THE LAND THAT TIME HAPPILY FORGETS:
Victorino P Mapa
As we continue our trip northward along the western coast of Panay island one sees the Master painter’s handiwork: Rich, lush green rice fields stretch from the sea’s edge to the upland ridges; a tranquil beach is ever visible to the left, thinly sheltered by swaying coconut trees. The mountain cordillera of Panay to the far right shows its silhouette as the paved road undulates through a gently undulating vista that equals the South Paicific edens that famed story tellers as Melville, Stevenson and Michener enthused about. The people set a never ending pattern of tilling the land, nursing and reaping a harvest and tilling it again, a cycle of life that no ideology turmoil or calamity has changed. It has been so for centuries and will remain so for centuries to come. They perpetuate the scene of a beautiful land suspended in its own time. Once in a while a huge , fairly new concrete house incongroulsy appears amid a row of thatched huts by the roadside. “ The owner has gone to Saudi” is the explanation of our driver, meaning, the native son has gone overseas to work in the Middle East and saved enough to fulfill his ambition of building a hoem that he can live in happlily ever after.
The Southeast Asia Fisheries and Development research center at Tigbauan gave us brief interruption. The ongoing research work at the center does not exactly enoucarge sightseers. But we were only a carload and the unavoidable Ilonggo hospitality opened its doors and a guide was provided for a quick tour. The Center is the only one of its kind in the Philippines and is only one of three in Southeast Asia. The next town has a major must-see attraction in the fortress-church of Miagao (Mee-yag-aw). In a less populated era the church commanded a view of the horizon. Its vantage point explains why it served as a refuge against marauding Muslim pirates. It took a second look to discern that the façade’s ornate frieze was of a native garbed St. Christopher with the child Jesus on his shoulders. St Christopher is holding on to a banana tree with its leaves radiating outward for support. The church-fortress has been declared a World Heritage site by the United Nations. A new University of the Philippines sits by a sea breezed ridge at the edge of town.
A sudden shift from a gradual to a steep ascent brought us to a bend of the road where the Iloilo highway ends and the road to Antique Province begins (The triangular shaped island of Panay is divided into four provinces – Iloilo, Antique, Aklan and Capiz).We parked beside four roadside cafes that also served as mini-marts, ala 7-ll located at the edge of a cliff. The promontory that balanced the cafes rendered a breath taking panorama of Panay island’s southern tip and the road just travelled. It was a clear day and we could see forever. With the sea directly beneath our feet we ordered an ala carte lunch for three: the Ilonggo Kadyos beans with veggies just snapped from the garden, two fish entrees from the catch of the day and rice – a kingly feast for the paltry sum of P110 (almost US$3.00!)., a round of San Miguel beer included. The beer was warm but with the view, the meal, my shoes off and the feeling that all was well with the world, I would have drank it boiling hot.
Tiolas is not shown nor mentioned in any road map and maybe Ilonggos like to keep it that way – Iloilo’s best kept secret. It can be yours too. The memory and the greeting that the café owner gave in that melodious Ilonggo accent, “Ma Ayong Aga, Totoo!” still lingers on .
Thanks!
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