Old and new experiences in Batangas

We left Manila at dawn when the sun was just rising and remembered telling ourselves how beautiful sunrise in the Philippines is and how few countries have it as good as us. We were out to visit friends Mila and her husband Sam Española who resided in Batangas City, and at the same time commiserate with Sam, who was now recovering from a debilitating illness. We ended up getting more than we bargained for.

A trip outside Metro Manila has always been something we had looked forward to. It spelled a different atmosphere, away from the traffic, crowded buses, MRT trains that fell off their tracks, policemen who were being hunted for misdeeds instead of doing the hunting, and people drowning for inexcusable lack of planning.

This wasn’t our first time in Batangas City. We had been there before, to visit the Badjao Village in the outskirts of the city, where the residents lived atop houses on stilts on the water like they had done before, many, many decades in the past. Mila, who works for the Batangas government, helped care for the Badjaos, slowly introducing to them the practices of cleanliness, as well as new crafts they could easily adapt without forgetting their own traditions. It has become a practice for us, therefore, to include the Badjao Village as part of our itinerary, to check up on how the inhabitants are faring in their adoptive city.

One time we visited, we found the Badjao men hard at work in the construction of sailboats out of bamboo that they would sell in the market place. Another time, it was the younger Badjaos we caught in school uniform listening to a lecture from Adolfo Timuat, acclaimed guitar maker and guitarist who was teaching them how to make their own guitars. This time around, on our visit to Batangas City, we were brought to a property several hectares in size that had been left untouched for several years. This came about because Mila had always kept us abreast of corn picking season after which we were sent the most delicious of freshly-harvested native Filipino corn. Now, however, we told Mila we wanted to see exactly where these crops were grown. We were driven to the property that was profuse with various kinds of edible plants. There was also the yellow sweet corn, okra, coffee plant, eggplant, string beans and others.    

We asked Mila what she intended to do with the crops apart from selling them in the market. Since the location was very near the center of the city, Mila immediately thought of setting up cooking workshops that could lead to additional income for the community. It was getting exciting with each one contributing his own suggestion. We volunteered a “best cook” competition.

Back to the Española home, we noticed that it wasn’t only the surroundings that had changed. They had added a second floor and behind the building we found a spanking new nipa hut that had windows, a bedroom inside and wi-fi to boot. But with all the good news, also came the bad brought by the recent Typhoon Glenda that caused a bridge to break, leaving the population in search of alternatives. Before returning to Manila, we found boats ferrying passengers back and forth until repair work on the bridge is completed. Indeed, we thought, there is nothing that will discourage the Pinoy for finding a way out of any problem.

Back home in Manila while watching Rated K with Korina Sanchez, what would catch our attention but a tricycle decorated by bamboo, and a car from palo-china wood all made in Batangas.       

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