Exploring Philippines 67 - Marinduque (Post 2 - Getting Acquainted)

It was already past 12 when we reached the town of Boac and we went straight to the house of Tin for our lunch. We were extra grateful about the warm reception the family of Tin showed to us and it felt like we were part of the family.

Moriones festival is a tradition that the family of Tin observe for years and is being passed unto the next generation.  Being part of the festival is always a pride in every Filipino family and this family is no exception. Tin's father showed us a book of a foreign author about the different festivals in the Philippines where he was featured in one of its articles.  He proudly claimed that he was one of the pioneers of Moriones festival in Boac and his costumes which he painstakingly prepared each year brought him recognition for quite some time.

I was surprised that they are spending each year more than 10 thousand pesos for their costume which really showed passion and love for this tradition. For a good number of years that he had been participating with this festival, only a few of his handcrafted masks survive to date. And this year, he relinquished his passion to another member of the family, a younger one. But even if he is no longer active, his passion for this tradition is deeply rooted in him and he is still the one who prepares for the costume of his nephew.

Since we had the opportunity to experience wearing a Morion headdress, we took turns wearing the "bulaklakin" mask which is considered as an original headdress but is now slowly disappearing in the town of Boac. I guess through time, even the age old tradition experiences some make over but the essence and spirit of the tradition is still very much alive. But in some parts of Marinduque, specifically the town of Mogpog, the bulaklakin headdress is the town's identity.

After getting acquainted with the family of Tin, we drove off to a distant part of Boac where we will be staying for the next couple of days. The place is owned by the uncle of Tin and is located in a beach front. There are three rooms which can be rented for a modest amount but Tin's uncle waived our rent. And even if we were not paying for our rent, the six of us chose to stay in one room only.

That afternoon, we had enough time to explore the beach since it is only several steps away from our room.