GRAHAM GUY BARRATT

The world loves football but here in the Philippines Basketball is number one. The country has embraced the hoops ever since the American YMCA introduced the sport early in the American colonial period from 1898 to1946. Today wherever you go throughout these beautiful islands you’ll usually find a hoop nestled within some palms or beside a road and nearly always within feet of any public space.

25th November

In both type’s of cock fighting razor sharp knives or as they are known locally as ‘Gaffs' are used. Two types of knives are used in Philippine cockfighting, one a single edge blade and the other with double-edged blades with the length of the knives varying. The knives are attached to the left leg of the birds but depending on agreement between the owners blades can be attached to the right leg or even to both legs.

Cockfighting locally termed ‘Sabong' is very much more than a popular pastime in the Philippines where both illegal and legal cockfights occur. Where as Legal cockfights are held in recognised cockpits every week illegal cockfights known as 'Tupada’ or ‘Tigbakay’ are held in secluded cockpits or pockets far away from prying eyes in the countryside out of reach of the authorities who are rather prone to raid them.

Cockfighting was already flourishing in pre-colonial Philippines, as recorded by Antonio Pigafetta, the Italian diarist aboard Ferdinand Magellan’s 1521 expedition and shares elements of Indian and other Southeast Asian cultures, where the jungle fowl (bankivoid) and Oriental type of chicken are endemic.
In both type’s of fighting razor sharp knives or as they are known locally as ‘Gaffs' are used. There are two kinds of knives used in Philippine cockfighting, one a single edge blade and the other with double-edged blades with the length of the knives varying. The knives are attached to the left leg of the birds but depending on agreement between the owners blades can be attached to the right leg or even to both legs.

Bets are usually taken by the Kristo, so named because of his outstretched hands when calling out wagers from the audience and skillfully doing so purely from memory. The result in both Sabong and the illegal Tupada are judged by a referee called Sentensyador or Koyme whose verdict is final and not subject to any appeal whatsoever.

04th December

Centuries-old churches of various architectural influences that were built during the Spanish occupation of Cebu can be found along the entire stretch of the island. A trip down Cebu’s southern part along the Natalio B. Bacalso S National Highway is indeed a glimpse into the religious aspect of Spain’s influence on Cebuano heritage.
San Fernando became an independent parish in 1858. The current structure called the San Isidro Labrador Parish Church was started in 1870 but was only finished quite a few years later in 1886.

Like many other Spanish period churches in Cebu the one in San Fernando is fashioned from cut coral stones and is one of the best examples of Gothic design on Cebu with it’s Gothic influences shown in the church’s rose windows as well as in the openings that take the shape of a flamboyant arch.

25th November

Another night of raids and in the morning another suspect behind bars as President Dutertes crack down on drugs by the Philippine police continues.

Dalaguete Police Headquarters, Cebu.