Christmas in the summer

This is a season of revelry for my family, Christmas in the summer. Christmas trees, carols and parols don’t a Christmas make. You feel the Christmas spirit in the midst of 34-degree weather when you celebrate two of the main ingredients of a Pinoy Christmas – Christ (I believe that when you honor the ties that bind the family, you worship Christ) and family (okay, there is a third ingredient, gifts!).

My parents Frank and Sonia Mayor, now both American citizens, are on holiday in the Philippines, leaving the pleasant spring air in California for the blistering summer heat in the land of their birth. With them are two uncles, Jun and Caesar Reyes, and Uncle Caesar’s wife Mattie (de Jesus).

Ah, but what is the heat amidst the refreshing company of one’s loved ones? Family is like a tall glass of halo-halo at 3:30 p.m. on a summer day – a treat one looks forward to and junks one’s diet for. So with the refreshing treat of our balikbayans’ presence, the festivity of cozy family reunions and pasalubongs that come, not wrapped in gay tinsel but in Macy’s and Nordstrom bags in balikbayan boxes, Christmas has come nine months early for the clan.

Every day, I feel like I’m waking up to the merry tune of Jingle Bells and Joy to the World. I think of the family activity that’s been lined up for the day (foot spas or shopping in Greenhills) or the weekend and I feel merry. Christmas in the summer has an added bonus – traffic is light by Metro Manila standards!

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We trooped to Bohol, via Cebu, for the first weekend of our early Christmas.

Bohol, as a destination, is like a diamond. It’s multi-faceted. You have nature at its most indulgent – white-sand beaches (in Panglao), gurgling springs in underground caves (as the one in the Panglao Island Nature Resort) and pristine rivers the color of jade (like the Loboc River). You have the tarsiers, the sight of which is already worth the trip, and the whales. You have arts and culture – 400-year-old churches like the Loboc and the Baclayon churches, museums of religious art and artifacts that showcase the fine blend of Filipino and Spanish artistry and antique shops.

A trip to Bohol has a heart-tugging treat unrivaled by any other destination in the Philippines – the Loboc Children’s Choir, set up 20 years ago by a dedicated music teacher Alma Taldo. Bohol also has a strip along the beach (the Alona Beach) that reportedly offers great night life (didn’t check it out this time, so I can’t compare it to Boracay’s night life).

All these facets make Bohol sparkle amidst all the 7,000 other islands of the Philippine archipelago. It’s a definite standout.

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If you have time to spare, you can fly to Bohol via Cebu, which is not only cheaper (despite the ferry ride to Tagbilaran) – it also gives you the opportunity to check out Cebu’s famous resorts (like the ultimate vacation destination, the Shangri-La Mactan, which is now enjoying 100 percent occupancy rates). We left Manila on the 5 a.m. flight to Cebu, had breakfast at the nearby Waterfront Hotel and took the 10:30 a.m., 90-minute ferry to Tagbilaran.

From Tagbilaran, it’s a 15-minute ride by van to Panglao, where we stayed at the Panglao Island Nature Resort. Actually, you don’t have to leave the resort to have a dream vacation. It has cliff-side bungalows that offer a spectacular view of mountains and sea, and brand-new forest bungalows that remind one of a Balinese retreat. (For inquiries, call 0920-9520133.)

An al fresco restaurant offers you a great view of the sea. There is a man-made islet about 500 meters from the beach (you swim or ride a banca to it at high tide, but only wade to it at low tide) where you can have your dinner served. The islet is well-lit and with restrooms! Just arrange with the staff to have your dinner served at the islet, just like we did on our last night. Laughter, the sound of waves, the cool sea wind and fresh seafood make for a great combination! I could almost hear Ang Pasko ay Sumapit in the background.

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We were privileged to be entertained by the dynamic mayor of Loboc, Mayor Leon Calipusan. The "Lion of Loboc" is energizing the municipality by making the residents feel they have a stake in its progress and the preservation of its rich heritage. The revenues and the income of its many tourist attractions – like the Loboc River cruise – are plowed back to the people. Thus, they take it upon themselves to keep their river clean. You have to look long and hard to find a piece of plastic floating on the river, despite the many cruise barges that go up and downstream. A concrete docking port for the barges is now being built by the local government. An arts and crafts display center is also being built with the help of patrons like Bea Zobel Jr., who have "adopted" the city of Loboc.

Mayor Calipusan took us to the tarsier sanctuary set up by the river by Nelia Saranillo. From one or two tarsiers, the sanctuary now has 15 tarsiers! The tarsiers actually thrive in her care.

Mayor Calipusan is extremely proud of the Loboc Children’s Choir, which has won competitions as far away as Barcelona, Spain. There are now regular Sunday concerts at the church’s high-ceilinged, second-floor convent, which has 16th century murals, albeit fading and peeling with time, on its walls.

The choir delighted tourists with classic and popular tunes like Love is a Many Splendor Thing and selections from the Sound of Music. You choke with emotion as you listen to the angelic voices of the children, many of whom are children of farmers and simple folk. Some of them are still not used to wearing leather shoes, but their voices make you feel like you are among angels. Entrance to their hour-long Sunday afternoon concert costs P100, and their best-selling CD, available by the entrance of the concert hall, costs about P350.

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On our way back to Manila, we dropped by for lunch the Shangri-La Mactan’s Tides restaurant, which offers a sumptuous buffet you identify only with deluxe seaside resorts. Some of us tried their luck at the Waterfront casino across the airport and my Auntie Mattie actually emerged a winner!

Christmas in the summer is surely one hot experience!

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