Good Friday of 2013,
I preferred to stay in Manila because of some anticipated activities the
following week. Though I wanted a
getaway somewhere far away from the city, I was obliged to stay. Anyway, I took the opportunity to invite some
friends who share the same passion for a possible photowalk. Our target destination would be at Balut,
Tondo.
I have been looking
forward for this moment to visit this place during the holy week. Last year, I missed the chance to cover the
tradition of the locals in this part of Tondo.
This time would be a perfect opportunity for me to realize that dream.
I invited several
friends who are into photography but come d-day, only Jay showed up. Our call time was before 7am but since we
woke up late, Jay was able to pick me up at my place at around 9am. Though I knew that time was not on our side,
we still pushed through, hoping that we will have even a glimpse of the said
tradition.
Though I am not
familiar of the place and only saw that one on tv, a friend oriented me for
some possible routes. We planned to take
a jeepney ride going to that place and before 7am would be a great time to
start our exploration, giving us enough time to make several jeepney transfers
and if ever we will be lost we will still have enough time to ask and move
around. Later on, we found out that the
Divisoria route is the easiest and shortest of them all.
Anyway, since we were
out of time, a taxi ride was the best option.
I tried asking the driver if he is familiar of the place because we
could no longer afford getting lost. He
was a bit unsure of his answer though he would be trying his best to get us
there. I understand his situation that
time because passengers come holy week are rare in the city and even if he was
unsure, he managed to find the way. We
were almost on the vicinity when he told us that he was no longer sure if we
were on the right place. I did not argue
with him anymore. I immediately
paid him our fare and we got off from
the taxi right away. We were in
unfamiliar territory and since it was holy week, there were only few people and
jeepneys on the road. Our last recourse
was to ask someone for some possible directions. And we were delighted because we were only
several meters away from the place.
We rode the incoming
jeepney towards the barangay where the people of Balut, Tondo observe their
tradition. The passengers were helpful
when we tried to ask about the said place and event. Little did we knew that after a couple of
minutes, we were already approaching the place.
And right after alighting the jeepney, a group of locals who were in
penance were occupying the whole road and they were making their way towards
the chapel. Before we could prepare for
a decent shot, the procession was already through and the participants were
already inside the chapel for their final act.
We ended up taking pictures of whatever situation at the aftermath of
the procession. I was disheartened
because we lost the prized opportunity.
An epic fail it was.
I was not happy of
the situation. I asked some people
around if there were still groups who were doing their penance and they directed
us to Barangay San Raque. We made no
haste and walked towards Simeon de Jesus street. On the gate of the said
barangay, another group portrayed the station of the cross of Jesus but since
it was not new to me, I asked a pedicab driver if there were still groups in
the area who were doing the penance thing.
As seen on tv, there are two barangays that host the said event and we
rode a pedicab towards the place. It
took us several minutes before getting there.
When we got there, all those who participated in the event were already
taking a bath at a public water pump in a street corner. They were already cleaning themselves.
The pedicab driver
hurriedly took us to the next barangay but since it was already late in the
morning, past 9am that was, the locals were already cleaning the street after
their observation of the tradition. We
saw the participants along the street who were already fully clothed and soaked
in water after cleaning themselves. It
was another sorry sight for us. I guess
next year would be the only remedy for this failure and we learned our hard
lesson. Be there as early as possible or
you’ll be sorry.
Well, we felt sorry
for the lost opportunity. It was indeed
an epic fail for the second time. The
two barangays have a good number of participants in the yearly penance and they
are always part of the coverage of the local news. Witnessing first hand those who observe and
participate in this yearly tradition among the locals here could mean another
experience to behold. And with the awful
moment, we returned to the San Raque chapel along the main road in H. Lopez.
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