A day devoted to books, lovers and book lovers!
That's what Dia del Libro is all about. It's celebrated on St. George's Day, every April 23, when sweethearts are urged to exchange gifts. Hence, the "tradition encourages booklovers from all walks of life to come together and ignite their passion for reading literature." If you want to read more about this, here's something from Philippine Daily Inquirer.
So last April 23, I headed to Instituto Cervantes along Kalaw Avenue, Manila. I almost forgot about the event but upon a last minute check on my planner, I saw my note about Dia Del Libro. It just so happened that I was free that day so I dropped by after my morning appointment. And I was not disappointed.
In fact, I got there about two hours before opening time. Ha ha! Talk about excited. Truth is, I didn't pay attention to the time and other details. All I know is that they were giving away free books. How could I resist? And discounted shirts!
It wasn't my first. Four (?) years ago I attended the event. It was low-key unlike this year's which featured a lot of activities including a live band performance, poetry recitals and free Spanish classes! Plus, they gave red roses to the first 100 registrants. Found out eventually that it's their 10th year. Oh that's why.
I miss going to Instituto because my friends and I used to frequent the place to watch free Spanish or European movies. It was where I got to watch Abre Los Ojos (Open Your Eyes) as well as Sex and Lucia, to name a few. And if I remember correctly, we might have caught some Pedro Almodovar, too.
This year, I spotted actress-host Eugene Domingo, who I heard was studying Spanish there. She, along with the hundreds who signed up, re-wrote by hand the Miguel Cervantes' masterpiece Don Quixote de la Mancha. I approached her and told her how she moved us through her brave performance in the acclaimed Jun Lana film Barber's Tales. She was grateful.
I also got to have some nice talk with strangers who share the same passion about books, as well as the arts. One is Ms. Joy who's teaching Spanish in grade school. Like me, she was an early bird, too. She came all the way from Fairview, Q.C by car. And she told me she had not been around the area so she got a bit lost.
Another is Michelle who reminded me of Serena Williams. We were seated next to each other... looking around, people-watching. After a while, I initiated the conversation and spoke in English because, to me, she didn't appear like she was a native. She responded in English, too. But we were cut short when I saw my former college professor who was waiting for his friends in grad school.
He and I did some catching up. Apparently, he was learning Spanish, too. But at a different university. I was surprised that a lot of people nowadays are studying languages! Hmm. I wanted to learn Spanish and French. May be it's now the right time to pursue. Ha ha!
He stood up to survey the place and I was left again with Michelle beside me. This woman love to study Russian! I have never met anyone (okay, may be 1 or two) who wanted to do so. She is also taking up Education units at a nearby university. But she's frustrated because her Lit class got dissolved. I would be furious, too, had I been in her shoes. I love Lit.
I wish there would be more events like these. And here's wishing, too, that they're for free! Looking forward to next year's!
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