The Jaro Belfry

The Jaro Belfry or the belfry of the Shrine of Nuestra Señora dela Candelaria is one of the few belfries in the Philippines that stands apart from the church. The three story structure, which was built at around 1744, is 29 meters high and is made of bricks and limestone blocks.

The belfry, suffered heavy damage from three strong earthquakes: on July 17, 1787, sometime between 1881-1933, and in January 25, 1948 with an earthquake named Lady Caycay (photo of the damaged belfry can be seen here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/iloilocity/1452911494/).

During the 1990s, the belfry was restored under the supervision of the National Historical Institute with the intention to make it a major landmark in Iloilo City.

It is located in Jaro Plaza, in front of the Roman Catholic Cathedral (locally called Jaro Cathedral) or the Shrine of Our Lady of Candles.

How to Get There:

1. From the airport, ride a van to SM City. 

2. From SM City ride a jeepney with Leganes route and tell the driver to drop you to Jaro Plaza.

The Photographers of Dinagyang 2012

Dinagyang, while being a festival, also serve as a gathering for photographers. Here are some of pictures of  photographers of the past Dinagyang Festival:

DPI Bring Smiles

Last December 16, 2012, Discover Panay Island - a group that is lead mostly by photographers whose goal is to promote the tourism and culture of the people of Panay and Guimaras islands - conducted an outreach program to Barangay Calumpang in Molo in Iloilo City.

This outreach program was lead by DPI members Makoy Rejaba, Jade Echavez, and Jonathan Clavel and in cooperation with Panaynons in the Whole World. The gifts were solicited from DPI and PWW members in Panay island and other parts of the world. The Street Magic Club of Iloilo also came to entertain everyone.

Here are some of the smiles from that event:

The Chimney

The Chimney, that stands 35-feet, is the centerpiece of the Pison Rotunda. It was built to honor the late Donato Pison Sr. The design around the chimney depicts sugar production, rice production, fishponds, and salt making - the industries that the Pison family started. This chimney can be found at Barangay San Rafael in Manduriao in Iloilo City in the Philippines.

In the picture, the chimney, serve as foreground for the pyrolympics, an annual fireworks competition that is held during the Dinagyang week.

How to Get There:
1. From the airport ride a van to SM City.
2. From SM City ride a jeepney that goes to City Proper and ask the jeepney driver to drop you to the intersection to Barangay San Rafael or to Ateneo Iloilo. The Chimney can be seen from the intersection. Your jeepney ride from SM City would be less than five minutes so be alert.

The Beats of Dinagyang

I can hear the drums every night. Before I sleep, as I lie down, I can hear the drums, and, I know somewhere, people are dancing. I closed my eyes as I tried to hear more. The beats became louder and clearer, and, like a dream, I can see people dancing, wildly dancing to the beats.

Every fourth Sunday of January, and every Saturday before that, major streets of Iloilo City were closed to vehicles for the celebration of the Kasadyahan Festival and the Dinagyang Festival. Kasadyahan Festival, which is held on the Saturday, reflects the evolving culture and history of the Ilonggo – the people of the region. The performance of the groups in the Kasadyahan - which is called tribu or tribes - differs largely from its competitor. That is because groups are mostly from different areas of the region. A group may perform a historically significant story while another may perform a way of life of its place – like fishing or farming. On the other hand, Dinagyang Festival is held to honor the Santo Niño and the arrival of the Malay settlers in the Island of Panay and the selling of island to them by the Atis – Atis are Aetas in other parts of the Philippines. Dinagyang’s most distinct characteristics are its upbeat percussions and quick movements. These characteristics gave Dinagyang the 1st ATOP(Association of Tourism Officers of the Philippines) Hall of Fame Best Tourism Event Award on 2009. On the afternoons, when the performances are over, the streets are filled with merry makers from different parts of the world.

The drum beats are from Zarraga, a nearby town five kilometers away from my house. I am certain they came from a group of performers practicing their routines. It is almost a year, but I can still remember how I spent my Dinagyang 2012 week.

Last January 20, 2012, I went to Smallville Complex before dusk to cover two events, a debutante’s party and a disco party at Flow Superclub that begins at ten in the evening. I took pictures from the debutante’s party from 8:00PM until 10:00PM and from 10:00PM until 3:00AM from the disco party. Then, after that, I went to the Kasadyahan Festival that begins at 8:00AM. Then, on January 21, I returned to Flow Superclub to cover another night of disco party until 3:00AM, and then went to cover the Dinagyang Festival which begun at 8:00AM. I lacked some sleep, I knew. But, when I was in the dancing hall or in the street, I never felt being tired. The beats absorbed all of my tiredness.