by Ramon Jorge Sarabosing
Do you know the way to San Jose? Of course, what with nearly every barrio named thus in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
But let Surigao City's poet-playwright Greggo Uriarte point you to the best San Jose in the country, where you can spend your summer vacation or any break from the madness of your daily routine.
San Jose, an island, is an hour-long pumpboat (motor banca) ride away from Surigao City, one of two comprising the newly formed Caraga region in Northern Mindanao.
"Actually, San Jose is just the jump-off point," Uriarte says. "You have islands and islets to choose from, but the famous and most popular is Sagisi."
The island of Sagisi is shaped like a half-submerged crocodile and surrounded by San Jose, Hinatuan and Talavera islands.
So enamoured was Uriarte with Sagisi that he built a family cottage there. "It was supposed to be a resthouse but when artists and their friends started coming in, we decided to turn it into an artists' sanctuary of sorts," says the writer who has two poetry collections and a string of local plays to his credit.
He adds, "Artists, writers, painters, musicians, cultural workers, and those of like mind have always dreamt of a place to run to -- create works of art or seek inspiration from the muses -- and they all say they have found it in Sagisi."
So what's in Sagisi that draws artists and non-artists?
"It's the quietness and the privacy," says Darwin Falcon, an alternative musician and cultural worker. "Imagine living alone with only Manang Tita and Manong Leonard, the island's caretakers. You can really do a lot."
For Sam-at Atega, an outdoor enthusiast, it's the diving and the variety of fish. "I caught two eels in one morning," he proudly announced.
"People come here for all the reasons you can think of. Some savor the white-sand beaches and azure waters, to mountain trek (yes, the island of San Jose has peaks ideal for fun climbs), to go boating or island hopping, or simply to stroll and pick shells around the island."
Strolling around Sagisi is a recommended activity. "But please do it at low tide," warns a regular visitor. There are rocks and boulders and a number of giant trees jutting out directly to sea.
"Fascinating for camera buffs and painters," says Melvin Lamanilao, a designer based in Davao City.
Students of history would be interested to know that there used to be an ancient watch tower here built by Spanish colonizers. This has been replaced by a new structure that many say looks like an out-of-place European castle.
"This area was an old Spanish route," explains a local anthropologist. "That is why you occasionally encounter fragments of antique china even in shallow waters."
At the island's highest peak, there is a marker reportedly dug by Japanese World War II soldeirs, presumably to hide treasures.
Environmentalism is a major concern in Sagisi.
Recently a diver literally got the shock of his life courtesy of a big blast underwater. The jolt turned out to have been caused by a dynamite explosion nearby.
"Some corals around Sagisi have been destroyed," wrote a German diver in the Department of Tourism's logbook.
Another traveller had this to say: "What is needed is strict law enforcement. On my way to Siargao island, I saw a dynamite explosion near the shores of Socorro island. And it was in broad daylight. Authorities should redouble their efforts."
The people of San Jose are indeed doubling their efforts to stop the destruction of the environment and to ensure that the sound of dynamite blasts "doesnt pound in your ears anymore."
San Jose residents are friendly and accommodating. The women are charming, the men polite and humble. The barrio itself is clean, the roads paved and cemented, the sides thick with ornamental plants. So warmly provincial.
Falcon and Uriarte, however, have discovered something else about San Jose -- its folk artists.
"Manong Leonard plays the saxophone," says Falcon. "His five other brothers play the trumphet, trombone, and all other wind instruments. They are the barrio's regular band."
Falcon dreams of collaborative work between Mang Leonard's group and the indigenous-inspired contemporary artists.
He remembers one night when they were priveleged to hear an elderly man sing an old Visayan love song to the accompaniment of Manong Leonard's antiquated but reliable saxophone, bought "second-hand in Camiguin."
"There is a rich artistic expression untapped here," Falcon says, adding that the young San Jose residents want to set up a community theater.
"It would be interesting to know what they feel about the world they live in," he says.
The Artist's Sanctuary in Sagisi recently received a reservation from a music band for a week-long rehearsal. Told that there is no electricity on the island, the band member said, "Who needs it?"
How to get there:
At the Bilang-Bilang wharf of Surigao City (beside the pier), take any of the pumpboats departing at noon for San Jose or Talavera islands and ask thee captain to drop you off at Sagisi. For accommodations, there is the Artists' Sanctuary and a cottage in San Jose managed by the Department of Tourism. There are also home stay programs, all at provincial (reasonable) rates.