Ilocos empanada! Dissecting the Batac and Vigan empanada

Ilocos empanada is one of my favorite Philippine snacks. Every time I go to Ilocos, I make sure to get my share of Ilocos empanada, especially the one in Batac, which is reputably where the best empanada is served.

The Ilocos empanada is actually of Spanish and Mexican origin. Notice how it's similar to the taco? The basic empanada has a rice flour or galapong crust with grated green papaya inside. The longaniza, egg and bean sprouts were later added. There are actually two varieties of Ilocos empanada, the one in Batac (which is the same one served in Laoag), and the empanada served in Vigan. So what are the differences?

1. On the crust, the crust of the Batac empanada is orange because of the achuete. The Vigan empanada has no coloring and is thus lighter in color.
2. The crust of the Vigan empanada is thinner and crunchier. While the crust of the Batac empanada, while crispy as well, is a bit harder the chew. While many people prefer the crunchier Vigan crust, I noticed it retains more oil.
3. The Batac empanada uses the entire egg. In Vigan, many stalls remove the egg white (this practice maybe had something to do with building churches since egg white was an important building material at that time).
4. Longaniza types are also different. The Batac empanada uses the saltier Laoag longaniza. While the Vigan empanada uses the vinegar-seasoned longaniza of Vigan.
5. Many Vigan empanadas do not have bean sprouts, just the grated green papaya.
6. The differences in vinegar also add distinctiveness to the two varieties. I noticed the Vigan vinegar is very strong with an alcohol-like fermented taste. The Laoag vinegar is really sour and usually has siling labuyo added to it when served in the stalls. I personally prefer the latter.
7. In Vigan, they still use banana leaves to fold and seal the empanada. In Batac, it's already plastic.

The Batac empanada has a lot of variations. There's the ordinary empanada (just the papaya, bean sprouts and egg), ordinary eggless (just the vegetables), special empanada (with longaniza and egg), special eggless (with longaniza but no egg), special w/o mongo (everything except bean sprouts), jumbo empanada (with hot dog), double special (double longaniza and one egg), double egg (one longaniza and two eggs), and the heaviest of them all, the double double (double the longaniza and egg). They even serve just the crust which they call pinais.

In Vigan, one variation we got to taste was the one with cabbage served at Abuelita's Restaurant. I'm looking forward to my next serving of Ilocos empanada!

Baguio: Is Baguio a hopeless case?

Baguio City is the only hill station in the Philippines. For those not familiar with hill stations, a hill station in Southeast and South Asian countries is a high-altitude town used especially by European colonialists as a place of refuge from the summer heat. It looks like the Spanish were not into hill stations since it was the Americans who established the first and only hill station in the country. And that’s why we have Baguio City which is celebrating its centennial this year.

Many of these Asian hill stations (such as Simla and Darjeeling in India, Cameron Higlands in Malaysia, Bandung and Bogor in Indonesia, Dalat in Vietnam, and May Myo in Myanmar) were able to preserve their character. But Baguio, sad to say, was not as the destruction of what makes it unique continues as we speak, with the uncontrolled development and short-sightedness of many businessmen who continue to erase the character of the city in the name of progress and wealth generation. I'm sure they're bound to realize that despite all their money, they can no longer bring back Baguio’s charm. I hope they realize that sooner than later.

There are still a few enclaves of Baguio’s original character such as Camp John Hay and the Teachers’ Camp area with towering pine trees and Baguio’s green and white architecture. Those are the colors that define Baguio just like white houses are characteristic of some Greek Mediterranean towns, or the bright pastel colors that define several Latin American capitals.

In fact, we’ve long been telling the city that a quick solution to beautify the deteriorating Baguio landscape is by repainting the houses in former mountain vistas using Baguio’s historical colors: white, brown or pink walls with green roofs. Imagine how Quezon or Aurora Hill would look like if all the houses there followed this color pattern? It would be an attraction in itself and worth taking pictures of, the same way we take pictures of mountain villages in Europe. And we are not reinventing anything since those are Baguio’s colors. Shouldn’t it be that when a tourist sees green and white houses and buildings harmoniously mixed with lush pine trees, one should know that he is in Baguio City?

There was actually a petition that went around on Baguio and it says:
“We believe that the City of Baguio is culturally, environmentally and aesthetically unique and different from other cities in the Philippines. We believe that Baguio is the nerve center of four rich and diverse cultures: the Filipino culture in general, the highland Cordilleran culture, the lowland Ilocano culture, and the heritage culture brought about by the Americans during the early 20th Century.

“We believe that in the past two decades, the City of Baguio has experienced a substantial degradation of its unique culture, environment and art. We believe that the approval of certain politicians with no respect for the aesthetics and the environment of Baguio to put up concrete structures such as malls, overpasses and flyovers only worsens Baguio City's lamentable decay as a "City of Pines." We believe that this overdevelopment and resulting pollution have to stop.

“We believe that due to its unique history and blend of cultures, Baguio can be to the Philippines as Barcelona is to Spain, Chiang Mai is to Thailand, and San Francisco is to the United States: a main center of arts, culture, philosophy, education, tourism, sustainable development and environmental awareness. We believe, therefore, that the City of Baguio deserves to be declared a "Special Heritage Zone," so that the degradation brought about by overdevelopment can be minimized and gradually controlled. We believe that Baguio City's heritage as a center of culture and environmental awareness is a valuable asset not just to the Philippines, but also to the world.

“We now respectfully call on the residents of Baguio and the Filipino people to sign this humble petition, and for the local and national governments concerned to implement and declare Special Heritage status on this unique mountain City as soon as possible, preferably before the Baguio Centennial in 2009, so no further destruction on its limited cultural, environmental and aesthetic resources may continue.”

But one thing about petitions is that while written well, are not addressed or sent to people who can make it happen. Plus the constant follow-ups and lobbying are not done too. So despite the wide and laudable circulation of this petition, I doubt if it has been sent to the right policy and decision makers.

It’s already centennial year and still there’s no one moving. Maybe someone out there is listening; someone who can push the national and city governments to make real efforts to preserve what’s left of Baguio’s charm. That being said, let me say that Baguio is not a hopeless case. Something can still be done. But we all have to realize that it’s the responsibility of all Filipinos to save the character that makes Baguio City uniquely Baguio.

The Philippine National Anthem is not a pop song!

Martin Nievera, in his rendition of the Philippine National Anthem during the Pacquiao-Hatton fight, violated Republic Act No. 8491 or the Flag Law. Section 37 of the law states: "The rendition of the National Anthem, whether played or sung, shall be in accordance with the musical arrangement and composition of Julian Felipe."

Singing the first few lines slowly like a ballad, and then repeating the lines again was the first violation. In the last lines, he made a bigger violation by changing the notes of the National Anthem! For what? So that he could wow and impress the crowd with higher notes? He should have followed the example of Tom Jones who sung the British National Anthem solemnly, very straightforward and with fervor. Nievera should issue an apology at the very least!

These commercial singers who are given the task of singing the Philippine National Anthem at international events should be reminded that the main reason they are there is to lead the crowd and the Filipino nation in paying respect to our country and our flag. The Philippine National Anthem is not a pop song! Trying to impress everyone with their voice or how high a note they could hit should be the least of their concerns.

And just a note to the people who watched the fight live, what may be allowed for the U.S. flag may be an act of disrespect for the Philippine flag. Each country has its own way of showing respect. And Section 34 (f) of the Flag Law states that it shall be prohibited "to add any word, figure, mark, picture, design, drawings, advertisement, or imprint of any nature on the flag." So no marks or messages on the Philippine flag please!

Update: Martin Nievera refuses to apologize. His reaction to the criticism is even more appalling. It's outright arrogant and bastos! I guess he's just too full of himself to apologize. Read NHI raps Martin’s version of RP anthem.

Update (05/13/09): A well-written opinion from Ambeth Ocampo on the Martin Nievera issue came out in the Inquirer today. Read Our 'pasaway' culture.

Around Clark: Kambingan in Bayanihan Park

Only the Pampanga locals knew that right beside Bayanihan Park in Angeles City is a small row of restaurants which serve different dishes of goat meat. But now, these kambingans have become very popular after Anthony Bourdain visited them when he was in Pampanga.

They serve kalderetang kambing, pinapaitan, sinigang na kambing and kilawin among other things. Craving for goat meat? Then Pampanga is the place. And there are more food choices in Pampanga than visitors could ever imagine!

FAQs on church heritage conservation in the Philippines

The Heritage Conservation Society hosted a second lecture on church heritage conservation at the Museo ng Maynila today. Speaker was Fr. Milan Ted D. Torralba, canon lawyer and heritage advocate.

There have been several pontifical statements on the importance of church heritage conservation. Pope John Paul II, in his motu proprio Apostolic Letter Inde a Pontificatus Nostri (25 March 1993) says, “Indeed, by its very nature, faith tends to express itself in artistic forms and historical testimony having an intrinsic evangelizing power and cultural value, to which the Church is called to pay the greatest attention.”

Fr. Ted points out that among the underlying causes for the depreciation of Philippine ecclesiastical cultural heritage are (1) misinterpretation of Vatican II or misreading of the objective intent of the Council Fathers that led to confusion, neglect, miseducation; (2) McDonaldification or Disneyfication of the Filipino; and (3) the mystification of tourism as end-all and be-all ("The falsification of authenticity in favour of tourism is a very serious issue." - Richard Engelhardt, 31 March 2008)

In his lecture, Fr. Ted quotes Czech historian Milan Hübl, “The first step in liquidating a people is to erase its memory. Destroy its books, its culture, its history. Then have somebody write new books, manufacture new culture, invent a new history. Before long, the nation will begin to forget what it is and what it was. The world around it will forget even faster.”

Fr. Ted mentions that a Filipino Jesuit priest once asked, “Why preserve or restore Philippine colonial churches when these are symbols of oppression, inequality, and injustice?” So here are some FAQs of church heritage conservation on the side of the Roman Catholic Church which I lifted from his presentation (with his permission of course) and my comments in parenthesis:

What is the cultural heritage of the Church?
The cultural heritage of the Church is that essential part of her religious patrimony or legacy handed down from its very source and summit, Jesus Christ, to which such heritage is directed.

Its pastoral function is to serve the Church of Christ as effective means of catechizing and evangelizing, as affective instruments of fomenting the sense of the Last Things. In a sense and to a certain degree, it is (quasi-)sacramental and ecclesial.

Who are accountable for Philippine ecclesiastical cultural heritage?
1. The Roman Pontiff, by virtue of his primacy of governance, is the supreme administrator and steward of all ecclesiastical goods (Can. 1273)
2. Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church
Art. 99 – The Commission has the duty of acting as curator for the artistic and historical patrimony of the whole Church.
Art. 102 – The Commission lends its assistance to particular Churches and Bishops’ Conferences and together with them, where the case arises, sees to the setting up of museums, archives, and libraries, and ensures that the entire patrimony of art and history in the whole territory is properly collected and safeguarded and made available to all who have an interest in it.
Art. 103 – In consultation with the Congregation for Seminaries and Educational Institutions and the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments, the Commission has the task of striving to make the People of God more and more aware of the need and importance of conserving the artistic and historical patrimony of the Church (Apost. Const. Pastor Bonus, 20 XI 1992)
3. Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) is the permanent organizational assembly of the bishops in the Philippines exercising together certain pastoral offices for the Christian faithful of their territory through apostolic plans, programs and projects suited to the circumstances of time and place in accordance with law for the promotion of the greater good offered by the Church to all people (cf. Can. 447; Vatican II, Christus Dominus, No. 38, 1; John Paul II, Apostolos Suos, No. 14).

What is the role of the CBCP Permanent Committee for the Cultural Heritage of the Church?
The Permanent Committee for the Cultural Heritage of the Church, according to Sec. 10 of the By-Laws in the CBCP Statutes (21 October 2000), shall:
1. Promote the cultural heritage of the Church as an invaluable aid to evangelization and catechesis
2. Foment research on and understanding of the ecclesiastical cultural heritage
3. Serve as a consultative body on the scientific conservation of cultural ecclesiastical goods
4. Initiate and sustain collaboration between the Committee and similar government and/or civic agencies involved in the care, conservation and appreciation of the cultural heritage of the Church
5. Act as official liaison with the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church in the Apostolic See
6. Undertake projects in different dioceses or prelatures upon invitation or authorization of, and collaboration with, the ordinaries (bishops) concerned.

Can the CBCP reprimand, or even call the attention of, bishops and/or priests who are perceived to have neglected the care of the ecclesiastical cultural heritage? Can the CBCP order the immediate stoppage or termination of renovations of ecclesiastical heritage structures presently on-going in the dioceses and parishes in the Philippines?
No (Please see the related question below on the process of filing legitimate complaints with the Roman Catholic Church. Note that you can also file cases in the proper courts based on the laws of the Republic of the Philippines since all colonial churches are at the minimum, declared by the National Historical Institute as Classified Historic Structures under NHI Resolution No. 3, 22 October 1991. That's if the priest and the bishop don't scare the judge into believing that Saint Peter won't let them in Heaven if they decide against the Church. Article 428 of the New Civil Code provides that "the right of an owner over his property is not absolute but is subject to certain limitations established by law")

Can the CBCP create a comprehensive list of all heritage churches in the Philippines in aid of information?
A qualified yes (I hope the CBCP starts this list)

Can the CBCP Plenary Assembly empower its Permanent Committee for the Cultural Heritage of the Church by giving it the sole authority to approve any restoration, construction or further improvements of heritage churches, and by granting it the mandate to order the stoppage of any restoration, construction or further improvement that it deems damaging to a heritage church?
No

Who then has the final say on the proper care of the cultural heritage of the particular churches in the Philippines?
The diocesan bishop who will base his episcopal decisions on Canon Law governing the proper care and wise use of the ecclesiastical cultural goods of his particular church, and on concrete pastoral exigencies circumscribed by time and place.

And so, if there are legitimate complaints against the judgment or decision of a priest or the diocesan bishop as regards the care of the ecclesiastical cultural heritage in his own particular church, to whom can the said complaints be lodged?
1. Against the decision or action of a parish priest, first to the parish priest. Otherwise, appeal and recourse be lodged with the diocesan bishop (When you write a letter to the bishop, make sure you are able to say everything in one page. More than one page will not be effective)
2. Appeal against the judgment or decision of the diocesan bishop should be lodged with the authority placing such judgment or decision, which is the diocesan bishop himself.
3. Hierarchical recourse against the decision or action of the diocesan bishop can be brought before the metropolitan (or archbishop) of the ecclesiastical province, or directly to the Holy See (You can copy furnish your complaints to H.E. Msgr. Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church, Via della Conciliazione 5-7, Rome, Italy 00193, fax no. +39 0669884621, or e-mail address pcbcc@pcchc.va)

What now then is the role of the CBCP in protecting and curating the ecclesiastical cultural heritage of the local Church in the Philippines?
1. The CBCP can gently remind the bishops of the universal canonical legislation on the care of the ecclesiastical cultural heritage as a pastoral service assisting them in this emergent apostolic action of the Church that does hold a primary priority.
2. The CBCP, through its Permanent Committee, assists the diocesan bishops in their task of superintending the ecclesiastical cultural heritage in their respective sees by promoting the work of their diocesan commissions for church heritage thereby helping these to assume their proper obligations on heritage care and utilization.
3. The CBCP promotes awareness, sensitivity, appreciation, and valorisation of the ecclesiastical cultural heritage by precisely advancing and supporting the non-formal formation activities of its Permanent Committee expressed through the conduct of the biennial national conventions, regional fora, symposia, and such like settings, and the publication of its journal on cultural heritage studies, the Pintacasi.
4. The CBCP can formulate complementary norms (local canonical legislation), manuals, policies, or guidelines to govern the proper care of the cultural heritage of the particular church in the Philippines. The initiative began with the International Agreement between the Holy See and the Republic of the Philippines on the Cultural Heritage of the Catholic Church in the Philippines signed on 17 April 2007 and which entered into full force on 29 May 2008, following the exchange of the instruments of ratification.

What is the philosophy behind of Ecclesiastical Cultural Heritage Management?
We conserve heritage – ensuring its security from theft, survival from disaster, and safety from mishandling – for the primordial purpose of maintaining and perpetuating its faith (religious/theological) significance by which such heritage is valued.

The connecting line that links the artistic-cultural processes of Christian inspiration and Faith itself is the reference to Jesus Christ. He is culmen et fons (culmination and source) of all heritage of the Church.