Greetings from Pais Vasco

All jet-lagged from her East Coast trip a few days back, Wander Iggy's dainty feet started itching again. And it's not athlete's foot. :) Waking up on an early Saturday morning in Amsterdam, we trudged our heavy human-sized baggage and headed South er... North, in the land of pintxos, the Nervion river and Euskera.

Bilbao is the capital of the province of Biscay, an autonomous community in the Basque province. Formerly a heavy industrial town, this metropolitan area was transformed--revitalized, as they describe it. Usually associated with the 'Guggenheim Effect', the city delivered beyond the iconic structure's symbolic association by winning the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize (reads: the Pritzker of Urban Planning) at the World Cities Summit in May 2010.

More Pictures, hopefully soon. :)

XOXO
Wander Iggy and the Becky

This city will be Wander Iggy's home por seis meses. 

El Museo de Guggenheim. This makes for Miss Iggy's second Guggenheim museum 

and second Gehry sighting. This picture was taken from the other side of the river. 

Can you see the Maman as well? 

Just across the Guggenheim is our new hang out: the University of Deusto. 

Oh my, that's a very big gracht. :)

'Gee, he's not a puppy anymore.' :) Or, as the Spanish call it, el perro. 

Miss Iggy at the Q Parade

 Miss Iggy was able to watch the University of Santo Tomas' Quadricentennial Parade in Manila!

The University is celebrating its 400th year anniversary this year, and one of the highlights of the week is a grand parade that shows the different cultural influences during its existence.  The parade started from the UST Campus in Manila and went around the University Belt area.  Streetdance participants from neighboring schools Far Eastern University (FEU) and the University of the East (UE) joined in.

 Students from the Faculty of Arts and Letters waving their college color balloons in front of their building.

Mmm Jollibee breakfast!  Food was provided for the parade participants.  Here, Commerce students have their fill of Chickenjoy by the Quadricentennial fountain.  Behind them, swathed in blue tarp, is the Quattro Mondial, a sculpture by National Artist Ramon Orlina, which will be unveiled on the following day.

 Miss Iggy poses by the Q balloons...

 And with her new friends, a group of Medical Technology students!

 Showing off the retro-themed look (Brother Seminarian looks very thrilled)

The College of Tourism and Hospitality Management has a fiesta theme (Miss Iggy is the one who's thrilled this time--she likes this boy!).

According to the Swatch Man,

 There are only two days left until the Grand Celebration.  Good morning!

One of the many banners around the campus that cheers Miss Iggy and makes her proud to be Thomasian!

Each float represents a century of UST's existence.  Riding the floats are Mr. & Ms. Thomasian Personalities.

Fray Miguel de Benavides, OP, on the float.  He's pointing to where they're going (to FEU!) .  :)  There's an old joke that when one fails studies in UST, he/she can ask Fr. Benavides for guidance on what to do or where to go next.  And he points there...

 Orange umbrellas in full force, the College of Education proudly passes the gate onto the main road.

Miss Iggy's seminarian friends!  :P  The Ecclesiastical Faculties is considered the Quadri celebrants.

 Meanwhile, in the next century...

The talented kids from the Conservatory of Music!

Becoming more and more "modern"...

Here come the AB students!  (Miss Iggy has a bias for AB because some sisters of the 'hood came from this college.:) )

 

Asian theme.

The College of Science in light blue Vietnamese ao dai and nón lá.

Lovely Filipinas.

Fiesta! Fiesta!

Such a cute character.

Oh! Oh!  Here comes the current century!

This has got to be the most meticulously-made float of all. Witwiw.

The College of Fine Arts in Design holds a *special* place in Miss Iggy's heart!

A sea of yellow--it's the College of Commerce!

Architecture students show off their model buildings--that's the Sto. Domingo Church at the left!

And finally, the Quadricentennial Float.  But...hmm Miss Iggy was not impressed at all.  Aww.  Maybe next century, eh?  ;)

Watching the Q Parade was truly a memorable experience for Miss Iggy, and she was glad she lives in this century!  Until the next!  :)

Miss Iggy in D.C.

Formally known as Washington, District of Columbia, this historic city is also the capital of the United States. It is not part of any US state, therefore directly overseen by the Federal Government. With this heavy fact in mind, Miss Iggy just can't help but exclaim "IKR"--i know, right. D.C. is roughly 4 hours away from New Jersey (factor in a Chick-fil-A stop in Maryland), so imagine Wander Iggy's initial reaction when told that we're driving this very long to go to 'The Mall'. 

The National Mall of course is not your regular mall. It's a very large open area in the centre of the city. Walking around, at one end is the US Capitol. (above)

In the middle is this phallic symbol  the Washington Monument.

And in the other end is Lincoln Memorial, where Miss Iggy paid a visit to her good friend Abe.

Reminiscent of 'Night at the Museum 2', we visited some of the museums. 

Among them is a Miss Iggy favourite--the Air and Space Museum.

'Is this outta here or what?'

 Hamming it up with Panelomo at the Smithsonian

 Our last stop is at the White House. Miss Iggy had to make a courtesy call, of course.

By the mosque

Sandy Iggy had her first photo by the mosque last weekend. We emphasize the "first" since we can anticipate a collection of snapshots and angles of her with the plenty of mosques in the UAE. This one is beside St. Joseph Church, a Catholic church where Sandy Iggy hears the mass.

In Kaniza area in Abu Dhabi, near the Al Khubairat British School, you will find the catholic, protestant, orthodox churches and a mosque few meters apart from each other. This goes to show the freedom (and respect) of exercise of faith in the lower gulf.

While Sandy Iggy had seen mosques in and out of the UAE, she has never been inside any of these. She looks forward to experiencing the Grand Zayed Mosque where non-Muslims are allowed. Soon.

Big Meetup in the Big Apple

2011 kicked off with a meetup between Jersey Iggy and Wander Iggy (formerly known as "Singapurple Iggy") in New York City! It's the second Iggy Meetup ever to occur in the City That Never Sleeps! Wander Iggy left her Singapore nest to fly to Amsterdam and then to New Jersey just in time for the holidays! From Amsterdam all the way to a city formerly known as "New Amsterdam" where a Holland Tunnel exists--The Becky thought that Holland is hot on her heels!

Here they are in Brooklyn Bridge, one of the most iconic structures in the Big Apple!

The Iggy sisters noticed that a little trend is forming a chain on the bridge...Fortuitous Faery likes to call them Padlocks of Passion, similar to the "Love Locks" seen in Cologne, Germany's Hohenzollern Bridge. Sweethearts declare their love and the fact that they reached Brooklyn Bridge by attaching padlocks with their names and sentiments etched on it, thereby keeping the public structure graffiti-free. But are they legal?

Miss Iggy was happy to meet The Becky and loco-for-Lomo husband Panelomo. They are such a fun couple to photograph! Here they are beneath the Bethesda Terrace in Central Park.

After a day of subway-hopping fueled by burrito bowls and cheesecake, they parted ways in Grand Central Terminal. Wander Iggy will wander off to Spain soon. Jersey Iggy can only hope for the best for her country-hopping, scholarly sister.

Marhaba from Abu Dhabi!

Marhaba (that's Hello in Arabic) to everyone especially to the sisterhood! Miss Iggy has finally landed in the sandpit. During her first weekend, she attended a photography workshop. It was an interesting day since she learned a lot of basic techniques from the maestro, Jay Alonzo. He's one of the leading photography workshop instructors from the Philippines, who has been teaching for 14 years now. It's interesting to shoot when there's no auto controls and post-processing in your mind:

And who would have thought that on her first photography workshop, Miss Iggy will be commended for this snapshot-turned-into-artshot? :)

Next week, it'll be about food photography!