Titas de Bacolod

Behind the Scenes with Ivy Visitacion

 It was an evening of understated elegance, beautiful music and gastronomic delights. Norma Aquino Garbanzos’ 75th birthday celebration recently at La Proa of L’Fisher Hotel in Bacolod City was certainly an event to remember.

The elegant guests added glamour to the occasion, with the ladies dressed to the nines in stunning evening gowns bedecked in sparkling jewelry, and the gentlemen in coat and tie or barong. Even the décor had the right touch of class and refined taste with swathes of objects in delicate shades of purple peeking out every so often. A multi-tiered birthday cake was the focal point on the stage.

Norma’s siblings, who arrived from the States and planned a big surprise for the occasion, were there to welcome the guests while waiting for the birthday celebrator. Guests were served excellent wine while enjoying the old favorite songs played by the band.

Suddenly, the doors opened and there she was! Norma made her grand entrance looking “drop-dead-gorgeous” in an exquisite off-white gown with a glittering bodice splashed with crystals and beads vividly enhanced by a magenta stole, dramatically draped over one shoulder.

What an entrance! She was greeted with rapturous applause as she made her way to the stage where she was seated at the center. Monsignor GG Gaston gave the invocation extolling Norma’s gift of music to the people of Bacolod. Everyone sang Happy Birthday to the glowing celebrator.

Dinner was a lavish array of specially prepared dishes designed to delight every palate. The entertainment was a perfect selection of musical numbers - Juliet Benitez, a fantastic saxophone player who could sing “La Vie En Rose” like Edith Piaf (complete with a French accent!), and a child prodigy piano student of Norma, Mark James Desitone, who wowed the crowd with his superb piano rendition.

Norman Garbanzos delighted us with his brilliant piano performances of old standards, like “The Nearness of You”, “In Other Words”, “The Way You Look Tonight”, etc. Norma’s daughter, Sally, offered a touching toast to her loving Mother, who was almost teary-eyed as she thanked all those who “manipulated” (her exact words!) her birthday celebration.

Wotta night! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NORMA!*

Unbelievable behavior at the Bacolod Silay Airport last April 2014.  Please help my niece, Charlotte Lopez Hofilena, find this man who is responsible for causing the fall of Charlotte's mom.


I'm sure you won't accept this if this happened to your own mother.

Behind the Scenes with Ivy Visitacion

When Shirley Ledesma celebrates her birthday, you can be sure she does it with a bang.

This time, her 79th birthday celebration was held at SMX Bacolod, with its unique ambiance. Guests came dressed to the nines in their elegant evening gowns for the ladies and coat and tie, or formal shirts, for the gentlemen. The birthday celebrator looked so grand in her emerald green silk evening gown complete with blings to match.

The place looked truly festive, with its fab art décor and round tables complete with towering centerpieces and fine place settings. In lieu of gifts, the guests gave cash donations for Shirley’s favorite charities. On hand to help Shirley greet her guests were members of her family. Friends from her various civic clubs as well as the academe came to join the celebration.

Dinner was a superb feast of specially selected dishes designed to titillate the discriminating guests. Later an impromptu program livened up the party. As the evening’s emcee, I decided to call on unsuspecting guests to perform a number. And what a revelation it was!

After Edith Robillo sang a capella, a torrid dance number was performed by Dr. Evangeline Johnson and her DI. Her performance was truly stunning as she showed her dancing skills and fine figure (not to mention her to-die-for legs!). The ladies of the Circulo de Negros wowed the crowd with their high-stepping cha-cha number. Another surprise was a dramatic tango performed by guests from LA, Ike and Luchie Sumugat.

By this time, everyone was in the mood to dance, dance, dance! The dance floor rocked with the ballroom dancing crowd who danced till they dropped.

Happy Birthday Shirley!*

Behind the Scenes with Ivy Visitacion

Red was the color of the night as the Circulo de Negros celebrated its Christmas Party at Planta Hotel, Bacolod. All shades of red was worn by the club members, including the gentlemen – John Orola wore a flaming red tie with his dark suit, Tomiko was in a red coat and tie that he brought from LA, while Bamboo Tonogbanua was in a fire-red shirt.

The club president, Shirley Ledesma, brought Santa Claus hats for everyone to wear. She came with a disturbing bit of news – she was robbed while shopping for the gifts for the party! Her entire budget for the gifts was stolen from her bag. Fortunately, she was able to keep a roll of money inside her blouse pocket and this is what she spent. Sympathetic club members voiced their concern over what happened but Shirley bounced back quickly from the experience, declaring the party must go on! What a trouper!

Dinner was an excellent variety of holiday fare loved by all. The crispy lechon added to the complete enjoyment of the mouthwatering dishes. After dinner, the new members were asked to say something about themselves. Each one gave a most interesting short speech but the one who brought the house down was Tomiko, who spiced up his talk with funny anecdotes about his life in the fashionable district of LA.

Then it was time for games, games, games. What a riot it was as members had the time of their lives participating in the outrageous games to win lovely prizes. An exchange gift portion highlighted the most delightful evening of all.*

Behind the Scenes with Ivy Visitacion

The WoW ladies held a most colorful and enjoyable joint Christmas party and 4th quarter birthday celebration at Ambience Pavillon in Bacolod. Everyone came dressed in their unique Christmas attire – as Christmas trees, gift wrapping, angel with wings and all the other outlandish costumes you could imagine. What a riot it was!

The 4th quarter birthday celebrators: Babes Sola, Buddai Piccio, Cely Jugo, Chona Baguisoro, Dang Filasol, Emma Lipa, Linda Yulo, Mila Abiera, Nena de Leon, Shirley Maghari, Terry Cruz, Terry Falsis, Tess Medina and Zuki Magbanua hosted the celebration, that was wonderfully coordinated and organized by the indefatigable Baby Bonnin, chairperson of the Fellowship Committee.

Wow president, Inday Pefianco, made sure everything was going smoothly all evening. The fun-loving members all participated in various entertainment activities of the party. To set the mood, there was a fantastic line dance which had the ladies huffing and puffing away. This was followed by a superb dinner filled with all the goodies that had the figure-conscious groaning with horror (but they still ate a lot!).

The exciting games had each group competing fiercely for the wonderful prizes especially selected by Baby Bonnin. For the Most Christmassy Costume, the judges were Celia Ferrer, Tita Nena de Leon and yours truly. The winners were Linda Yulo, first, who came as a giant Christmas gift, Viol Caram was an angel with wings, and Pacita Adeva was a Christmas tree.

Then it was dance till you drop as the beautiful ladies rocked the dance floor all night. What a Merry Christmas party it was!*

 
Cleaning Up For 2015

After the early morning's deluge of Typhoon Seniang which turned Lacson Street (particularly the Mandalagan area in front of Robinsons) into a mini-river, it is now time to move on and do the necessary cleaning in time for 2015.

Throughout the year we tend to accumulate a lot of stuff which we really don't need at all. At the same time, we realize that we are all getting older and there really is no point in hanging on to a lot of stuff which we intended to bequeath to our children who primarily do not view these items with the same eyes of sentimentalism.  They have their lives to live within much smaller spaces.  Most of them do not have the same sprawling bungalows we used to have.  Hence, we need to be kind to them and kind to ourselves. 

Here are my tips on how to effectively clean up before the New Year comes in.  Just remember the acronym SPACE.  That's what we need.  More SPACE.

SORT

Get 5 basic boxes or totes labeled: Trash, Repairs, Recycling, Give-Away, and Ambot. You may feel you need to add For Sale if necessary. Take the time to touch and reflect upon each possession you are considering letting go. Place unwanted possessions as you de-clutter. For Repairs be sure you are willing to the do repair soon, or don’t keep the item. Try to keep the Ambot box small.  This is for all the stuff we really have a ard time thinking of what to do; however, this box does come in handy so that you don’t get hung up on one item too long and stop the process.  At the end of the day (or when the timer goes off) put supplies or possessions that still need to be evaluated away neatly. Start fresh each time you work on the clutter instead of when you are feeling tired or overwhelmed. Sometimes you will get more done when you walk away and take a break.

PURGE

Remove the unwanted possessions right away. Right away means wihin the next two days. If you let it just sit in your space, you are starting new clutter towards which you may assign new feelings of guilt.

ASSIGN

Now is the time to start organizing the possessions you are keeping and to make decisions about where they will go in the room, or space. Try clearing out the room completely so that it is empty like the day you moved into your home.

CONTAINERIZE

Notice that this step is almost the last thing you do, not the first. So many people, after deciding to de-clutter and get organized, run out and buy a bunch of containers before they even know what they are going to keep. You can get a lot of these containers in all shapes and colors at Handyman or SM.

EQUALIZE

This last step is about you maintaining your space and staying in control of your clutter! There should be no stress involved when it is time to clean-up at the end of your day, because now everything you have kept should have a place.  Curbing impulsive shopping and buying will help you avoid clutter build-up while saving you money. Ask yourself, before you buy it, where will it go once I get it home? If you don’t know, don’t buy it. 

Happy New Year!

Behind the Scenes with Ivy Visitacion

 The Visayan DAILY STAR's annual Christmas party this year was a unique Cowboy and Indian themed bash at Business Inn, where everyone came in various cowboy or Indian attires.

Everyone came in the mood to have fun and enjoy the camaraderie of the VDS group. Christmas songs were sung as the guests began arriving. Congressman Bing Leonardia dropped by to greet the crowd and left shortly for another party.

Singing diva Token Lizares arrived laden with gifts and prizes for the party. Dr. Bambi and Jonathan Avelino were there, and so were members of the Board, Paeng Golez and Tutay Corral.

Dinner was a marvelous array of scrumptious party fare, highlighted by two lechons with crispy skins that we kept going back for more.

After we had our fill of the delicious dinner, it was time for the entertainment portion. It began with a contest of production numbers by the various groups. The columnists were the first to perform a Christmas song number, followed by the Star Printing boys.

The Editorial group came fully prepared with a western backdrop, an Indian teepee complete with burning flames, and well-rehearsed dance number. Their performance was followed by an equally brilliant production by the Leo Star group, who showed dancing puppets, and Village People costumes, etc. The cowboys and girls of the Business Department, complete with hats, boots and guns, showed their dancing prowess to the tune of “Ang Kawawang Cowboy”.

Wow! What a performance! All the participants showed their talents in performing that night. The winners for the first prize was a tie between the Editorial and Leo Star, second – Business Department, third – Star Printing, and fourth - columnists.

The games were so riotous and funny, it had everyone in stitches. Fabulous prizes like DVDs, electric fans, food baskets and a 3 day and 2 nights trip to Boracay, courtesy of Radjie Caram, were given away at the end of the program, and made the party super fun for everyone.

It was a blast! MERRY CHRISTMAS to all!*

Behind the Scenes with Ivy Visitacion

Christmas came early to the members of the Negros Occidental Garden Club when they held a most exciting and enjoyable Christmas celebration and induction of officers recently at the Grand Ballroom of the Bacolod Pavillon Hotel.

Attire was strictly formal and everyone came in their most elegant and glamorous evening gowns with shimmering jewelry for the ladies and coat and tie or barong for the gentlemen. The Pavillon’s grand ballroom was bathed in glimmering lights with Christmas decors artfully displayed all over.

Dinner was served after the first part of the induction program was over. A wide array of delectable dishes gave us all a hearty dining experience. Aside from the lavish spread, there were four lechons so divinely crispy that diets and trim figures were quickly forgotten. It was obvious that those who came in their form-fitting gowns found it hard to exhale!

Bacolod Mayor Monico Puentevella, who came with wife Patching, was the inducting officer and guest speaker. After the new officers were inducted, outgoing past president Lourdes Mercado gave a farewell speech that had a tinge of nostalgia. The new president, Carissa Maalat, delivered her acceptance speech filled with vigor and a promise of exciting new things to come.

The members enjoyed the presentation of awards for perfect attendance, most number of groups, etc. In his speech, Puentevella invited the club to help the city in the forthcoming APEC affair next year, and the club members vigorously applauded the invitation.

The mood suddenly perked up during the Part 2 of the program, on the theme “An Enchanted Evening”. Gloria Gensoli and partner made the audience swoon with their sensuous and artful display of terpsichorean skills in “Night & Day”. This was followed by the NOGC Chorale’s rendition of “Some Enchanted Evening”, while beautiful NOGC ladies gave a dazzling fashion show wearing their glamorous attire.

It was like you were in Broadway with the presentations by various groups. The grand finale was the dramatic entrance of Santa Claus laden with gifts. A most fun-filled exchanging of gifts highlighted the program.

Wotta show! Kudos to the organizers for a very successful affair! MERRY CHRISTMAS to all!*

Behind the Scenes with Ivy Visitacion

The skies were dark with ominous clouds as threats of a super-typhoon called Ruby kept being aired by PAGASA on all the media for the last couple of days. But despite the warnings of foul weather, birthday celebrator Nene Rojas still remained optimistic that the weather would hold. His lovely wife, Lourdes, was equally confident and so the preparation for the grand birthday party was in full swing.

On the day itself, tables were set up in the spacious garden beside the pool for a romantic al fresco dinner but at the same time, extra tables were also placed indoors, just “in case.”

Soon, guests started arriving while the band played favorite songs until the venue was crowded with friends, admirers, relatives and fans of Nene, a man who is much admired and well-loved by all who know him. The perennial question on everybody’s lips was, “How does Nene stay so young and trim all these years?”

With his beguiling mysterious smile, Nene said he simply refused to grow old. He said a positive attitude always helps drive the blues away and being a stickler for ‘moderation in everything’ is a big help. To which we could only say, “Amen!”

Everyone enjoyed the scrumptious Japanese hors d’oeuvre washed down with excellent wine from Nene’s vast personal collection. Dinner was a feast of dining opulence. Lourdes really pulled out all the stops with a magnificent array of luxurious gastronomic delights. Our genial hosts saw to it that everyone had their fill of the splendid meal, divinely complemented by the exquisite dessert.

All too soon, it was time to say good night. On the way home, we asked ourselves what made the evening so special? The answer, of course, was the birthday celebrator himself. As everyone knows, Nene has this tremendous capacity for joy.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NENE!*

Behind the Scenes with Ivy Visitacion

Spellbound! This was the reaction of the enchanted A-list audience during the “Gershwin in Concerto in F” concert held recently at the Santuario de La Salle, Bacolod.

The audience, composed of the city’s literati, glitterati and culturati, sat in rapt attention all throughout the concert, that began with the awesome sounds of the 56-member Metro Manila Concert Orchestra (how young they were!), brilliantly conducted by maestro Josefino Chino Toledo. I was told that you would need a minimum of 55 players because of the instrumentations required for the Gershwin concerto.

Their majestic rendition of the Pambansang Awit was absolutely superb, making us all feel justifiably proud of our national anthem. From then on, we were caught under the spell of their repertoire of Philippine airs, Harry Potter Suite, selections from the Phantom of the Opera and Overture from Leonard Bernstein’s “Candide”.

A hush fell on the audience as the lovely star of the show, pianist Cristine Coyiuto, made her entrance in a shimmering fully-beaded aquamarine gown which was perfectly enhanced by her glittering diamond drop earrings as the ladies in the audience whispered a collective, “Wow!

With a dazzling display of dexterity, Cristine launched into the first movement as we were swept through the fascinating sounds of Gershwin’s composition rich with jazz inflections, Charleston rhythm and blues. The crowd was transfixed and the atmosphere electric as the concerto wove its magic. The artist played with masterful brilliance, marvelous intensity and when so required, an almost tender delicacy. We could see how passionate she was about her music as we watched the expression written on her face with her eyes closed.

As the last notes ended, a euphoric audience roared into cacophonic approval as they gave her a standing ovation amid shouts of, “More! More!” With a radiant smile, Cristine gave her encore number, “Embraceable You”, sending the romantics in the crowd into a different stratosphere.

What a performance! Bravo!