2. Marawi Resort Hotel lies within the MSU campus with its park-like grounds and a beautiful panoramic view of Lake Lanao. Its 20 Muslim-inspired cottages are set on verdant gentle slopes with interiors following local design. HRM students at the MSU do their practicum in the resort. A haven for nature and sports lovers, it boasts a golf course, tennis court, a swimming pool and hiking trails strewn around the resort. It also has a convention hall that can accommodate 300 guests, and a clubhouse serving Maranao cuisine (See no. 7) and other standard dishes. Freshly caught carp and giant tilapia from nearby Lake Lanao are two of its specialties.4. This torogan in Barangay Dayawan, Bacolod Chico, on the outskirts of Marawi, was built in the 18th century by Sultan Boowa Ayop, the founder of the royal house of Dayawan. This multi-family (referring to a couple and several of their married children) dwelling has no permanent partitions. The floor space is simply divided into sleeping areas, with each area provided with mats, pillows and cloth partitions. By day, it becomes an all-purpose living area where the families eat or work. This setup follows the traditional longhouses in Borneo and Sumatra.
3. The colorful panolong or okir-laden woodwork (same as the Pilipino word ukit or to carve on) as displayed in the Aga Khan Museum inside MSU campus. The museum features all aspects of Muslim culture in Mindanao. A unique feature of bigger Maranao dwellings, or torogan (same meaning as the Tagalog tulugan or sleeping quarters), is its high-pitched roof and the panolong – the end beams that are placed in front and at the sides of the house, protruding and flaring upwards like sculptured wings with elaborate and colorful coiled fern shoots and dragon designs on them.
4. This torogan in Barangay Dayawan, Bacolod Chico, on the outskirts of Marawi, was built in the 18th century by Sultan Boowa Ayop, the founder of the royal house of Dayawan. This multi-family (referring to a couple and several of their married children) dwelling has no permanent partitions. The floor space is simply divided into sleeping areas, with each area provided with mats, pillows and cloth partitions. By day, it becomes an all-purpose living area where the families eat or work. This setup follows the traditional longhouses in Borneo and Sumatra.
5. Kumbong-veiled Iso Montalvan, Raiza Bacarat Laó, Noraisah Hadji Ali (secretary at the Governor’s office), Napisha Sharif Abdul Karim and Naima Bacarat Bocua, pose in front of an 18th century torogan, also in Bacolod Chico. Raiza, Napisha and Naima, all of whom work in city hall, are descendants of the torogan’s original owner. Note the humongous chess-shaped posts freely standing above ground on stones, which are earthquake preventive measures. Just across the street are several houses selling traditional antique and hand-woven textiles done in the premises.
6. After our city tour, a traditional Maranao feast, called pagana, awaited us at the clubhouse of the Marawi Resort, graciously hosted by Zainab "Patsy" Uzudan Ali, wife of Marawi City Mayor Omar Solitario Ali. It was resplendently set on colorful mats, cushions and a brass tabac (an intricately-etched round brass plate used as our table) covered with an appliquéd cloth. In the Maranao tradition, dinner guests are given a place of honor by being seated (on the floor, that is) separately from the hosts, much like a presidential table in a wedding. Above, Patsy (in black) seats with us just for a photo op. She then moved on to a different seat to eat.
7. A pagana spread consisting of kuning or turmeric rice (center), (clockwise from top) broa or cake (like mamón), badak or jackfruit cooked with palapa (See No. 9), bakas or tuna cooked with coconut milk, dyalok or chicken cooked with palapa, carabeef randang (similar to Indonesian beef rendang), lukatis or sugar-coated pretzels and dodol or sticky black rice candies. Not shown in the photo was this wonderful dish of a char-grilled tilapia and then further cooked in coconut milk and turmeric sauce. The clubhouse offers the same pagana package to the public for P1,800, good for four persons.
8. The Maranaos are traders by nature. The Marawi Market is teeming with goods from all over, including Zamboanga, Singapore and as far as Saudi Arabia. If you’ve noticed all the Muslim vendors in Greenhills, or the CD vendors in Metro Manila and other provinces (including my hometown of Angeles City), chances are they are Maranaos.
9. Pre-mixed palapa (lower left) is sold by the cup at the wet market. An ever-present essential ingredient in the Maranao cuisine, palapa is a mixture of toasted grated coconut (right), bird’s eye chili, chopped shallots and ginger. It is much like the Indonesian sambal in use.
10. A common sight on the road to Marawi City and the marketplace are these popular delicacies bakas or smoked whole tuna. They sell anywhere from P200-P450 apiece depending on the size. Tuna is skinned, soaked in brine, individually skewered in bamboo sticks, and then smoked slowly over a griller high above coconut husk embers. Eaten as is, bakas can also be cooked in coconut milk and sayote leaves or mashed with egg and palapa to make into patties for deep-frying.
11. Pusan or shrimp paste (That’s bagoong alamang to the Tagalogs and guinamos to the Visayans) is also an essential condiment in the Maranao cuisine.
12. Sakoreb or scallions are an indispensable ingredient in Maranao cooking, preferred over onions.
13. Two essential ingredients in making fish kinilaw (ceviche) are tabun-tabun and marinaut or native lemon. The dagta or milky fluid of the tabun-tabun is mixed with the raw fish to neutralize its lansa or fishy taste, while the marinaut’s juice is the souring agent to cook it.
14. These green tomatillo-looking veggies are actually a variety of ampalaya (bitter gourd) called locally as paria. They are cooked basically the same way as the regular ampalaya, sautéed with bagoong with other veggies to make pinakbet.
15. Kaka Babay Nunua sells an assortment of kakanin or native sweet delicacies. Noteworthy is the tiyatug (below right in plastic bags). They are made with a batter of flour and egg, placed in a large ladle (traditionally half a coconut shell) perforated with many tiny holes (like in a shower head), and then this is dripped in a circular motion onto a vat of hot oil for deep-frying till crispy and golden brown. When cooled, syrup is poured over it and then rolled into a tube.
16. Barubod is a suman made of purple-colored sticky rice flavored with durian.
17. This woman sells ripe langkâ or jackfruit, peeled and packed in plastic bags, ready to be eaten. The langkâ seeds are sold separately, to be boiled and eaten as well.
18. Cassava cupcakes called puto a banggala (at P2 apiece) are steamed in milk cans with perforated bottoms. The grated cassava is mixed with coconut meat strands and sugar.
19. The textile section of the Marawi Market offers a wide variety of traditional Muslim women’s wear like kimonos, kumbong veils, and malong from Zamboanga, Singapore and as far as Saudi Arabia (Photos no. 19 and 20 are reprinted with permission from Markets by Centro Escolar University Centennial Book Collection 5.)
20. Together with hand-woven textiles, the Maranaos are also known for their traditional intricately designed brassware like the tabac (round platters), gador (flower vase), and betel nut boxes.
21. Just above the textile section is the food court, where several karinderias serve Maranao food and cakes.
22. A typical Maranao karinderia fare (clockwise from top center): Pater or rice with a viand wrapped in banana leaf; tilapia cooked in coconut milk; coffee-leaf wrapped katulyong cooked in coconut milk (both katulyong and tilapia from Lake Lanao); and chicken with palapa.
Call Zainab "Patsy" Uzudan Ali at 0917-7167172.
Contact the Marawi Resort Hotel at 0915-4377589. Reach its general manager Shalimar M. Alonto at 0917-7160005.
Call Nora Hadji Ali (secretary at the Governor’s office) at 0917-3301414.