Roman Holiday-The Vatican Museum Saturday, Mar 29 2008

Second day in Rome (March 17), energized by an 11-hour snooze, we headed for the Vatican City.    From our hotel, the papal city is just 5 subway stations away.   We were stupified by the horrendously long line of people who wants to visit the Vatican City.  It stretched for about 4 city blocks (we were informed that the smallest independent state in the world receives around 10,000 to 40,000 visitors per day).    Fortunately, we decided to join a group tour.  We have to shell out an additional 25 euros for the tour on top of the 20 euros entrance ticket to the Vatican Museum.    An advice for those who wants to tour the Holy City, join a group tour.  Group tours have special access so you need not fall in line and you will definitely need a guide to help explain to you the points of interests in city as well as its history and background. 

We are very lucky that our tour guide is extremely knowledgeable and pleasant.    Her name is Valeria Puguiotto.    If by chance you want to have a tour guide in Vatican City or in Rome, I highly recommend that you avail her services.  This is her e-mail address: aquila67@gmail.com. 

To say that I am impressed by the volume and beauty of the art collections contained in the museum is an understatement.    It is very valuable that I toured this museum with the aide of a well-informed guide who shared her knowledge not only about the museum, its artefacts but also about the Pope and Christianity. 

I am an avid reader of history, and I can say that a large number of Popes are not clear examples of Christian virtues (The best examples are Pope Alexander VI and Julius II).   Judging on the extent and extravagance of the Vatican (its art collection, its hallways, its buildings) lead me to ponder about one of the vows clergy men make.  If these are manifestations of the Pope and the clergy of their vow of poverty, its very interesting to see how they observe their vow of chastity. 

 

 Beck clowning around while waiting for the tour guides

The entrance of the Vatican Museum

With our Tour Guide-Valeria Pugiotto.  I’m amused by the way she introduced herself, she said “I’m Valeria, it sounds like malaria with a V”.  And her reason for being a excellent guide,  ”I want people to love my country”.   We sure did. 

This statue of Apollo is the model used by Michelangelo in painting Jesus Christ in his artwork, The Last Judgement.   That’s why in the said painting, Jesus Christ doesn’t have a moustache and a beard.   The Sun God Apollo is normally depicted with the Sun rays on his head, which where the basis for Jesus Christ and the saints for being depicted with halos on their head.  

The statue of Laocoon and his sons

The ceiling of the Gallery of Maps- these maps of Italy were made in the 16th century and were so accurate that they can be used today.

Coat of Arms of Pope Gregory XIII- who commissioned the building of the gallery of maps.

The ceiling of the tapestry room-some of the tapestries are gilded with gold

Raphael’s-School of Athens.  In this painting, Leonardo Da Vinci is potrayed as Plato.   Many regard this artwork as Raphael’s masterpiece. 

The museum also houses masterpieces by modern artists as well

One of the stairways of the museum

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Roman Holiday- The Capitoline Hill Thursday, Mar 27 2008

The Capitoline Hill is the highest of the 7 hills of Rome.  The English word “capitol“ was derived from Capitoline.   On this hill can be found a piazza designed by Michelangelo and three palaces, Palazzo Senatorio, Palazzo dei Conservatori and Palazzo Nuovo. 

Taken at the Via Teatro Di Marcello.  The imposing marble structure at the center is the rear of the Piazza Venezia.    At the right side is the Santa Maria in Aracoeili,  a basilica located at the highest point of Capitoline Hill.   At the lower right side, you can see the runners who participated in the marathon. 

RP posing on the stairs leading to the Piazza del Campigdoglio.  The stairs are made extra wide to allow cavalrymen to climb to the hill without dismounting their horses.   The two giant sculptures are of Castor and Pollux, the two twins in Roman mythology that composed the constellation Gemini.  Castor and Pollux are brothers of Helen of Troy. 

RP posing in front of the bronze statue of Marcus Aurelius.   He is considered the last of the “Five Good Emperors” of Rome and is also a Stoic Philosopher.  He has written the book Meditations which is a treatise on government service.   The statue pictured above is just a copy.  The original bronze statue, for security reasons, is displayed at the Palazzo Di Conservatori, also located in Capitoline Hill.     The original statue is the only equestrian bronze monument to survive since the Roman Antiquity.   The authorities of the Christian Church thought that it is a statue of Constantine I. 

The facade of Palazzo Senatorio or the Senatorial Palace. 

Facade of Palazzo dei Conservatori

This is taken near the rear of Palazzo Senatorio.  The name of the classic basilica on the background escapes me. 

I was drawn to the beauty of this tree.  I hope I can paint this someday in the post-impressionism style of Claude Monet.    This tree stands on the road going down the Capitoline Hill going towards Via Fori Imperiali. 

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Roman Holiday-Bocca Della Verita and Teatro Di Marcello Thursday, Mar 27 2008

After the Roman Forum, we made our way through Via del Cerchi to go to La Bocca Della Verita (The Mouth of Truth).  The road is full of spectators cheering the participants in the Roman Marathon.    We passed by Circo Massimo but can’t cross the street to go there because of the marathon.   

I’ve always wanted to see the Bocca Della Verita because of a very sentimental reason, it was featured in two of my favorite romantic movies, Roman Holiday (starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck) and Only You (Robert Downey Jr. and Marissa Tomei).  I’ve always looked at Paris as the most romantic city in the world, this all changed when I watched the movie Only You, whose setting is in Rome.  

The Santa Maria Cosmedin- this church house the famous La Bocca Dela Verita

(Note: I got this picture from the Net.  There was a looooong line outside the church of tourist who wants to take their picture with the famous sculpture.  We decided not to go inside and content ourselves with seeing the sculpture from afar)

In the Middle Ages, it is believed that if someone told a lie while putting their hands inside the mouth of the sculpture, the hand will be bitten off.   So it is an ancient lie detector.

On our way to Capitoline Hill, we passed by the Teatro Di Marcello.  This theater was built by Emperor Augustus and named after his nephew Marcus Marcellus.  Augustus once claimed that he found Rome in clay and left it in marble.   This theater was the inspiration for the design of the Colosseum.   

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Roman Holiday-The Roman Forum Wednesday, Mar 26 2008

The Roman Forum is the central area of ancient Rome where commerce and trade took place.  This area also contains several temples dedicated to the Roman Gods.

The Roman Forum is flanked by the Capitoline Hill, Palatine Hill (did I mention that Rome was built on 7 hills) and the Colosseum.  So our next stop after the behemoth amphitheater is the Roman Forum.

 The entrance to the Roman Forum

The Arch of Titus-this is erected to commemorate the victory of the Romans against the Jews by capturing Jerusalem.   This picture is taken going up Palatine Hill.  

On the right is the three columns of what remains of the Temple of Vespasian.  Behind it are the ruins of the Temple of Saturn.

The Arch of Septimius Severus-the first African born Roman Emperor.   This photo is taken at the Capitoline Hill.

RP ensured that she left her mark in Rome (taken at a wall at the Palatine Hill)

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Roman Holiday-The Colosseum Wednesday, Mar 26 2008

My daughter shared my fascination for history and I want to nurture that interest by bringing her to historic sites that she have read from books, browsed in the internet and watched in National Geographic Channel.     One of the historical sites that captured her interest is the Colosseum.

 

The Colosseum, originally called the Flavian Ampitheater.  This is the iconic symbol of Imperial Rome.   The construction was started by Emperor Vespasian and finished by Emperor Titus. The name is derived from the family name of the two Emperors who built it, Flavius.  

The Arch of Constantine-standing beside the Colosseum, this commemorates the triumph of Emperor Constantine I in the Battle of Milvian Bridge where he secured his hold on the Roman throne.  Constantine I is the first Christian Roman Emperor and he decreed that Christianity be an official religion of the Roman Empire (The declaration is now known as The Edict of Milan).  A few nights before the battle of Milvian Bridge, Constantine I looked at the heavens and saw a cross of light and with the words “In Hoc Signo Vinces”, translated in English, “In This Sign You Will Conquer”.    Trivia for Filipinos, Constantine I is the Prinsipe Konstantino escorting Reyna Elena in the Santacruzan parade. 

Inside the Colosseum- the center of the Colosseum is the hypogeum, an elaborate network of underground passageways.  The wooden structure is a modern addition.  On top of the hypogeum is a wooden floor covered with sands, this wooden covering is where the  gladiatorial battles took place.  The latin word for sand is “harena”, this is the origin of the modern word “arena”. 

A marble tablet with the inscription stating the original name of the Colosseum (Ampitheatrum Flavium) and that Pope Clement X declared the Colosseum as a Christian sanctuary and Pope Benedict the XIV declared it as a sacred site where early Christians where martyred.   One of the titles of the Pope is Pontifex Maximus (appeared as Pont Max in the marble tablet), Pontifex came from the word “Pont” meaning bridge.  This means that the Pope is the supreme bridge between the people and to God. 

 

Time to do some goofing off- me posing like a Greek sculpture- with full clothes on and adipose tissues surrounding my belly.

Beck and RP standing at the 3rd floor of the Colosseum, overlooking the Roman Forum

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Roman Holiday Tuesday, Mar 25 2008

 Where does one begin in telling about an unforgettable trip?  How do you choose among the 900 pictures you’ve taken during the journey and post it in your online journal?

We arrived at the Fiumicino airport around 5:30a.m on a Sunday, March 16.   We were picked up by a very amiable Italian driver, Angelo, who even stopped in the middle of a highway just to show RP that the pine cones bore by pine trees have an edible part inside it.  

Its a Sunday morning, so perhaps Rome, like Manila, wake up late on a Sunday.   We were informed by Angelo that the annual Rome Marathon or to be exact-the Maratona della citta di Roma, will be held on that day.  True enough, we saw a small number of people in their running gears walking on the sleepy Roman streets. 

We stayed at the Giada Hotel, two blocks from the Termini, the central train station and 20 minutes on foot from the Colosseum.   Our check in time is at 1p.m. so we have no choice but to leave our bags at the lobby and explore Rome directly.  This despite we are still jet lagged after enduring a 19 hour trip and in badly need of some rest.   

So we headed straight to our first stop, the Colosseum.  We met a few Pinoys and asked for the direction for the said tourist spot.  This is the only time I asked for direction in the entire European trip.   Instead of using the Metro, we decided to walk so that we can explore and see the streets of Rome.  By this time, Rome has already woke up from its slumber and we already see a multitude of people in a festive mood walking towards the Colosseum, the starting point of the race. 

The marathon is a big event and is participated not only by Italians but also people from other countries, we saw some Mexicans, Norwegians, Germans, French and Scots (who are in their traditional kilts) joining the event.    Had we known that we will arrive in Rome during the race, we would have joined it.  I will wear my muay thai shorts with the Philippine flag design… I’m a proud Pinoy anywhere I go.  

We almost participated the fun run when we signed up with an Italian NGO who gave us free t-shirts and racing numbers.  They are very helpful in finding a t-shirt with the right size for us, they even took our pictures.  It turns out that this NGO advocates equal rights to all nationality and works to put an end to racial discrimination.  Since we are Asians, we will be a good display of their organization’s  thrust.    Though we really want to join the fun run, we are still recovering from the long journey.  So we just sat down and ate breakfast in a cafe beside the Colosseum and watch as the thousands run and walk by for the race.  

We arrived in Rome at dawn.  I was in a van on a highway when I took this. 

 

Beck and RP in front of Hotel Giada, where we stayed

RP with a Roman Centurion.  Can you believe that he joined a 4K fun run wearing this?

Some Mexican youths who are joining the marathon.

All roads lead to the Colosseum

The participants for the Maratona della Citta di Roma.  11,000 runners participated in the 42-k marathon, followed by 45,000 adults and children who joined the 4k Fun Run

The accidental participants in the Stracittadina 4k Fun Run

Beck enjoying a cup of cappuccino in a Cafe beside the Colosseum

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EuroTrip Monday, Mar 24 2008

Serendipity-the effect by which one accidentally discovers something fortunate, while searching for something entirely different.

Serendipity is one of my favorite words, I like the romantic sound of it and I often use it to refer to some events and incidences that happened to me or to people around me.  It maybe shallow to consider my family’s vacation to Europe as serendipity but I am really looking for something else when I discovered that I can afford to tour Rome and Paris. 

It all started with the Travel and Tour Expo held at the SMX Convention Center, SM Mall of Asia last February 15 to 17.   My family and I went there to check out some tour packages to Beijing.  I want to explore that city before the Olympics this year, and walking along the Great Wall of China and entering the Forbidden City are two of the 101 things I want to do before I kick the bucket.    While checking the tour packages being offered by different travel agencies, I chanced upon some European packages and calculated that a Paris and Rome trip is somehow within my reach (I might have to tighten some strings here and there).   So I requested with my travel agency, Qatar Airways Holidays for a trip to the capital of France and Italy for three persons.    The trip will only be for a week, to be out of the office longer than that would be suicide for me.

The Paris and Rome tour package is enough for a 50% downpayment for a Chevrolet Captiva I’ve been dreaming about or we can add that amount to get the MiniStop Franchise my wife is hoping to own.    But I figured that owning an SUV is not part of my bucket list, though I dream of having my own group of companies,  chasing a childhood dream weighs heavier.  Admittedly, it is not a good financial decision, but dreams are pursued at a high cost (no pun intended), literally and figuratively.  I’ve been dreaming to go to Paris since I was in Grade 2 and to Rome when I was in Grade 4.  So enough justification, I booked for a European Holiday from March 15 to 22, the dollar cost be damned.          

The following are 9 of the 101 Things I Want To do before I die that I intend to accomplish during this trip. 

1.  See the ruins of Ancient Rome (specially the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Imperial Palace)

2. Visit the Vatican and its art treasures (this includes Michelangelo Buonarotti’s Sistene Chapel paintings and Raphael Sanzio’s School of Athens)

3.  Cross two european countries by Eurorail

4. Visit the Louvre (See the Venus the Milo, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, and the paintings by the Italian masters that I only see in art books and encyclopedias, plus visit the Denon Wing, where the novel and the movie The Da Vinci code started)

5.  See the real Mona Lisa

6.  See a painting by Claude Monet (my favorite painter)

7.  See the Eiffel Tower

8.  Pay homage to the tomb of Napoleon Bonaparte (my childhood idol)

9.  Explore a foreign city without any guide (except for a map) and without asking for direction.    I don’t have any particular city in mind for this goal, but it will be very special if I will achieve this in Paris or in Rome. 

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Radio “Appearance” at DZMM Thursday, Mar 13 2008

Appearing on Radio is an oxymoron.  You are heard on radio, someone listen to you on the radio, you are not” seen” on radio. 

Last Sunday, March 9 I was a guest at DZMM’s radio show Sikap Pinoy which is aired every Sunday at 9-10a.m.    It is hosted by Nelson Lubao, Apol Bautista, Boyet Cruz and Rossanna Llenado.   The show focuses on the opportunities that are open to Filipinos either as being employees, as entrepreneurs or as OFWs.  For last Sunday, their topic is about working in the United States, what jobs or professions are in demand, what are the things to be done to be able to work in the land of golden opportunity.  

When I arrived at the set of DZMM, I was surprised when they have to apply make-up on me.  ”Isn’t this a radio show?”  Turns out that DZMM radio programs are now being shown in SkyCable and are now called  Tele-Radyo.  Where have I been hiding in all these years?  Serves me right.  I’m neither a Kapuso or a Kapamilya, I’m a maka-AXN.  So I’m not updated when it comes to local TV channels.  Incidentally, when I have to make my greetings to the radio listeners, I don’t know if I should greet the mga-Kapuso or mga-Kapamilya.   So I just said, mga-kababayan.

Incidentally, my last TV interview was also by ABS-CBN.  Back in 2003, I was a guest of one of ABS-CBN’s show, Knowledge Power with Ernie Baron.  They made an episode about quiz champions; what do they do, how do they memorize all those facts and what are our advice to the youths who are also into quiz bees.  I wonder when will GMA 7 invite me for an interview.   Come to think of it,  I’ve appeared in TV shows aired by Channel 2, 5, 9 and 13.  It seems that Channel 7 is the only network who has “snubbed” me.  He he he

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Philippine National Grappling Championship Friday, Mar 7 2008

My BJJ Club, Kamphuis-Fabricio BJJ Academy organized the Philippine Brazilian Jujitsu Championship and the Philippine National Grappling Championship on March 1 and 2, 2008 respectively at SM Megamall.

I have to miss out the BJJ Competition as this coincided with the NCR Muay Thai competition wherein I competed.  The grappling tournament was held the following day and I was able to watch it as some of my team mates are competing and I have promises to keep, that is to take some pictures of the event (even though my neck and shoulders are sore because of my muay thai match the day before).

Tournament Banner

The following teams joined the competition

Some of the Actions on the Mat

The Sprawl

The Half Mount

Posture Up, Dennis- the guy on top is a business partner and he’s also a lawyer.  He’s almost 40 years old, so who says BJJ is only for the young?

Listen to my instructions- Allan Co cornering one of his student

See?  I just had a foot scrub

The Awarding Ceremony

Two of the Best MMA Fighters in the Country-Allan Co and Richard Lasprilla

Team New Breed Academy

The Best BJJ Team in the country-Team Kamphuis Fabricio

The Man Behind the Successful Tournament-Sir Stephen Kamphuis with Jonna and Kevin

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Rematch Tuesday, Mar 4 2008

It’s inevitable.  My fight in the 3rd NCR Muay Thai Tournament is a rematch with Robert Frese, the US Marine from MAP-QC whom I fought in the last muay thai competition.    Rob’s coach, Kru Zhie Vallega has been teasing me in numerous occassions that I should have a rematch.    Though I am not sure if another bout with Rob will push thru or not or if Kru Zhie is serious about it,  I still stuck to my program and trained hard.   I will go to the tournament with the goal of winning whoever my opponent will be. 

The return bout became official when Andy, the Technical Director of the tournament showed me the line up of the matches.    I formulated 2 scenarios and the corresponding gameplan for the fight with Rob.  I am correct with one scenario, that if it will be a technical fight, the better it will be for me because of my experience.   But I should have made a 3rd gameplan, I didn’t expect that Rob will be able to play a counterattacker.    Whenever I do a roundhouse or a teep, he will try to scoop me or counter with a punch.  Serves me right, I wrongfully underestimated that he will not be able to improve his muay thai in such a short span of 5 weeks. 

In the heat of the first round, Rob and I were engaged in a clinch when he made a knee strike.  Unfortunately, of all places, it hit me in the groin,… right smack in the family jewels.   In my years of doing martial arts, I’ve never been hit in the groin.    I was only given 3 minutes by the referee to recover or else, he will stop the fight.  So even if I still feel that body part being in flames, I have to resume fighting.  I know that its accidental and that there’s no need for me to feel vengeful.   I just said to myself that its a good thing that I already have a daughter or else, it is the end of my line. 

Both Rob and I were cautious in the fight,  maybe its a sign that we both respect of what we both can do.   My cornerman and my other team mates have been yelling that I do the punch-kick combination that we practiced.    Instead, I’ve been very hard headed in that fight and I didn’t listen to what my corner is saying and kept to my own gameplan.   I’m guilty of violating the number one rule in muay thai, always listen to your corner.   They have observed the match at a distance and know which combinations or techniques will work. 

One reason why I was hesitant to throw my kicks is because Rob would always try to scoop my leg and then counter.  It’s just a good thing that I know how to defend against a scoop.   I am quite confident with my punches so I stuck with it.  Instead of using the punch to cover my kicks, I kicked to cover my punch.    Near the end of the second round, I saw that Rob is already heavily bleeding from the nose, and thus, having difficulty in breathing.   My mistake is that despite what I saw, I still played it cautious and didn’t made any flurries.    I am wary that I might outpunch myself and gas out. 

In the 3rd round, he was able to scoop my leg when I did a teep.  He immediately scooped my legs and threw me to the canvas.    Getting up, I am thinking that I may have already lost the match.   In the last few seconds of the fight, I connected a jab that find its mark at  Rob’s nose.   Maybe my jab is strong enough or maybe his nose is really hurting that he turned his back and shook his head.  Since the referee didn’t stop the fight yet, I took this opportunity to jump on him and execute several knees on his back.  Then the closing bell rang. 

I’m not quite sure of what will be the decision of the judges.  I feel that Rob might have made enough points to win this match, specially with the scoop that he executed on me.    The few seconds or minutes waiting for the result is the most nerve wracking moment in any fight, specially if you know how close the fight had been.  I keep on thinking that I should have been more aggressive and hoped that the judges will see it as a draw and will require a 4th round.

When the announcer said that I won the match, I am more surprised with the result than happy with the victory.    I’m a very fair person, and I don’t think that it will be good to the sport and will be terribly unfair to Rob if I don’t deserve to win.   So I asked my team mates an honest opinion on how I won the match.  All my team mates said that this match is better than my previous bout with Rob because I am more technical and connected better muay thai techniques.   Although I’ve been very hard headed.  Wally even said that the only advantage Rob has over me is that he listened to his corner while I didn’t.    

Perhaps what really convinced me that I won the fight fair and square is when one judge, Kru Lucio Macalalad from MAP-Antipolo told me that Rob’s coach, Kru Zhie Vallega asked him how he scored the fight.  Kru Lucio said that his  score is 30-29 on my favor.  He said that I am more technical and landed more kicks and was able to scoop Rob’s kicks which scores high in muay thai.   He further said that Rob turned his back at the dying seconds of the third round, which is taken by the judges as a sign of giving up and the referee would have given him a standing 8 count had there been enough time. 

The following day, one of Rob’s MAP-QC gym mate texted me and said that Rob was stronger in the fight but I am more technical and added that I played clean with clear muay thai points.   I thanked him and told him that he definitely made me feel a lot better.

It’s a cliche but indeed there’s always room for improvement.    In a very short time of one month, Rob improved a lot.  Just imagine what he can do if given a longer time to train.  Likewise, I must also improve my game to keep my fight record unblemished.  Though I never let victories get into my head, sometimes, its nice to think that I am still undefeated in muay thai.  But if I will not change the way I fight and train harder I may not remain undefeated for long.   Martial Arts is always about improvement, dedication, hard work and listening to your coaches. 

Sidenote:

When I showed the post-fight picture of me and Rob to my daughter,  she couldn’t understand how come we have a picture together with both of us smiling like good old friends despite engaging in a muay thai match minutes earlier.  I told her that that’s the essence of sportsmanship.   Muay Thai is just a game, a sport.  We enter the ring just to test our skills, not to commit murder.   After the match and outside the ring, we are all friends.   Try as I may to explain, martial arts is a weird way of gaining friends and having fun.   Hope I can get to introduce RP to Rob someday. 

Me-warming up by doing some shadowboxing

Getting some last minute instructions from my cornerman

 Touching gloves-a sign of respect and sportsmanship between opponents

Rob landing a punch after countering my roundhouse

Andre checking me after receiving a low blow (to the groin.  Oooouuucccchhhh!!!!) The precious family jewels!!!

The fight resumes

Waiting for the result

Winning the match.   I’m surprised with the result and I also understand Rob’s frustrated look

Receiving the trophy from MAP President Robert Valdez and BAP-Former President Freddie Jalasco

With Onyok- my cornerman.  He’s a Gold medalist in international amateur muay thai tournaments.  He helped me train for this fight. 

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