Nothing But Footprints

Antique

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Where do I start? Antique was one of the most beautiful places I’ve been to and I say this with all honesty even if I’ve already had the opportunity to travel around the world at a very young age. Beauty is subjective and based on how you understand something. This tour gave me a deeper insight as to how the culture and traditions of the society revolve around it’s surroundings. I guess every place you go to has the potential to be the most beautiful but my experiences in Antique were parallel to none. It was simply magical.

The culture made me feel the way that I’ve felt going to places like Korea, Thailand, Singapore, China and Japan. Very Asian but still with it’s distinct characteristics that make it stand out. It was as if I was in another country while in reality actually just being one bus ride away from home. Karay’a was very difficult for me to understand even if it has similar words with Tagalog or HIligaynon. I still had to use context clues mid-conversation in order to figure out what the people were talking about. Coupled with the place’s rich culture was it’s rich history. Nobody ever taught me how instrumental Antique was in the revolution or how Antique got it’s name from a specie of black ant.

I could go on for hours about everything I’ve experienced from Antique but this trip ended up being more than just me leaving my footprints at the places I’ve been to. When you come to think of it, Antique itself has left its own footprints on me as a person. 

By the way this is a foot made of bandi ^

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When all is said and done, a picture and a set of words will never be as good as the real thing. Sometimes you have to put down the camera and just jump.

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Asked the tour guide if he knew what this was, he didn’t.

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They frame bandi while we frame pictures.

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Caught this not-so-little guy :) 

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Spent hours in this bus laughing, sleeping, singing, talking and sharing unforgettable moments with friends. 

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Dusk. The time fishermen bring in their catch from their nets. The time people start cooking breakfast causing the smog along the shoreline. The time just before the sun peeks over the mountains.

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Despite the uniqueness of Antique’s culture, it still shares a lot of characteristics between many Filipino cultures.

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The ruins. The way that the flora found a way to grow on the walls and within the remnants of this building was no less than breath taking.

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Learned how to make bandi and butong-butong! Sugaaaaar! Yesss Please!

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The art of making clay bricks and pots by hand is alive and thriving. It’s even a highly lucrative business because of the high demand of quality bricks.

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Magic sulfur spring water that makes you look pretty? Don’t mind if I do.

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It took more than ten fishermen to haul in a single net. Now imagine doing that for a living...I guess the view is priceless enough.

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This is General Fullion. One of the brave yet unsung heroes of the revolution. But when you come to think of it, he didn’t give his blood, sweat and tears just to become famous. He did it for the country.

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Believe it or not, Antique was named after a specie of black ant. Who would’ve guessed?

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If culture and tradition could talk, It would be begging for us to keep it alive.

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In the midst of a rapidly industrializing era, seeing this apparently “dying” craft so alive gives me hope. I gained a lot of appreciation for these traditions over the short time i spent there. We are our culture. Nothing can replace it and we need not only to preserve it, but to allow it to thrive.