19 years after Pinatubo’s ‘big bang,’ a lot of changes for these folks
By: Tonette Orejas
Philippine Daily Inquirer, Norther Luzon Bureau
WITH SIX GOATS IN TOW, Miranda King stands on the edge of a cliff, surveying the grass and shrubs below before the sun sets over Inararo, the closest village to Mount Pinatubo on the side of Porac, Pampanga.
King, 80, makes a slow descent, wanting to feed his goats with plants wet by the morning dew. To his far right, layers of charcoal-colored rocks cover the slopes in this part of the volcano that erupted in June 1991 and changed Central Luzon’s landscape.
The sand, ash and pumice stones that the eruptions spewed out are gone, washed down by rains. No one in his Aeta tribe ventures here, though, because the rocks chip off from the weight of climbers.
Far down, to King’s left, the river in San Marcelino, Zambales, looks every bit like a winding highway leading straight to the South China Sea. Houses dot what is now a green sweep.
In Inararo, two waterfalls gurgle off water, feeding streams in the village. But irrigation is not enough because farms covered by volcanic debris need lots of water.
And so members of King’s clan planted banana one would think a plantation is out here. They were so desperate to earn that they cultivated the plant even on steep rises.
Villa Maria resettlement, a half-day walk from Inararo, offers a bird’s eye view of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway that cuts through the highlands of Hermosa and Dinalupihan towns in Bataan, and Floridablanca and Porac towns in Pampanga.
King’s grandson, Joseph, left for Saudi Arabia two years ago to work as a welder.
“Dakal na ing menibayu (A lot has changed),” King said of his clan’s life and their environs.
Read more: 19 years after Pinatubo’s ‘big bang,’ a lot of changes for these folks
Showing posts with label mt. pinatubo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mt. pinatubo. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Friday, January 25, 2008
Article: A Mt. Pinatubo Experience (by: Luis Morano)
From: www.experiencephilippines.ph
A Mt. Pinatubo Experience
Luis Morano
Getting the chance to travel and see the Philippine countryside is always a welcome respite from the stress of living and working in a metropolis. But when I was told that I was going to Mt Pinatubo with my colleagues in the Department of Tourism and some members of CAPTA, AFTA and the Philippine Specialists Group, I immediately thought I was in for a tiring and stressful trip. Little did I know that as much as it was going to be some kind of a “wasteland” adventure, it will also be a relaxing and “healing” experience.
The National Geographic Channel once showed a documentary about Pinatubo that talked about the extent of damage to life, property and environment its violent eruption during the early 90’s caused to the Philippines and the world in general. I was definitely exciting as well as it was interesting to see, during a leisure-working trip, the aftermath of the most destructive volcanic event in the Philippines of the 20th century.
Read more
A Mt. Pinatubo Experience
Luis Morano
Getting the chance to travel and see the Philippine countryside is always a welcome respite from the stress of living and working in a metropolis. But when I was told that I was going to Mt Pinatubo with my colleagues in the Department of Tourism and some members of CAPTA, AFTA and the Philippine Specialists Group, I immediately thought I was in for a tiring and stressful trip. Little did I know that as much as it was going to be some kind of a “wasteland” adventure, it will also be a relaxing and “healing” experience.
The National Geographic Channel once showed a documentary about Pinatubo that talked about the extent of damage to life, property and environment its violent eruption during the early 90’s caused to the Philippines and the world in general. I was definitely exciting as well as it was interesting to see, during a leisure-working trip, the aftermath of the most destructive volcanic event in the Philippines of the 20th century.
Read more