As 5 years before, I am writing my last entry before I return home to Malaysia as a symbolic act of closure. This time round, my sojourn began from 22 July and will end on 12 September. In between I spent about 4 days in Sagada, 6 days in Iloilo City and another 6 days in Quezon City for other research-related activities.

Unlike my other times in Baguio, I will remember this particular stay as a very wet and windy one. I have never been in the Philippines before during the typhoon season. Being caught in at least three typhoons passing through the country has given me a more healthy respect of what its people have to face each year without fail and the deep spiritual resources they draw from to keep body and soul together.

While Baguio is certainly “developing” with more (and higher) buildings being erected each year, it remains a rather special city for many who have stayed or visited it. As its city administrators and concerned citizens labour to hold on to what has defined the city’s aura throughout the decades despite its continuing loss of greenery and friendly small-town ambiance, what seems salient is its status as a place of refuge for many. Its temperate-like climate alone coupled with its vibrant mix of highland indigenous people’s cultures amidst its expanding cosmopolitanism is reason enough to be hopeful for the future.

But as in decades earlier beginning with the city’s genesis when aspirations and ground realities diverged over the years, only time will only tell what Baguio will morph into. In the meantime, it’s back to the place I call home.

A popular destination for locals and tourists alike

One of my research activities in Baguio City this time round - together with Maya, my trusty research assistant - has been on finding out more about the phenomena of “komboys” in the City Market.

Pare (buddies)

“Komboy” is a term that seems peculiar to Baguio City alone. My friends based in other cities in the Philippines are not aware of what it means although the activity is clearly recognisable enough – carrying other people’s shopping.

Girls and boys having fun while waiting for customers

The activities of a “komboy” ranges from selling plastic bags (some of which are quite decorative) to hailing down taxis for their customers.

Apparently, there is no term for “komgirls”

Young girls are equally enterprising in the market place but their activities are confined to the selling of plastic bags. And apparently there is no such term for a “komgirl”. Perhaps it is because we have not seen any girls carrying any baggage for others thus far.

Daily income levels vary greatly between the children but the common refrain among them is that tourists give higher tips than locals. And that women customers are more amenable to having their shopping carried in comparison to men.

While a small number do this kind of work over the weekends to earn additional pocket money, sadly, many of them have stopped schooling because of family circumstances and count this as their “occupation” for now.

A lot of the children we encountered in the city market seemed to be related to one another

I say “occupation” because being still children, the Baguio City Market is an arena of play even as it is a place of work.

Playing “pogs” on any available dry space

A short video documentary based on the experiences of 3 komboys is close to completion.

Quite quickly, one realizes that the art form of statues are fairly commonplace in the Philippines. Whether symbolizing or mediating sacred or secular intentions, they are found in an array of private and public spaces. Here is a list of some that I have encountered in various places (Baguio City, Iloilo City and Quezon City):

This gigantic statue of an Ifugao warrior is found at the Barrio Fiesta in Baguio City

This equally striking Ifuago woman is situated almost directly opposite the above statue

I believe this is the image of the priest who founded an 18th century church at Santa Barbara near to Iloilo City

A popular local saint of the same locality as above.

This image can be found at the top of Miago Church, a UNESCO World Heritage Site near to Iloilo City, Western Visayas

Across the church at Santa Barbara and in a Spanish –inspired plaza, one finds this image of Rizal (the father of Filipino nationalism) and his companions

Images and statues of Rizal are ubiquitous throughout the Philippines. This one is at the Liberation Plaza in downtown Iloilo City

General Delgado is one of the better known revolutionaries who fought the Spanish in the Visayan region


In the San Jose Church, Iloilo City one can see one of the oldest St Nino (the Child Jesus) statues in the Philippines.

This smart-looking elegant chap is fronting the library of the University of the Philippines, Western Visayas, a recognized UNESCO Heritage building

This majestic creature is at the University of the Philippines, Diliman Campus in Quezon City near to the Social Sciences and Humanities building

This is the Oblation statue found at the front lawn of the University of the Philippines, Baguio City. It’s the official symbol of the University of the Philippines. In keeping with its symbolism, there is also the annual Oblation Run involving students and staff who emulate the ethos and dress code of the statue…

This one is in Iloilo City on the island of Panay in the Visayan region.

Instead of writing a piece this week, I have decided to exhibit a few of the many interesting signboards, stickers and artistic installations that inhabit this city:

Seen during the civil society’s rally in connection with the State-of-the-Nation address by President Aquino III

Quite a common sight on walls throughout the city

Seen on the bus that I took from Sagada to Baguio

Near to where I am staying

Not far where I take my jeepney ride everyday

A public space for people - mostly the middle-aged and elderly - to hang out. Also a popular place for rallies and speeches

At nearly the top of Session Road. This installation depicts how the name of the road was given, ie when the first Philippines Commission was held on the middle of a “road” at the beginning of the 20th century

Seen at People’s Park during the SONA rally

Erected during the Centennial celebrations of the city in 2009

Seen (and allowed) in the University of the Philippines Baguio City campus

Found at UP Baguio Campus

Baguio City has been known for several decades to be a haven for Filipino artists. Yesterday evening (August 7), I witnessed the inauguration of yet another artists’ collective. It had the unusual name of Wappak! which stands for “Women’s Artistic Production and Action Kickstarter”. The event was held in the ambiance of VOCAS situated on the rooftop of La Azotea building and shares the premises with the Oh My Gulay! Restaurant.

This art-cum-restaurant is on the rooftop of a 4-storey building along Session Road

One of the many artistic installations at VOCAS

The exhibit notes explain:

“As an onomatopoeia signifying swift, whip-like action, Wappak! intends to become a venue that will kickstart a more active participation in terms of artistic production from women. It is a call for women artists to wake up from their artistic slumbers and reignite the presence of women artists as meaning-makers in the dynamic de inition and re de inition [of] art and feminity”

Wappak! presently consists of 25 women based or previously based in Baguio city. But it is expected to grow as an open call for more women to join was made during the inauguration. The artistic abilities of the members are wide-ranging – from performing artists to musicians to sculptors to literary writers and poets.

The event was ceremonially started by a group of three women members drumming together led by a male drummer.

Ceremonial drumming

She is also a member of Wapaak!

A few poems were then read or performed.

Florendo Pedro performing her poem on speaking up

Next, to the beat of communal drumming Katrin de Guia (German born but a permanent resident of the Philippines for the last 30 years) drew on a big white canvas the symbol of a heart.

Initiating communal art

Members of the group and then the watching spectators were invited to participate in the coming of being of Wappak! by adding their cumulative sketches onto the canvas art.

Watching and listening raptly…

To cement the relationship further, a communal meal of vegetables and fruits was then shared.

The last time I was in the idyllic mountain hamlet of Sagada was in December 2007 together with student travellers of Monash University (http://insearchofsagada.blogspot.com).

As then, it took a good 6 hours to cover the 160 kms distance from Baguio to Sagada because of the winding narrow roads. But the spectacular rugged landscape, this time enveloped in mists for a good part of the journey, made the trip seemed much shorter.

That thin line cutting across the mountain is the “highway”…

In a few places along the highway, the fully packed bus (of people and goods) had to negotiate carefully the muddy roads partially blocked by landslides caused by torrential typhoon rains. With a sheer drop of several hundred feet on one side of the road, it was pretty natural to contemplate about one’s fragility and mortality during these pregnant moments.

Sagada seemed to have changed little from my last sojourn. Apart from a couple of new buildings in the “center” of the town where the jeepneys congregate and a renovated restaurant at St Joseph’s Resthouse, the ambiance of this popular eco-tourism destination of hanging coffins, underground caves and rivers, majestic rice terraces and pristine waterfalls is as how I remembered it. Sagada is also strikingly a convivial place for dogs – they lie down on the road in between vehicles, saunter lazily into shops and even into the local church during service without any reprimand from humans.

The renovated Cafe St. Joe


One of the many family-run cafes and guesthouses with interesting names.

Just this morning (2 August), I had breakfast at Shamrock Café, so named because according to the woman proprietor, her family has close Irish friends. Even her personal name is Irish-inspired - Gaal. Gaal said she is already a grandmother of 16 children with 8 grown up children of her own. I couldn’t immediately tell. Just like the timeless music of Jim Croce, David Gates, John Denver, Don McLean, Rod Stewart et al emanating from her CD player - no fans of Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber here - and to which she was singing along with as she prepared my breakfast, life in Sagada seems to unfold on a different plane.

The grandson of Gaal with Igorot proudly emblazoned on this T-shirt

I was in Sagada to check up a new development. Mary, an old friend of mine and a native of Sagada, had just started up a community radio to service the hamlet. Whilst the station has presently a modest full-time staff strength of 3, they are also assisted by an enthusiastic team of around 20 volunteers. After a series of participatory workshops, they have come up with a menu of programs which range from different genres of music to various issues affecting the local community and indigenous peoples in the region.

Radyo Sagada

Two of the many volunteer DJs


One of the three full-time staff, Mariste.

According to Mary, although the station is still on a trial period, public reception has exceeded beyond expectations. Unintentionally, the strategic elevated position of their radio transmitter has allowed their programmes to be projected beyond Sagada to neighbouring villages and towns, and even to the comparatively faraway province of Apayao.
Hopefully, with more funding forthcoming in the future, Radyo Sagada will move on from strength to strength to become very much part of the local landscape for years to come.

The past week saw Typhoon Juaning making his wet presence felt in Baguio City. Typhoons are given personal names according to the English alphabetical order which would make Juaning the 10th one so far with more expected along the way until the end of October. Unlike lowlying central Luzon where Juaning has brought along floods and hardships to Filipinos, Baguio City was more fortunate as the city was not in the direct pathway of Juaning. But, nevertheless, he was close enough for the city authorities to raise the alert level to Signal Two which meant that schools were closed while for other institutions and establishments it was business as usual.

Despite the inclement weather, street vendors carried on with their trade on the sidewalks wearing raincoats or flimsily sheltered by an assortment of umbrellas and plastic sheets. Many of them also had to be alert for anti-vending “demolition” by city hall officials. While city ordinance on sidewalks and other public space being “beyond the Commerce of Man” has remained in place, street vendors are currently allowed to vend at busy spots only during certain times of the day (early morning and late evenings) because of pressure from civil society groups and for humanitarian reasons. Still, many disregard this arbitrary ruling because of the need to earn a living for the day.

Earning for the day come rain or shine

Vending as usual…

Running from “demolition”

Probably the sidewalk vendors who benefit most from the wet season are those who sell or repair umbrellas along the sidewalks. For the latter, a small fee of 10 pesos was all it needed for these “doctors” to make new again umbrellas rendered ineffective by strong winds dislodging cloth materials from their metal frames.

The last few days after my entry was spent very much walking the streets and barangays of Baguio City while waiting for Monday to come by.

On Saturday night, I decided to check out the gigantic mall SM Baguio built right at the top of the historic Session Road. I believe it is about the only branch in the extensive chain of SM malls throughout the country built without air-conditioning because of Baguio’s well-publicised temperate-like weather.

I ordered fish sinigang!

Seeing that “Transformers” and “Harry Potter” were on offer in the cineplex, I decided to see the former. Later on checking my ticket, I realised that the ticket person had given me the latter instead. My accent must be bad but no matter. The film itself has of course its well-known hordes of followers/believers and I won’t be drawn into that particular discussion.

What intrigued me more was the ritual before the film screening - the performance of the Philippines national anthem. I don’t remember this happening the last time I stepped into a cinema here (circa 2009) . More interestingly, the national anthem was sung in tandem with a series of cinematically stunning images of key historic moments in the nation’s history starting with the revolt of Lapu-Lapu against the Spanish right up to the Edsa Revolution (aka People Power) in 1986. Think of the visual quality of “300″ or “Troy” and suddenly the national anthem becomes far more powerful than before especially to the young…

Performing the national anthem

View of Baguio skyline by night from SM Baguio.

The next day was Sunday and for many Christian Filipinos, the churches of various denominations and confessions would be the first destination of the day. In the City Market itself, a Roman Catholic service was held right where rice and other dry food items were sold. The phrase, “religion in the marketplace”, seemed quite apt here.

Religion in the marketplace

Later in the afternoon, intrigued by the poster below, I walked over to the Melvin Jones playing field situated near to the City Market.

Watching balls…

It had been raining intermittently the whole afternoon and I wondered how the players would cope with the cold weather. But alas, there was no G-string football to be seen. But it was interesting nevertheless to see women footballers battling it out on the muddy pitch! One of the players was a tiny girl probably around 10 years old but she stood her ground well against her much larger opponents!

Muddy football

Girls kicking balls

The following day (Monday) was an important day for the country. It was the annual State of the Nation Address (SONA) given by President “Noynoy” Aquino. Various civil society groups in Baguio City, and indeed throughout the country, organised a rally to press their demands for social justice and better governance. The rain necessitated the march to be abandoned in the early afternoon. Instead, residents of Baguio were invited to view the exhibits put up at Malcom’s Square (Peoples’ Square) and to watch live the President’s speech at 4.00 pm.

The Banner of the CPA

Listening to SONA

One of the many issues raised by civil society groups

One of the poignant exhibits at the square was on James Balao, a founder member of the Cordillera People’s Alliance – a well-known organization defending indigenous people’s rights in the northern Luzon region. Balao had been abducted and has been missing since (1,000 days and counting).

The last time I was in Baguio was for an international conference in early 2009 organised by the Cordillera Studies Center of the University of the Philippines. This time round it will be much longer as I hope to conduct follow-up fieldwork to map changes in the city since my earlier stint in 2006. And hence the re-activation of this blog.

Yesterday, the journey to Baguio City took nearly 12 hours to accomplish- 2 hours at the Malaysian LCCT airport, a 4 hours flight, and a further 5 hours bus-ride from Clarke Airfield. I didn’t mind the long bus ride as it allowed me ample time to soak in the atmosphere once again. It felt good that the locals were talking to me in Tagalog…

Welcome to Baguio!!

After checking in the hotel that will be my abode for the next 2 days, I took a quick inspection tour of Session Road and the City Market. This morning I did a leisurely walk in and around Burnham Park before ending up at my favourite internet cafe - Blink Internet - which was also the temporary HQ for the “In Search of Baguio and Sagada” travellers of 2007.

My initial impressions are that there are a number of notable architectural and spatial changes at these key areas. Along Session Road - THE road of Baguio City - there are a few buildings being renovated replacing older buildings and temporary wooden structures.

As a result of the fire in 2009, parts of the City Market have a new green roofing. Casa Vallejo, a historic lodging inn (built in 1909) abandoned for many years, has re-opened as an upmarket hotel. And within the Burnham Park precinct, street vendors are surprisingly almost nowhere in sight. |A big contrast from the last time I was there. Instead, a few of them skirt around the open playing field.

The “Oh my Gulay” art-restaurant is still there.


Looking towards Burnham Park from “Oh my Gulay”

It was good to see some familiar faces including the street vendors whom I interviewed in 2006. But quite a number are also missing now, some because of illness and deaths I gathered.

Selling ganza gongs on an overpass

The next few weeks will see me picking up the threads from 2006…

This item is new to me…

I am at the Ninoy International airport waiting for my flight home, and I thought it would be a good symbolic gesture to sign off officially from this blog. There might, of course, be retrospective entries later on but it would not be the same…