ALL roads led to Lucban, Quezon, for its annual Pahiyas Festival yesterday (Sunday, May 15, 2016). A harvest feast held every May 15 in honor of San Isidro Labrador, the patron saint of farmers in the Philippines, the Pahiyas Festival draws crowds of tourists yearly because it happens to be one of the most colorful festivals celebrated in the country. Houses are decorated with fresh vegetables, fruits, flowers and kipings, which are leaf-shaped rice wafers in various happy colors, in thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest. And a procession bearing the image of San Isidro Labrador makes its way around the upland town which sits right on the foothills of Mount Banahaw.
I always marvel at photographs of the Pahiyas Festival that appear on newspapers and magazines, and I have always wanted to personally witness the celebration. But I have never been there—until last year. It’s a road trip that I have often talked to my husband Raff about in the past, but it never materialized because he says it’s too far to drive round-trip and there weren’t many places to stay in overnight, either.
Last year, the Pahiyas Festival looked like it would pass me by once again. But working on a special project that necessitated trips to major Philippine festivals to chronicle them in photographs, I felt restless in the days leading up to May 15, 2015. I wanted—and needed—to catch it, but I did not know how. Should I coerce Raff to drive up to Lucban in our AUV that’s not quite roadworthy to take such a long trip? Looked like it was the only way.
I was agonizing over how to talk to him and say it nicely so that he would agree, when my mobile phone rang. I reached for my phone and read the message, which came from good friend Nana Nadal, a professional PR practitioner who handles top accounts. She was handling the PR of Nissan Philippines, she said in her text message, and, wanting to introduce new ideas and innovations to the traditional way of promoting Nissan cars by lending them to motoring journalists for road tests so they would write about their experience driving such cars, she thought of tapping lifestyle journalists, too. Why not lend cars to lifestyle journalists so that when they write about it, it would show a different perspective—the experience of not-so-car-savvy people actually enjoying a ride in a Nissan car. Her client said yes and, guess who she thought of first for that lifestyle angle? Me! Would I want to borrow a Nissan Sylphy for a few days and then write about it?
I could not believe my eyes as I read the text message. Was this an answered prayer? But I had not even asked God, and yet His answer came first? Awesome!
I texted Nana back, telling her about plans for me and Raff to drive up to Lucban, Quezon, for the Pahiyas Festival but that our AUV wasn’t in proper condition. Would it be OK to take the Nissan Sylphy on that road trip to Lucban? She said yes, that would be a good angle for a story. A few exchanges of text messages later, she made the formal request to Nissan and followed through with arrangement details. She had barely a few days to get that car to me in time for the Pahiyas Festival, but, as she usually did, she pulled it off. Two days before Raff and I were to go to Lucban, the car was delivered to the house, and the papers that came with it said it was to be with me for eight days. Eight beautiful days! Oh, wow! I glanced at the silver gray baby snugly parked in the garage and told myself: “This baby is mine for eight days!”
When the Nissan driver left after leaving some basic driving instructions, I texted Nana that the car had arrived, and she suggested taking it for a spin in the area to familiarize ourselves with its features before that long drive to Lucban. We did—and were completely awed.
The Nissan Sylphy was not only a handsome baby. It had a spacious interior that ensured utmost comfort for both the driver and the passenger(s). Elegantly designed, the sedan had a clean ergonomic dashboard, sleek leather seats with a pump-style height adjuster that allowed Raff and me to adjust our seats to our comfort levels, and snugly fitting compartments for drinks and snacks on the doors.
The car runs on keyless technology. It has a push-button ignition; but if you’re worried about having just anybody entering the car and running away with it with just a push of a button, it will not happen. The keyless system’s safe and secure because you need to have the smart key, which works as a sensor, in your pocket up to a certain distance for it to respond to your commands. It is so intelligent that it can sense when you’re coming and, at a safe distance, already opens the doors for you. It runs on automatic transmission so it’s easy drive all the way, and since it’s automatic, it simply glides as it negotiates roadways, effectively cushioning the impact of sudden potholes. The car also has a spacious 510-liter storage compartment in the back, and the rear passenger seats can even be folded for additional storage area if needed. And the air-conditioning system is so efficient that it will keep you cold and happy even on the hottest summer day. Since May is still a summer month, the Nissan Sylphy’s strong air-conditioning system comes in very handy.
Having familiarized ourselves with the car, Raff and I were ready to hit the road to get to Lucban, Quezon, and witness the Pahiyas Festival for the very first time. My first time, but not his. We loaded up the car with a cooler filled with drinks and ice cubes, as well as extra shoes and personal stuff, which, in total, only occupied a small portion of the very spacious storage compartment.
And then it was off. From our place in Cainta, Rizal, we made our way through Pasig, Makati, Taguig, Bicutan, Sucat and Alabang. On to Laguna (San Pedro, Biñan, Carmona, Canlubang and Sta. Rosa). I enjoyed the scenic view of Mt. Makiling with coconut plantations in the foreground as we made our way through Sto. Tomas, Batangas, then on to Alaminos and San Pablo City in Laguna, before reaching Quezon (Tiaong, Candelaria and Sariaya, straight to Tayabas). It was a smooth ride to Lucban, with the Nissan Sylphy just gliding along and the delightful air-con occasionally lulling me to sleep with a nice and cozy scarf over me. The temperature of the engine remained steadily cool, and at no instance at all did it threaten to overheat despite the long ride.
Reaching Lucban, we stopped at a gas station for some refreshments and chanced upon a kiping-decorated native stall that sold Quezon delicacies, including raw honey. I checked it out and decided to buy a bottle. Then it was back to business.
We got back in the car and traveled the rest of the way to the town proper. We parked at the Church of Lucban, which was a beautiful centuries-old edifice that was first built in 1595, and went inside to say a little prayer before proceeding on foot to the site of the famous Pahiyas Festival. Since Lucban stood at a high elevation, the air was quite cold and fresh so our walk turned out to be a pleasant one. Raff, who had been to Lucban before, pointed out how different Lucban looked from the time he was there, and he kept looking for the flowing creek where, he said, townfolks used to wash their clothes like in the old movies. Well, we found it, alright, but not in its original state. It’s more narrow now to give space to what we call progress (read: cemented roads and commercial/residential structures), although it still flows across the town in the form of canals. The flowing water in the canals still look kind of clean and clear, although you cannot be sure of its quality, of course.
Then the houses pomped up with décor for the Pahiyas Festival started coming into view. Residents decorated the front of their homes as part of their own family traditions, decking it with fresh vegetables and fruits such as cucumber, patola, carrots, tomatoes, sayote, mangoes, corn cobs, bananas and eggplants, as well as coconut husks, palay stalks, buri fans and leaves. The traditional kipings were still there, although, as a resident intimated, their use had been kept to a minimum because very few people make them now and they have therefore become quite expensive.
The beautiful houses kept us busy. Raff and I clicked away with our cameras, shielding ourselves from direct sunlight by seeking refuge under the awnings of houses. There was a nice, cold breeze, so, unlike in other places where I would feel sticky all over after a few hours of sun exposure covering outdoor events, I did not. We took a quick lunch break in one of the local restaurants in the area, ordering Pancit Lucban, which was loaded with pechay, sayote, green beans, carrots and crispy pork belly strips with the noodles, along with a fish viand and rice. The restaurants around the area also sold one of Lucban’s most famous specialties, Lucban Longganisa. Since Raff and I were not meat eaters, we passed on this and got back to work.
By around 3:00 p.m., we were ready to head home. Should we take the same path back to Manila? The residents we got to talk to taught us a shorter way down Majayjay, Laguna, and this being a road trip, we decided to experiment. This was when the Nissan Sylphy once again showed the stuff it is made of. It glided beautifully up and down the slopes of the challenging terrain, responding well to the gentle and climb and providing needed power at sudden uphill turns. The Nissan Sylphy comes in three variants—1.8 CVT, 1.6 CVT AND 1.6 MT—and the variant that we were driving was the top-of-the-line 1.8 CVT, which was the most powerful among the three. The revolutionary machine’s four cylinders and 16 valves with X-Tronic CVT (Twin Continuous Variable-valve Timing Control System) made the challenging terrain a smooth, easy and comfortable drive.
On our drive home, we stopped by Liliw, Laguna, to visit the Church of Lilio, another heritage church that dated back to the 1600s, and do a little tsinelas shopping in the row of shoe stores that line the streets of Liliw not too far from the church. Liliw is, after all, known as the tsinelas capital of Laguna. The first time I was in Liliw was several years ago, and I was amazed with all the footwear options I found, from simple slippers to fancy ones, slip-ons and walking shoes to, yes, even high heels. This time around, I just needed a pair of thong-style slip-ons, so that’s what I got. We spent only a few minutes in Liliw and hit the road again.
On the way home, it started to get dark. That’s when the Nissan Sylphy showed off again. Aside from the sophisticated 6-speaker audio system powered by Sony XAV that provided the sounds and kept us entertained all the way home, the ergonomic dashboard also came with a fine vision combination meter, a Drive Computer Display that showed real-time fuel consumption and eco-zone indicator (Accelerator Pedal Guide). These, plus the telescopic power steering wheel, made the drive smooth and Raff’s job behind the steering wheel effortless.
The sedan’s stunning Xenon headlamp coupled with LED accent lamps, along with the outside door mirrors with power-folding and power-adjust features that are parallel to the sporty 17-inch alloy wheels, plus the striking LED tail lights, helped Raff see clearly throughout the drive. You’ve got to admire the clarity of its LED lamps, which make the way clear and visible at night.
Got home nice and safe—and in utmost comfort—with precious photos of the Pahiyas Festival.
In the remaining days of the Nissan Sylphy’s eight-day stay with me, the dashing baby accompanied Raff and me to our daily coverages as freelance writer (me) and photographer (Raff) for TV5’s www.interaksyon.com/lifestyle, Asian Dragon Magazine, Manila Bulletin’s Style Weekend and a few other publications. I had a cool and comfortable ride each day and got so used to the Sylphy’s presence that when it came time for the sleek sedan to leave, I said good-bye with a bit of a heavy heart. Oh, well, that’s life! Until we meet again…
Whether for a road trip or city driving, it surely rose to the occasion each time.
