#FridayNightWritersSeries: Charie Albar, Travel Writer, Globetrotter and Literacy Advocate

Charie Albar

Charie Albar has been traveling solo for many years and loves art, architecture, languages and meeting new people.  She writes for her blog, Travels with Charie and has contributed travel articles to Manila Bulletin – USA, FilAm Star, Sunstar, Daily Guardian Iloilo, Travel LadyCapiz Times and WaytoGo.ph, the digital magazine of Cebu Pacific Air.  She graduated from Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont, California, with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business Administration and a Master’s Degree in French. In 2006, she founded Balay ni Charie Foundation, a grassroots organization, that continues to provide school supplies to children in her home province of Capiz, Philippines. Aside from travelling and charity work, Charie writes her travel chronicles on her blog, Travels with Charie. 

For our second installement of our #FridayNightWritersSeries, I bring you Charie Albar…

1. How did you discover that you have the passion and the talent for travel writing?

There’s a quote that explains how I started writing. Ibn Battuta, a medieval Moroccan scholar and explorer once said, “Traveling leaves you speechless and then turns you into a storyteller”.  I became a storyteller after traveling a few times to Europe. My blog, TravelswithCharie, was and still is my journal and travel guide. When my travel articles were published by Fil-Am newspapers in the San Francisco Bay Area, I was more motivated than ever to write about my travel experiences.

2. What do you usually do when you write? Could you share with us your routine when you’re writing one of those articles?

First off, I gather all the photographs I took of a place I recently visited and decide what I should write about. Should I write about the people I met, the architecture, the food, the markets or the art? Sometimes the article will focus entirely on a poem like I did for the Chateau de Chillon in Switzerland. Or if you read my article on the paintings of Carlos “Botong” Francisco at the National Museum, you’ll notice it’s all about the historical context of his canvasses.

This brings up the aspect of research, an important part of my writing routine. I always read up on a place or piece of art or architecture, etc. before I start writing. I strongly believe that writers have the responsibility to share accurate information. In researching the works of Botong Francisco as an example, I was disappointed that there wasn’t much written about the nuances of his style nor his creative process. I did, however, find a lot of articles about his life. I tried to get copies of books about him and his works but there are too few and are out of print. As I’m not an expert on Philippine art, my article didn’t dwell on Botong Francisco’s style but rather on the local history he illustrated in his canvasses.

Research also includes reading the articles of other writers who have been there before you. This helps in providing a different angle to your story. You really don’t want to write about the same things. You need to go off grid, find something new so you can grab the attention of your readers.

The third most important part of my writing routine is editing. I review my work too many times until I get so tired of it. And even after I’ve posted it and later find an error in spelling or grammar, I correct it. This is the beauty of blogging. You can correct, change and update the post until you’re satisfied with it. Sometimes when I read an article from online publications and see errors, I wonder why they don’t take the time to correct them. But that’s just me.

 

3. You’ve been blogging for many, many years now. Could you tell me what aspect of writing makes you the happiest or most fulfilled?

I’m happiest when the piece I’ve written has been posted. I can then move on to my next article.

4. You’ve been writing a lot about the places you have visited. I bet you’ve already been to six continents, right? How do you to transform those travel experiences into words? What do you usually think when you write about a place that you’ve been to?

Yes, I’ve been very lucky to have traveled as much as I have. I’m always thinking and planning for the next travel adventure. Sometimes my prose flows when writing about a certain place. But the reality is, I’m frequently stumped about how and where to begin. Sometimes, you need to let the photographs speak for themselves. As cliché as it might be, a picture speaks a thousand words. And I believe this. That said, I’ve posted articles with photographs only and refrained from too much commentary.

5. If you’re going to write a travel memoir, what three places would you write about and why? 

I’ve actually written a travel memoir which is a compilation of my travel experiences over the years. It remains unpublished. I think the narrative about my meeting with a Filipina domestic worker in HongKong is an ode to the plight of our OFWs. The discovery of our family crest in Madrid which preceded my trip to Granada and our journey to the USA are both eye-openers tinged with nostalgia.

6. What tips could you give to aspiring writers or bloggers?

Read as many books and articles as you can on the subject you wish to write about. This will enrich your vocabulary and help you define your writing style. Always check your work for grammar, typos and misspellings. Ask yourself who you are writing for - what age group, what nationality, what niche (academic, scientific, religious, lifestyle, etc.). If you want to be a travel writer, you don’t need to travel far from home to find something of interest in your neck of the woods. My best travel discoveries were right here in Capiz and ensuing articles were published by local newspapers. Happy writing!

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The Friday Night Writer’s Series is a new project in this blog to connect established and successful writers with my students and readers to inspire them to ignite their creativity and pursue their passions.

#FridayNightWritersSeries: Peter Solis Nery, Multi-Talented and Multi-Award-Winning Author

Peter Solis Nery


Peter Solis Nery is a watershed figure in  21st century literature in the Philippines. A prolific writer, he is a hyper-productive artist whose creative genius runs the breadth from A to Z and beyond. Peter is a multi-award-winning Filipino poet, fictionist, and playwright and his literary creations earned him accolades and innumerable awards, including the Hall of Fame from the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards (from 1998 until 2017, he won a total of 18 Palanca medals). His screenplays have also won the Philippine Centennial Literary Prize, the 2001 Cinemanila International Film Festival, and the National Film Competition of the Film Development Council of the Philippines.  In 2012, Peter established The Peter Solis Nery Foundation for Hiligaynon Literature and the Arts, Inc., to promote, preserve, and propagate Hiligaynon literature, and Filipino art and culture, through research, publications, productions, education, and cultural dissemination. Peter now divides his time between his hometown of Dumangas, Iloilo, Philippines, and Maryland, USA.

That is why for my first #FridayNightWritersSeries post, it is only fitting to feature this champion of Hiligaynon literature, The Peter Solis Nery:

How did you discover that you have the passion and the talent for writing?

In life, we all compensate in one way or another. If we are not pretty enough, we try to be smarter and/or talented. In my case, I do not just compensate; I always overcompensate! I knew I was not going to be voted as class consort in Grade 1, so I ran for class president. To prove my worth, I tried to be the smartest and most talented. I could not sing as good as our class singer, but I could move my hips a la John Travolta in Grease and Saturday Night Fever. Also, when I was in Grade 1, I won in the national competition on poster making, but I knew I got the prize more for my ideas and slogan than for my drawing skills. In Grade 3, I was first published in our school paper. It clarified for me then (before we had video cameras) that literature is permanent; dance is ephemeral, transient, temporary. I started in competitive writing via the essay writing contests from Grades 4-6; and in high school, it was the whole gamut of campus journalism. I was winning these writing contests left and right, and it effectively boosted my confidence and literary ambitions. I was editor-in-chief at the University of the Philippines when I was in college! But in college, I also met people who were more literary than journalistically inclined. That began my journey in writing literature like poetry, fiction, and plays.

What do you usually do when you write? Could you share with us your routine when you’re writing your plays, poems, and stories?

There is literature on the go (which I do a lot on social media), and there is the big letter ‘L’ Literature for me that involves a lot of planning and revisions because I want them to survive 20, maybe 50 years. It can happen that I may start and write an “instapoem” for social media, but the poem idea can be so inspired that a few days or weeks later, I may work on it more to make it perfect for a museum, or a literature class discussion.

I think a lot in the morning after my prayers, usually when I am having my coffee. I do not go with all the ideas that buzz around me; some of them are clearly just crap. But when something new or refreshing or innovative crosses my mind, I make notes. I brew these ideas in my mind for a few days. I try to imagine how the story unfolds. When I have a complete story arc (beginning, ending, and maybe some middle), I start to write. I do a lot of research as I write. Wikipedia and online dictionaries are my friends. The New Oxford American Dictionary is the default dictionary that Google search provides me. Sometimes, what I discover in my research leads me to a different direction, maybe even a different ending. That is fun. If it leads to nowhere, I just go back to my original story arc.

If the piece is for a competition, I spend more time revising and editing it. One or two times for paragraphing, punctuation, and font styling. (Does a certain word need to be italicized, or should it be in quotation marks; single, or double, quotation marks?). Three or four times for grammar check. Two or three times for vocabulary and nuances of the word. (Is it ‘transient’ or ‘transitory’? Why not ‘ephemeral’? Why not use all three?). Then, I give it a rest for a day or three, or even a week. Then, I edit it again with cruel new eyes, like a loveless editor angry at the world, and just out to find the littlest mistakes.

I can stay three days with a poem; maybe a week to ten days with a short story; for a play, maybe two weeks for one-act, and three weeks to a month for full-length. A short film script is like a poem to me: either I have the idea down in two days, or I don’t have a story. A full-length feature is like a full-length play; I need at least 21 days to get everything down.

I almost always don’t get bogged down in the middle of a story. Because I don’t start until I have my complete arc (even if it is just the beginning and the ending, and a vague middle). Usually, I just wait for my instincts to tell me that I have a story that already insists to be written. So it can happen that an idea comes to me on a Monday, and I think about it until Wednesday, maybe research more about it on Thursday, and then rush to writing on Friday, maybe work until Saturday, so that I can be done by Sunday. I like a sense of deadline. And Sunday is good for me so that I can open up myself to a new idea by Monday. I am a writer 24/7 that way, even if I just sit and do nothing (except thinking of possibilities and story arcs) until about Thursday.

At a young age, you have already achieved what someone else would take a lifetime to accomplish. With all of your achievements, do you think the Peter Solis Nery still has something to prove, and why?

The noble answer is “I do not have to prove anything to anyone anymore.” But really, as an artist, I still feel driven to substantiate all the praises and honors given to me, and all the claims I have made myself as a literary celebrity.

What keeps me young as a person, and as an artist, are my great enthusiasm to create, and my drive to challenge stereotypes and status quos. Part of me still wants to prove that I can adapt, and even thrive, in this new century. As a writer and reader, I have seen how literature and readership have changed over the last 30 years, and I am determined to stay relevant in the literary discourse of this new century. I think such tenacity has earned me the iconic particularizing determiner ‘the’ in The Peter Solis Nery.               

Of the dozens of poems, stories, and plays that you have written, what would you consider your magnum opus, and why?

I really think that it should be “Kakunyag: The 100 Erotic Sonnets in Hiligaynon.” Its English translation “100 Erotic Sonnets from the Hiligaynon” is fine. But the scandal and audacity of the original 100 erotic sonnets in Hiligaynon is something that I really cherish as Western Visayas’ premier agent provocateur. I mean, the 100 erotic sonnets is a record-setting achievement in Hiligaynon literature!

A lot of people want to bury that sonnet-sequence feat, so I promote “Lirio,” the most successful (and now often copied) short story in Philippine magic realism. “Lirio” is taught in Philippine high schools so I have no complaint. Although I must add that some ballsy teachers of 21st century literature are actually teaching some of my erotic sonnets as these are actually popular with high school students, and teachers (!).

What tips could you give to aspiring writers?

The greatest is this quote of mine that has already made the rounds of social media: “In order to change the heart and mind of your readers, you have to write about your truth—your own truth, borne of your time.”

At 52 now, I have clarified that all great literature must aim to transform its readers. But writers can only achieve great literature if they imbue their writing with authenticity, compassion, and generosity of spirit. I think I have become an icon of literature because readers can recognize and feel these elements in all of my work, even in my most mundane Facebook posts. Readers can imagine, for example, the humiliation, ridicule, and rejection that I had to endure to produce and publish the erotic sonnets in the early part of this new millennium. But I was willing to sacrifice myself and my reputation (!) so I could liberate my readers, and even inspire the new generation of writers with my audacity and passion, with my commitment to Literature and not to the ephemeral and fast-changing morals of the society from where I write.

Published works

  • I Flew a Kite for Maria (New Day Publishers. Quezon City: 1993.) ISBN 971-10-0542-5
  • First Few Notes of a Green Symphony (Giraffe Books. Quezon City: 1994.) ISBN 971-8967-06-0
  • The Essential Thoughts of a Purple Cat (Giraffe Books. Quezon City: 1996.) ISBN 971-8967-31-1
  • Rated R (Giraffe Books. Quezon City: 1997.) ISBN 971-8967-62-1
  • Shorts (New Day Publishers. Quezon City: 1997.) ISBN 971-10-1012-7
  • Moon River, Butterflies, and Me (New Day Publishers. Quezon City: 1997.) ISBN 971-10-1013-5
  • Shy Evocations of Childhood (Giraffe Books. Quezon City: 1997.) ISBN 971-8967-67-2
  • My Life as a Hermit (Giraffe Books. Quezon City: 1998.) ISBN 971-8967-74-5
  • Fireflies for a Yuppie (Giraffe Books. Quezon City: 1998.) ISBN 971-8967-75-3
  • A Loneliness Greater than Love (DreamWings Publishing. Iloilo: 2000.) ISBN 971-92146-0-0
  • Fantasia (DreamWings Publishing. Iloilo: 2000.) ISBN 971-92146-1-9
  • Rain as Gentle as Tears (DreamWings Publishing. Iloilo: 2001.) ISBN 971-92146-2-7
  • The Prince of Ngoyngoy (DreamWings Publishing. Iloilo: 2001.) ISBN 971-92146-3-5
  • The Passion of Jovita Fuentes (New Day Publishers. Quezon City: 2009.) ISBN 978-971-10-1206-9
  • 100 Erotic Sonnets from the Hiligaynon (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2010.) ISBN 1-4537-1071-X
  • Love in the Time of the Bakunawa (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2012.) ISBN 1-478-13998-6
  • If the Shoe Fits: Or, The Five Men Imelda Marcos Meets in Heaven (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2012.) ISBN 1-466-22033-3
  • Cory, Full of Grace (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2012) ISBN 1-478-14075-5
  • Kakunyag: Erotic Sonnets in Hiligaynon (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2012) ISBN 1-481-01687-3
  • Stories in a Mellifluous Language (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2012) ISBN 1-481-04307-2
  • Peter’s Prize Very, Very Short Stories in Hiligaynon (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2014) ISBN 1-500-24030-3
  • Peter’s Prize Love Poems in Hiligaynon (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2014) ISBN 1-500-26138-6
  • Peter’s Prize Children’s Stories and Poems in Hiligaynon (CreateSpace. U.S.A.:2014) ISBN 1-500-33582-7
  • Peter’s Prize The Saddest Love Stories Ever Told in Hiligaynon (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2014) ISBN 1-500-38056-3
  • The Poem-a-thon Anthology: Mga Binalaybay sang Mayo 2014 (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2014) ISBN 1-500-65312-8
  • The Passion of Jovita Fuentes: International edition (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2015) ISBN 1-515-14242-6
  • Welcome to Grindr (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2016) ISBN 1-515-14343-0
  • Creative Writing: DIWA Senior High School Series (Diwa Learning Systems, Inc. Makati City: 2017) ISBN 978-971-46-0995-2
  • At My Father's Wake: 10 Elegies in 3 Languages (CreateSpace. U.S.A.: 2019) ISBN 1-537-10540-X
  • After: Prose Poems (KDP. U.S.A.: 2019) ISBN 1-071-32117-X
  • Funny, Sad, and Dangerous (KDP. U.S.A.: 2019) ISBN 1-089-03104-1

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The Friday Night Writer’s Series is a new project in this blog to connect established and successful writers with my students and readers to inspire them to ignite their creativity and pursue their passions.

That day a principal in Panay ordered pupils to undress

Image of Panay Church from Wikimedia Commons

Some time in October 1932, a principal of the Panay elementary in the province of Capiz drew the ire of parents after a degrading incident involving their children.  On the morning of October 28, the principal instructed the teachers to dismiss their classes and to inform the pupils to pass before the principal for "inspection." About 100 boys and a number of girls, most of them in the intermediate grades, went and filed before him.

Upon scrutinizing the clothes of the pupils, he adjudged that their clothes and dresses were unworthy of being worn school, so he immediately told them to disrobe! According to the Tribune, “since he could find nothing sanitary in the garments, he proposed to look under the garments, and did so.”

The pupils were surprised and puzzled at the same time. I think the teachers were also shocked, but in those days, when the authority of an exalted position speaks, everyone meekly obeys. They did not have a choice but to follow orders lest they endure the wrath of the principal. Their face were red in shame, they slowly took off their clothes and the embarrassed pupils paraded “past the principal almost entirely in the altogether, with a detachment of girls, stricken with shame and weeping, following them.”

Out of mortification, the girls who lived outside the pueblo waited until evening settled because they did not want them to be seen by the crowd. They went home crying and in low spirits.

News of the incident spread like wildfire in the town. The next day, the parents rushed to the school, angry at the principal’s actions. They demanded an explanation as to why their children were sent home without their clothing. The parents initially wanted to write a resolution to the division superintendent of schools and to the director of education to complain against the principal's "uncivilized and disgraceful method of enforcing health rules."

However, the principal managed to convince the parents that what he did was for the good of every one that the children’s clothes were dirty, thus, unfit for school wear. The mothers were subsequently “convinced that the move was purely in the interest of sanitation and nothing else.” The plan to report the incident to higher authorities was cancelled. 

Source:

The Tribune via Trove

 

Juanita Cruz by Magdalena Jalandoni, translated by Ofelia Ledesma Jalandoni


Juanita Cruz is a novel originally written in Hiligaynon by Ilongga National Artist for Literature, Magdalena Jalandoni. It was translated into English by her niece Ofelia Ledesma Jalandoni and was published by UP Press. 

The novel spans several years and tells the life of a native heiress, Juanita Cruz, her love story, tragedies and successes. The plot is cliched and typical of the Filipino novel of that period - melodramatic with extended scenes and, sometimes, stuffed by protracted and unnecessary dialogs. But what i appreciate about Jalandoni's work was how she used her gift for words to pluck a 21st century reader and transport him to a late-19th century bahay na bato, only to witness a furious father slap her tender daughter.

 Jalandoni's niece does justice in staying true to her aunt's work and i could vividly imagine the travails and miseries, success and joy, while feeling at the same the impassioned emotions felt by Juanita and the love of her life, Ely. 

I would like to think that in writing in the first person, Magdalena Jalandoni may have, as well, drawn from her own experiences a portion of Juanita's life. That Juanita was forbidden to love someone lower than her station may have been experienced by Juanita herself, or did she know someone who endured that fate? But Jalandoni, i think, does not want Juanita to end up a spinster or  a nun banished in a draughty convent. She extends the plot, adds characters akin to fairy godparents, and touches on social and political issues of the day. Villains, conniving cousins and jealous lovers also sprout as read along.

Through Juanita Cruz, Jalandoni rebels against her own social caste - Iloilo's sugar-planting families. She depicts her own kins as haughty, arrogant, social climbing (the loved it to marry off a child to a pure-bred Spaniard), and eager to stoop down on one of their unfortunate and poor brothers. 

Nationalist and patriotic sentiments are evident. No other than Ely, whose ashes to phoenix tale of self-redemption and meteoric success in Spain, was depicted as one of those  selfmade natives who fueled the flames of revolution against Spain, himself a victim of colonial abuses. 

Jalandoni only had the kindest regards for the Catholic church and the religious who serves her. thus, in the novel, Jalandoni pictures the priests were instrumental in helping Ely succeed. The nuns were motherly and caring. His arrogant brother found redemption with the church. 

Taking on a historical and cultural lens, Juanita Cruz is  a window to a bygone era and Jalandoni was the perfect eyewitness who poignantly weaves this tale, so tearjerking you might find yourself teary eyed at climactic scenes. I did.

Interested of this book? Contact UP Press. You may order via their shop at Lazada and Shopee.  





Simbahan: An Illustrated Guide to 50 of the Philippines' Must Visit Catholic Churches by Regalado Trota Jose, illustrated by Architect Allan Jay Quesada



Today my copy of the well-received Simbahan: An Illustrated Guide to 50 of the Philippines' Must Visit Catholic Churches has finally arrived! Published by RPD Publications, this book came neatly wrapped and tied. Just like Kain Na! (Also from RPD), my copy of Simbahan comes with a dedication and autograph from the author. 

This 247-page tome features historical churches from around the country, from Luzon to Mindanao. Each church is well-described by the author and individually water color-painted by the illustrator. Our very own Santa Monica Church here in Panay Capiz is also featured, together with its famous bell. 

Again, just like Kain Na!, Simbahan does not disappoint. It makes a catchy display on the table top and, more importantly, a convenient go-to reference when one wants to get to know a little (or more) about some of the country's Catholic churches. I recommend librarians and Filipiniana book lovers to grab a copy or two of this book while still sold at a cheaper price and while the first-print is still available.  


About Simbahan

While the temples and stupas may be the architectural icons of much of Asia, the church is arguably the Philippines' most distinctive building. Tellingly, despite three hundred years of the Hispanic rule, the Filipinos opted to retain their indigenous names for places of worship, instead of the Spanish iglesia. Thus, simbahan - "church" in much of central and southern Philippines - was chosen as the title of this book. From the Manila way of naming things, simbahan accented in the middle syllable, it moves away towards the far and the unheard of simbahan accented on the last syllable. 

Simbahan introduces fifty sites chosen among the country's most culturally or esthetically significant churches. Their descriptions are among the tidbits culled from anthropology, linguistics, geography, popular devotions, a bit of history (art history) and local culture. Some churches in this book are brimming with devotees, such as Manaoag, Quiapo or Cebu; some are historic, such as the Manila Cathedral of Barasoain. A few have been awarded international status, such as Paoay and Miag-ao, while others have been given the country's highest artistic honors, such as Malaueg, Guiuan or Jimenez. Some are easy to reach, like San Sebastian or Baclaran, but others challenge even the hardened traveler, such as Mahatao, Capul or Caraga. A few are really ancient, like San Agustin, some are audaciously modern, like Victorias. Each one effuses some facet of that cultural fusion of art, life and nature that could only blossom in the Philippines. As the unabashedly Roman Catholic country celebrates 500 years of Christianity, Simbahan hopes to provoke a "wander lust" among pilgrims and tourists - beyond the beaches and "fun" - to visit 50 remarkable monuments to the piety and artistry of the Filipinos.

About the author

Regalado Trota José wrote Simbahan: Church Art in Colonial Philippines 1565-1898. It won the Philippine National Book Award in the Art Category in 1992.

He received the Cultural Center of the Philippines Centennial Award for the Arts in 1999. He was the youngest awardees among “100 outstanding Filipinos who have helped build the Filipino nation through arts and culture during the last 100 years,” and was the only representative for the Art History category. 

Regalado Trota José has advocated for the study and protection of the cultural heritage of the Catholic Church in the Philippines since the 1980’s. 

As a specialist in Philippine sacred art and architecture, he has collaborated with the Ayala Museum, the International Council for Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the University of the Philippines. He belonged to the Philippine Madrigal Singers, too. He was former Commissioner for Cultural Heritage of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts. 

Currently, he is the archivist of the University of Santo Tomas and a faculty member of the UST Cultural Studies Heritage Program. 

About the illustrator

Allan Jay Quesada is a photographer, a painter and an architect. He has the eye, the hand and the technical background that produced the inspired illustrations of Simbahán.

The kilometric list of awards for his works from his pre-teen years through his adolescence and school years of secondary and tertiary levels speaks volumes about the rapid progression and maturation of his art. This list consistently stretched up to his current professional status. 

He won the Grand Prize of the Churches of the North Photo Competition in 2018 here. He won the Grand Prize in May 2019 in Madrid, Spain at the Climate Tracker and WHO’s Climate Change and Health Photo Competition.

He started watercolor painting at 5 years of age. His works are mostly landscapes, urban scenes and heritage structures. He looks up to Alvaro Castagnet and Joseph Zbukvic, his watercolor idols. 

Allan gives free painting and rendering seminars in his alma mater, Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM). His YouTube Channel is “Watercolors by Allan Jay Quesada”. He shares regular tutorials there. 

He belongs to the International Watercolor Society of the Philippines. He has been a member of the United Architects of the Philippines- Manila Maharlika Chapter since 2011.

Order a signed copy of Simbahan from RPD Publishing's website, Lazada, Shopee and Amazon. 

Christmas in Roxas City, circa 2020

 Happy New Year! Christmas season for 2020 is over  but for posterity's sake, I'm sharing with everyone these shots I took after I attended the Christmas Day mass at the Cathedral. We only have simple decorations and lights at the plaza this year, but the "parols" (Christmas lantern) that were hung in front of the City Hall meant the unified spirit of the community to create these beautiful outdoor lights using indigenous and recycled materials.  

A parol making competition was part of the the Sinadya festival 2020. They make perfect backdrop for nighttime picturing taking, but I think they also leave one feeling a little better upon looking at their glitter and shimmer on air. 

The interactive light display also brings the city center to a full life when dusk settles and nighttime comes. Launched during the Sinadya 2019, the opening of the interactive lighta draw a huge crowd from all over the province and I remember a burst of colors also painted the sky that night. 

 I like how the dancing and changing of colors imbibe the spirit of cheers for everyone who indulge in the crisp December wind.

While COVID-19 continues to linger and pose danger, may 2021 bring us the hope redemption for a safe and healthier community.

Meanwhile, enjoy the pictures! 










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