Author:
Miss Bicolandia
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Date Posted: 02:55:29 03/11/09 Wed
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I know this is late but I still want to post it. :-D
THIS year’s pageant had been, I would suppose, the most looked forward to in years. Some compared it with the 1994 edition, and I can’t disagree, owing to the fact that it gathered some of the most stunning Filipinas. I followed the pageant from the very beginning since news about it filled the airwaves, the television, and most specifically, the internet. I surfed several pageant websites to read the opinions of various pageant fans—rabid and otherwise—who, like myself, share the same passion for pageants.
Anyway, after five years, I was back at the Big Dome to watch Bb. Pilipinas 2009. I was with the many fans of Candidate Number 20, the girl from my hometown, whom I watched compete in last year’s Miss Bicolandia, which she won.
Here is my take on some of the girls:
1. Carishiela Kujipers walked fluidly. She was focused especially during the evening gown round. Her gown, however, wasn't impressive that it didn’t do justice to her ability to ace that part. Anyway, despite rumors of her already knowing she hadn’t made the cut, Cai still did her best. And from a distance, I could see she was upset. Nevertheless, her small stature didn’t prevent her from getting attention.
2. I loved Diana Arevalo when I saw that video of the press presentation. I kind of hated her swimsuit presentation, but her walking during the evening gown round was superb, not to mention the fact that the gown suited her personality, the hairstyle, makeup, and that enigmatic face. I wasn’t surprised she was in the Top Ten. However, some may not agree with me on this, her nearly perfect answer to the question during the interview round came to me as rehearsed so the judges might not have felt her sincerity. Or is it just me?
3. Though not really my favorite, April Love Jordan impressed me with her strong personality and confidence. Hers wasn’t the best gown that night, but she knew how to walk well. I saw her compete in another pageant, and I must say she had taken good care of her nice figure, and her color is admirable. She seemed prepared for the pageant, but that is attributable to her wide array of experiences in the beauty pageant world. But did anyone notice that “annoying” right-to-left-and-vice-versa bending of the head while she walked? I thought it wasn’t nice.
4. Barbara Salvador zoomed her way to the top ten because of hard work and consistency, and for that I truly admire her. For me, she comes second, if not first, to Rich in terms of swimsuit competition. She also showed a lot of confidence, and if one is to talk about rapport with audience, Barbara had it and she used that to her advantage. Nevertheless, her nervousness during the interview portion was obvious.
5. I have the heart for provincial ladies, and for this year, it goes to Pricilla Mae Honorio, who deserves her placement. She was prepared, and this could be seen through her good figure, her confident walk. I also liked her answer. It was very sincere. She is my third Best in Swimsuit awardee.
The Top Five
Regina Hann—Second Runner-up
This girl defines the word “dark horse”. She barely made it to the lists of most pageant fans. I began liking her when I heard her speak during the press presentation. Being a language teacher, I put particular attention to how a contestant speaks, and right there, I thought she might crack the semis. Some say politics placed her in the top five. They could be right, but I would say she also worked hard. I believe she did very well in the preliminary round. She gave an excellent answer to the question. Her figure and catwalk were not total letdowns; moreover, she has a pretty face.
Rich Angalot—First Runner-up
In as much as I didn’t like her Top Five finish, Rich should have been named Best in Swimsuit. She was appealing. Her body was fine. And most of all, her catwalk was very good. Rich shone on the pageant night, especially during the swimsuit round. If there indeed was judging done during the swimsuit round, I’d say that the judges overlooked this girl. She was such a darling with that charming face. I wonder what her placement would have been if only she answered the question well enough. She was caught off-guard with that too simple question, but sometimes, questions like “What makes you blush?” or “What is your favorite color?” can be surprisingly tricky.
Melody Gersbach—Bb. Pilipinas International
I could be biased if I praise this girl for a job well done. At first, she didn’t appear attractive to some fans, hence the weak support. Yet, I was silently rooting for her. That Saturday night, she knew how to own the stage. She walked fluidly. I especially liked her evening gown presentation. And her beautiful skin, pair of lovely eyes, nice hair, and good figure were her aces. I can also say she improved a lot (I watched her on Miss Bicolandia pageant). I don’t know if anyone noticed it but she had the longest exposure during the swimsuit round (both in the VTR and on the stage that night). Having said that, however, I have qualms about how she answered her question. I thought that her answer was a circumlocution, although I think she did better than Rich.
The doll-faced queen will be a hit on her Miss International stint. I must say that among the three titlists, Melody has the most beautiful face. And though I have yet to see her MI competitors, I am confident she’ll deliver the goods.
Marie Ann Umali—Bb. Pilipinas World
Umali’s 2006 experience contributed to her winning this time. Actually, her joining this year received contrasting points, with more people saying this—again—wasn’t her year because of the strong contenders and because people hadn’t forgotten her disastrous 2006 performance. The girl has been crowned, anyway. She has a gorgeous face, a body to die for (but I wouldn’t die for it, hello!), and I must say she has also improved in many aspects. She deserved the award for the best in evening gown. Some say there seems to be “disproportionateness” in her body, but that is forgettable. Oh, she has eight months to work on that. I didn’t have to cover my ears when she began answering the question asked her, but she made it through. And for that I congratulate her. It wasn’t the best answer that night, but the fact that her sentences were close to being okay shouldn’t be overlooked. I also have high hopes for this 5’8” stunner.
Bianca Manalo—Bb. Pilipinas Universe
I can’t say much about her catwalk during the swimsuit round. It came to me as simple—not so good, not so bad. Contrary to popular notion, Bianca isn’t “big”. She is comparatively heavier than most of the girls, because, well, she is very tall. She has a big bone structure, although I would say, too, she had considerably lost weight (her first pictures weren’t flattering, that is). She looks charming, although I would suggest she smile more (it must not appear “forced”). Intelligence-wise, I’d say she is not like your Theresa Licaros or Lia Andrea Ramos, but basing on her answer that night, I can say she can carry a situation like that very well. She is smart. With intensive training, impressive styling and wardrobe, and, as most fans have suggested, more toned body, she will give her MU opponents a big fight.
Wasted Girls
It is odd to wish that BPCI had the Miss Earth and Miss TQI franchises so it could have given these two titles to two of these wasted beauties:
1. April Love Jordan
2. Barbara Salvador
3. Diana Arevalo, who I thought, would be the Bb. Pilipinas Universe this year
4. Pricilla Mae Honorio
5. Cai Kujipers—It’s still a surprise to me that she didn’t make the cut. I hope she’ll consider joining again next year or in 2011.
6. Sandra Siefert—With rumors—now a fact—attributing her disqualification to her sexy pictures on FHM, BPCI will not give this girl any chance anymore. She’ll be 26 next year, and her sad experience in this year’s search may not bring her back to it. Nevertheless, I wish that she tries again next year, but BPCI has to give in first.
Afterthoughts
The girls have been crowned. If we pageant fans seemed to have fought over the ones we rooted for, especially during the coronation night, then this is the time to reconcile our differences. The truth is that we cannot do anything about the judges’ and/or BPCI’s choices. This has been said repeatedly, but we actually have a very good set of winners this year. Just a piece of advice: Let us not hype the girls in a manner unbecoming of us, to the point of bashing other delegates if only to put our own girls to the frontier. We claim to be a cultured race, but some of us do not behave like cultured beings. And, this is something very important, if we have nothing good to say about our girls, we had better not say it. It is also sad to think and know that some of us can stand against our representatives and support those who are also supported in their own countries.
Good luck to all us!
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