Down the Rabbit Hole

Polynesian Cultural Centre , I have returned! Echoing General Douglas MacArthur's famous speech in Leyte, I  returned  nine years  after  my last visit to Hawaii. During my first trip, I wished I had more time for exploration, as I only had a brief stop at the Hukilau Marketplace and ate lunch at the barbecue before boarding my tour bus for the next stop.  For this trip (my third time in Hawaii, actually), I went with Mommy, Daddy, and Donan. I got tickets that allowed us to visit on three consecutive business days. No wonder I couldn't explore the Centre in two hours: it takes three days to experience all that the centre has to offer! We only had time for two afternoon trips to Lā'ie, so we had to make the most of these visits. I had to consider that I was with seniors and a preschooler, so our fastest pace at the centre would be a slow walk. Day 1 We had just arrived from the  Dole Pineapple Plantation , which was an hour's drive from Wahiawa. That visit ...

One of the things I want to do is to visit as many UNESCO World Heritage Sites as I can. So, as 2018  unfolds, I'd like to list the some of the places that I can cross off my to-go list. I must admit that I haven't been to many. So as I post this, I hope that I can visit more of these sites in the future... and write about them again. La Porte de Non Retour Slave trade has contributed immensely to the African diaspora, particularly to the Americas. I don't know much about how it began so it was with deep interest that I visited this heritage site (it's on UNESCO's tentative list). The route surprisingly began inland, with the slave auction occurring under a tree. Apparently, the slave trade was a lucrative business because there were several stops along the route that indicate how big an industry it must have been back then. It was interesting to learn that slaves had to go through several rites designed to make them accept that there's no turning b...

Ten years ago, I first visited New South Wales as a PhD student. Ten years ago, I was using a point-and-shoot camera because I didn't have a digital camera yet. Ten years ago, it was my first time to see marsupials (ever) in the wild... they took on the form of kangaroos or wallabies... I'm not sure.  Anyway, this photo was taken sometime in October 2006 when Bob Gilbert, my USyd and UQ thesis adviser, took me and other students from other countries into one of the national parks near Boomerang Beach. We stopped by the roadside when these animals were sighted. We got out of the car and stood by the side of the road to continue watching them. Across the road was a tall metal fence with a warning sign: "Electrified fence. Do not jump." In my head, I thought, who in his right mind would ever think of jumping over a fence that's almost twice as tall as I am?!?  A few minutes later, one of these kangaroos stood near me, also looking at the tall fence. I ...

Alas, my Christmas vacation was drawing to a close. It was time to head back to the daily hustle and bustle back in the Philippines. However, instead of feeling sad because my vacation was over, I was actually looking forward to my flight home because I was taking United Airlines' "Island Hopper" route: 14 to 15 hours of flying through a 6900-km stretch of Pacific Ocean (from Honolulu to Guam) aboard a Boeing 737-800, with pit stops in the Republic of Marshall Islands and in the Federated States of Micronesia. What I didn't expect was the number of boarding passes I had to get before boarding the plane in San Francisco: I was carrying eight boarding passes!! I wasn't keen on the length of travel but I was stoked by the remoteness of the region I was going to reach through this flight. My eight-stop island-hopping adventure started uneventfully in San Francisco. After a few hours, I landed in Honolulu (stop #1) only to realise that the airport was largely close...

"Just when the conditions get difficult, that's when adventure photographers get their cameras out." – Cory Richards, Masters of Photography course (National Geographic) My adventures tend to be tame, if we compare them to National Geographic standards. However, I particularly like what Cory Richards said in his photography course because there are times when the conditions are suboptimal for photography so I miss good photo ops. And by suboptimal, I only mean that the conditions are too dark, too bright, too windy, too dusty, too slippery, too salty, or dangerously close to the water... any condition that could damage my gear (what gear??? the only add-on to my camera is my trusty tripod).  There are times too when my stubborn self decides to go take pictures anyway despite the risks to my camera. And the resulting pictures, though not at par with professional shots, are pretty amazing to me. If you find them to be bleh, it's okay. I'm just happy wi...

In an earlier post , I've written about migrating old content from Multiply to Blogger. Here are the blog posts from September 2008. Happy reading! September 21, 2008 Welcome wagon in Honolulu Chatting above the clouds Flying Northwest   September 18, 2008 Preparing the talk (Part 2) September 15, 2008 Preparing the talk September 6, 2008 My Fair Lady in Brisbane September 4, 2008 The Word processor An extended acknowledgment page Sense&Style August 2008

I got invited to attend the general assembly and family get-together of the Philippine Australian Alumni Association, Inc. Los Banos Chapter (PA3i-LB) last July 28 (Saturday). I've heard of the group before; it had sponsored airings of Australian films in the IRRI Havener Auditorium years ago (for free!). At the time, I was able to watch Lantana (2001), Looking for Alibrandi (1999), Australian Rules  (2002), Love Serenade (1996), and Floating Life (1996). Anyway, I didn't have the chance to enjoy one of the things the Pinoy students experience in Australia during my short stints there: the barbecue (or barbie in Aussie-speak). So when the invitation said BYO ("bring your own") to the barbie, I decided that I might as well experience what it's like... only, it's set at the Makiling Botanic Garden in UPLB, not on a picnic ground down under anymore.  our BYO food all laid out Attending the get-together, I eventually learned, were people relativ...

Tonight, I watched this season's last performance of Banyuhay: Katutubong Sayaw sa Makabagong Pananaw (Ang Muling Pag-Indak) . It is a concert that placed a modern twist to Philippine traditional dances. As I entered the confines of UPLB's Baker Hall, I was surprised that premium seats meant sitting on the floor right by the stage. The audience was sitting in a circle, waiting eagerly as the lights dimmed and fog slowly seeped around. As I took in the atmosphere and as the UPLB Filipiniana Dance Troupe took their places, I realized that I had entered a dream, a collective image tightly woven by rhythm and by dance: the performers as the dreamcatchers; we (the audience) as the dreamers. The dream sequence opened in the mountain strongholds of the Cordilleras. The sound of gongs resonated as the male dancers swirled with their headgear and the rich textiles flying in the air. The female dancers then entered carrying the banga (earthen pots). Audible gasps were heard in...

The koala ( Phascolarctos cinereus ) ( 1 ) is one of Australia's national symbols. On my first trip down under, I went to Taronga Zoo in Sydney specifically to see these cute and cuddly mascots of Australia (along with the kangaroo, of course). I even got koala baubles and stuffed toys as souvenirs of that trip. I have previously thought that these creatures are docile and quiet; however, I was told that they could be violent and they do make horrific noises at night. Thankfully, I was staying in one of the inner city suburbs in Sydney at that time and not near any forests; I was lucky not to hear koala families communicating with each other. My image of cute and cuddly koalas has stayed intact.  Koala poster boy (or girl) in Taronga Zoo At present, the koala is listed as "least concern" in the International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN) system ( 1 ). Like the giant panda, however, the koala might soon be declared an endangered species. Scientists from le...

I looked at the sky tonight and noticed that the moon has a halo. That halo meant that rain is coming soon; as I was staring at the moon, I remembered Ernie Baron's trivia tidbits in TV Patrol (ABS-CBN)... this halo was one of the things he had mentioned during his weather news broadcasts. Seeing that halo wasn't too much of a surprise. Floods have devastated parts of the Philippines, particularly in the eastern areas. Three-fourths of Queensland, Australia is also submerged in flood. These are reminiscent of what happened to Metro Manila and Southern Luzon when Typhoon Ketsana (aka Ondoy) dumped a month's worth of water. The weather forecast at work seems to be correct: the dry season will see a whole lot of rain. 

These photos were taken the last three days I was at the University of Queensland. I'll miss this place and the people in there (even if I stayed there for only a few weeks). Off to the next adventure...

The Laguesmas brought me over to the Warner Bros. MovieWorld theme park in Gold Coast. I enjoyed watching the Shrek show at the Roxy Theatre, eating ice cream at the Music Man Ice Cream Parlour, going into the Spooky Castle, and seeing the Hollywood stunt driving attraction. Thanks to Ate Tin and Kuya Rowan for bringing me there :)

After the graduation, Ate Tin and her family, brought me and Ate Dinah to Sunnybank for some yum cha at the Landmark Restaurant in Sunnybank. The food came in woven baskets carted over by the staff. I absolutely loved the flavours in the chicken feet and the beef. The other dimsum had prawn or crab in them, so I didn't try them. The aquariums on display just by the door of the restaurant had HUGE king crabs! These must be the biggest crabs I've ever seen! Plus lobsters, shrimp, some big fish too.

  Finally, the day I officially become a PhD graduate!!!! My family was largely absent, but friends were there to celebrate the day with me. Ate Dinah, Ate Tin, and her husband, Kuya Rowan, and her daughter Rihanna, were at the venue to watch the ceremony. Unlike my UPLB graduation in 2002, which lasted six hours (at least) and PhDs marching last, the ceremony in UQ lasted about two hours only, with the PhDs marching first. No photographs were allowed in the venue, and were only permitted outside the UQ Centre Exhibition Hall. An official photographer was present to shoot everyone's acceptance of the UQ tube.  I felt more excited and relieved with seeing the final copy of my thesis being accepted in March this year, than the graduation ceremony in July. Probably because there was a long gap between the two events. Nevertheless, I was so happy to wear my Doctor of Philosophy Cambridge-style academic dress, with the red-lined gown, the red-lined hood, and the funny b...

( photo credit: Sam ) I was whisked off to Moorooka this time by Stella, Sam, and Dinah. Moorooka is a suburb of Brisbane a few kilometres off the city centre, and is accessible via train or bus (according to Dinah).  Andrew (Dinah's boyfriend) had cooked "Chicken Surprise" for this dinner, to welcome us. Stella and Sam are students at the University of Queensland campus in Gatton, while I was at the St Lucia campus for only a few days. Aside from chicken, there was pizza and garlic bread. Both were purchased at Castelli's Gourmet Pizza in Indooroopilly. And, there were olives!!! Andrew had green olives on hand and was happy to share them with people who appreciate olives (that includes me!).  The chicken was great! It was so tender, and the soup that it was in tasted a lot like tinola because of the ginger. A great feel-good meal on a cold night! After dinner, Stella and Sam kindly dropped me off the Oxley train station for my trip back to Lawnton. ...

I was in Brisbane for two weeks (July 20-August 1) to attend my graduation. Since winter is the season out there, the sun rose late, and set early. Thus, many of the weekday shots were in low light. Photos taken in Manila, St Lucia, Lawnton, West End, Indooropilly, South Bank, and the Gold Coast.

The final copy of my thesis has been lodged in the Uni!!! Yey! That, after the Dean of the Graduate School recommended that I be awarded my degree! Yey! Now, it's just a matter of time to get the confirmation that I really am graduating. :D Continued from: Part 1:  http://rochiecuevas.blogspot.com/2009/03/going-going.html Part 2:  http://rochiecuevas.blogspot.com/2009/03/almost-there.html

I just realised I haven't shared these pictures yet... One of the highlights of my five-week stay in Sydney in 2006 was a trip to the zoo. This was the first time I saw a koala, a kangaroo, a dingo, and a meerkat! The giraffe's pen is dubbed as one of the most expensive pieces of real estate because it overlooks the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.

In less than a week, my thesis got approved by the post-graduate coordinator! Yey! I thought the wait would be as long as the time it took to process the thesis examiners' reports. According to Bob, my principal advisor, the thesis goes through the Faculty first to gets its blessing. Then, I guess, it will go through Graduate School, which would confirm if I made it in time for graduation ceremonies during this term. I shall learn when graduations are soon enough. Almost there! This is getting exciting.  In the meantime, I'm back to waiting...

I have submitted a copy of the corrected version of my thesis, along with a list of corrections, to Thesis Assessments on Monday, yahoo! This version contains revisions and clarifications as suggested by the two external thesis examiners. Hopefully, this version of the manuscript is accepted by the Graduate School. Thus, this is how my manuscript's time-line looks like right now: March to September, 2008.  I wrote the thesis manuscript while conducting the leftover experiments needed in the manuscript. September 2, 2008.  I personally handed in the pdf copy of the manuscript to the Printery (which then passed it along to Thesis Assessments) February 9, 2009.  The examiners' reports came back. I was given two months to correct the mistakes and in the manuscript, and to respond to the examiners' comments. The changes were all deemed minor, and hence needed only two months (according to the rules). March 10, 2009.  I submitted the revised manuscript,...