FILIPOS @ BORYEONG 2011

It's a hot, hot summer! So we kinda wanna bum out...so off we spent the weekend at the MUD PITS!!! ^^

Group shots by Marco Barboza

24.7.2011 의자 민박 

The more, the merrier...The crazier, the better!!! ^^

MUDPROOF YOUR DSLR. LET'S GEAR UP FILIPOS!!!

Even Reuters Photographers Make Camera Armor Out of Plastic Wrap | Popular Photography

We've all had the occasional situation where things have been spilled, dropped, smeared, or otherwise marred our perfectly good cameras — but what could possibly require covering your entire camera in plastic wrap like that? Reuters photographer Jo Yong-Hak covered the Boryeong Mud Festival this year — an annual weeklong summer celebration that involves millions of people visiting a mud-covered beach for sliding, wrestling, massages, competitions, and generally awesome summertime fun.

The festival takes place on Daecheon beach in Boryeong,120 miles southwest of Seoul, and the mud is renowned for being medicinal — though the celebration is as much about fun as it is health.

As much fun as this is for people, high end camera gear doesn't take so kindly to mud flying in all directions, so Jo Yong-Hak did the only thing practical — wrapping all the gear in plastic wrap. It won't protect the glass of your lens from getting smeared, but it'll stop the mud from getting all through the workings of your precious gears.

Though I can't imagine changing settings through all that plastic is particularly fun. But, it's nice to see that even photogs at the highest level sometimes resort to DIY solutions like this to get the shot.

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FILIPOS, LET'S GEAR UP AND MUD-PROOF 'EM!!! LEVEL UP AND GO!!! SUN UP AND MUDS ON!!! XD

Kuya Sam's Travel in Korea Rep.

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Daddy Jack the Beanstalk's Birthday

Just when you need to laugh hard~ ^^

For my "dad" in FILIPOS who taught me to be more of a gag! LOL. Kidding!

Happy Birthday UOD DAD! XD

Water Symposium

Environmental Engineering - Water Symposium
Location: Incheon


I lacked sleep but I tried to wake up at the first sound of my alarm. But I snoozed back. Meeting time was set at 6:00am at the laboratory. When I woke up, it was already 6 o'clock! Oh no! They must have left for the symposium already...But no one has sent a message or called me up yet. So I took a quick bath and prepared myself to go to the lab. I remembered that the weather forecast stated that the day would be rainy, so I brought my umbrella with me.


As I stepped out of the dormitory, MJ oppa called and looked for me. Again, I made it to the building just in time cos oppa has also just arrived! ^^


0650 h
I left the campus with MJ oppa and Changhong oppa driving the car. Even if I was so sleepy, I was also excited cos I will meet Joan and Ate Marla! And they will be presenting at the symposium, somehow, I will be able to understand at least two presentations cos most presentations are in Korean according to my oppas. LOL.

0930 h
We arrived at the research institute and I met Joan and Ate Marla. It was like an alumni meeting as Ate Marla was being teased by her professor that we're having our mini-reunion of alumnis. LOL.


Since most of my oppas from were staff of the event, MJ oppa suggested that I go with the Kongju students, Joan and Marla. Also for me to enjoy, I'll spend most of my time with my fellow Thomasians! ^^


Today is Good Friday and we're supposed to abstain. But too bad, both Joan and I were really hungry as both of us haven't had anything for breakfast and both of us also lacked sleep! So we ate whatever was served at the cafeteria even if the only protein source was meat. Awww...

1700 h
I had to go back to Jochiwon already and join Changhong oppa and Junsik on the way back. I bid my friends farewell then.


In the car, I met Yeongchoon oppa, a former graduate student from our university. He was a bit surprised when he first heard a Korean word that came out of my mouth, "oppa". LOL,


Changhong oppa drives fast! So we reached Jochiwon at around 7:30 pm and all of us were starving! I planned on eating some plain kimbap to abstain but oppa invited me to have dinner with them. The menu? - Unlimited Beef! Uh oh! LOL.


2000 h
We rode Ohkyung oppas' suv to the downtown and dropped Junsik off at the train station cos he had to go back to his hometown as soon as possible. So there were only four of us who ate dinner at the restaurant serving what seemed like a "buffet" of beef plus a bit of Cass and soju to warm up our dinner. LOL.


I was super full! Obviously, even without rice, that much beef that kept coming until they've decided to stop will really fill me up to the throat! It was Changhong oppas treat that night and as we went out, Ohkyung exclaimed, "Forget the name of the restaurant." LOL. The beef was just ok, at least for me, since I can't compare yet what a premium grade beef of that kind tasted like. LOL. Then in the car, I asked them to rate the food with 10 being the best and 1 being the lowest, they gave 0.5 for the rating! LOL.


Though I enjoyed the food as it filled up my stomach really well, their comments made me quite more curious as to what a premium beef would taste like. LOL


Til my next post! c",)

My First FILIPOS Day: Yeouinaro Photowalk

I was overly excited and woke up at 6:00 AM. I checked the internet last night and it said that there's a train to Seoul at 7:18 AM. I had everything prepared, my memory card, spare SD card, my battery - well charged, lens and body - cleaned --- all set! I brought some oranges for breakfast in the train. ^^


I walked to the train station and only to find out that the next train schedule is at 8:10 AM! T___T" I was supposed to be at Singil Station by 9:00 AM in order to meet Kuya Marco and Kuya Mon, the two FILIPOS guys whom I met in the train yesterday. Since I couldn't make it, I called them up and asked for the exact train station where the club will meet up. So yeah, I'm gonna be late. T__T"




10:20AM YEOUINARO STATION EXIT 2
As I got out of exit 2, I saw a group of people with dslr's. "This must be the place then and they must be Pinoys", I thought. And when I got nearer, some of them were staring at me cos I had my slr over my neck and seemed to them like I was looking for one of them. They were right! Then I met Kuya Marco and Kuya Mon and they introduced me to the rest of the members. ^^ I met Tin, whom Kuya Marco thought was me (because of the long hair probably) and from then on, she became my best buddy in the club, my so-called long-lost-sister in Korea. Hahah... Tin is a Nursing Management graduate student in SNU and is already in her final year and has also been into photography. We talked as if we knew each other already and it was a lot of fun knowing each other and meeting other people in the club! A few minutes later, Krish, who was already a member of the club also arrived and introduced me to his two friends int he club. He's my batchmate in UST and we haven't seen each other since I arrived in Korea. So this is like our mini reunion and a sort of grand gathering with fellow Pinoy photographers for me!


We started our day with a prayer led by one of the leaders of the club, Kuya Nads. Then off we went to take photos of whatever we can. The theme of that day's photowalk was Macro Photography. Ok, I like macro photography but it's something I badly need to develop. So whatever happens, I'll just try to shoot whatever I can macro on as creatively as I can. LOL.


Tin is also addicted to coffee and she hasn't had breakfast yet. It was already past 12:00 PM and everyone was still busy taking photos! ^^ Though the place was still not in full bloom, there weren't so much cherry blossoms yet, it still looked beautiful and peaceful and I enjoyed taking random photos of passers-by, portraits of children rather than the macro theme. LOL.


There's a Ministop nearby and that's where all of us had lunch at past 1:00 PM already. Everybody sure was hungry! The group was gathered once again to announce the winners of the last photowalk's theme - Pre-nup Photography. Ate Janice was the winner and also the people's choice! Girls are ruling! ^^,


Tin and I decided to go home by 4:30 PM and I took the train to Jochiwon. By the time I reached Jochiwon, it was past 6:00 PM and I had enough time to buy some stuff at the market.


For the first time, I heard mass with Sue! We've been planning to hear mass together but our schedules hardly jammed. Finally, tonight was the night! Hahah! She's an undergraduate student in our department as well and I knew her through my professor who gave my number to her in order to contact me whenever she'd hear mass in Jochiwon. Sue has been one of my good friends since then and has been helping me with some Korean phrases! ^^,


Before heading to the bus stop, we bought some bread at Jong Man. It looked similar to Breadtalk and they have a quite a good selection of various pastries too! ^^, Dinner that night - pizza bread! ^^,

FATE Brought Me to the Train and to FILIPOS

Extraordinary things happen...and today, it seems fate just brought me to the unexpected twists of my Saturday's routine...^^


For lunch, I went to eat with MJ oppa at the building, the one across the Biotech Bldg, where we also had lunch last time. At least this time, we're not so much in a hurry cos our afternoon class was adjusted to start 30 minutes after the scheduled time. I was treated with bibimbap for lunch and in return, I bought coffee for oppa hahah! Oppa was very tired cos the whole week he's been working on the project in our laboratory and has been staying overnight for 3 consecutive days in the lab. As much as I would like to help them with the report, there's nothing much I can do cos I barely understand Hangeul and the report is in Korean. T___T"


After the class, I went by myself to the subway cos oppa was going to meet his girlfriend before he goes back to Jochiwon. My Saturday Seoul to Jochiwon route has changed. I would now take the train instead of the bus so from Anam station at line 6, I get off at Dongmyo where I would transfer to Line 1 until I reach Seoul Station. Just when I got off the subway at Seoul Station, I saw someone familiar. When I looked, it was oppa and his pretty pretty girlfriend! ^^ I have never seen her yet in person, only her pictures at oppa's desktop in the lab. And indeed, she's so pretty!!! Chesca is also a Catholic, something in common we share. And she invited me to hear mass with her sometime in one of the biggest Catholic churches in Seoul. ^^


At the ticket booth, I had to go ahead cos they still had to go on a date (of course ~~,). In the train, since I got no seat anymore, I stayed at the cafeteria car. There I sat in front of the counter where they sell some food. A few minutes later, a couple of men boarded the train with a box of what seemed like an equipment, backpacks and DSLR's. They seem like professional photographers. My ears was covered with earphones but I turned down the volume of my music player. They seemed to be talking in a different language, it didn't sound like Hangeul. I kept glancing at them and I had a strong feeling that they may be my kababayans. When the train started, I decided to position myself and stood near them so I could hear if they were Pinoys indeed. Right then and there, I heard them talk in Tagalog! "Kuya, Pinoy po kayo?", I asked one of them. And that started our conversation during the whole trip. The best part is, they're members of FILIPOS (Filipino Photographers in South Korea) which is a registered club in the Immigration and because I've always wanted to join a group and develop my skills in photography, they eagerly invited me to join them and to come to Seoul for a photowalk with the rest of the club tomorrow at Yeouido! I was so excited, so happy, so full of energy despite the fact that I haven't had much sleep cos I studied for my exam since midnight and never went to sleep anymore! Though tired I may be, my brain was still full of ideas and thoughts about the Filipino community I'll be joining, the photography club, to be with professional photographers and all! Ooooohhh! I couldn't describe it perfectly that when I got off the train, I was still smiling and it's as if my smile won't ever fade! I had kimbap for dinner at a restaurant near the station and I was still smiling after even during my whole 30-minute walk to the campus!


As I went in the lab, I gleefully greeted Kiko oppa and hid behind my computer, bashful and kept my smile all to myself hahah! =) TOMORROW --- the photowalk! c",)