The Sixties

Graduation from College and time to reflect the next path of life Top Hits of 1966 The Hippie Generation Vietnam War Protest Quest for Advanced Studies US Mao’s Last Campaign Cars of our times
Six Day War Jerusalem Victorious Middle Eastern Conflict War Video

 

The decade saw the Vietnam War, the gradual relaxation in the social structures governing morals, took a step further as millions of woman tossed out their bras. The hippies sought to depart from materialism by creating what came to be known as the anti-fashion and counter culture movement. The Sixties was a decade of Liberation and Revolution, a time of personal journeys and fiery protests. It transcended all national borders and changed the world. People, young and old, united in opposition to the existing dictates of society. Poignant was the death of JFK. The Beatles were a pick up happy energy then. Finishing ChE and dreams to go to America made a big difference of what I want to be later on. Against that was the temptations of an open society, unlike that of the country I left behind. With all these temptations meant to disorient, I survived this decade remained focused on studies, work and the family. After looking back I have but one wish now, just send me back to the sixties, where I made my future. The lasting impact of the "hippies" was related to their political involvement, their demand for equal treatment of all races, their embracing of the feminist movement, their compassion for the indiginous and downtrodden people of the world, their early acceptance of homosexuality, their rejection of consumer culture, and their demand for a deeper understanding of man's place in the world. These hippies did not drop out. They changed american society in lasting and substantial ways.  To falsely associate Leary and his idiotic catchphrase with the entire 60s' movement is at best a false dichotomy and at worst the result of a carefully crafted mainstream media propaganda campaign.   The era like the 60s, can never be repeated again. I miss the adventure and attempts to capture the anticipation of something great to happen. I appreciate the people in my life that made it special in those days. Around me, an inner peace exist with the hippies, there was something special to live without the constraints of time. To wake up each day and decide what would be the most fun to do that day or just find out as it went along. They go with the flow, follow the bliss, be here now. This was in complete opposition to the culture from which I came. They wanted new ways to value one another, rather than by wealth, status, looks, achievements, machismo, as our culture of origin had taught us, and continues to teach us through the media. They wanted to value one another for being lovable and real. Also a spirituality that actually caused you to grow as a person, not one in which people attended religious gatherings for social status and to be guided by their own Inner Spirits, rather than by priests.

Berkeley-Oakland City, Calif. demonstraters march against the war in Vietnam. Calif. (AP Photo). For me, San Francisco was a magical place that I heard of only through rumor. Friends, or friends of friends, would return to our small, conservative Fort Bonifacio enclave with their stories about the happening and from my cousins, who lived in the hills of Marin County, of the Haight-Ashbury, flower children. Immigrating to San Francisco, was first in my mind and it could offer a chance for a new beginning, to be completely independent, and an opportunity to witness firsthand the peace and love movement that was sweeping America.  When youth counterculture rose into the mainstream and popular music expanded into previously unimagined realms in the latter half of the 60s, San Francisco was undeniably one of the most important epicenters of change. The city's history with the Renaissance poets, the Beats, and a vibrant folk scene left it in a good position to serve as a cultural engine, and the ignition of the San Francisco Sound came from dozens of sources, from Bob Dylan, Paul Butterfield, and the British Invasion to UC-Berkeley's 1964 Free Speech Movement, the evolution of freeform FM radio, and the proliferation of hallucinogenic drugs. By 1967, San Francisco was the most psychedelic city in America, if not the world.    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGvXgwlA3kQ&NR=1 We have uncertainties about the future, the world was unstable enough, and to live life to the fullest, I have to start a family. In addition to the Vietnam War the United States was being rocked by the Civil Rights Movement and riots in the streets. Western Europe was experiencing a wave of domestic terrorist groups. The Middle East was in turmoil over the Six Day War. Czechoslovakia had tried to liberalize their Communist government and been invaded by Russia. This was the height of the Cold War and the United States and the Soviet Union were nose to nose armed to the teeth with nuclear weapons. There was a lot going on in addition to the Cultural Revolution and Vietnam War. 1960: The picture is indeed Jones bridge going down to what was then Rosario St and is now Paredes St.  When you go down the bridge, you reach the first picture.  I still  remember this place because the RCA building which you can still see in the picture, is where my granduncle used to work.  Across this building was what used to be La Estrella del Norte (the jewelry story on the corner of Escolta) and is now Savory Restaurant...Sheila

Final Glimpse of Manila. Mapua extreme upper right. UP Prep High, bottom right. A City Hall  the dominant motif (remember that the pre-war City Hall was almost razed to the ground)…this tower-like building will command views of Manila Bay, the Botanical Gardens, the surrounding districts of Manila, including the mountains of Cavite, Corregidor, Mariveles and Bataan, Banahaw, and Makiling.” The air in Manila back then must have really been pollution-free for these views to be possible. The 10 years metamorphosis The decade that shaped our lives: I started the 1960’s as a junior at the University of the Philippines. There, I became aware of my family's heritage and began preparation for entry at Fort Del Pilar (PMA), a military academy located in Bagiuo named after my granduncle. That was a period in my teen years in High School that I remember fondly. Those youthful days, a young lad of 14, very impressionable and eager to follow the footsteps of my ancestors. I remember the hectic times, dashing thru the corridors catching my schedule of classes at Rizal Hall, my bag loaded with books, eager, wide eyed, and quick to learn the tenets of math, and the sciences. After UP Prep’s high standard curriculum, passing the entrance exam to the academy was a breeze. If everything else pushed into fruition, there is a backup plan B. Temporary enrollment at MIT and then appointment to the cadet corps at the academy was the plan. However, my 20/30 eyesight failed the standards. I remember my tepid dedication to my new course in Chemical Engineering, passing was enough. I recall the loves, my only solace for past failures, the friends and stormy situations that most teenagers weathered through. As in life surviving the cards you are dealt with, the unspoken pecking order among bigger classmates and the so called in crowd was the rule. That lone wolf streak that kept me apart, which peers seemed to see as a weakness was a measure of my family's heritage and that set me off from the teenage precepts of the times. It did form that certain pioneer spirit, and later when of age, after grad school, having ever spurred curiosity, like my forefathers, aspired a life of adventure and Public Service…. http://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3DWAUHglnkdjc%26feature%3Drelated&usd=2&usg=AFQjCNE977Fklp8lnVzwM9hkaXmw16T_kA Early 1960: Intramuros to your left,  Post Office in distance, Manila City Hall on the right.

 

I would be remiss if I do not mention my favorite swimming hole in Tanay, Daranak Falls. Remembering fondly, cherishing memories of early summer vacations spent at this place. This 14-meter high falls is truly a refreshing site. A short walk over the top of Daranak are smaller, cascading streams known as Batlag Falls. It is located at Bgy. Tandang Kutyo in the town of Tanay. The place has been transformed into a public park/resort operated by the government.

Muse APO DELTA 1966 Dewey Blvd below: The jetty potruding to Manila Bay is the future Cultural Center, on the other side of Dewey is the Manila Naval Station (MNS) where we lived from 1965 to 1966. the headquarters of the Philippine Navy was relegated to a small block of land south of the Manila Yacht Club. The original plan was to reclaim the site of the cultural center(CC) to replace the location of the MNS by the Central Bank. Imelda Marcos, saw this valuable real state and confiscated the plan for her project the now CC. The yacht club remained, the Navy base (MNS) was transferred to Fort Bonifacio.

Sept. 1966: The Brothers Alpha Phi Omega (APO) Fraternity of the Delta Chapter Philippines circa 1966, from L # 3 - kneeling, me, my back Cesar Frias ChE68, 4-kneeling, Warlito Boquiren ChE66, his back, Jose Catibog ChE66, Advisor Prof. Sevilla and daughter. Standing on the far left the brother of Rosalina Corbett. More than 350,000 members have joined Alpha Phi Omega National Service Fraternity since it's founding, at 366 college campuses here in the US alone, not counting other countries. Our mission is to prepare campus and community leaders through service. Our purpose is to develop leadership, to promote friendship and to provide service to humanity.......

  

Looking up Powell St. from Market St. The canteen at Woolworth on your right, served me well at lunch. During my job search, the hills of San Francisco was a hindrance. I think my overdeveloped legs were the outcome of the constant walking in SF. The Filipino community has grown remarkably since World War II and has spread to all areas of the city, especially the South of Market area. The affluent Castro district (technically Eureka Valley near Twin Peaks) has attracted gays and lesbians from throughout the country, becoming perhaps the most famous gay neighbourhood in the world. Its streets are adorned with elegantly restored Victorian homes and landmarks highlighting significant dates in the struggle for gay rights. It is said that no local politician can win an election without the gay community's vote.   Dropping down California St. Fabled hills, were the scourge of the handicap, nowhere in any city but San Francisco, where wheel chairs are absent...my own observation. I remember there were so many people coming in for the Peace March, we wondered around listening to the sounds of the bands warming up at the Union Square. The guitars faded in and out like the morning fog that drifted in and out on the breeze off the bay. Again, there was the thick smell of incense and marijuana, but there was something else in the atmosphere as well: the air was glowing electric with excitement and anticipation. Everyone felt that we were about to be part of something really big.

The girls of St. Theresa, the innocense of the young ladies above, untouched by the sixties youth revolution remained in my mind.  Why someday, one of them will be my partner in life.

We wanted to see life without violence. We wanted media that contained truth. Some of us risked our lives to find out what the government was doing and let the underground press know. We wanted to talk about things in print that we were not allowed to discuss in our culture of origin. We wanted to live without stupid, arbitrary rules, either for ourselves or for our children. Some of our children, as adults today, say they wish we had been more protective of them, or offered more structure.It was a moment in history when a mushroom explosion of consciousness began altering the life force. Through that explosion, we broke down the prison walls of "intellect as the ultimate".  We focused on the heart, and by doing so, reopened our cookie jar of possibilities·politically, socially, sexually and spiritually. The effects of that explosion have permeated our culture. We, as a generation, have a responsibility to see that the 60's are remembered in the context in which they unfolded."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKeXkhxiq6I&feature=related

Destination San Francisco. "If you're going to San Francisco,be sure to wear some flowers in your hair...If you're going to San Francisco, Summertime will be a love-in there" I remember my first walk/day here in the US.  I came over in the late sixties, and was somewhat aware of the scenes, mostly was involved in search of a job. Funny, when we look back, we think, we squandered the times of our life when our hormones were in tune with our desires. I was single then, going to school in San Francisco and also at the California State University in Sacramento, during those days really experienced the happening, although a little bit subdued due to work in the day time. That song forever imprinted in my mind "San Francisco" it became an instant hit  and quickly transcended its original purpose by popularizing an idealized image of San Francisco. As the memories flicker down the memory lane, I wish to live back in the sixties with the images of the hills over the bay frozen in time....ASC