Supermoon shines bright over Christ the Redeemer

The Super Flower Blood Moon shines over the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Wednesday. Astronomy enthusiasts on Wednesday were treated to a rare sight as a total lunar eclipse coincided with a super blood moon as in the past 10 years, there have only been 10 total lunar eclipses. 

-reuters

Lacuna second to fall in Rio; places 46th in 400m freestyle

MANILA, Philippines – Jessie Lacuna is the second Filipino athlete to fall in the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, after finishing 6th in heat 2 and 46th overall in the 400m freestyle competition, Sunday morning.

Lacuna, one of the 50 swimmers to dispute the eight slots for the next phase, clocked 4:01:70, the second worst in heat 2. His finished 46th overall.

The 23-year-old swimmer from Ateneo de Manila University raced in a heat of seven swimmers.

His personal best in the 400m freestyle  is 3:59.75.

Venezuelan Cristian Quintero registered the quickest time in the same heat, but he wound up finishing 33rd in the final ranking.

American Dwyer Conor logged the best time of 3:43.42.

Lacuna, who currently holds the record 2015 SEA Games record of 2:00.9 in the 200m butterfly, is the second casualty the Philippine contingent suffered in the Games.

The Bulacan native also competed in the 2012 Olympics in London, where he ranked 36th in heat 2. He was the youngest athlete in that year's Philippine contingent.

Earlier, Ian Lariba bowed out of contention in the hands of naturalized Congo paddler and frequent training mate, Han Xing in the women's table tennis singles.

The Philippine crew is now down to 11 athletes.

Charly Suarez is next to see action. He will take on Great Britain's Joe Cordina in the men's lightweight boxing which begins Sunday, 5 a.m.

source: philstar.com

Couples tie knot en masse in Rio's first gay marriages

RIO DE JANEIRO - A total of 130 couples said "I do" in a mass wedding Sunday at Rio de Janeiro's Superior Court of Justice, marking the city's first gay civil marriages.

In mid-May, Brazilian courts determined that public offices that oversee marriages cannot reject gay couples, even though Brazil's national congress has passed no law on the matter.

Some public offices had already been accepting marriage applications from homosexual couples, while others denied them.

An emotional Viviane Soares Lessa de Faria, 38, smiled at her partner and told news site G1 "I've dreamed of marrying her since I met her."

Her wife's 29-year-old son was the couple's best man.

For Giuseppe Laricchia, 21, marrying his boyfriend was about guaranteeing rights.

"We need to have equality compared with heterosexual couples," he said.

Judge Cristina Gaulia said the mass ceremony marked a "political victory."

Civil unions between gay couples were recognized two years ago by the Supreme Court, which granted gay spouses the same rights as heterosexual spouses.

source: interaksyon.com

Nun looks at girls in bikinis on Rio de Janeiro beach

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil--Two nuns look at the sea as pilgrims start gathering at Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro hours before Pope Francis joins the hundreds of thousands of young pilgrims attending World Youth Day (WYD) in a prayer vigil, on July 27, 2013.

What do you think the nun would say?

source: interaksyon.com

Nun takes pictures of a girl in a bikini before Pope Francis' arrival in Rio de Janeiro

RIO DE JANEIRO—A nun takes pictures of bathers before the arrival of Pope Francis on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro on July 26.

It was reported that Pope Francis, Latin America’s first pope, received a warm welcome in Brazil even though violent protests have marred his visit.

source: interaksyon.com

Mass ceremony in Rio celebrates same-sex unions

RIO DE JANEIRO - Nearly a hundred same-sex couples in Rio de Janeiro legalized their unions -- to a status just shy of marriage in the Latin American country -- in a group ceremony Sunday, local media reported.

The 92 couples pledged themselves to "stable unions," though the G1 web site noted the ceremony was mainly symbolic, as they will have to repeat their vows Monday in front of a judge.

Held at the Rio courthouse, the mass celebration "pays an old debt with a segment of the population that is the target of so much prejudice and discrimination," Claudio Nascimento, head of a Rio gay rights group, told the site.

In May 2011, the Brazilian Supreme Court recognized the "stable union" of same-sex couples as a family. Since then, several courts have recognized such unions as civil marriage.

source: interaksyon.com