Since time immemorial, we have always celebrated Rizal Day every 30th of December. It's one of the holidays encompassed in the lengthened Christmas break which I always looked forward to when I was still a student. However, I just read the draft of what could possibly be Senate Bill No. 2743. This bill which might be published tomorrow at the website of the Philippine Senate is seeking the amendment of Section 26, Chapter 7, Book 1 of Executive Order No. 292. Simply stated, the bill is seeking to move Rizal Day from 30th December (which was the day Rizal was executed) to 19th June (which is Rizal's birthday). Who's passing the bill? Senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr. Here's a portion of his explanatory note and I quote:

            June 19, the birthday of our National Hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal, is a day of celebration of his life and his great contribution to the country’s independence from foreign domination. His writings have inspired the Filipino Nation to advocate the ideals of change through peaceful means

            It is just fitting that Filipinos commemorate Rizal Day on June 19 as a day of triumph of the Dr. Jose Rizal’s nationalism and patriotic ideals.

To tell you quite frankly, I think Sen. Bongbong might have a point here. I'm not saying he's right and the date should be moved. Just saying that it is logical in many ways.Most of the other heroes' days we celebrate commemorate the birth of our country's heroes so why not do the same for our National Hero, right? What about you? What can you say about this? I read this update from Sen.Bongbong's Facebook fan page and you can read it here.

I have said time and again that if there’s one continent I want to retire to apart from Asia, of course, it would have to be Europe. When I hear “Europe”, I instantly think about romance. Call me a hopeless romantic. I won’t argue with you because that’s a fact. But of course, before I do decide to settle down in a European country, I would need to get a feel of the place first. With that said, I would need to take a vacation or a short trip to my country of choice.

I want a place where I’d see snow-capped mountains, crystal lakes and mountain springs. Sounds like Austria, right? Just the name of the place is enough to send me to a “Sound of Music” phase. I wonder how much austria holidays cost? I heard that there are lots of park holidays in Austria and I’m sure my small family would love to spend time there.

Of course, being that an Austria holiday would be a whole new experience for me, I would need to plan properly and start looking for affordable holiday packages the soonest possible time. I just hope there are cheap packages being offered for Austria. I can already hear myself singing a la Julie Andrews, “The hills are alive with the sound of music!”