Vegas: Stripped

I experienced Vegas like I have never experienced it before.

Nope, there were no wild, drunk nights. And no, I did not hit the jackpot. I did visit the penny slot machines, but let me tell you about the Las Vegas that we do not usually hear about.

I have been to Vegas a couple of times before, but it is only now that Vegas popped up to me as more than just the Strip. Beneath the flashy lights, spinning roulettes, whirring slot machines, is a real, true to life, normal (well, kind of) city.

We did our Stand for Peace projects in two schools in Vegas, and they were really awesome and smart schools. These diversity workshops always end with a show preview (BTS) and, I had my taste of my childhood dream to be an "artista". In the school shows, we have a few country introductions where some (2-3 people) cast members get to greet the school and introduce themselves in their native language.

In the first school: "Magandang umaga sa inyo...." (voice drowned in applause)

In the 2nd school: "Mabuhay..." (voice drowned in applause again)

Amazing, there were a lot of Pinoys in Vegas and they are proud to be Pinoy. A number of kids said hello, shook my hand, yelled "Mabuhay!" They looked really excited and I also received some hugs! I especially loved it when I learned that they have been living in the US for a long time but still did not forget their Tagalog, and "po" and "opo" (Philippine expressions of respect).

I also had the opportunity to join the Admissions team to do a couple of UWP presentations to high school classes at the Las Vegas Academy. It was my first time to do an Admissions presentation and I was so nervous and did not know what to expect from American high school kids. We (JC Rivas, UWP Education Coordinator and Aimee, a cast member) presented to three classes (1 theater class and 2 language classes) that day. I had to learn the presentation in time for my advance work for Germany.

It was very interesting - we really hope a lot of them will consider to travel! (Ah, by the way, I met another Pinoy student. I think he graduated from the Ateneo grade school)

Another amazing experience in Las Vegas was breaking the fast of Ramadan with the Muslims in the Mosque. We were given the rare chance to go inside the Mosque, speak to the Imam, and actually staying with the Muslims as they prayed. At the end of the evening, we shared an Afghan meal with everyone (too spicy for me!) I had an amazing conversation with a Muslim girl about the conflicts related to the religion around the world.

I got a little bit emotional when we were talking , because the issue was so close to home. She hugged me and told me that she will pray that never in my life that I will doubt or fear the religion, for it is only the humans who are making the mistakes and NOT the religion.

We had an amazing show facility, and again, I had family in the audience. Tita Girlie (mom's sister) and Tito Conrad drove from LA. Tito Bobot (mom's brother) and his wife, Maria, lived in Las Vegas but was unable to go because of reasons that cannot be disclosed! My uncle was my host dad.

Photo: Tito Bobot and his wife, Tita Maria

Viva Las Vegas!

ps.I was able to catch the "Mamma Mia" ABBA musical at the Mandalay Bay. It was super great!