Found this interesting piece of information in a travel guide about Filipinos’ unique body language. Tell me if this is true:
Filipinos signify ‘Yes’ by raising the eyebrows or lifting the head upwards slightly. The hand movements which mean ‘Go away’ to us signify ‘Come here’ in the Philippines.
The thumb and middle finger are not used to indicate numbers. Instead of pointing with your finger, indicate discreetly by pointing pursed lips in the direction you want.
One hisses to gain attention, for example, when calling a waiter in a restaurant. When you want to pay the bill, draw a rectangle in the air with your index finger and thumb.
If Filipinos don’t understand a question, they open their mouths.
More than 30 years ago, there was a day when the world’s attention was glued to Manila. According to contemporary historical sports accounts, the event - the boxing championship fight between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier - is ranked as of the greatest fights of the 20th century boxing.
The fight called “Thrilla in Manila” had also placed Manila (and Philippines) in the world’s boxing map - if for anything else.
Here’s an excerpt of a Wikipedia page on the event:
The Thrilla in Manila is the third and final famous boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier for the Heavyweight Boxing Championship of the World, fought at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines on October 1, 1975.
The bout is often ranked as one of the greatest fights of 20th century boxing, and is the climax to the bitter rivalry between Ali and Frazier over who was the legitimate Heavyweight Champion. That situation came about after Ali was stripped of the title over his refusal to join the armed forces when drafted during the Vietnam war. Some years later after repeated weekly prodding from Ali, Frazier petitioned President Nixon to restore Ali’s right to box thereby bringing about the so called Fight of the Century between two undisputed heavyweight champions in 1971.
During the whole period between their first and their last face-off in Manila, including the years which preceded the restoration of Ali’s right to fight, Ali had used his wit, sharp tongue, and position with the press to take characteristic verbal pot shots at Frazier (as was his practice with all opponents—and which made good copy and controversy) but these became controversial and at times ugly, after his loss in the fight of the Century, and this verbal battery heated the rivalry into new territory.
The Thrilla in Manila was the rubber match between two aging heavyweights.[1] Both boxers battled each other into near incapacity, and Frazier’s trainer determined he should stop the bout after the fourteenth round, so the decision went to Ali as a technical knockout (TKO). The early and middle parts of the fight were close, with spectacular ebb and flow, and in the later rounds things gradually swung Ali’s way in the scoring for any likely decision. The final match up between Ali and Frazier was ultimately detrimental to the health of both fighters. The first fight in 1971 between these two pugilists went fifteen rounds and the second fight going 12 rounds, which were both similarly hard on the participants.
The Banaue rice terraces are part of the Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras and are a leading tourism destination in the country.
The rice terraces are considered the “Eight Wonder of the World” and are a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The rice terraces start from the base of the mountain range and reach up to several thousand feet high. Their length according to some estimates if put end to end would be equivalent to half the size of the globe.
Built about 2,000 years ago, the rice terraces are demonstration of the engineering skill and ingenuity of the early inhabitants of the area. Streams and springs found in the mountains were taped and channeled into irrigation canal that run downhill through the rice terraces. //Sources: National Statistical Coordination Board, Cordilleras; UNESCO
