About

elmer nev valenzuela

Malate is a place.

About 14° 34′ 0″ North, 120° 59′ 0″ East. To the east is the metropolis and to the west is  the filthy Manila Bay. And Elmer Valenzuela is the man. Loafer, daydreamer, beachcomber, photography nut, former this, former that and Powerbooks/National Bookstore/Booksale denizen as sea urchin is to sea. The man’s got mouths to feed and bills to pay so he works for the GRP full time since 19-ninety-three taking care of logistics, graphic arts, Info-tech, a demanding boss and The Bizarre Cadre.

MALATE: Since 2008.  Come to Malate for a drink!

Malate first nailed a slot in that most coveted Freshly Pressed section in 2010 with “Cool Pueblo Plunge.” Unfortunately, then WP Editorial Czar Joy Victory had to pull out the post immediately citing one ‘smutty’ image.

Untitled-1

Almost a year later, Malate is back on Freshly Pressed with vengeance, in a post titled “Snack Street.”

oh wow

183 thoughts on “About”

  8. Congratulations on your blogging accomplishments and thank you for reading about the Servants of Charity. Perhaps you can come by and see us at the Guanella Center in Quezon City!

  9. hello, nice to see a photoblogger from home. you’ve got an awesome blog and i’ll definitely be back to check out more of your posts. thanks for the like on my latest post – from pinaydesertdweller.

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  13. Hi Elmer,
    I occasionally add bits n pieces about the Philippines in my blog on writing. Sometimes I use my own photos and mostly I get them from wikipedia or wikipinas, with attribution of course. Would it be possible to use some of your photos? I always give credit and link back to the photographer’ site or source site.

    Thanks!

  18. Hi Elmer, thanks for the like. Great to be noticed by a “veteran” in WordPress like you. Great posts! Enjoying them! 🙂

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  20. Thanks for stopping by my blog and allowing me to discover yours! 🙂 You’ve got great photos! Being a Thomasian, I especially loved your photo essay on UST, it captures a different angle indeed.

  28. THANK YOU SO MUCH! Our section will be so happy. More power to you sir Elmer! I’ll now be a regular reader on your blog haha

  30. Good day sir Elmer! Before anything else, I’m Marga. I was one of the students in UST playing water fights during PE at the field. Our section saw your blog and also two photos of us. We’re so happy just by looking at the two photos. But, I was really fascinated by your art since I’m a (beginner) photographer as well. Overall we admired your photos and we would like to ask if we can see the rest of the photos you took of us during our PE? Since we’re going separate sections this sem, we would like it to be part of our remembrance. We’ll give credits to you ofcourse or if you want to put watermarks it’ll be cool. So yeah, looking forward for your response. Have a good day! 🙂

  32. Hi, Elmer. When I first saw the Malate title at the top of your blog, I thought, hmm, that sounds like the city where my Peace Corps/Philippines office was located back in the 1970s. Sure enough, it’s the same place. I lived in Capiz for 3 years, where I worked as an extension worker for BFAR, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. I also met my wife there. We now live in Michigan, USA. You have a very interesting and mature blog. Keep up the good work! God bless,

  36. Elmer, I haven’t been home in 14 years. Looking forward to getting to see my Manila through your talented eyes. I can already tell that it all looks very different from what I remember.

  37. Thanks for stopping by my blog. This site is an excellent display of street photography, I especially like the motion pics!

  39. Hello Elmer Nev Valenzuela, thank you for your like of my post on the possibility of a capitalist war with China. You have excellent photography on your blog – I feel as though I am standing beside you while you take each photo! Best wishes, Phil Stanfield

  49. Hi Elmer,
    thanks for visiting my site and for liking one of my photos. you have great and unique photos in here. I’m a follower already of your blog. keep up the good work. have a nice day 🙂

    regards,
    Mel

  51. Hi Elmer,
    something went wrong with your comment. I’m not so familiar with the mobile app, so I choose this way.

    Thanks for liking my pics. Nice pics in your blog as well. Recently I realized, that you are locate in Malate, Manila. I’m leaving Malate this evening, otherwise we could have met for a photowalk or a beer. Maybe next time…

    Best, Michael

  75. Look Ms. Brightside, look at the bright side. If you love photography then you could be a good photographer. Chinek ko yung other blog mo and its..never mind. You can be better, promise. And Im more than willing to help. 🙂

  82. Thank you for the like. I have lots of fond memories of Malate; most of them are rated PG, some would hover between R18 and X. Which just goes to show that, sometimes, we can’t quite completely choose those we love.

  87. Thanks so much for stopping by for a brief visit, and the like. I have fallen in love with your photography and your wonderfully descriptive words…can’t wait to dive in and take a more complete photo vacation from life in the North Eastern US.

  92. Thanks for visiting my blog and liking my photography! I post new pictures daily, so please come and visit again soon. I enjoy everyone’s likes, comments, and reblogs, so please let me know you stopped by and stay in touch. I’ll do the same.

  103. Nice reading about you

    Thanks for visiting my blog. Be in touch. Browse through the category sections, I feel you may find something of your interest.

  107. Nahuhuli na ako sa pag-ikot! I need a goooooood and a looooooong vacation. I shall read about these places! 🙂

  121. Ah, so this is where you left your piece of mind…LOL vanity urges me to pretend I don’t know who Janis Joplin is…she was before my time, I swear to God…but yeah, okay, I do dig the Queen of Rock and Roll…so come on, share another little piece of your mind now, Elmer… 😉

  122. no worries, I just wanted to introduce some nice blogs to other bloggers… that’s all.

  123. This is a shame, I’m terribly sorry for the late late reply Kzack and my genuine thanks to you. Will look into this.

  129. Thanks for the tip, Elmer, I will try it out…particularly curious about the earthlings in skimpy little Japanese anime schoolgirl uniforms. *whee!*
    But what if a space alien is just another kind of tourist? I can see the headline in the tabloids now: “Martian, Ginulpi ng mga Bugaw sa Mabini” Heh heh…
    Will see if you’re up for a drink, next time I’m in the area.

  130. Thanks Nat! When shooting in the streets of Malate, detach yourself from the place. Kunyari space alien ka and curious about the earthlings. Actually that’s the trick anywhere so you wont get intimidated. So you’re a true blue Malateña and I can picture you at Jim’s Hobbit House surrounded by the seven dwarfs.

  131. Yay, Malate! I’ve always wanted to shoot on Malate’s streets, especially Mabini at night (heh heh) but was intimidated by the aggressiveness of the pimps. *sigh* Balang araw. I was brought up in the area…sometimes the hobbits from Jim’s hobbit house used to babysit me, and sometimes it was the waiters of Taza de Oro on Roxas Blvd…
    Grabe, that sentence just made me feel OLD. 😀 syet.

    Looking forward to unearthing your blog archives, Elmer, you have a wicked sense of humor and a great eye. Hoping for more posts from you soon!

  133. Really nice description of yourself here. \m/
    By the way, thanks for dropping by my site. It’s nice to get in touch with other pinoy bloggers out there.

  137. Thank you so much Susan but you know I am much more thrilled in enjoying a vodka with you than having the award! Makes me wanna go to Guangdong now. But I’ll be going back with this Versatile thing when I’m not too overloaded. Thanks thanks!

  138. Hey Elmer!

    You’d better drag yourself out of your drunken baijiou stupor and write another entry, because I’m giving you the Versatile Blogger Award.

    I’ve enjoyed the beautiful pictures you’ve taken during your travels in China and hope to see more of it more regularly. If you ever stop by in Guangdong, please stop by and we can enjoy some good vodka (not baijiou) together.

    http://lostnchina.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/hyperactive

    Thanks for your blog.

    Susan

  139. Glad you liked my recent post of the large scene with the crisp pic of a small boat and some fishermen…..i have a wp blog…mostly pics and a few pithy observations, now and again….but not as pithy as yours.

  144. I never got used to the roads in Manila area. Good thing I didn’t need to travel there frequently; only around Makati, Pasig and QC. But great blog anyway! 😀

  147. I remember walking from Malate to Philippine Cultural Center when I visited Manila earlier this year to spend my last day in the city. By the way, interesting blog you have!

  152. It’s nice to be reminded of a place from back home. I spent four long years in high school at Taft Ave. I hope to visit again someday. Congrats on being Freshly Pressed! That’s how I found your blog.

  153. Just how close are Romanians to the Filipinos? When the Philippines staged the People Power revolt, Romanians followed suit. Hi Julia

  156. Does your site have a contact page? I’m having problems locating it but, I’d like to send you an e-mail. I’ve got some creative ideas for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great website and I look forward to seeing it improve over time.

  157. I adore what you guys are always up too. This kind of clever function and reporting! Keep up the great works men I’ve additional you guys to my blogroll, Cheers.

  161. Hi Orlando! You might want to try some rooms in Remedios Street, they’re clean and cheap. thanks for visiting!

  162. Thanks for the blog. By the way I need a clean but affordable place to stay (at least 2 days) in Malate, do you know of any that you can recommend? Thanks in advance for your help.

  164. wow classmate you’re so profound, ang ganda! what exactly is GRP? I like malate too, it’s near my alma mater…ang galing mo…I like your pics…keep it up

  165. wow classmate you’re so profound, galing mo! ang ganda…what exactly is GRP?…I love malate too, malakit kc sa school namin…keep it up!

  172. I dont speak bangla, I just know how to say “thank you” in a number of language. nice day sajib!

  178. I’m new here in WP so I’m still trying to get to know other bloggers and still yet to get to know fellow Pinoys’ blogs. Anyway, you’ve got lots of content here so I’ll be visiting again.
    +1

  179. thanks earthianne and welcome to wordpress. let pinoys take on the world thru wp. 🙂

  180. Nice to see a Pinoy blogger (noticed you via Roseeta’s blog) and an experienced one at that.

    I’m new here in WP so I’m still trying to get to know other bloggers and still yet to get to know fellow Pinoys’ blogs. Anyway, you’ve got lots of content here so I’ll be visiting again.

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