This is yet another trip to my hometown, Pampanga, which had the most dramatic story of any place in the 90s. When a dormant volcano, sleeping for hundreds of years, erupt without sufficient warning, the result can be deadly. Mount Pinatubo in a nearby province erupted when I was eleven years old. During that time, my family and I were living just in a town which is just behind the mountain range that covers the site of the erupting volcano. I remember distinctly the day when the clouds were pitch dark in the middle of the noon and the lightnings were purplish and the sky started to rain small pebbles, then hot, wet volcanic ashes. It was a near-doomsday experience. Even after four years since that day, the tragedy continued to flow, literally. The immediate picture below shows how the lahar (volcanic mudflow) from the volcano ravaged many towns and completely buried houses and destroyed people's lives back in the middle of the 90s. Even my high school campus was not spared. Imagine having memories of a place, which you could never ever go back to because it is no longer there.

These pictures were taken last year..more than a decade after the tragic phenomenon. Pampanga has bounced back. And what was striking to me to see are the churches, which endured the test of time. Our country, being occupied by the Spanish for three centuries, have left an indelible mark on our culture--various historical works of art can be seen in the churches all over the Philippines. The picture above is the facade of the Bacolor, Church. Half of the church is buried by lahar. And yet, for many of the townsfolk of Pampanga, life goes on. Even the two other churches in this Tabblo underwent tragic experiences because of the Mount Pinatubo eruption. I guess this is part of what I admire most about where I come from. It beckons to be seen and admired despite its flawed, tragic and rustic past. And that's just beautiful.

Look! This was once a roof of a large house. See how the water tank is just so low. And also notice that other house behind it with large foundations. The owners were afraid that the lahar mudflow would come again.