The Holy Week-long Moriones Fetival continues up to this day. As day broke and after having our breakfast, we headed to the streets and saw that moriones are starting to parade group by group to the delight of the tourist. We wasted no time and witnessed this spectacular event. Here are some of the moriones that caught my attention.
a group of moriones lined up
side by side picture
another view of the moriones lined up
a morion costume made of shells
another view
man holding a morion head mask
looks like a group of angry moriones
another pack
another morion
moriones on top of the hill
a morion about to draw his sword
photo opportunity with a group of moriones on the streets
a closer look (tongue-in-cheek)
Another event as it is Good Friday is the "Via Crusis" (Way of the Cross), a re-enactment of Jesus' way of the cross. The guy below portrays as Jesus Christ.
For local and Roman Catholics, the re-enactment allows the devotees to re-live the day when Jesus was crucified and time to reflect on his sacrifice for mankind.
As the name implies, it includes carrying of the cross, done by the man below, who is portraying Jesus Christ. The man supposedly who is doing this act is also doing an act of repentance via a sacrifice of heat under the sun and carrying the heavy cross.
Some other re-enactments are more realistic. However this one is more "staged". As you can see here, this is where the "crew" is adding blood to the face of the actor.
.. and then he drinks water
.. and then you can see he smiles :). This guy has a lot of supporters around by the way. In provinces like this, some take it as a "prestige" to be part of the parade and sometimes a family has to give everything and campaign to get this slot.
.. and then he brushes off himself
.. and the journey continues. Along the way as he is carrying the cross there is supposedly some flogging being done on his body, but not so much on this guy.
Queer but there were superhero ladies on the parade too!
Then there was this huge crowd and I can't seem to breeze myself through to see what's going on.
Another cross-carrier guy, supposedly one of the thieves crucified with Jesus. There is a bit of drama here as this guy tries to run away from the floggers.
.. but of course, there was a rope to control him and he is then also captured and then flogged
.. and then he tries to run away again from the soldiers flogging him
.. away he goes but in the end the soldiers will still win,
At the end of the Via Crusis is supposedly the crucifixion over the hill but I didn't bother to wait for it as it was too hot (and I really didn't like that part).
Later that afternoon we continue driving around the province and following the signs, we arrived at the view point in Balanacan. The road leading to the view point, which is uphill, is already covered with thick layer of dirt and leaves.
The structure is already old and its glorious days must have been years ago.
Walking towards the place, I think it would have been a nice venue for events (such as parties). However, the place is already old and unkept and would definitely need repair in some aspect.
Moreso, the view is already partially obstructed by the stems and leaves of trees that grow nearby.
Finding the right viewing angle and point, one can still be mesmerized and amazed of the view waiting for the spectator.
view with Balanacan port
view with outlying islands
From the view point, we can see this statue and decided to go towards it. We came to know later that it is a statue of Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage, still in Balanacan, Mogpog.
a closer look
ships docked at the port of Balanacan
We also inquired with the office of the shipping vessels at the port area of the schedule of ships that would bring us back to Lucena port in Quezon as we plan to leave the province the next day. As we leave the port, this mural caught our attention.
Next things were uneventful as we just spent the rest of the afternoon resting at the lodge. Then we had dinner at Kusina sa Plaza, just beside Cafe where we had dinner the previous night.
food lined up for ordering
fried fish with rice
salted egg and tomatoes
dining area
As we leave the restaurant, we were stopped by a procession. Devotees hold up a lighted candle, praying, and images were on parade.
We slept early that night as we plan to leave early morning the next day. It was still dark when we arrived early morning at the Port of Balanacan and we intended to do this just to make sure they have space for our car to be loaded in the ship. It was peak season and a lot of other travelers were also there already when we arrived.
our ship, while waiting to be loaded
It was a very packed and meaningful trip for both Jojo and I, hitting two birds with one stone. While we reflect and do our duties as a Roman Catholic, we were also blessed to have time to witness some of the events that happened that we will never forget.
