CAMIGUIN: Island of Sunken Cemetery
BELIEVE it or not, Camiguin keeps a sunken cemetery! Its landmark, a large white cross, was swept into the sea by Old Vulcan Daan’s eruption in 1871 that wiped out the illustrious town of Catarman.
The ruins of old San Roque Church in Gui-ob, Catarman speak of the remnants of that eruption. It is a monument with thick century-old walls, belfry and convent which stand reminiscent of the second Spanish settlement established in 1697.
From the white cross you can watch the glorious sunset over the ocean. It is also an ideal place for snorkeling and diving. An annual fluvial procession is held by townsfolk in honor of the sunken graves of their forefathers and as a thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest.
A few years back, the old Sto. Rosario Church built in 1882 had been restored to its former glory in Sagay, Camiguin.
The life-size statues depicting the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ are found at the slopes of the volcano, where the 14 Stations of the Cross make a trail to reach its peak. At the last station is a sepulcher carefully carved and chiseled out of volcanic rocks. The pilgrims congregate here to pray during the Lenten Season.
Built in the 1800s, anyone can also visit the ancestral house of the Francisco family in Los Libertados St., Mambajao before or after the Lenten Season. You can likewise take a look at the centennial house of the Corrales family in Lakas St. This house was also erected in 1800s.
A “Centennial Tree” (pili nut tree) is also situated here. One can notice how this tree survived the tests of time by touching its huge trunk.
Camiguin is really a unique and mystical province-an island of imagination.
Filipinas Herald
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
