Bulacan: Carabao Festival in Pulilan, Bulacan

I missed the Pulilan Carabao Festival today. The parade started at 2 p.m. but I was still voting here in San Fernando, Pampanga. I guess though, with the elections set today, the celebration in Pulilan would not be as grand as last year. So I was content with looking at photos taken by Sidney Snoeck from last year's festival, held annually every May 14 in honor of San Isidro Labrador whose feast day is tomorrow. (Photos courtesy of Sidney Snoeck)

Don't miss the happenings in Quezon tomorrow which include the Pahiyas Festival in Lucban, Mayohan in Tayabas, and Agawan in Sariaya. I also heard the celebration in Gumaca is another must visit. From May 17 to 19, the streets of Obando, Bulacan will be alive with devotees doing the traditional fertility dance.

Technorati Tags: pulilan, bulacan, philippines, carabao festival, carabao, festival, festivals, culture, travel blog

Cavite: Around historic Cavite

Yesterday, I went around the historic province of Cavite. Our first stop was the Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine in Kawit.

The ancestral home of Aguinaldo, the first president of the Philippines, it was the site of the proclamation of Philippine independence on June 12, 1898. On that day, the declaration of independence from Spain was read from a balcony of the house and the Philippine flag formally unfurled by Ambrosio Rianzares Bautista (and not Aguinaldo as is erroneously depicted in the old five peso bill). The Philippine National Anthem was also played for the first time by the Banda Malabon (of San Francisco de Malabon, now Gen. Trias, Cavite).

Sadly, the museum was closed. I find this government practice of closing historical sites on Sundays stupid since it robs Philippine citizens the chance to visit these places when they’re off from work. I’ve been in the museum several times before so it wasn’t really a loss. But it would have been nice to see it again. If you want to find out what you could see inside, click here.

From there, it was a forty-minute drive south to Maragondon where we visited the Church of the Assumption of Our Lady which was declared a national cultural treasure, and the Bonifacio Trial House, a national historical landmark, which like the Aguinaldo Shrine, was closed on Sundays.

According to the NCCA, “The church was built in the early 18th century by the Jesuits, with later additions by the seculars and the Augustinian Recollects. Much of the church and belltower, and the lower portion of the convento is made of irregular river stones, indicative of the early level of technology operating at that time. The intricately-carved retablos, pulpit and church doors (with galleons and floral designs) date from Jesuit times, while the hugely carved beams crossing the nave were installed by the seculars-- one of the beams even carries the name of the indio priest who commissioned them. The unusual horseshoe-shaped communion rail, with a flooring of inlaid wood of various colors, recalls that of San Sebastian Church, Manila, another Recollect construction.”

The house of Teodorico Reyes, now known as the Bonifacio Trial House, was where Andres Bonifacio and his brother Procopio were court-martialed. It was a kangaroo court as many historians put it. And their conviction for sedition and conspiracy and subsequent execution in the mountains of Maragondon haunts whatever legacy Aguinaldo was able to leave. In the end, it was Bonifacio whom the nation recognized with a public holiday and grand monuments in Metro Manila.

After this quick detour, we had to rush to Silang since we were in Cavite to help our brods campaign. It was actually fun going house to house giving out flyers of Congressman Boying Remulla whom we met earlier in the morning for coffee at his house. Another group was helping out Congressman Gilbert Remulla in Imus. We also campaigned for Senators Joker Arroyo and Kiko Pangilinan. Silang is the largest municipality in Cavite in terms of land area. And the barangays we visited seemed to be on opposite ends. It was sad I wasn't able to check out their church since we had a lot of work to do.

With our mission completed. We passed by neighboring Tagaytay City to check out Taal Volcano before motoring to Indang to go night swimming at one of the natural spring resorts which are a plenty in the town.

By the time we arrived in Indang, it was getting dark. So we skipped the church and headed to Barangay Tambo Kulit where most of the resorts could be found. We were pointed to the Rio Villa Nuevo Resort which many say is the best one in town. When we saw the small waterfalls in the compound, we said this was it! It was PHP12o per head for night swimming. There are several pools of spring water if you do not fancy walking on rocks and streams. We went straight to the waterfalls and enjoyed the rush of cold water.

After an hour, we rushed back to Tagaytay for a late dinner in Teriyaki Boy. We were supposed to go back to Manila. But the group enjoyed the trip so much that we decided to stay overnight. So we checked-in at the three-room inn under the Mile-Hi Diner which is located in the same restaurant compound. The standard room is PHP2,250. Good thing it was a Sunday and weekend vacationers had already left for Manila; so rooms were available. It was a cold night, a welcome respite from Manila's heat. Check out the photos in Multiply. I'm sure Bikoy Villanueva should have his account of our trip anytime soon.

Jose Abad Santos Day
Today, the anniversary of the martyrdom of Chief Justice Jose Abad Santos of San Fernando, Pampanga (one of the three people in the 1000-peso bill), is a non-working holiday in the Province of Pampanga. Happy Jose Abad Santos Day to all!

Technorati Tags: kawit, maragondon, silang, tagaytay, indang, cavite, philippines, taal volcano, heritage, historical sites, ecotourism, architecture, travel blog

Manila: When was the last time you visited Rizal Park?

I was at the HCS office today in Museo Pambata (former Elks Club Building) for an HCS Youth Chapter meeting. Several schools were represented including UP, UST, Ateneo, DLSU and Adamson. It just shows that the heritage advocacy is being powered by young people. The group has a lot of plans for the year. Check out the HCS website regularly for updates.

After the meeting, I walked to nearby Rizal Park. There are several important heritage buildings around the perimeter of the park including the Elks Club Building (Museo Pambata), the Luneta Hotel, Army & Navy Club and Manila Hotel which are all National Historical Landmarks, and the former Department of Finance and the current Department of Tourism buildings. Rizal Park itself is a National Historical Site being the execution site of several Philippine heroes and martyrs. While the Rizal Monument is one of three National Historical Monuments.

My stroll around the park was pleasant. The afternoon breeze was relaxing. The park is well-maintained and the landscaping was quite good except for the flagpole area (I don't remember seeing all those pots and volcanic rock at the base of the flagpole before), which I find cluttered and very kitsch! Whoever approved that should be fired!

Around the park were several monuments to the martyrs of Bagumbayan and markers at the sites of execution of Jose Rizal, and the three priests namely Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jacinto Zamora. Across Roxas Boulevard was the Quirino Grandstand. If you notice a small marker with the number zero on it, that's Kilometer Zero which is the reference point for all road markers in Luzon. Anyway, after that short stroll, I went back home.

Technorati Tags: manila, philippines, heritage, historical sites, rizal park, architecture, travel blog

Manila: The FEU campus is fantastic!

I was at Far Eastern University (FEU) today for a campus tour with Ivan ManDy and all I could say is that the Art Deco buildings designed by Pablo Antonio, National Artist for Architecture, and the collection of art around campus are fantastic! I never thought that amidst the chaos of Recto and Quezon Boulevard is an oasis, a well-planned campus very conducive to learning. The designs of the new buildings are brilliant and blend perfectly with the old. The campus planners of DLSU should get lessons from the efficient use of space and the elegant designs and arrangement of buildings in FEU. It's no surprise the campus was recognized by UNESCO for heritage conservation.

As Ivan ManDy writes: "The Far Eastern University, located in Manila's chaotic and overcrowded University Belt, is the proverbial rose in a sea of thorns. Years of neglect... led to the [campus] falling into hard times, hardly a fit place to inspire the minds of our country's future [leaders]. But then the FEU administration decided... to roll up its sleeves and do something. In one fell swoop, [the campus] morphed from an uninviting, graffiti-infested, makeshift patchwork of classrooms, food-areas and dingy business stalls to [restore itself to] the gleaming Art Deco complex worthy of educating the best minds of the country.

"This is the FEU campus today, a touch of architectural class in a city that seems to have forgotten how beautiful she once was. That the university... is in the midst of one of the most high-density and polluted districts of the city did not deter FEU from battling urban blight head on. But what particularly makes the FEU campus noteworthy is that it proved to many how old buildings do not have to mean derelict and unfashionable. In fact they [the restored buildings] are hip and cool..."

"Buildings in the FEU campus were constructed between 1930-1950; they had been mostly designed by National Artist Pablo Antonio. Felipe Mendoza designed the other campus structures, notably the chapel. All of campus structures were restored to their original appearance. All new buildings were designed in a contemporary style compatible with the old. Without resorting to architectural mimicry of the heritage architecture, the new blended perfectly with the old."

One of the details which I liked were the bronze sculptures around the flagpole done by another National Artist Vicente Manansala. The quadrangle itself is well-planned with the Philippine flag serving as the center of life in campus. Also check out the "Stations of the Cross" murals of National Artist Carlos "Botong" Francisco in the chapel, and the sculpture murals of Francesco Monti and Art Deco mural of Simon Saulog both in the administration building. Watch out for the Old Manila Walks tour of FEU soon. More photos in Multiply.

Campus tour
Ateneo de Manila University
De La Salle University

Manila: Have you tried karting?

Tonight, I went kart racing at Kart Trak in Boom na Boom. My high school batch is celebrating its tenth year anniversary this year and this was the first in a series of events we've planned. This was the second time my batch organized a go kart enduro. Two years ago, we did it at the Manila SpeedZone in Fort Bonifacio. A go kart enduro can be an individual or team event. Each driver or team must make as many laps as they can in a given period of time. Tonight, we did a one and a half hour endurance race. And now my muscles ache! But it was all fun and I just wanted to share the photos with you in my Multiply and our batch page.