This is a scene from Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice, staged by Tanghalang Pilipino. Here, Orpheus (Marco Viaña) returns to the underworld, clueless of the second death of his wife Eurydice (Lhorvie Nuevo). As memories are impermissible in the underworld, they can no longer recognise their bond in the living world nor feel the warmth of their short-lived love.
Photo by I.R. Arenas
A peaceful sight this is. This vast farmland, occasionally disrupted by limestone boulders, is part of a community supported by a tourism project in Barangay Tagabinet in Puerto Princesa, Palawan. This scene is taken atop the Ugong Rock formation.
Photo by I.R. Arenas
Every bridge straddling the Pasig River has its own character. This one is the sturdy Ayala Bridge, painted grey or silver. It has the ramp that leads to a hospice situated on a river island.
Photo by I.R. Arenas
The Philippines – long inhabited by the Austronesian people and had interacted with its Asian neighbours for thousands of years – got its name from a foreign royalty, Felipe II of Spain. Ever since its colonisation, its culturally scattered people have tried to determine their collective identity which is now muddled with the prevailing globalised culture.
Photo by I.R. Arenas
I consider the male restroom in UP’s Palma Hall one of the most pleasant I’ve seen: large floor area, naturally lit, and overlooking a quadrangle outside the awning windows. I always wonder if any “discharging” student is visible across the quadrangle.
Photo by I.R. Arenas
One problem of managing pedestrian traffic is the incongruence between traffic lights and signals. The pedestrians become impatient to get to the other side as the vehicles are also told to stop.
Photo by I.R. Arenas
You can see every kind of people inside UP, I was told. This one is taken outside the university’s Shopping Centre that is undergoing a refurbishment.
Photo by I.R. Arenas
People in oblivion: these lovers immerse themselves in deep fondness, while a passer-by is equally engrossed in his device.
Photo by I.R. Arenas
Into the woods: a student saunters in the open woods inside the Diliman campus of the University of the Philippines.
Photo by I.R. Arenas
Visual Tales 