Miss International 2018 first-runner up Ma. Ahtisa Manalo has one gift in mind for herself this Christmas: get enough rest.
Miss International 1st runner-up Ma. Ahtisa Manalo poses with mentor Jonas Gaffud. (Instagram/ MANILA BULLETIN)
Asked about the gift she wants for the holidays, Manalo says: "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’s the best gift I can give to myself," says Manalo, during an exclusive interview at the Empire Studios of beauty queen maker Jonas Gaffud recently.
Throughout the finals night of the Miss International 2018 pageant held in Japan, Manalo was confident but relaxed on stage. It simply showed she 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. It’s a competition but after this, when it’s over, what is left would be the friendship with the girls," says Manalo.
So far, she has not planned her activities for the holidays. "No plans yet for the holidays. Maybe after I rested na, I can rejuvenate, think of my plans, calibrate my mind."
She adds that she will go back to Japan in 2019 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," Manalo 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."
Miss International 1st runner-up Ma. Ahtisa Manalo poses with mentor Jonas Gaffud. (Instagram/ MANILA BULLETIN)
Asked about the gift she wants for the holidays, Manalo says: "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’s the best gift I can give to myself," says Manalo, during an exclusive interview at the Empire Studios of beauty queen maker Jonas Gaffud recently.
Throughout the finals night of the Miss International 2018 pageant held in Japan, Manalo was confident but relaxed on stage. It simply showed she 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. It’s a competition but after this, when it’s over, what is left would be the friendship with the girls," says Manalo.
So far, she has not planned her activities for the holidays. "No plans yet for the holidays. Maybe after I rested na, I can rejuvenate, think of my plans, calibrate my mind."
She adds that she will go back to Japan in 2019 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," Manalo 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."