It was a great honour to be asked to be Ninong (Godfather) for the wedding of Sheila & Jeffrey on 5.5.22 at Sta. Potenciana Parish Church, Bgy. Sibaltan, El Nido. This time (unlike the wedding of Kuya Ran and Geralyn) I could attend in person having rented a house in Puerto Princessa and moved in the week before. I checked Google maps to see how long the journey would be from Puerto Princessa. A mere 5hours, 23 mins, for a 278 km journey. Now I look back I laugh at how I moaned about driving for 30 mins from Awali to Anis's wedding in Manama, Bahrain, a few years ago.
Just as my dad would have, I prepared the route, packed the car the night before and made some meryenda (snacks) for the long journey. I set off at 5.30 am in pouring rain and once I got past the trikes, trucks and slow vehicles in Puerto Princesa I headed north to Roxas on the Great North Road. Along the way I opened the first of my meryenda, "Ding Dong", a spicy nut mix, and alternated these with chilled water from my Oil & Gas Academy water flask. Not wanting to take my eyes off the bendy road as we went up and down the hills, I grabbed the Ding Dong bag from the passenger seat without looking. Unfortunately, I grabbed the wrong end and on a particularly hairy bend 200 nuts escaped all over the car!
After about 2 hours I arrived on the edge of Roxas and stopped at the “Halfway” restaurant where I have become a “suki” or regular. Here I had a cold bottle of Coca Cola and Ube flavoured Pinipig (a soft sugary snack) which I took with me for the next leg of the journey. The second leg is spectacular going across the mountains that run down the centre of Palawan from East to West. Here the devastation of 17 December 2021, when Typhoon Odette hit Palawan is most obvious with thousands of felled trees still on the ground, damaged Electric Pylons and crushed houses. As I approached Taytay, at the north West of Palawan. I decided not to go into the second of my favourite restaurants. Instead I kept driving but tiredness got the better of me and eventually I had to stop for my Tuna and Onion bread roll and some orange juice.
The route from
Taytay to Sibaltan follows the Northern coast of Palawan with lots of resort hotels,
the congestion of Coron Coron and El Nido and then on to Nacpan, Barutaan and
finally Sibaltan.
The last part of the journey, I had to stop on the edge of El Nido for more coffee!
I stopped for a coffee in Coron Coron and they charged my phone (5 hours on Google maps had drained the battery) and then I diverted off my route to Jhoanna’s house in Barutaan for directions. However I took the wrong turn and ended up completing the journey from memory. I only took one wrong turn, to the beach before Sibaltan before arriving at Ray and Mars house at Noon.
Ray and Mars on our earlier Island Hopping trip
Mars is a cousin of the bride and did my massage at El Nido Cove back in 2014! Sheila and Mars use to keep me refreshed with jugs of Orange juice and Lemonade all day. Sheila did my my laundry!
Sheila , who I first met at El Nido Cove in 2014
After a much needed CR
( Comfort room , Bathroom , Toilet, WC, Gents) stop and a free bottle of
iced water from Marz they gave me directions to the church and I headed off at
1pm as they said I should be seated by 1.30 pm for the 2 pm wedding. I was the
first person to arrive so I took a look around the magnificent church which is
on top of a hill overlooking the sea.
The Bride and Groom , outside the church
On the wall is a plaque with the fascinating story of
the church- whilst the construction started in 2004 it was only completed on 1st
February 2022. So, Sheila and Jeffry’s wedding was one of the first to be held
there. I walked around the beautiful church and grounds.
The cute girl on the right. Regine, kept smiling at me and added me on FB
By 2 pm a few people had arrived and then I realised to my horror that when the invitation said 2 pm it was in Phillipino time, which is about an hour behind everyone else!
The Gwapo boys line up outside the church
As the minutes clicked by the van loads of family members arrived all in matching outfits. The boys looked so gwapo in their shirts, bow ties, braces. The little ones (ring bearers) had straw hats. The ladies were maganda in matching dresses and there were numerous flower girls. Finally, the Bride and Groom arrived and everyone went outside and the wedding organiser lined them up in order. As the announcer read out their names they processed in couples down the aisle which had been beautifully decorated with flowers. Finally around 3 pm the wedding got underway. My second shock was that it was all in Tagalog and I only recognised three words (Barangay Sibaltan, Amen) . Luckily some family members, realising my predicament, came and told me when I had to join them at the altar as Ninong, and later I had to join them for the photos, and sign my name on the official papers 4 times!
The younger boys and some of the girls with the bride and groom
Sadly, after 2 hours filming and taking photos before the wedding started my camera battery ran out as the Bride and Groom made their grand entrance. Now I cannot find the pictures I took so I have borrowed pictures from other peoples Facebook accounts. Special thanks to Kobi Eyala, Sheila's mum, who flew in from Kuwait, where she is an OFW, for the wedding.
The beautiful couple at the stunning altar
The boys processed down the aisle once the bride and groom arrived. It was the job of the best man ( in the waistcoat) and the Chief Bridesmaid to fan the newly weds at the altar for the long service.
After the service we had many photos of family and friends
It was all very moving, especially the family photos
and the long-awaited moment when the groom finally kissed the bride to
rapturous applause from the Congregation. When we had our photo, I apologised
to the bride and groom that I would not be able to make the reception as I had
a 6-hour journey back to Puerto as Marz had not boked accommodation for me as I
requested. I sneaked out and got on my way home at 5 pm, giving their wedding
gift, beautifully wrapped by Jhoanna, to one of the van drivers.
Jeffrey and Sheila on our earlier Island Hopping trip
So, my first Phillipino wedding came to an end and I
will end here by wishing Jeffrey and Sheila all the best for their married
life. I look forward to welcoming my second Inaanak in due course!
Special thanks to the families of Jeffrey and Sheila and their friends for making me feel so welcome at the wedding and I am sorry I could not join you for the reception after. I hope you are putting the pressure cooker to good use Jeffrey, by coincidence I am used mine the other day to make a beef pot roast for the weekend.
Cooking Beef Pot Roast in my Pressure cooker
This is The British Kabayan signing out from Palawan-
kita kits Puerto, and Ingat Palagi everyone!
Hello, I am The British Kabayan! Feel free to read my stories.
No comments:
Post a Comment