Pampanga

Stopover: Pampanga

Date: August 9, 2013. I felt like a lost dog that was found in Baguio, stayed there for few months and then got back to Pampanga.

Finally, I’m home! After two months of adjustments and hardships in studying at UP Baguio, I’d felt again the boiling temperature and the warm welcome of Pampanga. I had observed the difference of Pampanga, my hometown, and Baguio, the place I currently live on. Aside from its temperature, you can distinguish their dissemblance- the food and the kind of people it has. But what I miss about this place is our home and especially the people in it. Here’s a little background about my hometown I sincerely miss:

It is undeniable that Capampangan cuisine is thought to be among the most evolved and refined of Philippine cuisines. Some of these are tocino, longganisa, kare-kare, sisig and kilawin.
Our province also holds a variety of festivals that cultivates and enriches the culture and history of Capampangan. We have Sinukwan Festival that honors the god of ancient Capampangans, Aring Sinukwan; the Giant Lantern Festival in December that features a competition of giant lanterns which was the reason why Pampanga has been nicknamed as the “Christmas Capital of the Philippines”; the Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta celebrated at Clark; and the famous Piestang Tugak (Frog Festival) that promotes the various frog traditions of the city’s residents such as catching and cooking frogs.

Some of the notable Capampangans were Jose Abad Santos who was the 5th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines; Rufino Cardinal Santos who was the first Filipino to be named Cardinal; Diosdado Pangan Macapagal and his daughter, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who were the former Presidents of the Republic of the Philippines; Lea Salonga, a Tony Award-winning singer and actress; apl.de.ap who was a member of The Black Eyed Peas; Jennifer Lopez who was born in Clark Air Base; Efren ReyesEfren “Bata” Reyes, a very popular Filipino billiards player who hails from Angeles City.

Date: August 12, 2013: Four days aren’t enough to fill my empty and lonely soul and I can’t do anything but to follow. It’s time to get back to Baguio, continue my studies and face again the real life. It would be hard again for me to leave my family. I’ve mentioned above the famous culinary delights, known personalities and historical traditions of my hometown. But I believe that there’s something in it that makes it different among other places. Pampanga celebrates the resiliency of its people. (1) Having survived the eruption in 1991 shows our strong faith to be able to rise again from the ashes of Mt. Pinatubo. (2) Pampanga witnessed my growth, failure, success, contribution, existence and everything that made me today. My loved ones still live in Pampanga. My family and friends are still in there. My heart still belongs there. And it is still my home- the place where love truly resides. I’m a proud Capampangan and Pampanga is my hometown. Kabalen, mekeni! Tuki na ka! (Kabayan, dito na! Sama ka na!)