Palo Municipal Hall (Before and After)

An After look at the newly restored Palo munisipyo. As opposed to the photo below the day Yolanda (Haiyan) hit the Visayas. The photo below was right after the winds calmed down a bit and people started moving around with dazed looks.

Bridge under construction

The bridge connecting Guindapunan and Palo town proper is under construction. Once it is finished sometime in a very vague future, it will have four lanes. Big improvement from its humble beginnings as a bamboo bridge. Maybe even a rope bridge?

Meantime motorists and commuters take the diversion road at Salvacion leading to McArthur Park and the government center. Longer trip along with the big 10-wheeler trucks. Today I decided to take a look at the speed of the construction. I have to report that after almost 2 months they have finally been able to demolish the railing on one side.

The Cathedral's history on stone

I got this picture from the book Palo: Twice Capital of Leyte edited by Vicente I. de Veyra in 1971. The marker tells the historical restorations that the Cathedral underwent through the years. I'm not sure where this marker is now. I only have a vague memory of its location. I'll check when I can. (Obviously I am not a Sunday church person!)

Palo Cathedral (after Haiyan)

This is the new Palo Cathedral rebuilt after supertyphoon Yolanda (Haiyan). I've not been inside since but I've gone around the park where the mass grave for some of the Palo Yolanda victims are buried. Photo of that in future posts.

I was about to archive this blog but saw visitors still stumbling here probably through searches. I stopped posting here officially when Tacloban became a charter city.  But I still posted from time to time. So that's what I'm going to do now. Post a photo when I get one, but not anymore daily and as usual, not necessarily of Tacloban. Im keeping the name though even if a lot has changed since then. Including the ability to post directly from my phone!

Nov. 11, 2013

Tacloban DZR Airport

The Palo Cathedral on November 8, 2013

Dried flying lizard cure

I was walking downtown and passed by this street vendor selling this. I glanced at the sign and said in my head, "tamumukaw.. tamumukaw.. tamumukaw". After passing two shops, I did a doubletake and said to myself, "tamumukaw??" I went back and asked the guy if I could take a photo. I also asked him what a tamumukaw was. It turned out, it's a flying lizard that's a cure for asthma and cough. I asked how it's eaten, he said you just nibble on it. But he was laughing so I asked if he would eat one. He said, only if I eat one too. It's true though, kids with asthma get to eat this lizard and it's believed they're cured of asthma forever. The tamumukaw is hard to catch, but it's not an endangered species yet. The catching of this is allowed by the DENR since it's used for medicinal purposes, but vendors need to have a permit to catch and sell the flying lizards.

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Old bench (with chicken)

(Photo by JFD)

U.P. Tacloban's Oblation

The Oblation at the University of the Philippines, Tacloban.

Malakas at Maganda

Philippine legend says that man and woman came from inside a bamboo that was split open by a lightning. They were called Malakas (Strength) and Maganda (Beauty). Notice how they were both created AT THE SAME TIME. I guess that's why we've had 2 women presidents already. Women are matriarchal and influential in our society. And the men are just as macho.

Grilled bangus (milkfish)

A photo of a photo exhibit

Yesterday, I went to the mall because I heard there was an exhibit of local food products (haha), but it was the last hour of the last day, and the food had almost ran out. The exhibit was called Bahandi. And they were closing up. I went to another exhibit, a photography exhibit of the Camera Club of Leyte and Samar, and that's the photo above. (I didn't know there was such a club here, although one member is a friend of mine, a very serious photographer.)

I didn't like the first prize winner, nor the second, I like the basket photo at the bottom more. It's all subjective of course.. That's why I don't trust art competitions. Do you ever want your art to be "judged" by another? Usually even, by a lesser artist than you are?

Fake designer sunglasses for sale

65th Leyte Landing Anniversary

65 years ago, Gen. MacArthur landed in Leyte as he promised and drove away the Japanese troops. A battle ensued until the official surrender of Japan on September 2, 1945. Every year the Leyte Landing is commemmorated by officials with many Filipino, Japanese, American and Australian war veterans attending. It's one of the big events in Leyte's cultural activities. It always make me wonder why we love to celebrate wars. We have war festivals and war museums. The peace treaty signed between the US and the Japanese aboard the USS Missouri that ended World War II is not even remembered.

But anyway, this year, the Leyte Landing will be celebrated again at the scorchingly hot McArthur Park in Palo, with the President of the Philippines attending. But it will also be celebrated at the new a/c Robinson's Mall, so I wasn't surprised to see a replica of the McArthur monument at their entrance. It was nicely made too, better sculpture even than the original bronze at the park. When I touched it, I was surprised that it was sculpted from styrofoam. It is amazing, don't you think? I didn't get the name of the artist who did this tho.

Wooden wheelbarrow

Sto. Niño Church: Interior and Altar

With the original 'miraculous' Sto. Niño statue on the altar.

Balyuan Tower

This place used to have a watchpoint tower made of iron railings and a "tower" at the top. It kept being renovated all the time, until it was finally demolished. The tower was used as a lookout point for Moro pirates. This arena-like area (added in the 80s) is used for concerts, competitions, free outdoor movies, and cheap dates. You can buy streetfood barbecue behind it. This looks out to the bay (and to the tower) and you can see the sunrise and moonrise from here.

It's called Balyuan because this was the place where the bigger Sto. Nino of Basey Parish was exchanged with that of the smaller Sto. Nino statue of Tacloban. 'Balyu' in Waray means 'exchange'. A festival is held here every year to celebrate that exchange. The statue is supposed to be miraculous.

(Of course, balyu could mean 'trade'. Balyuan, a place where you trade.)

Bahay Kubo

My favorite. I grew up in a house like this but of hardwood panels, tipay windows and bigger. The nipa roof, as opposed to G.I. sheets, makes for a cooler interior, especially with the cool polished wooden flooring.

Post American period old house

It's old, maybe a renovated 50s or 60s. But its original style is definitely post American period. No one builds a wooden house with hardwood anymore because it's illegal to chop down hardwood for housing and furniture. Unless you have a license and permit, in that case the wood would be very expensive, even for a furniture. New houses are now concrete to withstand the typhoons.

*American occupation in the Philippines = 1900s and after the American-Japanese war (1940s).