Ahtisa Manalo: What she wants for Christmas
Miss International 2018 first-runner up Maria Ahtisa Manalo has only one wish for herself this holiday season: get enough rest.
When asked about the gift she wanted for Christmas, Manalo said: "Yung gift sa sarili ko hindi ko pa naibibigay which is rest. Bago ako umalis, I was busy already. In Japan full-packed 'yung schedule namin for one month. We rarely get some sweet time also."
"When I got back here, wala pa rin rest. I really just wanted to rest. But that the best gift I can give to myself," says Manalo.
Throughout the finals night of the Miss International 2018 pageant held in Japan, Manalo was confident but relaxed on stage. It simply showed that she just enjoyed the whole competition.
"Even when I joined Binibini, I was relaxed. I was just having the time of my life with the girls. I just be myself. I just be talkative, maingay. I eat a lot also. I treat the girls as my friends," the beauty queen from Quezon says. "It’s a competition but after this, when it’s over, what is left would be the friendship with the girls."
Manalo says that she has not planned her activities for the holidays.
"No plans yet for the the holidays. Maybe after I rested na, I can rejuvenate, think of my plans, calibrate my mind," she adds.
Manalo says that she will go back to Japan early next year to resume activities for the Miss International organization.
"We have an event coming in Japan. It’s going to be a Snow Festival in Sapporo and Hokkaido in February. It’s in our schedule already. But there are schedules in Japan that haven’t been confirmed yet. The top 5 are included in the activities," she says.
During her stay in Japan, she also became close to the Asian girls and they eventually became friends. "I am close to the Asian group. We are so close, especially with Miss Singapore and Miss Nepal. We have the same vibe."
Manalo adds that she did not experience sleepless nights during her stay there.
"No sleepless nights. It’s just the preparations lang. I need to iron my hair, prepare my make-up and clothes," she says. - ROBERT REQUINTINA
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