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FILIPINO VOLUNTEER IN VIENTIANE LAUNCHES EPIC RUN FOR CHARITY

13 October 2014 - Bro. Carlo Bacalla, a Filipino volunteer and administrator of Don Bosco Youth Vocational and Training Center in Vientiane, performed a multi-day run from Vientiane to Luang Prabang, Lao PDR with a distance of around 385 kilometers from October 07 to 11.

He kicked-off a five-day solo run on October 07 at 4:30 a.m. at Patuxay Park, Vientiane.  On the first day, he completed the first 80 kilometers from Vientiane to Phonthong District, Vientiane Province, finishing after 12.38 hours in a relatively flat route with about 25% of rolling hills in extremely hot weather. He ran a distance of around 80 kilometers every day until he reached his final leg at the world-heritage site in Luang Prabang.

Bro. Bacalla engaged in this run to raise funds to build a hospital in Luang Prabang called “Friends without Borders Lao Hospital for Children.”  He sought to raise US$ 25 for every kilometer run. He has called friends, expatriates and the locals to support him in this cause and raise some US$ 10,000 for the effort.

The run ended up with the Luang Prabang Half-Marathon:  “La Procession” on October 12, which also aims to raise funds for the children’s hospital.

Bro. Carlo Bacalla is a triathlete) and a veteran of more than seven half-ironman triathlon races.  He has done more than twenty full marathons (42km) and several half marathons (21km) as well as 10-km runs. While he has completed more than ten ultra runs of distances from 50, 60, 100 and 160 km, this was his first attempt at completing a five-day run.

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FILIPINO GROUP PERFORMS AT ASEAN CULTURE FAIR IN YANGON, WOWS AUDIENCE

07 October 2014 – SINIKA (Sining ng mga Katutubo), a Palawan-based group of musicians, wowed the audience at the Opening Ceremony of the ASEAN Culture Fair 2014 held on October 1 at the National Theater in Yangon, Myanmar.

The ASEAN Culture Fair 2014, organized by the Ministry of Culture, celebrated the diversity of culture in the region, through an exhibit of textiles and crafts, and cultural performances from renowned performing groups in the region.

Present during the opening ceremony of the ASEAN Culture Fair 2014 were Union Minister for Culture U Aye Myint Kyu, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Corazon Juliano-Soliman and other ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Council (ASCC) Ministers, and members of the diplomatic community.

SINIKA, showcasing the indigenous music of Cuyo, Palawan, performed “Ang Tipano,” an invitation to play and learn the tipano (flute), and “Banwa Ko,” a song of praise and thanksgiving. Ms. Shen Nebre, a Filipino based in Yangon, performed the song “Bayan Ko”.

SINIKA’s performance at the ASEAN Culture Fair 2014 was made possible by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).