Monochrome Monday: TRAVELERS

From So far, so good

This serendipitous experience is just too good to not share (again). This photo and accompanying text already appeared in my main blog, February of last year.

On the way to Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya- some 200-plus-odd kilometers north of the Philippine capital of Manila, the 4x4 we were riding in had to stop to give way to the oncoming downhill traffic, given the limited width of the gravel road.

These farmers and sellers are about to bring themselves and their produce to the lowlanders' markets. They gamely tossed two pieces of a local citrus fruit called dalandan our way as they passed, perhaps to thank us for letting them through, or perhaps to send a lifeline to a weary-looking bunch of travelers. We were on the road for at least eight hours already.

Regardless of the reason, their generosity, in the midst of their own economic hardship, is refreshing.

en route to Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya, July 2006, using a digicam.

PhotoHunt: Flags

The flags and banners were meant to add a festive mood to this resort in the southern part of the Philippines. However, the sun, sea, and sand are simply enough to make this slice of heaven on earth appropriate for its name- Paradise Island.

Island Garden City of Samal, March 2009, using a digicam.

Litratong Pinoy: DITO LANG (Just here)

Ang makinang at matikas na gusaling ito ay hindi sa Tokyo o Nueba York kundi sa Cebu City, ang bagong otel na Crown Regency Hotel and Tower sa Fuente Osmena. Ito ay may higit 300 silid na nakapaloob sa 38 palapag. Sa tuktok ng gusali ay ang tinatawag na Edge-Coaster, kung saan isang uri ng munting rollercoaster ang nakadikit sa bubong ng otel, higit 100m ang taas mula sa lupa!

DITO LANG = JUST HERE This shimmering, proud building is neither in Tokyo nor New York City; it is just here in Cebu City- the new Crown Regency Hotel and Tower in Fuente Osmena. It has more than 300 rooms tucked in 38 floors. At the top of the building, adventure seekers will enjoy the Edge-Coaster, a mini-rollercoaster attached practically to the edge of the roof- 100m above ground level =]

outside Crown Regency Hotel and Tower, Cebu City, April 2009, using a digicam.

Monochrome Monday: WINDOW

This is one of the capiz or mother of pearl windows in a church in the northern Philippine province of Nueva Vizcaya. It's a typical material for many windows here in the country: it blocks most the glare while at the same time letting some light through. The tandem for capiz windows usually would be a ventanilla or a small grilled window just below it- to allow the breeze to enter the home.

It's my first time to join the Monochrome Monday bloggers. I am excited and hopeful that this blogging prompt will be a window through which I can see the beauty of the world in sepia tone or black white.

(Interesting that photos I took of another part of this same church was the one I used when I first joined the photoblogging prompt Litratong Pinoy or Filipino Photos.)

St Catherine Church, Bambang, Nueva Vizcaya, July 2006, using a digicam.

PhotoHunt: Creamy

This globe of chocolate-y ice cream goodness is the signature Tartufo from Candy's, a hip food haunt near Limketkai Center in Cagayan De Oro City. There were three of us out to devour this decadent dessert but we just couldn't risk death by chocolate. It is such a rich experience, the perfect cap to a long day at work.

Litratong Pinoy: IMPOSIBLE BA ITO? (Is it impossible?)

Imposible ba ito, na makabangon ang isang parokya na nabaon ang kalahati ng simbahan sa rumaragasang lahar mula sa Bulkang Pinatubo? Ang simbahan ng San Guillermo sa Bacolor, Pampanga ang tinaguriang pinakamalaking simbahan sa buong Pampanga- hanggang noong dekada '90 nang lumatay sa bayan ang hagupit ng pagputok ng naturang bulkan. Subali't hindi lamang nakaalpas ang parokya mula sa trahedyang ito. Nagkaroon pa sila ng bagong sigla, mula sa bugso ng mga turistang gustong tumunghay sa kanilang di matinag na pananampalataya. Gabi-gabi ring ipinapakilala ni Santino sa mga manonood na Kapamilya ang simbahang ito, patunay na sa tulong ni Bro, totoong walang imposible, totoong May Bukas Pa.

IMPOSIBLE BA ITO = IS IT IMPOSSIBLE for a parish half-buried in volcanic debris and pyroclastic flow to survive and eventually thrive once more? This is the San Guillermo church in the town of Bacolor, touted as the largest in the province of Pampanga, until the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the 1990's. However, the parish and the town not only escaped from the doldrums but they are now flourishing- thanks to the influx of tourists who want to witness for themselves the resilience and faith of this community. Nightly, Santino also gives our faith a shot in the arm, proving that with help of Bro, nothing is impossible, that there is still a tomorrow to look forward to.



Church of San Guillermo, Bacolor, Pampanga, May 2009, using a digicam.

Litratong Pinoy: PANGARAP KO (I hope for...)

Pangarap ko ang kapayapaan sa Mindanao… sa buong Pilipinas.

I hope for peace in Mindanao… in the entire Philippines.

Pangarap ko na higit na mataas na antas ng pagkakaunawaan ng bawat isang Pilipino.

I hope for increased understanding and tolerance among Filipinos.

Pangarap ko na pagkatiwalaan natin ang bawat isa, maging mapanatag tayo sinuman ang ating kapitbahay.

I hope for increased faith and trust in each other.

Pangarap ko na akuin natin ang responsibilidad na pangalagaan ang bawat isa.

I hope that we’ll take accountability and be responsible not just for ourselves but for one another

Pangarap ko na piliin nating magkaroon ng pag-asa kaysa magtampisaw sa kawalan nito.

I hope that we’ll all choose to hope rather than despair.

Pangarap ko na piliin nating pagtulungang i-angat ang bansang Pilipinas sa isip, sa salita, sa gawa kung nasaang sulok man tayo ng Pilipinas at ng mundo, bagaman sa o dahil sa tila wala nang dahilan para balikan, alalahanin, o ipagmalaki ang pagka-Pilipino.

I hope we’ll all choose to work to improve the Filipino nation in thought, words, and deeds wherever we maybe in the Philippines or the planet, despite of or because of the seeming lack of any reason to be proud to be Filipino.

city plaza in Cotabato City, March 2009, using a digicam.

Litratong Pinoy: MISYON (Mission)

Sinasabing ang Hagdan-hagdang Palayan sa Banawe and Ika-Walong Hiwaga ng Mundo, at ang kaisa-isang hindi naisakatuparan sa pamamagitan ng mga alipin. Sa loob ng ilang daang taon, ang mga taniman na ito ay nagsilbing lunan hindi lamang para pagkukunan ng pang-araw-araw na pagkain ng mga katutubong Ifugao kundi sentro rin ito ng kanilang mga paniniwala at kinagawian. Nakalulungkot na maraming bahagi ng mga taniman ang nangangatuyo na at napapabayaan sapagka't wala nang mga kabataan katutubo na pinipiling manatili sa lupain ng kanilang mga ninuno. Marami na sa kanila ang naakit ng Maynila o ibang bansa. Nanganganib na gumuho, hindi lamang ang mga palayan kundi ang mga naipundar na daan-taong kultura ng mga Ifugao.

Upang makatulong kahit papaano sa pagpapanatili ng kulturang Ifugao, naglunsad ng isang proyekto ang isang kasamahang kong doktor na si Dr. Raoul Bermejo sampu ng kanyang mga kaibigan at ng mga pamilyang katutubo sa mga naturang taniman. Ang Batad Kadangyan Lodges Project ay isang pagkakataong makipamuhay sa mga taga-Batad sa kanilang mga bahay na maykakaibang hugis at dama. Ang pananatili ng mga turista sa lugar ay paraan upang maging mas mulat sila sa lagay ng mga katutubong Pilipino habang ang kanilang ibinabayad na pakikipanuluyan ay tumutulong sumuporta sa pagkumpuni ng mga sirang kabahayan ng mga nagtataguyod sa hagdan-hagdang taniman. Para sa karagdagang kaalaman, tumungo lamang sa http://batadkadangyanlodges.multiply.com/

Akuin nating sama-samang misyon ang pagligtas sa mahalagang simbolo ng aking kalinangan, ang mga hagdan-hangdang taniman na ito.

MISYON = MISSION It is widely believed that the Banaue Rice Terraces shown above is the eight wonder of the world, and the only one which was not borne on the backs of slave labor. For several hundred years- if not millennia!- these terraces have not only served as spaces for nutritional sustenance, but they've also come to be a place where indigenous people's culture and way of life flourished. Sadly, majority of the newer generation Ifugaos have been lured by Manila, if not employment abroad. This has left the community prone to hunger, poverty, and loss of identity- all because no one is tilling the soil of the terraced fields.

A colleague of mine, Dr. Raoul Bermejo, along with his friends, and in partnership with a community with similar terraced rice fields to help save the latter. The Batad Kadangyan Lodges Project was launched as an opportunity to get to live days in the shoes of Ifugao families living in the Batad. The minimal fee you pay for staying with the family will help pay for the upkeep of their very unique homes and field. For more information, please visit http://batadkadangyanlodges.multiply.com/.

Let's all work to make cultural sensitivity and preservation our common mission.

the Banaue Ricd Terraces, Ifugao Province, 2006, using a digicam.