Category Archives: PHILIPPINE PROVINCES

Poctoy White Sand Beach (Torrijos, Marinduque)

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After lunch, we got dressed up, boarded our taxi and proceeded another 30 kms./1.5 hours to the town of Torrijos.  Upon entering the town, we made a short stopover at the nearby Pulang Lupa Battle Shrine, site of a Filipino victory during the Philippine-American War.

Vener and Jowel at the Pulang Lupa Shrine

Upon reaching Brgy. Poctoy, we dropped off at the 1-km. long, fine white sand Poctoy White Sand Beach.  Said to be Marinduque’s best, this postcard-pretty beach, with the dormant, 871-m. high Mt. Malindig as a backdrop, was surprisingly deserted it being a Good Friday. The only other people we saw roaming the beach were 2 missionaries from the Latter Day Saints.   It seems people here follow the long running rule of no bathing on Good Friday.

The deserted Poctoy White Beach
Bonding with Jandy and Cheska

From the beach, we hiked north to a nearby two-room homestay rented out to visiting tourists by Hans Peter Ulrich, a German national, and his Filipina wife Marilou.  The homestay was then being rented by 7 vacationing production staff (6 women and a man) of GMA 7’s Starstruck program.

Marilou’s Homestay

The homestay’s 2 rooms were both fan-cooled, had a wide bed with mosquito netting, a bathroom with running water and a common porch and cooking station with a working stove where they can do their own cooking.  As there is no refrigerator, they have to go to the market for provisions.  Once this need arises, they just call or text, via mobile phone, a tricycle driver (recommended by Hans) who can bring them there.

The homestay’s resident dog joins in
Starstruck in Marinduque

Fronting the cottage is a small, coconut palm-fringed private cove of sparkling white sand and the Good Friday rule did not stop us from frolicking the inviting waters of this beautiful beachfront.  Its reef drop-off, located 200 to 300 m. offshore, is ideal for snorkeling.  What more can you ask? Given the opportunity in the future, I would gladly return to this idyllic beach.

Cheska with Mr. Ulrich
Prior to our departure we made a short stopover at the residence of Hans Peter and Marilou Ulrich.

Marilou’s Homestay: Brgy. Poctoy, Torrijos, Marinduque.  Mobile number: (0921) 751-6930 and (0919) 485-0531.

A Tour Around Marinduque: Boac to Buenavista

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On our second day in Marinduque (Good Friday), we hired  a Toyota Tamaraw FX, owned and driven by Mr. Herman Matre, for PhP1,200, to tour us around the island.  For food, we brought along packed lunches prepared for us by Ms. Laura Lahm, the owner of Barbarosa Restaurant (said to be the best place to eat in Marinduque).  We can actually drive around the island in 3 hours, as the main highway connects all 6 towns, but we opted to do this in a more leisurely pace.
 
Gaspar Island
Baltazar Island
Melchor Island

Traveling along the road, we espied, from afar, a  number of beautiful islands.  The 11-hectare, aptly named Elephant Island, has sheer cliffs, a half-kilometer long white sand beach and a soon-to-open, world-class resort (now Bellaroca Island Resort & Spa).  The Tres Reyes Islands consists of Baltazar (also called Pangikol Island), Gaspar (also called Manya Island) and Melchor (also called Polo Island) islands, all named after the Biblical Three Kings.  Uninhabited Baltazar and Melchor Islands have steep cliffs and underwater caves.  Gaspar Island has a small village, clear blue-green waters and a short, lovely white coral beach which offers fine snorkeling and diving.  In 1980, the wreck of a 15th century Chinese junk was discovered, in 38 m. of water, near Brgy. Pingan about 100 m. north of the island.  A large number of ceramic pieces were recovered including Swatow porcelain, stoneware jars and some iron skillets. All three Tres Reyes islands are ideal dive sites, having several good caves and walls and gorgeous sea fans.

Malbog Sulfur Springs

Our first stopover would be Malbog Sufur Spring (formerly known as Susana Hot Springs), located a few kilometers inland, at the foot of 1,157-m. (3,797-ft.) high, rarely climbed Mt. Malindig(with its 3 unique peaks), the highest mountain in the province.   Located 3 kms. from Buenavista and volcanic in origin, the spring has 5 main pools with hot therapeutic waters heated by Mt. Malindig and said to cure certain skin ailments, a welcome relief for us.  After paying a small entrance fee, we all took a dip in one of its tepid pools.  After this refreshing break, we all later partook of our packed lunches.

The Moriones of Marinduque

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At Boac Park, we had our first encounter with Marinduque’s signature Moriones Festival.  This religious melodrama, held here and in the nearby towns of Gasan and Mogpog, is the province’s main tourist attraction and  is based on the legend of the blind Roman centurion, Longinus.  Unusual for a Lenten festival, Longinus, not Jesus, is the focus of the week-long Moriones passion play. 

According to an often told legend, Longinus (or Longhino in Tagalog), who is blind in the left eye, was the Roman captain who pierced the heart of Jesus to ensure that He was already dead.  As he pierced the torso of the crucified Jesus with his spear, blood from the wound spurted into his blind left eye, miraculously curing his blindness.  While guarding Christ’s tomb, he also witnessed His resurrection.  From then on, he attained faith and goes around town spreading the news of Christ’s divinity and the testimony of the miraculous healing of his blindness.  The Roman authorities found his testimony seditious and ordered his immediate arrest.  Longinus is forced to flee but, after long searches, is captured not once, but thrice, escaping each time.  He is finally captured, for the fourth time, on Easter Sunday, brought before Pontius Pilate, tried and then executed by beheading. 

The passion play’s origin is uncertain.  Some say it originated from Mexico, being brought here in 1870 by Jesuit Mexican priest Fr. Pedro Santiago to dramatize the power of the Christian faith and to attract the rural population from the interior to participate and be converted to Christianity.  Mompog also   prides itself with being the origin of the Moriones Festival (as well as the Tubunganceremony).  However, the festival is also said to have originated from the town of Gen. Luna in Quezon, located 240 kilometers from Manila and 103.34 kilometers from Lucena City.  Even today, the town reenacts the Centurion at ang Bahay na Kubol during Holy Week with Lenten parades of senturyons and a reenactment of the 14 Stations of the Cross.   

The park was teeming withe the festival’s main characters, the moriones (the word morion relates to the centurion’s helmet, mask or visor).  They wear ingeniously outlandish, homemade Roman soldier costumes (close-fitting jackets, feathered helmets, thong sandals and capes).  The fantastic helmets are decorated with colored paper and tinsel flowers.  The colorful but grotesque masks are carved from a light native wood called dapdap and painted with faces that are neither good or kind-looking.  Longinus’ mask is the one with the blind left eye.  These “Roman” soldiers, mostly antipos (penitents atoning for sins or persons giving thanks for answered prayers, good harvest or cured illnesses) accompany Jesus on the way to his crucifixion.  Longinus is usually played by an old but nevertheless  strong man.
 
At the park, we gamely posed with a number of these moriones.  Other “Roman” soldiers were roaming the streets, beating indigenous kulatangs and chasing or scaring onlookers by thrusting their swords and spears, an act believed to drive away evil spirits.  They also play pranks on people, sing to the ladies or even engage in mock duels with their swords.  Some were riding Roman chariots.
 
Jandy takes a chariot ride

At the park gymnasium, Cheska, Jowel and Yor also joined a “Maskara Mo, Kulayan Mo!”mask painting contest.  Cheska was later informed, by text, that she was among the winners chosen.

Cheska and Jowel with their finished masks
 

Marinduque National Museum Branch (Boac, Marinduque)

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Marinduque National Museum Branch

We next proceeded to Boac Park, the execution site of Filipino revolutionaries and the surrender site of Col. Maximo Abad and his 300 Filipino soldiers during the Philippine-American War.  Within the park grounds is the Marinduque National Museum branch.  Housed in an old, historic building built in 1887, it was formerly used as a boy’s school, jailhouse, a library and the Municipal Trial Court Building. The museum, opened on February 22, 1995, showcases the province’s cultural and social heritage.

Cheska and Jandy at the museum’s staircase.

Luckily for us, the museum was open in spite of today being Holy Thursday.  Its displays include artifacts found in caves, shells, vintage photos, antiques, Moriones masks, costumes and pieces retrieved from galleons still buried under the waters between Pingan and Melchor Island.

Marinduque National Museum Branch: Boac Park, Poblacion, Boac, Marinduque. Open Mondays to Fridays.  Admission is free.

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception ( Boac, Marinduque)

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We first visited, via a short hike up a hill, the fortress-like Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.  Built in 1656, this church houses the statue of the miraculous Ina ng Biglang-Awa (translated as “Mother of Instant Mercy”), the province’s patron saint (since 1792) to which is attributed deliverance from a 19th-century Moro attack. The revolution’s flag was brought here by Canuto Vargas to be blessed in 1899.

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception

The cathedral has a simple brick facade and a 4-storey (square at the first 2 storeys and octagonal at the upper 2) bell tower on its left.  Its carved wooden portals are decorated with flora and fauna, cherubs and the images of the Four Evangelists: John, Luke, Mark and Matthew. Within the church grounds is an old, broken bell.

Cheska with the old, broken down church bell

As the church doors were locked, we weren’t able to see the church’s well-maintained and faithfully restored interior said to have brick walls, wall-hung period lamps, a ceiling with designs of Muslim brass gongs, two sets of Stations of the Cross (in wood and stained-glass windows) and three richly decorated and intricate retablos (altar backdrops).

Ancestral Houses of Boac (Marinduque)

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Once settled in our suite at Villa Carlos Resort, we prepared breakfast at the balcony, cooking (not allowed though) canned food which we brought along for the trip using my portable stove.  That done, we now left the resort to explore Boac in detail.  The town proper had many large, high-ceilinged Spanish and American-era ancestral houses, some well-preserved and others dilapidated and in need of repair.  Many have capiz windows, ventanillas and double roofs with unusual braces reminiscent of braces used to prop up windows in nipa houses.

Boac town proper (notice the braces used to prop up roofs)
The Trivinio Ancestral House

Villa Carlos Resort (Boac, Marinduque)

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Once on terra firma, we boarded a jeepney at Balanacan Pier for Boac, the provincial capital, all the while hoping that there would be accommodations available at this unholy hour when everyone was supposed to be asleep. As I feared, there were none available at the town proper, it being the holiday season.  Soon all the passengers had alighted from the jeepney save for us.   

Villa Carlos Resort

Our jeepney driver suggested a beach resort and dropped us off at Villa Carlos Resort where the caretaker allowed us to pitch tents by the beach.  It was now 1:30 AM.  Jandy, Verner, Jowel and Yor slept inside the tents while Cheska and I slept out in the open, on benches at a nipa and bamboo picnic shed.

Our suite

Come morning, I had a chat with the affable resort owner, Ms. Emily Ignacio-Alaan.   Fortune smiled at us that early morning as Ms. Alaan allowed us to use, after a guest canceled their booking at the last moment, an airconditioned suite with 3 king-size beds, a small TV, compartmentalized bathroom (shower and water closet had separate compartments with the lavatory between both) and, best of all, a private balcony (with a round marble table and monobloc chairs) overlooking the sea.

The dining hall

The room was rented out for PhP1,600 a night, way over our spartan budget, but Ms. Alaan agreed to halve the cost provided we didn’t use the room airconditioner.  This suited us fine, as the cool evening breeze negated the use of airconditioning.  The resort also had a restaurant and a videoke (which gladdened Jowel).   A covered badminton court was still being built during our stay.

Cheska sunbathing by the balcony
People frolicking at Ihatub Beach

The suite’s balcony was perfect for viewing the gathering of tuba (coconut wine) in the morning, people frolicking along  the black sand Ihatub Beach in the afternoon and, come dusk, a beautiful sunset.  Cheska, Vener and Yor opted to sleep here, the balcony being cooled by the sea breeze in the evening.  With our accommodation worries out of the way, we could now explore, using the resort as our base, this beautiful-island province in detail.

In 2007, management of the resort changed hands and the resort was renamed Villa sa Aplaya Beach Resort.  It now has 11 airconditioned rooms with bath, 21″ cable TV and refrigerator plus, aside from the abovementioned facilities, a 25-pax conference room.  The badminton court is now operational.

The beautiful sunset at the resort
Villa sa Aplaya Beach Resort: Brgy. Ihatub, Boac, Marinduque.  Tel: (042) 332-1881 to 82.

Taking Chances in Marinduque

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Holy Week was again around the corner, and I was again browsing my bucket list of must-see places to visit.  Tired of mainland Luzon, I opted for some island-hopping and decided on Marinduque Island to witnessed its trademark Moriones Festival which happens only during Holy Week.  For company, I brought along my kids Jandy and Cheska, plus Jandy’s Jesu-Mariae School teachers (and my friends) Mr. Jowel Fatlaunag and Ms. Veneriza “Vener” Trillo with her son Yor.  For the short-haul drive to Lucena City (Quezon), the gateway to the island, I used my 2003 Toyota Revo.  Though not enough to accommodate all six of us, I still brought along my 2-pax tent and camping equipment (portable stove, sleeping bags, etc.).  Vener also brought along a similar tent.

Balanacan Pier in Mompog

I met up with Jowel, Vener and Yor at Jesu-Mariae School and we all left Manila by 4:30 PM, Wednesday.  The trip took longer than the usual 3 hours, with traffic delays, toilet breaks and a stopover at a gas station for dinner (packed by Vener).  We arrived at Lucena City’s Dalahican Port by 9 PM. I was thinking of staying overnight at the city and leave for Marinduque in the morning but the sight of a long queue for ferry tickets made me change my mind, so we decided to take a chance by taking the 10 PM Blue Waters fast ferry to Balanacan Port (Mompog).  After securely parking the Revo at the pier, we all boarded our ferry.  It being a holiday, the ferry was packed with travelers, from the deck all the way to the pilot’s cabin where we stayed,  sitting on monobloc chairs.  Being overloaded, the crossing took much longer.  Coupled with this, the sea during that time was rough and waves made the boat sway left and right, at one time making me fall off my chair and almost out the cabin door and into the sea.  I was lucky enough to hang on for dear life.  After this rough, wave-tossed crossing, we all made it to Balanacan Pier by 12:30 AM. 

 

Aguinaldo Shrine (Kawit, Cavite)

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After bringing my son Jandy to school, I decided, on a whim, to do some sightseeing outside Metro Manila, motoring all the way, via the Cavite Coastal Rd., to Kawit in Cavite where I plan to visit the Aguinaldo Shrine, the birthplace of Philippine Independence.  Upon arrival at the shrine, I met up with Mr. Alvin Alcid, the shrine curator, who toured me around the mansion.

Aguinaldo Shrine

The stately, 6-storey (including a mezzanine) Aguinaldo’s house started out in 1845 as a wood and nipa thatch structure before being rebuilt in 1849 as a bahay na bato with a stonewalled ground floor and a wooden second floor with banks of capiz windows.  Emilio Aguinaldo was born (according to his mother) here on March 22, 1869 (March 26 according to his partida de baptismo or parish records).

The Independence Balcony

The mansion underwent another facelift from 1919 to 1921.  To commemorate the “original” Independence Day (albeit on a personal basis), Aguinaldo added the elaborate, cannon-capped “Independence Balcony” to replace the bank of capiz windows at the living room. The Philippine sun, stars and foliate patterns decorate its eaves.  The balcony is now used during June 12 Independence Day celebrations.

The watchtower

Before his death on February 6, 1964, at the venerable age of 94 (our oldest president), Aguinaldo, in a fitting, final gesture, turned over his home and a portion of the gardens to the government on June 12, 1963 to “perpetuate the spirit of the Philippine Revolution of 1896.”   Four months later, on June 18, 1964, the mansion was declared a National Shrine and a National Treasure, by virtue of Republic Act No. 4039, and placed under the management of the National Historical Institute (now National Historical Commission of the Philippines).

Aguinaldo’s bedroom

The architecturally-inclined former president also added a family wing of children’s bedrooms; a gabled, 3-storey, spired watchtower (Aguinaldo’s favorite spot for viewing, on a clear day, the skyline of Manila) on top of the mansion (designed to match a 200-year old tamarind tree, since felled by lightning), and below it, a bedroom called the Tower Suite, his favorite retreat in his later years.

Today, the entire house uniquely blends Rococo, Baroque and Gothic architectural styles characteristic of the Spanish and American colonial period.  The entire ground floor, formerly the zaguan or grain storage area, was converted into a revolutionary-theme museum.  On exhibit are Aguinaldo’s personal memorabilia and uniforms, dioramas of the Battle of Zapote River, the Battle of Binakayan and Aguinaldo’s oath-taking as president, an exhibit of prominent Cavite revolutionary heroes, historical relics and weapons.    There is also a chess set and a bowling alley.

Aguinaldo had a very inventive and secretive mind. The antique, mostly Philippine hardwood furniture done by skilled native woodcarvers, some designed by the general himself, includes an armoire, inlaid ivory love seats, four-poster beds, China cabinets and Vienna rocking chairs.  Some chairs and cabinets have secret compartments to hide important documents or even weapons.  Ingenious sliding wall panels, along the narrow stairways to the upper rooms and in the bedrooms, are used as secret storage areas large enough for two people to hide.

The Dining Room

There are also camouflaged secret passages made just for the general.  The one leading to his second floor bedroom is concealed by a wall of shelves at the main stair landing.   Below the ground is a stone air raid shelter concealed under the kitchen’s wooden dining table top.

The decorated dining room ceiling

On the second floor are the general’s bedroom, the grand hall, conference room, dining room and kitchen and the azotea.  The rectangular grand hall is a visual showcase of Aguinaldo’s nationalistic fervor.  On the walls and pillars are recurring flag patterns done in polished wooden mosaic. The floor, a waxed-and-polished jigsaw puzzle of flags, is a mosaic of wooden trapezoids.  The decorated ceiling, which commemorates the events of August 30, 1896 (the start of the revolution), features Inang Pilipinas (Mother Philippines), an eight-rayed sun representing the first 8 provinces to rise in revolt, and the furled flags and dove of the pre-World War II League of Nations (symbolic of Aguinaldo’s aspiration for Philippine recognition in the League of Nations).

Corridor leading to children’s bedrooms

At the end of the hall are the historic windows and the added “Independence Balcony.”  The dining room ceiling is a gallery of soaring symbols featuring a bas-relief map of the country with Cavite (site of his glorious victories) painted red to symbolize war.   Overlooking the grand hall, like an alcove or balcony, is the mezzanine library.   A corridor leads to the mansion’s eastern wing where Aguinaldo’s daughters used to live with their families.

Children’s bedrooms

Another flight of stairs lead me to the Ambassador’s Room, the former study of Ambassador Jose Melencio, Aguinaldo’s son-in-law.  Above it, through a narrow stairway, is Aguinaldo’s Tower Suite.  In it are a brass bed and a large roll-top escritorio.  To reach the spired tower, the general’s favorite retreat, I had to climb a foot-wide, almost ladder-like stair.  Here, I had a bird’s eye view of the town and Aguinaldo Park (Liwasang Emilio Aguinaldo).

Check out “Liwasang Emilio Aguinaldo“

Aguinaldo Park
View of town from Tower Suite

At the garden behind the house is Aguinaldo’s marble tomb, facing the river whose waters often served as a secret escape route.

Aguinaldo’s marble tomb
Aguinaldo Shrine: E. Aguinaldo Highway, Kawit, Cavite. Open Tuesdays to Sundays, 8 AM-4 PM.

Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene (Quiapo, Manila)

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From Binondo Church, Jandy and I had to walk some distance to make it the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene, more commonly known as Quiapo Church.  This church was first built with nipa and bamboo by Franciscan missionaries but was burned by Limahong in 1574.  It was founded by Franciscan Fr. Antonio de Nombella in 1588, burned in 1603, reconstructed by Gov.-Gen. Santiago de Vera in 1686, destroyed by the British in 1762 and during the June 3, 1863 earthquake, reconstructed by Fr. Eusebio de Leon in 1879 and completed under the auspices of Fr. Eusebio de Leon and Fr. Manuel E. Roxas Manio in 1889.  It was destroyed during the October 30, 1929 fire (only the belfry and scarred walls remain). 

      
Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene

The current church, the fourth on the site, was built with plans prepared by Arch. Juan Nakpil from 1933 to 1935.  Arch. Jose Ma. Zaragosaenlarged the church and changed the design of the lateral walls in 1984, retaining the facade and the large, imposing central dome at the transept.  The church was conferred the title Basilica Minore de Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno in 1988.

      
Interior of the basilica

The church’s distinctive Baroque facade has twisted Corinthian columns on both levels with the second level having 1/3 of the shaft near the base twisted and the rest smooth. The triangular pediment‘s tympanum has a pair of chalice-like decorations and urn-like vases at the ends of the raking cornice.  The church has 3 4-storey bell towers with the topmost portions balustered and decorated with huge scrolls.  

Inside are a high altar of carrara marble and the Shrine of the Black Nazarene, a miraculous, life-size statue of Christ bearing the cross that was carved in dark wood by Mexican Indians and brought to Manila by galleon in 1606.  It now sports a deeper tan color darkened with age and by the constant wiping of hankerchiefs by religious devotees.  Devotees flock to the church every Friday.    The Feast of the Black Nazarene is held on January 9.  

Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene: cor. of Plaza Miranda and Quezon Blvd., Quiapo, Manila.  Tel: (632) 733-4944 to 45.  Fax: (632) 733-4434.