AHP GOES TO SAN JUAN, BATANGAS

San Juan Nepomuceno, Patron Saint

San Juan relic

San Juan church

The Advocates for Heritage Preservation does at least one heritage walk per month. This isn't extra-ordinary. What makes the AHP tours worth joining is the fact that all the participants clad in golden yellow tees swoop down into a town as if it were an invvasion of some sort. The fun loving members have become friends on Facebook if not in person. So it isn't surprising that each heritage tour starts off with people doing the customary "beso- beso" everytime we meet at the venue. 

For February, Tito Encarnacion (our erstwhile Uncle Tito) organized the tour of San Juan, Batangas. Vans were organized by our bossing Johnson Bernardo for those who wanted to avail of car pools and the rest... well... they brought their own cars.

The registration venue was held at the ruins of the Marasigan mansion. Orientation was handled by the heritage group of Bolboc, San Juan, Batangas. As usual, the AHP participants were grouped into color codes. Each group  was led by a local guide and an assistant. I was in the green group along with Johnson's angels: Vica Tigno, Alice Devera Vasquez, Maricar Anatalio. There were six passengers in Van 4 together with our driver and Johnson so we pretty much had enough room to get some shut eye en route to the site.

Mercado Mansion

Unfortunately, much of the Spanish colonial history of San Juan remains covered in mystery. It starts at the turn of the century as records from 1638 until 1863 refer to San Juan as a territory of Rosario. Only when it was recognized as a municipality was it given the name of San Juan.. The area is largely agricultural as it is insulated from strong storms. It has two rivers (Malaking Ilog and Lawaye)and one of the longest coastlines in Luzon, now dotted with resorts for the enjoyment of local tourists. After all, it's a mere 171 kms south of Manila.

Capeno Sala

Don Camilo Perez is recognized as the founder of the town and is credited with its independence from Rosario. However, the abundant produce, prone to dry rot (Bocboc) in the hot summers gave it its monicker San Juan de Bocboc. Concerned scions of the prominent families (Marasigan, Perez, Mercado, et.al) have remained protective of the town's historical significance. We visited the heritage homes in the area and took a gazillion photos of its quaint charm. The church itself, a fine example of baroque architecture was far removed from the usual Spanish colonial set up of town plaza crossed by government building church and market. The original church was moved from its original location now called "Pinagbayanan". 

After the walking tour, we convoyed towards a traditional well preserved home and then the old churchyard prior to a late lunch at La Luz Resort. The rest of the afternoon was spent either on windy cabanas or exploring a rock promontory at the end of the shoreline. This AHP trip was so cool, I just kept taking snapshot after snapshot.

*the photos in this post may be viewed in my album on Facebook

SAN MIGUEL DE MAYUMO

Bahay na Pula ruins in San Ildefonso, Bulacan

The closest province north of Manila is Bulacan. Mention it to local residents and you'd be mildly surprised that it is not the go-to destination for long weekends nor holidays. People only troop to Bulacan for Holy Week for Visita Iglesia or to purchase the usual pyrotechnics for New Year's Eve.  

San Miguel Church

San Miguel de Mayumo is a town on the north-eastern tip with Nueva Ecija and Pampanga on its boundaries. Formerly annexed by the town of Sto. Rosario, San Miguel came into its own as a third class municipality when people started moving into the area. Once an agricultural town, most of the agrarian land have been converted into industrial sites.

Naturally rich in geographical features, its rivers caves and forests serve as a magnet to high profile development attracting multinational corporations to set up operations in the area. Thanks to the residents' political will and determination, strip mining was stopped in the area. The prominent families of San Miguel still manage to keep the town in a quasi pristine state despite efforts to divide the area by then first lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos. It was through her initiative that the Dona Remedios Trinidad municipality was created. Since then, some areas, particularly the Biak-Na-Bato Nature Park have been subdivided and placed under the the jurisdiction of Dona Remedios Trinidad and San Miguel.

Gilbert Dino in the green shirt

Lakad Pamana, organized by Gilbert Dino does local tours of the province of Bulacan. Born and raised in San Miguel and now a resident of Bustos, he makes it a point to bring local tourists to experience what Bulacan has to offer. I wasn't disappointed! All it cost me was a few hours of sleep (due to the early morning drive) and P1,200.00. The van ride, breakfast, lunch and merienda were included. For this round of tours, we visited Biak-Na-Bato Nature Park, Banal na Bundok and Madlum Cave. Prior to that, we walked around the neighborhood appreciating the heritage homes that still survive to this day.

me on the river bank

Breakfast was at this nondescript restaurant called Olive's. Olive herself was on-hand to see to it participants to the walking tour were well-fed with local breakfast fare of either boneless milkfish, barbecued pork or local sausage. I had the garlic longganisa and some garlic rice. From there we had a short ride to Biak-Na-Bato. After a short orientation by the park guides we went straight to the trail.

Pahingahan cave

We first arrived at the Pahingahan cave (where Katipuneros either rested from a long journey to hide in the caverns or to convalesce after having been wounded in the skirmishes with the American forces. For some, and this is apropos, it had become a place of final repose if Trinidad Tecson didn't get to aid them with her healing hands. From that vantage point, one can already see the Aguinaldo cave across the river. 

Aguinaldo Cave

As you go higher up the trail, one ends up in a view deck where a huge gaping mouth of the Paniki cave can be seen. Literally thousands of bats have settled in the cave and they fly out at dusk. you'l know when you reach the viewdeck... the pungent smell of guano wafts up towards the rocks. Since the hanging bridge is in disrepair, we had to trek down to the river floor only to climb up the steps again to the historic rock of Biak-Na-Bato where the urban legend of Bernardo Carpio comes from. According to folk tale, strongman Bernardo used brute strength to prevent the rocks from closing the pathway.

Biak-Na-Bato

Next  down the trail was the "cathedral" when we reached the cave floor through makeshift bamboo walkways. The cavern has crystal clear water running through and it opens up in the other end for a picturesque backdrop. Photo ops were maximized and then we headed back up towards the paved walks to have lunch by the river's edge. After lunch of grilled milkfish and rice we proceeded to Banal na Bundok where a larger than life sized Via Crucis was mounted along a hillside. The top of the 14 stations affords one a magnificent view of Mount Suso'ng Dalaga. Then we descended to the Marian Collection featuring an open air chapel right in the heart of meandering walkways that have strategic stops in images of the Virgin Mary.

Paniki Cave cathedral

The last stop was at Madlum Cave. at least a ten minute drive from the Via Crucis, we reached the Madlum cave area which was at the other end of the cave systems of Biak na Bato. It was obviously popular among young mountaineers and trekkers. They have recreational facilities in the area like a hanging bridges and a monkey bridge where young students cross the river suspended on mere cables. Madlum cave is known as the area where the image of San Miuel was miraculously discovered. Contrary to popular belief, San Miguel de Mayumo was initially named after the town's patriarch, Miguel Pineda who started developing the area for agriculture alongside Mariano Puno of Sto. Rosario. Mayumo is a Pampango word for sweet which was added to the monicker as part of the alliance of the gentlemen. Then the "miraculous" discovery of the image of St. Michael the Archangel on a niche in Madlum cave was deemed enough reason to add the title "San". Ergo, San Miguel de Mayumo was born!

open cavern

We headed back for merienda at the residence of Ms Nats Buencamino whose family name is one of the revered families of the town. There was a refreshing coconut sherbet, empananda with creamy white cheese and pan de Karne (bread done french toast style but with minced meat mixed in). I ate so much merienda, I skipped dinner that evening. I'm trying to squeeze in another visit to San Miguel soon before the rainy season starts. Now, if only my schedule will allow it...

Madlum Cave

*Gilbert Dino organizes various heritage tours to Bulacan. Check out his Fb page Lakad Pamana, or San Miguel de Mayumo. He'll reach out to you if you show interest in his tours. 

** You can view my album on my Fb page. I hope you like them!

40TUDE IS AN ATTITUDE

Finally, I can run the article on this project I've been working on for the better part of 2015... Yes... 2015! you read it right. The play date was set for January 30th, 2016 but like everything else in the performing arts, preparations are made way in advance. So around the first quarter of last year, I was invited to do the costumes by Ms. Nanette Nicerio of Elizabeth Seton School. She took time off from her teaching duties to concentrate on the production as over-all coordinator. By June of 2015, we set out on the initial production meetings and the libretto was set. 

Talent Factory, Inc., pet project of Maestro Jesse Lucas was in charge of over-all production; making sure he held auditions for the cast, did musical arrangements for  dance rehearsals, minus ones for the leads and for hiring support staff and crew for the theater performances. Libretto by Jeoffrey Camanag, Andre Tiangco provided the stage direction for the performers, Gino Gonzalez designed the set. Joseph Mattheu designed the lighting while sir Bodjie was in charge of Technical Direction. Choreographers were Jed Amihan, Joevenelle Palomillo Mallorca, and Lezlie Alberto Dailisan who were with the kids day in and day out teaching them the steps to the specific numbers they were assigned to. I did the costume design.

I gotta hand it to the Founder and Director Emeritus of Elizabeth Seton School, Dr. Josefina V. Suarez for deciding to proceed full out with the production. It's a gargantuan effort to mount a show involving the entire school: students, teacher/trainors, and staff not to mention the production side composed of professionals from theater and the performing arts. Scheduling rehearsals alone takes time away from the regular school calendar so Ms. Nanette made sure the entire process of mounting the show was incorporated into the classes and some of the extra-curricular activities. The students get to perform in the show and learn something in the process, which fits nicely into the mission/vision of Elizabeth Seton School. After all, the school's focus of developing and harnessing the students' multiple intelligence came into play. I'm very certain everyone was awed by the end result.

40TUDE IS AN ATTITUDE absolutely did not disappoint! I would accompany the choreographers to both Main and South campuses to watch them teach and rehearse the students and meet with suppliers for the costumes on occasion. I could see the students' sweaty faces after learning a new dance sequence, hear them singing on the hallway after learning the arrangement of a new chorus. I have seen these kids turn from gangly, clumsy teenagers into accomplished singers and dancers. That was a reward in itself. The bonus was seeing all the proud parents who plunked in their time, effort and money to watch how their kids fared. Gauging their reception at the end of the school hymn, it was obvious they enjoyed the show... a standing ovation, no less!

It's productions like these that validate my work. The first time the kids tried on their costumes they couldn't figure out what to do with them. By the time they got to the blocking rehearsals and  run-throughs at the Theatre at Solaire, they were reveling in delight. Evidence of this was the sarong designed for the tenth grade girls. Timid and shy at first, they couldn't move in the slightly figure hugging sarongs. It was an altogether different story come showtime. It helped, of course, that I spent a session teaching them how to wear and carry themselves with the sarongs. They all looked like beauty pageant contestants. Even the boys in their shiny rainbow-hued costumes looked very masculine in their flowing sarong pants.

Who else would steal the show but the adorable angels? Opening the show were the pre-school kids in their white angel outfits that we enhanced with LED tape lights. each one had their own shiny halo and set of wings. Cuteness overload right there! And then as the grades progressed, we had to give them age-appropriate costumes that fit their respective musical numbers. 1,996 students came out onstage wearing their costumes in their own unique style. I give particular importance to the kids dressed a Filipino comic strip heroes and the indigenous groups in the "Pinoy Ako" number. But to be honest, I liked dressing up all of them... They got to understand that the costumes are just extensions of their individual performance. You're only as good as your last performance! Props, costumes, sets and lights must be used to a performer's great advantage.

Lastly, I would like to pay homage to the faculty and staff of Elizabeth Seton School whose time and effort (and maybe even patience) we've stretched to breaking point. Additional work hours, copious research, frayed nerves and post production liquidation are all very much a part of a successful production. Thank you to Ms Nanette Nicerio, Ms Ruby Maniego, Ms Larcey of Seton South, Ms Beth, Dr Bob, Mr. and Mrs. Ollano, and some teacher trainors whose names I could not (for the life of me) recall.

40TUDE IS AN ATTITUDE was a rush!