Halad Sa Kinaiyang Sugbuanon

This musical extravaganza which is also Dr. Gullas’ tribute to his late parents,Don Vicente Gullas and Doña Josefina Rivera-Gullas, will also give honor and recognition to Cebuanos who made a name in the field of music such as the late Domingo “Minggoy” Lopez;   Manuel “Maning” Lopez; Dr.Francisco B. Maningo; Max Surban  and Ciriaco “Cacoy” Cañete (founder of the local martial arts known as arnis which is now internationally known and practiced) in the field of martial arts.

Another noble and worthy project of the former  Congressman of the first district of Cebu, Dr. Jose  “Dodong” R. Gullas, will take place on Saturday, March 15, at the Cebu International Convention Center. Dubbed as “Halad sa Kinaiyang Sugbuanon” (Tribute to Cebuano Heritage), Dr. Gullas’ dream and main objective of this very significant event is to reawaken the Cebuanos, young and old, to our traditions which are fading and sadly unknown to the youth, such as the harana (the singing usually by a male of a love song directly to a woman he is in love with. It’s a sort of a courtship by way of a song); pamalaye (an act, usually by the parents and close kin of a man formally talking to the parents of the woman he intends to marry asking for her hand in marriage);  kulilisi sa hari (a witty verbal debate performed in rhymes usually done in a neighborhood gathering during a wake). All these acts will be performed live by some students of the University of the Visayas in order to give the audience the feel of what all these are all about.

This musical extravaganza which is also Dr. Gullas’ tribute to his late parents,Don Vicente Gullas and Doña Josefina Rivera-Gullas, will also give honor and recognition to Cebuanos who made a name in the field of music such as the late Domingo “Minggoy” Lopez;   Manuel “Maning” Lopez; Dr.Francisco B. Maningo; Max Surban  and Ciriaco “Cacoy” Cañete (founder of the local martial arts known as arnis which is now internationally known and practiced) in the field of martial arts.

The internationally-acclaimed University of the Visayas Chorale will again perform that night together with well-known Cebuano singers Erlinda Dajao, Jaime Salazar, Novo Bono Jr., Al Comendador and David Calero who will render the favorite Cebuano songs from way back.

I doff my hat to you, Dr. Gullas, for this interesting event which promises to be a night to remember and thank you so  much for this brilliant and noteworthy project! Cheers and see you all there!

Doctor de ja vu!

He is not just your ordinary Tom.  He is Tom, the medical technologist who just recently passed the American Medical Technology exams with flying colors.  He is Tom, the medical doctor who selflessly dedicates his time to public service as a professional doctor assigned at the Isidro Kintanar Memorial Hospital in the Municipality of Argao.  He is Tom, the diminutive “baby boy” with a dynamite personality — small but irresistible, petite but full of fun from puns, always laughing, forever singing so that even tears, copious tears, make for a perfect chaser over shots or rhum, whiskey or brandy!

And so it was when Doctor Tom Hofer, of the famed and landed gentry from Mindanao, celebrated his birthday at De Ja Vu with his doctor friends flying in from the States, rushing from their respective clinics and hospitals while Argao buddies egged on the Ceres bus to chase the wind lest they be late for the doctor’s special celebration.  De Ja Vu weaved magic on the place with roses and one-of-a-kind foliage materials that turned the evening into a garden of friendship!  The bar’s Ted and Chad must have lost a hundred pounds lording it over de ja vu’s kitchen and coming out with a superb offering of chicken in chilli garlic sauce, pan fried pork belly in Mernacille Dagaugh Sauce, Pasta de Tuna Caliente, and a Spring Roll surprise that Ted refused to say whether it was cat’s meat, lamb, pork, beef, vegetables or elephant’s hide that gave it a special umami flavor that gourmands would truly die for.   

Doctor Tom, a regular at De Ja Vu, where he, along with partner-in-performance Vince Escario, would just launch into sudden and inspired stand-up performances of broadway hits, to current pop tunes, to old kundimans to comical skits that would have other customers bend over in laughter, was a picture of contentment and pure joy that night.  Having found his chosen career well in place and having found the right mountain rhythms to accompany the ever erratic beats of his heart, he left De Ja Vu by whispering just one question: How Do You Keep The Music Playing?

For those who know Doc Tom well enough, truly it was de ja vu all over again!