Are you “IN”?

Are you in?

Iyan ang tanong ko sa iyo ngayon? Masasagot mo? Kung sasabihin mong hindi ka “in”, mabuting bata, nagsasabi ka ng totoo. Kung sasabihin mong “you are in”, anak nakikita ka ng Diyos… you’re a BIG LIAR!

Nasabi ko iyan dahil marami sa ating mga Pilipino ang wala pa sa uso. Akala ko ba lahat tayo updated sa mga ganyan. Bakit naunahan pa tayo ng Europe na super “in” na ngayon, di dahil sila ay fashonista o may bagong high-tech gadget, kundi dahil lahat sila ay NAKAPAGSASALITA NG WIKANG USONG-USO SA BUONG MUNDO.

ESPERANTO ANG TINUTUKOY KO, BABY! Siguro you’re wondering dahil NGAYON MO LANG ITO NARINIG. Nababasa ko na sa iyong isipan ang mga katagang “WHAT’S THAT?” o “ANO IYAN?” Anyway, ang Esperanto, tulad ng English ay isang wika. WIKA. Yun nga lang malaki ang pagkakaiba nito sa ibang mga wika. DAHIL ARTIFICIAL LANGUAGE ITO. Artificial. Ibig sabihin, gawa lamang ito ng iisang tao na lumawak sa buong Europa at naging isang trend.

Ang Esperanto ay ginawa ni L.L. Zamenhoff, isang ex-Polish noong (kung hindi ako nagkakamali) 1887. Naging sikat ang Esperanto simula pa noong WWII at matapos ang ilang dekada, umariba ito sa US, Latin America, Brazil, China, Japan at sa ibang parte ng Africa. Sa kasalukuyan, Esperanto ang wikang ginagamit ng mga kabataang Pranses, Italyano, German at Espanyol dahil para sa kanila, “IN” ang sinumang nakapagsasalita ng ESPERANTO. Noong nasa France ako, ang mga kasing-edad ko ay ESPERANTO ang ginagamit sa kanilang batian, kuwentuhan, pati na rin sa mga gimik. Madalas mong maririnig sa kanila ang mga salitang “Saluton!”, “Bonan Matenon”, “Bonan Vesperon”, “Kiu estas via nomo?” at marami pang iba. Kung ikaw na Pilipino at walang kaalam-alam sa Esperanto, tiyak na discriminated ka. Sa Italy naman, ang alternative sa wikang Italian ay ESPERANTO. Kung wala kang alam sa Italian maliban sa Ciao, e puwede ka pa rin nilang asikasuhin by speaking Esperanto with them. By the way, kung mag-aaral ka sa France, Hungary, Italy, at sa ibang parte ng mundo, Esperanto is included in their curriculum.

Dito sa Pilipinas, palagi tayong updated sa mga new trend. Bakit hindi natin gamitin ang Esperanto, sa school man o sa gimik? Esperanto is the language of all. Kung palaging nasa uso ka, try to speak in ESPERANTO. Dagdag pogi/ganda points iyan! And you are ready to face Europe for better jobs!

I’m sure you’re in!

JENNIFER BARRIENTOS: Philippines’ Angelina Jolie!

What are your interests and what do you enjoy doing the most?
I love watching movies, dining out, and having coffee with my family and friends. I also love going to the beach to engage in water sports like jet skiing and scuba diving. I enjoy playing volleyball and basketball during my spare time. I like to surf the net and chat with friends. I also like going to the mall to window shop and drive around to relax.

What is your career ambition?
I love fashion and want to pursue it as a career. My ambition is to be top model for the world’s most celebrated designers. I want to travel the globe and work with creative people.

What is your proudest personal accomplishment?
Aside from representing the country in this pageant, graduating from college would have to be my proudest personal accomplishment. I worked hard, finished with flying colors and made my parents extremely happy.

What is something unique that has happened to you; some interesting thing about you?
My younger sister and I went to the same school, from preparatory to high school. The school was just 15 minutes away from our house so my mom would send us off to school on bikes.

photo and interview courtesy of Miss Universe Official Website

photo courtesy of Binibining Pilipinas Official Website

CLAUDIA MORO: Spain’s Lucky Girl!

What are your interests and what do you enjoy doing the most?
I love to practice sports, especially dancing. I love traveling all over the world and discovering new cultures. I also like meeting new people and studying law.

What is your career ambition?
I want to be a lawyer, and I am a Law and Economy student.

What is your proudest personal accomplishment?
I am very proud of many things, and one of the most important things is to have the best family I could have had, because they love me and they give me their support in everything I need.

What is something unique that has happened to you; some interesting thing about you?
People who know me describe me as a natural and happy girl, independent and someone who loves traveling and learning new things.

What do you want the judges to know about you?
That I am very happy and very proud of being one of the contestants of Miss Universe, and I want to do my best because it is a unique opportunity in my life to learn new things, to know different people and, why not, to win Miss Universe 2008 Pageant.

photo and interview courtesy of Miss Universe Official Website

ELIZA NAJERA: Miss Mexico will feast your eyes!

  

 

What are your interests and what do you enjoy doing the most?

 
I’m always interested in exploring, developing skills and participating in activities where I can feel useful helping others. My passion is dancing; I feel it is a different way to express myself. In the future I would love to open a school and share my time and experience giving dance lessons, especially to kids. I believe in sharing what is loved the most, that’s how I give my best. Another passion I have is cooking. It is an area where I can explore my creativity and combine it with what I have learned during my studies on food chemistry. I have also taken some gastronomy courses and I would like to study more about the subject. I specialize in desserts, but oriental food is my favorite. What I enjoy doing the most is traveling and learning from all cultures and ways of life. I have traveled mostly to the United States and within my country, which is incredible because there is too much to admire, but I dream of seeing the rest of the world.

What is your career ambition?

 
To finish my studies in Engineering in Food Industries. I want to create my own business in this area with my family. I‘m fortunate to have my mom who is a chef, and shares my dream of combining our knowledge; her‘s in gastronomy and mine in food chemistry, in order to create new and interesting products to sell in our own restaurants. I think there is a big challenge in the food industry; we have to start thinking in ways to make nutritious, economic and delicious food instead of the unhealthy, and over processed food that we are used to eating nowadays.

What is your proudest personal accomplishment?

 
One of my proudest accomplishments has been representing my city and my state in national dance competitions; my group won third place. I’m also very proud of when I helped organize major events in my school, such as conferences. The most important one was a chemistry symposium in which I was in charge of the communications and social area. It was a nationally recognized event that promoted the interest in technology and science, with internationally recognized speakers and thousands of participants.

What is something unique that has happened to you; some interesting thing about you?

 
During my experience as Miss Mexico, I have had the opportunity to assist in some personal development courses. A very interesting one is called “the power journey” and it takes place in Teotihuacan pyramids, an amazing and historical place where our first ancestors lived, the Toltecs. It is said that this place is charged with energy that’s why they do it in there so you can receive it. Since the first moment we got there, there was a woman that captured my attention. She was about 50 years old and had a very sad look. Someone let me now that she had cancer and she only had a one month to live. During the course we went inside the pyramids so we could get in contact with some spirits; for me it was hard to believe in that, but the instructor told me that I should try it. I tried to focus and I just sat waiting for anything. After one hour I started feeling cold and I started to hear a women’s voice; she was trying to say something which I had to be open to receive in order to be reborn, and in that moment I freaked out; I didn’t understand it. After living through that, every person talked about their experience and the woman with cancer told us that she heard a woman‘s voice just like the one I heard saying that I had to be willing to be reborn. I was surprised about that. Someone else heard what I thought had been just a dream. The instructor told us that maybe that had meaning related to her illness and he knew a possible way to relieve her. We got together and simulated a human tunnel so she could pass across it. When she got out of it, everybody was crying and there was something new in her eyes. Time passed, the course finished and I didn’t understand yet what had happened there. A month ago I got the news that she had no signs of cancer. I believe she was reborn and that it was because she mentally decided to do it and also because all of us gave her life with our energy. It sounds weird but I understood how powerful our minds can be.

What do you want the judges to know about you?

I am willing to learn and work hard and I‘m never afraid of change. I truly believe that success is for those who dare.

photo and interview courtesy of Miss Universe Official Website

MISS UNIVERSE 2008 PREDICTIONS!!!

oh YOU TOUCH MY TRA-LA-LA!!!

This July 13, another grandslam pageant will be won! After Riyo Mori surprising crowned as Miss Universe 2007, there will be another surprising event in Miss Universe 2008!!! Live in Vietnam!!!

New Crown for Miss Universe 2008

The Miss Universe Organization announced today that CAO Fine Jewelry (a line of the renowned Phu Nhuan Jewelry (PNJ) company in Vietnam) has created the coveted 2008 Miss Universe crown.  The winner of the 2008 Miss Universe® Pageant, which will broadcast live on NBC July 13th from the Crown Convention Center in Nha Trang, Vietnam, will be crowned with the masterpiece which was designed by Rosalina Tran Lydster of Jewelry by Rosalina and Ms. Dang Thi Kim Lien of CAO Fine Jewelry.

The crown, valued at $120 thousand dollars, is made of 18K white and yellow gold. It is comprised of over 1,000 precious stones; including 555 white diamonds (30 carats), 375 cognac diamonds (14 carats), 10 smoky quartz crystals (20 carats) and 19 morganite gemstones (60 carats). The colors of the jewels chosen for the crown have great significance. The yellow luster of the gold represents the prosperous thriving economy in Vietnam. White, light pink and cognac are the main hues in the crown which represent inspiration and feeling.

TOP PREDICTIONS

MISS UNIVERSE 2008

Eliza Najera

(Mexico)

Siyeeet! I was mesmerized with this woman! Too seductive. I’m tempted to kiss her especially in her lips. Eliza Najera maybe compared to Lupita Jones, Miss Universe 1991! So lupeeeeeeeeeeet!

1ST RUNNER-UP

 

Dayana Mendoza

(Venezuela)

Venezuela did it again! Dayana is a good catch to represent Venezuela. She has the body and face to become Miss Universe 2008 1st Runner-up. I like her eyes. It makes her beautiful.

2ND RUNNER-UP

Ingrid Rivera

(Puerto Rico)

God! I’m burning! Ingrid Rivera put me into fire! This beauty from Puerto Rico already proved her beauty during Miss World 2005, won as 2nd runner-up. Now, I think she will take again the 3rd place due to her beauty and charisma. I like her!!! Puerto Rico is also a good catch.

3RD RUNNER-UP

Crystle Stewart

(USA)

Wooooow!!! Tantalizing Crystle Stewart is also a good catch! She has the potential to become beauty queen. Her perfect body makes her above from others. I love her!!!

4TH RUNNER-UP

Simran Kaur Mundi

(India)

Totally hottie! Simran is India’s one of the beautiful delegates since Lara Dutta, Miss Universe 2000. Her eyes, lips and perfect curves earned her points. Super delicious!

FINALISTS

Jennifer Barrientos

Philippines

Laura Dundovic

(Australia)

Zana Krasniqi

(Kosovo)

Laura Tanguy

(France)

Samantha Tajik

(Canada)

feast your eyes!!!

photo credits: Miss Universe Official Website