Haay, Majayjay! (Part 2)

(The Majayjay river runs through it.)

Long before Meryl Streep showed off her rowing skills in River Wild, and just about the time when Angelina Jolie’s dad, a then 20something Jon Voight took his friends to a tragic canoe trip down the rivers of Georgia in Deliverance, Filipino filmmakers were shooting a lot of films in rivers.  Clean, rubbish-free rivers.  There were simple, Amorsolo-esque women bathing and doing their laundry in rivers, happily singing, and shyly wooing the men.   If it weren’t a musical, the women would still be bathing and washing, and the tulisan baddies would suddenly enter frame, chase after the women to rape them until FPJ or Erap comes to the rescue. 

The river in Oro Plata Mata where Mitch Valdes bathed topless was a memorable backdrop.  So was the river where Nora flirted with Bembol, and where Bembol flirted with Vilma.  Two different movies, same river: the river in Majayjay.

Those who lament the death of natural tributaries should visit Majayjay.  Its river is as clean as it was when Nora held the batya’t palu-palo 35 years ago.  The Laguna folk have long been ecologically conscious.  They’ve disallowed pig and chicken farms near the river.  Residents do not treat it as their one big toilet.  Tourists who swim in the river are told to preserve its beauty as well.  


It’s the Majayjay river that’s attracted a friend to build his weekend retreat.  He bought a 1700 square meter property a few years back for a pittance, designed it himself even if he had no architectural background.  He's turned it into the most magical and cinematic home I’ve ever seen in the country.   And the best part is, he’s yet to see a tulisan trespasser.

The façade

The first structure: receiving area/living room.  Check out the roof.  The owner didn't want the usual stiff angle.  He wanted it curved, graceful; so he had the metal that held the roof bent.

Different textures working together.

Hardly any chairs in the sala.  The owner figured guests come to laze around.

The second structure: dining

Exquisite detail: cogon grass as sturdy roofing material and the original artpiece/lightsource on the wall. 

The third structure on the right is the guest room.  

Next time, I want to sleep here.  The mirrors reflect the river and all the flora.

The door that opens to the other side.

You could now see it flowing and hear it rambling.

A peek into the pièce de résistance

Yup, the river is right in his backyard.

The other side of the stream that flows into a bigger one.

You'd have to step on the rocks and get your feet wet to get to the main structure.

The main house on the right

Picnic/Breakfast area

The fourth structure: bedroom

Behind the bedroom 

It's super clean and very cold.

Haay, Majayjay! (Part 1)

(Or, retracing Ate Guy's steps where she had a Vidal Sassoon makeover in 1976)

Filled with Catholic guilt (the uppercase ‘C’ is proof of such guilt) every time Easter Week comes, I choose to stay home and not indulge in worldly pleasures like a four-day weekend at the beach or overseas.   As kids, we were taught not be cheery until Christ has risen.  The most I’d do since would be day-long trips somewhere close to Manila, places that I’ve never visited.  Last year it was Pila, Laguna, arguably the most picturesque little town in the Philippines.  The other day it was Majayjay, Laguna.


I thought it would be a long drive so I almost flaked when friends suggested Majayjay.  The only reason that really made me go was the fact that the town was the location of some of the most memorable movies I saw as a kid:  Ganito Kami Noon Paano Kayo Ngayon (1976); Pagputi ng Uwak, Pagitim ng Tagak (1978); Gumising Ka, Maruja (1978); and Tatlong Taong Diyos (1976).   In the last film mentioned, the town was as important as its star, Nora Aunor.   

Tatlong Taong Diyos tells the story of Rosario (Aunor), a sensible and feisty schoolteacher who gets raped by a Japanese officer (Christopher de Leon), whose troops overrun a quiet town in Luzon for three years.   Rosario then gets pregnant and falls for the Japanese.   The townspeople are shocked and ostracize the collaborator.   In the end, the women exact revenge on Rosario but cutting off her hair (Sounds familiar?  That was how the 2000 Italian film, Malena, ended as well.   But Nora did it 25 years ahead of Monica Bellucci. )

The film was significant because it started Nora’s career as a serious actress and producer.  But if you’d see it now, the results are quite laughable.   Christopher couldn’t be Japanese.   The staging of key scenes was theatrical.  The haircutting scene had women, all dressed in black like a Greek chorus, unnaturally encircling Rosario.  When she emerged from the ring, Nora actually looked better, when she was supposed to look shamed and ugly.  What a fab makeover!

Before

After

Unlike the film, the church remains beautiful though.