Lunch at Antonio's

Simply a gastric treat with style and elegance. Truly a fine dining. Nothing beats the food, the ambiance, the service, and the price!

One funny anecdote though, I met Antonio - the man himself. He introduced himself to me, we shook hands, and I asked him in utter stupidity "Where's the washroom?"

That was one of the biggest boboos I ever did in my life; to ask the chef about where the washroom is simply unimaginable.

At any rate, fine dining at Antonio's is the best!

Law of the Heart

While reading Alan Lightman's book entitled The Discoveries, Great Breakthroughs in the 20th-Century Science, I went accross Ernest Starling's "Law of the Heart", which states that the force of the muscular contraction is proportional to the extent to which the heart muscle is stretched.

This sounds very scientific. But come to think of it: it can mean something relevant to any person... if you know what I mean.

Meanwhile, I'm now engrossed at reading the book right now. It showcases 24 monumental scientific works that shaped modern science. It tickles the scientist in me, though I have already turned my back on molecular biology to pursue a totally different career path. Still, the book is worthwhile reading. Truly for geeks and non-geeks (who are comfortable with calculus, physics, molecular biology, and a bit of physiology) alike.

Amazing India

This week’s Time Magazine again features India. Undoubtedly, this subcontinent is a charging elephant. In 50 years, The Economist predicts it will become an economic superpower surpassed only by China (the US being only the third). In fact, China is now wary about its southern neighbor as it poses a potential threat to usurp its niche in manufacturing, IT, and research.

A booming economy of over a billion people (GDP growth of over 8%!), a world-class skilled workforce composed of brilliant and dynamic young professionals, and a vast, rich territory. All these helped India recover from the doldrums despite its seemingly chaotic politics, multi-layered bureaucracy, and unabated graft and corruption by public officials. It is amazing to note that the subcontinent has been through a lot of troubles after its independence 60 years ago. The division of the subcontinent into a Muslim state, which is Pakistan, and Hindu India left wounds in its history and among its people. Wars that followed further widened the gap between peoples who once lived together in one empire under the Mughal rule and under the British colonial rule that followed. Then came another painful partition that gave birth to Bangladesh.

In the early 90s, lackluster India almost defaulted its international debt after years of economic downturns. But rational political will, a rare incidence in India, turned the subcontinent’s predicament 180°. It served as momentum for economic reforms and propelled India’s amazing recovery.

Reading about India made me think about the Philippines. Both countries experienced the same economic boom during the early 90s, and were even dubbed economic tigers. India made it – and is now even called an economic elephant (not a white elephant) – but the Philippines still remains a promise unfulfilled.

Nevertheless, it is not always just to compare Philippines with India. The former has a long history as a civilization. Its ancient cities first rose alongside those in other parts of Asia and Africa. Its merchants started trading across the seas long before the West stumbled upon the New World. The Philippines, on the other hand, was composed of fragmented autonomous barangays when the Spaniards came in 1516 and started founding towns. The islands never had a concept of a single nation until 1898 when the Philippine Republic was proclaimed. But this proclamation still remains, until now, a project. The Philippines is not yet a nation, but a nation still being built.

So when you think about the troubles our country is in, think of them as birth pangs of nation-building. India has learned a lot from its centuries of existence. The Philippines still has to learn its lessons. And maybe one day (I hope this will come soon), the country will see the same growth that made India undoubtedly amazing.

If given the chance, I would like to go to India to see personally how this future super power prepares to take the world’s center stage.

goodbye toenail...

My lesson for the day:

Take care of your toenails if you don't want to have one of them removed in the OR. Ingrown nail avulsion really hurts, and I'll be limping for the next five days.

Thriller!

Nope, not by Michael Jackson, but by a hundreds of orange-clad gentlemen from a prison in Cebu! Truly awesome! Everyone should take a look at the clip to realize that prisoners are capable of doing something more than riots and all those unlikely stuff. And what's more amazing is that the clip is taken in - of all places - the Philippines. That should say something good about the country. The prisoners really rock!

Check it out at http://youtube.com/watch?v=hMnk7lh9M3o