Tuesday, February 09, 2010

Halller Baler

I have posted a little piece of history about Baler during the Spanish times in my previous post on Ermita Hill. And to continue where I left-off, let me have a break on the beach and sea scenes (well not totally) and post some more history and trivia about Baler coupled with photos of some of Baler's historical structures like the Museo de Baler, Baler Catholic Church and a house that pays tribute to the memory of Dona Aurora Aragon Quezon.

First, a trivia. How did Baler came out? There are several stories on how Baler got its name. In one story, it was named after Balid, a wise and powerful Lakan or Chiefstain who lived in the village in the area. Another story says that it was named after Baled, meaning waves from a dialect spoken by nomadic people of the area such as Dumagats and Tingguians.

The third version is that it was derived from Ibalid meaning to return. There was a story that outsiders asked an inhabitant of the name of the place and that the inhabitant thinking that the stranger was asking where he was going would have said that he was returning to the place where he started from.

The last and the most accepted origin however is that it came from the word Balod which is a large mountain dove which abounded the area. Baler came to be known as the place where the doves came to roost.

And to continue with history, one of the most historical structure in Baler is its Catholic Church. One would not know its deep history by looking at its simple facade but this church was transformed into a fortress of Spanish soldiers against the Katipuneros and American troops.

Just few steps from the Church is a house built as a tribute to honor of Doña Aurora Aragon Quezon, the wife of President Manuel L. Quezon. Madam Aurora was born in Baler and died in an ambush on the mountain roads of Nueva Ecija leading to the province that now bears her name. Some of the couple's memorabilia including a vintage presidential car can be seen in the place.

Now, after an etymology and a piece of history comes the fun part, Baler's drawing power - surfboards. You will see them almost everywhere in Baler, whether it be the real thing parading around the beach or its miniature part in guise of key chains, ref magnets and toys.

For accommodations, you may check out Discover Aurora's hotel listing here. I stayed at Bahia de Baler 2 just in front of Sabang Beach. A modest accommodation with courteous staff. What I like about the place is that each room has a book about Baler written by Edgardo Angara where you can learn just about everything about Baler. Reading the book really complemented the Baler experience.

More of Baler on my next post.

26 comments:

  1. interesting info about Baler. i didn't know Aurora Quezon died in an ambush. the Angaras are from Baler, I wonder why the roads going to their province are so bad. they probably take a chopper to visit their hometown.:p

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  2. is this the church featured in the movie?

    i think i like ibalid as its name.

    What I like about the place is that each room has a book about Baler written by Edgardo Angara where you can learn just about everything about Baler.>>> impressive idea.

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  3. nice to know these things about baler. thanks for sharing.

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  4. nice to know these things about baler. thanks for sharing.

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  5. wala bang miniature surfboard na pwede i-uwi? hehe. astig ung cloud pics mo with the 3 coconut trees. :D

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  6. love the tribute to Mrs. Quezon. specially the old car. that was cool.

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  7. Interesting history, especially that of Aurora Quezon. I love the simple facade of the church. Wouldn't have guessed it was a Catholic church.

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  8. Ya know... in Bacolod, balod means wave.... JUst FYI. LOL!

    I like that colourful sky foto. Captured well Attorney!

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  9. galing ng coverage mo dito sa baler, superb pa lahat ng pix.

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  10. more more! (sana may sexy surfers ulit) Ü

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  11. the sky is so majestic... heheheh nice pic!

    BTW..check out my dad's north american adventure!
    http://passionatestar92.blogspot.com/2010/02/photoblog-201004.html have a great day!!!

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  12. look at the the bas relief on that building's wall! grabe, are those hard wood? hehehe. ndi uso logban jan eh. hehe.

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  13. narinig ko lang tong place na 'to. Thanks for bringing us there. Unique yung church modernized. Merong baler stamp na bago lately.

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  14. LS: I loved your two sky shots, the one with the boats with the reflection and the bright sky at sunset. They were really awesome my friend.

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  15. Looks like a great adventure! I hope you are having fun.

    Alexander
    Alex's World! - http://www.kakinan.com/alex

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  16. What is the big building in the second picture?
    City hall?
    Quite an amazing structure...

    Interesting info about Baler!

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  17. Was there any reason given why the dissidents ambushed Dona Aurora?

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  18. thanks for the baler series bro, really enjoyed reading it!!its one of the must-visit" place for me.

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  19. one of the places I heard a lot by name but nothing I know of---or say-----after reading your blog---almost.

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  20. I've been searching for a long time for this! Finally I found your website on Yahoo.

    Thank you!

    GINGER
    [url=http://hurdat.com/123blogblog/]read more[/url]

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  21. I guess it is time to visit this place again. I missed all the beautiful places here!

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  22. Oh I love the photo of the sky with the coconuts in the background. Looked exactly like a postcard. Very beautiful. You might like to follow the opening date of Universal Studio Singapore. The exact date is not known but was reported in the news that it will be somewhere in March. Hope you get to visit it when you are in Singapore in March. Flights to Singapore during this weekend are fully booked, can you believe it?

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  23. It's quite interesting how names of cities and towns in the Philippines have various etymologies.

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  24. plz discover baler deeeply,,,,
    i want to know its history

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  25. we've been Baler last Feb. 18-21,2010 and its very impressive.... i like the town..the beach specially the sabang beach...on the other i'm so sad coz we never see the town historical landmarks,,,

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  26. Mga pards yung cloud di yan edittkase anjan ako mismo dat time na nakuhanan ang image...so ganda talaga dito samen kaya so proud to da max ako..

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