We had a literal colorful weekend when we attended last Sunday (and Monday) the fiesta celebration of Tacloban City upon the invitation of Mayor Alfred Romualdez and his wife, Councilor Cristina Gonzales Romualdez, thru their kababayan and close friend and our colleague Aster Amoyo.

It was our first time to be in this city and we were happy to have said yes. We witnessed first-hand how the Taclobanons went through their week-long (they tell me it’s even month-long to some degree) festivities with all those painstaking preparations.

Tacloban is replete with history and the idyllic ambiance that gripped us right when we arrived at the Daniel Romualdez airport is very much welcome to us. We were billeted at the famous, historical Hotel Alejandro, which used to be the home of the patriotic Alejandros. Hotel Alejandro, we found out, was even a shelter for most of the prominent figures during the war, including Japanese officials. Anyway, the façade of the house was retained giving the hotel the “old world” look.

We had lunch at the Romualdez’s home before the Mayor and his wife went to the airport to pick up Former First Lady Imelda Marcos, the aunt of Mayor Alfred, who was a special guest during the awarding rites that night. They sat down with us (Aster Amoyo, Jojo Gabinete and Rey Pumaloy) as soon as they came back. They said they brought Madame Imelda to the Olot house of his brother Bejo Romualdez, Alfred’s father, where she usually stays when she goes home there.

Mayor Alfred and Cristina make a handsome pair. And what immediately impressed us was that the two are not just a political team, they are, foremostly a loving husband and wife and anyone can see that it was not a put on for politics’ sake. Cristina said, “I’m not really a politician but I am here to support my husband 100 percent. We’ve been busy because there are politicians here from Manila visiting as well. Sen. Manny Villar and Mayor Jejomar Binay are here.”

Mayor Alfred is on his first term as Mayor, after his stint as congressman. Cristina, too, is a councilor for the first time. They said they have made Tacloban their home now. Cristina is happy here, she told us. “I only miss showbiz when I see old friends who come here. I just miss the feeling but that was it,” she told us when we asked. They have two daughters, 9 and 6 years old respectively. Cristina said the girls are studying there now and can even speak the dialect, complete with the expressions, much to their delight.

The couple spearheads the “Sangyaw ’09” fiesta celebration, bringing in celebrities and stars to Tacloban to bring entertainment to their constituents. Cristina said they held a Ms. Tacloban pageant the night before where Gabby Concepcion, Richard Reynoso, Evangeline Pascual and Jestoni Alarcon were a part of. That night, Mrs. Marcos led the awardees in the Sangyaw Achievement Awards, where our friend Aster Amoyo was also cited.

The following day, the much-awaited parade glittered with the presence of Karylle, Christian Bautista and Luis Manzano. Dingdong Dantes was also there as part of his Talk and Text promo and we didn’t see him and Karylle rub elbows during the parade.

Dingdong told us that he was there as guest of Bamboo in the concert held at the Tacloban Convention Center that night.

The parade was the highlight of the celebration. But more than the stars, the real spectacle were the people. They came in colorful attires, native costumes, their music and unique dance steps. These were the participants – the youth sector from the different barangays in Tacloban and Leyte and Samar, even.

It was exactly what we see on TV, colorful, festive, noisy in a merry kind of way. For a while there, we felt like a tourist in our own country happy to take in the local color and be one with the merriment. It was very interesting to hear our tour guide mention that during the time of the Marcoses, fiestas are much grander in scope. “Puwede kang maki-fiesta dito kahit wala kang kilala,” he said. The government officials put food in all the public schools where everyone were free to come and partake of the buffet. That was then,” he said with a sense of regret.

Before going back to Manila, we also took the chance to visit the McArthur Park and cruise the San Juanico Bridge, the longest bridge in the Philippines, the one that links Samar and Leyte and was constructed during the time of the Marcoses.A tour inside the Sto. Niño Shrine, now sequestered by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), however, reminded us of the opulence and extravagance that inevitably go with the pursuit of “the true, the good and the beautiful.”

PCGG charges P200 for a minimum group of five people for entrance and another R30 if you will take photos. Seeing the entire structure, we figured that amount will never be enough to restore the lost grandeur and lavish glory of the place. It clearly reeked of neglect.

All in all, our Tacloban visit proved to be extraordinary. Weird it may sound but even for a brief and fleeting moment, it somehow reawakened our neglected sense of patriotism and feelings of nationalism.