Holy Week Escapes (or Rituals while Vacationing)

With Holy Week coming up, there is a mad rush to book accommodations and tickets for places far away from Manila. Since most people head off for beaches, most resorts at the popular coastlines or island paradise are already fully booked.
On the other hand, most Filipinos’ Catholic guilt kick in about this time too, and they opt for places which also provide some religious significance. While one’s own provincial hometown is always a safe choice, most vacation spots fortunately have enough churches to visit come Good Friday.
The Ilocos region has the best churches to do Visita Iglesia. Besides the proximity of the churches to each other that will easily allow you to comply with the standard 7-church visit, the beautiful Augustinian designs are always something to marvel at. The common bell tower-beside-the-main- church design, built with sand, coral and limestone mixed with eggs and molasses make for lasting structures that survived various earthquakes and human conflicts. Grand altars within recessed enclaves housing statuettes of known patron saints, twin pulpits hung on major pillars that also serve as strong foundations holding up the arching ceiling, an occasional ancient confessional or organ are among the things to watch out for in this walking lesson in Philippine history.
In the South, I believe Iloilo, especially Miag-ao, would be Ilocos’ closest rival in terms of grand churches. And also Bohol, even for the small island that it is, can also compete with Vigan and Laoag for the sheer number of churches it has. Besides the popular Baclayon and Loboc Churches, in and around Panglao island as well as the drive to Chocolate Hills will allow you to visit a few more churches.
The ritual of doing the Stations of the Cross is also a classic practice during Holy Week. And while all Catholic churches are required to have the full 14-scene Passion of Christ on their walls either by paintings or sculptures, there is nothing like life-size statues to pray to. In Cagayan Valley, the town of Iguig boasts of its bigger-than-life figures depicting Christ’s passion. Installed over a vast expanse of rolling hills, the whole scenery also has a wonderful view of one of Cagayan Valley’s largest rivers. Nearby, another relic of our colonial past, the remnants of the Church of St. James proudly stands. Together with the ruins of its ampitheater, it has survived earthquakes and fires to still be an operational parish till now.
Another must-see Stations of the Cross is the one on Camiguin Island. For this little island of numerous active volcanoes, their 14 scenes-of-the-Passion are actually built on a mountain (or a dormant volcano, I am told). The initial climb to the first few stations still have concrete steps or ramps and are posted quite close together. After some time, the scenes become farther apart and the walkway turns into a dirt road. The climb alone is enough to compose one’s penance for an entire Lenten season. But the view of the sea from this elevated portion of the island is a gift that more than compensates one’s sacrifice. Soon, the climb becomes steep as well, and without proper footwear, you can seriously slip on the gravel. For the faint of heart, the height at this point is quite nerve-wracking as the path also narrows and turns into sharp corners with scary drop-offs into ravines. Nevertheless, the sight is spectacular.
As I believe, being on vacation at some exotic tourist spot is not an excuse to miss doing one’s Lenten obligations. So this Holy Week, pick a good venue for your annual spiritual retreat as well.