Operation STOM: Moonraker Dinagyang Field Report

Written by Helen Sneha and Esther Ho

Photographs by Melissa Chia

*Names in this article have been changed to protect their identities.

     During days eight and nine of the In Search of Iloilo City study trip, the six-person Team Moonraker was assigned to the Capitol area of town. Having arrived there and discovered that good seats were hard to come by, we decided that it would be more productive to split into two separate groups. While Team Moon obtained a birds-eye view of the proceedings for a while (see ‘We Storm the Capitol’), Team Raker remained on the ground to sift through the crowds and speak to people. The following are some of the people we spoke to, and what they had to say about this year’s Dinagyang, its crowds, and its performances.

Operation STOM: Thunderball Dinagyang Field Report

Written by Team Leader Sheril A. Bustaman
Photographed by Sarah Chong

*Names in this article have been changed to protect minors’ identities.

     Beneath the scorching heat of the Iloilo sun, four students, a student guide and their pathfinder were struggling to find a nice spot to watch the Kasadyahan Street Dancing that was to begin in an hour. Whilst walking down the streets of Iloilo’s Chinatown, team Thunderball had an encounter with the boy who was to play the child Jesus, in the flesh.

The boy who was to play the Child Jesus in the festival.

     This little boy was getting made up by a professional make-up artist at the back of his parents’ car when our team happened to walk by. Judging by the fuss that was being made by the people around him, we decided he’d be a good subject to interview. Being Malaysian, we always think people who a fuss is being made of are important, and almost always we are never wrong.

One With The Tribe: Part 3

Written by Chrishandra Sebastiampillai

Pictures by Jonathan Lim, Sarah Chong and Melissa Chia

<< One With The Tribe: Part 2                                  One With The Tribe: Part 1>>

     Last night, we attended the last dress rehearsal of Tribu Panayanon in their school hall. We managed to speak with some of the dancers, and caught a glimpse of their preparations for today, the morning of the Dinagyang Ati-ati competition.

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     We are up bright and early, sitting in our jeepney and heading into the heart of the city. As part of Team Moonraker, I am headed to the Capitol judging stage. Traffic is heavy, and roads on the parade route have been shut, which means that we will have to continue on foot. The way is not entirely unfamiliar, as we spent yesterday covering the same area for the Kasadyahan parade- read about our adventure in pursuit of a good vantage point for filming HERE, and the rest of our team’s encounters HERE. 

Video Diary: Day 8

We Storm the Capitol

Written by Chrishandra Sebastiampillai   

Pictures by Melissa Chia

The night before the Kasadyahan parade, we held a council of war in the Conference Room. We had to plan an all-out assault on the city of Iloilo. The mission: cover a complex and sprawling street festival as comprehensively as possible, with just four camera teams dispatched to various locations the parade would pass. We decided unanimously on a James Bond theme: we would be teams Skyfall, Thunderball, Octopussy and Moonraker conducting Operation STOM (take Iloilo City by storm).

Teams Skyfall, Thunderball, Octopussy and Moonraker. STOM. Yes, really.

And I think you’ll agree that we succeeded.

One With The Tribe: Part 2

Written by Chrishandra Sebastiampillai

Pictures by Jonathan Lim, Sarah Chong and Melissa Chia

<< One With The Tribe: Part 1                                  One With The Tribe: Part 3 >>

   On Saturday, 26th January, we were invited by Mr. Rommel Flogen to watch the last full dress rehearsal of Tribu Panayanon. Due to unforeseen circumstances, we were not able to make it in time to watch the full rehearsals, but caught the tail end of it, and managed to interview some of the student participants.

A Visit to the University of Philippines Visayas, Miagao Campus

Written by Sarah Chong

Photographs by Sarah Chong

UPV

     During our trip in the city of Iloilo, we were hosted by the wonderful students and lecturers of the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV). The University of the Philippines Visayas is a public research university in the Philippines which comprises three campuses located in Miagao, Iloilo City and Tacloban. I was fortunate enough to be able to visit the main campus in Miagao.

Churches of Iloilo: A photo essay

Words by Lestari Hairul

Photographs by Sarah Chong and Lestari Hairul

     The Philippines is home to some of the most beautiful churches in Asia and Iloilo City itself contains a high concentration of old churches. They boast amazing architecture that cross several periods and styles from Romanesque to Gothic and containing design syncretism of Spanish, Filipino, Chinese and even Muslim influences.

This photo essay highlights 4 churches that were visited in the course of a day.

Moving fast against the wind – Transportation around Manila, Boracay and Iloilo.

Written by Maxine Lim
Photographs by Maxine Lim

     When we, the Monash University alumni students, decided to coincide our holiday plans with this year’s Monash Arts study trip to Iloilo, we knew that getting around was going to be an interesting adventure. Most of us were no strangers to hard travelling – the previous study trip to Baguio and Sagada in 2007 brought to mind 6 hour bus-rides from Baguio to Sagada, winding around breath-taking and hair-raising rice terrace cliffs. Evidently, five years out in the working field blurs memories of motion-sickness and makes one nostalgic for some backpacking escapades. 

    Nine days and nine types of transportation later, this is one woman’s experience in transportation from Manila to Boracay to Iloilo.

Video Diary: Day 7