Passion and Discipline Merged

Dreams do come true. This summer of 2014, I realized 2 of them - a trip to Singapore and a visit to our very own Lucban in the province of Quezon, Philippines to attend the annual Pahiyas Festival. I can't help but compare - Singapore, one of the most successful countries in the world and the Philippines, considered as third world.  Am I about to rant how awful our country is?  Let's see...

SINGAPORE

For a Manila girl like me, accustomed to the middle class standard of living in this developing country, the traffic jams, the slow government services, the crime rate, the pollution, etc etc, Singapore is definitely a breath of fresh air.  It started as we stepped on the Changi Airport.  The clean and orderly spirit of the country welcomed me, my 2 kids and my brother in this award-winning landing strip.  Their latest is this year, 2014 - the SKYTRAX, the World Airport Awards.  Everything was so orderly, from the systematic queue at the immigration, to the nice carousel that brought us our luggage, and to the best part, stepping out and finding a cab and a friendly driver at an instant.

We were hosted by my niece who is based there, her loving husband and adorable babies at their lovely apartment in the upscale part of Singapore - Jervois Road.  It was an apartment building with amenities like a swimming pool, a gym and a playground.  I am proud of my niece who made it big there with her career in real estate.  She and her family are blessed with this comfortable, and maybe it is fit to say, luxurious home. Our stay there was grand enough for a vacation with her baby boys who provided the entertainment.

The next four (4) days showed me more of the success that Singapore is.  We went to the Singapore Botanical Garden, Orchard Road, Marina Bay Sands, Gardens by the Bay, Haji Lane and to restaurants and other nice places in this cosmopolitan city.  This place is definitely how every city should be run. Cabs are not difficult, taking a bus is systematic, with a guide to read in every bus stop, pedestrian lanes are safe, with respectful drivers who stop for people crossing.  Everything is picturesque, from the architecture of the establishments to the landscape that surrounded them.  

To summarize my Singapore experience - clean, orderly, disciplined, progressive and simply BEAUTIFUL.

THE PAHIYAS FESTIVAL 

Lucban, Quezon

Philippines

In my pending Master of Arts Degree in Art Education at the College of Education in the University of the Philippines, Diliman, I was introduced to the Pahiyas Festival in one of my classes.  This was about 10 years ago, I was still single and aspiring to become a teacher in the Arts.  My professor spoke so highly of it and even showed us photos.  Since then, I have been curious and have been longing to attend the festival.  

The Pahiyas Festival is a heritage from the early farmers of Lucban, circa 1500's who paid tribute to San Isidro Labrador who they believed blessed them with good harvest every year.  They would present their farm-produce to the church to be blessed and a bountiful harvest always followed.   The ritual was modified when the church could no longer accommodate them.  The farmers displayed the goods at the doorstep of their homes and the priest went around to give the blessing.  As each year came by, the early Filipinos manifested their creativity and artistry by displaying their goods in a decorative manner. Fast forward to this day, centuries after, the heritage of the Pahiyas Festival lives on each year, with grand festivities highlighted by a competition among the Lucban houses of their decorated homes using their farm-produce.  The main product for the decoraton is the KIPING, a leaf-shaped wafer made of rice which can be dipped in food coloring. The Pahiyas Festival is celebrated every May 15.  

My co-mothers from my kids' school were planning a visit to the Pahiyas Festival and so this was my chance.  With a rented van, off we went with our kids.  We were warned about the traffic jam, the crowd, the heat, but we were unfazed.  We were determined to troop to this highly celebrated festival in the Philippines with big companies who came over as well as sponsors, like Smart, Avida, Jollibee, Shakey's to name a few.  Sure enough, traffic was jammed and the summer heat sweltered. Everything paid off when we got to the town proper to see all the wonderful decorated homes. Each spot was worth a click.  We experienced eating the pancit habhab the way it should be eaten - from the banana leaf to our mouth.  As a side trip, we visited the Kamay ni Hesus, also in Lucban, a church with a "twist" - the shrine of Jesus Christ with a 50-foot statue on top of a steep hill with 310 steps to get to the top.  Along the way are life-sized images of the Stations of the Cross.  It is like a Biblical trail featuring the story of Jesus.  

The Pahiyas Festival was an experience of the rich cultural heritage of the Philippines.

SINGAPORE AND THE PHILIPPINES

The Alkaff bridge
by Pacita Abad

What is my point comparing Singapore and the Philippines using the Pahiyas Festival?  Let me share a conversation I had with a Singaporean but it wasn't during the Singapore trip mentioned here.  I met him in my kids' school and he is an artist. He told me how he liked coming to the Philippines because of the "free" atmosphere. At home, he said, in Singapore, everything is so rigid. He told me a story about a motorist who ran over a pedestrian because, the motorist defended, the stoplight was green. He was oblivious to the person crossing the street because he was so focused one the stoplight.  He was saying that everything in Singapore is by the book. He was almost implying that our country is better. I quickly disagreed and said that the Filipinos need the kind of discipline that the Singaporeans have in order to improve as a country.

Actually, there is a clear explanation why Singapore is more progressive than the Philippines.  One, it is smaller in terms of land area, the population is not half of the Philippines and it does not experience natural calamities.  There is more to the history of Singapore compared to the Philippines but those facts stand by their own to explain its progress.  Add the brilliant governance of Lee Kwan Yeu, Singapore is what it is now - the model country of South East Asia.

Yes, Singapore is more cosmopolitan than the Philippines, but as the Singaporean guy I mentioned earlier said, there is a feeling of being free here in the Philippines. For artists like him, he gets his inspiration and drive to create his work here.  Though life is definitely more comfortable and luxurious in Singapore, the Philippines has more passion and sensitivity. Where can anyone find art from farm-produce like that of the Pahiyas Festival?  There is even the Alkaff Bridge in Singapore painted by the late Filipina artist, Pacita Abad.  We also have world class performers like Lea Salonga, singer, Maniya Barredo, ballerina, Charice Pempengco and Arnel Pineda in the pop scene.  Are there Singaporean artists recognized in the world?

For the Singaporean discipline and the Filipino passion to merge, when and where could that be?  That is my next dream place to visit or to live in.