Keeping up with today's fast-paced lifestyle

MANILA, Philippines - It’s easy to get lost in the moment when one leads an active lifestyle. But some celebrity families are able to achieve a balance between work and play, career and family.

Mariella Laurel has the right genes and the right gifts to make it big in show business. The eldest child of Franco Laurel and Ayen Munji-Laurel, Mariella’s singing, dancing and acting talents give legs to the adage that the fruit does not fall far from the tree.

Yela, as she is fondly called by friends and family, can play the drums, the guitar and other instruments and has played roles that range from backup dancer to lead star in musical productions — all at age 20.

Yela’s attitude encompasses other things in her life. As far as her fitness regimen goes, she makes it a point to eat healthy and exercise regularly. Regarding her well-being, she has the organization Innersoul, where she heads the HR and documentations committee. “My work for Innersoul involves almost 24/7 use of the computer,” says Mariella. “I’m always online, always e-mailing, always making calls.”

The Internet is also her venue for connecting with friends and exploring photography, a hobby she wants to get into. It is also a passion she shares with her mom and dad who are Internet celebrities in their own right. For them, PLDT MyDSL’s unparalleled 10Mbps allows work and “play” online without worrying about per-kb charging in excess of data cap, and without slowing down the Internet speed of those who share the same Internet connection.

Ronnie (top) and Ida Henares (above) with their children

Although it may be easy to refer to him as Mr. Lea Salonga, Robert Chien, on the other hand, is definitely a man of his own. Rob, to most who know him personally, is president of Ambient Media — a one-stop shop for media and entertainment, offering animation, audio and video, and even orchestra solutions to the Philippine movie industry and beyond. Rob and Ambient undertook the ambitious project of creating RPG Metanoia, the first Filipino-made full-length 3D animated feature, which won the Third Best Picture award at the 36th Metro Manila Film Festival in 2010.

At 40, he gets to live his dream through his job in Ambient, which gives him room to explore his creativity and to flex his business muscles at the same time. Rob’s work in Ambient involves a lot of communication — calls, file sharing, conferences, e-mail and research — and often through different time zones. This is why high-speed Internet is one of the must-haves in his life. “The Internet has totally changed my life,” says Rob. “When I need to listen to a song or watch a video for work, I do it on the Internet. No need to have a CD recorded then picked up from somewhere. You can send large chunks of information real-time without having to leave the house.”

PLDT MyDSL’s 10Mbps speed suits such lifestyle. With reliable Internet connection, Rob gets to watch movies on his laptop, play games on his game console or iPad, and get news and information in real time with zero hassle.

It has done wonders for Rob’s family life as well. “Our family likes to bond,” says Rob. “We go to the mall, take Nicole to the playground, play games, video games. Every now and then one of us has to be away for work, and we keep in touch through the Internet.” When Lea is abroad for work, which happens most of the time, they’re constantly online for video calls. Isn’t that sweet?

Meanwhile, it’s one dynamic and vibrant unit that the Henareses have. Parents Ida and Ronnie and children Stephanie and Christian lead a lifestyle of quality time and activities.

Ida, head of GMA Artist Center (GMAAC), has a calendar-full of commitments. She often multi-tasks to keep in step with the work load but she never forgets to have her “me” and “we” time, too. Sundays are sacred to her because it’s when she usually watches movies, gets a massage, cooks, designs, reads books for leisure, dines with friends and family and so on. She always makes time for “real” vacations (as opposed to business trips), hammering out the details by researching on her beloved iPad. “While at it, I e-mail, Skype, book tickets, shop online,” she reveals. “These things, they enhance my lifestyle. I don’t go online just for business, you know, though I do that a lot, too.”

Mariella Laurel (second from right) with parents Ayen and Franco and siblings

Ronnie also keeps an open communication line with his family. He goes online lots of time. “I e-mail a lot, search the web every so often. I use the Internet to check on my artists schedules using Google calendar, researching on items I intend to purchase, searching the Net for information that helps me achieve tasks I need to do and checking news.”

Stephanie has taken after her parents when it comes to living life to the hilt. Aside from work and pursuing activities for self-improvement, she makes time to de-stress and recharge by engaging in various sports and hobbies (e.g. swimming, rock climbing) and hanging out with friends and family, even if but “virtually” at times. “I constantly check tweetdeck on my phone and on my laptop. When I’m online it’s the first thing I do. Then I look at my mail for work, and Facebook for friends. I Skype with my friends and family abroad, and play Call of Duty Modern Warfare with my friends as well. I download apps for my phone, upload videos I need to send for work, play online…”

Christian, on the other hand, is into video productions and graphics. He is busy video editing plugs/advertisements and taking on audio-visual projects for TV5. “I am also into motion graphics, graphic designing, and directing,” he volunteers. He likes watching movies and television shows, reading comics, playing video games and doing research online. “I look up things that help with my craft. The Internet is a great gateway to gaining knowledge and information, and performing different and numerous kinds of transactions,” he says.