Colorful Hustle and Bustle Outside Antipolo Church

After hearing mass at Antipolo, one will find it hard to ignore the hustle and bustle outside the church.

Local vendors have found a lucrative business selling colorful balloons and toys.  Small children are easily enticed by the sight of familiar characters floating on strings, flying winding birds and small toys with wheels that you can push back and forth with its handle. I saw a little girl frantically pulling her mom's hand towards the toy vendors.

Yohan didn't ask for any of those this year but when he was younger I bought him one of those ingenious mouse toys that move by pulling its string (made of scrap cloth and rock pulley-like mechanism). 

There are also vendors selling candles outside the church. Lighting candles is a popular Catholic tradition.  One usually light candles to pray for blessings or ask for divine intervention.

I always see these peculiar man and woman wax figures whenever I go to Antipolo but I have never asked what they are for. Some say the man and woman wax figures symbolize marriage but I may be wrong. Please share if you know.

A visit to Antipolo church will not be complete without buying casuy and suman (cashew and rice cakes). I took this quick snapshot when I noticed a lone red cashew among the yellow ones. I didn't buy any but hubby bought plain cashew nuts.

Back at home, we enjoyed eating fried suman with some sugar. It would have been better with ripe mangoes but it was still yummy.

Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage in Antipolo

Last Sunday, we went to Antipolo to hear mass at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage. Going to Antipolo church every month of May is an old tradition of hubby's family. We left the house before 5 a.m.

The drive from Batangas to Antipolo was smooth and quick. The traffic started as we approached the church. Parking was really tough. A guy in a white shirt helped us secure a parking slot in one of the nearby streets.  He ran along side our van as we made several rounds in the area.  He must be really fit to be able to endure all that running. To my surprise, he politely declined the tip from my brother-in-law. He just requested that we go to his food stand if we decide to buy suman and casuy (rice cake and cashew nuts) after the mass.  Suman and casuy are popular products of Antipolo.

The sight of the huge crowd made my knees weak. I doubted if we could get inside the church.

Slowly we inched our way near the church entrance. It was still early but the sun was already beaming its hot rays down on us.

We eventually managed to go inside the church. Luckily, my hubby, son and I were able to get some seats. Other family members had to go back outside because there were no more seats available. There were so many church goers that day.

Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage, popularly known as the Virgin of Antipolo (Birhen ng Antipolo) rests above the pedestal. Many church goers ask Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage for blessings for a safe journey or passage (especially those who are going to another country). The image was brought to the Philippines by Don Juan Niño de Tabora in 1626. It was sculptured by Mexican craftsmen using dark hard wood similar to the Black Nazarene in Quiapo.

The Antipolo church has been a center of religious pilgrimages for three centuries.  One of the popular annual pilgrimages is the "Alay Lakad" from Quiapo Church to the Antipolo Cathedral.

There are LCD screens placed in strategic areas of the church so that people outside can still see and hear the on-going mass.

All Souls Day

I'm thankful that the weather cleared just in time to give our family a chance to go to the cemetery to offer prayers for the departed.

It has become a tradition for many Filipino families to pay respect to departed loved ones every Nov. 1 and 2.

Yohan offering prayers for his great grandparents.

Yohan's cousin, Tisha lighting candles.

My Grandma's 40th Day

Thank you to everyone who left kind words of sympathy on my grandmother's death.

Yesterday was my grandma's 40th day since her passing. May God bestow my grandmother eternal joy in Heaven.

Blessed Palm Sunday

May God's guiding light shine over you.

A blessed Palm Sunday to everyone.

Wordless Wednesday #49

For the Chinese, there are many things that symbolize prosperity. Many Filipinos including my family have embraced the idea of bringing good luck to one's home through good luck charms and ornaments like the money tree. Please visit my other blog to see the lovely Money trees given to us by our cousin.

A Godfather At Five

A few weeks ago, Yohan's former Nursery teacher approached me in school. Teacher R asked me if it was alright if she gets Yohan to be one of the godparents of her son. I was quite surprised because I've never heard of young children becoming godparents. Teacher R said that Yohan has always been very special to her because of his sweet nature. Teacher R recounts how touched she was when she (while she was pregnant) received a card from Yohan wishing her a safe delivery. She said that she and her husband chose a few special people to become their son's godparents.

I said yes to her request, knowing that Yohan would be thrilled to be a ninong (Filipino term for godfather). I think it's an honor that my son has touched the heart of his teacher.

Below is a photo of the Christian dedication of Teacher R's son. The people standing up are the chosen godparents. As you can see, Yohan is the youngest in the group. :) Yohan is now a godfather at the age of five.

Marco's Dedication (January 20, 2009)

This is Yohan's gift for his godchild. Another photo below shows how it would look like if opened.

Yohan's gift for Marco.

It's a 2-in Tomy Walker Bike. It starts out as a walker with easy grip handlebars featuring cute play objects. It's perfect for those steady first steps. As the child grows older, the walker can easily be transformed into a Push Bike with a tow-along trailer. We hope Marco will enjoy it.

photo source

Our New Year Traditions

Before I start getting busy with our preparations, let me share some of my family's New Year traditions.

• Cleaning the house before New Year.
  
• Serving 13 fruits on the table table. Most of these fruits are round ones to symbolize prosperity.
• Putting a bowl of rice, sugar and salt on the table.
  
• Wearing red brings good luck.
• Eating 12 grapes at midnight. Each grape symbolizes a prosperous month of the year.
  
• Putting coins in the pocket to have a prosperous year ahead.
  
• Refraining from serving chicken because of the saying, "Isang kahig, isang tuka." They say a chicken's way of life somehow connotes struggles or tough times.
• Opening lights, windows and doors before midnight to welcome in good graces to your home.
• Scattering coins on the floor at midnight.
• Creating loud noises to drive away evil spirits and bad luck.
  

Would you like to share some of your traditions?

Weekend Snapshot #21

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Palm Sunday

Earlier this morning we heard mass at a nearby church. Today is Palm Sunday and Catholics went to church with palm fronds which were blessed by the priest.

Palm Sunday falls on the Sunday before Easter. It is a religious event that commemorates the triumphant entry of Jesus' entry to Jerusalem in the days before his Passion. Palm Sunday also signifies the start of the Holy Week.