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This is a tradition I started last year, when I first handled the DGMEDIA: Game Design class of ABMA76. This outing is actually inspired by the life story of Shigeru Miyamoto, game designer of Nintendo’s Mario and Legend of Zelda. Miyamoto was an artist, not a programmer, which was why he was initially hesitant when Nintendo tapped him to come up with a game (that would eventually save the company from collapsing on its face).

Miyamoto drew inspiration from dreams and imagination. When he looked at trees, he saw portals and other worlds. This was how he came up with Mario. Zelda, on the other hand, was inspired by memories of his childhood exploits — he used to explore the forest surrounding his neighborhood — and his travels to the Kyoto countryside.

Miyamoto proved that being a game designer meant having the ability to tap into your natural surroundings and turning them into fuel for the imagination. This is what I wanted my students to imbibe. Then again, ABMA85 requested a change of scenery, too. They felt like their school building was sucking the creativity out of them. So, like with last year’s DGMEDIA batch, I took them to MY learning environment: University of the Philippines, Diliman.

(Photos of me and of the Oblation were taken by Kevin Pineda. The rest I took with Shin-Chan 2.)

Um, Kevin? What’s that huge chorva behind Oble?

Your UP life will not be complete without knowing “Zorro”.

At the UP Vargas Museum. This photo serves as their attendance.

See? Vargas Museum talaga! We’re not absent.

I personally call that lady statue “Jolens”.

Can you see why?

Class at the sunken garden.

We love our taho!!!

Sharing ideas. While having taho.

We had to feed ourselves. Trigo is the café at Art Circle Gallery.

After all the taho, we were still famished.

All in?

We sort of occupied the entire place…

Some serious discussions. Well, actually…noise.

Um. Actually, I wolfed everything down before I remembered that I should take photos. The girls and I already took three bites of this before one of them exclaimed that I haven’t taken its picture

This is Art Circle Gallery.

Can you feel the love for art?

Yup, lots of ’em here.

I know. It’s hard to stop staring at the paintings.