My Byaheng Bonifacio (Part 2 of 2)

June 6, 2013 (Thursday)

Days and days have passed, waiting for a call or text from the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), and when June 3 came, I received a text message from Christian Melendez, informing me that the awarding of the Biyaheng Bonifacio winners will be on June 6, 3:00 PM at the NHCP office, T.M. Kalaw St., Ermita, Manila.

Due to this, I readily filed a half-day Personal Leave for that date, because I would not definitely let this moment pass. Since my retired dad was mostly at home, I suddenly “hired” him to be my photographer for the said event.

So, when June 6 arrived, at the stroke of noon, without taking my lunch in that juncture, I left my office in Pasig and rode a taxi towards my Manila destination.        

Arriving at the vicinity at past 1:00 PM, I met my dad at the main entrance gate of the NHCP, and since the ceremony would only start at 3:00 PM, we ate lunch at McDonald’s TM Kalaw Branch.

When we both saw that rain was already starting to pour, we then trudged to the NHCP, and I had a photo taken at the entrance gate for documentation sakes. 

When I entered the NHCP compound, I was amazed that, aside from the presidential cars of Laurel and Quirino in the parking lot, the vehicles of former presidents Ferdinand Marcos and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo were also there.
 

Presidential car of Marcos (1981 Lincoln Town Car Limousine)

Presidential car of Macapagal-Arroyo (1998 Mercedes Benz Limousine)

Entering the building proper, we rode the elevator going to the 4^th floor, and when we alighted, we were one of the earliest guys there (what's new for two punctual guys). So, while the coast was still clear, we took photos surrounding the “Byaheng Bonifacio” display, which was showcased in selected SM branches.
     
While the large room, where the awarding would be taking place, was still being spruced by a few NHCP personnel, such as food and sound setups, nagpa-Kodak muna ako near the stage hehe...ahh the beauty of arriving early, plus my dad and I had a very good conversation with NHCP Deputy Executive Director Arch. Veronica A. Dado, as we await for the proceedings to fire off.

At around 3:00 PM, several awardees and NHCP employees have already flocked in the area, and the ceremony started at 3:30 PM.

After a brief overview of the project from an NHCP staff, the awarding proper took place with NHCP Executive Director Ludovico D. Badoy, a former mayor of Cotabato City, as the presentor of the gift bag and the certificate to the expected first 20 individuals who finished the 16-site trek. Unfortunately, not all of the 20 came at this point in time, and most of the certificates had no signature of Tourism Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez Jr. since he was out of the country. We were told that the signed certificates would be delivered to our residences. 

Receiving the token & certificate from NHCP Executive Director Ludovico D. Badoy

Since the gift bag contained a red scarf, we all had a group shot wearing it, amidst a phalanx of photographers from some government institutions such as the DOT and, of course, the NHCP.

Formal group shot of awardees and NHCP personnel

All in all,the contents of gift bag were the following: red scarf, certificate, baller band, polo shirt, your completed brochure, and a book entitled “Minutes of the Katipunan”.  

A sumptuous merienda was served after the program, but before I went into that part, my contact NHCP Museum Technician Jefry A. Estrella introduced me to Mr. Bryan C. Paraiso, NHCP Senior Historic Sites Development Officer, and we too had a good tete-a-tete regarding tourism and history.

Flanked by NHCP Museum Technician Jefry A. Estrella & Mr. Bryan C. Paraiso, NHCP Senior Historic Sites Development Officer

Since the day was a work day, some awardees came late, and since they too deserve the accolade, we all gamely posed for another group shot, again wearing our official scarves.

Another group shot of awardees and NHCP personnel

 
We left before 5:00 PM, but since that was already rush hour, it took us an hour to find a taxi as we trekked from the TM Kalaw venue up to the Anda Circle near the Manila Cathedral...whew!

Nevertheless, this momentous day finally capped a one helluva byahe...a byahe full of education, full of excitement, and full of literal perspiration, as I formally finished the “Byaheng Bonifacio” with a period. 

July 1, 2013 (Monday)

Last June 28, 2013, Mr. Aine Bautista, an Administrative Assistant from the DOT, texted me and told me that since he lives in Caloocan and I live in Malabon, we could schedule a meet-up for my signed certificate (YES!), so when July 1 came, my Byaheng Bonifacio trek has really really finally ended.

The signed certificate

Big thanks to the following who have significantly assisted me in completing all the sites: (1) My Dad (for showing me the Starweek publication containing the project and for acting as my photographer during the awarding ceremony), (2) My Mom (for her time and effort in acquiring the free brochure from the Department of Tourism on a weekday and photographed me in 2 sites), (3) Joylyn Alabastro (who photographed me in 13 sites), (4) Koy R. De Castro (who photographed me in 1 site), (5) Wigfredo De Castro, Lilian De Castro, Elisa Bagara-Egay, and April Patlin (who all taught me how to commute in the Cavite Province), and (6) John Rionhart Dellosa Buendia (who taught me how to commute going to Wawa Dam, Rizal).

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