21ST CENTURY FROM THE PHILIPPINES AND THE WORLD

REGION II: CAGAYAN VALLEY

Provinces Capital

Batanes - Basco
Cagayan - Tuguegarao City
Isabela - Ilagan City
Nueva Vizcaya - Bayombong
Quirino - Cabarroguis

Cagayan Valley is the second largest region in the Philippines with regards to the land area. It is composed of five
provinces: Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, and Quirino and the region has four cities namely; Cauayan,
Ilagan, Santiago, and Tuguegarao. Most of the region lies in a large Valley in Northeastern Luzon, between the
Cordilleras and the Sierra Madre mountain ranges.

FACTS ABOUT REGION II

A. BATANES

1. An archipelagic province in the Philippines situated in the Cagayan Valley region.

2. The Northernmost province in the country, and also the smallest, both in population and land area.
3. Its capital is Basco located on the island of Batan.

4. Ivatan is the name of their local language which is Austronesian in origin and the name of the indigenous people,
which came from the word I-Batan meaning “from Batan”

5. Batanes is the only place in the Philippines where bicycles are registered.

6. Vakul is the signature Batanes headdress – the Batanes headgear is used not to make them look like Tina Turner,
but to protect them from the rain, the sun or from cold. It is worn only by Ivatan women. It is made out of Vuyavuy – a
Philippine date palm endemic in Batanes.

TOURIST SPOTS

1. Basco Light House

- Standing 66 feet on top of Naidi Hill is the famed Basco Lighthouse, constructed in 2002 as a navigational facility to
guide seafarers back to the shore.
- The hill, where the lighthouse stands, was once a small community for pre-colonial Ivatans and home of the late
Chieftain Boyas.

2. Mount Iraya
- Mount Iraya is a sacred mountain for the Ivatan people. Thera are two contrasting tales regarding the mountain, the
first tale states that the mountain is a mother overlooking her children (the Ivatans) for their protection, while the
second tale states that if a ring of clouds on top of the mountain, Iraya is notifying the people for preparation due to an
inevitable death of an elder, usually to natural causes.

NATIVE DELICACIES

1. Uvud Balls
- It is like meat balls but made from banana heart with ground meat and the soup is a little bit salty.

2. Sinigang na Mayasang
- Boiled fish with kangkong leaves and green sili, it is great for the cold weather.

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B. CAGAYAN

1. Cagayan was one of the early provincias that existed during the Spanish Colonial Period. Called La Provincia de
Cagayan.

2. The term Catagayan, “the place where the tagay grows” was shortened to Cagayan. Perhaps more conventionally,
etymological scholars hold that Cagayan comes from an ancient word that means “river”. Variations of this word –
karayan, kayan, kayayan, and kalayan – all mean River.

3. Its capital is Tuguegarao City.

4. Their Languages are: Ibanag, Itawis and Ilocano

TOURIST SPOTS

1. Callao Cave
- One of the limestone caves located in the municipality of Peñablanca, Cagayan Province in the Philippines.
- The Seven-Chamber Show Cave is one of 300 caves that dot the area and the best known natural tourist attraction of
the province.

2. Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Piat

- It was originally called the Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario (Our Lady of the Holy Rosary)

NATIVE DELICACIES

1. Pancit Batil Patong

- A popular noodle dish in Tuguegarao City, Cagayan. It is composed of two parts: the noodles with toppings, and the
sauce which looks like and egg drop soup. Poached egg along with sautéed meats and vegetables are topped over
the fresh miki noodles, while a piece of egg is cracked and stirred-in simmering beef stock and poured in a bowl.

2. Binallay
- A native suman delicacy of the province made of sticky rice flour and wrapped in banana leaves. It is cooked in boiling
water then serve with latik sauce.

C. ISABELA

1. The largest province in the island of Luzon in land area.

2. It is known as “The Queen Province of the North”, “Top Corn Producer of the Philippines” and “The Rice Bowl
of the North”. It is also known as one of the Premier Province in the North and most progressive in the country.

3. The name Isabela is a Spanish Baby Name. In Spanish baby names the meaning of the name Isabela is “My God is
bountiful; God of Plenty.

4. Its capital is Ilagan City

TOURIST SPOTS

1. Magat High Rise Dam

- The biggest dam in the whole Asia at the time of its construction. Supply of some 102,000 hectares of agricultural land
and an ultimate capacity of 540 megawatts of hydroelectric power sufficient to supply the whole Northern Luzon grid.

2. Queen Isabela Park

- Inaugurated in May 11, 2014, it is an elaborate work of art fashioned by Joel Pragas, one of the best and most prolific
artist to ever grace Isabela’s local art scene. Mini concerts are held at the Balconaje del Norte every weekends while
visitors enjoy local food and drinks.

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D. NUEVA VIZCAYA

1. The name Nueva Vizcaya is derived from the Spanish province Vizcaya in the Basque Country.

2. Its capital is Bayombong

3. It is often referred to as lowland Baguio because of its pleasant climate.

TOURIST SPOTS

1. Balete Pass
- One of the historic sites in Nueva Vizcaya. It is also known as Dalton Pass, a mountain pass that connects the Nueva
Vizcaya and Nueva Ecijia provinces.
- During the World War II, a strategical Battle of Balete Pass happened in the site where Filipinos and American
soldiers fought against the retreating enemy forces which later on led to their surrender.

2. Imugan Falls
- A 35 feet water falls in a dense forest surrounded by lush foliage. The rock formations along the bank serve as picnic
grounds for day visitors.
- The clean and cold basin of the falls is good for swimming since it is not so deep so visitors can enjoy more the
cascading waters.

NATIVE DELICACY

1. Buko Pie
- It is sometimes anglicized as coconut pie; it is a traditional Filipino baked young-coconut custard pie. It is considered a
specialty in Bagabag Nueva Vizcaya.

E. QUIRINO

1. Dubbed as “The Forest Heartland of Cagayan Valley” was created in 1971 and named after former President
Elpidio Quirino, the sixth President of the Philippines.

2. A “spearman, a warrior” Origin of Quirino.

3. The landlocked province is known for its rugged topography, which makes it a beautiful paradise for outdoor-loving
travelers.

4. Varied rock formations make themselves known and the viewpoints are quite scenic.

5. Its capital is Cabarroguis

TOURIST SPOTS

1. Governor’s Rapid River

- It is part of a tributary of the Cagayan River and boasts of crystal clear waters. It has been awarded for several times
already being among the cleanest inland bodies of water in the whole Cagayan Valley.

2. Aglipay Cave
- One of Quirino’s major tourist drawer are the Aglipay caves, a cave system located at Barangay Villa Ventura in the
town of Aglipay. The caves that were open to the public have stunning and well preserved stalactites, stalagmites,
flow stones and rock formations formed from minerals deposited by dripping water.

REPRESENTATIVE AUTHOR OF REGION II

1. Edith Tiempo (April 22, 1919 – August 21, 2011)

- A Filipino poet, fiction writer, teacher, and literary critic who writes using English Language.
- Born in Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya

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- Her poems are intricate verbal transfigurations of significant experiences as revealed, in two of her much anthologized
pieces, “Lament for the Littlest Fellow” and “Bonsai”
- As a fictionist, Tiempo is as morally profound. Her language has been marked as “Descriptive but unburdened by
scrupulous detailing.”
- She is an influential tradition in Philippine Literature in English.
- Together with her late husband, Edilberto K. Tiempo who is also a writer and a critic, they founded and directed the
Siliman National Writers Workshop in Dumaguete City in 1962, which has produced some of the Philippine’s best
writers.
- She was conferred the National Artist Award for Literature in 1999.

REPRESENTATIVE LITERARY TEXTS OF REGION II

A. Lullabies

ISINAY BALIWAYWAY

The collected Isinay Literature consist of riddles, proverbs and narratives in the form of tales, legends,
ghost stories and oral histories.

Lullabies are called Baliwayway – a soothing cradle song or piece of music that is usually played to put
a baby to sleep.

Baliwayway, Baliwayway Baliwayway, Baliwayway

Ta meyo mos di ana uwar So that my child will go to sleep now
Ta asan elan bumungan, So that when he or she wakes up
Ya ras te pangan si ehawan It is time to eat lunch.

Bawi, bawi, bawing. Bawi, bawi, bawing

Bawing, bawing, baway Bawing, bawing, baway
Ta asan bumangun So that when he or she gets up
Mu oras mot si pangan It is already time to eat
Ta mahanun masi-on So that he or she will grow up fast

Ta amoy miikwila And he or she will go to school

Wawing, wawing, wawing, waway Wawing, wawing, wawing, waway
Baliwawing, baliwayway, Baliwawing, baliwayway
Ta mahinun masi-on So that he or she will grow fast
Ta mahanun mot amoy miikwila And he or she will go to school.
Baliwawing, baliwawing, baliwayway Baliwawing, baliwawing, baliwayway
Ta mahanu mot masi-on, So that he or she can grow fast
Ta mahanun pinabanga. So that he or she will be of help soon

B. Ibanag Proverbs

- Ibanag “unoni” or proverbs are either in prose or poetry. They are preachy and pedagogic as well as theological.

 Awan tu umune ta uton ng ari umulak ta davvun

Nobody goes up who does not come down.
(The above is an advice to those who on reaching the peak of their success look down, and even insult and oppress
the poor and the lowly.

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 Awat tu serbi na tu nga kukua, nu marake I pinangngapangngua.
Wealth is useless if character is worthless.
(Character is to Cagayanos is synonymous with integrity, charity, considerateness, love for fellowmen, rich or poor)

 Mas napia Y mattaddday, Anna ta mevelun to marake nga tolay.

It is better to be alone than to be with a bad companion.

BONSAI
By Edith Tiempo

All the I love

I fold over once
And once again
And keep in a box
Or a slit in a hollow post
Or in my shoe

All that I love?

Why, yes, but for the moment?
And for all time, both.
Something that folds and keeps easy,
Son’s note or Dad’s one gaudy tie.
A roto picture of a queen,
A blue Indian shawl, even
A money bill.

It’s utter sublimation,

Till seashells are broken pieces
A feat, this heart’s control
Moment to Moment
To scale all love done
To a cupped hand’s size

From God’s own bright teeth,

And life and love are real
Things you can run and
Breathless hand over

To the merest chi

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