Sights of Negros

17/10/2026

🎉 CONGRATULATIONS AND HAPPY BUGLASAN 2026! 🎉

The excitement continues as Negros Oriental celebrates its culture, traditions, and local talents at the Buglasan Festival of Festivals 2026!

Congratulations to Bais City and its Hudyaka Festival of Harvests, which successfully defended its championship title! 🏆

👏 Congratulations as well to all the participating cities and municipalities:

🥈 2nd Place: Dumaguete City – Sugid Sayaw Festival of Stories
🥉 3rd Place: Tanjay City – Bodbod Festival
🏅 4th Place: Bayawan City – Tawo-Tawo Festival
🏅 5th Place: Mabinay – Langub Festival

Special congratulations to the winners in the other categories, including Bayawan City, which earned several awards, and all the talented performers who made this year's festival memorable!

Buglasan is more than a competition. It's a celebration of the creativity, hard work, and community spirit that make Negros Oriental special. ❤️

From all of us at MIRACLE WASH LAUNDROMAT, congratulations to all the participants, organizers, and winners!

Happy Buglasan, Negros Oriental! 🎊

20/09/2026

Motorcycles are everywhere in the Philippines – and behind them are countless small repair shops keeping them on the road.

In our latest Hidden Working Life video, we visit several motorcycle shops in Negros Oriental, from small roadside workshops in Zamboanguita and Dauin to a larger shop in Dumaguete.

We see wheel alignment, a tire being repaired over an open fire, everyday repairs in a rural workshop, and new spokes being fitted into a used motorcycle wheel.

No staged scenes – just a look at everyday work as we found it.

🎥 Motorcycle Shops Along the Road
https://youtu.be/fswUL9bSx8E

|Motorcycle repair shops are part of everyday life in the Philippin...

14/09/2026

A Morning in a Philippine Barangay

The video is now online! 🎬

What does an ordinary morning look like in a Philippine barangay?

In Cesile, children arrive at school on foot and by motorcycle, teachers make their way through the gate, and everyday life around the school is already in full swing.

There is Dominga and her Torta, mothers gathering under the bamboo shelter, a motorcycle carrying a rather unusual passenger, freshly cut Kalamungay attracting plenty of attention – and all the little unscripted moments in between.

Nothing staged. Nothing polished for tourists.

Just everyday life in a Philippine barangay.

👉 Watch the new episode of Life in a Barangay on PHILIPPINE MAGAZINE.
https://youtu.be/N8Qsi-ywInc

What does an ordinary morning look like in a Philippine barangay?...

10/09/2026

Breakfast time at the Painitan in Dumaguete City.

Before the public market gets fully busy, the Painitan is already alive. Hot coffee, tsokolate, p**o, budbud and other local breakfast favorites are prepared and served while people sit together, talk and start their day.

This is not a tourist show. It is simply a little look at an ordinary morning in Dumaguete.

No narration. No explanations. Just the sounds, people and atmosphere of the market.

🎬 Breakfast Time in Dumaguete – Philippines Atmosphere
https://youtu.be/S04ikslR1Og

Have you ever had breakfast at the Painitan in Dumaguete?

Early morning at the Painitan, the traditional breakfast area of th...

05/09/2026

🏹 ARCHERY IN DUMAGUETE – MORE THAN JUST SHOOTING ARROWS
Today is Saturday – and there is a good chance that some of the archers featured in this video are back on the range again.
A few days ago, I spent some time watching and filming the archers at their training session here in Dumaguete.
From beginners learning the basics to experienced competitors shooting at the longer distances, everyone has their own story and their own way of approaching the target.
Among them is coach Rowel Merto, a Dumaguete archer who competed for the Philippines at the 1988 Olympic Games and later became a trainer.
What I especially like about archery is the concentration. No shouting, no rushing – just the archer, the bow, the arrow and the target.
🎥 The new video is now online on YouTube.
If you know any of the archers in the video, please tag them in the comments. And of course, feel free to share the video with your fellow archers and friends.
Good luck on the range today – and always keep your eye on the target! 🏹🎯

ARCHERY IN THE PHILIPPINES – Learning from Rowel in DumagueteArch...

23/08/2026

How 4 kg of Flour Become 120 Shakoy

Before sunrise, in a small family bakery in the mountains of Negros Oriental, Dominga is already at work.

Normally, she starts around 3 o'clock in the morning. For us, she waited until 5 so that we could film the entire process.

There are no machines here.

Four kilograms of flour and the other ingredients are mixed by hand, the dough is worked and portioned, and the individual pieces are shaped and left to rise.

Then they go into a large wok filled with hot oil, heated over an open fire.

Dominga uses two long, thin sticks to turn and remove the Shakoy from the hot oil.

And we counted them:

120 Shakoy – and three quarters – from 4 kg of flour. 😄

The little bakery is much more than just a place where food is prepared. It is part of the family home and everyday barangay life. Chickens wander through the open doors, family members take care of the animals, and even a washing machine and a large water container share the space with the ovens and cooking equipment.

I filmed this morning as quietly and naturally as possible, letting the work and the sounds of the place tell the story.

🎥 Making Shakoy by Hand – 120 Filipino Fried Pastries from 4 kg of Flour

👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=joYYqfZl_BE

And a special thank you to Dominga and her family for welcoming us into their home and allowing us to share a little piece of their everyday life.

Making Shakoy by Hand – 120 Filipino Fried Pastries from 4 kg of Fl...

14/08/2026

Baking with Fire – Marita’s Traditional Tortahan

What does a small Filipino bakery look like when there are no mixing machines, no baking trays and no temperature-controlled oven?

I found the answer in a tiny roadside bakery in Barangay Maluay, Zamboanguita, Negros Oriental.

Marita makes her Tortahan entirely by hand. Small pieces of dough are placed on banana leaves and baked in a simple oven heated with burning coconut shells and glowing embers. There is no thermometer telling her when the bread is ready – Marita simply knows from years of experience.

Smoke, fire, banana leaves, fresh bread, customers and friends dropping by – this is a very different kind of bakery.

I filmed Marita at work without narration or explanations. Just watch and listen.

🎥 Baking with Fire – Marita’s Traditional Tortahan

👉 Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1G4d8InKJB8

Baking with Fire – Marita’s Traditional TortahanIn a small roadsi...

02/08/2026

A new episode of my documentary series Philippine Barangay Life is now online.

This time, we spend an evening with a small fishing community in Purok 3, Barangay Masaplod Sur, Dauin, Negros Oriental.

Before the fishing even begins, Arthur and Dodo walk to a dry riverbed to cut fresh grass for the family's cattle. The heavy sacks are carried home, ready for the next morning. Only then do they prepare their small outrigger boat and head out to cast the fishing net.

The catch is small, but every fish matters. As darkness falls, children gather around the bucket to see what the sea has provided that evening.

No narration. No staged scenes. Just another evening in the everyday life of a Philippine fishing community.

I hope you enjoy watching.

🎥

As the day slowly comes to an end in a small fishing community in B...

30/07/2026

Many people visit a public market to buy fresh food—but have you ever noticed the small services that keep the entire market running?

In this episode of my Inside a Philippine Public Market series, I follow some of the hardworking people behind the scenes. From water delivery and beverage suppliers to charcoal vendors, knife sharpening, watch repair, tailoring, cocoa processing and cooking oil refilling, these everyday services are an essential part of life at Dumaguete Public Market.

These are the people who help vendors and customers every day, often without attracting much attention.

📍 Dumaguete Public Market, Negros Oriental, Philippines

I hope you enjoy this glimpse into another fascinating aspect of everyday life in the Philippines.

▶️ Watch the video here:
https://youtu.be/A81KeoKv7Y8

Every public market depends on more than just buyers and sellers....

26/07/2026

This is the beginning of a new documentary series on PHILIPPINE MAGAZINE.

Philippine Barangay Life takes you beyond the tourist attractions and into the everyday lives of ordinary Filipinos.

The first episode, Morning Routine, was filmed in Purok 3, Barangay Masaplod Sur, Dauin, Negros Oriental. As the sun rises, roosters crow, breakfast is prepared over a wood fire, water is pumped by hand, animals are fed, and children begin their walk to school.

No narration. No staged scenes. Just the quiet rhythm of everyday life.

I hope you enjoy this new series.

What does an ordinary morning look like in a small Philippine baran...