A maritime lawyer by profession, sometimes called Frog Prince of the Philippines with currently more than a thousand of collectible frog items. Like the frogs with a reputation for leaping that is well deserved, jump with me to my froglandia as we travel and explore the world seeking symbols of divine powers of love, fertility, regeneration, rebirth, immortality, and transformation.
Dateline: June 4, 1989. Tiananmen Square massacre. The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, also known as the June Fourth Incident in Chinese, were a series of demonstrations in and near Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China beginning on 15 April 1989.
In the late 1970s, the Chinese leadership of Deng Xiaoping implemented economic reforms, transitioning the nation from Maoist Communism into a "socialist market economy".
By the late 1980s, grievances over inflation, limited career prospects
for students, and corruption of the party elite were growing rapidly.
Internationally, Communist governments were losing their grip on power
in Eastern Europe. In April 1989, spurred by the death of deposed Communist Party General Secretary Hu Yaobang, mass gatherings and protests took place in and around Tiananmen Square.
By 13 May there were over half a million protesters. The largely
student-run demonstrations aimed for continued economic reform and
liberalization,and eventually evolved into a mass movement for political reform and freedom of the press.Peaceful protests also occurred in other cities, such as Shanghai and Wuhan, while looting and rioting broke out in Xi'an and Changsha.
The movement lasted seven weeks after Hu's death on 15 April. Party authorities declared martial law
on 20 May, but no military action took place until 4 June. Contrary to
popular perceptions of the event, the violence did not occur during the
protests on the actual square, but in the streets of Beijing, as the People's Liberation Army proceeded through the city to Tiananmen Square, using live fire, to clear the square of protestors. Major roles in sending the army to the protesters were played by Deng Xiaoping, Li Xiannian, Wang Zhen, Bo Yibo, Peng Zhen, Li Peng, and later, Yang Shangkun. The exact number of civilian deaths is not known, and the majority of estimates range from several hundred to thousands
There was widespread international condemnation of the government's use of force against the protesters.Western governments imposed economic sanctions and arms embargoes in
response. Following 4 June, the government conducted widespread arrests
of protesters and their supporters, cracked down on other protests
around China, banned the foreign press from the country and strictly
controlled coverage of the events in the domestic press. The Communist
Party initiated a large-scale campaign to purge officials deemed
sympathetic to the protests, and several senior officials, most notably Party General Secretary Zhao Ziyang,
were placed under house arrest. The aftermath of the protests
strengthened the power of socialist hardliners within the party opposed
to Deng, and delayed further Chinese market reforms until Deng Xiaoping's 1992 southern tour.
In February 1987, the EDSA Revolution peacefully placed into power widow Cory Aquinoas the first female president of the Philippines. Ironically, in December 1990 Aquino welcomed the Chinese
premier, Li Peng, to Manila after earlier having suspended official
contacts in the wake of the June 1989 violence around Beijing's
Tiananmen Square.
According to the ancient wisdom of the Mayan calendar, we have a little over a year to get our act together. We have to become better people than we are now and raise our astral vibrations to an enlightened level, so that we can stand by, unaffected, as the world flips its electro-magnetic axis or as a gargantuan asteroid plummets to Earth or the Feathered Serpent returns or the ice caps melt or aliens arrive or…or whatever is supposed to happen.
So, lets jump like a frog for a blissful 2012 ahead of us.It is a favorite thing to do with children to jump twelve times so they will get taller next year the higher you jump the taller you grow.
batanes 2007
Filipinos have other beliefs and practices which are associated and believed to bring good luck, fortune, and prosperity in the New Year.
The noise and the firecrackers is believed to drive the evil spirit away and make the New Year bountiful and blessed.
You should put coins/money in your pocket so that next year will be prosperous.
You should open all the windows, doors lights so that all the graces will come to your home as you welcome the New Year.
Some believe that you have to wear polka dots shirts or dress because it symbolise money, and it must have a deep pocket and filled with money bills and coins and jingled it at the stroke of midnight for good luck .
Some people pay off their debts in the hope that they will not be saddled with debt throughout the year.
The countdown of New year varies from family to family or from region to region. At the strike of 12:00 midnight, the noise becomes defeaning, churchbells rings , firecrackers rules the sky, kids gaping in awe as they see the different firecrackers, blooming in the sky. The banging and booming rise to a climax which includes clanging of old pots and pans, blowing jeep, car or tricyle horns, ambulance sirens for full one minute as the countdown to New Year.
The loud noises and sounds of merrymaking are not only meant to celebrate the coming of the New Year but are also supposed to drive away bad spirits.
Around 12:15 am, the noise stops and the air is filled with human voice and the family starts to eat a thanksgiving feast called Media Noche, it is believed that we should put as much food on the table so that next year you will have food all year round. Twelve round fruits should be on the table as it is a sign of prosperity for the next twelve months. There is also a midnight mass celebration to welcome the New Year and to thank God for all His blessings.
2012 is the Year of the Dragon. The foundation of the Chinese Zodiac, also called Chinese Animal Astrology, was from the 12 "Earthly Branches" represented by the 12 animal symbols (The Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Boar), the five elements (metal, water, wood, fire, and earth) and the Yin-Yang theory.
There are many myths and legends about how the 12 animals representing the 12 years in a lunar cycle came into being. One of the most popular is that the Lord Buddha called all the animals to come to him before departing this earth. Only 12 animals came, and as a reward he named a lunar year after each according to the order in which it arrived. The Rat was the first to get there, crossing the final river on the back of the Ox and jumping down in front. Following them were the Tiger, Rabbit (Hare), Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep (Goat, Ram), Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Boar (Pig).
Sadly speaking, I guess the chinese have forgotten to include Frogs as part of the Chinese Zodiac . Ironically, the Three legged Money Frog, also known as Chan Chu which means frog or toad, is an ancient and popular Chinese symbol for prosperity. It is said to be the bearer of good fortune, which is why you always see them bringing two strings of coins tied behind their back and holding a lucky Ching Dynasty gold coin in their mouth. According to Feng Shui lore, Money Frogs are believed to drive away evil, protect wealth, and increase income.In ancient China, these mythical creatures are said to appear every full moon near homes that will receive good news of increased wealth or monetary gain. Feng Shui Masters believe that Money Frogs go out in the afternoon to collect money and return at night with lots of money sticking on their feet.
Even if the chinese bypassed frogs in the chinese zodiac, at least the world's leading conservationists have together named 2008 "The Year of the Frog," in hopes of raising both awareness and funding needed to mitigate the amphibian extinction crisis. Globally, there are more than 4200 species of frogs, with new species being discovered every year Habitat loss from urbanization, disease, pesticides, poor land management practices, fire suppression, introduced predators and possibly issues associated with global climate change are just some of the causes that have individually or collectively played a part in the localized or range wide declines of many species of frogs.In addition to their pleasant calls, frogs also provide a free pest-control service. Frogs eat billions of harmful insects annually, including mosquitoes and their larvae. In turn, they are a natural food item for many species of reptiles, fish, birds and mammals.
Frogs are one of the best leapers on the planet! Did you know that frogs can launch themselves over 20 times their own length using those big strong legs of theirs? That would be like if you could jump 100 feet! Frogs are powerful jumpers, and the ability to jump is a major factor in frogs' survival. A frog that can jump far and quickly is more likely to escape a predator.
Legs : Frogs do not use their front legs in jumping for anything more than balance. However, balance is an important part of being able to jump. A frog's front legs are more useful for propping it up when it sits.
Back Legs :A frog's back legs are what give it power and agility when it jumps. The large, strong muscles of a frog's back legs propel it into the air.
Muscles : A frog needs to have strong, well-developed leg and back muscles in order to jump. The muscles tighten and bunch up like springs just before releasing tension, which causes the frog to spring into the air.
Movement : Frogs jump in zigzag patterns for a couple of reasons. It is distracting and harder for a predator to catch a frog that is moving erratically, and it also helps the frog navigate the terrain it is moving over.
Christmas season in the Philippines is incomplete without brushing tthrough the tiangge crowd of divisoria,The streets, alleyways and malls are bursting at the seams with all the pre-Christmas frenzy! With so many people packed into so little a shopping space, Anyone with claustrophobia would be panicking!
Divisoria's roots as a commercial center can be traced back to the Spanish period, during which non-Christianized Chinese were forbidden to live or trade inside nearby Intramuros, the Spanish capital. Relegated to the parian, Chinese merchants eventually set up their own community in present-day Binondo and gradually set up shop there and in surrounding areas, which came to include Divisoria. The area continued to blossom into a commercial center in the 1900s, bolstered by the fact that the Tutuban Central Station, formerly the main railway station of the Philippine National Railways, became a major drop-off center for trade goods coming in from various provinces.
Divisoria is a market district in the heart of the City of Manila known for its wide assortment of low-priced goods and wholesale and bargain shopping. Clothes, accessories, toys, novelties, decorations, pirated films and music, electronics, fruits, dry goods, school, office and household supplies, fabrics, textiles, crafts, novelties, decorations and “everything under the sun” can be found in Divisoria, making it “the mecca of value shopping” and “the mother of all markets in Manila.”
