Some of my September - October shots on film

The months of September and October have been quite busy for me and a bit stressful as well. My publisher and I have been working with my translator and editor to finish the German edition of my book Ausländer. It’s a project we submitted to the National Book Development Board, which fortunately was approved for a grant.

In between this project, I also had photography gigs connected to the 2025 Frankfurt Book Fair, where the Philippines is the Guest of Honor. I covered two events and one art exhibition. I enjoyed it, although it was a little tiring.

Before the end of October, Arlene and our youngest daughter flew home to stay with my parents for a while. Adhika will live there temporarily because Arlene will be returning to hospital work this coming January.

Ten rolls of film to remember these busy months. Here are some of the moments I captured.

While walking around the city of Frankfurt, I spotted National Artist for Philippine Film Kidlat Tahimik, whom some consider a pioneer of postcolonial essay film. I saw him outside the Deutsches Filmmuseum waiting for a cab. Beside him was his duwende. I also helped him and carried one of his duwende inside the cab.

Poet, friend, and also my translator for the German edition of Ausländer, Elmer Grampon. This was outside the Liebieghaus. I was intrigued by the look on his face while he was looking at the bronze statue of Athena and Marsyas.

At the back of this photo is where Ambeth Ocampo was giving his talk about José Rizal.

He said that when Rizal visited Frankfurt, one of the famous sculptures he saw was inside the Liebieghaus. He was referring to The Lady and the Panther or Ariadne on the Panther.

I just realized that most Filipinos in Germany are women.

Photos while walking around Frankfurt. I think I was a little bit lost when I took this photo. I was looking for a certain hotel.

An event organized by second-generation Filipino-Germans and the Philippine Consulate General in Frankfurt.

Here’s a snapshot of Vincent Bueno, who once represented Austria at Eurovision. These are the moments that remind me how truly world-class Filipino talent is. This was on Die Fabrik Frankfurt.

Elmer and I decided to share a hotel room. Most of the hotels in Frankfurt were expensive because of the Buchmesse. I took a picture of him as he was coming out of the bathroom. Did you notice he’s holding a toothbrush? The funny part is, this photo was staged. We were just messing around with the camera.

Another world-class talent is the Morobeats, a group of young rappers from Mindanao. People at the Buchmesse were jumping and singing along, even Germans who didn’t really know what language they were singing in. That’s the power of music. I finished one roll of film just for them. These photos are not my favorite, and the keepers I saved for the future.

The best photos of all these rolls are of my family. Nothing beats personal photos.