Blood Compact Shrine

The Blood Compact Shrine

What Kids Should Know:
For several years, this site was believed to be the place where the Blood Compact between Miguel Lopez de Legaspi and Datu Sikatuna was held. This place overlooked the Bohol Sea. A shrine was built to mark this place. For years, this shrine was the center of festivities of the annual Sandugo Festival which commemorated the famous Blood Compact.  In 2005, new documents revealed that the actual site is 17 km away from this place. The transfer of the shrine to the actual blood compact site is still under discussion. See my post on the Actual Blood Compact site.


Who made the sculpture:
National Artist for Sculpture, Napoleon Abueva, a Boholano


Where is it located:
Barangay Bool, Tagbilaran City

The Bohol Sea in the background
The site is by the roadside along the National Road

See our next stop: Dauis Church

See previous post:

Baclayon Church

Prony, the Biggest Python in Captivity

The Actual Blood Compact Site

The Tarsiers of Bohol

Loboc River Cruise

Hanging Bridge

Manmade Forest

Chocolate Hills of Bohol

Baclayon Church, Bohol

Baclayon Church, Bohol
(also know as the Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception)

There are so many churches in Bohol but I consider this Church a must see site. Kids would view it as just one of those churches and would take it for granted. But personally, the magnificence and the size of this Church made me realize that Bohol is considered by the Spanish colonial regime as one of the most important islands in the Philippines. They would not have constructed a Church of this size and detail if they didn't think that Bohol is a very important island. 


By this time, my other kids were already very tired. Only my son went up with me to the 2nd floor of the Church where we found the museum. What my son (being a violinist) found interesting  is the giant hymn book that we saw. It looked so medieval. It was extraordinarily large with square notes on it, as opposed to the usual round notes. 

After this trip, I read in the newspaper that Baclayon Church is the home of the recently discovered cantorales or libros de coro (choir books) sung during Mass in the 1800s.  That was the same hymn book we saw displayed at the Baclayon Church Museum. What was so important about the discovery is that these cantorales is a complete collection and the most intact.  Last May 2010, during the Philippine Heritage Month the hymns were performed by the Loboc Children's Choir at the Manila Cathedral.


For more details and to see a photo of the book, see Ceres Doyo's article ‘Misa Baclayana’: ancient beauty that sounds so new". It was published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.


What kids should know

• Baclayon Church is the oldest stone church building in the Philippines

The altar

The play of light and colors is attributed to the stained glass windows of the Church

The mysterious image outside the walls of the Church. It is not manmade. It was caused by normal wear and tear due to environmental factors.

Note: The Church guards are very strict with the dress code. They provide shawls for girls/women in sleeveless tops.

See our next stop: The Blood Compact Shrine

See previous post:

Baclayon Church

The Actual Blood Compact Site

The Tarsiers of Bohol

Loboc River Cruise

Hanging Bridge

Manmade Forest

Chocolate Hills of Bohol

Prony, the Biggest Python in Captivity

Prony, the Biggest Python in Captivity

What Kids Should Know


Date Captured: 
October 21, 1996. At the time of the capture, it's length is only 5 feet and it weighed only 5 kilos

When they weighed and measured it in 2005
Weight is 200 kilos
Size is 23 feet and 30 inches


What it can eat
A whole live pig


Owners:
Sofronio, Jing Jing and Egin Salibay


Where it is located:
Sta Filomena, Albuquerque, Bohol

You can enter the cage and touch the python

The owner kissing the python

The snakeskin

My Tip: Buy peanut kisses here. They are sold at factory price.

See my next post: Baclayon Church

See previous post:

The Actual Blood Compact Site

The Tarsiers of Bohol

Loboc River Cruise

Hanging Bridge

Manmade Forest

Chocolate Hills of Bohol

Where is the Actual Blood Compact Site?

Where is the Actual Blood Compact Site?

For a very long time, Tagbilaran City was believed to be the site where the Blood Compact was held. Findings in 2005 showed that the site was in fact located in a different place, around 17 kilometers from where it was believed to have been held for hundreds of years. In 2005, the National Historical Institute officially declared in Resolution 4, series of 2005 that the exact location of the blood compact site is in Loay, Bohol (not Tagbilaran City) and March 25, 1565 as the exact date when the blood compact was held/

What Kids Should Know


What is the Blood Compact?

The marker tells us what the Blood Compact is all about. I translated it into English as shown in the caption. 

The Blood Compact (Sandugo literally means One Blood in English): 

The Blood Compact happened on March 25, 1565 at the Bay of Hinawanan, Loay between Miguel Lopez de Legazpi and Datu Sikatuna of Bohol, onboard the flagship San Pedro of Spain. The Blood Compact was made by drinking wine mixed with blood taken from a cut from the breast of the two leaders. This sealed and marked the friendship between Spain and the Boholanos and the start of Christianity in the Philippines.

Why is the Blood Compact important:
It is the Philippine's First International Treaty of Friendship.

Participants:
Miguel Lopez de Legazpi and Datu Sikatuna of Bohol

Where It Is Held:
On board the flagship San Pedro docked at the Bay of Hinawanan, Loay, Bohol

How was the Blood Compact performed:
NOT by drinking each other's blood. They took a small amount of blood taken from a cut on the breast of the 2 leaders (not from the cut on the arm as some people think) and mixed it in wine. Then the 2 leaders drank the wine to seal the treaty of friendship.

At the left is the marker, at the center is the platform where the blood compact was held, and at the back of the platform is the well.

The site is by the roadside.

The well is at the back of the platform

Sikatuna's Well: 

This is "the well between the rivers" mentioned in the latest document. It was where the soldier's of Legazpi fetched water. It was built around 1200 AD and is 20 meters deep

This is the replica of houses seen by the Spaniards built near the bay where the flagship San Pedro docked.

See our next stop: The Biggest Python in Captivity

see previous post:

The Tarsiers of Bohol

Loboc River Cruise
Hanging Bridge

Manmade Forest

Chocolate Hills of Bohol

Up Close and Personal with the Tarsiers of Bohol

Up Close and Personal with the Tarsiers of Bohol

Why you shouldn't miss seeing the Tarsiers of Bohol
You cannot find it anywhere in the world except where it is endemic, like in Bohol. They cannot be transported anywhere like other animals because they are so sensitive and easily traumatized. Those who have attempted to smuggle them outside their habitat were unsuccessful. The Tarsiers are so sensitive, they commit suicide and die when they are touched. Therefore you cannot find it in different zoos around the world. 

What Kids Should Know

• What are Tarsiers: 

1. They are the world's smallest primate. They have similar physical characteristics as the monkey. 
2. They are also one of the oldest land species, existing for almost 45 million years

• Where can it be found: 

1. The Philippines (in Bohol, Leyte, Samar and Mindanao) 
2. Indonesia (in Sulawesi, Borneo, Sumatra) 

• Interesting facts about the Tarsiers of Bohol 

(taken from http://www.tarsierfoundation.org/the-tarsiers-of-bohol)

•  They are nocturnal animals (meaning they are active at night and sleep during the day) and should not be disturbed at day time  

• Their main diet is insects and should not be fed with meat. 

• They commit suicide during captivity due to trauma from touching and loud noise. 

• They’re one of the slowest fetal growth rates of any mammal, taking 6 months to reach a birth weight of 23 grams. 

• A single tarsier needs at least a hectare of space per individual 

1:30PM -1:45 PM: Traveled from the Loboc River to the Tarsier Sanctuary

see previous post:
Loboc River Cruise
Hanging Bridge

Manmade Forest

Chocolate Hills of Bohol

1:45 PM-215pm: Saw and fed the Tarsiers of Bohol

They sleep during the day.

This is how close we were able to see the Tarsier.

No touching!
My daughter pretending to touch the Tarsier.

See our next stop: The Actual Blood Compact Site

Lunch at the Loboc River Cruise

Lunch at the Loboc River Cruise

What Kids Should Know

• Where it is located: at Loay-Loboc River
• Why is the river important in the history of Loboc: the Loboc River is important because most of the inhabitants pf this town live near the river before the Spaniards came and established the town.
• What the river cruise boat is made of: The river cruise boat, which is also a floating restaurant, is made of 2 boats with a platform on top.
• What to expect:  The cruise takes you along the Loboc River. While on the cruise, you dine with Filipino food, buffet style, and are entertained by locals dancing and singing Filipino songs on a platform built on one side of the river. At the end of the river is a small waterfalls.

11:30 AM -12:00 PM: Registration at the terminal of the Lobor River Cruise

Our guide, Tatsky, recommended Riverwatch Floating Restaurant. 

The Menu of Riverwatch: Pork Barbecue, Grilled Fish, Grilled Squid, Crab, Kutsinta and Suman, Ginaling, Malagkit, Fresh Mango, Mix Vegetables, Bamboo Shoots, Pancit, Pinakbet, Etc.

The ticket

Free wifi at the terminal

The new rates as of May 1, 2010

 12:00 PM -1:30 PM: Loboc River Cruise

Boarding the floating restaurant

The floating restaurant built on top of 2 large bancas

Dining at the floating restaurant

The end of the River where the boat takes a u-turn

A small performance was made by the locals singing Filipino songs on a platform on the side of the river.

See our next stop: The Tarsiers of Bohol

see previous post:

Manmade Forest

Chocolate Hills of Bohol
Hanging Bridge

Where to Buy Pasalubong in Bohol

Where to Buy Pasalubong and Souvenirs in Bohol

For my non-Filipino readers, pasalubong means gifts you bring home to relatives and friends after a trip. In the Philippines, these token gifts are almost always expected. I did not anymore translate the term into English because I can't think of a single word that will accurately describe this practice. The pasalubong can also be souvenirs for all of us.

When you see blog posts or ask relatives and friends who visited Bohol, they would say that the cheapest place to buy pasalubong is the grocery. But sometimes, it's not convenient to pass by a grocery while on tour so I'll mention where you can buy gifts/pasalubong/souvenirs along the way. Most of those who go to Bohol for the first time, do the countryside tour. So if you are doing the countryside tour, here is a list of places where you can buy these things:

  

Peanut kisses

• the cheapest will be at where you see the Largest Python in captivity.
• you can also find it at the Hanging Bridge and Hinagdanan Cave
• if you're staying in Alona Beach, there's also at Rona's grocery,  and of course, the most expensive will be at the stores along Alona Beach

Souvenir bracelets and key chains with or without the Tarsier motif

• at the Hanging Bridge
•  it's expensive to buy Tarsier themed product at the Tarsier sanctuary

Souvenir T-shirts

• best place to buy is at the Hinagdanan Cave. There are so many t-shirt stores near the entrance of the Hinagdanan cave so there are plenty of choices.
• you can also find T-shirts at the souvenir shop at the Hanging Bridge

Bohol Bee Farm products

• such as pesto spread, chocolate spread, chocolate tablets with honey
• you can buy these products at the Bohol Bee farm
• see more products at Bohol Bee farm website

Hanging Bridge of Bohol

Hanging Bridge of Bohol

What Kids Should Know

• Where it is located: at Sevilla town of Bohol
• Built over what river: the Loboc River 
• Why was it built: to connect 2 barangays. Without the bridge, the locals will have to walk very far to cross to the other side of the river. 
• Made of what materials: It is a suspension bridge with bamboo flooring

11:00 AM -11:05 AM: Traveled from Manmade Forest to the Hanging Bridge

see previous post:

Manmade Forest

Chocolate Hills of Bohol

11:05 AM -11:25 AM: Crossed the river, bought souvenirs, returned to the van

It took us around 20 minutes to pay the entrance fee, cross the river, buy souvenirs at the shops at the other side of the river, and walk back, pause and take pictures in the middle of the river, then return to the van.

 

The entrance of the hanging bridge. 
The management imposes a load limit of 10 persons at a time.

This is the distance of the bridge from the river below. 
You can see a native Boholano washing clothes at the river.

The wooden flooring of the bridge

There are 2 bridges. 
At the other side are souvenir shops.

My tip: If you don't have much time shopping for souvenirs, you can make a stop at the souvenir shops at the other side of the river. You can buy peanut kisses, key chains, native placemats, and bracelets. If you're making a stop at the largest python, it's best to buy peanut kisses there instead of the souvenir shops here because they sell the cheapest peanut kisses, almost at factory price.

It's safe for kids to cross this bridge, as long as they are not initially frightened at the idea. 
The bridge is stable.

We are hanging on top of the Loboc river.

My tip: Ask your guide to cross the other bridge so he can take a picture like this. In our case, it was our guide, Tatsky's idea to take this picture. 

See our next stop: The Loboc River Cruise and Floating Restaurant