In search of the Punta De Santiago lighthouse

It’s 10 a.m. and we’re at a bus terminal in Pasay on a trip to Calatagan, Batangas to look for the Punta De Santiago Lighthouse.

Unfortunately, there’s no bus that goes straight to Calatagan. We were advised to take a bus to Balayan (bus fare R143) or Lian/Nasugbu then ride a jeepney to Calatagan. Three and a half hours later, we were in Balayan, Batangas, and off to Calatagan (jeepney fare: R27).

Weary from all the travelling, we were asking ourselves if we should still push thru with our search for the lighthouse. The last trip to Manila was at 5 p.m. But we went on and a fellow passenger helped us get a good price for a tricycle ride to the lighthouse, the parola.

With our destination in sight, we could not contain our excitement. But it proved to be short–lived as the lighthouse was closed. I was contemplating on trespassing the place but our tricycle driver, Mang Virgilio, set me straight and reminded me that trespassing is a crime. A guy on a scooter came up the hill towards the gate and Mang Virgilio said that it was his buddy, the lighthouse keeper.

THE LIGHTKEEPER

Antonio Coz, Jr., a third generation lighthouse keeper, told us that the lighthouse was renovated in 2002. The main searchlight no longer works and it is very expensive to have it repaired. Today, the tower lights are powered by solar panels located on top of the main tower.

Lightkeepers used to live with their families on the property, specifically in the main building were there are sleeping quarters, now unoccupied.

The lightkeeper spends mornings at the detachment in the town and nights at the lighthouse. He doesn’t have the luxury of a TV. His only company were two cattles that he tended on the property.

We would have wanted to stay longer but we were worried about catching the 5 p.m. bus to Manila. We asked about the possibility of staying overnight but the rates of the resorts in the vicinity were way beyond our budget. We hurriedly left but still missed the bus from Calatagan. The other option was to ride a jeep to Lian/ Nasugbu.

Mang Virgilio took us next to the jeepney station. We thanked him and paid him R150 for the ride plus a R20 tip. The problem was it was a weekend and jeepneys do not usually go all the way to Lian or Nasugbu at this late an hour if there were not enough passengers. Jeepneys would only go as far as Balibag. Still we opted to take a chance, took a tricycle to Lian but not before walking about two kilometers, while trying to hitch a ride from passing private vehicles in the hopes that we could be taken to Lian and catch the 7 p.m. bus to Manila.

A tricycle finally showed up in the last few minutes of the sun. The fare to Lian, the driver offered, would be R150. Deal!

What we thought would be a quick walk to Lian (silly us!) would take another 20 minutes by trike. We we’re laughing that we even considered walking all the way from Balibago to Lian. We spotted a bus quickly enough at Lian and took the first one we could find, another bus ride and a few long winks later, and we’re back to the lights of Manila, far, far away from the lighthouse of Calatagan.

[ Punta de Santiago Lighthouse Wiki ]