Goosebumps and teary-eyes

(This column appears in today's edition of the Leyte-Samar Daily Express)

Hi there! Today is the feast of Our Lady of Fatima.

It’s another Monday, and we are 3 days away to the 60th Calbayog City Charter Day Celebration. The celebration, dubbed as Bulawanon nga Handumanan 2008 is anchored on the theme: “CALBAYOG . . . towards Excellence, Service and Leadership”

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Today’s big event is the awarding ceremonies for the Ten Outstanding Calbayognons (TOC). The ceremonies will be held at the Nijaga Park at 7:00 pm tonight. The final result of the TOC 2008 has not yet been released as I wrote this column. I’ll keep you posted on that.

The other event for the day is the performance of Jose Gomez songs after the awarding ceremonies.

The other events scheduled are the following:

October 14, 2008- Judging and awarding: LADAWAN … Kalbayog (Photo Contest)- Oktoberfest / Greenpeace Band
October 15, 2008- Launching of the Calbayog Coffee Table Book- Gloc-9 in concert
October 16, 2008- Thanksgiving Mass- Civic / Military Parade- Closing Ceremonies: Pagtigman. Kalbayog . . . An Pag-Ilawod

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As I have reported last Friday, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap has been invited to the celebration. As of last Friday, the program of activities for Sec. Yap will include the Farmers’ Congress, a working lunch with the SIPPaD members, the Thanksgiving Mass at the Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral, his speech during the Charter Day Parade and during the Closing Ceremonies.

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So what’s with today’s title? The two words sum up the feelings that enveloped me (and I suppose also a good number of people) during the maiden presentation of “KALBAYOG … AN PAG-ILAWOD (The Journey). It was a presentation of Calbayog history in songs and dance. It was history, and more often than not, history is boring. But not with the presentation which told everyone how Calbayog came to be. It focused on the five settlements of Calbayog.

The first settlement: HIBATANG situated near a river, fertile and rich as it collected the waters from many tributares and has extensive and productive fields. The place was occupied by 500 tributos (4 individuals in a tribute).

The second settlement. Characterized by the Palapag uprising of 1649. Some of the tributos followed the river to Catarman. Others traveled down south. Hibatang was transferred to a new site, in a place known as CAYBAGO, south of Tarabucan and near Hibatang River.

Third & fourth Settlement. Perhaps due to the Moro depredations or the floods of the Hibatang river, the pueblo site was transferred to ANISLAG. It settled again in SABANG. Hibatang-Sabang was one of the visitas of Calbayog.The present site. From Sabang, the settlement was transferred to its present site in 1739 and they called the place CALBAYOG. It became a pueblo in 1785; and on March 14, 1845, Fr. Jose Gomez de Huerce was appointed as parish priest of Calbayog.

Considering the dates and names I have just enumerated, the show must have been boring. It was not. It will have its second presentation on Thursday, just before the Closing Ceremony of Bulawanon nga Handumanan at the Nijaga Park.

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This is it for now. Have a nice week everyone! Ciao!