Ambeth R. Ocampo's Blog, page 186

December 23 is a holiday in Japan 天皇誕生日 Tennō Tanjōbi or Emperor's Birthday. In...

December 23 is a holiday in Japan 天皇誕生日 Tennō Tanjōbi or Emperor's Birthday. In 1962, when the present Emperor was Crown Prince, he visited the Philippines. Cabinet member in attendance, Education Secretary Alejandro R. Roces, took them to Kawit to visit Emilio Aguinaldo. On the "Independence Balcony" from left to right: Crown Prince Akihito, Aguinaldo, Roces partly hidden behind Aguinaldo, Princess Michiko, Mrs. Aguinaldo, and two unidentified guests.

My Inquirer column today on a staple on our festive tables.http://opinion.inqui...

My Inquirer column today on a staple on our festive tables.
http://opinion.inquirer.net/67689/christmas-leche-flan


Christmas ‘leche flan’
opinion.inquirer.net
I have always wanted to experience Christmas in a non-Christian country. I have always wanted to experience Christmas in a country without Christmas.

Puto bungbong used to be one of the traditional signals that Christmas is near t...

Puto bungbong used to be one of the traditional signals that Christmas is near till Via Mare made it available all year round! This charming 19th century watercolor by J.A. Karuth depicts a roadside puto bungbong vendor. Customers ate with their hands using a low table or dulang. Chairs were not necessary because one could sit off the ground on ones haunches.

Thank you so much for the greetings and congratulatory likes and comments you le...

Thank you so much for the greetings and congratulatory likes and comments you left on the post on the conferment of the Presidential Medal of Merit. The NHCP posted this on their page, I'm the only LIVING person so honored. I'm not history yet and hope to live up to your trust.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=597677266954608&set=a.111903082198698.16119.101821106540229&type=1&theater


Timeline Photos
Pagbati kay G. Ambeth R. Ocampo -- Dating Tagapangulo ng Pambansang Komisyong Pangkasaysayan ng Pilipinas at ng Pambansang Komisyon para sa Kultura at mga Sining, sa kanyang pagtanggap ng Presidential Medal of Merit mula kay Pangulong Benigno S. Aquino III.

Pintang larawan ni Ambeth Ocampo na ginuhit ni Bahag

Nena Pasia sent me this photo some time back. Im sure there are similar or funni...

Nena Pasia sent me this photo some time back. Im sure there are similar or funnier ones in the various bazaars and tiangge that provide us with last minute solutions for Christmas gifts.


Smile

Caught the Philippines contender for Miss International in Tokyo taking a selfie...

Caught the Philippines contender for Miss International in Tokyo taking a selfie. Now, thats a beautiful profile worthy of a painting by Bencab or Claudio Bravo.

This afternoon, in Tokyo, President Benigno S. Aquino, III conferred on me the P...

This afternoon, in Tokyo, President Benigno S. Aquino, III conferred on me the Presidential Medal of Merit in recognition, the citation reads, "of his writings through which he popularized Philippine history, art, and culture thus bringing these aspects of our national identity and culture closer to the people." Also in photo is Marites L. Lopez my foster mother in Japan. Maraming salamat sa inyong tiwala at pagtangkilik sa aking mga sinulat. (Photo by Karl Ian Cheng Chua).


Near Famous

My Inquirer column today on a scrap of paper with Michaelangelo's grocery list....

My Inquirer column today on a scrap of paper with Michaelangelo's grocery list.
http://opinion.inquirer.net/67123/michaelangelos-grocery-list


Michaelangelo’s grocery list
opinion.inquirer.net
At a recent blockbuster exhibition on Michaelangelo in the Tokyo National Museum of Western Art, I avoided the crowds in front of major works and concentrated on two works dismissed as minor or unimportant: a marble relief depicting the Virgin and the Child Jesus, said to be Michaelangelo’s first wo...

Avoided the crowds around the major works in a recent Michaelangelo exhibit in T...

Avoided the crowds around the major works in a recent Michaelangelo exhibit in Tokyo and tried to read, what appeared to be, Michaelangelo's grocery list. This wonderful document inspired tomorrow's Inquirer column.

Fernando Amorsolo painted this scene of Manila in flames at the end of World War...

Fernando Amorsolo painted this scene of Manila in flames at the end of World War II. The smoke rising from the burning city forms the figure of a Japanese soldier in flight.