The essence of cultural heritage

I went to Iloilo to teach a course on cultural heritage law. I flew in from Cebu the day before my scheduled class and had the whole day to myself. I love the perks of my job.

The 6:30 a.m. Air Philippines Express flight from Cebu meant that I was in Iloilo by 7 a.m. It was a small airplane but I was too sleepy to feel scared. When I woke up, we were about to land.

The only World Heritage Site in the Visayas is found in Iloilo. I picked the taxi company nearest the exit and asked the young women manning the stall for a ride to Miag-ao, where the Santo Tomas de Villanueva Church is located. A banner showing the rates approved by the LTFRB assured me that the price that the cab company was charging me was fair. The thought of taking a jeep had occurred to me but I had a heavy bag and was not up to lugging it around. It's part of being middle-aged, I think. I don't have the energy or desire to be a backpacker anymore.

A courteous English-speaking cab driver was assigned to me. He said that he spent years being a truck driver/salesman in Saudi Arabia and that his job entailed convincing storeowners to buy more frozen chicken from him. When he learned that the only reason that I was going to Miag-ao was to see the church, he asked if I was interested in seeing the churches in the towns where we were going to pass. I thought that his suggestion made sense.

My first stop was Oton. I admired the huge tree shading the grotto of the Virgin Mary outside the church. It seemed like the perfect place to contemplate and pray. I would later learn that Oton is known for its weaving industry. Its weavers continue to make patadyong similar to those that my grandmother had, albeit in more contemporary colors.

My next stop was Tigbauan. The façade of its church had beautiful bas-relief. The designs were thicker and more intricate than the kind found in colonial churches in Cebu. The concrete bell towers added to the church looked out of place, though. I then stopped at Guimbal Church and thought that the bas-relief designs on its façade resembled uraro cookies from Laguna and Bataan. I was starting to get hungry and could not stop thinking of food.

I passed by a long steel bridge that spanned a river with mangrove trees on its banks. I also saw pristine beaches by the highway. Everything looked postcard-pretty. It was a good day for a drive.

   Nothing prepared me for the gorgeousness of the façade of the Miag-ao Church. Newly-cleaned, it seemed to glisten in the heat. A bas-relief of St. Christopher carrying the baby Jesus and holding on to a coconut tree, and of lush tropical plants, are found above the door. Three niches with a religious character inside each niche are also found on the façade. It was not difficult to understand why it is a World Heritage Site.

 A mass was being concluded when I arrived. The people congregated outside the church after the mass for a mid-morning procession. Each group carried banners and wore same-colored T-shirts to identify them as belonging to their district. The bright colors of their shirts contrasted with the Baroque church the color of mango ice cream. They were showing their devotion to the Virgin Mary and they stayed upbeat and cheerful despite the heat. It was a good reminder that cultural heritage is more than just preserving beautiful old buildings. It is about people and their values and beliefs passed on through generations.

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