Iloilo: Save Calle Real

After my visit to Iloilo City, I knew just by looking around at all the architectural heritage, that it could be a showcase city for proper urban renewal. I was delighted to find out that saving Iloilo City's architectural heritage was already in the works and the local community is going on an all out campaign for heritage conservation. As the Save Calle Real materials mention: "Iloilo City is a virtual time machine that will transport anyone back to its colonial past. While malls have risen in various corners of the city, they could not outshine the splendor of its colonial buildings that adorn its Calle Real, the first commercial center and its adjoining districts. They are not only testimonies of city’s rich cultural heritage but are tourism assets worth promoting."

On 25 May 2006, concerned citizens and stakeholders will convene at the Iloilo Grand Hotel to participate in a forum that will dissect the draft Iloilo City Downtown Central Business District Heritage Conservation Guidelines and help plan for Calle Real’s future. For more information, check out the website of Save Calle Real. Thumbs up to the organizers of this noble endeavor! I hope other cities follow suit.

Quezon & Laguna: Pahiyas, Mayohan sa Tayabas, atbp.

This was my second straight year at the Pahiyas festival. Due to the storm which had just left the country, Lucban was covered by a blanket of fog. In fact, for most of the morning, the climate was like that of Baguio. The air was cool but a little more humid than in the summer capital.

We left the resthouse at 5:45 a.m. by tricycle since we didn't want our van to get stuck in town. For breakfast, it was Lucban longganiza, sinangag and fried egg. Then we joined the procession which left the church at 7:10 a.m. The procession is the best way to view the decorations since it is only the homes and businesses along the procession route which are decorated.

The procession route changes every year. And you have to wait several years before you are given the chance to decorate. For one, decorating is very costly and doing it every year will create big dents in one's budget. So the route changes to give residents a chance to join in the festivities once or twice in a decade and a chance to save up and prepare for their next turn.

I felt that last year was a bigger celebration than this year. For one, the weather was still unpredictable. And it even rained the night before. Second, the Pahiyas fell on a Sunday last year so the crowds were thicker. I was also disappointed that they used a school band in crew neck t-shirts for the procession. I was charmed by last year's band which was elegant in their traditional band costumes. Oh well!

Since I have a previous entry on the Pahiyas and other San Isidro Labrador celebrations, please check it out for detailed information. The photos of the entry are in Friendster so if they blocked Friendster in your school or office, that would explain why the photos don't show up.

Anyway, after going around to check out the decors and do some shopping, we went back to the resthouse before lunch to load all our stuff in the van. Our next stop was the neighboring town of Tayabas, the former provincial capital. Just like many Philippine towns and cities, the elegant town of Tayabas was bombed by American forces. Sigh!

The town lost all of its grand mansions in the poblacion. I was told that the Americans were targeting the church but for some reason, the bombs missed. And thank God they did since it would have been such a tragedy if American bombs destroyed this national cultural treasure!

The Minor Basilica of St. Michael and the nearby Casa Communidad de Tayabas is all that remains of this once grand town. Sigh! I wonder how many grand old towns and cities the American forces carpet bombed during the Second World War.

We were lucky since Dr. Leticia Yap was in town. Dr. Yap is a native of Tayabas but lived most of her life in San Fernando since her husband is from there. She was at one time a provincial board member of Pampanga. Anyway, we joined her for lunch at their home. After the sumptuous lunch, we were off to Sariaya to view the old houses.

For some reason, Sariaya was better the first time I visited last year. The mayor built a big eyesore, a multi-purpose hall, in a very elegant art deco town plaza. They could have at least made sure that the architecture of this new structure matched the flamboyance of its surroundings.

But there was an obvious change with the colors of the municipio. From a plain white facade, the current colors exude the art deco flair. I know it has elicited mixed reactions but if you want to be historically accurate, you will have to follow color schemes of the period, no matter how flashy they are. Again, a detailed account is in last year's entry.

After a short walking tour, it was back to Tayabas to witness the hagisan ng suman. For a Monday, I was shocked to see that there were double or even triple the number of participants in the procession. Was this a sign of trying times? Because last year, I could still stand behind the anda of San Isidro Labrador. But this year it was a mad rush for the suman flying in the air in the thousands. And I didn't want to suffer a Wowowee! simply to take photos in the middle of the rushing crowd. Hehe!

But from the sidelines, this practice was so intriguing and definitely worth watching! I wonder if there have been any studies made on this and similar religious practices such as the Nazareno procession in Quiapo; why people would risk their lives driven by an ounce of faith, and in the case of Tayabas, a possible windfall of suman.

From Tayabas, we motored back to Lucban and then to Majayjay to visit the old church which is also a national cultural treasure. Driving along the mountain roads offered magnificent views of the slopes of Mount Banahaw and the numerous streams which flowed from it. Looking up at the towering fortress-like Church of San Gregorio Magno was just awe-inspiring. I could just imagine how it looked when there were just a few houses and forests all around it.

We then proceeded to the Nagcarlan Underground Cemetery but it was closed when we got there. At the gate was a sign which said that due to the government's energy conservation program, the cemetery was open only from Tuesday to Saturday. Hello? I could understand Monday but to close it on a Sunday, that is ridiculous!

Anyway, after a few photos, it was back to Manila. What a day! More photos in My Heritage Photos. Click on Laguna and Quezon.

Laguna & Quezon: Heritage and culture around Laguna de Bay

What a stroke of luck! My colleagues at the Center for Kapampangan Studies were going on a cultural immersion of sorts to Laguna and Quezon so I joined the trip. I had been to all the places we were visiting but I've always kept a been-there-but-not-done-that attitude believing that there is always something new to discover anywhere you go.

I was up quite early. The group left Pampanga at 5 a.m. and I met up with them in Manila. After breakfast along the SLEX, we were off to our first stop, the town of Pila, Laguna. The historic center of the town, La Noble Villa de Pila, one of the few towns in the country which was elevated to villa during the Spanish colonial period, was declared a national historical landmark by the NHI in 2000.

The old core is an elegant collection of colorful colonial mansions located around a spacious plaza. The layout out of the town is very typical of our colonial communities. On one side of the plaza, you have the parish church. On the opposite end stands Pila's charming town hall painted in brick red. And on the other two sides, you have the homes of the town's principalia. What I like about Pila are the colors. This was how houses were painted during the Spanish and American colonial periods, bright and lively colors, with a palette somewhat similar to Mexican pastel.

The town has a very active heritage conservation group, the Pila Historical Society Foundation, Inc. which has continuously led efforts to preserve the heritage of this genteel town. They even protect the plaza from billboards and tarpaulin streamers. Check out Pila, Laguna: Keeping a heritage town beautiful.

After Pila, we proceeded further down the highway, past the town of Pagsanjan, to Lumban, a town known for its great embroidery. Just like in Taal, I bought piña cloth. I make it a point everytime I visit these embroidery towns to buy barong cloth.

From there, we were off to Paete and Pakil. But since it was lunch, we stopped over at Exotik Restaurant in Longos, Kalayaan. The concept of this garden restaurant is quite nice and it is thus a good lunch stopover point for those doing the Laguna loop. Although most of the menu is Filipino food, the restaurant got its name from the exotic food they also serve such as snakes, frogs, manta rays, etc.

Paete was just 2 kilometers from the restaurant. This town has a well-preserved church with several centuries-old murals inside. And being a wood carving town, the retablo was nicely done. Don't miss the souvenir shops since the town is known for its wood carving and paper mache.

I was quite delighted looking at the folksy paper mache figures of people in Filipino costumes which was a common theme in public parks during the American colonial period. They reminded me so much of the statues in the rotunda in Carcar. There were also paper mache fruits which looked quite real. Looking closely at each fruit, one would appreciate the effort put into each one.

From Paete, we moved to the next town, Pakil. This town has an equally impressive church which houses the Nuestra Señora de los Dolores de Turumba. We felt bad that just two hours before we arrived, there was a pistang lupi which are festivities of the Turumba festival, which is done seven times from March to May. Sigh! That would have made our visit perfect! The image is brought around on an anda, accompanied by street dancing by devotees from all over.

The interior of the church was just marvelous! It's one of my favorites in the Southern Tagalog if you ask me. And the interior looked as if it were recently restored. We found out that efforts to restore it was a local initiative. I hope other towns around the country follow suit. When priests stop renovating heritage churches according to their whims and caprices, that would be the day! The CBCP should give its Commission on Church Heritage more teeth to control the tasteless damage done by many priests. And no church more than 50 years old should be touched without the go signal of the commission.

On the way back, we passed by the old church of Kalayaan in Longos. The old name of the town was actually Longos but this was changed to Kalayaan when they moved the seat of government to a different barangay. The church was right along the shores of Laguna de Bay and was well-preserved.

Since it was getting late, we decided to go straight to Lucban where we were to spend the night. Accomodations were graciously taken care of by the parish. The choir of Holy Angel University was doing a concert that night so they were staying at the old convent. Our group was housed in a charming resthouse owned by a friend of the parish. For dinner, we had traditional Lucban food which included pancit habhab, tamales, Lucban tikoy and espasol.

After watching the concert and going around the stalls set-up for the Pahiyas festival, we went back to the resthouse since we had to wake up early. The procession of San Isisdro Labrador was at 7 a.m.