The entire past week was one that I consider a truly tiring and at times a bit terrifying experience for me. Almost half of the entire office rode a tourist van for ten back-breaking hours to go to Abra – one of the most dangerous places outside of Mindanao. Not because of the presence of communists guerillas, although there are still a few… but because of private armed groups that roam the place protecting their political territories. Of course, the AFP and the PNP have assured us that we will be well-protected but still one can’t help but worry that there may be some people out there out to make mischief…But on that Monday morning that we rode the tourist bus, all our spirits were high and we all felt like kids going out on a field trip… not even the presence of a mean lady boss could dampen our day. Sure, we were a tad quieter than usual and we were not able to pose all we want for pictures because we were afraid to earn her ire but still we had fun in our own little mischievous ways.
The bus left a bit late even though everyone arrived on time (before 9 a.m.). Well, it seems there was some sort of mix-up and the bosses were expecting a big provincial passenger bus that will be hired for the duration of the trip but instead, the agency sent us something a little bigger than a coaster with hard seats and a smaller head ceiling, so they complained and wanted to change buses but there were no more buses available and we couldn’t afford to wait any longer so we just settled for what we had… of course, the one in charge of transportation had to answer a hell of a lot of complaints but he lived!
It was early when we got to Hacienda Luisita mall for our first stop and stretch of the day – which includes our lunch. So even though we had time to kill, our orders (from Max’s) arrived just a few minutes after we arrived because we ordered the meals in advance. It turns out though that the lady boss didn’t like her order of spring chicken meal and so we gave her lumpiang sariwa instead. The spring chicken was just brought as takeout for the driver (?)
And so after eating and relaxing a bit, we continued with our travel and stopped twice for toilet breaks at Urdaneta, Pangasinan (around 1 p.m.) and San Fernando, La Union (around 3pm). By 5 pm, we were already at Candon, Ilocos Sur and we would’ve wanted to eat halo-halo because it was so hot but the bus driver brought us to the wrong Chowking outlet (they don’t serve halo-halo!) so the guys just bought some more drinks (coz our ice chest full of drinks ran out already) and some junk food for us to munch on till we reach Abra. Besides, the lady boss wasn’t hungry yet and didn’t want to waste anymore time on the road so we had no choice but to heed her request.
It was almost 7 when we finally reached Abra and we fully understood the lady boss’ cause for concern. When we reached the junction at Narvacan, a van of security escorts were waiting to lead us up the circuitous roads of Abra. There was very little lighting and no other passing vehicles so we were quite thankful that there was still bit of daylight when we arrived. Halfway through another jeep of police escorts arrived to augment the van of security personnel and for the first time I felt apprehensive… because we never had quite an exhaustive security arrangement in our previous ‘gigs’ like this… so I guess the situation in this place is really different and a bit hazardous. I wish my soldier-cousin was coming, but alas he said he wasn’t included in the PSG’s line-up today… he did tell me to take care though.
Our fears were even more compounded when after our scrumptious dinner at Abrassi Hotel of dinengdeng, fried boneless bangus and bagnet, our security officer warned everyone (during the meeting) against just going off by themselves and wandering around in the city without informing him or any of the bosses because something might just happen to them. I was apprehensive too because the boys (including my hubby) were billeted in a different hotel from ours (Lucky Hotel near the heart of the city) which makes them more vulnerable as they might just suddenly decide to check out the sights(!?!) I just hoped and prayed that they would heed the security concerns aired by the security head and just stay put in the hotel at night. Thus, with a brief wish goodbye (no kiss!), they left for their hotel and we all retired for the night.
The next day we were up early at 7 am and we took our baths and had breakfast of fried rice, Abra longganisa, boiled egg, pandesal, butter and jam. I ate everything, except the rice which they say tasted really great and cost only 1550 per sack. The bread tasted great too even if it was a bit small plus their brewed coffee which is from the Arabica blend like Baguio’s. Then, we left for the provincial capitol at 9:30 am for a meeting with the governor’s wife at 10. There, we checked out the secretariat room and the media center and settled in for the meeting which lasted till past 11. They served meryenda of spaghetti which I didn’t eat because I knew lunch will soon be served. Instead, we decided to check out the tiangge downstairs though I didn’t buy anything yet.
By 12, we all headed back to Abrassi and ate our lunch again at their veranda… this time we had a mixed vegetable viand (eggplants, carrots, potatoes, etc. smothered with sweet vinaigrette dressing) which is part salad/part atsara and tasted really good, there was also the usual fish fillet and beef dish typical of most catering meals but the veggie meal was truly something else. We rested for awhile and we would’ve wanted to take our naps first but we couldn’t risk being seen there at the hotel by the lady boss so off we went to the provincial capitol just to help in any way we could at the secretariat room.
At first, I helped sharpen pencils, then after a while I went down to the media center to fix the set-up there. We had the two tarps put up, and the chairs placed theater type with all the tables flushed to the sides of the room. The others that wouldn’t fit anymore were placed inside the SP’s workroom. We also placed directional signs to the media center. But at around 4 when our boss arrived, he had all our arrangements changed. The first tarp was moved from the side of the door to the window, then the backdrop was lowered just an inch or two lower… Then the directional signs were replaced to add the activity’s title at the top… oh well, after all he’s the boss! Darwin had to follow his bidding coz by then I was downloading the media list from PIA Abra from our email.
For dinner we went back to Abrassi hotel and I guess it was not at all spectacular coz I couldn’t remember what it was and neither did I bother to take pictures of it. The boys hurriedly went back to the venue after eating to finish their set-up of the plenary hall while I stayed in the lobby just talking and having fun with some of the docu team who were fixing the metacard questions to be used in the workshop. The other members of the docu team also arrived at around 11 and some of them stayed with us at the lobby so we made quite a ruckus. Finally retired for the night at around 12 and by then my other roommates soon arrived. One came from the secretariat room, waiting for the updated list of participants from the registration team. The other made the round of hotels, to make sure that participants were billeted at the correct hotel. We just made some small talk before falling asleep coz we all have a big day ahead of us tomorrow.
I got up early before the alarm sounded at 5:30 coz I had a fitful night. My back ached because of the hard cushion of my folding bed but I couldn’t complain…I was the second to use the CR and after dressing up we ate breakfast and were ready to leave for the provincial capitol at 6:30 but the problem was, our driver was still taking a bath!!! Maybe the one in charge of transpo forgot to inform him that he had to be ready to shuttle the secretariat before 7. So, without anymore eating breakfast he had no choice but to bring us to the venue. As it was we were already late, but it’s a good thing the boys’ hotel was just nearby so they can just walk to the venue and were already manning the registration. My buddy was still upstairs getting our box so I helped him bring our stuff down.
The first day went smoothly – only about twenty local media from Abra and Baguio arrived to register. But they came in trickles so I had no choice but to stay put downstairs to man the media registration table which was located on the left side upon entering the capitol’s entrance. Security on that day was tight and behind me were PNP personnel while to the other side of me were AFP men armed with long firearms… couldn’t help thinking that I may easily be caught in the crossfire if they suddenly decide to shoot each other out! Good thing no such thing happened – the only little hitch that occurred was when one foreign photographer tried to worm his way in when we wouldn’t let him because he was inappropriately dressed in shorts and flowery polo shirt! Maybe if he was covering a vacation spot in Boracay – but definitely not a formal occasion like the LPSA. But overall, the registration process was peaceful.
The press conference was a different story altogether. After I ate a hurried lunch at the secretariat’s room, I proceeded to the media center at the second floor to wait for the media to arrive. There were only about five of them there and the food was also waiting for them to arrive… By 2 pm and there still weren’t many people arriving, I started texting the reporters registered on my logbook to say that the NSA will be arriving in a few minutes. A few more arrived and there were also some from Manila and some MARO personnel who came and left again after getting their kits and food. Sir Jude even got a bit apprehensive that the media were already leaving out of exasperation and too much waiting but I assured him that it was just the MARO making a fuss because it seems they were also affected by the ‘failure’ of PMS in getting advanced ‘hotel bookings’ for the President’s party. We don’t really need the national media yet anyway… it’s more the local media that’s our concern for today’s presscon. And so after much waiting and some changes in the presscon venue, we were finally able to stage it with PIA head – Helen Tibaldo moderating. Relevant questions were asked even if the presscon only lasted for less than an hour. But still, the reporters and even the guests all left fully satisfied with the Q and A that just transpired.
After the presscon, I was able to breathe a little and rest. For the first time, I was not a documentor so I did not have to hurry out to go to my workshop group. For once, I was free to do as I wish… too bad though that I couldn’t do pretty much coz I can’t retreat to the hotel room to change and rest coz it was too far away. So I just retreated to the secretariat room to exchange banter with the people there and catch up on the latest happenings. After I have rested awhile and when the heat has dissipated a little, I went down to the tiangge to buy a few souvenirs and pasalubongs from Abra. Wasn’t able to buy as much as I really wanted to because my budget was limited and I had to save up what few money I could for the kids’ schooling. Had to watch them lang as they bought everything they wanted to their hearts’content… they even bought narra furniture to be stashed beneath the Partas bus… lucky them!!!
We weren’t able to go back to the hotel anymore since by the time we finished our shopping, there was little time left before dinnertime. So I waited na lang with the rest of them and ate dinner (if they call it that because the portions were so tiny, it could have fed a bird) while the cultural show was playing. We decided to retire early for the night and left without finishing the show. Jun left earlier to just watch TV at Lucky and I would’ve wanted to go with him but I didn’t have any clothes with me… so I haven’t much choice but to retreat to my own room without a TV. I just lulled myself to sleep reading the book I brought. I’m just glad I’m not a documentor so I was not obliged to attend the editorial board meeting which I heard were marred by too much controversies and lasted until 1 am…
The next day, we were again up early for another big day with PGMA arriving. Once again, I manned the media registration downstairs and wasn’t even able to go up to watch the presentation because there were media men coming in trickles… those that went with her to Pilar and didn’t get to ride the chopper with her. So I had no choice but to wait for them downstairs and by the time they all arrived, the door was already closed and the venue filled to the brim. So I just retreated once again to the Secretariat room, grabbed a quick bite for lunch, took copies of the joint resolution for the media and waited for them to come out. The affair ended when PGMA left the venue at around 2 pm, there were still many people milling around the capitol and I was able to distribute my joint resolution in peace.
We immediately left the venue after I have ensured that our tarps and leftover kits were packed back in the PIAO box. We went back to the Abrassi hotel to freshen up and pack our bags. By 3 and Meann still hasn’t arrived, Weng and I decided to pack her things and load them in our new Partas bus. We then proceeded to the capitol to load the secretariat’s things although it was still a while before we actually left because there were so many things still left to be done (payments by Ate Ne) and besides we had to wait for our dinner pa so it was almost four pm when we finally left Abra.
We arrived at Laoag in time for dinner. It was a bit difficult to find a place to eat where we didn’t have to buy our food since we already have baon. But it’s a good thing we were able to find a perfect place big enough to accommodate all of us and at the same time not too conspicuous that it would be difficult to bring out our baon. We ate at the plaza’s open food court where they sold empanada and other souvenirs. The store’s helpers were all over themselves just to serve our every need because we bought 40 pieces of empanada from them – just enough to make them rich for the night!!!
So after eating bagnet, macaroni salad and Laoag empanada, we continued on with our journey and arrived at Pagudpud by 10 pm. After unloading our bags and checking out our rooms, we decided to visit the beach and just make small talk about the LPSA that just transpired. It was fun catching up on moments/ ‘juicy chika’ when I wasn’t there… the guys decided to conduct their drinking session right there on the beach while Jun and I had some coffee. After a while, the girls decided to call it a night because we planned to get up early tomorrow to swim.
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