Experiencing Moriones Marinduque
We loved our 2017 Marinduque Summit-to-Sea trip, and heard about the good stuff that is Moriones. So we decided to return this year, and bring our family with us!
Our itinerary was simple and vague, given the many uncertain logistical factors. We aimed to be at the Marinduque port in the morning of Holy Thursday, spend the rest of the day on Visita Iglesia and the Last Supper Mass, participate in the procession and witness the moriones on Good Friday. We chalked up Black Saturday as a free day, when we could possibly tour the whole island in the morning and the rest of it at the beach. Easter Sunday is for the Easter Mass, then catch the ship back to Lucena.
We took one of our hosts with us, Tito Dolfo. He used to be the chief of police in Mogpog, and he was the appointed guide for the Visita Iglesia trip. He said that Marinduque is small enough and the roads good enough that we can explore all six of its municipalities within a couple of hours. Because we had some time, and we wanted to take advantage of his presence with us, we decided to do our Visita Iglesia by visiting one church per municipality.
Marinduque's municipalities are: Mogpog, Boac, Gasan, Buenavista, Torrijos, and Sta. Cruz, and here are some of the churches that we visited.
We were blessed to have been granted great weather during our stay in Marinduque. During our first two days, we were able to see some gorgeous views of the island. Much of it is still green, the atmosphere laid back. And the highway offered many fabulous views of the vibrant blue sea.
Thus, our group was truly happy that we were able to clear Black Saturday of any obligations or trips. We spent the day at the Family Beach Resort. The beach we went to had a lot of day trip visitors, and was therefore a little crowded and noisy. However, the view of the sea from our resort bungalow was perfect! Plus, Kuya Edgar, the very hands-on owner, was friendly and accommodating, and really made sure that all our needs were met during our stay there.
There's a lot to like about the place. The beach was clean, the sea calm. We came during low-tide, so it was fun to just walk almost half a kilometer into the sea and just frolic away from the beach. The water was cool, the sunset we witnessed was perfect.
In the evening, we had the place to ourselves. The full moon was out, we lit up a grill for some fresh milkfish and pork belly. We walked along the beach--there were some of those bioluminiscent things that light up when we stepped on the water. And then sang a few songs in the karaoke materials. We are also able to request for fresh buko and cooked rice here, so everything went well.
This trip is definitely a blast!
This Marinduque trip is a bit more complicated than the first time around, when we were traveling light.
This year, instead of three people, we have to coordinate the schedules and preferences of eight people with an age range of 15 to 79--only two of whom are retired and had more flexible schedules. The trip also falls on Holy Week--typically a high-traffic time in general, and congested at the ports in particular.
From the onset, we decided that we will take a private vehicle with us, on the ro-ro service. It was more economical and would allow us to explore Marinduque as needed. We are also traveling with my father, who has a heart condition, and we wanted to have better mobility in case any emergency comes up. Plus, of course, the vehicle has the comforts of reserved cushioned seats and air conditioning in case the summer days and crowds get to us.
We started the journey in Lucena, Quezon, aiming to be at the Port of Lucena in Brgy. Dalahican at around 11pm of Good Wednesday. This was because we had to wait until after work commitments are done, and in consideration of the fact that one of our companion senior citizens did not want to travel during the day and another companion does not like traveling at night. We figured 11pm is a good compromise, because it isn't hot, and with the hours that we estimated we'll spend lining up at the port, we will be able to leave closer to dawn than to midnight. Of course, if it was up to you and you don't have the constraints that we did, just go as early as possible, especially if you're travelling on Holy Week!
At 11pm, we were directed (not very effectively) towards the line of vehicles waiting to board the boat. There were lots of ships picking up the passengers, but it also takes quite a bit of time loading everything. All in all, we spent about three and a half hours idling at the port. Side note here--make sure you've loaded up on gas before entering Lucena proper, especially if you're traveling at night, since a lot of the gas stations close for the evening and there is no telling how long the wait at the port (and therefore how much the gas consumption) could be.
We finally left the port at 3:30am. The vehicle area was so cramped there was hardly any room to open our car doors. There were also so many people inside the ship's rooms that there was nowhere to sit. All eight of us just decided to pass the trip in the relative comfort of our car. The sea crossing was smooth, with hardly any waves, and fast--we were at the port in Brgy. Balanacan, Mogpog, Marinduque by 6am.
The return trip was much better. We left Mogpog at around lunchtime, got pulled into a police checkpoint that mostly serves as a waiting area for vehicles going to the port. We spent about an hour at the checkpoint before we were allowed to travel to the port. We were loaded on to the ship by 2pm-ish, and back in Lucena by 5:30pm. We were also able to get seats in the rooms, so it was infinitely more forgiving for our bums than our first sea crossing!
Cost of transportation: Php2,340 for the vehicle (one way, inclusive of one free ticket for the driver and another free ticket because we had more than seven people in the group), Php 260.00 (per way, discounts available for senior citizens and students), and about Php500 (per way, for the port and environmental fees). There is also an additional Php1,800 for the diesel, full tank for our Mitsubishi Adventure, which lasted us all throughout the trip with much much more to spare.
For accommodations, we were lucky enough to have been hosted on our first two nights by the Marinduque-hin relatives of my gentleman farmer. We spent the last evening of our trip at Family Beach Resort on Ugong Bay, Mogpog. We got a two-bedroom, airconditioned casita with a veranda and small garden that faces the beach--perfect place to watch the spectacular sunset! All in all, our cost for accommodation is Php3,600, inclusive of an hour of videoke rental.
Food was also quite an affair. Because of my dad's dietary requirements, and the uncertainty of our itinerary, we made sure we had food enough to feed us at least for a whole day when we started the trip--complete with adobo (no spoilage), a tub of cooked rice, broiled fish, and vegetables, along with snacks and drinks. That was helpful, because we were always hungry on that first 24 hours of the trip. We bought food starting on the second day--we brought some fresh seafood and vegetables on the morning of Good Friday, and elected to just cook our meals at home, including a batch of ginataang langka (jackfruit in coconut milk) freshly picked from the garden. At the resort, we were able to request the staff to cook rice for us, then we also cooked our viand (binanging bangus at liempo, or broiled milkfish and pork belly). We only had one meal at a restaurant. We picked Kusina sa Plaza in Boac, a glorified turo-turo style place. Total cost for food: around Php6,000.00 overall, for eight people over four days.
Our itinerary was simple and vague, given the many uncertain logistical factors. We aimed to be at the Marinduque port in the morning of Holy Thursday, spend the rest of the day on Visita Iglesia and the Last Supper Mass, participate in the procession and witness the moriones on Good Friday. We chalked up Black Saturday as a free day, when we could possibly tour the whole island in the morning and the rest of it at the beach. Easter Sunday is for the Easter Mass, then catch the ship back to Lucena.
Visita Iglesia
We arrived in Marinduque on a grey morning, Maundy Thursday. We drove from the port, through the village of Balanacan, and on to the town proper of Mogpog, dropped by the new (impressively clean) wet market for some suman (sticky rice) and went straight to the house of our hosts.
We stocked up on breakfast food from Lucena for the first day, because we didn't know how bad the congestion at the port will be, but of course we had to get the suman because it's a favorite of some of the people in our little group. We also found fresh coffee and food served by our host. Then, lugging a rice cooker, we went to the big house, usually empty, that served as our base for the next two days.
As we spent the night prior cramped in the car, we elected to sleep a little and refresh ourselves before doing anything. We then had our lunch--adobo (pork stew in soy sauce and vinegar), another baon (food pack), before going on our first excursion.
Slept, lunched and refreshed. Now on to the first order of the day: Stations of the Cross. #Marinduque #HolyWeek2018 #Lent2018 pic.twitter.com/mEGtOazTsF— City Promdi (@yourcitypromdi) March 29, 2018
We took one of our hosts with us, Tito Dolfo. He used to be the chief of police in Mogpog, and he was the appointed guide for the Visita Iglesia trip. He said that Marinduque is small enough and the roads good enough that we can explore all six of its municipalities within a couple of hours. Because we had some time, and we wanted to take advantage of his presence with us, we decided to do our Visita Iglesia by visiting one church per municipality.
Marinduque's municipalities are: Mogpog, Boac, Gasan, Buenavista, Torrijos, and Sta. Cruz, and here are some of the churches that we visited.
— City Promdi (@yourcitypromdi) March 29, 2018
The church in Boac is an old cathedral that sits on top of a hill surrounded by a wall reminiscent of those that can be seen in Intramuros.
Simbahan ni San Jose, Esposo ni Maria, in #Gasan, #Marinduque. #HolyWeek2018 #Lent2018 pic.twitter.com/KGJCYHsgeW— City Promdi (@yourcitypromdi) March 29, 2018
The church in Gasan, I think, is relatively new, but it boasts of a spectacular view. Like the cathedral in Boac, it sits on top of a hill, and has the added attraction of the sea.
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| The church terrace overlooks a view deck, and a huge sculpture. (Photo by Your City Promdi) |
— City Promdi (@yourcitypromdi) March 29, 2018
We indeed completed the Visita Iglesia in five hours. The Catholic tradition entails visiting seven churches on Maundy Thursday and praying before the Blessed Sacrament. Our family tweaks this a little by just visiting as many churches as we can, and instead of praying individually in front of the Blessed Sacrament, we reflect instead on the Stations of the Cross. This year, we went to six churches, finally ending the Visita Iglesia in Torrijos.
We then traveled to Sta. Cruz, our last church, to attend the Mass of the Last Supper. Traditionally, this mass commemorates the last supper that Jesus partook of with his disciples before his passion and death. The mass will usually feature a group of people dressed as the disciples, whose feet the presiding priest will wash as a reminder of the Lord's humbling of Himself for us, and the call to serve others in the way that Jesus Christ did. For us Roman Catholics, it also commemorates how Jesus instituted the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist (the Mass) when He invited the disciples to partake of his body and blood in the form of unleavened bread and wine, respectively, and to repeat this supper to remember him.
The mass then ends with the Blessed Sacrament being paraded in front of the congregation and then enshrined in an altar of repost. It will stay there for the entire evening, and Catholics are called to join the night vigil--a way to be in the company of Jesus Christ, even as the apostles abandoned Him during his passion. Our group did not take part in the vigil; instead, we left for Mogpog and dinner.
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| Church in Sta. Cruz, Marinduque (Photo by Your City Promdi) |
The mass then ends with the Blessed Sacrament being paraded in front of the congregation and then enshrined in an altar of repost. It will stay there for the entire evening, and Catholics are called to join the night vigil--a way to be in the company of Jesus Christ, even as the apostles abandoned Him during his passion. Our group did not take part in the vigil; instead, we left for Mogpog and dinner.
Moriones
The next day was devoted to looking for the Moriones. We have already met a few morion (people or devotees dressed as Roman soldiers), but we were hoping to catch a glimpse of them in official action.
The Moriones is a religious festival held during the Holy Week in the island of Marinduque. It commemorates the story of the Roman soldier Longinus, who was blind in one eye--which was healed when a drop of Jesus' blood splashed on to it as Jesus was tortured at the palace of the Pilate. In Catholic tradition Longinus is believed to have become a faithful follower of Christ, and consequently declared an enemy of the Roman authorities, captured and beheaded. He is now considered a saint.
During the entire week, the island's moriones (named for the large helmets that the penitents wear) march through the streets of the islands, trying to look for Longinus. Eventually, on Easter Sunday, the story will culminate with a dramatization that includes the chase and eventual capture of Longinus. We heard from the locals that the Moryonan (the local term for the festival) is best done in the town of Boac, although dramatizations are staged in all six municipalities.
We did not have any luck witnessing any of the dramatization, narrowly missing an event that was staged in Sta. Cruz just before the Mass of the Last Supper. The next big event when we will have an opportunity to see the Moryonan was on Easter Sunday, but we had to forego this as we had be on our way to catch our boat back to Lucena.
In any case, what we ended up seeing was the procession, which is held every Good Friday. Statues showing the stations of the cross, from Jesus' agony in the garden through his death and resurrection, are paraded in the streets and devotees will walk with them in veneration. At the end of the line of statues, we decided to walk a little, too. That's how we concluded Day 2 of our Marinduque trip.
— City Promdi (@yourcitypromdi) March 30, 2018
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| Photo by Your City Promdi |
During the entire week, the island's moriones (named for the large helmets that the penitents wear) march through the streets of the islands, trying to look for Longinus. Eventually, on Easter Sunday, the story will culminate with a dramatization that includes the chase and eventual capture of Longinus. We heard from the locals that the Moryonan (the local term for the festival) is best done in the town of Boac, although dramatizations are staged in all six municipalities.
We did not have any luck witnessing any of the dramatization, narrowly missing an event that was staged in Sta. Cruz just before the Mass of the Last Supper. The next big event when we will have an opportunity to see the Moryonan was on Easter Sunday, but we had to forego this as we had be on our way to catch our boat back to Lucena.
In any case, what we ended up seeing was the procession, which is held every Good Friday. Statues showing the stations of the cross, from Jesus' agony in the garden through his death and resurrection, are paraded in the streets and devotees will walk with them in veneration. At the end of the line of statues, we decided to walk a little, too. That's how we concluded Day 2 of our Marinduque trip.
The Island
— City Promdi (@yourcitypromdi) March 28, 2018
We were blessed to have been granted great weather during our stay in Marinduque. During our first two days, we were able to see some gorgeous views of the island. Much of it is still green, the atmosphere laid back. And the highway offered many fabulous views of the vibrant blue sea.
Thus, our group was truly happy that we were able to clear Black Saturday of any obligations or trips. We spent the day at the Family Beach Resort. The beach we went to had a lot of day trip visitors, and was therefore a little crowded and noisy. However, the view of the sea from our resort bungalow was perfect! Plus, Kuya Edgar, the very hands-on owner, was friendly and accommodating, and really made sure that all our needs were met during our stay there.
There's a lot to like about the place. The beach was clean, the sea calm. We came during low-tide, so it was fun to just walk almost half a kilometer into the sea and just frolic away from the beach. The water was cool, the sunset we witnessed was perfect.
 |
| Photo by Your City Promdi |
In the evening, we had the place to ourselves. The full moon was out, we lit up a grill for some fresh milkfish and pork belly. We walked along the beach--there were some of those bioluminiscent things that light up when we stepped on the water. And then sang a few songs in the karaoke materials. We are also able to request for fresh buko and cooked rice here, so everything went well.
This trip is definitely a blast!
Next year, do consider exploring Marinduque for the Holy Week.
This year, instead of three people, we have to coordinate the schedules and preferences of eight people with an age range of 15 to 79--only two of whom are retired and had more flexible schedules. The trip also falls on Holy Week--typically a high-traffic time in general, and congested at the ports in particular.
From the onset, we decided that we will take a private vehicle with us, on the ro-ro service. It was more economical and would allow us to explore Marinduque as needed. We are also traveling with my father, who has a heart condition, and we wanted to have better mobility in case any emergency comes up. Plus, of course, the vehicle has the comforts of reserved cushioned seats and air conditioning in case the summer days and crowds get to us.
We started the journey in Lucena, Quezon, aiming to be at the Port of Lucena in Brgy. Dalahican at around 11pm of Good Wednesday. This was because we had to wait until after work commitments are done, and in consideration of the fact that one of our companion senior citizens did not want to travel during the day and another companion does not like traveling at night. We figured 11pm is a good compromise, because it isn't hot, and with the hours that we estimated we'll spend lining up at the port, we will be able to leave closer to dawn than to midnight. Of course, if it was up to you and you don't have the constraints that we did, just go as early as possible, especially if you're travelling on Holy Week!
At 11pm, we were directed (not very effectively) towards the line of vehicles waiting to board the boat. There were lots of ships picking up the passengers, but it also takes quite a bit of time loading everything. All in all, we spent about three and a half hours idling at the port. Side note here--make sure you've loaded up on gas before entering Lucena proper, especially if you're traveling at night, since a lot of the gas stations close for the evening and there is no telling how long the wait at the port (and therefore how much the gas consumption) could be.
We finally left the port at 3:30am. The vehicle area was so cramped there was hardly any room to open our car doors. There were also so many people inside the ship's rooms that there was nowhere to sit. All eight of us just decided to pass the trip in the relative comfort of our car. The sea crossing was smooth, with hardly any waves, and fast--we were at the port in Brgy. Balanacan, Mogpog, Marinduque by 6am.
The return trip was much better. We left Mogpog at around lunchtime, got pulled into a police checkpoint that mostly serves as a waiting area for vehicles going to the port. We spent about an hour at the checkpoint before we were allowed to travel to the port. We were loaded on to the ship by 2pm-ish, and back in Lucena by 5:30pm. We were also able to get seats in the rooms, so it was infinitely more forgiving for our bums than our first sea crossing!
Cost of transportation: Php2,340 for the vehicle (one way, inclusive of one free ticket for the driver and another free ticket because we had more than seven people in the group), Php 260.00 (per way, discounts available for senior citizens and students), and about Php500 (per way, for the port and environmental fees). There is also an additional Php1,800 for the diesel, full tank for our Mitsubishi Adventure, which lasted us all throughout the trip with much much more to spare.
 |
| Photo by The Gentleman Farmer |
Food was also quite an affair. Because of my dad's dietary requirements, and the uncertainty of our itinerary, we made sure we had food enough to feed us at least for a whole day when we started the trip--complete with adobo (no spoilage), a tub of cooked rice, broiled fish, and vegetables, along with snacks and drinks. That was helpful, because we were always hungry on that first 24 hours of the trip. We bought food starting on the second day--we brought some fresh seafood and vegetables on the morning of Good Friday, and elected to just cook our meals at home, including a batch of ginataang langka (jackfruit in coconut milk) freshly picked from the garden. At the resort, we were able to request the staff to cook rice for us, then we also cooked our viand (binanging bangus at liempo, or broiled milkfish and pork belly). We only had one meal at a restaurant. We picked Kusina sa Plaza in Boac, a glorified turo-turo style place. Total cost for food: around Php6,000.00 overall, for eight people over four days.
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