plans and perspective

Promdi in the City

Ang ilan sa mga insidente na kadalasang mangyari sa isang probinsiyano na bagong salta sa maynila ay ang mga sumusunod:

1. Madalas na lumampas ng target na LRT/MRT station dahil mahirap bumababa minsan kapag siksikan at ayaw magparaan ng mga taong malapit sa pinto. Kasabay pa nito ang pagpasok ng mga tao sa loob ng tren.

2. Madalas na pabalik ang takbo ng sinasakyang LRT/MRT dahil nagkamali ka ng ruta at huli nab ago mo ito malaman.

3. Ang mga jeep dito sa Pilipinas ay may plaka na may nakasulat sa harap ng jeep kung saan ang ruta nito at kadalasan ang pangalan ng lugar ay ang karaniwang tawag ng mga taga-roon. Kung hindi mo alam ang local term, mahihirapan ka talaga.

4. May mga ilang lugar na sa unang punta mo ay pagsisisihan mo kung bakit mo nilakad ang ganong kahabang kalsada eh pwede naman na sumakay ng jeep. Halimbawa: Kahabaan ng Morayta.


5. Mahirap bumaba ng jeep kapag wala pa sa tamang babaan. Katulad ng sa Makati kung saan meron talagang takdang lugar ng babaan at sakayan. Kaya mahirap talaga kapag puputok na ang pantog mo at malayo ka pa sa babaan at trapik pa. Tiyak na magkakalat ka sa daan.

The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most

I know that I have already discussed this before but forgive for I will say it over and over again. More houses as you can see. It was a remarkable experience to visit San Miguel, Bulacan not necessarily the ancestral houses alone but the historical content of the town. We’ve got the chance to talk to the people who had become a part of our history. Some of the facts where really interesting some are really astonishing. But nevertheless, the pictures shall do the talking.

Don Felix de Leon who was the original owner of this house was a close friend of Dr. Jose Rizal. Two of his children Cecilio and Jose held government positions. Jose serving as assistant executive secretary in Malacañang Palace during the administration of President Manuel Roxas. Don Felix was the father of the lawyer Jose Cabochan- one time congressman of the third district of Bulacan.

Kapitan Pepe House- owned by Jose De Leon Sr.-One time Gobernadorcillo during the Spanish occupation. Among his children by his first wife was Luis who was general manager of the Manila Hotel and the Jai-Alai during the President Roxas administration. Widowed by his first wife, he was married again to Narcisa Buencamino (was also called Mrs. Mangalandan which is the Filipino translation for Buencamino. Magaling na Daan) of the film company LVF Pictures.

The house of Maximo Viola- was also a friend of Dr. Jose Rizal who helped him publish his famous novels Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.

Other interesting houses to see.

Don Catalino Sevilla Mansion-A three storey house set in Art Deco style with spacious ballroom hall.

Miguel Siojo house-famous because of its white color and Victorian Style built in 1900’s

Clarita Santiago House

La Sampaguita house built in 1903

Nagbibihis na Ang Nayon

                

In the fields where we usually play....

                        A curse or a gift? The continuous development in the suburbs seen on conversion of agricultural lands to residential subdivisions is quite alarming. In the conventional Filipino context of housing, I believe that the perspective of a settlement comes with a house built on the ground and since the available lots are the ricefields, commercialism tend to dig the fields for human settlement. On the otherhand, Filipinos who are predominantly rice eaters will take the aftereffect of this haphazard development eventually. The cause perhaps is rice shortage. The cultivation of land for agricultural purposes should not be taken for granted especially for the Filipino people. It should compensate the amount of food supply needed by the inhabitants in order to maintain a balance between the people and land.

House of the Elite

         The Tecson-Mendiola House was originally owned by Kapitan Simon Tecson who was a Philippine Revolution leader in the town of San Miguel. After the cessation of the Spanish-Filipino fighting in the Biak-na-bato Mountain, Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo lived for sometime in this house. Original furniture is still good as new. The present owners of the house have preserved it very well.

Among the houses that I have visited in San Miguel, Bulacan, I think this was the most outstanding in terms of details and architectural features and I really find hard time to come inside the house because most of the houses were forbidden for some reasons.

Perhaps the original owners still lives in the house. I don’t have an idea.