After Three Years...

This August 2011, one of the 3 biggest malls in Bacolod City is celebrating it's 3rd year anniversary.  888 CHINATOWN SQUARE, a mall that is well-known for it's affordable and great variety of items.  Checking out the mall last week, i should say that it  has come a LONG way.   A year back, there are fewer stores and less sparkle but now, everywhere you look, there's always something interesting that will catch your eye.  People with different hobbies and likes will surely enjoy shopping here.  From thrift-value housewives to avid shoppers, 888 Chinatown Square is the place for you!

There are lots of improvements since last year.  Their AC was upgraded <--- a good thing considering OUR weather here in the Philippines.  The various NEW Stores that were added are very unique and innovative.  More FOOD TRIP awaits everyone who visits the mall!  And I know we Bacolodnons LOVE FOOD!

It's not only the MALL that has been improved.  Celebrations and Events have escalated on a different level.  The 888 Event Center is famous for Cosplay Conventions and Celebrity Nights that feature artists from the NCR.  This year they're really celebrating their anniversary!  They will be having COCO MARTIN and MAJA SALVADOR to entertain the crowd on August 6, 2011. 

Here's the schedule with regards to their 3rd Year Anniversary:

AUGUST 5, 2011 - BATTLE OF THE BANDS by LOVE RADIO 91.9 at 6:00 PM - 888 Event Center
AUGUST 6, 2011 - MOTORCADE with Coco and Maja at 11:00 AM - Bacolod City
AUGUST 6, 2011 - CELEBRITY NIGHT with Coco & Maja and a lot more performers -
                                6PM, 888  Event  Center
AUGUST 8, 2011 - FIREWORKS & GRAND VARIETY SHOW with local performers and a Live
                                Band - 6PM, 888 Event Center

Anyway, contests and prizes awaits those who will be celebrating with the mall!  See ya there!

Signing out,
KATZ

Leaps of Faith

What is Parkour?  Lemme WIKI that one...

Devil Dive.

Parkour (sometimes abbreviated to PK) is a utilitarian discipline based upon the direct, successful, swift traversing of one's surrounding environment via the practical application of techniques, based around the concept of self-preservation. It is a non-competitive, physical discipline of French origin in which participants run along a route, attempting to negotiate obstacles in the most efficient way possible, using only their bodies. Skills such as jumping, climbing, vaulting, rolling, swinging and wall scaling are employed. Parkour can be practiced anywhere, but areas dense with obstacles are preferable and it is most commonly practiced in urban areas.

The term "freerunning" is sometimes incorrectly used interchangeably with "l'art du déplacement". While l'art du déplacement aims to enable the practitioner to be able to move quickly and creatively past obstacles, freerunning is a competition sport, with Urban FreeFlow being credited with this change of definition.

In short...it's moving about in the most EFFICIENT and SKILLFUL way in your environment.  A friend of mine is recently bonkers over PARKOUR.  Why?  Well, because it's sooooo KEWL!  I was lucky enough to be able to watch a performance of the PARKOUR BACOLOD last event. 

YES, People...we have a parkour team here in Bacolod City.  PARKOUR BACOLOD has been at it for four years now and they've been practicing in different areas but mainly in the Panaad Stadium where varieties of pole, ramps, stairs and much more challenging courses serve as their training ground.

Parkour Bacolod. ICI Launching Event.

I used to think about it the other way - the Adult Way.  I mean, damn!  They're doing stunts without safety nets or whatnots.  It's freaking me out everytime they do backflips in areas 10 ft high.  Can you imagine doing that without safety nets or an ambulance nearby???  You might tell me that they must have gymnastic backgrounds but hold it right there!  Most of them don't have proper training.  One of the team members told me that it is a way of life.  It's a principle and they take it very seriously.

Most people will not understand these guys as they compete with themselves - their bodies, their mindsets.  An obstacle to them is like a problem in life to conquer and they do it without a doubt.  Once they set their minds to it, they'll jump alright...they'll jump no matter how high...no matter how far...

Parkour Bacolod testing the sets before the event.

The first time I saw a Devil Dive done by a friend who does Parkour, I was like... "FUCK, he's gonna die!!!"  It was so unexpected and I felt like my heart leaped outta my mouth.  But when he landed perfectly down 10 - 12 ft below the edge, everyone clapped their hands...including me...a bit awe- struck and mouth gaping. "WTF!"  

One thing I'm sure of, they got BALLS!  No kidding...  I do my art, I risk not sleeping...  But these guys...they risk their LIMBS...LIVES even!  Some might find it absurd...stupid...dumb...  Sure enough, there are loads of PRACTICAL people around this world thinking of Parkour as nothing but suicide...too many of them, if you ask me...

But for those who are passionate...for those who understand the mindset of such a deep and meaningful symbol of life, for those who understand the invisible realities in this world we live in, for the PK boys who embrace this discipline...it only takes a Leap of Faith...for them to FLY.

I salute you!

katz :3