Sprinto at WU Fest 2013

Wazzup Pilipinas!

WU! Manila, a new magazine in town has officially launched its brand through WU Fest 2013. As what they always say, whether you're fresh off the plane or a balikbayan rediscovering your beloved birthplace, WU! is here to help you find out Whats Up in Manila. Or should we say, what's awesome about Manila! And that's what they did! They've promoted anything and everything awesome about Manila through remarkable entertainment such as the bamboo bike display, yummy food -- not necessarily all Filipino but the hospitality made all the difference, and live music from talented Filipino underground artists.

And speaking of awesomeness; one booth in the said fest that caught everyone's attention is the Sprinto booth that sells awesome collection of shades. The standouts would be their Manila, Tokyo, and a new model with wood temple called Shenzhen.

Sprinto is fast gaining popularity in Manila because of its stylish yet functional collection of shades through its iDefine polarized lens and iShock polycarbonate lens features. According to its Marketing Director, Pawlo Misolas, “We believe that shades should be fashionable, protective and affordable and I think that we’ve got the right balance of all three.”

Chinese Merchant Families: Flexible and Border-Crossing Practices as Adaptive Strategies in Spanish Philippines

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Changing names, transferring resources, adopting sons, intermarrying with local women--these are just some of the "flexible" and "border-crossing" practices that Chinese merchants and their families have adopted over centuries as a way to adapt to or circumvent colonial and national policies to control their bodies, resources, mobility, and identities.

Richard T. Chu is Five-College Associate Professor of History at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He has published various articles focusing on the history of the Chinese and Chinese mestizos in the Philippines and centering on issues of ethnicity, gender, and nationalism.

He is also the author of Chinese and Chinese Mestizos of Manila: Family, Identity, and Culture 1860s–1930s (E.J. Brill, 2010; Anvil 2012) and Chinese Merchants of Binondo during the Late Nineteenth Century (University of Santo Tomas Press, 2010).

Lifebit: Capturing Life’s Moments Via Mobile

Wazzup Pilipinas!

 “We make documenting life addicting.” With this simple statement, Eric Clark Su sums up what new mobile application Lifebit is all about.

Eric, the co-founder and CEO of Twidle, Inc. which developed Lifebit, wants an exciting and extraordinary mobile diary that is a far cry from the usual tedious type which contributes to about 95 percent of online journals being abandoned in the first four months of use.

Lifebit makes journaling a delight through a game-like system of scoreboards, creative editors, and quests that levels up passion badges.

“We boiled down the essence of the best games, injected it into the old boring journal and came up with an experience – a sort of game layer on top of one’s life. We can capture life’s moments freely through photos, doodles, text, and later on, even through video and link them to Twitter, Facebook, and Tumbler wherever we may be,” said Davao-based Eric who leads a 13-man team.