sinulog memories

nostagia found me when i looked at mai's breathtaking photos at flicker.

the sinulog celebration has always been memorable for me, because all the time i was in cebu, it was a family celebration for us, sinulog.

memories surrounding the sinulog are:

-every year, my entire family (including the auties and uncles) bring food and do some sort of picnic at fuente osmena and stay the entire day to watch the parade, while us cousins would loiter within robinsons to get a glimpse of the festivities amidst the throng of people. but we know, we have a basecamp (our picnic) at fuente rotunda to go back to, if we wanted to eat,catch up with family and get fed.

-the last two years before i left, mama and i would attend the religious parade. years before, i attended the parade with some friends or other people while she would do it with my papa.

-when i started working in radio, every year, the radio station would have a street party by the fuente rotunda and it was a massive event.

-my papa, on three consecutive sinulog occasions was in hospital (one year, he had a aneurysm removed, the second year,he was hit by a jeepney, and the third year he had a stroke). on all occasions, he was in cebu doctor's hospital. he always wanted to come out of the hospital to see the parade against doctors wishes. it was how important the sinulog was for us. the fourth time he was in hospital on sinulog, he died.

-bestfriend and cousin karla and i used to gorge on cheeseburger deluxe from Brutus and a cornetto from Deli France every year until they closed. it was the beginnings of a dangerous food habit (haha).

-karla met her second boyfriend C from a sinulog party which i organized. and i also was the one who orchestrated for them to meet.

-my sister Ana got burned from a cigarette butt by one of the sinulog revellers in one of the sinulog street parties.

-i bought my first Nikon film cam (not an SLR) because it was Sinulog. i took loads of pictures of myself, my family and the street party. i miss that cam.

-i used to be very busy for Sinulog week when i was in cebu...events to emcee, parties to organize and gigs to go to...

-in the later years, my brothers Jojo and Roi would be with their companies and they would have booths for the sinulog too. but even so, they would still catch up with the family picnic and meet up with the rest of the family.

-the Sinulog religious procession was an event in itself, after it, there were people to meet and talk about last year's sinulog and how the new sinulog was going to be.


- - -

-my father died on one sinulog week. a week he would have been very excited for, a week where he would have been dancing and appreciating the sounds and smell of sinulog (he was blind the last few years of his life)...he also died in cebu doctor's hospital where my family was mourning his demise, while the rest of cebu was at its most colourful and at its liveliest.

now, sinulog for us is not about the parties anymore, the parade, nor the gigs, it is more now remembering his life whe he was around, novena and prayers for his soul.

sinulog for me now, is more about remembering him. and keeping him alive in my family's hearts.

one day, my family will be brave again to dance the streets to the sinulog beat.



friends and i at sinulog...you can see my papa seated on a stool amidst the partying crowd




my sinulog buddy (cousin Karla) always and forever