A Work To Remember

A Work to Remember

Member: Vince Roldan

Section: SA 21 G

Strategy: I did the tasks in a chronological order.

TASK 1

ASK A FRIEND

The Province of Rizal, particularly the areas of Cainta, Antipolo, Angono and Taytay, are paving their way of belonging to those municipalities with industrialized capacities. In terms of the economical, religious and political stature of the province, the ‘Big Four’ have the most established among other municipalities. Commerce in ice-making, textile, RTW and even recreational industries can be found in these areas. Aside from a number of retreat houses like the Mary Hill Retreat House, this is also the location of the Archdiocese of Antipolo. Moreover, Cainta is also known for its numerous residential places and it serves as the gateway to Marikina, Pasig and Quezon City.  Lastly, this is also a province where one of the Philippine pride and the Art Capital of the Philippines (Angono, Rizal) can be found. Indeed, the Province of Rizal shows a lot of potential of becoming a world-class region which caters almost everything a society needs.

In my entire trip in the province of Rizal, I met two locals who guided me all throughout my fieldwork. These locals, namely Mr. Kenneth Espinase and Mr. Aldryn Berbano residing in Taytay and Antipolo, respectively, shared me important things I must know about the featured areas of Rizal (Cainta-Taytay-LowerAntipolo-Angono). And because of this, I came up of my own #socialmap of the area.

For me, this particular task enables me to become mindful about my surroundings. Moreover, it helps me to communicate to other people and learn from their ideas about the specific area of the province. At first, asking strangers or locals are much difficult than I imagine. I have observed that in order for you to grasp more concepts or knowledge about the place, you have to #conform and adapt at least with the way they communicate to people. Furthermore, as a local, I also enjoyed this activity because I have learned a lot of new things from other people.

TASK 2

THE VISITATION

Within the areas of Cainta-Taytay-Antipolo, there are approximately 10 to 15 parish churches and Archdiocese Church. Some of these are the Cainta Catholic Church, Our Lady of Light Parish Church, Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage Antipolo Cathedral, Holy Trinity Church, Saint Therese of The Child Jesus Parish Church and Immaculate Concepcion Parish Church. Among the said house of worships, I visited three of these, namely Our Lady of Light Parish Church, Holy Trinity Church and Immaculate Concepcion Parish Church.

During my fieldwork, I have visited three known churches in the area, namely Immaculate Concepcion Parish Church, Holy Trinity Parish Church and Our Lady of Light Parish Church. These churches vary in terms of architecture, patron saint and the surroundings. It is also noticeable that the churches are named after their respective patron saint such as the Holy Trinity, Immaculate Conception, and Our Lady of Light. As mentioned, the churches also differ in appearance or structure. The Holy Trinity Parish Church has a modern church layout with a fountain plaza and parking spaces surrounding it, while the Our Lady of Light and the Immaculate Conception Parish Church both have a traditional structure. In terms of the location of the churches, Holy Trinity Parish Church and Immaculate Concepcion Parish Church are both sited in executive villages such as Village East. On the other hand, the Our Lady of Light Parish Church can be found in the town of Cainta beside Cainta Catholic College. These are some of the dissimilarities of the said churches.

One of the primary reasons of the differences of minsters is that the others have more budget than the other – considering the #socialclass of the church goers. Unlike the Our Lady of Light Church, the Holy Trinity Parish Church allotted more parking spaces to the church goers. It only dictates that church goers in this particular worship place belong to a higher class in the society. Thus, #socialinequality can be associated with this issue. Furthermore, the location also plays an important factor in highlighting the concept of #socialconflict in the province. As we all know, social conflict is a social theory which contends that social classes (rich and poor) within society have varied privileges from one another.  Also, the more powerful class takes advantage of their power and resources to abuse the underprivileged class. Without a doubt, only those locals who belong in the #middle and #eliteclass are enjoying the facilities and comfort of churches located in executive village.

Personally, this activity of visiting various churches within the locality is one of the top activities I have enjoyed the most (together with the ‘local food’ activity). However, during the trip I have encounter difficulties in directions (locations of the churches) and the time particularly the time when it would be accessible to the public. In particular, since the Our Lady of Light is more exposed in the public, the personnel closes the main church and opens the adoration chapel instead. One of the reason of this policy is security measures of the particular church. 

TASK 3

MONUMENTS OF MEMORY

Observably, the highest mortality was during the years of 1991-2010 as I surveyed the entire cemetery. According to an article of Nurseslabs, the top leading causes of deaths between the years of 1991-2010 are heart disease, pneumonia, diabetes and accidents.  We can say that the change of lifestyle of the Filipinos lead to an increase in death rate during these times, from the food we eat and our daily activities. People also tend to overwork which often lead to fatigue and sickness. These are some of the possible reasons behind the mortality rate.

Looking at the list of names I have gathered, the origins of the names are commonly from Spanish, Filipino and English. Some of these names are Bernabe, Arastuao, Bartolome, Ernesto Asuncion Eden Patrick, Constancio, Angel, and Luzonica. The reason behind this is that our country is influenced and conquered by countries such as Spain and United States of America centuries and decades ago. 

In relation to sociology, cemetery is product formed from the #beliefs and #values exemplified by the colonial countries. These two sociological concepts are under culture. Another key concept in sociology related to this topic is the #symbolicinteractionism. This theory is about how individuals interact with each other and within society through the meanings of symbols governed by the society. In this case, part of the Philippine beliefs of respecting their deceased loved ones is to arrange a decent burial to these. 

Here are some of the names which are gathered upon visiting Mt. Zion Memorial Park in Taytay, Rizal:

Arastuao C. Azul (73 yrs. old) May 2, 1888 – Oct. 1, 1961	Bernabe T. Baduria (45 yrs. old) Jun. 11, 1929 – Dec. 13, 1974	Bartolome S. Candelaria (54) Aug. 24, 1953 –Aug. 16, 2007
Francisco C. Velasco (86 yrs. old) Oct. 10, 1913 – May 25, 1999	Loreto D. Junsay (72 yrs. old) Oct. 22 1933 – Oct. 27, 2005	Gonzalo L. Cruz (61 yrs. old) Jan. 9, 1950 – May 4, 2011
Ernesto D. Acosta (82 yrs. old) Feb. 28, 1926 – Mar. 19, 2008	Luzonica V. Cruz (80 yrs. old) Jan 15, 1931 – Sept. 18, 2011	Mary Jane V. Serrano (41 y/o) Feb. 23, 1969 – Apr. 5, 2010
Asuncion O. Acosta(73 yrs. old) Aug. 15,1928 –Mar. 19, 2008	Jose C. Soria (77 yrs. old) Jun. 11, 1934 – Apr. 19, 2011	Eden E. Tanopo (42 yrs. old) Jul 13, 1964 – Oct. 1, 2006
Sergio G. Lopez (73 yrs. old) Feb. 24, 1925 – Oct. 7, 1998	Romeo B. Flores (74 yrs. old) Sept. 7, 1937 – Jun. 5, 2011	Jose Gerbin T. Sari (38 yrs. old) Jan. 9, 1972 – Feb. 12, 2010
Col. Pablo S. Dizon (84 yrs. old) Mar. 2, 1926 – Mar. 21, 2010	Benny B. Pasian (58 yrs. old) Mar. 15, 1948 – Sept. 29, 2006	Capt. Patrick Phillip P. Teruel (26 y/o) Dec. 23, 1981 – Jul. 8, 2007
Alfredo A. Tanopo (46 yrs. old) Sept. 26, 1926 – Feb. 28, 1972	Constancio V. Mariano (66 y/o) Sept. 19, 1945 – Apr. 25, 2011	Angel B. Orillo (0) Nov. 3,1999
Felix D.L. Victor Sr. (85 yrs. old) May 1, 1926 – Jul. 24, 2011	Angel G. Gaviol (57 yrs. old) May 27, 1948 – Nov. 18, 2005	Angelina N. Espino (0) Dec. 19, 2001
	Leorila D.G. Beltran (59 yrs. old) Jan. 17, 1948 – Apr. 26, 2005	Baby N. Espino May 15, 2006

TASK 4

A FAMILY THAT PAINTS TOGETHER...STAYS TOGETHER

In partial fulfillment of this fieldwork, I have decided to visit one of the most famous art galleries in Angono and it is none other than the Blanco Family Art Museum. The art exhibits are crafted by members of the Blanco family. The artworks in the gallery are arranged from the youngest family member (Peter Paul Blanco) to oldest (Jose Blanco). Peter Paul started and shown his talent in painting when he was 11 months old. He was also considered to be the lucky charm of the family and he can be seen in several paintings of the family. Moreover, every member of the family specialized on different art themes like water reflection, feathered animals, portraits, nature and flower festivals. 

According to the tour guide (forgot to ask for her name due to the astonishment with the collection of paintings, Jose ‘Pitok” Blanco, is a farmer/fisherman/muralist – with these kinds of work you could imagine what life his family had before he became a popular painter. Despite the diversity of paintings exhibited, the family values the concept of family ties, traditions and nationalism – values which is considered to be part of the Philippine #culture. With that being said, this is also the reason why Philippine Art differs from American and European art. Naturally, Filipinos include traditions and other trademarks in order for the paintings to recognize as a Filipino work of art.

Personally, all the efforts in going to the municipality of Angono paid off. I was in awe when I saw the streets of Angono. Angono seems to be a big art gallery itself. The outdoor works reflect the kind of society Angono, Rizal has and it is fascinating to see these firsthand. There are artworks everywhere and the locals are truly proud of their priceless creations. Even though I stayed just for a short while in Angono, One of the things I admire the most was the strong belief of the people on their masterpieces. Each prized possession holds timeless stories.

TASK 5

GARMENT MARKET!

As I have visited the New Public Market of Cainta and the Old and New Taytay Market, it is quite noticeable some common products the towns offer to the consumers. Aside from various agricultural products such as rice grains, these towns also have variety of textiles or fabrics (raw materials in garment making). Moreover, in the Old Taytay Market, there is a weekly sale of locally made clothes. These clothes are also supplied to shopping centers such as Tiendesitas and Greenhill. Presently, the textile industry in Rizal has not yet ventured on exporting their goods. 

One concept in sociology that was demonstrated during this particular activity was the idea of #genderinequlality. According to an article of W.W. Norton and Company, Studies of gender differences from a variety of human societies have shown no conclusive evidence that gender is biologically determined; rather, biological differences seem to provide a means of differentiating social roles. In line with this, the Old Taytay Market seems to support #feminism. Since garments or fashions are more associated in women than men, locals take advantage with this social concept and use it to earn a living. The Old Taytay Market centers on fashionable clothes for women. In a way, there is discrimination existing to men due to unequal treatment.

Personally, I did not have a hard time exploring the place considering that I have been to these places for a number of times. The only problem that I encounter is the difficulty of taking pictures since it is a marketplace (security level is very low). Nevertheless, the stay was fun and productive, plus it is also an opportunity for me to start a business with the textile and garment industry. 

TASK 6

RIZAL'S FINEST

One of the local foods that Rizaleños, particularly the town of Cainta, should be proud of are their rice cakes or locally known as kakanin like the kalamay, biko and kutsinta, puto bumbong, suman and bibingka. Bearing in mind that one of the highlights of the province of Rizal is its advanced agricultural system; locals have a lot of rice supplies and rice-based products. With that reason, they found a way in maximizing the stocks by making it a delicacy like rice cakes. Eventually, these became part of their culture as they considered these as Rizal’s best food delicacy. Also, the best way to enjoy the trip is by trying there delicious treats.

Bibingka is one of the most popular delicacies in Cainta and other part of the province. As a matter of fact, the said municipality is labeled as the “Bibingka Capital of the Philippines”. According to WOWRIZAL.com, “bibingka is made of rice flour, coconut milk, topped with slices of salted duck egg and glazed with butter and sugar. Although this rice cake is made available by some deli stores the whole year round, it is still at its best during the Christmas season.” Bibingka is just one of the native delicacies being produced by the town and is still a flourishing cottage industry of the locals until now. Juanchitos, a bibingka store in Antipolo, offers a pugon baked bibingka and puto bumbong. And among their products, the Super King or special bibingka (good for 2-3 persons) with salted egg, grated cheese and sliced white cheese on top is sells the most.

(from http://www.wowrizal.com/features/food-and-dining/bibingka-pinoy-christmas-delicacy-is-caintas-best/)

In a sociological perspective, this local delicacy is part of the #culture or the way of thinking, acting or people create which forms the way of living of people in a society. The notion of bibingka is part of the society’s #materialculture. Aside from considering the food as pasalubong, the locals also incorporated a #symbol in this particular dish. Based from the discussions, a symbol is anything which has particular meaning being recognized as part of a culture by a society. They said that it builds up family ties of the Rizalenos and this idea is carried over to generations to maintain the value they associated with the food.

Among all the activities from this fieldwork, the local food task is the one that I have enjoyed the most. Aside from the fact that I really love the delicacy, it is really amazing to see that this food emerges and becomes the trademark of the municipality – a food in which every Rizalenos should be proud of. However, witnessing the actual processing of food from the store owner of Juanchito's is difficult and they did not allow me to go to their kitchen.

TASK 7

TOP GHOSTLY PLACES OF RIZAL

There are quite a few scary stories in these areas of the Rizal province. Here are the lists of haunted places:

·         The Manila East Homes white lady is a ghost in the main road of the Club Manila East.

·      The Highlands Pointe Havila in Taytay (formerly the public cemetery of Taytay, Rizal) is one of the most haunted places in Rizal. One of the lost souls is a white lady who believed to be staying in the place where San Beda College is now established. According to the story, the ghost attached to the place has committed suicide when she was still alive. Now, she is appears in some facilities of the school, most especially the faculty area.

·         Vista Verde Executive Village is also one of the places where ghost appearances happen time and again.

o   One which is the beheaded priest in chains walking along Leonidas street

o   a little boy who will accompany people who will walk in Andros street,

o   One of the popular stories is the haunted phase 7 of the village wherein a white lady appears during nighttime, it appears frequently to the rear view mirrors of cars passing by during midnight.