MANILA, Philippines - I had a blast at GMA 7?s ?Araw ng Dabaw? celebration in ?Durian Republic? with my cool colleagues Nestor Cuartero of Tempo and Butch Roldan of Balita, Kapuso network?s ever dependable Ramir Orteza and Barbs Atienza, Jon Joaquin of Mindanao Daily Mirror, Amy Cabusao and Chris Fabian of Mindanao Times. It was my third trip to Davao but the most unforgettable one because I came home in a wheelchair due to a severe leg sprain. It was a small price to pay for all the fun I had that weekend.

Kapuso stars Mark Herras, Iza Calzado, Alfred Vargas, Ehra Madrigal, Ian Veneracion, Cookie, Belie Flory and Mark Anthony Fernandez wowed the Dabaweños at the jampacked ?Hataw Dabaw? show at the NCCC mall hosted by GMA TV-5?s Chuck Allie and Carinne Cabebe of ?Istayl Nato.? A gift-giving activity was held at the Bureau of Fisheries & Aquatic Resources, with 200 kids from various orphanages in Davao as the lucky recipients. There also was a three-day Amateur Boxing Cup.

Witting ?ninong?

Prior to the mall show, I cornered Mark Herras about his ex Jennylyn Mercado. She?s heavy with Patrick Garcia?s baby and her heart is even heavier with all the trials her unexpected pregnancy has brought about.

?Girl ang magiging anak ni Jen, ? Mark said. ?Nag-volunteer na ko maging ninong. Bahala na kung lagyan ng kulay, tulad nung nagmagandang loob ako magbigay ng milk kay Jen at ako pa ang pinalabas na kontrabida.? Has he seen Patrick after the intrigues broke out? ?Di pa. Sana di kami magkasalubong,? he said. (I've volunteered to be a godfather, I don't care what other's would say. I have not seen Patrick since the intrigues broke out, and I hope we won't stumble into each other.)

After Jen and Pat had a falling out, Mark has been pinpointed by malicious minds as the alleged father of Jen?s unborn child. ?Kawawa naman si Jen. Let?s give her the respect she deserves,? Mark pleaded.

If he and Jen remain single in the distant future, Mark said he?s open to the possibility of a reconciliation.

To lighten the mood, I teased him, ?What if the rumor will prompt other girls to claim that you?re the dad of their babies?? He replied, giggling, ?They should have a claim stub.? I shot back in jest, ?Plus a proof of purchase!?

Dyesebel?s Mer-man

All the fame hasn?t changed Alfred Vargas, whom I?ve known since his Ateneo days. He?s looking forward to his role in Dyesebel. ?I?ll be a Mer-man. I have to take extensive diving lessons for my role. I?m the third wheel in Marian and Dingdong?s romance in the show. But di ako ?yung tipong bad guy.? Is he ready to bare more than he should when he wears nothing but fins in the coming telefantasya? ?I tried on my costume already and it?s unavoidable that some parts of me might get exposed accidentally when I move. That should make it more exciting to watch,? he said with a naughty grin. If you have it, float, er, flaunt it!

Emotionally challenging

Got to talk to Iza Calzado, too, who?s such a delight to have around. She says her role in ?Joaquin Bordado? is more emotionally challenging than her role in ESP.

?I?m not yet a mother so I?m not too sure if I?m doing too much or too little in my dramatic scenes in Burdado,? she said. ?Wala pa akong paghuhugutan ng ganung kalalim na emotions.?

But everything else in her charmed life is emotionally fulfilling. ?In a peculiar way my long distance relationship with my BF Jerry (Garcia) works because we don?t feel pressured to be with each other daily,? she revealed. ?He more than makes up for the distance by visiting me often enough.?

Never enough time but always enough love when they?re together.

All the durians, pomelos and mangosteens of Davao would pale in comparison to the fruitful Kapuso?s ?Hataw Dabaw? grand fete.

Yas and no

Staff and guests in a reality show were quite appalled when Yasmien Kurdi (who?s a vegetarian) reprimanded them from eating chicken and pork during lunch break. As one guest put it, ?Di naman namin pinapakialaman ang kinakain ni Yas so dapat hayaan niya din kaming kumain ng gusto namin. Tama bang habang sarap na sarap kami kumain ng manok eh sabihin ni Yas na it?s the dirtiest creature?? (We don't really pay attention to what she eats, so she has no right to tell us what to eat.)

There?s nothing wrong with being a vegetarian but we should not ram it down other people?s throats. What you eat or don?t eat should not eat others up.

Cover girls

For the first time, Angel Locsin posed in a swimsuit on the cover of Cosmopolitan?s March issue. Marian Rivera, on the other hand, is Marie Claire?s cover girl for this month.

Angel and Marian?s competition heats up even more on print and in cyberspace as Netizens argue on who the better cover girl is.

Magazine, magazine on the shelf, which is the most saleable of them all?

E-mail wateringholeshangrila@yahoo.com.