a picture of a Spanish or a Fil-Spanish word found in the city (from street signs, to store names, to newspapers) on or before June 17, 2010 to culturaenmanila@gmail.com. The grand prize is a brand new digital camera from Fuji and the top 100 entries will be displayed at the gallery during El Día E on June 19.

For more information and contest rules, keep checking here at Cultura en Manila or http://culturaenmanila.blogspot.com and subscribe. What are you waiting for? ¡Vamos!

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

El Día E!

¡Hola a todos! On the heels of this year's Día del Libro celebration, comes El Día E or El Día del Español! In the cultural calendar of Instituto Cervantes de Manila, the three main events prepared each year are Día del Libro in April, El Día E in June and Película Spanish Filmfest in October.

El Día E is going to be a grand celebration of the Spanish language, it's going to be held on June 19, Saturday. Last year was the first time Instituto Cervantes mounted El Día E, with Manila having been chosen as one of the 70 centers all over the world (along with Tokyo, Paris, Madrid etc). El Día E is a festivity that marks the role of Spanish, as a living language, in the world today. There is going to be lots of performances, Spanish food, juegas del español, interactive exhibits and a whole lot more.

To kick-start the festivities, similar to last year, we're asking everyone to tell us ¿cuál es tu palabra favorita? in a short video and we'll upload it to www.eldiae.es for the entire world to see. Come on Cultura en Manila fans, help the Cultura team put Instituto Cervantes de Manila on the map by being one of the most active centers. So far we have 5 videos on our youtube account. Let us know, tell us your favorite Spanish word with a short reason why you like it--that's all there is to it. Think culture, think Spanish.

Martin quiere la palabra "broncear"

Andrea quiere la palabra "vale"

Enzo quiere la palabra "sabroso"

Kaye quiere la palabra "comida"

Gilberto quiere la palabra "idioma"

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Día del Libro 2010 was a huge success!

¡Hola a todos! ¡Muchas gracias por todo! Thank you to everyone who made this year's edition of Día Internacional del Libro a smashing success, the people literally did not stop coming from 10 am to 10 pm; hundreds in attendance, thousands of books sold and roses given in turn. Instituto Cervantes de Manila brought out all the stops this year; from the desbloquear shirts (SOLD OUT!), eco-bolsas, paraguas and other shirts from Berso sa Metro and Película 2009 to the various activities spread out throughout the day. Día 2010 was packed with the mercadillo del libros, Maleta de Cervantes video workshop in the morning, the Pinta Palabras para niños, the film screening of Una casa de locos, the Eurobersong Pinoy 2 poetry recital, the lecture-concert up until the Latin party at night. The Día celebrations get bigger and bigger every year and Instituto Cervantes would like to extend our many thanks to everyone who attended this year. The Día experience would not be complete without you--our dear students and friends.

The Cultura team would like to invite everyone who attended and took pictures of the event to upload them on to our Facebook. Muchas gracias to everyone once again. Subcribe to Cultura en Manila for more information on the upcoming events, here at Instituto Cervantes de Manila. Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Año Hernandiano 2010! 400 books for the first 400 people!

¡Hola a todos! Along with the thousands of books we received in preparation for Día del Libro, the Fundación Cultural Miguel Hernández have donated 400 hundred books in celebration of the centennial year of the birth of the Spanish poet. In the spirit of Día del Libro, we're giving away these 400 books to the first 400 people to arrive tomorrow. Another reason to come early tomorrow!

Miguel Hernández is a lauded 20th century Spanish poet, significant to the history of both literature and Spain itself. Instituto Cervantes de Manila celebrates his poetry in the successful campaign for Berso sa Metro, specifically in the newest venture--the Berso sa Metro eJeepney as can be seen in the last event of Instituto Cervantes de Manila. The eJeepneys will be parked outside during Día del Libro so if you want to check them out, feel free to do so.

On a side note, in celebration of his vast contributions to literature, Instituto Cervantes is going to inaugurate our beloved library in November as Biblioteca Miguel Hernández. Watch out for that by the end of the year. Celebrate literature, celebrate culture. Subscribe to Cultura en Manila for more updates and information on tomorrow's event. See you tomorrow!

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

10 reasons to go to Día del Libro 2010!

¡Hola a todos! One more day and it's already Día Internacional del Libro, the center is busy with preparations. There are tons of prizes to be given out and books to be sold, I'm sure you already know the drill. Well, expect more this year because the Día tradition in Manila just gets bigger and bigger each year.

Here at Cultura en Manila--culture is our name and content generation is our game. Check this out:



We hope you enjoyed our mini production, we try to present information as novel and as fun as possible. Stay tuned here at Cultura en Manila for more things culture and more things Instituto Cervantes. Poetry in Motion contestants, deadline is tomorrow at noon!

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Día del Libro 2010 is almost here!

¡Hola a todos! Check out the second out of the three designs we're coming out with this year for Día del Libro 2010! Two days before one of the biggest events in the Manila cultural calendar, do not miss this opportunity. Four thousand books will be set loose at 10 am, come early before all the good stock gets hauled away. I've personally seen some of them out of their boxes and these books are awesome. Stay tuned to Cultura en Manila for more updates on what's in store this Saturday, April 24th for Día 2010.

Just a reminder to those who attended last Saturday and are joining the Poetry in Motion contest: deadline for your blog entries is Friday, April 23 noon. Just comment the link here and send me an e-mail with the link (to be double sure) and the names of your team members. Think big, think Día!

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

Berso sa Metro: La poesía viaja en jeepney was a huge success!

¡Hola a todos! ¡Muchas gracias por todo! Our event last Saturday, April 17th, the Berso sa Metro Poetry Jeepney Tour was a smashing success. Thanks in large part to Instituto Cervantes de Manila, the Cultura department, our partners in ICSC and all of our sponsors, the poets and to most especially to you--the audience. From Serendra, to Greenbelt, and finally to Katipunan, all three locations enjoyed a full-house. It was a day like no other in Manila, a day that honored poetry in its purest form. No pretenses, no frills--just the simple joy of literature made available to all.

The day started off in A Different Bookstore, Serendra. The poets arrived in the newly minted Berso sa Metro electric jeepneys. As the next step in the promotional reading campaign, the partnership of Berso sa Metro and the electric jeepneys hit two birds with one stone by not only tackling the issue of literature but also of climate change--reading, going green and living in a sustainable city.

The theme for the first stop was "City Life" and the poets recited their original works. The poignancy of old Manila was captured in the poetry of RayVi Súnico and Mookie Katigbak, whilst the multifaceted history of EDSA was recounted by Marra Lanot. After the slew of individual poets, the stillness of the recital was broken by the strength and comedy of the balagtasan between Vim Nadera and Michael Coroza. The audience was wowed into applause, it was the perfect ending, instantly becoming the crowd favorite for the rest of the day.

The second stop talked about "Memories, Dreams and Nightmares" staged at Power Books, Greenbelt 4. The venue was definitely bigger than the first, yet the crowd matched it equally--they just kept coming and coming. The excitement didn't stop as Joel Toledo described his heart, as it skips a beat and syncopates against frailty and earnestness. The theme of sound was pervasive in the reading. Our Spanish poet José Luis Gómez expounded on flores amarilla y las sombras in his works. Similar to the first event, the balagtasan ended this leg on a high note.

The third and last stop was quite the journey from Power Books, Greenbelt to Mag:net Café in Katipunan--quite the departure from Manila. But this didn't stop the people from coming, the place once again was packed; eagerly anticipating the final theme of "Poet's Choice" as each and every poet was given the freedom to pick and choose the work that speaks strongly to them and to share it with the poetry lovers in the audience. It was short and sweet, poignant and dynamic. The poetry spoke volumes at times, vociferous yet calculated--it made us laugh, it made us sad, it made us think. The sheer power of words had not been more evident.

It was truly a night among nights in the cultural landscape of Manila: a gathering of 9 poets, in three different stops, celebrating the joy of literature while simultaneously creating awareness for eJeepneys and climate change.Cultura en Manila thanks you for being part of this activity which we hope to repeat in the near future, without you this would not have been a success. As a recurring theme in this blog, the creation of culture is definitely a two way thing--an exchange. Spread love for the arts, for the written word, for the spoken word, for music, for film, for language; all of the above!

Think out of the box, think culture. Subscribe and stay tuned for more updates and videos on the coming weeks, especially this Saturday as we celebrate the Día Internacional del Libro 2010! We hope to see you there!

Y tú, ¿qué opinas? ¡Hasta pronto!

P.S

Check out the newspapers for April 19, 2010, we came out in The Inquirer, The Philippine Star and The Manila Bulletin.