(Reprinted from Cruising magazine, October 2000 issue.)
I have found the place which can explain
what Barbra Streisand must have meant
when she sang: “On a clear day, you can see forever…”
It is on top of a hill, about 550 kilometers from Manila, in Burgos town, in Ilocos
Norte. (About 10 kilometers from this place is Pagudpud, famous for its white
sand, unpolluted beaches.)
The site is known as Cape Bojeador Lighthouse, established by the Spanish
government on March 31, 1892.
Today, that same structure which guided the galleon ships, is still operational. Modern
technology though has replaced the way the light is operated. Solar panels provide
energy to illuminate the light which is turned on automatically by a light-sensitive
device.
A man named Ruben T. Labuguen, 61, who has been a lighthouse keeper for 42 years
now, spent the last eight years of that in Cape Bojeador. His stories span the
histories of the other lighthouses along the coast of Luzon – in Cape Santiago,
Batangas; and the Palaui island lighthouse, which is at the tip of the eastern part of
Luzon island.
Mang Ruben is no stranger to being alone. In fact, he says he quite likes the life of
being in serene surroundings. A native of Cagayan, his family comes to visit him
regularly.
But it is not Mang Ruben’s history with lighthouses that will invite you to chat with
him. In fact, it was not even the quaint-looking lighthouse structure whose walls were
shedding off white and red paint like it was snake’s skin; the iron grill with its curious
designs; the green louvere-covered windows; or the red brick walkway. It was the
smile of this very tall, lanky man with dark, weather-beaten skin, who greeted us with
a wave, standing on his porch about 30 steps of steep hill from the parking area.
“What’s up there?” I shouted to be heard.
“If I tell you, you won’t come up to visit me,” he said waving us on.
I was amused that someone with character and a cheerful disposition would be at this
mountain peak, 550 kms from Metro Manila, where you can have a view of the sea,
the mountains, and the plains of Ilocos Norte.
With the same riddle-sounding talk, he challenged us to climb the lighthouse tower to
see “the guiding light”.
“If I tell you how many steps that you will take, you’ll be tired before you get there.
Count and tell me when you come down,” he said.
I did not want to take the challenge because the spiral staircase just seemed to curl
around endlessly from where I stood at the bottom of the tower.
My companions – Anjo, Aris, and Joe – took the challenge. They counted 82 steps.
[ Cape Bojeador Lighthouse ]
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