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ARCHITECTURE / TRAVEL / LIFESTYLE<br />
BAGAC, BATAAN
2<br />
THE BLOCK
C O N T E N T S<br />
07<br />
START TO FINISH<br />
THE NEVER ENDING TALE OF FRIENDSHIP AND<br />
HARDSHIP THROUGH CHALLENGES AND SUCCESS.<br />
WHAT KEEPS THEM BOND TOGETHER?<br />
10<br />
TRIP TO ACUZAR<br />
BACKPACKING IN TIME. TODAY’S JOURNEY BRINGS<br />
BACK SPANISH COLONIAL TIME OF 18 TH CENTURY TO<br />
YOU. PRESERVED AND LOVED<br />
21<br />
MUST-HAVE ITEM<br />
RITUALS, TREASURES AND VALUABLES. WHAT ARE THE<br />
MUST-HAVE ITEMS THAT YOU BRING TO SCHOOL?<br />
27<br />
NIGHT 2018<br />
19 CONTESTANTS, 2 WINNERS, 1 NIGHT. WHO WILL BE<br />
THE MR. & MS. AR-ID-BE 2017?<br />
34<br />
COMFORT FOOD?<br />
BELIEVED TO BE A GREAT COPING MECHANISM FOR<br />
SOOTHING NEGATIVE FEELINGS.<br />
39<br />
HELL WEEK<br />
THAT TIME OF THE TERM WHERE YOU BREAK DOWN<br />
INFRONT OF YOUR COMPUTER. HOW TO SURVIVE HELL<br />
WEEK?<br />
03
THE BLOCK<br />
Publisher / Editor-in-Chief<br />
Paolo Cuvin<br />
Managing Editor<br />
Ferdie Hilario<br />
Editorial Designer<br />
Nicole Manalang<br />
Photographers-at-Large<br />
Vannah Austria, Bianca Hequibal, Ferdie Hilario<br />
Micah Lorenzo, Isabelle Luna, Nicole Manalang<br />
Nicole Swain, Jearon Tandico, Eira Yangson<br />
Contributing Writers<br />
Vannah Austria, Paolo Cuvin<br />
Nicole Manalang, Eira Yangson<br />
Contact Us<br />
Sprak’n’lourdz Limited t/a <strong>The</strong> <strong>Block</strong><br />
Manila, Philippines<br />
contactus@blockmag.com<br />
<strong>Block</strong>Mag block_mag theblock_magazine<br />
04
04<br />
LETTER<br />
the<br />
from<br />
EDITOR<br />
Still thinking about “wow! Hindi na pala to naging<br />
drawing lang?” approximately 2 months from now I<br />
spoke to Ferdie about creating a magazine with a<br />
concept of lifestyle and story about our block and he<br />
immediately responded “ayos lang naman’ so I<br />
already thought that this project will be very hassle on<br />
the first place. About midterm week I told Ferdie just<br />
to take photos on every event that we will attend to as<br />
it can be a start of building a concept that we can<br />
incorporate on the magazine. Before the 11 th week we<br />
already attended around 2 major event and many extra<br />
worth writing stories and right after that we already<br />
came up with the concept of making a magazine that<br />
will focus on the travel, art and lifestyle of our block<br />
and the rest is history.<br />
Ang totoo nga hindi naman talaga to yung first issue,<br />
issue <strong>00</strong> lang naman to parang dry run if maganda<br />
naman kakalabasan , trip ng mga blockmates namin<br />
why not produce more? It can help naman after we<br />
graduate eh parang year book pero naging year/s<br />
book.<br />
Paolo Cuvin / Editor-in Chief<br />
05
THE BLOCK
Imagine Us<br />
text / Eira Yangson<br />
Friends are the ones that mark our lives deeply. True<br />
friendship is when you feel home whenever you’re with<br />
them. Not only the gift of friendship that our block has<br />
offered but also the love of second family. Who would’ve<br />
thought that after 2 years we’re still solid as ever? Back in day<br />
1, na lahat nagkakahiyaan pa, we can still remember higher<br />
batches telling us “Kayo kayo din magkakasama hanggang<br />
huli kahit magkahiwalay kayo”. First block never dies” and we<br />
feel blessed enough to say that up to this day, nandito padin<br />
kami.<br />
07
Our friendship has been through ups and downs. Literal na<br />
nagkakaintindihan kaming lahat ng nararamdaman because<br />
we experience the same problems specifically sa acads.<br />
Terms ends are usually the times na sobrang nagbabonding<br />
yung block. We end the term by renting a private resort, or<br />
we could value these small gatherings because it gives us the<br />
chance to bond and create a stronger relationship with each<br />
other.<br />
08
09
TRIP TO ACUZAR<br />
Bagac, Bataan<br />
10
Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar?<br />
text / Paolo Cuvin<br />
I<br />
f you’ve grown tired of beach and<br />
resort getaways but aren’t too eager<br />
on having staycations, then a trip to<br />
Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar in Bagac,<br />
Bataan is the perfect center place to<br />
visit. Owner Jose Acuzar started to<br />
rebuild Spanish colonial era mansions<br />
in Bagac, Bataan in 2<strong>00</strong>3 and in 2010<br />
the heritage park was opened to<br />
public. Spreads over 4<strong>00</strong> hectares, the<br />
place features over 27 Spanish<br />
colonial era buildings and each houses<br />
were chosen based on their historical,<br />
cultural and architectural value. Some<br />
of these mansions are replicas, but<br />
`<br />
most are originals collected from<br />
various provinces of the Philippines.<br />
<strong>The</strong> casas, the Spanish word for<br />
“houses” were often of the bahay na<br />
bato type, which is made of wood on<br />
the second floor and stone for its<br />
foundation. <strong>The</strong>se houses were<br />
carefully dismantled on site brick by<br />
brick, numbered and transported to<br />
the site, where they reassembled and<br />
restored. Most of the casas were<br />
named after the provinces or towns<br />
they originated from such as, Casa<br />
Escolta, Casa Binondo, Casas Binan,<br />
etc.<br />
12
<strong>The</strong> trip started around 4:<strong>00</strong>am means<br />
an early morning drive after a wellrested<br />
evening around the midterm<br />
week. Especially this is one of the<br />
events that the students wanted to<br />
participate as they see this trip to be a<br />
midterm break from their classes and<br />
also to be an educating one, after<br />
which the trip takes around 5 hours to<br />
reach Bagac, Bataan, once one is<br />
inside Las Casas the means of<br />
transport radically transforms, and<br />
the timeless experience is amplified<br />
on both feet and wheels.<br />
<strong>The</strong> replica of Balanga Cathedral is the<br />
first stop inside the park, the<br />
Cathedral is one of the churches in<br />
Bataan that adds a new addition to<br />
the spreading property of Las casas as<br />
the church is still currently on<br />
construction. Extensively after a<br />
hearing the God’s word, the students<br />
head up for their late lunch having<br />
their first taste of the unique and<br />
delicate Filipino cuisines also adding a<br />
rich heritage atmosphere on the<br />
place.<br />
some casas which normally are not<br />
open to the public. <strong>The</strong> guides share<br />
valuable insights about the origin,<br />
forgotten history and often shocking<br />
controversies surrounding each casa.<br />
Ceiling designs goes on throughout<br />
the houses and even the joints where<br />
the post and ceiling meet are not<br />
forgotten. Carved from wood are<br />
decorative brackets in the same<br />
Filipino Art Nouveau Style. But<br />
whether it’s over decorated or not, as<br />
it has been said that this houses are<br />
very unique to each other and this<br />
detail to design is not exclusive to the<br />
houses.<br />
To fully appreciate the old mansions<br />
it’s essential to join the walking tour,<br />
around 3pm the heritage tour starts<br />
and takes about 1.5 hours to 2 hours<br />
and led by guides who can tell the<br />
story of each casa by heart. During the<br />
tour, visitors are allowed to enter<br />
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16
Explore the Heritage<br />
text / Paolo Cuvin<br />
Right after the heritage tour the<br />
participants are eager to see their<br />
rooms as the place have different<br />
designs and style on every hotel<br />
rooms. <strong>The</strong> hotel room of Las Casas is<br />
a one of a kind piece of discovery, the<br />
rooms where located on a casa like<br />
design that compliments the heritage<br />
design of the places. <strong>The</strong>re are rooms<br />
that are located on a bahay na bato<br />
type structure, dormitory-like, oldfashioned<br />
hotel atmosphere and<br />
many more. Each rooms compliments<br />
the guest with basic hotel<br />
complimentary from towels to bottled<br />
water.<br />
<strong>The</strong> beachfront development called<br />
Estero de Binondo is an undertaking<br />
which is a waterway where small<br />
boats can go through to transport<br />
guests lies between two rows of<br />
Manila-inspired buildings. <strong>The</strong><br />
beachfront is remarkably beautiful as<br />
to enjoy the sunset and sunrise view<br />
and each turn of view creates a new<br />
scenery of old time.<br />
Touring Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar<br />
takes you back to 18 th Century<br />
Philippines. A period both fascinating<br />
and complicated, marked by extreme<br />
class systems, distorted religious<br />
ideologies, and a social awakening<br />
that led to the birth of a new and<br />
independent nation.<br />
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Must- Have Item<br />
WHAT ARE THE MUST-HAVE ITEMS THAT YOU BRING TO SCHOOL?<br />
Nicole<br />
swain<br />
“Glasses di ako makakadrive at<br />
basa at gawa plates kung wala.<br />
Panyo (handkerchief) just in case<br />
yung powder ko kasi maarte ako<br />
hahaha”<br />
WHAT ARE THE MUST-HAVE ITEMS THAT YOU BRING TO SCHOOL?<br />
Wrist watch, rosary bracelet, cross necklace at<br />
panyo, hindi kumpleto araw ko kapag wala sila.<br />
Kulang na kulang ako kapag wala akong hawak<br />
na panyo, pag walang panyo, tissue, pero dapat<br />
may panyo hehe<br />
bianca<br />
hequibal<br />
a<br />
swain<br />
swain<br />
q<br />
Water bottle na syempre may water (sige na,<br />
okay na kahit wala), nakakatamad bumaba sa<br />
canteen para bumili ng tubig, mas okay magrefill<br />
para may excuse din lumabas ng room hehe.<br />
Uhaw? Uhaw.<br />
Cellphone, siyempre full charged. Samahan ko<br />
na ng maganda kong earphones para<br />
soundtrip. O ha combo. Isipin mo sa one hour &<br />
30 minutes (or mahigit pa) na break then wala<br />
kang phone??? Ano? Sagot. Uuwi nalang ako.<br />
Pamaypay (handfan), bakit? panghampas sa<br />
katabi ko. ‘Di biro lang. Mainit eh, lalo na kapag<br />
walang bakante sa lib at nasa sw lang.<br />
Payong (umbrella), kahit na si Trishia or si<br />
Vannah pa pinapalabas ko ng payong nila kahit<br />
meron ako sa bag, (oo na sorry), natamad kasi<br />
ako hehe lol la wenta. Bakit? Dahil mainit rin,<br />
kahit malapit lang ako sa mapua.<br />
Earphones - habang naghihintay ng kasama, i listen<br />
to my jams, Money - pambili ng pagkain/stuff,<br />
wet/dry wipes - for emergencies lol.<br />
micah<br />
swain<br />
lorenzo
ferdie<br />
hilario<br />
Tissue hahahaha (you know me well if you know<br />
that I always bring one) for hygienic purposes.<br />
Laptop- I use it during my vacant time. I use it<br />
either for school stuffs or for past time activities<br />
(watching movies, series or browsing in my social<br />
media apps<br />
Bottle - pag nauuhaw, refill nalang , Umbrella - umulan man o<br />
umaraw magagamit haha,<br />
Pencil/ ballpen – panulat, Tissue - daming gamit nyan hahaha<br />
jearon<br />
tandico<br />
Scale, ruler/triangle, cutter, techpen, correction tape, magic tape,<br />
pencil, charger, metric tape,<br />
We arki peeps need these things every day, we wouldn't really<br />
know but stay put lang dapat yan sa bag mo di mo alam kailan<br />
kakailanganin<br />
andrea<br />
bravo<br />
Panyo, lip balm, powder, wet wipes, comb (eto ung mga ka<br />
echosan ko bilang babae, nakasanayan ko ng dalhin ung mga<br />
ganito in case of emergency na dumating c crush joke para hindi<br />
masyadong halatang ngarag or may ng hingi ng wipes for u know<br />
hahahaha)<br />
trishia<br />
magbanua<br />
Trishia Magbanua
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NIGHT 2018<br />
World Trade Exchange, Binondo, Manila<br />
27
Neon lights & teens of the night<br />
text<br />
/ Vannah Austria, Paolo Cuvin<br />
Woke up in the morning and my mind is still troubled with<br />
the materials to buy for a scale model, and maybe others are also<br />
worried on how to finish their plates within the next few days, and<br />
others on some quiz or exam coming up. <strong>The</strong>n suddenly a swoosh<br />
of excitement made me cave in to its whispers and reminded me of<br />
something “fun” and “exciting” tonight. Thoughts and worries<br />
about plates, scale models, school works, and everything stressful<br />
began to pop like a bubble and I started to pack my stuff.<br />
Our block began to prepare into groups. Some went<br />
in one’s house, others in one’s dormitory. Grabbing our outfits, we<br />
went into the bathroom one after the other. Hair straightener,<br />
lipsticks, lip tints, and others are handed out to achieve the best look<br />
for tonight. And with our jackets on and stuff prepared, we are ready<br />
to go. <strong>The</strong>se welcomed us the moment the elevator opened its doors<br />
upon reaching 36 th floor of the World Trade Exchange in Binondo,<br />
Manila. Neon lights of the abbreviation “Aridbe” decorated the<br />
stage where the candidates of the Mr. & Ms. ArIdBe are going to<br />
ramp their way to achieving the crown and the title.<br />
28
<strong>The</strong> atmosphere is indeed very Riverdale.<br />
<strong>The</strong> cheering students of Architecture, Interior<br />
Design, and Industrial Design are in their<br />
Riverdale outfits and the dimmed room was made<br />
alive by the playful spotlights and the flickering<br />
neon lights.<br />
At dinner, people lined up before the<br />
buffet table to get their food & sat w/ their friends.<br />
Laughter & fun conversations filled the room as<br />
we dined. Later on, a loud roars the hall as the<br />
candidates’ ramps their way to the stage to<br />
announce the top 5 finalist for Mr. & Mrs.<br />
ARIDBE. <strong>The</strong> finalist are: Tope Delos Reyes,<br />
Franz Santos, Maro Bana, MC Cerezo, Gus Opay,<br />
Sam Coloso, Justine De Leon, Hiyas Pastor, Erica<br />
Kwan and Bricia Paragas. After announcing the<br />
finalist the contestants prepare themselves for the<br />
Q&A portion. Finally the Mr. & Mrs. ARIDBE<br />
are Mr. Gus Opay & Mrs. Bricia Paragas.<br />
After the celebration of announcing the<br />
Mr. & Mrs. Winners the event ended with an after<br />
party that celebrated by the guest bands: Autotelic,<br />
Luncheon &Up for Byes. <strong>The</strong> Students were wild<br />
as they unleashed their inner stress through the<br />
party, jumping into the pool, dragging & pulling<br />
their friends. It is really a very solid night indeed.<br />
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Comfort Food?<br />
BELIEVED TO BE A GREAT COPING MECHANISM FOR SOOTHING<br />
NEGATIVE FEELINGS.<br />
WHAT ARE THE MUST-HAVE ITEMS THAT YOU BRING TO SCHOOL?<br />
“Sundae with fries, hindi dahil sa food...<br />
Marami lang talaga ako good memories<br />
pag yon kinakain ko, tapos gusto ko lang<br />
ma alala ulit yon and makalimutan yung<br />
stress.”<br />
OLLIRIE<br />
RESURRECCION<br />
“Chicken huhu the best!”<br />
yvez<br />
bertiz<br />
“Pizzaaaaaaaa. Pizza is pizza everyone loves<br />
it + mayonnaise + cheese + ketchup + onions<br />
+ gravy. 2 slices are good but the whole box<br />
is better!”<br />
paolo<br />
cuvin<br />
isabelle<br />
luna<br />
“Coffee kasi pampagising na rin<br />
and basta hinahanap hanap mo<br />
nalang siya pag stress na stress<br />
na hahaha and yung chocolates<br />
kasi idk na :(( hahahaha”
“Number one comfort food are<br />
cookies. Because i believe<br />
everybody needs a cookie and you<br />
can’t be sad when you’re eating a<br />
cookie. Ahahahahah”<br />
eira<br />
yangson<br />
“CHICKEN SKIN SA<br />
SIZZLING HOUSE!!!!”<br />
“Definitely Cookies n’ Cream<br />
Ice cream, kasi nakakapag<br />
relax yung pag kumakain ng<br />
ice cream haha di ko rin alam<br />
bakit.”<br />
vannah<br />
austria<br />
marko<br />
delgado<br />
“Comfort food— chocolate<br />
specifically dark chocolate. Since it is<br />
believed to reduce stress. And it also<br />
gives you an energy or a pump when<br />
you’re feeling down”<br />
nicole<br />
manalang<br />
g
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Hell Week<br />
text<br />
/ Paolo Cuvin<br />
Every semester composes of exactly 11 weeks<br />
and each of those weeks creates new beginnings<br />
and endings, but the real ending starts at 10 th<br />
week. This is the start of so called “hell week”,<br />
one week, all-nighters, exams, final paper, group<br />
projects and major plates. Not every student has<br />
had to experience this, but it is very common to<br />
an architecture student. Hell is not for the<br />
average person, it will break down your spirit<br />
and your motivation but will a little perseverance<br />
and helpful tips can take down every hell week<br />
the mapua tries to throw to their way. <strong>The</strong>se<br />
were the times that either you drink so much<br />
coffee that the amount of caffeine you are<br />
consuming should be made illegal or you were<br />
just avoiding your duties and procrastinate after.<br />
Thinking about what to prioritize first between<br />
individual work and group projects, as to be<br />
lately inform that the deadline of these plates<br />
were extended to a later date and realize the<br />
times you can review for an exam that you<br />
missed to study during those hectic time. Your<br />
free time is your best friend if ever you had one<br />
but knowing that your free time will be either<br />
your nap time or your food to gather persona,<br />
after that tiring work you have done with your<br />
projects you will later realize that you haven’t<br />
eaten your dinner yet as most of the students<br />
tends to skip dinner and eat brunch as it will only<br />
consume less time for being a practical student.<br />
<strong>The</strong> most important part of hell week is how you<br />
will manage your time from your academic<br />
examinations to your major plates, excluding<br />
some special projects like scale model, papers,<br />
and some extracurricular activities.<br />
38
One of the main feature of this term’s “hellweek’<br />
is the scale model projects, from building<br />
technology types of space framing to renovation<br />
of manila city hall to CBD project it eats up a lot<br />
of the students time from buying materials,<br />
conceptualization to building the model itself.<br />
Building technology cluster conducted to make<br />
different type of space framing structures<br />
models. <strong>The</strong>se models can educate the students<br />
on how different advance structures were built<br />
from miniature detail. For design cluster one of<br />
their major plates is the renovation of manila city<br />
hall, making it modernize with implementing<br />
some green design.<br />
Many of the students tend to struggle on the<br />
design phase as well as the building the entire<br />
model itself as the structure is approximately<br />
2<strong>00</strong> meters long and 80 meters wide so making<br />
the details of the structure is very difficult inside<br />
and out. Throughout these model making days<br />
the important thing is always the non-stop<br />
learning of new things and making new<br />
memories out of it.<br />
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HOW TOTAKE OUT HELL FROM<br />
HELL WEEK<br />
IT AINT EASY TO MAKE YOUR HELL WEEK TO AN ORDINARY WEEK BUT THESE NEXT TIPS<br />
CAN LESSEN YOUR STRESS AND HELPS YOU TO TAKE HEAD ON HELL WEEK:<br />
1.<br />
STUDY IMPORTANT PARTS! THE<br />
BASIC PRACTICE OF PROCASTINATION. IT’S<br />
REALLY IMPORTANT TO FIND SOMEWHERE<br />
YOU FEEL THAT YOU STUDY BEST. WHETHER<br />
IT BE AT A COFFEE SHOP, DISCUSSION ROOM<br />
OF THE LIBRARY, YOUR DORM,<br />
GYMNASIUM, ETC., MAKE SURE YOU<br />
ALWAYS FEEL COMFORTABLE AND CAN<br />
TRULY FOCUS ON THE MATERIAL YOU ARE<br />
STUDYING YET STUDY AS A GROUP TO GAIN<br />
MORE KNOWLEDGE AND INCREASE YOUR<br />
DECLARATIVE MEMORY.<br />
2.<br />
BE INTERNATIONAL WITH<br />
YOUR TIME. AFTER BLOCKING<br />
OUT SPECIFIC STUDY TIMES,<br />
45
RESERVE SPACE FOR STUDY BREAKS,<br />
MEALS, SHOWERS, AND FRIENDS. TAKE<br />
TIME TO LIVE AND ENJOY THE LITTLE<br />
BREAKS. THIS SCHEDULE IS MEANT TO<br />
AID YOUR PRODUCTIVITY AND TIME<br />
MANAGEMENT, SO WHEN YOU ARE<br />
HAVING A STUDY SESSION, MAKE SURE<br />
YOU ARE ACTUALLY DEVOTING THAT<br />
TIME YOUR STUDIES<br />
PARTICIPATE IN GROUP<br />
3.<br />
STUDY SESSIONS. IT IS OFTEN<br />
VERY HELPFUL TO STUD WITH<br />
FELLOW BLOCKMATES. TAKE<br />
SOME TIME TO STUDY THE MATERIAL<br />
ON YOUR OWN AND THE GET TOGETHER<br />
WITH SOME CLASSMATES TO REVIEW.<br />
START EARLY. IT’S NEVER TOO<br />
4.<br />
EARLY TO START PREPAREING<br />
ESPECIALLY IN YOUR MAJORS<br />
PLATES AS IT DEVOTES MORE<br />
TIME AND FOCUS THAN OTHER CLASSES.<br />
STARTING EARLY CREATES<br />
OPPORTUNITIES TO GAIN MORE TIME<br />
TO FLOURISH YOUR WORK OR TO DO<br />
OTHER PROJECTS<br />
CELEBRATE YOUR CONQUESTS.<br />
5.<br />
IT’S OKAY TO TAKE BREATHER<br />
AND REWARD YOURSELF FOR<br />
YOUR HARDWORK. GO GRAB YOUR<br />
COMFORT FOOD WITH A FRIEND OR<br />
TAKE A WALK AROUND AND<br />
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU ARE MAKING<br />
PROGRESS.<br />
MOTIVATION. MOTIVATION IS<br />
6.<br />
THE KEY ON SUCCEDING ON<br />
YOUR HELL WEEK, ALWAYS<br />
FOCUS ON THE TASK WITH THE<br />
GOAL IN MIND. MOTIVATION IS NOT<br />
ONLY FOR YOURSELF BUT ALSO TO<br />
MOTIVATE YOUR BLOCKMATES AND<br />
YOUR GROUPMATES AS WHEN THEY<br />
ACKNOWLEDGE YOU ARE KEEP<br />
PERSEVERING TO FINISH YOUR TASK<br />
THEY WILL EVENTUALLY KEEP PUSHING<br />
THEMSELVES TO FINISH THE PROJECT<br />
WITH QUALITY AND ON TIME.<br />
RELAX! HELL WEEK CAN BE VERY<br />
7.<br />
FRUITFUL TO CREATE NEW<br />
BEAUTIFUL MEMORIES AND<br />
LESSONS IF YOU ARE PREPARED<br />
TO MANAGE IT PROPERLY AND FOCUS<br />
TO FINISH THE TASK. TAKE A DEEP<br />
BREATH AND MEET THE CHALLENGES<br />
ONE AT A TIME, IT’S NOT AS DIFFICULT<br />
AS IT FIRST APPEARS.<br />
+9999999999999+++++++<br />
+++++++++++++++++++++<br />
+++++++++++++++++++<br />
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`<br />
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