My Museum Experience

How to look at contemporary art

2011-05-31T23:36:00.000-07:00

A good friend and fellow museum professional and I started museum/gallery hopping two weeks ago. Both of us have been away from the Philippines for a while (I for over three years!) and we thought that this would be a great way for us to get re-introduced to the Philippine art scene.

Our recent adventures have taken us to several contemporary art spaces around the metro. I have probably been to hundreds of museums and seen thousands of art works. But I still get confounded by contemporary art! I would often ask myself "what am I looking at?" or "what does this mean?". Don't get me wrong, I appreciate contemporary art and most often than not, I am intrigued by them (and the artists who create them). But sometimes I just don't get it!

So it was such a delight when a fellow museum educator posted a link to a site on how to look at contemporary art at an online museum education forum. The website proposes a four-step process developed by educators at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston to assist their visitors in looking (and hopefully understanding) contemporary art.

Allow me to share with you a brief summary as well as my personal take on the process:

Step one: Active looking

Don't immediately dismiss an art work just because it intimidates you. Trust me, some works of art actually grown on you! Take some time to carefully look at it then start taking note of individual elements that you see: color, shapes, material, size, subject matter, and etc. Then consider the work of art as a whole.

Step two: Choices

Put yourself in the artist's shoes. Think about the artist's deliberate choices in shapes, colors, material, even size, intention in creating the work. What could his intentions be in making this choices. To help you get an insight on the overall meaning of the work, the website proposes asking yourself: "what could the artist have done differently?" Another question I would ask myself is: "what if the artist moved this element elsewhere or changed the color of the piece, would I have the same impression about it?".

Step Three: Connections

Now try to make a personal connection to the work by drawing from you personal background, knowledge, experience, and emotions. What does this work remind you of? Do you know anything about the artist? What did you feel when you first looked at the work? Did the art work influence your mood?

Step Four: Possibilities

Now look back to what you came up with in the last three steps. Then tart thinking about possible interpretations for the work while bearing in mind that an art work can have more than one meaning. Read a label (if there is one) and see if you agree with the artist/curator/art-historian's view of the work. The website reminds us that "It’s okay to disagree with them!".

There you have it, the four-step process on how to look at contemporary art. To read the complete post and what else the site has to offer, go to www.howtolookatcontemporaryart.com

I am definitely going to try to put this to use at the Sliverlens Gallery exhibit opening I'm attending tonight! Did the process work for you too? Share your experience here!

Diving and Climbing Sparkies Go to a Summer Camp

2011-05-24T08:00:00.000-07:00

Tanya Garner, Lemelson Center’s Interpretative Exhibit Manager, goes to a school in Washington View once a week for an all-girls summer camp. She invited us to bring the Diving Sparky and Climbing Sparky to test it out with the camp’s participants. Since I have been testing the Diving Sparky and Climbing Sparky activities with a number of Spark!Lab visitors for over a week, we felt that both activities are now ready to travel.

While all of the kids who tried building the Diving Sparky at the Spark!Lab did not seem to have any difficulty, I still felt that there was an easier way to make one with simpler materials (at this point I was using a plastic pipette weighed down with a piece of bendable wire). A few hours before departing for the camp, I found a teacher’s blog that used a drinking straw and paper clips to make the diver. Spark!Lab has an abundance bendable straws because this is one of the inventions featured in their exploration kits. After a few tries, I concluded that this is an easier way of making a Diving Sparky. Now, let’s see if the girls at the camp will agree.

We started the session with Steve Madewell showing the girls how to create a Musical Whirligig - a toy made from buttons and a piece of string or ribbon. Instructions on how to make this toy is uploaded on Spark!Lab’s website.

Materials needed for the Musical Whirligig

Participants making their own Musical Whirligig

Then came my turn to facilitate making the Climbing Sparky. I first asked a volunteer to help me show everyone how to make Sparky climb up the string. This drew a few exclamation of delight from the girls!

Helping a few of the girls to try their Climbing Sparky

It took us a few minutes to convince the girls to set aside their Climbing Sparky and get ready for another activity- Diving Sparky! A few days before the camp, I developed a “script” to make creating the Diving Sparky interesting. I pretended that just by looking at Sparky (the floating object inside the water bottle), and saying “Sparky, dive!” I can command it to sink down the bottom of the bottle. The look of amazement on the girls’ faces and their expression of surprise were priceless! Of course I did not have telekinetic powers, but the room was abuzz with excitement. I explained the scientific principle behind the Diving Sparky before guiding the girls through the steps of making one for themselves.

I was quite amused with the girls’ reactions to my “magic power”

I had a few girls try to make Sparky sink down the bottom of the bottle before revealing how it actually works.

Inventors' Week at the Spark!Lab

2011-05-24T07:32:00.000-07:00

In celebration of National Inventors' Month (2009), the Spark!Lab partnered with Lego for a weekend of inventing. For August 1 and 2, Lego builders set up shop at the National Museum of American History’s lobby to create an eight-foot tall bulb completely made up of Lego bricks. Museum visitors helped by creating the bricks, while the builders assembled the bulb.

The seven-foot LEGO light bulb and its mini-me

To launch the event, a group of kids were invited for a special activity at the Spark!Lab. It seems that people,both kids and adults, really loved the Diving Sparky, so it was the first activity we did with the kids!

The regular activities and science experiments were suspended and the Spark!Lab was converted into an invention center where kids come in and think of an invention. We even had a “patent office” where the kids can submit their new invention for approval! They can use any of the featured toys (LEGO, Tinker Toys, ZOOB, Toobers and Zots, and Lincoln Logs) and materials provided at the inventor’s corner (glue, Popsicle sticks, papers, and adhesive tapes) to create an invention. Then they fill-up the inventor’s notebook and submit this with their invention at the patent office. There they will explain to the Patent Officer how their invention works. Once “approved”, they will receive a special edition LEGO giveaway: a small scale LEGO light bulb.

On-duty as the Patent Officer

Joe and the Diving Sparky

2011-05-11T11:12:00.000-07:00

Experiments and activities at the Spark!Lab normally starts at 11am. However, at the request of two docents who were eager to learn how to conduct the Diving Sparky activity, I started facilitating the first activity at 1030 am. Ten kids participated during the first round. As these kids were leaving the bench (this is how we call the table where experiments are done), eight more kids immediately took their place! So as not to disappoint them, we decided to conduct another activity right away. This time, however, I asked Joe to facilitate the activity. Joe is one of the docents who has been very enthusiastic about the Diving Sparky activity and was very interested in conducting it himself. He has been observing me conduct the Diving Sparky every time he is on duty at the Spark!Lab.

Materials needed to make a Diving Sparky

I hung back to give Joe space but stayed close to make sure that he has all the materials for the activity and to provide assistance if needed. He did very well and seemed to have extremely enjoyed facilitating the activity. He later confessed that he truly liked the Diving Sparky when I showed it to him two weeks ago. In fact, he even made one with his granddaughter at home for practice!

Kids kept coming and Joe just kept making Diving Sparkies with them non-stop! By 2pm, after making over 50 Diving Sparkies, and using up all of the paper clips I could find at the office, I declared the Diving Sparky activity officially done for the day.

*Originally written in my internship journal: July 2009

Visiting the museum next door: National Museum of Natural History

2011-05-11T10:49:00.000-07:00

We usually have two or more docents and volunteers at the Spark!Lab every morning. But for some reason, this morning there weren’t any volunteer or docent at the Spark!Lab. So it was up to me and Danielle Weaver (one of three of Spark!Lab’s part-time facilitators) to conduct all the activities. There were a lot of visitors at the Spark!Lab today so Danielle and I did two experiments simultaneously. Danielle facilitated the DNA extraction, while I chose to do the CO2 experiment. After conducting three back-to-back experiments within two hours (we normally just conduct experiments every hour on the hour unless there are a lot of visitors), I was more than ready to take my break and do something else! Luckily, some of the docents and volunteers arrived and took over.

After finishing today’s duty at the Spark!Lab, I decided to visit our next door neighbor- the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (NMNH). They have a new exhibit entitled “Written in Bones: How Human Remains Unlock the Secrets of the Dead”. Since I love watching crime shows on TV (CSI, Bones, Law and Order, The Closer), I was very excited to see the exhibit!

While at the NMNH, I also watched an IMAX 3D of “Dinosaurs: Giants of Pantagonia”. I felt as though I have recently seen this movie but I couldn’t remember where. Perhaps in one of the demo booths at this year’s AMM Conference in Philadelphia. But then again since I have really bad memory, it’s possible that I actually saw this movie during my observation tour of museums in the US in 2001.

When the museum closed at 7pm, I walked around the Mall and sat down in one of the benches outside the Smithsonian Castle. I watched several teams play baseball and waited for the sun to set. It was such a nice evening with a warm breeze and a lovely way to end my day.

Sunset at the Mall

Bikers!

* Originally written in my internship journal: July 2009

Developing the Diving and Climbing Sparkies

2011-05-11T09:47:00.000-07:00

For my internship project, I was tasked to develop activities/experiments that can be implemented at the Spark!Lab. Since the Spark!Lab focuses on creativity and invention, I decided to create two activities that support both. Steve and I both agreed that making toys that explain basic science concepts would be a good activity for kids. Thus, I started developing one diving toy, based on the Cartesian Diver, and a climbing toy, based on something I read online.

Cartesian Diver

First two templates for the climbing toy

I started showing the diving and climbing toys to staff and volunteers at the Spark!Lab. Then someone suggested I rename the toys Sparky, in honor of Spark!Lab’s mascot. And this was how Diving Sparky and Climbing Sparky were born!

I modified the Climbing Sparky template and used the mascot instead of an animal or a person

Showing off my Climbing Sparky!

* Originally written in my internship journal: July 2009

Back to blogging... again

2011-05-11T09:34:00.000-07:00

It has been over a year when I last posted an entry. Since then I have already completed my Master's Degree in Museum Studies at the University of Florida. I guess it goes without saying that I finished my thesis-project, "Teachers guide to establishing a classroom museum in the Philippines"! I am now looking for funding to make this project a reality and distribute to teachers here in the Philippines. I will keep you posted on that in my future posts. I have also gone back home to the Philippines. It's great to be back home!

Museum Resource Materials Preference of School Teachers in the Philippines

2010-03-15T00:03:00.000-07:00

IF YOU ARE AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHER IN THE PHILIPPINES, PLEASE KINDLY ANSWER THIS TEN-MINUTE SURVEY. IF YOU KNOW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN THE PHILIPPINES, I WOULD GREATLY APPRECIATE IT IF YOU COULD FORWARD THIS LINK TO THEM SO THEY TOO CAN PARTICIPATE. DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING RESPONSES IS ON APRIL 15, 2010.

Below is a description of the survey.

*****

My name is Ethel Villafranca and I am a Museum Studies graduate student at the University of Florida. I am conducting a thesis project entitled Building Bridges: Museum Outreach Resource Material for School Teachers in the Philippines. My faculty advisor is Dr. Glenn Willumson and he may be contacted at gwillumson@arts.ufl.edu or +1 352 273-3062.

Part of the project is a research study to determine what format of museum outreach resource materials (travelling suitcases, online resource materials, or posters and slides) school teachers in the Philippines would use if it were made available to them. Data collected from this study will inform the direction of the resource material that I am developing as my thesis project. The resource material will aim to introduce students to what a museum is, what they do and their important contribution to society. Lessons and activities, which will be aligned with the Philippine Department of Education’s Revised Basic Education Curriculum, will teach how museums fulfill their educational role through collections and exhibitions. The resource material will be designed for multi-disciplinary use and can be applied to lessons in science, history, math or art. As a culmination, students will collaborate to create their own classroom museum.

If you choose to participate you will be asked to rank, in the order of your preference, the format (travelling suitcase, online resources materials, or posters and slides) of the resource materials that you would be willing to use if museums developed and made these available to you. You will also be asked to provide basic information about yourself, such as location and type (private or public) of the school where you currently teach, the number of years you have been teaching, and the grade level of your students. Your personal details will remain private. There is no compensation for participating, and there are no risks associated with participation in this study. There are no direct benefits to you for participating in the study. Your participation is voluntary and you may withdraw your consent at anytime without consequence.

I may be contacted at ethelvillafranca@ufl.edu for any questions about the study and the project.

****

BELOW IS THE LINK TO THE SURVEY:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/FLC6WS3

OR

Click here to take survey

****

Toys...

2009-07-03T10:32:00.000-07:00

For next month’s Toy Building Workshop at the Spark!Lab, Steve and I had a long discussion about the kinds of toys we use to play with when we were kids. But aside from the regular off the shelf toys like Barbie dolls, robots, GI Joes, trucks, cooking se, legos and etc., I recall that I also had some toys that we just made from found objects. This had me thinking that back then kids had to be more creative and imaginative when they were playing. A chair is no longer just a piece of furniture you sit on but it can also be a race car, a bus, a sari-sari store or even a control chamber of a gigantic robot!

I remember that my brother and I used to lay our dining chairs side by side on the floor and pretend that it’s an autobot that transforms into a cool Transformer robot. We both loved watching Transformers- now this is way before Shia Lebouf became a star, even before he was born! On other days, the chairs will be individual robots that combine into Voltron!

Then during Christmas time, we would flatten bottle caps and string them up to make something like a tambourine for Christmas caroling around the block. I also remember some friends who made their own go carts out of scrap wood and wheels.

I browsed online to see what other home-made toys are out there. I even found a couple that not only are hand-made but also explain some science concepts. I tried to make some of them at the Spark!Lab to see how easy or difficult they might be for kids to make.

Balloon-powered car

a wind-up toy car from CDs, rubberband and a pencil

The Cartesian Diver

I remember that our Physics teacher in high school, Mr. Pascual, showed this one to us. But he used beakers, flasks and test tubes to make it so it looked really complicated and cool. He, or another classmate, would ask a volunteer student questions and if the student is telling the truth then the test tube will sink to the bottom. If it stays up, then the student is lying. There sure were a lot of embarrassed classmates then!

I showed the Cartesian Diver as part of the “Everyday Science” program at the Robinson’s Children’s Library a couple of years back. But this time I used simple materials: a two-liter soda bottle and a ball pen cap or eye dropper weighed down with a pinch of clay.

A bird in a cage thaumatrope

A climbing monkey- which would later become the climbing Sparky!

What toys did you make when you were a kid?

Carbon Dioxide Experiment

2009-06-26T12:15:00.000-07:00

Day four of internship: Thursday, June 25

Steve asked me if I wanted to do the Carbon Dioxide experiment and I excitedly said YES! After three days of reading the manuals, observing the experiments and shadowing the facilitators, I finally felt I was ready to lead one of the experiments on my own.

"Playing" with the kids before the experiment

We conduct experiments at the Spark!Lab every hour on the hour from 11am to 3pm. I was going to do the first experiment of the day. Since it was still early into the day, there were not too many kids around, which was good because a smaller group is easier to manage. I announced that we will be conducting an experiment in five minutes and kids who want to participate should grab a seat on the lab’s bench.

I handed each kid a pair of safety glasses while explaining the importance of listening and paying attention during the experiment. Although we do not use any hazardous chemical, the safety goggles add a touch of seriousness and excitement to the experiment. I asked if anyone knows what carbon dioxide (CO2) is and some of the kids volunteered information such as it’s what we breathe out. I gave them additional background information about CO2, including the fact that it’s odorless and colorless. I asked them to inhale deeply then exhale and explained that, as one of the kids pointed out, we breathe out CO2. Then I asked: what living organism uses CO2 to make their food? Some kids replied plants and trees. So I told them the importance of trees and the relationship between humans and plants: we breathe out CO2, the plants use CO2 in photosynthesis and as a by-product release oxygen, which we need.

Their faces lit up as soon as I took out I took out a chest filled with frozen CO2 (dry ice).

Dry ice is extremely cold, with temperatures below minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and as such should not be touched by our bare hands as it could cause cold burns. I asked the kids what would happen if I left the dry ice on the table and left to eat my lunch? Some of them said that it would melt and leave a puddle of water. So I explained the difference between regular ice and dry ice: ice melts then evaporates while dry ice sublimates- it turns directly into gas from solid.

They all exclaimed “wow” when I added the dry ice into a water-filled flask and it started bubbling.

I then lit a candle then asked what would happen if I put a beaker over it. We all watched the fire die as soon as the oxygen inside the beaker was consumed and converted to CO2. I took this opportunity to tell them about how one guy thought of using CO2 to put out fire thereby inventing a CO2 fire extinguisher. To prove that CO2 truly puts out fire, I asked them to each draw a cupful of vapor from the chest. They got all excited as the fire from each of their candles was put out when they poured CO2 onto it!

On to more cool stuff: Is CO2 an acid or a base?

I asked for a show of hands to find out how many think that it is, how many think that it’s not and how many just want to find out. We gave each child an Erlenmeyer flask and told them to pour 50 ml of Bromothymol Blue (BTB) into it. BTB is used as chemical indicator for weak acids and bases. It changes color when acid is added into it. Then we gave each of them drinking straws to blow bubbles into the BTB. You can just imagine how they reacted when the solution turned yellow!

Then I asked them to pour lime water into their flask and there were more excitement when it turned back to blue! One kid asked: “can we turn this back to yellow again?” Instead of telling them the answer, I asked them to blow bubbles into the solution again. And yes, there were more “whoas” when it turned yellow again.

I ended by reminding them that we should wash our hands after doing an experiment. I added liquid soap into a flask of water then dropped a few dry ice pellets into it. Kids became extremely animated when they saw what happened next! Suddenly, there were over thirty hands reaching out to touch the soap foam!

I participated in the carbon dioxide experiment during my first visit to the National Museum of American History (while I was on an Asian Cultural Council fellowship to observe education programs of museums in the US). That experience became one of the biggest factors that affected my decision to apply for an internship at the NMAH. Who knew that eight years later I will be on the other side of the bench conducting the experiment myself!

One billion and five hundred forty million

2009-06-23T00:03:00.000-07:00

Today I learned my height in nanomillimeters: 1,540,000,000. Wow, that's a lot of zeroes, I feel taller! I should remember this and start writing it down when forms asks for my height :)

***

I started my day by getting settled in my new work space. Since I will spend a lot of time at the Spark!Lab and Invention at Play, I was stationed at one of the Lemelson's offices at the1st floor, where those two exciting places are located. I am sharing an office space with Steve Madewell, Interpretive Exhibits Coordinator and resident mad scientist/eccentric/jack of all trades of the Lemelson Center- I heard a rumor that he can even create a time machine! I should add that our office also doubles as a workshop for Steve's masterpieces. I remember that about a decade ago, I wanted to buy power tools so I can make my own furniture - so I was quite excited to see all the power tools, nuts and bolts, and unbelievable science knick knacks we are allowed to tinker with!
Tricia was nice enough to invite me to sit through their regular staff meeting. After more introductions, the meeting went under way and I learned what projects the staff recently wrapped, are currently working on and what else are coming down the pipe.
In the afternoon, I joined a Teacher's Workshop on inventiveness that Tricia facilitated for a couple of teachers from Virginia. After a brief lecture on the history, mission-vision and activities of the Lemelson Center, Tricia divided the teachers into three groups. She handed each group an envelope containing invention patent documents and a couple of images. The group was tasked to determine what the invention is, how and what it is used for and try to piece together the story of how it was invented. I think that this is a very good activity to help the participants grasp the concept of inventiveness/creativity as illustrated by the featured inventor and his/her invention. It also challenges our common notion that inventors are old men with white hair, a beard and round-rimmed glasses. The main message of the activity is that we all can be inventors!
Then the teachers were led downstairs and allowed to explore on their own the Invention at Play exhibit. We all met up at the Spark!Lab after about half an hour, and the teachers continued to explore the space.

Some of the teachers exploring the "What now activity"

When Spark!Lab closed to public at 4pm, Tricia commenced the last activity that demonstrated the invention process: Think it! Explore it! Sketch it! Create it! Try It! Tweak it! Sell it! The teachers were asked to form three new groups. This time, Tricia handed each group a bag containing an assortment of materials. But each group's set of materials are different from the others'. The task is for each group to think of a challenge that their materials could solve and then create that solution - all in under 15 minutes and with only the materials they have!

The teachers brainstorming for ideas

An eco-friendly water filter device for camp sites

A floating shower and toilet for boats

A a garbage/recycling bin that can be attached to students' desks

After the workshop, I sat down with Steve to brainstorm about what activity I could come up with for the Lemelson. I have previously told him about designing and making roller-coasters in my last class this summer (read about that by clicking here), he felt that that could be an idea we could pursue. Wow, my summer course on Science Instruction for Informal Setting is truly coming in handy! I am extremely excited about making a prototype of the rollercoaster activity!

First day as an Intern

2009-06-22T22:23:00.000-07:00

We were asked to show up at the employee entrance of the National Museum of American History (NMAH) at 10 am today. Although I live about four miles and 3 Metro stops from the NMAH, I decided to leave the apartment at 9am. Thanks to the Metro, it only takes about 30 minutes for me to travel from door to door, oh how I've missed living in the big city!

I met with four other interns at the waiting area and at 10 am, we were met by two other interns who are assigned at the NMAH Internship office. They gave us a brief overview what's expected from us as interns, the usual stuff: dress code, behaviour, rules, safety and security reminders etc.
We also found out from them that as interns, we have a number of fabulous benefits such as:

free one admission per week to IMAX movies at any Smithsonian. Everything but Night at the Museum - awww! They do have a number of other interesting films to watch, so I know where I'm spending my weekends at!
free one simulation ride per week. Since I'm paranoid to enjoy real thrill rides, these are perfect for me.
20% discount on any Smithsonian cafeterias and museum stores
Occasional reduced or free admission to other non-Smithsonian museums

The Internship office also organizes enrichment trips, programs and dialogues with leading individuals from NMAH. With hundreds of summer interns at the Smithsonian, there are a number of Smithsonian-wide programs that allow opportunities for us to learn about the institution, Washington, DC and meet other interns.

After the brief orientation, we were sent off to get our official badges. Took about an hour of waiting before my turn to have my picture taken came. This was posted near the camera: "This is an ID photo, not a glamour shot!" Five minutes later, my badge was handed to me.

Afterwards, we were individually introduced to our supervisors. I finally met Tricia Edwards, the Education Specialist of the Lemelson Center, who I have been corresponding with since early this year. She introduced me to most of the Lemelson Staff then brought me down to the Spark!Lab for more introductions and for a brief tour of both the Spark!Lab and the Invention at Play exhibit.

She handed me a packet of materials about the Lemelson Center, a list of the staff (which would definitely come in handy considering how awful my memory for names and faces are!), and two research/evaluations: one about the Hands On Science Center (what Spark!Lab used to be) and the other about NMAH. Both documents were very helpful in providing me with a broader understanding of who their visitors are and what they want and need from the museum.

I was also pleasantly surprised to see that , Matt White (former Director of the Hands On Science Center), initiated one of the studies. Matt is a PhD. candidate in History of Science but became a classmate when he took the Introduction to Museology class offered by our program.

He gave me a valuable tip for applying at the Smithsonian, which I believe applies to whatever museum/institution you apply for. He told me that it would benefit me to:

1) identify which section of the museum I really want to be part of based on my interest

2) communicate with someone from that department to let them know of your interest in applying for an internship in their department.

You see, NMAH has a centralized intern application system, but due to the enormous number of applicants they get every summer, sometimes your application and skills do not get noticed. Thus when you have already made the personal connection with the department, assuming they want to accept you of course, they can watch out for your papers when it goes through the system. I am therefore very grateful to Matt for his wise counsel!

I really think I made a good choice in deciding to apply to the Lemelson Center. I have no doubts that this will be an excellent and fun learning experience!

Sneak peak at the Lemelson Center

2009-06-19T19:58:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Washington, DC on the afternoon of Wednesday, June 17. Since my internship does not start until June 22 and I have some time on my hands, I decided to re-visit the National Mall the following day. It has been almost seven years since my last visit and I have forgotten how many people come to see its museums! If only visiting museums could be as popular in the Philippines...

Enid A. Haupt Moongate Garden

Pharaoh Kahmunrah's pile of pilfered artifacts from the movie "Night at the Museum: battle of the Smithsonian" currently on display at the Smithsonian Castle

From the castle, I made my way to the National Museum of American History (NMAH). They recently re-opened after a two-year renovation. Among the changes are the redesigned museum's lobby and a new environmentally-controlled exhibition space for the Star Spangled Banner (the same flag that inspired their national anthem).

The Greensboro Lunch Counter

On my way to the Lemelson Center, I saw the Greensboro lunch counter and it reminded me of our course on museum exhibitions last Spring where one of my groupmates, Jenn, focused her virtual exhibition on the Civil Rights Movement in St. Augustine. The counter was one of the objects we "borrowed" for the exhibit.

I finally got to the Spark!Lab, one of the two spaces run by The Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation at the NMAH. As expected the Spark!Lab was filled with kids (and adults too!) eagerly waiting to participate in the experiments that are conducted every hour. It was 230 in the afternoon so I thought I'd visit the Invention at Play first then come back before 3pm to watch the experiment.

I came back later to watch the CO2 experiment. What is interesting about the Spark!Lab is that kids do not only watch the experiments but they are allowed to actively participate in them- hands-on learning at its finest! They are given protective goggles, beakers, flasks and other laboratory apparatuses to be used for the experiment.

This is an interesting video of Steve Madewell introducing the Spark!Lab. I will be working with him during my internship!

What I took Home from the AAM Conference

2009-05-23T20:57:00.000-07:00

Think about it!

I was among the 21 AAM members who were fortunate enough to be able to attend this year’s conference through the Diversity Fellowship program. As a student, and an international one from a third world country at that, it is almost impossible for me to attend a national conference of this magnitude because it is just beyond my financial capacity. This is why I am tremendously grateful for the fellowship.

After the conference, I took home new knowledge, validated learning, connections and inspirations that will continue to be valuable throughout the rest of my career as a museum professional.

When I signed up for the conference, I was prepared to learn. But I was not prepared to learn so much in just a few days! As a museum educator, I gravitate towards sessions that focus on education/interpretation. However, there are other topics I was also interested in learning more about: diversity, technology, audience development and leadership. It was very rare that I will only find one session I was interested in that was not scheduled at the same time as two other sessions I also wanted to attend! As such, the handout printing kiosks made available to participants during the conference were exceptionally helpful because it allowed me to learn from the other sessions I couldn’t attend by reading the speakers’ slides.

Since it would be impossible to list down all that I have learned from the conference, I decided to list down just three here:

1) Our visitors want to communicate with us. They will tell us what they love or hate about our museum, what they learned from their visit, how they can contribute to our exhibit, or even how to do our jobs better so they will keep coming back. Therefore, museums should make sure that we provide them a way to accomplish that, whether it’s face to face encounters, through comment kiosks (written, drawn or videos) at the exhibit, or online. It’s the sense of somehow being part of the exhibit that makes them feel more valued and their experience more memorable.

Two examples that were shared during the conference were the Brooklyn Museum, which has a video kiosk at their lobby that allows visitors to leave their comments and the Art Gallery of Ontario, which provides activity tables where visitors can write, even draw their comments.

2) Museums can use online social networking tools to their advantage, not only to promote their museums but to educate their audiences as well.

I learned that a number of museums actually have youtube channels! The Brooklyn museum has a youtube channel that is viewed by thousands of people! One of their more popular video “The art thief” has already been viewed over 32,000 times! If even 10% of those numbers translate to actual visits, then wouldn’t that be great? They also encourage visitors to create videos about the museum then they broadcast it through their website.

Another museum that uses this tool is the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture. They upload videos to keep their audiences informed and interested. One of their videos showed how Burke archaeologists moved a 2,000 year old mummy and a 3,000 year old coffin from their storage to the museum’s gallery for temporary public display. There was also another one where they showed how they installed a 125 million year old "fish lizard" fossil in their gallery. These might be ordinary events for us in the museums, but for our visitors it’s exciting because it provides them a glimpse of what goes on behind the scenes!

The NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory uses twitter to share breaking astronomical news. They created a twitter account for their Mars Phoenix Lander mission to deliver news of the mission but eventually it became a way for them to interact with the public and respond to their questions about space exploration. At the end of the 152 day mission, they had over 41,000 followers!

Museums and libraries around the world have been using Flikr to upload images of their collections and make it available for the public to see, leave comments and even contribute information. The Commons on Flikr invites viewers to help enrich the collection of photographs by describing them through the addition of tags or comments. Some of the images from the Library of Congress’ photo stream have been viewed over 20,000 times and left with hundreds of comments.

3) Diversity is not just a noun, it is a goal that museums should aspire for. In order for museums to welcome and encourage diversity in their audiences, they too need to embrace diversity in their organizational staff. These people can be the museum’s ambassadors to their individual communities and help museums connect to a broader and more inclusive sector of society.

Being surrounded by over a thousand people who share my passion for museums is quite overwhelming. I had the opportunity to meet people who have shaped how I think as a museum educator. One such person was Lynn Dierking, who is one of the two major proponents of free-choice learning in museums. Call me geek but after reading a number of her books, researches and published articles, I was just terribly excited to finally get to talk to her in person to tell her that like her, I’m also from the University of Florida and that I find her researches absolutely interesting and useful.

The sessions and evening events also provided opportunities to make connections, share stories, challenges, frustrations and even aspirations. It is comforting to know that we don’t need to solve everything alone. Isn’t it great that somewhere out there is someone who has already experienced the current challenges your museum is facing and that they are willing to share how they have successfully overcome it?

When I go back home to my country, the Philippines, after finishing my Masters Degree in Museum Studies, I will bring with me all that I have gained from the conference: the knowledge, connections, validations and passion. These will serve as inspirations as we continue our struggle to convince schools, parents, government and the general public of the value of museums. The video, Spark, shown during the general assembly was a very powerful reminder about why I chose a career in museums- yes, MUSEUMS DO MATTER!

***
Click this link for pictures of the AAM conference
Click this link to view my pictures from Philadelphia
Click this link for pictures at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
***
I leave you with this interesting entry for the PSA for The Brooklyn Museum, First Saturday Video Contest.

(Image of girl taken from http://www.philaculture.org/image/2840)
(Spark video courtesy of Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance: https://www.philaculture.org/news/2829/spark)

Summer Internship at the Smithsonian

2009-02-19T21:30:00.000-08:00

Excerpt from the e-mail I received this afternoon...

*******************************

Dear Ethel,

We would be delighted for you to join us
this summer as an intern! After talking with you and reviewing your
resume, **** and I both feel that your breadth of experience in
developing programs and activities both for in-museum and online
audiences will be of great value to us as we continue to improve and
refine Spark!Lab. In turn, I think it will provide you with good
experience in working with a large volume of visitors from very diverse
backgrounds.

*********************

I still cannot believe it... two months at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington DC!!! I am sooooo excited!!!

Talk about a dream come true!

It might be time to update this picture taken over 7 years ago :)

Postcard collection...

2009-02-19T21:28:00.001-08:00

I have been collecting postcards since 2001. I normally buy a postcard of a place/city I visit and then mail them home to my parents. I also buy art works postcards from museums I visit, simply because I cannot afford to buy reproductions of all the works that I like.

Today, I found a new reason to collect postcards of artworks. I was at a meeting with the Education Director at the Harn Museum - a seasoned art educator. At some point during our animated conversation, she showed me a stack of postcards that she collected and use for teaching art.

What a great idea!!!

So now, I have a better reason for collecting postcards, and YOU can help enrich my collection by sending me a postcard, or two or three :) from a museum that you visit. Let me know if you want my mailing address.

I would love to receive postcards from all over the world!!!

Spring break

2009-01-27T17:27:00.000-08:00

I recently discovered some unexpected challenges in my graduate school funding. It turns out that I have a whole summer (2010) without any funds -none from Fulbright and none from the university. My Fulbright grant terminates in Spring 2010, which leaves me with a whole summer and a semester without their support. I am still negotiating with Fulbright to extend some funds for me until summer 2010 even if I am not enrolled in courses, especially since the grant supposedly covers two academic years. Although Fall 2010 will require a lot of belt tightening, it will be a bit easier since I still have a graduate assistantship that will cover my tuition fee and half of my regular stipend.

For a couple of days, I have been waking up with a killer headache from spending restless sleep during which I am still constantly thinking of a solution.The practical part of me tells me to cancel all of my planned travels and activities and just save as much as I could in preparation for next year. However,I know that these travels also enrich me personally, academically and even professionally, and have been sources of inspiration for some of my projects.

And so, I finally purchased my tickets to New York City today. I will still exercise smart spending (as I always do) but will not let this impede learning opportunities. I am exploring other possible sources of funding for 2010 and looking at possibilities of engaging in a paid internship at a museum (which still requires approval from Fulbright). If worse comes to worst, I will give up my apartment in Florida and ask a friend to adopt me for the whole summer in exchange for a baby sitter, cook, arts and crafts teacher, researcher, graphic designer, photographer etc. for three months!

I recently told a friend, "Don't stress too much, it will all work out in the end, sometimes even better than you hoped or ever imagined." It's time I heed my own advice! I will consider this trip to New York as my reward for an excellent first semester! :)

Writing Great Resumes

2008-09-26T12:48:00.000-07:00

A couple of years back, my Kuya (who is a voracious reader!) sent me an ebook entitled "Job Interviews That Get You Hired".The book was a good read, easy on the eyes and came with a lot of useful suggestions.

But what made me a fan of this book was its chapter on writing great resumes. According to the book, "The biggest mistake most people make in writing resumes is focusing on job responsibilities, instead of emphasizing accomplishments on the job." After reading the book, I gave my CV a complete make over!

I realized that when applying for a job or even a scholarship (yes I used some techniques from this book on my Fulbright application!), it makes a difference when we package or position ourselves in a certain way so our application stands out from the rest of the crowd. As the old adage says "always put your best foot forward" and this holds true even for your CV.

Click here to download a copy of the book. But if you prefer reading a hard copy, you can order one from Amazon for about 12$.

Below is the link to Learning Express, which offers hundreds of other ebooks on a wide range of topics:

http://www.learnatest.com/LearningExpressEBooks/

I promise to write about my Fulbright, ACC and other scholarship application experience soon. For the meantime, enjoy exploring the site and what it has to offer!

Baked Italian Chicken

2008-09-21T10:12:00.000-07:00

I use to cook this dish for my sister a couple of years back. Last week, during lunch, I was discussing my meal plans for the week and my friend suggested I bake the Italian Chicken. And so I did. Turns out that it tastes better and was a big hit among my friends when I had them try it at last night's dinner.

Here's how to make it:

Ingredients:

1/2 lb Chicken Fillet

2 cans crushed tomato (or Ragu spaghetti sauce)

1/4 cup minced onions

2 table spoons of vegetable oil

1 cup grated four cheese mix (Kraft has 5 cheese mix, I got mine from Publix)

salt, ground black pepper, sugar, italian herbs and chili pepper flakes

Procedures:

1. Fry chicken strips in a skillet until meat turns white. Before meat is cooked, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Do this on both sides

2. Set aside and place on a paper towel to drain oil

3. Saute onion in a sauce pan then add tomatoes

4. Stir occasionally then season with salt, pepper, sugar, and chili pepper flakes

5. Simmer until sauce thickens. Sprinkle Italian herbs a few minutes before turning off the heat

6. While waiting for sauce to be done, start lining the baking pan with the chicken strips. I usually do one layer of meat for easy serving

7. Once sauce is cooked, pour over chicken. Make sure you cover all the meat. It would be nice if you have more sauce because this will dry up a bit once you pop it in the oven

8. Sprinkle cheese on top making but leave half of the cheese for later

9. Bake for 15-20 minutes

10. Add remaining cheese 5 minutes before serving

I use to eat this with rice, but having bread or pasta, also sound delicious!

Enjoy and let me know how it turns out once you have tried it!

Relationships

2008-09-12T08:23:00.000-07:00

I was just exchanging messages via Facebook with a friend of mine based in Germany. I never met him since he has already moved to the DHL Global Office when I arrived at the DHL Asia PAcific Regional Office in Singapore. But nevertheless, we have kept in touch even now that I have moved on from the big red and yellow company.
He just commented on how amazing the power of Facebook is because he found a classmate from college probably from my friends list . And I agree, I think the internet, networking sites and chat programs have revolutionized how we create and cultivate relationships with other people now.

When I woke up this morning, I suddenly thought of these Dutch (twins) friends of mine who have been my online buddies since 1999. In the nine years that we've been "friends", we've exchanged e-mails, letters, cards, spoke online and kept very well updated on what's happening with each of our lives (well, they live together as they are brothers so that's easy for them). But we have never ever had the chance to meet in person... not yet at least.

They are planning to visit Manila this December to meet up with their other Filipino friends. Sadly, I won't be there to see them. If I continue with my plan to go to Europe (keeping my fingers crossed) next summer, they won't be there either because they plan to spend a year traveling in Asia. But no worries, I'm sure we'll still be in touch, that's what the internet is for right? And eventually we will get to see each other and fulfill my dream of running across fields of tulips in the Netherlands hahaha - they will serve as my look-outs for angry farmers with pitchforks!

California for Christmas

2008-09-05T04:52:00.000-07:00

It's final - I'm going to California for Christmas!!!

After hours of hunting for the best price online (and with lots of help from Keso and Mynen), I finally purchased my ticket this morning.Since I cannot fly to Manila this Christmas, this is the closest to "home for Christmas" I could get - spending it with very dear friends.

Copy paper

2008-08-26T08:24:00.000-07:00

Last night I was talking to Carmel and we were discussing some words we use in the Philippines and their counterparts here in the American English language. You see, it's quite common for Filipinos to use the most popular brands of products as names of the items. For example, "cutex" for nail polish, "frigidaire" for refrigerator, "mighty bond" for super/ instant glue, or "xerox" for photocopy, just to name a few.

Add in the fact that I have to unlearn the British English terms (i.e. lift- elevator, rubbish- trash, serviette- table napkin, queue- line-up, torch- flashlight) I picked-up while I was living in Singapore for almost a year, Carmel predicted that I would eventually get blank stares when I look for some items here. Good friend that she is *sarcasm*, we went through (with her laughing throughout the whole conversation) a list of common items that are called differently in the US.

Bond paper - Copy paper

Ballpen - pen

Pentel pen - marker

Stabilo - highlighter

Liquid paper - wipe out

Feminine napkin - sanitary pad

Oslo paper - card stock (although this probably not accurate)

Mighty Bond - crazy glue

Long bond paper - legal copy paper

Short bond paper - letter copy paper

Folder - manila folder

post it - sticky notes

Back to school...

2008-08-25T13:15:00.000-07:00

I attended my first class as a graduate student today.

So how did it go? I suppose it went pretty well. I did not feel "lost" as I feared I would considering that the last class I attended was over a decade ago. It seems that working for the past 10 years, six years at the Ayala Museum, three years at the Robinsons Children's Library and then an 11-month internship at DHL as a Regional Internal Communications Coordinator, are of tremendous benefit. Due to my work experience at the museum, plus my Fellowship from ACC, the topics in my classes no longer feel "alien" to me. And I tell you, it feels good to be able to relate in class.

Furthermore, taking my time to figure out what I really want to specialize in has made it so much easier to identify courses I would like to take to complete my program- much to my adviser's delight. And because of Fulbright, I even have a thesis topic already ( a research proposal is one of the many requirements for application). Not that the topic is set in stone as it may evolve as I progress thought my degree, but it gives me a head start in exploring possibilities and opportunities.

I have classes on all day Monday and Wednesday evening. This will allow me to explore volunteer opportunities at museums here in Gainesville, which will add further dimension to the overall learning I am going to get during my graduate degree.

I am so excited about my classes. All three of them are equally interesting. During my Museum Registration Methods class today, I had to literally tell myself to limit my comments to a minimum lest I give the wrong impression to my classmates or Professor of monopolizing the discussion!

Looks like I'm off to a good start!

Flashback: Amazing Race Macau and Hong Kong 2008

2008-08-19T06:44:00.000-07:00

Well, its not really that we joined amazing race, but that was how we felt during this trip in March 2008. From Singapore we went to Malaysia to catch a budget airline. We left at around 4 am because we were worried about getting stuck at the border due to heavy traffic (long weekend and tightened security checks). When we got to the airport in Johore Bahru, we slept because everything was still closed (it ws 5am!). Woke up and took our time eating breakfats around 7am when the plane was in fact departing at 730am. Talk about crazy. I suppose we got carried away talking about various ways to survive a plane crash. Someone suggetsed using guns to shoot the water to lessen impact when you hit the water. Great idea! Except, they don't really allow big guns on planes these days.

So as we took our time checking in, we realized that the immigration counter has already closed. What?!? They took us to another office where our passport are to be processed. While the rest were waiting for the passport stamps, i went ahead to the gate to sort off hold off the plane. No, I didn't have to lie on the runway in front of the plane. Nothing dramatic.

After arriving in Macau, we walked from the tip of the island to the bottom, where the port to HK is located. My friends love to walk! But it wasn't so bad as Macau is not that big. We had lunch at the nearest restaurant we could find when we got hungry. I had baked pork chop, which was, I was told, a traditional macau favorite.

Of course when you're in Macau what else do you do aside from the usual sight-seeing? We went to the Macau Tower so my friends can try the tallest sky jump in the world. Not me of course, no thanks. But we didn't make it there in time so they had to skip that. I think it was because we stayed a bit more than we planned at the Lisboa Casino. Hey, they had dancers! You know the typical vegas-thong-wearing-leg-raising dancers! There were three guys (Emil, Brian and Koen) and just me and Ozana, we weren't strong enough to drag them out hahaha. Oh and I won 70HK$ in the slot machine. Purely beginner's luck as I didn't even understand how the thing worked!

We bought our tickets to HK island with but a small window of time before the ship was to depart (don't ask me why). So we had to run to immigration then run faster after the immigration to catch the ship. We like lots of excitement!

For dinner, in HK, we went to a noodle house that gives you spicy choices such as hot, very hot, super hot and no hot. So you basically you can order cold noodles served hot but no hot :)

Bedtime. We could stop laughing when we got to our hostel. It was a dorm-type hostel with four double decks and two bathrooms/toilets that are way too small you almost have to stand on the toilet to shower! A few of the things one has to deal with when one travels on a budget ;)

The good thing about staying at a hostel though is that you meet new friends. When we left to watch the symphony of lights the following night and then go clubbing, we have two recruits with us: one from Australia and another from USA.

Then it was time to go home after only two days of walking our feet off. We woke up early because our flight leaves Macau in like three hours?!? and we were still in HK. This meant that we have to take a cab from the hostel to the port, cross immigrations to exit HK, cross yet another immigration to enter Macau, take another cab from macau the airport and then again cross immigration to exit Macau. Crazy huh?

But as crazy and stressful as all these may sound, I really had great time during the trip :)

Greetings from Gainesville

2008-08-15T09:52:00.000-07:00

I have safely arrived in Gainesville, Florida after almost 48 hours of travel!

I left Manila on Monday, August 11 at 9am and flew to Tokyo. However, my flight from Tokyo to Chicago was delayed for over two hours due to a volcanic eruption somewhere and the plane had to divert its direction to avoid the volcanic ashes. Due to that, I missed my two connecting flights to Charlotte NC and then to Gainesville FL. So I ended up spending the night in a hotel (and a fancy one at that!) in Chicago that the airline provided and continued my journey the following day. It was actually a blessing in disguise because otherwise I would have been travelling continuously for almost 30 hours! Since I could hardly sleep on the plane, I was afraid my eyebags would have to undergo checks at the airport too! At least on Monday night I was able to get a decent sleep, take a hot bath and have a real breakfast!

I am temporarily staying at the apartment of a fellow museum studies grad student who was kind enough to accommodate me since I cannot move into my permanent apartment until the 23rd.

It's been very rainy and very windy these past few days but sometimes it gets sunny and hot too. Although it’s not too hot either- it’s just like how it is in the Phils or in SG.

My 1st three days were very prductive. I was able to open my bank account and get my univ ID already. They have instant ID processing (when I say instant I mean like 5 minutes or less), so cool! The University of Florida is just like the UP Diliman campus although with bigger ang buildings and roads. They even have a bus which operates like the UP IKOT, it only goes around the campus on a one-way route. They don't have TOKI that travels the other way around. But it's very lovely, lots of trees and brick buildings. Actually, my first impression of Gainesville as my plane was descending towards its airport is that it sooo green!

Technically, the school is still on summer break so I haven't really seen a lot of people yet- or overwhelmed by how big they are compared to my tiny Asian size hahaha. Gainesville is a university town mostly populated by students from the University of Florida. UF alone has a population of 50,000!!! In fact we students get free bus rides in school and in town, we just have to flash our school ID :)

I only have nine units per semester (which means i only have three three-hour classes per week) but since I have a graduate assistantship, I might still go to school almost daily. Plus according to my 2nd year museum studies grad student roomie, with tons of paperwork and reading assignments, you will have your hands full studying. So now i'm enjoying the lull before the storm- so to speak :)

back to blogging

2008-08-15T09:51:00.000-07:00

After going on hiatus for almost a year, i'm back to blogging again.

I stopped blogging after I started reviewing for my GRE and TOEFL exams in November. However, after that, I got pre-occupied with so many other things including numerous trips in southeast Asia and exploring almost every corner of Singapore.

Since my last blog, I have added immigration stamps on my passports from Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Macau, Hongkong and India. I should post some pictures of those trips online one of these days, except for India as I did not see any part of Mumbai aside from their airport, my hotel room and the DHL office!

Also, I've gone home to Manila four times already- one of the many perks of living in SG, so close to home. Once was on a first class flight on Singapore Airlines when my stupidity got the better of me and I was left behind by my original Jetstar flight. Lesson learned: never assume that you know your flight schedule unless you've physically checked your ticket a week before your date of flight. You could be wrong and one week is enough time to rectify the situation. Then again, two days before your flight, check it again because if you're anything like me, you might forget your time of departure! Blown my savings the past couple of month for the airfare ticket- 1700SGD!!! A very expensive lesson indeed but at leat I can tick off 'fly 1st class' from my 'to do before i turn 50' list :) Plus it was next to impossible to get a flight to Manila during the Christmas rush. So rather than be depressed until March (i know i will!) because I didn't spend Christmas at home, I just decided to go home in style ;) There's nothing like Christmas in the Philippines I tell you!

Let's see, what else is new with me? Oh yeah, I'm already in Florida. Finally confirmed my Fulbright Scholarship to pursue my 2.5 year graduate degree in Museum Studies at the University of Florida! Thanks to all those who helped me move my mountains through prayers!!!

Reaching for the stars

2007-09-14T11:24:00.001-07:00

One of the few perks of working at the Corporate Communications Team is the opportunity to attend cool events organized by fellow Corp. Comms. members. I had the privilege of meeting two very inspiring people at the last 2 DHL-organized events. And saw two encouraging signs for my future.

First was Illac Angelo Diaz. Yes the former model/actor, but that's not the reason why I am ecstatic about meeting him. He is the Philippine's 1^st National winner for the DHL Young Entrepreneurs for Sustainability (YES) Awards. He attended the regional YES awards in Singapore and I had a chance to meet him. This guy has impressive list of achievements- he earned his MBA at the Asian Institute of Management; was awarded the first TOYM Award for social entrepreneurship; went to MIT on research fellowship; and has now moved on as a research fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government!

But what's more impressive is the fact that he has put his skills and learning into projects that benefit our fellowmen. He established Pier One- no not the restaurant! This is a dormitory for Filipino sea farers. Another project he pioneered is the MyShelter Foundation- a non-profit organization which addresses housing and educational infrastructure concerns of rural areas.

As a Filipino, I was oh so proud when his name was called during the presentation of awardees at the DHL YES Regional Awards. Did I mention that he is still as dashing as ever especially in his barong tagalong walking down the catwalk leading up to the stage during the awards ceremony?

Oh and his fellowship at MIT was through a Fulbright-Humphrey award! Coincidence or serendipity?

The second stellar individual I met was Anousheh Ansari. She was the guest speaker at the DHL Leadership Dialogue Series held on September 12, 2007 at the National Museum of Singapore. Anousheh is a multi-million entrepreneur who made her fortune in the telecoms industry and was the 1st female private space explorer and 1^st space ambassador (yeah, you can now buy tickets to go to outer space!). Extremely inspiring woman! She dreamed of seeing the stars when she was a kid in Iran and she did! Talk about reaching for the stars.

Anyway, guess where she completed her master's degree? At George Washington University !!! Is this yet another sign for my future as a grad student under Fulbright? I surely hope so! Spoke to her and told her I was aiming to get accepted to GWU. She said to let her know if she needs to put in a good word for me. Is she just being polite? Heck, I don't care- she gave me her card and I will send her an e-mail to remind her of it. I hope it reaches her though. She's heavily involved in CSR for children, education, culture and of course, technology. This is like an opportunity presenting itself to me!

Again, I ask myself- coincidence or serendipity?

I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to attend these kinds of events. These leave you with such a positive energy and prompt you to do something significant with your life- to live not just for yourself but for multitudes of other people as well.

One Month After

2007-09-13T07:40:00.001-07:00

Today marks the 1st month anniversary of my relocation to Singapore. So it is a perfect time to take stock of what I have done for the past 30 days. Here they are:

- Wept from sheer joy upon receiving news of my acceptance to Fulbright

- Boarded the DHL hot air balloon

- Closed a fantastic deal to rent a room in an awesome condo

- Got lost a couple of times- erase erase those were unplanned "sight-seeing"

- Ate at hawkers centers; binged on satay at Lau Pa Sat; learned how to eat Xiaolongbao at Legend Chinese Restaurant; watched in amazement at how Roti Pratas are cooked; and sampled Moroccan, Indian, Egyptian, Malaysian & Indonesian food

- Overspent on shopping

- Drooled over hi-tech gadgets & gizmos at the Computer Expo

- Fantasized about actually living in one or more of the demo rooms of Ikea

- Volunteered for the National Museum of Singapore

- Fell in love & got my heart broken- oh wait that was a couple of years ago. Totally over that one!

- And finally, I met, interacted and exchanged contact information with 2 extremely inspiring people: Illac Diaz and Anousheh Ansari

Now isn't this such a fabulous start? What a sweet sweet life indeed- la dolce vita!

The Better Side of the Philippines

2007-09-13T05:30:00.000-07:00

The following was written by INTEL General Manager Robin Martin about the Philippines :

***************************

Filipinos (including the press, business people and myself) tend to dwell too much on the negative side, and this affects the perception of foreigners, even the ones who have lived here for a while. The negative perception of the Philippines is way disproportionate to reality when compared to countries like Columbia , Egypt , Middle East, Africa , etc.

Let us all help our country by balancing the negative with the positive especially when we talk to foreigners, whether based here or abroad. Looking back and comparing the Philippines today and 1995 (the year I came back), I was struck by how much our country has progressed physically.

Consider the following:

1. The great telecom infrastructure that we have now did not exist in 1995. 1995 was the year the telecom industry was deregulated. Since then billions of dollars have been invested in both fixed line and cellular networks producing a system with over 5,000 kms of fiber optic backbone at a world competitive cost. From a fixed line capacity of about 900,000 in 1995 we now have over 7 million. Cellular phones practically did not exist in 1995; now we have over 11 million line capacity.

2. The MRT, many of the EDSA flyovers (including the Ayala Avenue flyover), the SKYWAY, Rockwell and Glorietta 4, the Fort, NAIA terminal 2 and most of the new skyscrapers were not yet built in 1995.

3. If you drive to the provinces, you will notice that national roads are now of good quality (international quality asphalt roads). I just went to Iba, Zambales last week and I was impressed that even a not so frequently travelled road was of very good quality.

4. Philippine exports have increased by 600% over the past eight years. There are many, many more examples of progress over the last eight years. Philippine mangoes are now exported to the US and Europe .

Additional tidbits to make our people prouder:

1. INTEL has been in the Philippines for 28 years. The Philippines plant is where Intel's most advanced products are launched, including the Pentium IV. By the end of 2002, Philippine operations became Intel's biggest assembly and testing operations worldwide.

2. TEXAS INSTRUMENTS has been operating in Baguio for over 20 years. The Baguio plant is the largest producer of DSP chips in the world. DSP chips are the brains behind cellphones. TI's Baguio plant produces the chip that powers 100% of all NOKIA cellphones and 80% of Erickson cellphones in the world.

3. TOSHIBA laptops are produced in Santa Rosa , Laguna.

4. If you drive a BENZ, BMW, or a VOLVO, there is a good chance that the ABS system in your car was made in the Philippines .

5. TREND-MICRO , makers of one of the top anti virus software PC-Cillin (I may have mispelled this) develops its "cures" for viruses right here in Eastwood Libis, Quezon City . When a virus breaks in any computer system in the world, they try to find a solution within 45 minutes of finding the virus.

6 . Today a majority of the top ten U.S. Call Center firms in the U.S. have set up operations in the Philippines . This is one area in which I believe we are the best in the world in terms of value for money.

7. America Online (AOL) has 1,000 people in Clark answering 90% of AOL's global e-mail inquiries.

8. PROCTOR & GAMBLE has over 400 people right here in Makati (average age 23 years) doing back-up office work to their Asian operations including finance, accounting, Human Resources and payments processing.

9. Among many other things it does for its regional operations network in the Asia-Pacific region here in Manila , CITIBANK also does its global ATM programming locally.

10. This is the first year ever that the Philippines will be exporting cars in quantity courtesy of FORD Philippines. (I have an idea this article was written between 2001 - 2002, so this operation should have been on-going for the last 3 years or so. CYN)

11. The government is shedding off graft and corruption slowly but surely. This is the first time in our history that a former president is in jail and facing charges of plunder. Despite all odds, we are still pursuing the ill-gotten wealth of Marcos now enjoyed by his unrepentant heirs.

Next time you travel abroad and meet business associates tell them the good news. A big part of our problem is perception and one of the biggest battles can be won simply by believing and by making others believe. This message is shared by good citizens of the Philippines who persevere to hope and work for our country.

56,000,000 Filipinos speak, read and write in English even if we have our own national language. Speaking a second language takes a certain kind of unique intelligence.

PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO OTHER FILIPINOS!!!

10 Reasons Why I love Singapore

2007-09-11T08:23:00.000-07:00

1. Singapore is a gateway to other Asian Countries
Just a couple of minutes to Malaysia, over an hour to Bangkok and Cambodia, 2.5 hours to Bali and to Hong Kong. Furthermore, there are budget airlines that can get you there without depleting your life savings!

Check out: www.jetstar.com or www.airasia.com

But of course the best part is that IT IS JUST 3 HOURS FROM MANILA!
It's just like getting caught in traffic on your way home from work if you were in Manila! Cebu Pacific flies daily, book at www.cebupacificair.com

2. Multi-cultural Society
Different religions: Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim. Each with its own traditions and holidays :)

Food food food: Chinese (Dimsum), Indonesian (Satay- ooh i love these!!!), Malay (Mi Goreng), Singaporean (Laksa). But you wont be deprived of the western food as fast food giants are abundant- McDonald's, Burger King, Kenny Rogers, KFC etc. There are also a lot of mediterranean food especially along Arab street. There's Moroccan, Turkish, Egyptian etc.

3. Shopping Galore
It seems to me that there is always at least one shopping mall at every MRT station! Singaporeans love to shop. We Pinoys just love to hang around the malls--- hehehe. On my first week here, since I was feeling a bit homesick- I bought 2 pairs of sandals and 1 shoulder bag! Shopping therapy hahaha.

Plus they have Electronic Gizmos and Gadgets Sale. And when they say sale they mean SALE! As in HUGE discounts!!!

4. English is the generally used language
No need to buy a translation book, you just have to get use to the-ir accent and Singlish

5. Tropical Climate

No need for bulky coats and clothes or shoes. You can wear flip flops, shorts, spaghetti blouses. Don't you just love wearing sexy sandals to work?

6. Transportation is very efficient and reliable

7. SAM - Self-service Automated Machine
You can do the following on this amazing machine:

Postal Services, Pay Telecom Bills, Utility Bills, Hospital Bills, Town Council Bills, HDB Bills, Credit Card Bills & Loans/Insurance, Fines, Top-ups, Tax & Licence Fees/ Carpark Renewal, make a donation and etc.

Visit their website at www.singpost.com/sam/sam_services.htm

8. Amazing Libraries with superb service features

The Robinsons Children's Library was inspired by the Bukit Batok Community Library at the West Mall. Singapore has a National Library, regional libraries and community libraries.

Check them out at www.nlb.gov.sg

9. Free Events and Activities
There are so many things to do here which will not cost you dime- you just have to know how and wehre to look!

10. Singapore is very clean, organized and safe
Need I say more?

All Because of PhilArts

2007-09-04T06:38:00.000-07:00

I was invited to talk during the Annual Career Symposia of UP Manila. Every year, they would invite me and I usually go. The symposia, entitled "Eto Kami Ngayon", is aimed at providing freshmen insights into what life is after finishing their chosen course.

I was quite happy with what I wrote so i decided to upload it here.

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Hello future colleagues in the cultural field!
My name is Ethel Villafranca and I finished BA Philippine Arts major in Arts Management in 1998. I would have loved to join you today for EKN9 but I am currently in Singapore for a one-year internship with DHL. So, Tita Zeny and I decided to just write you a letter and she will read ala-lovingly-yours-Helen.

Please allow me to share with you some of the things I have been able to do because I am a BA Philippine Arts graduate.

•Immediately after my graduation in 1998, I was hired at Ayala Museum where I had successive promotions from being an Educations Assistant to Programs and Marketing Officer and finally as Supervisor for Visitor Services- BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

•I received an Asian Cultural Council Fellowship Grant and
was able to travel to 6 different states- New York, California,Kentucky, Massachusetts, Chicago and Washington DC.
and to more than 60 museums. And all these for free
BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

•I became an Intern at the San Diego Museum of Art where I had first hand experience on how museums in the US operate BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

•I was able to contribute a section to a book published by Museo Pambata on Creating Education Programs for Children BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

•I spent 3 years as Project Development Officer of The Robinsons Children’s Library managing the operations of the two branches, project management, program design and implementation, fundraising, PR and Marketing and some HR functions as well. It would interest you to
know that the person who replaced me as Project Development Assistant is also a PhilArts graduate, Jemma Zafra. I was hired by the Managing Director BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.


•I was able to teach Major Arts Management Courses- Financial Management
for the Arts and Project Management for the Arts- in
UP Manila BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

•I have been invited to share my expertise and experience in workshops/seminars conducted by different cultural organizations such as NCCA, Ayala Museum, Lopez Museum and Museo Pambata BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

•I was hired by DHL as the Internal Communications Coordinator for the Asia Pacific Region because of the skills and competencies I learned in my previous jobs which I landed BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

•I have eaten gelato in Italy, crepes in France, fish and chips in London, dim sum in Hong Kong, chili crabs in Singapore, visited the Stonehenge, seen the Mona Lisa, was mesmerized Michaelangelo’s David, had a stiff neck looking up at the Sistine Chapel Ceiling--- Ok these things were not entirely BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

•BUT, I did go ice skating at the Rockefeller Center, spent Halloween in Salem, Massachusetts, went window shopping in Rodeo Drive, drank tequila in Mexico, cried at the end of Phantom of the Opera in Broadway and tasted snow in my tongue ALL BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

I have gone places, met interesting people, done some pretty cool stuff and enjoyed it all BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

And with God’s grace, I will be able to pursue my graduate degree in Museum Education as a Fulbright Scholar in 2008 to 2009. I am almost there, I just need to get accepted to a university- and this is again BECAUSE I AM A BA PHILIPPINE ARTS GRADUATE.

If you stick around and finish this course, you are in for the ride of your life. There will be a lot of challenges along the way but if you think you have what it takes to become one of the pioneers in this fairly new field, then you have chosen the perfect course.

BA Philippine Arts is not just a course- IT IS YOUR PLATFORM TO A GREAT CAREER!

He never said "NO"...

2007-08-22T11:03:00.001-07:00

I have just received notification that I was chosen as an Alternate Candidate for the Fulbright Program 2008-2009. There were 167 applicants this year and the Board approved 9 Principal Candidates and 3 Alternate Candidates. That’s about 7% out of the total number of applicants. Not bad huh?

So what does an alternate candidate mean? Well, we have been approved by the Board as candidates but, due to limited funds, are not guaranteed funding for our graduate degree unlike principal candidates. We can be upgraded to Principal Candidates if: (1) any candidate backs out for any reason (although I don’t imagine anyone doing that. I know I wouldn’t but hey I might just get lucky! Hehe) and (2) if there are additional funding that comes in.

The good news is that in the past 5 years, ALL Alternate Candidates went on to take their graduate degrees along with the Principal Candidates. This was achieved by encouraging all candidates to pursue studies in universities which offer grants or scholarships for their studies. This way, they don’t spend 100% on each individual candidate and gets the funds spread out to both Principal and Alternate. So now, it is crucial for me to find a university that offers my graduate degree program (Museum Education) and offers scholarships to students.

So now, just like the Principal Candidates, I go through the application process and submit all requirements to PAEF (Philippine-American Education Foundation, they facilitate Fulbright in the Phils) who in turn will forward my documents to the Institute of International Education (the US agency that arranges academic placement for most Fulbright nominees and supervises them throughout their stay in the U.S).

Right now, I am in Singapore for an internship with DHL Asia Pacific Regional Office. I am currently involved in CSR and Corporate Communications work. I just started this internship last week. I will write a separate blog on my internshp and the exciting new things I am learning everyday.

Another good news is that PAEF does not require me to go home to the Philippines and terminate my internship with DHL- in fact I was told that I can even finish it since school does not start until September 2008. I will be corresponding with them via e-mail or phone. I will just have to make sure that I submit all necessary documents to them way ahead of the deadline and attend a couple of mandatory seminars towards the end of May. We will also need to clarify if I can take the GRE in Singapore or if I need to go to Manila for that.

So it’s another round of prayers and begging from Him from now until the time I get accepted to a university.

I guess last year, when I asked Him for this Fulbright Grant, He did not say “NO”. He just said, “Ethel wait until you are more ready for it”. In the same way that 2 years ago, when I asked for the same DHL internship I currently hold, He also said “Later”. I suppose this whole experience with DHL and Fulbright is a lesson in patience and trust. And believe me, I have learned a lot!