Though my father is from Quezon, I never had the chance to enjoy the place. I always thought,mistakenly, that there isn’t really much to explore there. So every time we go to the province, mostly for family reunions, I just fix a wide grin and always say a resounding ‘yes’, to orchestrate my “enthusiasm.”
Recently, I was forced to go back to trace my roots, this time, for a tour. So, I packed my bag and headed for a peaceful and quiet trip to Quezon.
Uncovering Sariaya
Sariaya, Quezon is about 125 kms. south of Manila or a three-and-a-half hour drive by bus. The town was named after a river formerly called ‘Sadyaia’, now known as Lagnas river. It is traversed by the Maharlika Highway, which links by land and route the islands of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
Originally Christianized by the Franciscans in 1599, the town began as a tiny fishing community on the shores of Castañas. It used to be an encomienda of the King of Spain for many years before becoming a town in 1703.
Sariaya is agriculture-based, teeming with coconut trees, rice fields and vegetables. It is classified as a first-class municipality with a population of 145,000 and a land area of 24,530 hectares. The flat and fan-shaped land extends from west to east then sloping gently southward from Mt. Banahaw to Tayabas Bay.
What houses the past
In the early part of the 19th century, during the thriving years of the coconut industry, the town earned a reputation of having large, elegant ancestral homes equipped with fine fixtures from the United States and Europe. Such ancestral homes were built around the Church, which maps that our tradition and culture have always been centered on the Church.
The numerous stately mansions that line the streets of the town exude Moorish, Gregorian, Alhambra and Spanish Casa architecture. The checkered tile-flooring and life-size murals, the wooden stairs with dark and intricate lattice works, the pieces of dark hard wood furniture, the colorful stained glass windows, and the pungent smell of old wood suddenly creates the sensation of being in the ‘past.’
The Alvarez residence, home of the Sariaya Museum, will turn 300 years old next year. It houses a collection of different artifacts, mostly religious items.
The museum’s curator claims that they have the rare copy of Jose Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere, which is now a property of the Sariaya Quadricentennial Foundation, Inc. The manuscript is written in Spanish and in Rizal’s very own elegant handwriting, complete with erasures, margin annotations, diacritical marks, paragraph relocations and ink blots. More significant is the absence of title on the cover for at that time, this literary piece was deemed subversive material. Absence of title suggests a precautionary measure to preclude interception by Spanish authorities.
Sto. Cristo de Burgos
Even when this town was just a poor fishing community, the pious King Philip II showed special affection to it. He spent a great deal of royal money for its economic development and for religious instructions of the natives.
He also decreed that all new converts in this town and elsewhere must be under his royal protection. The present Roman Catholic Church, the Parish Church of Saint Francis de Assisi, was built with funds from the King of Spain (Felipe V), as was the predecessor church, destroyed by a powerful earthquake in Jan. 12, 1743.
The Crucifix of Sto. Cristo de Burgos, behind the retablo of the Church, was likewise a gift by the pious Felipe V. He sent it upon request of Franciscan friars as protection against Moslem raiders. This Crucifix of Burgos is a replica of the one found in Burgos Church in Spain, which helped the legendary El Cid in his victory against the Moors.
Sariaya’s Cristo de Burgos is the only one of its kind in the country today. It still stands on the very same place it occupied since 1743.
It is claimed to be miraculous because since 1743, no Moslem raid has transpired and Mt. Banahaw has not erupted, the last blasts took place in 1539 and 1730.
A different way of sharing
The largest and most colorful of Sariaya’s religious traditions come on May 15, during the celebration of the feast of San Isidro, patron saint of farmers.
The Agawan Festival is a form of thanksgiving, a festival of farmers, for a bountiful harvest.
Fr. Raul Enriquez, chairperson of the Sariaya Quadricentennial Foundation and organizer of festivities, claims that Sariaya’s Agawan Festival differs from other festivities elsewhere in the province, or even around the country. “Although we share the same faith, Sariaya’s celebration reflects our people’s creativity and generosity.”
Sariayans begin preparations two weeks earlier and start decorating their houses a day before the feast. House owners decide what crops suit best for their chosen theme. Displays come in various forms and sizes, from simple to elaborate (reminds me of the mechanical Christmas decors outside COD, a formerly popular mall in Cubao).
Typically, native materials such as coconut blossoms (bagaybays), bamboos, and palm leaves (anahaw, coconut and buri) are combined with rattan, yantok and bamboo strips dyed with a motley of colors to create a festive mood resulting to sometimes pleasant designs and at other times, outrageous.
The festival also features what they call ‘Mga Taong Bagakay’ (MTB), ‘bagakay’ meaning a holder of fruits and vegetables. These are human depiction of slender bamboos, teenagers clad in native materials and are embellished with vegetables or Sariaya’s delicacies like pastillas, apas, broas and pinagongs.
Then, as soon as the image of San Isidro has passed by, this supposedly peaceful and quiet town turns frantic. Pandemonium breaks out...onlookers and passers-by start grabbing candies, fruits, vegetables, hats, fans and other ornaments, climbing walls and toppling the bagakay trees or ‘pabitins’ painstakingly installed by residents. Hence, the name ‘Agawan’, where everything is definitely for free and up for grabs.
Fr. Enriquez said that they want the Festival to remain God-centered. “We don’t want to turn it into a pagan celebration where the focus is in getting drunk and other commercial distractions. Instead, we would like to promote the town’s culture, history and religion.”
The sight was astonishing, people occupied the streets, smiling and having fun. Miraculously, no one gets hurt.
[ Tayabas Bay Wiki ]
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