This Boy's Life

Treasure Find

Remember how I said that lately, I've been really loving magazines as reading material. Well, I was at a grocery store recently with Richie, and while he was paying the stuff he bought, I was looking at the different stalls at the entrance of the grocery. I accidentally found a magazine rack and I just got all excited when I saw how much the very recent back issues of US Vogue, among others, were.

More than 50% off!!! US Vogue, which usually sells for 500 to 600 pesos was being sold at 100 and 150 pesos!!!

And these issues are as recent as May 2005.

Heaven!

I would definitely go back to this grocery store.

You can also get half-priced foreign fashion magazines at CA Comm and Mio Magazine outlets.

Delivery Boys

Wednesday and Thursday were devoted to delivering the new Icon to some National Bookstore branches, and to the LGBT icons we have featured in the magazine.

It was really tiring because we had to go to Quezon City, Makati City, Pasay City, and Manila City.

But when we get calls or text messages from the people we featured telling us how much they loved the feature, how great the magazine us, how we've done it again, so to speak, all the tiredness just seems so worth it.

Thank you very much to all the people who have worked to make this issue of Icon yet another great one - the writers, the stylists, the makeup artists, the models, the sponsors, the advertisers, the artists, the Icon staff, and everyone else. Great job everyone!

Now that we've felt that "high" with the release of the fourth issue, let's go back to reality and start working on the next issue of Icon.

Out Now



Finally, after weeks and weeks of waiting...

The 4th Issue of Icon is now out in the newsstands.

Please, please, please, support us and buy the magazine - whether you're straight or gay, I guarantee you'll learn a thing or two from the magazine.

While involved in all sections, the two below are my special "babies" in this issue.

Check out the power bags fashion editorials. FFrom Fino to Paul Smith, I'm sure there's a bag you'd like.

But most importantly, make sure you check out and read our very special feature on the out and proud "icons" of the Filipino LGBT community.

I feel that this is the best issue of Icon so far.

Don't believe me?

Then go get your Icon now and you be the judge.

(Almost)Heaven on Earth...


Punta Fuego: Kinda Reminds You of "The O.C."


At the Country Club: View from Below


At the Country Club: View from the Top


Gorgeous View


Gorgeous Pool


Beautiful Beach


Beautiful Sunset


Photos Galore

While discussing the next issue of Icon last Saturday afternoon with Hunski, Richie and Suki, Hunski receives a text from Omar. Omar and Mark were going away for the long weekend and they invited us to join them. Mark said that the place they got was big enough for four people. We didn’t have to pay for the accommodations, so Xochi just offered to bring his car and drive and we also offered to bring food and drinks. Woohooo!

After the Starbucks meeting, Hunski and I went to my house just to pick up some clothes and we then went to his home, where I slept over.

The following morning, we woke up early to prepare the food. At nine a.m., we met with Omar and Mark in Makati. After buying some more stuff from the grocery, we all got into the car and began our trip.

Our destination: Punta Fuego in Nasugbu, Batangas.

The drive to Punta Fuego was so fun. We were just talking about work, Icon and singing Rent, Tick Tick Boom, Wicked and other Broadway songs playing from the
car’s CD player. Haha! If Dr. Doom were there, I swear Dr. Doom would say, “That’s too gay.” Hahaha! Anyway, I knew Punta Fuego was a nice getaway, but I didn’t expect it to be the very, very nice place that it was.

The country club has little villas called “casitas” and that’s where we stayed. The whole trip took about two hours but when we got there, it was so so so much worth
it!!! Awww! My jaws just dropped because of the very, very, very beautiful place and the view. I was just transported to another world. Kinda reminds you of the TV show "The OC," doesn't it? Haha! I didn't get to bump into Benjamin Mackenzie, Adam Brody or Mischa Barton, but I did see Dominic Ochoa. Hahaha!

The village had (almost) everything to entertain its guests. There was a tennis court. There was a golf course. There were water recreation activities. There was a spa. The pool was fantastic. And then you can go down to the seashore and take a romantic walk. Aww! I swear it was really great, considering that it is in the Philippines.

So basically, what we did at Punta Fuego was relax, enjoy the breathtaking view, the beautiful houses, take long walks, swim by the pool, walk by the beach, and I finished Noel Alumit’s book.

The following day, we just went around the place, before leaving that very, very beautiful place. Augh! I wish we could have stayed longer but that would be too much. Hahaha! My only complain about Punta Fuego is that it’s such a family-oriented place. Gay men would only enjoy it for the view and the facilities. We tried going out during the evening, looking for a bar where we can have cocktails but then, we were informed the country club doesn’t have a bar. Bummer!

Getting to have this short break was so much good. The timing was really great. We just finished all the hard work with Icon, and I just can't think of a better thing to do to relax than this.

So thank you Mark and Omar for inviting us.

That's how my long weekend went. I hope you guys had a just as great weekend, or hopefully, even better.

Getting Political...

Today, Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo delivered her State of the Nation Address (SONA). And so many people were unsure whether she would be able to deliver her speech because of all the protests asking her to step down, and all the other political drama happening in the past few weeks. I'm not really one who watches the SONA but having enrolled in a journalism class, I've begun to read news more often and keep track of what's happening.

I'm required to watch the SONA because I have to write a news story from the points that the President will raise in her SONA. Her speech contained the same issues - education, poverty, economics, national security. The only two items in her speech that stood our were the following:

a.) the recognition of the provincial local government units, which have, for the longest time been supporting the country's economy and yet the people here in the center seem to not take enough notice of the efforts of the provinces. I agree with Pres. Arroyo when she said, "Perhaps it's time to take the power from the center to the countryside that feeds it."

b.) a call for Charter Change from a presidential unicameral system to a parliamentary/federal system. I'm not that familiar with how the new system being proposed functions, but if it will make this country take off and continue to move upward, then I think we should go for it. I just hope that those power hungry people in the government, whose positions will be threatened by this new proposed government system, will not take steps to suppress the suggestion of the President. And if they do take suppressive actions, I hope that they will be conquered.

According to news reports, the President's speech was given five standing ovations and 33 audience applause. I think that's good considering that the speech was very, very short. (It was her shortest SONA, according to news reports)

Oh well, enough about politics.

Gotta Have...



Oh gawd!

Madonna is on the cover of the August 2005 issue of US Vogue.

I think I'll skip going out this weekend to just get a copy of this must-have issue. (When I say must-have, I'm speaking to fellow Vogue and Madonna followers.)

Thank you Chari for this info.

Back from Marinduque...


Marinduque, Here I Come


The Pier in Balanacan, Marinduque...Notice the Huge Virgin Mary Statue


Schools in the Countryside


Despite the Hardships...Still Striving to Learn


A Nice Old House


More Old Houses


Dwarfed by the Governor's Office


The Volunteer


Here are some photos from Marinduque.

It was fun, but a bit tiring. But still, it was fun. We left Manila Sunday night, and arrived at Dalahican in Quezon around midnight. From there, we had to take a ferry that'll take us to Marinduque. The ferry leaves at four a.m., so we had to wait inside the ferry.

We arrived at the Balanacan pier in Marinduque around 6 a.m. From there, we took a 20 minute trip to Boac where the Department of Education (DepEd) Division Office is. At Boac, we met with the DepEd coordinators about the Training Program that Pahinungod will conduct in October.

From DepEd in Boac, we took another trip to Cawit. We visited the Cawit National High School, where the training will be held. As you can see, the public high schools in the countryside are nowhere as close as the private schools here in Manila. It's really depressing, and saddening. The good thing about being exposed to these realities is that one realizes that there is a need to do something. And by being a volunteer, one is already able to do a lot of difference.

At 4 in the afternoon, we boarded the boat once more to go back to Quezon. The trip this time was much slower, since we took a different boat. (The trips going to and from Quezon are not that many so your choices are very limited.) From Quezon, we took the trip back to Manila and arrived here close to midnight.

And now, here I am once more. Hehehe! I really enjoyed the trip because first, I've never been to Marinduque, second, because I always get a high when I see the rolling mountains, the sprawling fields, the farmers, and third, because I got to meet a lot of new people. I guess I also enjoyed it because I saw the resilience of the Filipino people. Though they may be faced with problems left and right, several still try to laugh and survive in the situation they are in.

Oh well, that's basically how my trip went. I hope you guys had a good Sunday and Monday too.

So Hard to Say... So Enjoyable to Read...



Alright, I've just finished reading Alex Sanchez's So Hard to Say. Thanks to Zand Man for giving me a copy of this nice book.

Since I didn't have much to do this afternoon, I decided to do a little writing and I thought I can share my thoughts about the book.

Here it is.

Alex Sanchez’s latest offering “So Hard to Say” can be described in four words – So Enjoyable to Read. Just like his first other two novels – Rainbow Boys and Rainbow High – So Hard to Say is a great addition to the teenage section of gay literature. As a mid-twenties young professional, “So Hard to Say” is the book I wished were available when I was going through teenage years. That would have saved me a lot of time from crying, questioning myself, thinking that I am that something’s wrong with me, and all the other drama questions LGBT teenagers go through.

While I enjoyed So Hard to Say, I have to say that it didn’t hit me as much as the first two pieces of Mr. Sanchez. Here’s a couple of reasons why I feel this way.

First, I feel that So Hard to Say was targeted towards a younger reader crowd compared to the readers of the Rainbow series. It was much easier to read and the situations, the emotions, the attitude of the characters remind the adult reader of his/her freshman or sophomore years in high school. On the other hand, the Rainbow series undoubtedly is closer to the younger adult crowd primarily because the context of the Rainbow series is in the junior/senior year high school.

Second, I feel that the story will initially give the readers the feeling that things were left hanging and wanting to know what happened after the revelation of Frederick to Xio. Did they continue to become friends? Did Xio turn out to be Frederick’s fag hag? Did Frederick come out to his parents? Did Frederick come out in school? How did Frederick survive in school? And I guess one of the things that a lot of the readers want to find out is, what happened to Victor and Frederick’s friendship?

Though the reader could have asked these questions, spending more time in discussing these things will give one answer. The answers to the questions above can somehow be found in the Rainbow series. There is a similarity in the context of So Hard to Say and the Rainbow series, and had Sanchez continued with the story of Frederick and Xio, the reader would probably find himself/herself brought to the situation of Debra and Jason, Nelson and Kyle, which is not something new.

Thus, this is probably the reason why Sanchez gave the kind of plot that So Hard to Say has.

Still, So Hard to Say is a book worthy of being picked up and given to the young reader. “Start on them young,” that’s how the saying goes, right? So Hard to Say is a good way of opening young minds to the diversity of human life. It just might be an effective tool to help tomorrow’s generation to be more tolerant and more accepting of the LGBT community.

So Hard to Say should be included in the reading list of every high school in the whole planet.

Check out the book here.

Dr. Doom

Just when you though that several years of friendship would be enough for a person you called "friend" to accept you, still you are surprised because it turns out they haven't and couldn't accept you for who you are.

Dr. Doom and I have been friends since my college days. Though we belonged to different colleges, we had a good and solid friendship. Before I graduated, I came out to Dr. Doom. According to Dr. Doom, I'm still his very good friend. Dr. Doom moved to another country to pursue further studies. We continued to keep in touch. When Dr. Doom visits the country, we make sure we get to hang out. On Dr. Doom's last visit, we hung out but I noticed some distance and awkwardness. I thought I was just overanalyzing things. It turns out I'm not. When Dr. Doom headed back abroad, I sent an email asking whether something was wrong. For a long time, I didn't receive any reply.

Until a few days ago, Dr. Doom sent me an email, which confirmed the thoughts in my head.

Apparently, Dr. Doom told me that the reason for the distance was because I'm "too gay" sometimes. One good thing about Dr. Doom was the humility to admit failure in the attempt to be open-minded about things. Conservatism still flowed in the veins of Dr. Doom, that's what was mentioned in the email. And because of this whole realization, Dr. Doom suggests that we accept the reality that there is a distance and that "the closeness is not the same anymore".

The good news is that I can still count on Dr. Doom whenever the road gets bumpy. Again, that's what was written in the email.

I don't know how to react after reading the email. I have several questions in my head, but I don't know if there is any point in asking them. For starters, what does Dr. Doom mean by "too gay"? I want to write back, "Maybe you're just too straight." Haha! Let's see what reaction Dr. Doom would give. How can someone accuse a person of being "too gay" when they've hung out for only two times in the last two years?

The part which I find most amusing is the fact that Dr. Doom says we would still be friends and that Dr. Doom would be there when the times get rough. What does this mean? I can talk to Dr. Doom about all of my problems, except anything, anything that has got to do with being gay.

This whole thing is just confusing, and though I would usually choose to ponder on things like this for hours and hours, I don't think I would do that in this case. I have more important things to do.

I still haven't replied to the email. I don't know if I would. I don't know if I should. One thing's for sure. Someone cut off the friendship we had because of the fact that I'm different.

Here's to my first taste of discrimination. :)

To Marinduque and Back...



One of the nice things about being a volunteer is that you get to go to places.

In about two hours, I will begin my trip to go to the province of Marinduque.

Wooohooo! I've never been to that province, so I'm really, really excited. When I found out that Pahinungod (my old office) will be having an ocular site at the province for the Teachers' Development Program to be held this October, I asked my former officemate Jean if I could tag along. After bringing up the matter with the Pahinungod director, Jean told me I could go accompany her and a professor. Yay! One reason why I was also allowed to join the trip was because I handled the Teachers' Development Program several years ago, so I'm sure I'll be able to help out.

Anyway, for those who wish to know more about Marinduque, it is a heart shaped island located in the southeastern portion of Luzon. It is beside Mindoro Oriental. Legend has it that the original name of the province was "Malandik," which was taken from the highest peak in the province, Mt. Malindig. However, when the Spaniards came, the conquistadores found it hard to pronounce the name, hence, they called the island Marinduc. Eventually, it became Marinduque.

If there is one thing that Marinduque is very much popular for, it is the Moriones Festival. The festival takes place during the Holy Week, and features masked men called "morions." The men are dressed in costumes that are similar to the uniform of Roman Soldiers. The highlight of the festival is during Easter Sunday when the story of Longinus (dunno who he is) is reenacted.

After surfing the Net, I learned more about the province. There were several nice tourist spots in the province such as beaches, caves, hot springs, among others.

I'm not sure if I'd get to go around this is official business, and we'd be heading back to Manila tomorrow night(!!!). But if you do plan to go out of town soon, maybe you can consider going to Marinduque instead of the usual Puerto Galera or Baguio.

Exciting Saturday Morning...

How exciting can your Saturday morning be?

I was walking to my college this morning to attend my Journalism class. From a distance, I saw my former professor standing by the road. Then there were also groups of students out of the college, hanging out at the parking lot. I thought they probably have a field trip or something.

So I continued walking and was about to enter the college when university policmen suddenly called my attention and told me to go away. I looked around and it was then that I noticed that they weren't allowing any people to go inside the college. So I turned around and began to look for my classmates and my professor. When I found them, it was then that I found out what the reason was.

A student received the following text message last night, "The UP College of Mass Comm will explode tomorrow between nine to ten a.m." The number was unregistered in the student's phone, and when the student tried to call the number, the cellphone was already turned off.

After a couple of minutes, the college dean arrived. And then, the police bomb squad also arrived. It was close to nine in the morning, and not wanting to put the safety of the students and the faculty at risk, the dean suspended classes for the entire day.

How exciting can your Saturday morning get?

Another Entertaining Story...

Here's another entertaining story.

In case you dunno yet, we have a new layout artist. His name is Dave. But that's not the news.

The news is he's straight. As in the "Dude pare, wha's up?" kind of straight guy.

I dunno what made him take the job, but we at Icon are so, so thankful he took the job because at least, we can guarantee an ounce of "straightness" in the deisgn and layout of the magazine (Aren't you just dying the see the new issue? Hahaha!)

Anyway, here's a funny incident last week.

Suki and I were dictating the corrections in the proofs to Dave. After he puts in the correction, Dave then transforms the layout in to a PDF file, so it is now ready to be sent to the printers.

We were doing the corrections by section, so Dave was saving the files by section. When he started saving, the file format was something like this, "12_15_quickies.pdf;" or "44_45_cruising.pdf;" or"50_51_workit.pdf"

Everything was going well, when suddenly Dave saved one of the sections in this file format, "20_21_PL.pdf" (PL for Performance Level). When he saved it that way, I kind of stirred a little and was a little bothered by it. I told myself, "Let it go. It's just a friggin file name!"

In the next file formats, Dave saved the files again the original format he was doing. So that Performance Level file was the only one that wasn't similar to the other files.

I already managed to let go of the issue when Suki suddenly said, "Dave, can you rename the performance level file and make it similar to the other file names?"

When Suki said that, I laughed out loud and told him that it was also my concern. Clearly, I wasn't the only one who was bothered by that really, small thing. Hahaha!

Dave then had a funny look on his face. He must have thought, "You gayS! You're so O.C.!"

Haha! I hope Dave doesn't get annoyed with us in the long run. There'll be more situations like this in the future. I'm sure.

And welcome to the Icon family!

We Work Super Duper Hard For You


Icon People

It's 12:27 a.m.

We're here at Richie's house doing the final touches on the magazine. GA and Ivan are working on the visuals. Xochi and Suki are proofreading. Richie and I are waiting for the proofs to arrive.

For the past couple of days, we have been spending long, sleepless nights at Richie's putting together the magazine. I'm sure everyone feels tired, but you just see everyone working really hard, perfecting the magazine. No one minds even if it is already two or three in the morning. Everyone has one goal in mind.

To produce the best Icon that we can produce for our dear readers.

Yeah, yeah. It may sound like some ploy used by companies to get buyers to purchase their products, but you have to be part of the Icon team to see that when we say, 'We work super duper hard for you,' we really mean it.

Alright, enough of that.

If our schedule will be followed (and it should be), you should be seeing the fourth issue of Icon this weekend, or early next week.

Nigella...I Mean, Ni-Gemma...


Move over Nigella. Here comes NiGemma.

Here's an entertaining story.

I was at Richie's a couple of days ago. We were doing some Icon work, when Gemma approached Richie and asked what she would be cooking for dinner. Just a little backgrounder, Gemma is the ever reliable, ever hardworking, ever funny househelp of Richie's. Without her, the Villarin siblings would go hungry. Hehehe! Just kidding.

Going back, Gemma was showing the menu made for her for the week. On that specific day, she was supposed to serve chicken for dinner. Usually, the menu has the page number and the name of the cookbook where Gemma would find the dish.

In this case, the problem was the page number wasn't there, and the name of the cookbook wasn't there too. Uh oh!

So Richie suggested that Gemma try to check the Nora Daza cookbook, but Gemma said she already checked it and it wasn't there. Next Richie suggested she try checking Nigella Lawson's cookbook.

And to our big surprise and entertainment, Gemma confidently replies, "Ay, ayoko sa kaniya, Kuya Richie. Maarte siya. Nagkukuwento pa siya." (Some translation (not literal): "I don't like Nigella's cookbook. She says too many things, and just doesn't go straight to the menu.")

Ay Gemma! Thanks to that comment, the super stressful night because of Icon work somehow became more light and entertaining, so thank you, Gemma.

I'm just not sure what Chari would say about this. Eeeek!

Magazine to Love...





Finally...

Here's a male fashion magazine to love.

V Man has been around for four issues now (the same as Icon) and it's really a magazine to love. Well, next to Vogue and to Harper's Bazaar. Hahaha!

I'm not sure if it was Edsel or Suki who discovered the magazine, but I'm sure a lot of men - gay, straight and undecided - who love Miuccia, Karl and the rest of the gang were singing hallelujahs when this magazine came out.

What I do like about it are the great visuals (and the paper...hahaha!). That's the main thing to love. But when it comes to articles, it's so-so. I still think that Vogue is the one that is able to give fashion lovers enough visual content as well as enough text to read. For Chari, I think it's In Style. Oh well, we all have our favorites.

Anyway, if you're a "visuals" guy, make sure you check out V Man. It's available at Magnet for P500.

Check out the official VMan site here.

Last

I swear, I'm such a sucker for these things.

Suki is the one to blame for this one.

Hahaha.

Last cigarette: Six years ago. In college, I just wanted to try it out. Never really liked it.

Last car ride: Sunday, July 3.

Last kiss: Uhm...

Last good cry: Like Suki, more like last good tear... last Thursday, Richie and I were watching Oprah's Wildest Dreams Come True. How can you not shed a tear?

Last Library book checked out: Melvin Mencher's News Reporting and Writing. Just this morning, for my Journalism class.

Last movie seen: Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Loved it. I missed so many new movies though. Waah!

Last book read: Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City. Loved it, loved it, loved it.

Last food consumed: Chicken Tinola ni Gemma. Taken from Nora Daza, not Nigella Lawson. I have to write this in another entry.

Last crush: Uhm...none

Last phone call: Yesterday. Edsel called.

Last TV show watched: Date Fight on the Lifestyle Network.

Last time showered: 7:00 a.m. today.

Last shoes worn: Black Square Toed Shoes that need replacement. Hahaha!

Last CD played: Michael Buble.

Last item bought: Some school stuff. Suki, just give the Jack Spade tote to me. Hahaha!

Last downloaded: Email photos.

Last annoyance: At a classmate who's too assuming...grrr!

Last disappointment: Too many...Haha!

Last soda drank: Sprite.

Last thing written: Writeups of inspiring individuals. So watch our for the next Icon!

Last key used: Don't have keys.

Last words spoken: "That's hot." Hahaha!

Last sleep: Last night.

Last IM: This afternoon, with a new friend living in LA.

Last sexual fantasy: Hahaha!

Last weird encounter: Several weeks ago.

Last ice cream eaten: Does Choco Fudge Sundae from McDonald's count?

Last time amused: This afternoon.

Last time wanting to die: Uhm...

Last time in love: I'm always in love.

Last time hugged: Can't remember.

Last chair sat in: Richie's chair.

Last time you went dancing: Pride Party at Government. That was fun!

Last show attended: Once on this Island. Great show. Grat songs.

Last web page visited: Suki's Blog.

Last fruity photo taken: Yesterday, at the photo shoot with Icon's next cover boy. It's TOO fruity, I can't post it. Hahaha!

I'm done. Your turn.

More Numbers

These numbers were reported by Inquirer's Alexandra Prieto last yesterday at the Corporate Social Responsibility Expo.

Just to give you a background on the Philippine media landscape.

89 TV Stations

328 AM and 317 FM Stations

11 National Daily Broadsheets

23 Tabloids

285 Prov’l Newspapers

350 M Text Messages Daily

35 M Cellphone Subscribers

Isn't it ironic? This country has so much media channels and yet, only a handful are able to produce good news.

It's sad.

Numbers



University of the Philippines System President Roman recently reported the following figures in a UP system newsletter.

It's actually interesting, whether you're from UP or not.

Here they go.

67, 419 - the number of students who took the UP College Admissions Test (UPCAT) for this school year.

11,427 - the number of students who passed the exams.

14,635 - the number of students who applied to the BS Nursing Program.

70 - the number of students who will be admitted to the BS Nursing Program.

83% - the rejection rate for the applicants.

66% - the percentage rate of female UPCAT passers.

26% - the percentage rate of UPCAT passers who are from Metro Manila.

41% - the percentage rate of UPCAT passers who will not enroll in UP.

Beauty & Brent Grand Unveil


Beauty & Her Brent


Beauty & Brent People

Saturday night was spent at two places - Dish at the ELJ Loop, and Conspiracy Bar in Visayas Ave.

The first event of the night was the Grand Unveil of the Makeover Winners of the Beauty & Brent promo of Watsons. I'm sure many of you have read about the promo on the papers, or have seen the absolutely nice television commercial.

Here's something interesting. Of the 10 makeover winners, two were guys! Woo woo woo! Way to go, Watsons people! Marketing Director Jill Mendoza shares an even more interesting tidbit. Guess how many times one of the guy winners sent in text messages just to win the event? One hundred, two hundred, five hundred? No. It's a whopping 9,000(!!!) times, people! And that's P2.50 for each text message. Whoa! Too bad, the guy couldn't fly to Manila to join the other nine winners.

Congratulations to Watsons, especially to the people behind this promo - absolute fab hag Jill, and absolute marketing man cum dancer, Bobby! Haha! And to the Watsons group, don't be surprised if you see more LGBTs in your wonderful stores these days. We love companies that love us.

From the ELJ at ABS-CBN, we headed to Conspiracy Bar at Visayas Ave. Folk artist Cynthia Alexander was performing that night. At Conspiracy, we met up with Mark, Omar, and Mark's best friend, Mao. It was a good show. Although we didn't get to see much of Cynthia, we got to hear her songs very well since the venue was small. The show ended around twelve midnight, afterwhich we went home.

It was a good Saturday night.

The Invasion Continues...


I have a GREAT job...

The invasion of South American hunks and beauties continues.

The Love Issue of Icon had Diego Dos Santos as the coverboy. While he looks like one of those ilustrados during the Spanish occupation, Diego is actually not Filipino but a kababayan of supermodel Gisele Bundchen. After Diego, the next guy to make temperatures rise in the city is Cedric Sandez. This Mexican model is hotter than the spiciest burrito! Ooops, erase those images from your mind, you naughty, naughty person! Cedric is the current face - well, more like body - of the Folded & Hung advertising campaign for the Illegally Low Jeans. I'm sure you've seen the billboards along EDSA and the South Super Highway, which could probably cause a vehicular accident. Hahaha!

The other model who's been capturing the eyes of several Filipinos is Bruna. Also, a kababayan of Brazilian bombshell Gisele. Where have you seen her? She's one of the beach babes in the Ginebra "Bilog ang Mundo" television commercial. She's on the cover of Circuit. And pretty soon, you'll be seeing her in the next issue of Icon.

When we shot her for the magazine, everyone just had an amazing time working with her. It's so easy to work with her, and I guess the fact that she is still young, (I'm not sure how old she is) you could actually feel her youthful energy and carefree spirit that it just rubs off on you. Either that or you're just really going to be enthralled by her beauty.

Some interesting tidbits about this super nice girl: She's the breadwinner of her family in Brazil. Someone mentioned that she is currently dating C2 Guy Govinda Lloyd. (Sorry guys!) She enjoys working in the Philippines so much that she doesn't want to leave. Lastly, back in Brazil, people actually tell her she's not pretty so she never gets booked for any modelling jobs.

Whoa! If Bruna's not pretty, then I dunno what pretty is.