The Ilocos Times

( Second of three parts ) By Noralyn Dudt No, democracy has not died.   While it's flawed and failing in many parts of the world, it has been going strong in places like Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany,   New Zealand, Canada and several others.   While there are other nations that rank high on the scale like Taiwan, Japan and South Korea, I would like to focus on just   four at this time—ones that I am most familiar with as I have met and known people from these nationalities. As I have mentioned in my recent article, the EIU has given high ratings to Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Germany. Just what makes these countries unique? Geography? They are all in northern Europe—the Nordics they are called. Religious background?   Eighty-five to 95% of their population are of the Lutheran faith. Monarchy? Yes, except for Germany, they have kings and queens but no longer ruled by them. Again, It might be difficult to gauge just how these factors influence their relative suc

5,037 farmers received P5,000 cash assistance from DA By Dominic B. dela Cruz   (Staff Reporter) City of Batac —The city government here is pilot testing the “walk-behind transplanter, one of the latest agricultural technologies at Brgy. San Pedro, this city. Batac Mayor Albert D. Chua said they began this by turning over one unit of the said transplanter to the San Pedro farmers. Chua added that this is a part of the city’s farm mechanization program wherein the equipment is expected to lessen labor cost as it reduces work load and ensures uniform spacing and plant density. They based the   adoption of this technology, according to the mayor, as an offshoot of a techno demo conducted by the Philippine Rice Institute (PhilRice) which the farmers witnessed and gathered its importance. The city government then purchased one of the said equipment and chose San Pedro as its pilot barangay for the project. The use of the transplanter supplants the usual use of four to six labo

Filipino-American Hollywood celebrity chef Vallerie Castillo-Archer with Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Manotoc. By Leilanie G. Adriano Staff Reporter LAOAG CITY—Filipino-American Hollywood celebrity chef Vallerie Castillo-Archer is back in her homeland in the City of Batac City, Ilocos Norte after more than three decades in the US. Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc welcomed her at the airport, with a huge welcome tarpaulin waiting for her. The two earlier met at the posh Yamashiro restaurant in Los Angeles, California on July 15, 2022 where she works as the executive chef. In a short interview at the airport, Castillo-Archer said she never expected to become the first Filipino executive chef at the iconic Hollywood restaurant but her passion for food and cooking brought her there. Literally born inside a bakery owned by her grandfather in San Nicolas town also in Ilocos Norte, Castillo-Archer described her childhood as "the best,” referring to how she enjoy

  In Celebration of the 73rd Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China By Sun Weidong, Acting Head of Post & Consul Consulate of the People's Republic of China in Laoag October 1 st , 2022 is China’s National Day, the 73 rd anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Over the past 73 years, China has made great achievements in the development of various undertakings and China-Philippines cooperation has achieved fruitful results. On behalf of the Chinese Consulate in Laoag, I would like to take this opportunity to extend our warm greetings and good wishes to people from all walks of life, overseas Chinese, Chinese-funded enterprise personnel, Chinese students and Chinese communities in the consular district.   New achievements in China's development In 2022, with the complex and ever-changing international situation, the human society has faced challenges continuously and consistently. Even so, under the stro

  BBM's INSPIRATION. President-in-waiting Ferdinand Marcos Jr. visits the grave of his father former President Ferdinand E. Marcos on Tuesday (May 10), a day after the national elections that show him winning by more than 16 million votes over his nearest rival. The young Marcos is grateful to the Filipino people for giving him the landslide victory and to his father who  have  been his inspiration throughout his life and taught him the value and meaning of true leadership. (Photo: BBM Media Bureau) By Noralyn Dudt Ferdinand Marcos Jr. the newly-sworn in president of the Philippines won the presidency by a landslide. To some people in the United States, countries in Western Europe, and Japan, this is difficult to imagine as the only "news" they have been receiving from the mainstream media and social media have been that of a dictator, Imelda's shoe collection, and martial law. To the majority of Filipinos, especially to those 31 million voters who voted for him, F

By Noralyn Dudt Conclusion The Augustinian friars   must have been a very dedicated group of apostles. Such dedication is exhibited in the   still standing churches of the Ilocos region. The friars would build a church in one town and then use that as a center for evangelization of the surrounding area.   Visitas or peripheral missions they were called. The church in Bacarra was such a center --to reach the most   northwestern tip of Luzon Island : Bangui, Burgos,   Vintar. Pasuquin, Adang ( the current Adams) Banban ( now a barrio of Bangui) and Vera ( its new name unknown). The Batac church served as the center of the Visita to Dingras and Paoay. While the San Agustin Church in Paoay has been completely rebuilt and had made it to the World Heritage List,   it took some time to convince and motivate others to help with renovating the seriously-damaged   St. Joseph Church of Dingras. My good friend and former dorm mate Evita Castro de Alban wrote a piece about the St.Joseph Chur

(First in a series) By   Noralyn Dudt Of the four that are categorized as baroque earthquake churches in the Philippines and are  in the UNESCO World Heritage list,  two of them are in the Ilocos region: the San Agustin Church in Paoay, Ilocos Norte and the Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion in Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur. Both the Paoay church and Santa Maria church were built in portions throughout a century, started in  1694 for Paoay; and the Santa Maria in 1618. Father Antonio Estavillo, a friar and an architect incorporated many Baroque features in the design and made sure these structures would withstand the elements. The San Agustin Church in Paoay, Ilocos Norte  The Augustinian friars were the founders and first apostles of the Catholic faith in the Philippines. They were instrumental in establishing the first Catholic missionary settlements throughout the archipelago especially in Northern Luzon. The missionaries were led by the navigator and Augustinian friar Andres de Urdanet