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"Ad Jesum per Mariam" - "To Jesus through Mary"

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Marist Alumni Basketball League Marikina, Rizal, Philippines. June 23, 2013. Watched my old classmate Ray Abenojar play in the Marist Alumni Basketball League at Marist School's new gym. We were classmates through Grade 3. The rest of the photos from the MABL are at  https://ph.pinoybuilt.com/2024/06/marist-alumni-basketball-league.html .  "Ad Jesum per Mariam" is a motto that translates to "To Jesus through Mary" and is a favorite maxim of St. Marcellin Champagnat , a Marist Brother . The motto summarizes the relationship between Jesus Christ and Mary, and St. Marcellin wanted to demonstrate how the message would spread around the world. To illustrate this, he would use an apple to represent the earth and run a needle through it, with the end of the needle emerging in what would be the Pacific in relation to France. This is said to be an example of how the Marist Brothers have a presence throughout the Pacific, including in Australia and New Zealand.  Ad Jesum ...
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Location: 83 Champagnat St, Marikina, 1810 Metro Manila, Philippines
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Sunset: Starfish Sandbar: Port Barton, Philippines

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Starfish Sandbar near Port Barton during sunset. This pic was taken at Starfish Sandbar near Port Barton during sunset. Port Barton is a barangay of San Vicente town in Northern Palawan. Taken with a Samsung Galaxy phone. by Ray Abenojar
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Location: San Vicente, Palawan, Philippines
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Travel: Vertigo Rooftop Bar at Banyan Tree Bangkok

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VERTIGOooo! The view is awesome and the place gets full pretty fast, so come before the sun is on the horizon! Have a drink or two, dine with the family, friends or your special someone and take in the breath-taking panorama! Experience this and more at the Vertigo Rooftop Bar of Banyan Tree Bangkok . Jojo and Ray (at vertigo-inducing) 61 floors above Bangkok. Watch 'Take 5 Tour' - Vertigo Bar Bangkok Reaching for the clouds at Vertigo and Moon Bar on the 61st floor of the Banyan Tree Hotel is one of the best ways to end a long day in Bangkok , Thailand . There is no lack of rooftop bars in town but Vertigo has always been amongst the favourites. With an unusual narrow and elongated shape, the entire top of the building is occupied by both the bar and the restaurant and gives the unusual impression of being aboard a spaceship in the sky. Located on Sathorn road, a very large busy avenue peppered with tall glass and metal skyscrapers and not far from the Lumpi...
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Location: Bangkok, Thailand
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Bagnet Magnet @KwentongBagnet

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If munching on the perfect, crispy-fried slice of pork belly is your thing,  KWENTONG BAGNET offers different dishes based on this double-fried marinated meat with origins from the Ilocos region! My divemates and I had a great time trying out the many items the Masinsinan branch had to offer. A good read on an empty stomach If you can't decide on what to eat, try the Bagnet Platter and get three dishes in one order! A pork lover's dream All smiles from a great meal and the hospitality of owner Jeff Tuason (in pink). KWENTONG BAGNET in Masinsinan Street opened just a few months ago.  They recently opened a branch in Sct. Fuentebella Street to serve more guests.  For more info, check out  https://www.facebook.com/KwentongBagnet/ . Ray Abenojar
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Location: Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
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Dining: Fat Daddy's Smokehouse, Marikina Heights

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C'mon, let's eat! Recently, I brought my friends to a cozy restaurant called FAT DADDY'S SMOKEHOUSE in Marikina Heights .  It has 4.7 stars (out of 5) on its Facebook page . Words are not enough, just take a look at the photos. Ray Abenojar Yes, we love to eat! Fat Daddy's Smokehouse has a 4 star rating (out of 5) at  Zomato.com . Check out the menu . Read more reviews for Fat Daddy's Smokehouse here .
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Location: Marikina, Metro Manila, Philippines
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Happy Birthday Mama Mary!

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The Philippines celebrates September 8 , the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary with an amazing devotion to her.  Masses are held in every Catholic church in the country.  Some parishes hold processions with carosas (floats) carrying different statues/images of Mother Mary . Photos below were taken at the Diocesan Shrine and Parish of Our Lady of the Abandoned in San Roque, Marikina City. Ray Abenojar
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Location: Marikina, Metro Manila, Philippines
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Travel: Seattle - 'Veni, Vidi, Venti'

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Here I am where it all started 45 years ago for Starbucks - Seattle !  Whoever thought they'd be famous all over the world?  And they still use the old logo in this store! VENI, VICI A VENTI - Ray Abenojar Starbucks Founding The first Starbucks opened in Seattle, Washington , on March 31, 1971 , by three partners who met while they were students at the University of San Francisco : English teacher Jerry Baldwin, history teacher Zev Siegl, and writer Gordon Bowker. The three were inspired to sell high-quality coffee beans and equipment by coffee roasting entrepreneur Alfred Peet after he taught them his style of roasting beans. The company took the name of the chief mate in the book Moby-Dick : Starbuck, after considering "Cargo House" and " Pequod ". Bowker recalls that Terry Heckler, with whom Bowker owned an advertising agency, thought words beginning with "st" were powerful. The founders brainstormed a list of words beginning with "...
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Location: Seattle, WA, USA
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Travel: 'Banff National Park' Alberta,Canada

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Lake Louise in Banff National Park. Ray Abenojar 2015. Lake Louise (Alberta) Lake Louise , named Lake of the Little Fishes by the Stoney Nakota First Nations people, is a glacial lake within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located 5 km (3.1 mi) west of the Hamlet of Lake Louise and the Trans-Canada Highway (Highway 1). Lake Louise is named after the Princess Louise Caroline Alberta (1848–1939), the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and the wife of the Marquess of Lorne , who was the Governor General of Canada from 1878 to 1883. The emerald colour of the water comes from rock flour carried into the lake by melt-water from the glaciers that overlook the lake. The lake has a surface of 0.8 km2 (0.31 sq mi) and is drained through the 3 km long Louise Creek into the Bow River. Fairmont's Chateau Lake Louise, one of Canada's grand railway hotels, is located on Lake Louise's eastern shore. It is a luxury resort hotel built in the early decades of the...
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Location: Banff, AB, Canada
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Ray Abenojar shows Ronnie & Manny his moves back in the day

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Mga kabayan galing Marikina Ray, the world traveler, is back in the USA. Benicia, CA. April 13, 2016. Ray: to comment on the site, please sign up at disqus.com . Mas malakas ba ako sa yo kesa kay Mark Zuckerberg? Let's chat it up here. I need a few pennies to put my kids through college. FIL-AM. FILIPINO/FILIPINA-AMERICAN.  Click on any photo above to enlarge, Use left/right arrows to navigate. Please drop us a comment below. 🙏🏽 Help us grow Pinoybuilt to be the number one  Filipino-American  online community in California, if not the USA. 🇺🇸  Please click  this to follow www.pinoybuilt.com . 🤙🏽 Thank you! 👊🏽 Maraming salamat po kabayan. 🇵🇭 ✌🏽 Pinoybuilt uses  Disqus  as the commenting system because it prevents spam, but also because it connects our various sub-sites like  LA.pinoybuilt.com ,  HI.pinoybuilt.com ,  AU.pinoybuilt.com  &  PH.pinoybuilt.com . Comments help a website go viral (and make $$$)...
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Location: Benicia, CA, USA
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Marist School batchmates came by the house - June 29

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 Kwentuhan from 2-3 PM.
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Ray & I visited Jeff Delos Santos

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After Antipolo and Greenwich Pizza on the corner of Molave, Ray Abenojar brought me to Boeing's Gym then to Lime St to visit Jeff Delos Santos. All three of us went to Marist School, Batch 1983.  Ray and Jeff attended Marist from Prep through high school.  Of course, I left after Grade 3 when I migrated to the USA with my family.
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