I am Half-Ilokano, Half Amazing

By: BAGANO, Apolinario Jr.

Deep within the heart of the Cordilleran Region is the City of Baguio, known to be a mixing bowl of all walks of life. It is where diversity meets unity in the form of a progressing city with different bloods pitching in. Also, it is part of the land of the people wearing colorful red striped g-strings, the Igorots. It is the city where they have established their identity the past centuries and have fought for the past decades. Around Baguio city are the mountains where the Igorots remain dominant despite the fading culture due to modernization. Albeit the colorful tradition is about to be colored gray, many people still get a glimpse of the Igorot’s way of life in many parts of the Region.

The smoke rises. The flame, it grows even stronger by the minute and the mighty pine wood below it is charred. The strong clanging of gongs and bamboo sticks fill the air with music. On the corner, pigs cry as blood spew from their necks. The men on the other end gather in a circle, sharing stories and laughing as they sip rice wine that comes from a large jar just a few meters from them. They call it ‘tapey’ and its aromatic smell creeps out of the jar and  rises to the roof of the Atep, a small house. This is the typical setting of an Igorot celebration.

They would often say, "Entako manpalti/ mankanyaw" when there is marriage or when there is a need for a celebration. Cañao is an act of butchering and offering animals to the god they worship named ‘Kabunian’, the word ‘Buni’ means ‘to pray’. As a whole, ‘Kabunian’ means to whom we pray to.  They offer this as an offering of thanks hoping that sooner or later, Kabunian will grant them their desires.

While more wine is spilled and more meat devoured, away from the festivity are again people who are chewing and behind them is a wall whose bottom is painted red. Their red lips resemble the summer sunset while their smiles, orange. They chew then they spit. This is a classic picture in the day of the life of an Igorot. They chew what the Igorots call as ‘Momma’. This is also the doublemint or the v-fresh of the Igorots. A mixture of lime, betel nut and pandan leaves and sometimes added with tobacco is what keeps their jaws busy.

With all the commotion caused by the eating, the chewing and the drinking, the Cañao is not over until the men dance around the fire together with their instrument.  Instruments such as the solibao, a type of drum made from wood and animal skin; the gong or the gangsa, a circular gold colored brass instrument and a whole lot more. The men, they go around a circle banging on their gangsas and solibaos as the smoke unshackles itself from the fire. They wear a colorful g-string which they call ‘bahag’ and sometimes, it is matched with a feathered headband of the same color as the bahag. The women on the other hand, wear a ‘tapis’, a sleeved upper clothing together with a skirt-like lower clothing that covers the thighs until the knees. This is the typical Igorot clothing, a striped garment with different shades of red, black and white or other combinations of dark colors.

I am half-Igorot, half-Ilokano writing as an Igorot and trying to find his place in this mixing bowl. I grew up around Ilokanos and have insufficient knowledge of the Igorot. As I go to different Igorot rituals and celebrations away from the city, I have found out that the Igorot has a culture worth noticing; that it is imbued with a tradition that is worth not of the glimpse of many but instead it is worthy of stares and smiles. Despite the fact that the Igorot way of life is succumbing to modernization, we can still see these traditions not because it can lure tourists and boost up tourism and business, but because (I believe that) the Igorots stand firm and strong against vicissitudes.  That is why I can say, I am half Ilokano and the other (Igorot blood) is just plain amazing.