AMAZING RACE SEASON 25 IS IN THE PHILIPPINES!

Finally, the US version of The Amazing Race is back in the Philippines. I remember that the last time that the show visited the Philippines was way back in Season 5 when I was still a college student in 2004. Ten years later, it took 20 seasons before TAR is back in my home country.

The first place that they visited was Baclaran Church where teams needs to find a flower vendor to receive their clue.

They were next instructed to take a jeep to the Rosario Municipal Plaza and look for Salina's Special. Here is a peek at the jeepney experience of the teams:

The next clue was for a detour, a choice between Catch or Coach. In Catch, teams get to experience to be a fisherman a fill 3 container full of fish. Only the wrestlers did this task:

In Coach, teams needs to assemble a tricycle before they receive their next clue. This task was chosen by the dentists, the candy girls and the surfers:

They were then instructed to go to the rice fields were they were asked to do a same challenge that was done in Season 5 where Colin had his very famous "My Ox is Broken" breakdown. This challenge was also done in the current season of the Amazing Race Philippines. Teams have to search for a clue in a rice field by plowing into it.

The next is a foot race to the nearby pit stop and as expected, this is a non-elimination leg. Teams are just a few minutes behind each other. I think this is the first time that I see all teams together in the same pit stop.

I think this season really provided a more realistic image of the Philippines as compared to Season 5. Some of the teams liked it here, some of the teams don't. One of the best things in this episode is the fact that they took different modes of transportation common in the country (cab from the airport, jeep to Rosario and tricycle in Cavite). 

Here are the teams reactions on their experience in the Philippines so far.

The next leg is still in the Philippines, and it looks like teams will have to experience pedicabs and basketball.

All videos are from the Official The Amazing Race YouTube channel.

THE FIRST MALE WINNER OF AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL IS...

After 21 cycles, America's Next Top Model finally named it's first male winner. The lucky male model is Keith Carlos, a 26 year old model and former professional football player from Connecticut. Keith bested 13 other aspiring models this cycle.

Also for the first time in its history, the final 3 models are all male. Runner up spot went to Will Jardell from Texas and 3rd place went to Adam Smith, a fratboy grad school student from Tennessee.

Fourth place went to Lenox Tillman, who was eliminated before the final runway show. She is the best placed female this cycle.

ANTM allowed male models to compete in Cycle 20 where 2 male models made it to the top 3 but a female, Jourdan Miller won.

But what also struck me is still the strong Philippine connection of ANTM. In the past few cycles, Filipinos were given exposure in previous cycles. These includes Filipino designers Francis Libiran (Hello Kitty chellenge in Cycle 18) and Michael Cinco (Final Runway Show in Cycle 17 - All Stars). Georgina Wilson and the Filipino brand Bench also made its appearance in Cycle 17 in the Greece swimwear photoshoot.

In this episode, ANTM alumna Allison Harvard (Cycle 12 and 17 All Stars) was a guest in the Tyra make up commercial shoot. Harvard has moved to the Philippines to pursue her modelling career here. Her ads with the local clothing store Bench was also shown. Also in the episode is K-Pop group 2NE1, where Star Circle Quest alumna Sandara Park is a member.

Image is a screencap from the finale episode, copyright is still with the owner.

6 THINGS WE LEARNED FROM LEG 9 OF THE AMAZING RACE PHILIPPINES SEASON 2

It is the 2nd to last leg and the last team was eliminated. The top 3 teams who will race to the finish line has just been revealed. So what did we learn from this leg of the race?

1. Finally, Team Mr. Pogi wins a leg!

After having a very shaky start and steadily inching their way up the rankings, Team Mr. Pogi won a race leg. As I have said in my previous post, what is working for them in this race is their teamwork and communication. But what was evident in the past few legs was that they really know their strengths and weaknesses and they are maximizing these. Plus their positive attitude and very calm disposition, they are really in the race now!

2. YIELD should not discourage you at all.

If Team Dating Couple did not have the Yield this leg, they might have won this leg, or it might have been a footrace. They really proved that nothing can stop them and even if the teams are ganging up on them, they will find a way to overcome the obstacles on their way. If there will be a Yield or a U-Turn on the last leg (which  I wish there will be none), this team will definitely still be the target. One thing they still need to improve is their communication, because it has been a factor going against them in the last few legs.

3. You should not ever give up - unless the you are eliminated.

Team Chefs has some unlucky things going their way in this leg, from the pastel challenge to getting the clue in the white water rafting to the bike challenge to the combination lock challenge, Team Chefs was trailing almost the whole leg. But it was in the combination lock challenge that Chef Roch almost gave up. After trying so many times and she was not able to open any of the locks, she almost broke down and got frustrated. But luck is still in their side when she was able to finish the challenge on her next try. But they were able to overtake another team in the last challenge. They need to be more confident of themselves in the last leg if they want to win the race.

4. Word of the day - MALAS

Team Magkapatid has been a very strong team all through out the race. They have been in the top 3 in all of the legs. Unfortunately, their race ended in this leg - when they finished fourth just because of the word "malas". But what they said in the pit stop was correct. They were not one of the teams that I initially picked to win - but they proved themselves leg after leg that they are a team that the other teams should not overlook. They communicated very well and they were very strategic, offering alliances and working with other teams on who to Yield or U-Turn. They ran a great race but there will only one winner and today is not their day.

5. The Amazing Race Philippines is just intense!

We have been witnessing so much intensity and competitiveness in the past 9 weeks that the season has been aired. But this leg also show how intense the race is even off camera. There was an injury that needed to be attended to - after Chef Eji injured his knee in the carabao race task in leg 8. But the fight between Team Magkapatid and Team Dating Couple showed how much emotions the teams are investing in this race. It just started with a simple high and escalated to shoving, shouting and threats. And that is really intense!

6. 1 more episode - who will win the race?

Now that we know that the top 3 teams are Team Mr. Pogi, Team Dating Couple and Team Chefs, who will win this race? The winner will be known in the 1 hour special finale episode tomorrow. These are 3 strong teams that will race to the finish and tomorrow's episode will definitely be an exciting one! No predictions, I don't want to jinx any of the teams - but I definitely think all of the 3 remaining teams deserve to win!

Images are from the following: @margienatividad in Twitter, Team Magkapatid's Official Facebook Page, 

THE PANTONE COLOR FOR THE YEAR 2015 IS...

According to Cosmopolitan Philippines website, the pantone color of the year is... Marsala (Pantone 18-1438)!

According to the Wall Street Journal article, this color was chosen because women are looking for a bold neutral color that can replace black. This color is also complimented by glacier gray and aquamarine.

Image is from the Cosmopolitan Philippines article.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE ANTI-TEEN PREGNANCY PSA OF DOH?

The Department of Health recently launched a public service announcement on teenage pregnancy. I agree that teenage pregnancy is one concern that government should prioritize. But the DOH already deleted the video from their facebook page.

Fortunately, When In Manila YouTube Channel uploaded the video. So here is the video:

So what do I think of this video? It is a complete waste of tax payer's money. Did DOH really think calling their target audience as "Gaga Girl" and "Bobo Boy" will get their attention? You just lost your audience in the first 20 seconds of the video!

The government agencies should be very careful on the message they want to convey in their PSA's. They are using tax payer's money and this should be maximized. So how much was wasted in this video? Your guess is as good as mine.

8 THINGS WE LEARNED FROM LEG 8 OF AMAZING RACE PHILIPPINES SEASON 2

We are now down to the homestretch of the race - after leg 8 was finished last Saturday. So here are the things we learned in the week before the finale week.

1. Team Dating Couple is now back on top.

Team Dating Couple is now back on top, and grabbed first for the 4th time in this race. The slowly inched their way to the top after finishing 5th in leg 5; to 4th, to 2nd - and now in 1st. They really proved they are the team to beat this season. But unfortunately, this would now put a big target in their backs in the final leg - and expect then to get the U-Turn or the Yield in the last leg of the race.

2. Team Magkapatid wins Most Consistent Team Award this season

Always the bridesmaid, never the bride - this is how I feel about Team Magkapatid. They finished 3rd four times and 2nd four times during the entire leg but never finished first. The consistency is good since they never went down and remained competitive but when will they get that top spot? Yes, they have never been in danger of going home and they manage to stay at the top 3 spots - but only 1 team will be declared as the winners of this race. So they need too step up if they want to win in the race.

3. Team Chefs will not go down without a fight

In this leg, Team Chefs finished 3rd, barely beaten by Team Magkapatid at the pit stop. Team Chefs has been very competitive in the past few legs but has been very inconsistent. They have gone up then down then up again in the rankings. What is working for them is their teamwork and their positive attitude but they can easily panic at some points. Will Chef Eji's knee injury which prevented them to race for 2nd place in this leg affect their race as well?

4. Team Mr. Pogi is the favorite underdog in this race

Team Mr. Pogi completed the cast of 4 teams that will race in the finale week. Who would have thought that this team will reach the last week? They have been in the bottom half of the pack in the first 6 legs of the race and was almost eliminated in leg 4. But these Miracle Boys, as they have coined themselves, have surprised us by steadily making their way up the rankings. Their good teamwork and positive attitude has been working wonders for this team but what is making miracles for them is their good luck. In the Rock task, they easily got their clue even if they got the trivia questions wrong. Thy were so lucky that when the rocks were unloaded, the clue was swept away by the wind and was not covered by the rocks. This gave them an edge over Team Nerds and eventually advanced to the finale week.

5. Double Elimination leg - I never saw that twist coming!

I was doing the math last week since it was advertised that there is only 2 weeks remaining for the show. Therefore, there will be 2 or 3 more eliminations before the last episode. But I never thought that there will be a double elimination. This has been done before in the US version (Season 10 Leg 1 - but one in the middle of the leg and another in the pit stop and in Season 19 Leg 2), I did not see this coming at all. To make it more surprising, the teams eliminated were Team Nerds and Team Mag-ama - two of the most competitive teams in the race. It was really sad to see both of these teams go. Team Nerds surprised everyone when they finished 1st on the first leg but they just cannot recover from the back of the pack. On the other hand, Team Mag-ama has been doing very well but has been the target of the Yield since they are a very strong team, and this really affected their race.

6. Eye on the prize!

This leg was a great leg and a very challenging one. One of the things that struck me the most was that this leg emphasised how important our eyes are. In the Batchoy challenge, it was keen observation and an eye for details that was key to get the next clue. Team Dating Couple and Team Mag-ama wasted so much time looking for clues every where in and out of the store - not paying attention to this small sign where they will find the next clue. In the Blindfold challenge, teams got a taste on what a blind person is experiencing everyday. And it was really touching to see the teams' reaction when they saw Tammy and Marvi.

 7. All teams are in game mode already

The race is on! This is what leg 8 showed us. All teams are in it to win it. In the ferry to Iloilo, the teams all agreed to U-Turn AJ and Jody since they are a strong team and they were saved from elimination. In the Batchoy challenge, no team shared the clue when they found the small sign on the store's wall. In the Zombie task, no information was shared by the teams when they found the clue. Team Mr. Pogi even lied to Team Mag-ama. This only shows that even a slight advantage can be used to get ahead and it is critical since the race is in the home stretch already.

8. The last leg promises to be an intense and emotional one

The last week will always be the best. The preview for the last leg promises so much - someone will get hospitalized, teams will fight and the race for the grand prize will be concluded. A few more days left before we get to know the season winners!

Images are from @margienatividad in Twitter

MISS PHILIPPINES WINS MISS EARTH 2014

Miss Philippines Jamie Herrell beat 84 other candidates to win Miss Earth 2014.

Other winners include Miss USA as Miss Earth - Air, Miss Venezuela as Miss Earth - Water and Miss Russia as Miss Earth - Fire.

Here is the video of the pageant from the Rappler YouTube Channel:

Congratulations to all of the winners!

THE AMAZING RACE SEASON 25 IS IN SINGAPORE, GUESS WHO IS THE PIT STOP GREETER!

The US version of the hit reality show The Amazing Race, now on its 25th season, aired its 9th leg today. The leg is in Singapore and I saw a very familiar face with Phil Keoghan at the pit stop.

So who is this familiar face?

It is Singaporean actress Melody Chen, who was a racer from the 1st season of the Amazing Race Asia. She raced with her bestfriend Sharon, and finished 7th in that season.

It is nice to see that the Amazing Race franchise is merging the different versions in different kinds of ways.

And guess where they are headed next? They will be in my home country, the PHILIPPINES! They will be coming here for the 2nd time, and after 20 seasons! And to top it all, they will be bringing back the unforgettable PLOW detour task in Leg 11 of Season 5, where Colin coined the famous line, "My ox is broken!".

Can't wait for the next episode!

AZKALS BLANKS INDONESIA, ADVANCES TO THE SEMIS OF THE 2014 AFF SUZUKI CUP

The Philippine Azkals completed another historic win by a 4 - 0 rout of neighbor Indonesia in the group stage of the 2014 AFF Suzuki Cup. This marks the first time that the Philippine side beat Indonesia after 8 long decades.

The first goal was from a penalty kick in the 16th minute. This is the only gal scored before half time. At the second half, the Azkals was relentless with 3 more goals from Manny Ott (52'), Martin Steuble (68') and Rob Gier (79'). The Indonesia side was not able to provide an answer up to the closing whistle.

With this win, Azkals is the first team to advance to the semis of this tournament and will play a home and an away game next month.

Here are the highlights of the game from the AFF Suzuki Cup YouTube channel :

GAB VALENCIANO'S "SUPERSELFIE" VIDEOS IS THE INSPIRATION BEHIND BEYONCE'S NEW MUSIC VIDEO

Gab Valenciano's "Superselfie" videos were the inspiration behind the new music video released by Beyonce.

Apparently, Beyonce herself has watched the Gab's YouTube videos and has asked him to join the creative team for the video.

Here is the new music video for the song 7/11 from Beyonce's official YouTube channel:

9 THINGS WE LEARNED FROM LEG 7 OF AMAZING RACE PHILIPPINES SEASON 2

My birthday week just finished, same as the 7th leg of the 2nd season of The Amazing Race Philippines. This is the most eventful week so far, so without further ado, here are the things we learned from this leg:

1. Team Chefs is in it to win it

Team Chefs has been flying under the radar for so long in this race. Actually, they are the most inconsistent team, going up and down the leader board. But in this leg, they showed that they are here to win, and they can do it. They have so many things going for them in this leg, they are so lucky and they have the right strategy in the tasks. I think one of the things that helped them was that they were not driving in this leg, and Chef Eji is able to rest and conserve his energy. If they sustain this momentum, they are really a contender for the grand prize.

2. Team Dating Couple is back at the top, but they race hard and fight hard as well

Team Dating Couple went down to the 4th and 5th place in the last couple of legs, mainly due to the fact that they were the target of the Yield and U-Turn because of their strong showing in the earlier legs. They were able to bounce back but what was shown in this episode is their communication problem. They fought hard in this leg, even to the point of hurting each other and calling each other idiot or stupid. Communication is key in this race and they need to patch things up at the pit stop or this will be a big factor in the race.

3. Team Magkapatid is still consistent - at being so close to winning the leg

Too close yet still too far. I think that is the best phrase to describe the race that Team Magkapatid has ran so far. They finished 3rd in this leg, for the 3rd consecutive time and 4th time in the race (adding to the 3 2nd place finish they had as well). They are greatly complimenting each other, maybe because they really now the strength and weaknesses of each other. They have also been very supportive of each other and have been communicating well. Unfortunately, the ability to finish first have never come their way. Wit 3 legs left, they need to find a way to get to the top.

4. The Miracle continues for Team Mr. Pogi

Team Mr. Pogi went down to the middle of the pack, but this is still an acceptable finish as compared to the rankings they had in the first 5 legs of the race. From leg 4 where they called themselves Miracle Boys, they went from narrowly escaping elimination to being a contender. With their charms and their improved communication, they are definitely an under dog team to watch for. They proved last leg that they can finish strong by getting 2nd place and they can easily bounce back from here..

5. Team Nerds is tired, very tired.

If you look at the teams, you will most probably pick Team Nerds as one of the teams to go home first. But they surprised everyone by topping the first leg and staying in the race up to this point. They also know that they lack the physicality and stamina that the other teams have. And it shows in this leg, they gave up in the hammock challenge and look so tired. But I think, in this race, it was the correct strategy that they had to take in this leg. They know that they will not be able to finish the challenge so they have to gamble to take the penalty and watch and pray that another team will not be able to complete the task - and it s just what happened. At the pit stop, they told Derek that they think they do not deserve to be there, I think otherwise. The choice they made was the correct strategy, but they have to bounce back from here and prove themselves if they want to win.

6. Team Mag-ama are true competitors - with never give up attitude

My hats off to Daddy AJ in this episode. He just never give up. In the color game challenge, even though they were the last team there, he never gave up. In the hammock challenge, despite the sprain and all the fall he had, he never gave up. But the big surprise in this leg is how Jody supported AJ during the hammock task. In the previous tasks, Jody usually easily loses his cool and would shout at and blame his dad for the lost time. But in this task, Jody was very supportive of his dad. They are very lucky that this is a non-elimination leg. They need to focus in the race and come back strong.

7. The tasks are not getting easier, they just get harder and harder

This is the most challenging leg so far. All the challenges are hard. From the color run and the color game, to the snake challenge, to the ice or paddle detour, to the coconut and hanging bridge task and the hammock task; their is no time to rest for the racers. And if this is a preview of what is still to come in the next legs, it will definitely be a race to watch out for!


8. The name of the game is never give up - but strategy is king

Despite a very hard task, Team Mag-ama never give up until the end up to the point that they were told not to continue and will be given a penalty. They were very lucky that the leg was a pre-determined non-elimination leg. As discussed above, I think the strategy that the Team Nerds had was a correct strategy but was very risky. What they could have done better is convince another team to also take the penalty so that the leg will end in a footrace to the mat, and not wait and pray that another team will not finish the task. What if Team Mag-ama was able to finish the challenge? Team Nerds will be at the bottom of the rankings. Strategy is still key to winning the race.

9. Three more weeks, three more legs

Tonight is the start of the 8th leg and this season will only have 10 legs. With 3 legs to go, it will definitely be a race to survive. But doing the math, if one team will each be eliminated in legs 8 and 9, 4 teams will be racing in the last leg, which is a deviation from the usual 3 team finale. So it will either be a double elimination in one leg or one team will be eliminated in one of the legs - probably in leg 10. Let's watch and see!

Images are from @margienatividad account in Twitter

manny pacquiao wins convincingly over chris algieri

manny pacquiao won convincingly in his match versus american chris algieri in the cotai arena in macau. the pinoy boxing champion won via unanimous decision. the three judges scored the bout 119 - 103, 119 - 103 and 120 - 102; all in favor of pacquiao.

pacquiao dominated the match from the start, knocking down the american six times in the course of the match. the fight almost ended in round 9, where algieri was knocked down twice and was clearly shaken and hurt.

pacquiao improved to 57-5-2 with 38 knockouts while algieri got his first defeat and will have a record of 20-1, with 8 knockouts.

after the match, pacquiao was asked if the most awaited fight against floyd mayweather will happen soon, his answer was "is he going to fight me?", which is the somewhat reminiscent of the viral video below that he did for footlocker from their youtube channel :

photo is from the bleacher report website

azkals wins first assignment in the 2014 aff suzuki cup

the philippine azkals convincingly won its first assignment versus the laos side in its first assignment in the 2014 aff suzuki cup.

it was actually laos who drew first blood, with a great free kick finding its way to the back of the net at the 20th minute. but it was azkals game all the way after that. simone rota provided the equalizer with a header at the 40th minute, followed by phil younghusband's goal at the 45th minute for the lead after the first half.

in the second half, laos cannot answer back and patrick reichelt added 2 more goals, both from assists from phil younghusband.

here are the highlights of the match from the aff suzuki cup youtube channel:

with this win, the azkals secured the number 1 spot in group a after indonesia and vietnam settled for a draw in their match. the azkals will face indonesia on tuesday and vietnam on friday. the top 2 teams in the 2 groups will advance to the knockout stage.

the trailer of pitch perfect 2 is out!

the trailer of the movie pitch perfect 2 is now out!

the movie will be out on may 2015. can't wait!

9 things we learned from leg 6 of amazing race philippines season 2

the 2nd part of the super leg of the 2nd season of the amazing race philippines has just been concluded. here are the things we learned from the show's 6th leg:

1. team mag-ama is in it to win it

team mag-ama is the only team that has never gone down in the rankings. they have either improved or maintained their ranking. for this super leg, they maintained their first place ranking from the start of leg 6 up to the pit stop. what is working for them is that (1) jody drives fast and (2) they are very competitive and has been very lucky.

but both aj and jody needs to improve how they communicate with each other. jody has been shouting to daddy aj and daddy aj has been quite hard headed as well. this might affect their standings in the race, especially if in challenges that needs patience and teamwork.

2. and the miracle continues... team mr. pogi is now number 2!

and the miracle boys did it again! and in this leg, they did not just escaped elimination but they entered the top 3 for the first time, finishing in 2nd place. what is working for this pair (aside from the miracle), is that they have found how to work effectively with each other. after their heated exchange of words in leg 3, they somewhat changed their attitude and have worked harmoniously. they know each other's strength and weaknesses. and they are letting the one who is better in the task to take the lead and has been positively supporting each other. if they continue to race this way, they will definitely be one of the teams to watch for.

3. team dating couple is still a big threat to everyone

team dating couple has been the recipient of the yield or the u-turn for the past 3 legs. this only means that the other teams still thinks that this team is still a big threat in the race. but this might just change after team dating couple finished fourth after this leg (and fifth in leg 5). we can also see that matt and phoebe have started to get into each other's nerves. it can also be seen in the taxi scene in the next leg's preview. they have to be patient with each other to get back in this race.

i also do not want the fact that either the u-turn or the yield is in each of the leg. this is a variation from the US version where the yield or the u-turn on appears once or twice in the race. another variation is that all teams has to vote on who will be awarded the u-turn or the yield. i am okay with the voting but adding it in every leg is quite an overkill.

4. team chefs and team magkapatid has to step it up

these 2 teams have ran contrasting races so far. on one side, team magkapatid has been the most consistent team in this race. they have only placed either 2nd or 3rd so far. on the other hand, team chefs has been the most inconsistent team in this race. they have so many ups and downs so far.

but what is common with these teams? both are strong teams but both cannot finish in 1st place. team magkapatid finished in 2nd 3 times and team chefs finished in 2nd twice, but never first. both teams need to step it up and finish strong in the next legs to stay in the race.

5. team nerds is in the brink of elimination

team nerds impressed everyone by finishing 1st in leg 1. unfortunately, they are the only team that has constantly gone down the rankings in all pit stops (not including the virtual one). they are already in the brink of elimination and they need to keep their focus and do something drastic to stay in the race. they might need to ask for the miracle from team mr. pogi.

i really agree with what they said in the pit stop that what they lack is endurance. they know that they are in the disadvantage physically as compared to the other teams but i do believe they are strong mentally and strategically and they just have to believe that they can still survive up to the last leg.

6. finally, i saw an airplane!

i was quite disappointed that the teams has not yet gone out of the luzon archipelago after 5 legs. the disappointment disappeared after monday's episode where teams were instructed to catch a flight to cebu.

visayas here we come!

we all know that the in the history of the amazing race, flights has been the great equalizer of the race (aside from hours of operation). what is funny is that in this leg, the 7 teams got into 6 different flight, only team dating couple and team nerds travelled together. looking forward to more flights in the next legs!

7. you live and die by your taxi driver

borrowing the saying from the amazing race asia season 2 runner ups marc and rovilson, it is a common fact in the race that taxi drivers have a huge impact in the race. in this leg in particular, almost all teams are complaining that the cebu taxi drivers drive too slow as compared to their manila counterparts.

it was team chefs who was really affected since their taxi driver is really slow. chef roch has been very vocal to him and has asked him several times to drive faster but he never obliged. in the end, team chefs finished only in 5th place.

8. the tasks are getting harder

there is no easy task in this leg. from the construction task in cavite, finding the clue in parian monument, the roadblock mountain bike challenge (which i prefer to call the semplang task), the duel in fort san pedro, the detour of martial arts or art of cooking and the sinulog task, everything was hard. considering that this is a super leg, these tasks test all aspects - physical, mental, skills and patience.

what is also very evident is the sponsors in some of the tasks. the construction challenge featured rcd royal homes and the mountain bike task has the logo of rexona everywhere. i think the construction task was the odd challenge since from ilocos, they have to go back to cavite just for this task. there are airports in laoag and clark that offers flights to cebu. laoag flights are connecting in manila and is flying daily and clark flights are direct and is flying 3 times a week. this could have been a good equalizer in the race.

9. team sexy besties will be missed... and they went out with a bang!

team sexy besties was the last team to check in at the pit stop and was eliminated. we will definitely miss them. despite being in the bottom half in most of the race, this team will be remembered for their care free ways and being very relaxed.

but their elimination was overshadowed with what happened at the pit stop. host derek ramsay called out the pair for giving up and disrespecting the other teams that wants to get in the race. i think yes, at times, the team gave up (ex. wall climbing task in leg 2 and giving way to team nerds in the duel task in leg 6) but this pair gave it all in the race. in the end, they still finished the leg and did not quit during the race. i think what derek did was somewhat uncalled for.

images are from margie natividad's twitter account, chef roch's facebook account and team nerd's facebook account

vatican releases the itinerary of the papal visit in the philippines

vatican released the official itinerary of pope francis' visit here in the philippines on january 15 to 19, 2015.

here is the itinerary from the papalvisit.ph website:

georgina wilson is the new host of asia's next top model cycle 3

filipina model georgina wilson is the new host of the 3rd cycle of the reality show asia's next top model. in her instagram account wilson announced this together with some photos. quoting from her instagram post:

I've been SO excited about this announcement and been keeping it for months now! Extremely honored to be hosting ASIA'S NEXT TOP MODEL!!!!!!!!!!! Career milestone!!!!!

here are the photos posted in her instagram account :

this is not wilson's first exposure to the top model show. it can be remembered that wilson previously appeared as a stylist when bench was featured in episode 9 of america's next top model all stars (cycle 17).

wilson replaced indonesian model nadya hutagalung as host and now joins fellow filipina model joey mead king who is the model coach of the contestants. the show is expected to be shown in 2015 and will be shot in singapore.

10 things we learned from the amazing race philippines season 2 leg 5

here are the things we learned from leg 5 of amazing race philippines season 2:

1. team mag-ama has a fighting chance if they work together

this is team mag-ama's first time to win a leg after finishing in the top 5 in all the previous legs. what worked for them in this leg is that they worked more as a team this leg and bickered less. but of course, they were really lucky this leg, especially in the araro task and the salt task. they can really compete for the grand prize if they maintain this attitude.

2. not only team mag-ama had a good leg, team chefs also had a breakout leg

in my last blog entry, i wrote that team mag-ama and team chefs have to get out of the middle of the pack and finish strong. and in this leg, that is exactly what both teams did. the chefs stayed in the middle in the first few task but it was their last push in the end that got them to 2nd place. what is working for this team is their good disposition and their positive attitude. and i think chef roch's power hug at the pit stop is working its magic.

3. team dating couple can be beaten

team dating couple finished 5th in this leg after three straight legs of finishing on top. their consistent showing in the first four legs has put a big target on their back. for the second straight leg, they were delayed since the other teams all voted for them and they were awarded the u-turn. what is also hurting them is that they are starting to get into each other's nerves. they are fighting more often as compared to the previous legs. they have to regroup after this if they want to regain that top spot.

4. team magkapatid is the most consistent team - finishing in the top 3 but never 1st

team magkapatid again finished in the top 3 of the leg, slipping down to 3rd place. even though they are in the top 3, they still failed to get that top spot. they still need to keep their focus, where they lost in this leg a few times. special mention on the rock stacking task where jet enjoyed gathering the stones over stacking them. eye on the prize guys!


5. team nerds is the unluckiest team this leg

team nerds finished strong at 4th place even after a series of unfortunate events. before the rock stacking challenge, vince fell off the horse. at the sand dunes task, they also had a hard time finding the correct station, the clues even flying out of their hands because of the winds. they even got lost before the salt task. what is working for them is that they are working well together as a team, they do not fight and they do not fight at all. they need to go back to the race mode that they had in the first leg where they finished on top. hope #teammalas ends soon!

6. who is the luckiest team? the miracle continues for team mr. pogi

after making us believe in miracle last week, the lucky streak continues for team mr. pogi. after proving their teamwork last week, they really got their act together and avoided finishing last again! only team mag-ama can argue that they are the luckiest team this leg but i think the good breaks still went to team mr. pogi. if they continue to have that positive attitude, good teamwork and avoid being lost, team mr. pogi can barge into the top 5 in the next leg.

7. team sexy besties got a 2nd chance

this is a virtual pit stop, and the race continues. in the US version, this is commonly called the "to be continued" leg. that is why team sexy besties was not eliminated even if they finished last. they need to embrace this opportunity and get back into the fighting form that they had in the first two legs. do you remember how rr was pushing jeck during the wall climbing task? they need to go regroup and go back to that never say die attitude.

8. yield and u-turn will be a big part of the race

in the US version, u turn and yield appear once or twice in the whole race and can be used by any team only once in the race. if you decide to use it, you can only use it on the team that is behind you so you can build a good lead between you and that team. but this season, it has been in all legs and is decided through voting, so any team can be u-turned or yielded. if all the legs will have u turn or a yield, it wil definitely have a big impact on the race.

9. the tasks are getting more familiar

we can see similarities of some tasks in this leg to previous tasks of other seasons of the amazing race. the araro task was the famous plow detour in leg 11 of the 5th season of the amazing race. this is the task where colin coined the famous line "my ox is broken." the massage task of the detour is a variation of the turkish bath task in tunisia in leg 4 of the 1st season of amazing race. the music task in the detour is very similar to the BINGO task in the 1st leg of the first season of the amazing race philippines. the salt task is somewhat similar to the salt detour in mauritius where teams needs to find a salt shaker in a pile of salt. this was in the 7th leg of the 10th season of the US version.

10. ilocos is such a beautiful place

this leg just shows how beautiful ilocos is. i have been wanting to go to ilocos for quite sometime now and this leg made me more excited to go there soon!

images are from the following:
1. margie natividad's twitter page
2. team magkapatid's facebook page
3. team nerds' facebook page

coca-cola philippines launches its new christmas campaign

coca-cola philippines launched its 2014 christmas campaign thru its newest television commercial, titled "sari-saring hapiness". quoting from their youtube video:

"Para maramdaman ang diwa ng Pasko, hindi kailangan ng bagong damit, engrandeng party at mahal na regalo. Simpleng bonding at salo-salo lang sa may kanto with your friends and neighbors, sobrang enjoy na! Dahil ang saya ng Pasko,malapit lang sa’yo"

here is the newest tv commercial:

at the end of the tv commercial, coca-cola also reveals that they are now supporting women microentrepreneurs, especially women sari-sari store owners. they are key business partners of the company nationwide:

the company also launched the lighting of thousands of parols nationwide as a celebration of the women sari-sari store owners and the christmas season. you too can make your own coca-cola parol. here is how from the company's youtube video:

jimmy and kring are the first grand winners of "i do"

power couple yong jin kim and kring elenzano was declared as the first grand winner of the reality show "i do". the couple jimmy and kring wins their dream wedding which will be aired next week as the conclusion of the show's first season.

the couple has been in a relationship for 3 years. they met in an event that kring organized where jimmy was hired as a photographer. jimmy is kring's first boyfriend.

aside from their dream wedding, the couple also received 1 million pesos in cash, a house and lot, a kitchen showcase, a spa franchise and a honeymoon package.

they received 56.8% of the total text votes to beat the other power couple, chad and sheela who got 43.2% of the text votes. it was announced during the show that the runner up couple will also receive PhP500,000 as a consolation prize.

congrats jimmy and kring!

image is from the couple's profile at the i do site at abs cbn entertainment web page

9 things we learned from amazing race philippines season 2 leg 4

it is already the 4th leg of the 2nd season of the amazing race philippines. the race is really getting exciting and we are still learning a lot as the race progress.

so here are the 10 things that we learned from this week's leg:

1. team dating couple is still the team to beat

this is the 3rd straight leg that team dating couple finished first and they have never finished out of the top 3. i think this team is very competitive and this has helped them keep their lead. in this leg, they were even yielded by all the other teams but their lead was huge enough that even with the time penalty that was imposed to them due to unsafe driving did not matter and no one arrived in the last task after the time penalty.

but this team needs to watch out because they now have a huge target at their back. it was evident in the yield voting that their past actions really affected the team's votes. they need to rebuild their relationships with the other teams or they will be the target in the next u-turn or yield.

2. team magkapatid is still a big threat, but finishing 2nd is never good enough

if this leg is team dating couple's 3rd first place finish, incidentally, it is also team magkapatid's 3rd runner up finish. these two teams are the only teams that has never been out of the top 3. what is working for this team is that they know each other very well. jet has been the typical kuya and has been controlling their race, in a good way.

the team has been communicating way and both are willing to listen. i like their disposition in the race, they still appear calm and they panic less as compared to the other teams. but evidently, running is not one of their strengths. they were beaten in the season's first footrace to the mat. finishing 2nd is a good thing but finishing runner up this many times is quite frustrating. they need to step up and advance to the top spot.

3. team sexy besties needs to control their emotions

this leg gave us how the race stress is getting into the teams, especially into team sexy besties. their confrontation scene at the car on the way to the paint ball challenge was very intense, particularly rr. it was a good thing that jeck was able to control herself and just kept quiet. the words that were thrown during that confrontation can easily provoke rr and that could have easily blown to a big girl fight.

lucky for them, they easily patched things up and moved on as if nothing happened.

4. miracles do happen, ask the miracle boys (team mr. pogi)

during the start of this leg, team mr. pogi got lost and jp said that they are now called "miracle boys" because it will be a miracle if they still make it to the next leg. up to the last task in this leg, this team finished last in all task. but by a miracle or something, they were able to have a last ditch effort and was able to check in the pit stop at 7th place, escaping elimination. it only proves that you should never quit until derek tells you that you are eliminated.

in this leg, this team worked more in sync as compared to the previous legs. their car confrontation was really scary which almost led into a fist fight (or so we thought it would). but in this episode, they were more supportive of each other. i was impressed with jp, he was really motivating the kelvin during this race. but this team needs to step up and finish in a higher place and move out of the bottom.

5. the express pass did not make an impact in the race

after winning the first leg, team nerds was able to get the express pass. it is a free pass that the team needs to exchange for the clue if they decide not to do the task. as the nerds explained throught their twitter account, the express pass can only be used up to the 4th leg so they really need to use it in leg 4. (which is quite weird because in the US version, it can be used anytime in the race).

even though they really need to use it in this leg, i think they still used it in the wrong task. they can easily finish the paintball task but they had real bad luck in the last surf paddling task. i think they could have finished at a better placing if they used it in the last task.

6. team chefs and team mag-ama needs to get out of the middle of the pack

these two teams has consistently been in the middle of the pack and they need to improve their placings as well. team chefs finished 2nd in the 3rd leg but is now back to 4th. team mag-ama entered the top 3 for the first time in this leg and has improved their placing after each leg.

i think what both teams needs to improve on is their communication. team mag-ama has been fighting in several legs and their competitive nature is really showing in how they are running this race. on the other hand, if there is one team that i think is enjoying this race, it would be team chefs because they have the highest level of energy of all the teams, especially after finishing their tasks. but what they need to improve is their navigating skills because most of their fights are when they are trying to locate their next location.

7. luck is a big factor in this leg.

luck played a big factor in this leg. 2 tasks in this leg mainly rely on pure luck - the surfer's code task and the surf paddling task. it is a good way to even out the playing field for some teams but it can also be damaging to the unlucky teams.

aside from the luck challenges, there were also some unlucky moments in this leg. team blondies' car got stuck in the mud after the pottery task and they were stranded for quite a long while, allowing team sexy besties to overtake them and team mr. pogi to catch up with them. after the surfer code challenge, it was team mr. pogi's car that got stuck in the sand.

8. team blondies proved that they are a strong team

honestly, i picked team blondies as one of the first teams that will be eliminated. in the first leg, they were really outcasted and had to rely in their own skills and abilities to survive that leg. in the 3rd leg, they started the talk about the bottom teams alliance but that never got together. they made some mistakes along the way but they proved that they can do a lot of things on their own. they even out lasted team juan direction. it was sad to see them go but it is really their time.

9. the twitter party every night continues!

i really like the fact that the teams are interacting a lot with the fans during the episode. every night, almost all of the teams are live tweeting and are actively answering tweets of the fans. always present every night are team chefs, team magkapatid, team dating couple and team nerds. team mag-ama, team blondies, team mr. pogi and team sexy besties would retweet or favorite fan tweets.

team mr. pogi also had a new twitter gimmick this week. they launched #AskKelvin, where fans can ask anything to kelvin and he will reply back with the answer. so if you are a fan and is still not joining the twitter party every episode, make sure to tune in the show every 9pm and be online and tweet with the hashtag #AmazingRacePHILIPPINES

photos are from margie natividad's twitter account and team magkapatid's facebook fan page