MINALUNGAO'S MYSTIQUE

I went out on another eco- cultural trip with Gilbert Dino's TROPA'NG GALA to this supposedly mystical river in Gapan, Nueva Ecija. It was a two-pronged tour that saw people from all persuasions and age groups on a heritage cum nature trip a few hours from Manila.

* photo courtesy of Leah Barcinal

Mr. D picked me up a little past five at the Bonifacio Monument in Caloocan City so I joined Leilani Concepcion, Dennis Dy Ko and Mr. D to pick up Ms Rheeza Santiago Hernandez and hubby Jonathan and their friend. There was another van that was stationed at Trinoma to pick up the group of Rence Chan, Pheeyah Salones, Allan Pardilla Martinez, Jon Gorme, Phillip Reyes, Mafe Dajalos, Ofie Palma, Igor Golubev, Jeffrey Estalilla and partner, Michael Valdez Candelaria and Aiz Dl, Leah Barcinal ... Hope I didn't miss anyone...

breakfast at Arki's Tambayan with Pheeyah Salones, Mafe Dajalos, Ofie Palma and Leilani Concepcion

The first stop was at Arki's Tambayan in Bulacan. This unpretentious little restaurant is owned and operated by the husband and wife tandem of Ervin and Kat Garcia. They served steamed and fried rice, fried eggs over easy, smoked sardine (tinapang galunggong), dried salted fish (daing), beef tapa and fresh carabao's milk to douse over the rice or use as cofee creamer. needless to say, it was delish!!!

del Rosario heritage house

The first component of the tour was a visit to Gapan's remaining heritage houses. AHP Gapan organizers Louie Ramirez and Ramon Valmonte accompanied us around town to noteworthy homes. We were warmly welcomed at the Del Rosario home and at the Cuison Mansion. and the photos are more than reminders of how much fun the group was having. Unfortunately. part of the del Rosario home fell prey to a road widening project a large part of the backyard/ azotea was lopped off in the guise of progress. 

The next noteworthy visit was at the Divina Pastora church:

Built in the 1800's by Augustinian friars with Gapanense forced labor, the brick church has withstood natural and man-made calamities including the 1896 Philippine Revolution, World War II and the Great 1990 Earthquake.

The Gapan church is a pilgrimage site for two miraculous patron saints -- the Three Kings whose feast day continues to be celebrated ever January 6, and the Divina Pastora every May 1.The Gapan church has been declared the National Shrine of the Divina Pastora.* (Lakad Pamana page*)

Minalungao National Park is fast becoming a popular destination in the area. operated by the Department Of Environment and Natural Resources. It's a post-card pretty area that offers something for everyone. Visitors have a variety of activities to engage in: ziplining, swimming, spelunking, rafting, trekking or simply lazing on the river banks to take in the raw beauty of nature and the fresh breeze that caresses the gigantic monkey-pod (acacia) trees that provide shade from the relentless summer sun. There was a dearth of cottages for rent owing that we visited on a holiday (Araw ng Kagitingan) so we had to wait a while until suitable shade was made available for our group.

This prompted horticulturist Rence Chan to take note of vegetation  that was not endemic in the area. Rence continued to rant on the planting of fox tail palms much to the delight and laughter of Tropa'ng Gala. Really, DENR should be more conscientious in their attempt to landscape the place

Arki's again served a sumptous lunch of prawns drenched in crab fat, grilled pork belly (liempo), grilled aubergines, pickled green papaya, bangus ( milkfish), green mango salad, and lemon cucumber juice or watermelon juice to quench our thirst.

prawns in crab fat

griilled squid

Arrangements were made for spelunking activities so we walked in single file to follow our guide... a 13 year old boy named Niko who was trying to work his way through summer break. He knew every nook and cranny in the cave we visited as he waited patiently for us to finish our photo ops. we crossed the hanging bridge to take the 1000 steps up the slope across the river. More photo ops on the summit and then we started descent. I managed to find a shoer stall and quickly changed before heading back to Manila. But Arki's wasn't done yet... they served dinner of hot steaming Bulalo before the vans made their way back to Manila.

hitting the summit to 1,000 steps
photo by Leilani Concepcion*

Incidentally, Minalungao has a bad reputation of having a high rate of visitor deaths, disappearances. Apparently when visiting, one must not make too much noise or make a rucus, otherwise spirits/elementals  snatch you as you're having a dip in the river...  Either that, or you're too gorgeous that spirits supposedly take a fancy to you. No such thing happened on our adventure. I'm still here, aren't I?

** my Minalungao album is posted on my Fb page feel free to browse.