My not-so-fond memories of passing through Jones Bridge were always associated with grinding traffic, so I never appreciated the bridge’s neo-classical design by architect Juan M. Arellano, nor the three arches resting on the two piers. First constructed in 1920 spanning the Pasig River to connect the Binondo district to Padre Burgos Avenue in Ermita, the bridge had undergone numerous reconstructions. The most tedious of them all was in the aftermath of the Liberation of Manila during the tail end of WWII. Another restoration was done in 1998, but still, the bridge remained an afterthought to most pedestrians. It was only in 2019 when Manila Mayor Isko Moreno injected twenty million pesos for a redevelopment of the Jones Bridge.

For two days, I experienced what it was like being inside an athlete’s village. Ever since I started following the Olympics, I had been curious about what it was like being in such a place. Fortunately, I was invited as part of a small media team to spend a night at the one the Philippines built for the 30th South East Asian Games, held at the New Clark City in Tarlac. Although that sporting event was a lot smaller in scale, I was hoping that we could further expand our sporting infrastructures so we could host the Asian Games and then the Olympics someday.

The renovated 1940 neoclassical Agriculture and Commerce Building wowed everyone when it reopened as the National Museum of Natural History in May 2018—thanks to an arresting design element addition. Not even a week later, social media was flooded with photographs of the museum’s imposing atrium, which resembled a DNA helix. Architect Dominic Galicia and interior designer Tina Periquet collaborated to bring the Tree of Life to fruition as the centerpiece of the museum.

Some of my fondest memories of Baguio City always included food—well, and the exceptional company I was with. There was Sarah giggling non-stop at Oh My Gulay, my former girlfriend Lauren giddily explaining to me the intricate elements of Spinach and Chicken Galantine at PNKY Café (now sadly closed), and the heavenly face of another former partner, Monette, as she finished her plate of signature lomo ribs at Canto.