Not cool, U.S. Embassy. You send out a cat pajama jam e-vite to the diplomatic corps...
...error or not, it's now out there in the community of nations -- so you go out and make it happen. It's a little something called pacta sunt servanda. I mean,who do I see now about reparations for the TimTams and Garfield onesie I bought? So not cool.
The Philippine Tamaraws visited the Consulate ahead of their Rugby League Emerging Nations World Championship trophy final against Poland, and they gifted me and the ConGen with official jerseys. I asked, "If I wear mine will I be mistaken for a rugby player?"
But seriously, the lads were great. They were literally copying quotes from a Rizal painting to place on their jerseys for inspiration, and were all nice and took selfies with the ConGen because "our moms will kill us if we don't"
good lads (and moms)
And in a shock twist, they asked moi to lead the team and bear the flag during their final match! Moi! What a tremendous honor! What could go wrong!
I mean, besides moi not knowing the event protocol and veering around the pitch like a dork...
the fact I use moi so much tells you I don't get selected to step on a playing field that often
...and moi not having any vocal skill at all so when the anthem music began playing I came in and started singing uncontrollably at soprano-level and since the lads chose mostly to just hum along all you could here on the field was my thin, airy, squeaky voice...
I was not seen, but HEARD
...and by the time I reached "Lupa ng Araw..." I was at todo-pero-kapos-birit andmy forehead vein was throbbing and my voice so high dogs were barking and the opponent's bigger, fitter flag-bearer started looking at me with concern
"you having a seizure?"
...and when the lads went into the team kapit-bewang stance I found myself out of formation but vaudeville-hook pulled in by the big hand and beefy arm of the Tamaraw captain with laughable ease.
"bro, do you even lift?"
"you're asking moi?"
Other than all that, my pre-game was fine.
Now, a crash-course on rugby league: it's supposedly less internationally-known than rugby union but apparently more spectator-friendly with simpler, quicker, and more-open play. There's some debate whether rugby league players are fitter and faster than their rugby union counterparts, but all I know is watching a match up close and hearing the dull-but-loud THWACK of big bodies colliding at literal breakneck speed is enough for me not to take a side and get anyone upset at me.
So the Tamaraws did battle against Poland, and what a match it was!
*Quinito Henson voice* Poland got off to a fast start but watch out as the Philippines gets plenty of chances in the first half and at halftime Poland leads 14-0 but watch out as they get shut out the rest of the way and the Philippines scores twice to come to within four watch out!
my cheering voice was as high as my anthem voice
The Philippineskeeps up the pressure and with only seconds left in the match have possession and a chance to take the lead and steal the win as they desperately kick it to the try line and watch out the ball bounces off the post and into the path of an onrushing Tamaraw and...
waaaaatch OUT
Juuuuust off his fingertips. So close. But what a great GREAT fight by the Tamaraws. They did their mothers and their mother country proud. And they were just such a bunch of nice guys: they brought out some San Miguel beer in the stands after the match, joked and laughed at each other, and talked about going back to work the next day (one was a teacher) (who accidentally dropped a bottle of San Miguel in the stands). And even after all my flag-bearing sablay, they decided to give moi a tournament medal!
It was an honor lads. I hope to one day have the strength and spirit you showed on the field.
This was cool. During a school term break, the LLDD-Baby and other kids of the Consulate were invited to watch a cultural gathering highlighting Philippine oral traditions organized by some very talented members of the Fil-com. There were games, storytelling and, of course, songs. The voices were adorable and angelic, and the whole thing truly inspiring.
(Fam - we have to up our game. Ibang level na ang kabataan ngayon 😊)
Quickie touristy tip: if you're in Sydney for just a short bit but still want to get near some of the most famous Aussie animals, try out Featherdale Wildlife Park, an cozy zoo discretely situated in a western residential suburb about 40 minutes from the city. It's cheaper, less crowded and more intimate than Taronga, and even let's you feed and pet and get really close to the fan favorites
that's close enough, bub
Seriously, visitors can get so close the animals already feel very comfortable around humans and you'd swear they were just constantly playing and performing for the cameras
the animals, I mean
Great, great fun for the family. Y'all keep an eye on Featherdale
The University of Sydney has a great Southeast Asian studies center and when I say great it's because of a lot of things but for purposes of this post it's because I personally appreciate...
...their annual ASEAN forum that comprehensively tackles the most important concerns of the region...
...their bringing in and utility of Filipino experts and resource speakers who you can tell are good because - oh, I don't know - they share my first name and law school...
...and perhaps most meaningful to me they are so engaged with and attuned to the Southeast Asian spirit that they know if you hold an ASEAN conference you best nail the lunch spread and lean into the region's cuisine and not just serve cheese crackers and tuna sandwich triangles and try to pass it off as a "substantial buffet" are you hearing me meetings of Western missions?!!
