MY GRANDKIDS AT AMPY'S BIRTHDAY ANNIVERSARY

Amparo  Gonzales is Mia's paternal grandmother. Mia's dad, Michael is her only child and for his Mom's birthday this year, he pulled all the stops. They had a family cruise at the Bahamas (Mia included of course ) and from the warm tropical Islands, they came to  frigid Toronto for a dance party at a Holiday Inn in the Don Mills area. Four of my six grandchildren were there. Oliver, my eldest is one of Mike's long time friend. For convenience because Oliver at present reside in Burlington, Ont. he booked one of the hotel suites for the night.

Indeed, it was a night to remember. Ampy the honoree was pretty and gracious as ever; Mike did an excellent job piecing all things together to make up the excellent party to top all parties.

Of course watching the grandkids enjoy themselves, horsing around in the empty hallway and lobby, playing in uncle Ollie's hotel room and seeing Mia and Emma do individual Karaoke solos was the icing in my cake.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Ampy..Good job, Mike..!!

PHOTOS DURING JR'S BAPTISM...

James Rodolfo ( named after Daddy and Grand Daddy ) was christened last Sunday, Feb. 26. The reception took place at his parents' residence in Holloway st. Markham, Ont. His parents are Jimmy and Jehan Manuel Valin. His mom is from Ariston, his dad from La Union.Welcome to the Christian fold, J.R.!!

URDANETA, THEN AND NOW

"What do you want to drink?' asked my reception party as I settled down on one of the seats inside Jolli Bee.."I want a big cup of Pepsi.." Ester sent somebody to buy a drink for me.The last thing I needed after that long hike is to stand up in a long line just to pay one measly cup of pop..I was given that blue colored Pepsi. It is like drinking a cold glass of Windex with a straw, but it was really refreshing. After my drink, we headed out to the market to buy some groceries.You need a local to help you to buy fish and vegetables if you are in Urdaneta: and it is always a colorful experience especially exploring  the wet market.. Ester knew the sections where to buy whatever we need for the day. As soon as she started haggling for prices, I would walk away because it is something I am too embarrased to do: If a vendor says 20 pesos a kilo, I would give him/her exactly that. I always imagine the vendor has a family to feed, life is hard otherwise they wont be here selling stuff..Besides, I say if you convert the pesos into $, the price being asked is still cheap compared to what you will pay if you buy the same thing in North America. But my wife would always say "You men do not know how to haggle.." Its true, so we will just leave that the women, thats a woman's job!

The vendors are huddled so close to each other that sometimes I feel so afraid I might trip over a peanut vendors BIGAO and all of the peanuts will be scattered all over the roadside.But I did love the Tinapa made from Galong gong and Bangus and some smaller fish. They manufacture these ones as Cottage industries in some houses in Bayaoas close to the town proper.I also saw jars of of the reddish Aramang and thought how nice it would be to eat some green mangoes with them..After the big earthquake in the 90s, many of the big businesses established themselves in Urdaneta away from the massive rubble and devastation left in Dagupan..But then, like the mythical Phoenix bird, Dagupan rose to life again, bigger and better than ever..But it seems Urdaneta, now a city, is just a money maker as Dagupan because it would be catering to the surrounding smaller towns like Asingan, Villasis, Binalonan, etc. The people of these towns would rather go to Urdaneta at least to save time if not money.. Demographics have changed a lot since then and is still changing as I write..

In the late 50s, Urdaneta was just another small town where I went each time I do not have much money to splurge. Movies then were my only means of escapism from the humdrum life in Asingan. There were only 2 theatres at that time: the Nela and the Elite. The Nela was located near the Asingan-Urdaneta crossing and Elite stood facing the old marketpace. Tagalog movies were shown in the Nela and the English ones were in the Elite..Maybe both theatres were owned by a single person for they looked identical. At daytime, the interior of each theatre would feel like a sauna bathhouse, especially when crammed with patrons. The seats were full of bedbugs for those were constructed out of long boards nailed together.No cushions, no armrests. The seats are smaller boards, maybe three of them nailed together. Those pesky bloodsuckers would then lodge between the boards right under your butt. Often, I would see a patron stand up, burn a piece of paper and put it under the seat to broil the suckers which would drop to the floor. But this is only when the theatre is almost empty. And there were the  peanut vendors who would be walking around every time calling out MANI, MANI ( peanuts, peanuts ). No popcorn stands in the lobby here unlike in the US. For ventilation there were only a couple of electric fans to blow away the smell of perspiration and urine from the yucky washrooms. The mixed blend of sweat and urine smell would  hit your nostrils like a sledgehammer upon entering the curtain draped doors. But after a few minutes, your sense of smell would get used to it..It would take you awhile to get adjusted to the darkness inside.No ushers, they cant afford them.  You  have to look for your own seat. Sometimes there was a big post between an empty seat and the movie screen..If you have less luck, you will wind up with a seat near the screen and near the toilets. You would need gas masks if your nosetrils are very sensitive in this case.

With 2 pesos then, you can already enjoy a Saturday Movie matinee. 50 centavos would bring you from Asingan to Urdaneta and back..50 centavos would buy you a movie ticket ( orchestra ) and you still have some change maybe for some magnolia ice cream or some roasted peanuts.Thus in here I saw many classic Black and White Tagalog movies like DARNA ( starring Rosa del Rosario and Ben Perez ), or BERNARDO CARPIO ( Cesar Ramirez and Alicia Vergel ).The last jeep for Asingan would leave at about 5:30 or 6:00 pm..If you miss this, you have to wait for 8:30 pm to catch the Asingan Pantranco bus from Manila, assuming it was not cancelled.

My reminiscing stopped when my sister called me after she hired a tricycle for Asingan. Safety is always a risk but so far no hold ups along KETEGAN happened, at least not yet. The tricycle drivers are a brave, hard working lot and they do not also like to lose their livelihoods. So I squeezed myself into one of those vehicles: 3 passengers could sit inside and a 4th one could ride behind the driver. Then we would drive to Asingan in a comfortable speed and after half an hour or so, we would reach Home, Sweet Home--#

 

TARLAC, THEN URDANETA

I took a La Mallorca bus (?) on my way back to Asingan. It made a stopover in Tarlac at the old Pantranco station. Only there is no more Pantranco. In the old days there was a multi garage for Pantranco bus arrivals that would afford a break for the travel weary passengers. A multi purpose building have taken the place of that garage. I checked the inside and it looked quite different. It has an airconditioned dining room, some CRs ( again you have to pay ) a take - out counter selling baked goods. They carry the many types of bread I used to buy before in Dagupan. One was the spiral bread, round in shape with lots of butter and sugar on it called ENSAYMADA. People in North America would abhor these snacks: "Too much fat and too much sugar," they would say. Amazingly enough, Filipinos thrive on those "forbidden" snacks and even those foods with high salt content like Lingayen Bagoong, Aramang Guisado or the sliced pork bellies then fried to extract the pork fat..We save the "sitsaron" to be eaten dipped in vinegar or cooked with Pinakbet. I love the pork fat when I was young. I mixed it with newly cooked rice then sprinkle it with a bit of bagoong. I could not get enough of it.Even now I still buy pork bellies in the Asian market in Weston near my house. I extract the fat, eat the sitsaron but the taste of fresh Philippine pork is not there.

The snack vendors in Tarlac were still there. Some roamed around carrying a clear plastic bag chocked with packaged SITSARON. The vendor has also a bottle of seasoned vinegar attached to his belt. The sight of the sitsaron, followed by a glimpse of the vinegar would set your salivary glands in motion. Too bad I soon have to go back to my bus..All buses are now parked in the grounds and you have to remember your bus number if you plan to get out for a break. If not, you will find yourself up shit creek without a paddle. The buses all look alike and sometimes they shift places to make room for new arrivals.. I wrote the number in the palm of my hand. I got antsy when I heard a bus roaring, ready to take off because sometimes the dispatcher do not announce the departure of a certain bus...

****

I know we were already close to Urdaneta when the bus stopped at the end of a long line of vehicles as far as the eyes can see. North American motorists won't know the meaning of Traffic Jam until they would see this line up. The bottleneck is in that crossroad one going to Dagupan in the West and another to Baguio on the North.No diversion road yet.Maybe an overpass, sure, but no one likes to build it!! For purposes of comparison,it might  take you say, half-an-hour to traverse a distance of 40 kilometers along the clear highway, but once you get near Urdaneta it would take you sometimes 2 hours to travel 4 kilometers. At least that's what happened to me then..I keep texting my sister every 15 minutes least they would think I was not coming home yet..Text messages flew back and forth until I reached the site of old movie theatre owned by the businessman Mr. Okol...Then I hopped off the bus and started walking. It took me some more time reaching the Magic Mall..There was a barricade, a high fence in the middle of the 2 - lane main street.I can not jay walk to the other side because of the high fence. I guess they put the barrciade up to prevent some motorists ( except the bus lines ) to make a U turn whenever they feel like doing it! While walking, I had to deal with the humidity, the sun's heat the unruly crowd with persons who loved stepping on my shoes. Gawrsh, where did all these people came from? I asked myself while stepping aside to avoid a tricycle which was about to hit my ass.

Finally I reached the mall. I kept using the cell phone text to guide my bearings..I entered Jolli Bee, a well-known hamburger joint..No Ester in sight..I texted again.."Am here in Jolli Bee..cant see you!" I was at the end of my patience..Just then I heard a shout: "Over here! over here!" The place was packed like a sardine can and they were on a far corner table waving their hands like crazy!!---##

WELCOME DJ! ( a photo essay )

I would like to introduce DJ Costes, the son of my nephew Donato Costes who is now residing in California. As far as I know DJ is the 4th Donato Costes in our family.

The first Donato Costes served as a Mayor of Asingan around the '20s. He was a businessman-politician and one of the streets at the back of the Municipal Building is named after him. One of his 4 children is Vicente, my father. His first born son, my elder brother was named Donato.

My brother finished Mechanical Engineering at the Polytechnic University in  Manila. Fixing anything mechanical is his forte. He came to Canada in 1975, same year as I did.

He has only one child, Jose Donato Costes. He is called Don for short. He grew up in Toronto, took Computer studies in Ottawa. He worked in India for 1 year before finding work in the US.

Don's first born is DJ, short for Donato James.

Best wishes for you, DJ!!!---#

PAMPANGA TRIP, part2

I woke up the next morning wondering where I was. I felt like crap because I never had much sleep the night before. I was close to dozing off when I heard some explosions in the mall across the hotel. I swore those were gunshots. So it took a while before my sleep came back. I was thinking the next gunshots would be at the door of my room.

 I woke up at 5:00 am Philippine time ( as usual ). I took a shower, packed my things and then I went down  the lobby for breakfast. I asked the receptionist about the gunshots but he said they were only fire crackers..Firecrackers, my ass, I said silently.I was not born yesterday. That night clerk did not know how to lie convincingly.He could just have said "I do not know, sir.."

I sat down in the dining room which looks almost like one of the eateries in Urdaneta. Only this one has fewer flies.I ordered Pampanga Tosino, scrambled eggs, fried rice and coffee..I asked that  all 3 would be in one platter. It was brought to my table by the waiter who also doubled as the cook. It was not as delicious as I expected. Then I asked how much was the bottled water on their counter.."30 pesos, sir," the waiter/cook answered and then continued in a low voice.."but if you go to that sari-sari store across the street, you would get them for 10 pesos only.." I admired the guy's loyalty to his employer. I guess like most workers in the Philippines, he was just working for peanuts and would be willing to sell trade secrets for a moderate fee. "Thanks, buddy" I said and left enough change for his tip and stood up. Geez, that tocino left me very thirsty and I had to slake it before I went bananas.

The store was there and as I walked towards it I caught sight of two dogs having sex right in front of the hotel. And nobody seemed to mind them like it is just something ordinary. Well, it is common in the Philippines especially in the boondocks. The canines were not making any lewd movements anyway. They were just standing there quietly, posterior to posterior; no straddling. Like nothing is happening. But if this took place in Asingan, kids would start throwing stones at them and laugh as the 2 dogs would start running away, one dog going on reverse.I walked on to the store..It was too early in the morning to be bothered about things like that...

Yes, the waiter was right. So I bought a couple of them, and headed back to my hotel room so I canuse the CR. The dogs were still in front of the hotel.

My friend Lenny and her family including Edith arrived at 8:30 am. Before I left the hotel, I paid my bills to check out then I went out to the main street with them.

First we took a jeep to Magalang. As we approached the town ( which looked just like Asingan in a way ) the profile of Mount Arayat grew bigger and bigger. Then we reached the town and hired some motorized tricycles to bring us to barrio San Pablo. The place now really looked desolated and quiet. There were just few houses there and all the people there are blood relatives. Yes, do not mess  with anyone in that barrio or there will be blood. Not theirs but yours.

The Baptism was conducted by a farmer who doubled as a minister of a Rizalista church. He was wearing a black bishop's hat and when he wore his priestly vestment, I saw that there was a Filipino flag embroidered on it. He wore it only when he started the rite because it was so darned hot then. He would sweat like a pig if he wore it for an hour.The rite, prayers and all ended after half an hour..Then we had the usual conversation and Lenny and I were the first ones to sample the food..Good cooking. you know how good Pampanguenians are when it comes to cuisine.

When Edith came back from a youth meeting in their church ( she belongs to the Nazarene, a Christian church established in Pampanga by a Korean Missionary ) I told her I had to go back to Pangasinan. She and her two brothers brought me to this part in the Poblacion in Magalang where a bus from Manila would stop to pick up passengers. We waited for about 20 minutes then it finally arrived. We said final goodbyes and my visit to Pampanga ended as fast as it started.

15 minutes after I settled down on one of the seats, I texted my sister Ester I was arriving in the afternoon..

She texted back and told me they will be waiting at the Magic Mall in Urdaneta. Then I switched off my cell phone, stuffed it in my knapsack and tried to catch some shuteye.---#

SPIDER FIGHTING, ANYONE?

by Arsenio Macanas

The Spider Fight(pa-angat ti lawlawa) was one of the kids' past time before in Cabingcolan. It became so popular then that it became a gambling sport for adults just like cock fighting (Bulang). We were then a group of cabingcolan kids whose hang out was in the Bangcag ( Ilocano term for farm ) trying to find a great warrior- spider. This refer to a certain specie which is a real killer.. This Great Spider Hunt happens every summer when the rice fields are dry and parts of it were planted with monggo beans. These plants are the spiders' favorite home. A fellow name David Biagtan is unbeatable in finding these spiders! I was always beside him when he is on the hunt just to learn his secrets… But if he noticed I am following him he would stop and get mad at me. It is so surprising how in just one whole day he can fill up 2 empty match boxes with spiders… The empty boxes are divided into 5 or 7 small rooms : one room for one spider. If you put 2 spiders in one room one will surely be eaten!

To find spiders, we had to comb the monggo fields and the trees during the middle of the day. We aim our eyes from branch to another against the sun to catch the glare came from the spider-web (The whole web will be hard to see during day time)Night time is the best time to find spiders. Especially with flash lights. But parents will get veeeery mad if you tell them you are going to the fields at night just to find spiders. What if you step on a snake which is also out looking for snacks?

So we went out during the day to find them. Can you imagine how kids look like and smell after a day under the sun? I am sure you will say "yew!" ( my daughter favorite expression). Anyway, after we went around the fields finding spiders, we would race to the small river (banawang) and dive in. The rivers during those days were still clean and unpolluted. Nice to do swim in. But the worst scenario to think at the end of such day is :I have to prepare my butt when I get home because my parents don’t like me to play with spiders and to go to the banawang. I can’t lie because my red eyes would tell them..(Busteeed!). I’d been like that before but I don’t care! I was a happy kid that’s all that mattered then.

I want my spider to be a warrior one… I learned this technique from David. It’s a long process but I enjoyed it… So, all of thosenew spiders I found, I made them fight each other until a single survivor remained. That was my champion Spider! Before I confront my spider to a fight, I starve it for 3 to 5 days . Now and then I let it fight so it can practice..It will win but no bets involved. I never brought my spider to the betting arena because I don’t want to gamble. My spider was then the talk of the town… many adults guy wanted to buy it… At first, I didn’t want to sell it, but the offers were very tempting. They offered me 10 Pesos. Wow, that’s a lot of money during those days.. Eventually, I sold it. After that I was not able to find anymore another great spider fighter … until my addiction for spiders went away.

The funny thing is, during the summer in my backyard here in California, there’s a lot of spiders hanging around and I don’t want to touch them even though those spiders looked the same like the ones we had back home in the Philippines. I think I have developed"arachnophobia"… Really I’m now scared of spiders. Probably I read too much about black widows, tarantulas and other venomous spiders here.

How about you, are you scared of them too?--#