Quiet in the Streets

CEBU, Philippines —  In the 1989-released ballad “All I Want Is You,” singer-songwriter and U2 frontman Bono famously jotted down the line: “a highway with no one on it/ a treasure just to look upon it…”

On the tail-end of the week, when thousands went home to their provinces or were holed out in the cemeteries to pay their respects for their dear departed, the city had such a “treasure” that Bono referred to – what with the main thoroughfares, access roads and byways being practically free from the everyday scourge of traffic jams and intersection gridlocks.

In a time when ‘complications’ and ‘considerations’ are more-and-more bound with the simple matter of getting from point A to B, one would be right in acknowledging such rare quiet in the streets a “treasure” indeed – a respite from the day-to-day hustle-and-bustle, brief as it may have been.

Distinctly Bol-anon

Cebu Parklane International Hotel, a Cebuano brand, recently broke ground for its expansion in Anda, Bohol. The project is to be a resort with a distinctly local feel.

The project at Candabong, Anda, Bohol – called Parklane East Coast Resort and Spa – makes Cebu Parklane International Hotel as the first Cebu-based hospitality company to develop a 68-room modern paradise resort in the area.

The groundbreaking event was graced by several of Anda, Bohol’s key people such as Mayor Angelina Simacio, Mr. Rouvien de Guzman, Anda tourism officer, barangay officials, representatives of the local police as well as Cebu Parklane’s management headed by Mr. Basil Ting, Parklane president and board of director; Ms. Cenelyn Manguilimotan, general manager; Engineer Neil Rom, Architect Rodney Co and Mr. Lucky Daven Lim, Parklane East Coast Resort and Spa manager.

Currently having eleven villas, Parklane East Coast Resort and Spa will have an additional two-storey building which will house 60 new modern, contemporary rooms, five swimming pools, and other state-of-the-art facilities such as function rooms that can cater up to 400 guests for corporate functions and destination weddings, botanical gardens and sanctuary, recreational facilities, and a sea-view fitness, spa and massage center. The resort will also offer aqua sports such as scuba diving and snorkeling and island tours for guests to have a distinct tropical experience.

Projected to be fully operational by the last quarter of 2019, Parklane East Coast Resort and Spa promises to offer its guests with high-end quality service with a distinctly local feel.

Cebu Parklane International Hotel is known for its continuing thrust to be a hotel that strongly stands for Cebu. This time, as the brand crosses borders, Parklane East Coast Resort and Spa will proudly represent Bohol and its rich culture, scenic ecotourism sites and the hospitality and service that is distinctly Bol-anon.

For room reservations, guests may contact (+63) 928 762 8730 or email us at [email protected].

Project Water

Now on its third year, Waterfron Airport Hotel and Casino Mactan continues to support the inhabitants of Caohagan Island and its sustainability projects in the barangay.

Recently, headed by hotel manager Rex Benhur Caballes and assisted by Caohagan barangay captain Ranilo Abayan, WAHCares: Project Water turned over a manual deep-well pump to Barangay Caohagan. Also, the employees of Waterfront Airport Hotel painted and helped set up the water supply of the public restrooms of the barangay.

A fun-filled feeding activity for the kids was also conducted, together with games and prizes.  The hotel department heads and their staff helped in distributing meals and loot bags to more than 160 children from Caohagan Island.

In its commitment to partner with the local communities in its initiatives on health, education, environment sustainability and rural development, Waterfront Airport Hotel aims to continue assisting and supporting  the local communities. The WAHCares: Project Water is just one of the Waterfront Airport Hotel’s corporate social responsibility projects.

Annual Boy Scouts Showdown Camp

Boy scouts from private and public schools in Cebu City come together at the Boy Scouts Camp, at the Capitol Hills, for this year’s BSP Area 1 Cebu City Division Showdown Camp and KAB Olimpikan on November 8 to 11.

Schools Division Superintendent Dr. Bianito Dagatan is camp director. Division Scouting Field Commissioner Mr. Reum Sespene will formally declare the event open.

Camping participants are boy scouts from Grades 4 to 6 and senior scouts from Grades 9 to 10. Boy scouts from Grades 1 to 3 will have their KAB Olimpikan for one day.

The participants will not have access to electricity – they are to come up with their own source of light. One module of the camping event is Scouts Go Solar (SGS), where the scouts are taught how to harness and utilize the sun’s energy. SGS is part of the World Scout Environment Programme that encourages scouts all over the world to work together for the benefit of the local and global environment.

Lagang is Forever

How about flowers that never wilt?

In Cebu, anyone born after the 1970s is no longer familiar with what the word “lagang” means. Generations that belong to old, well-connected families, such as those in Parian in Cebu City, and the southern Cebu towns of Carcar, Argao, Dalaguete, and Boljoon know how “lagang” is used as a symbol of affluence. Only fishermen can explain why it is so.

Antonio Pigafetta, the historian who documented the Magellan expedition in1521, referred to it as “laghan,” and mentioned it as one of the more important products of the sea that Cebuanos loved to eat.

“Lagang” is the Cebuano word for the chambered nautilus. The shell is cut to obtain five panels, which are then polished. It’s quite a tedious process, according to Richelieu Colina, the only one in Cebu who seems to know how to make ornaments from “lagang.”

Originally from Mabolo, Cebu and now based in Bacayan, Talamban, where he has his manufacturing workshop, Colina has learned the skills for over 30 years now from his uncle Tirso “Tingting” Caminade.

“Lagang” is famously used as religious decorations. Colina adorns it on two of his seven carrozas during Holy Week at the St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Mabolo.

But he receives regular orders ranging between 10 and 12 pieces that comprise one flower. One flower arrangement takes three weeks to five months to complete. He sources out the shells from Taiwan and Malaysia because local suppliers have ceased operations.

Fishing for “lagang” is risky. One would have to dive around 1,200 feet deep down. That’s why fishermen nowadays have stopped going for it. And so the supply of “lagang” shells has dwindled. The few that are caught by fishing nets every now and then are not enough. Colina says that one decorative “lagang” arrangement would require about a hundred shells.

The craftsmanship consumes more time and patience. Molding the pattern is done, last after a tiresome development stage. It is cut first, then transferred to a grove before the first phases of sanding, and then drilled before the final sanding for a neat and smooth finish. It is then soaked for two hours with muriatic acid. Then the bleaching, after which the “lagang” is washed and dried under the sun. Only then can the assembling the ready parts begin.

But Colina is determined and inspired to revive the “lagang” ornaments. He is passing the craft on to his young nephews and nieces.

Interestingly, there’s the blue-colored portion of the “lagang” that Colina himself has discovered. It’s the “blue Osmeña,” only about one inch in size. The name is probably inspired by the “grey Osmeña pearls,” a name supposedly derived from the time of the Osmeña leadership, the time they were discovered, according to heritage expert Clodoveo “Louie” Nacorda.

The blue Osmeña, of course, is more expensive because it takes longer to assemble an arrangement with it. There are people, though, who really pay the price. At a minimum, one pays P20,000 for a “lagang” set, says Colina.

After all, the “lagang” is “part of the artist’s vision of heaven or paradise,” surmised Florencio A. Moreño, curator of the Casa Gorordo Museum, which includes in its collection images of saints with “lagang” decors.

“In the Spanish period, real flowers were not used as decorations for retablos and altars, because they eventually wither and die. Altars give a glimpse of heaven, therefore, they must project the eternal. ‘Lagang’ is forever, and with its luster, points to the brilliance of heaven. Thus, like religious images and symbols, they inspire faith,” Moreño said.