From Siargao Back 2 Santander

We’re back from the side trip to Siargao. Definately not enough time…3 and a half days. My board had a long crack in it but was able to get it fixed. Winds were strong and waves were not good in the nearby spots so lots of hanging around and meeting people and getting to know the place. My board now has a new home and a very happy owner named Jigs. He had seen it getting repaired and wondered who it belonged to. Their choice of longboards out there are very slim to none. He is a bone carver and makes beautiful jewlery out of carabao bone and oystershells which he traded a good handful in exchange for the board…including a very special piece. Thanks Jigs! Also met Minguin who has met a friend on mine out in Palawan before…was a nice little surprise . He also carves pieces from bone in the shape of the Igorot fertility symbol. Money is scarce there and the island is still pretty remote and provincial and not as booming as the internet has proclaimed….but also we arrived in low season so mostly locals only. Kai spent most of the day in the water (as he has become accustomed to) and rants whenever we get too far from the beach. We learned a new dialect spoken on the island called Suriganon. It’s like Bisaya but very fast and alot of the L sounds are switched out for J or Y sounds, so a little confusing at first but now i miss it…it was nice to hear it spoken. Definately want to get back there now that we’ve made local friends. The kids there are just begging for boards of their own. Would be nice to start some kind of charity for them. I’m hoping to go back and bring them more…….

So now we’re back to the Pebbles Beach Resort in Liloan (part of Santander) and I’m rallying my cousins and friends together to hang on the beach or whatever we decide to do. Fiesta is over but some visitors still remain. I am so happy to be back with family and friends and just enjoy everyone’s company. We keep commenting on how long it’s been since we’ve last hung out…like 10 years! Crazy. Thanks 4 reading. Till next post!

Tostado Fiesta winds down

Hello, i am still alive LOL. This has indeed been a social marathon. Somehow my cousin Tina has become the new President of the Tanonganon Association and I am the Vice President. I had also been appointed the temporary Mayor of Pebbles since we brought the sun up on that beach for quite a few nights in a row. The town of Santander has changed alot in the 10 years I haven’t been around. The Fiesta which used to be centered around the Patron Saint (presence of the Saint is still there) is now more centered around a cookie, the “Tostado” which is a cookie I remember my mom making when i was young. Anyways, this cookie is now the focus since it’s always been included on the fiesta snack plate for years….i think it’s a kind of tourist attraction viewpoint. Today there are many people on the beach cause it’s time to go home..all the visitors will be leaving going back to where they live. They are called the baliklungsods, meaning they return from other cities and towns in the Philippines.

There’s been some animosity about the balikbayans (which are people like us…who come from the town but have moved outside the country) being treated in a more special manner than the baliklungsods, which i can see to be true. We don’t want special treatment, but somwhow the fiesta event organizers had set things up that way. The fiesta felt very segrated…i’m glad I chose to defy the “formal” dress code…enabling me to join the local disco with no problem.

Anyways, i’m off to Siargao now for some surfing. Wish me luck on my journey, it’s quite a distance to go but I’m excited to go somewhere new! Ciao 4 now.

Still Goin’

My quest for Wi-Fi has not been successful, so sorry for no pics posted yet. Socializing and visiting with old and new cousins and friends has been a marathon of fun. Kai’s party was a success and was well attended by family, friends and loads of children overdosing on birthday cake and candy. Been discovering more and more new relatives every day and spending nights socializing on the beach till sun up. Swimming in the ocean is always a daily requirement for our survival here as it gets pretty damn hot. Fiesta entertainment is rotated nightly…dramas, dancing, variety shows and the Coronation of Miss Santander which sadly enough, does not give any chance for women of Santander to compete in (the girls are hired from talent agencies outside). I asked why this was and most of the replies i’ve gotten are because there are no beautiful women of Santander. I don’t believe that one much, it’s just sad to not even give a chance to the locals…..

Fiesta time is a time for uber-socialzing. And there’s more of it tonight, so time to go and i’ll update again soon.

New things I’ve tried: fresh sea urchin straight from the sea RAW. Diving 20+ feet for shellfish to eat. Videoke in Bunlan.

I’m here finally!

So the trip was rough but not too bad. Thanks to Steve for packing my surfboard so well and crafting a wheeled and strapped item for easy transport… it made all the difference after arriving in Cebu. At the airport, who happened to be there? Manong Kakoy Canete, Grand Master of Doce Pares Escrima. We were very excited to have the accidental run-in. I love when that happens, my trip off to a good start.

We’ve been staying at Pebbles beach Resort in Liloan, owned by my Uncle Jesus. We’ve swam and paddled out in the small outrigger boat (banka). He arrived last night and I had my first all nighter singing videoke and drinking Bahalina till the sun came up. Ahh, it’s good to be back! Today we just finished the Bunyag of Kai. He and his cousin Bien are now the best of friends, holding hands and sticking by each other’s side. I’ve always loved the closeness of the children and people here, it’s what brings me back over and over. I hear them running upstairs going wild. Our Bunyag after party has just begun.

I’m slowly tracking down folks I haven’t seen. Friends and cousins worry I do not remember them, but I assure them through funny stories of things we did and vice-a-versa.

Fiesta opened up yesterday and began with a motorcade procession. People are streaming in from all over. Happiness and festiveness is all around.

More to come, more to come……

Tanonganon crew slightly dwindles

I caught a cold yesterday during Kai’s birthday day (happy 5th birthday Kai!), so my packing plans were slightly delayed. But on another sad note, Papa Clo and Mama Nelly will not be joining us in the return home. Papa Clo has endured a lifetime of Multiple Sclerosis and some recent flare ups has him deciding to stay behind. My mom said when he was born he was very weak and near death, but my grandmother rallied local healers to sacrifice some chickens and do a ritual so that he would live….and he has lived a long happy life with his condition. He was the first of the family to find success as an attorney and they had a big party for him when he got his law degree. I remember his hobby of keeping loads of fighting cocks at his house. He used to take me to the fights and gave me my very own prized fighter….till one day the letters failed to mention my champ. Fond memories of the training boxing gloves tied to its ankles, the shaving off of the crown and waddles with a razor blade (so they don’t get pecked and pulled at during a fight). Well, although Papa Clo and Mama Nelly aren’t coming on this trip, they plan to return around Christmas time. Maybe i’ll come back too!

Close to take Off….5 more days!

5 years ago today I went into labor with Kai. I brought him to the Philippines when he was 1 month old. We went to Mindanao to bring back the dead body of my Auntie Sionne for her children to see her buried. What a month. This time we head back to the Philippines to my mother’s hometown of Santander, Cebu. This Tanonganon Reunion has been in the works since 2004. At the time, I thought they were crazy for scheduling it so far off in the future of 2007, but the time has finally come and I even quit being a full-time employee to join in this trip! For some of us, it’s been 10 years or longer since we’ve been in Santander together.

Through the stories of our eldest living Hollywood auntie, Nang Terry, before our town was called Santander, a Spanish galleon landed carrying a ‘Captain Tanyong.’ He liked the place and settled there. The inhabitants referred to themselves as ‘Tanonganons’ (pronounced ta-no-nga-nons…does that help?) But he named the town Santander after the fishing town in Northern Spain….because its likeness to the fishing lifestyle from his homeland. But from what I can tell, they must have really liked this Captain to still carry on his name and refer to themselves as Tanonganons…it’s kinda like “hey, we’re old school” before Santander…..

So the Tanonganon elders have planned this reunion in their home town. Most of these elders are our parents, immigrated from Santander to the US in the 70s. Us 1st generationers have enjoyed the benefits of these yearly reunions, they give us the chance to grow closer to each other and our parents. Our parents are really the movers behind the reunions, us youngins tag along and are impressed by their motivation to keep it alive. They have even bequeathed us with officer titles to give us some responsibility ensuring we carry this on. And funny, as I just realized…my officer title is “Public Relations Officer” and here I am writing this blog. (I thought I had been failing in my duties).

Our parents have decided the theme is ‘Hawaiian’ and us youngsters scratch our heads a little… I guess part of being American is to bring the Hawaiian theme to the Philippines? But as I ponder more, loads of Filipinos live in Hawaii, and from watching satellite TV, the growing surf culture in Philippines is very heavily steeped in Hawaiian mannerisms. What will I wear to the Hawaiian themed party? Maybe I will dress up as a Spam Musubi? mmmmmm

We’ve always come home to Santander, but never as a big group. There are approximately 30 or so Tanonganons coming on this trip. Top it off with the town fiesta and loads of family and visitors from other islands and this could get ‘grabe’ in the population explosion sense.

We’re having a little party for Kai’s Birthday and Bunyag. I am bringing a Pinata.. hoping to find SpongeBob or Thomas….or Maybe we should make a George Bush Pinata?

Stay tuned for photos on my flickr site

Lynn out for now…