San Fernando City and San Juan, La Union, the Philippines
April 11 – 12, 2015
It is high time for La Union to step out of the shadow of its more popular neighbors. Its day in the sun has come, and the beacon that shines on it emanates from Poro Point, an erstwhile American base on a peninsula within San Fernando City. The province does not lack in sights and delights, after all.
At the invitation of BCDA (Bases Conversion and Development Authority), I pay La Union a weekend visit. A short drive from the city center leads us to Poro Point, a strip of land, still mostly barren, jutting out to the West Philippine Sea. A complex of stucco-white villas topped with blue domes breaks the horizon. My introduction to La Union starts at the lap of luxury, the upscale Thunderbird Resort that evokes the sun-drenched, seafront splendor of Santorini.
Not all is hoity toity. Beyond this posh enclave, La Union gets down to earth with bamboo huts lining its gentle coastline. Long stretches of sand lapped by tunneling swells rolling uninterrupted from the open sea attract surfers, artists, and backpackers.
On a drive through the town of San Juan, we find a surf school in Kahuna Beach Resort & Spa and a beachfront picnic ground strewn with throw pillows in Flotsam & Jetsam Artist Beach Hostel, which, as night falls, turns into a bar where beach bums jam with live bands.
La Union knows the way to a foodie’s tummy as well. Halo Halo de Iloko, home of Ilokano cuisine in San Fernando City, offers not only the famous dessert but also Ilokano fusion dishes. Pasalubong goodies can be had on the drive out of the city. Dried fish, creatively arranged like a flower, is a staple in this coastal province, espada (beltfish) its iconic fish product.
More than these delights, it is the light of Poro Point that has brought me here. That expanse reaching out beyond the city is wide as it is empty, signifying Poro Point’s potential: 236 hectares of largely untapped land. Although the smallest among former American bases, including neighboring Clark (3,000+ hectares) and Camp John Hay (600 hectares), it is the only one with both an airstrip and a port.
This peninsula of possibilities is the perfect place to hold the Sillag Festival, an annual event that highlights the people and culture of La Union. Since its inception four years before, the festival has drawn increasing number of visitors and potential investors in the newest frontier near Manila. Booths showcase local products; local youths present dances with creative use of color and lights. As a nod to Wallace Air Station previously located in the peninsula, an air show takes part in the festival’s closing events.
Ives Nisce, chairman of PPMC (Poro Point Management Corporation) and prime mover of Poro Point’s development, shines a light on the word sillag, Ilokano for “bright moonbeam.” As the full moon lights one’s way through the night, so does the Sillag Festival light up Poro Point and the province.
In time, a baywalk will trace the seafront on which both locals and visitors can bask in the brilliance of sillag. Even moonless nights will be romanticized by city lights across San Fernando Bay. Hinged on the if-you-build-it-they-will-come concept, the promenade is envisioned to draw tourism and local commerce, allowing the people of La Union to participate in this freeport zone and reinventing Poro Point as a place fit for the public, not merely an exclusive club.
At the peninsula’s edge stands the 96-step Poro Point Lighthouse that has become a symbol of Sillag. While the restored lighthouse was originally built by the Spanish in 1885, the light keeper’s cottage under its shadow is a leftover piece of Americana architecture. A wind generator, the oldest in the country and a relic of bygone technology, used to power the lighthouse, now generated by a LED lamp whose searchlight reaches further out to sea. Everything conveys the historical influences and technological innovations in this former military base.
The parola has lit up the dark curtain of the sea, as one of luces locales dotting the Ilocos coastline, and of this land, as “a beacon of hope” for La Union.
As the festival draws to a close, revelers with LED-lighted balloons in hand gather in front of a makeshift stage. At the host’s countdown, these hope lanterns on helium are released to the air en masse. Darkness may have fallen, but lights and colors ushering in the hope and promise of La Union, the veritable gateway to Northern Luzon, ascend to illuminate the night sky.
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WOW! If not for the mention of the name, and the food, this could easily be mistaken for other internatonal vacation spots. I heard they prohibited the flying lighted lantern in another country because it can cause hazards. I hope the balloon thing here continues. Outstanding travel report of La Union. It didn’t occur to me for it to be that sought-after until this post.
Hi Rommel! In previous years, sky lanterns were used but they have since been prohibited by the fire protection office. These balloons are not a fire hazard. I just wonder where they all ended up.
Hair…this is our assignment 😂😂😂
Good luck! Just curious….what school and subject? 🙂
English for Academic and Professional Pupose, Sir.
That explains the heavy traffic on this post. 🙂 Thanks for the reply!
This is our assignment too ahaha 😆😆😆
me too
Omg this is our assignment too…
OMG really tlga!!
this is our assignment too hahaha . my god
wtat are the possible audience in this place?? 🙂
It’s safe to say that students taking academic and professional English make up a big chunk of its audience.
This is our assignment ahaha 😆😆😆
Super curious now. What school and subject? And who’s your teacher? 🙂
Applied English Sir. K-12 Grade 11
THIS IS OUR ACTIVITY FOR TODAY HAHAHA EAPP ALSO. SIR RAYMUS!!!!❤
Go for perfect score! 🙂 Regards to Sir Raymus!
Omg… This is our assignment too…
What are the questions?
Like:
What is the role of the writer in doing this piece?
grade 11 english for academics and professional purposes.
Thanks Lory! 🙂
same here hahahha
Me too…
..this is our assignment too. .
This is our assignment in EAPP. Omggg we’re going to pass this assignment tomorrow and I haven’t started hahaha
Werk it girl. Hahahaha
Having a hard time accessing this earlier at the link given for my bro’s assignment. Good thing I found this link on google.
As they say, “Google is your friend.” 🙂
Hello ,This is also our assignment in English academic . 😉
Hello.This is also our assignment in English too.:) By the Im cute
Hope you got a good grade out of it. Well, more importantly, I hope you learned from it, Kate and Cute. 🙂
Hi AJ…Never heard of your name and haven’t read your blogs until this Light Up La Union were assigned as reading to my Grade 11 students in the English for Academic and Professional Purposes subject. I find it really interesting.WOW for this!. La Union …..my next destination.
I appreciate the feedback Teacher Mee Lay! Curiosity is killing me. It’s my first to get comments from academicians. 🙂 Is my article a sample reading in a textbook or a handout? Would you tell me who the book’s authors are?
Paolo Niño M. Valdez, PhD., Sir
After 4 long years, this question has finally been answered. Thanks McFial! Slay your online classes.
Love this blog,,,English for academic And professional purposes
English For Academic And Professional Project. done,,,thanks i found this blog
thanks for this blog im done with my projects…
hi,,thanks po sa blog
thanks Aj
Thanks back to you all! Hope you enjoyed and learned from it.
hi….
This is my assignment in English for Academic and Professional Purposes (Grade 11), I was amazed in your journey in San Fernando City, La Union 🙂 There is a guide questions in my homework, but the only question that I did not answer is “Who are the possible audience in this piece?” I’m very confuse, can you please help me. ASAP. Thanks 😀 and God Bless 😉
Hi Lloydie! Aside from the content in the article, consider also what kind of website this is. That will tell you who the target audience is. Hope that cleared it up. Break a leg!
hi! this is also our assignment 🙂 a little bit long but for a tired girl like me haha 🙂 I hope I’ll understand it all haha goodluck to me 😀
Hi!!This is our assignment in English ^^ can you please help me?? :))
I guess this is for all the grade 11 students!! haha 🙂 Im really wasted 😦 can you please help me answer these questions??
What questions? I don’t have them. 🙂
Hi! AJ this is our assignment in grade 11.. What is your purpose in doing this piece? Hope you could answer my question..😊
hello this is also my my assignment in EAPP , can i ask you a question ? what is your role while doing this this piece? 🙂
hope you can answer my question 🙂
That’s a difficult question. I can’t even. 😦
same here. this is also m assignment 🙂
I believe that all the comments were all from a same school, ha ha ha 🙂 It’s our homework, too. But I was slightly confused on the two La Union Posst though, but seriously both are supercalifragilisticexpialidocious! 🙂
Hi Camille! There’s only one La Union post. Just this. I get loads of hits on another post (Life’s a Beach), but it’s about Laiya, Batangas. Is it your homework too? Anyway, whoa to your super comment. I’ve gotten many kinds of feedback, but yours is by far the most superlative (and longest!). 🙂
Lol! Your wrong, not all! HAHAHAHA this website or blah blah is also our homework but were not in the same school 🙂
Go Bianc!
Fudge! HAHA this is our assignment HAHA
This is our prompt in EAPP
FCPCian here 🙂
This blog is amazing, I can’t wait to visit La Union too!
This was also our assignment!
Thanks Reniel! Live, love, travel! 🙂
sir what is the purpose of this context?
Am i the only one who scrolls the comment section hoping to find links of answers
You’re not the only one, believe me. Hahaha!
Hi, AJ! Guide Questions: (1.) What were some of the activities did the writer describe in La Union? (2.) What is the purpose of this text? (3) What was the role of the writer in doing this piece? (4.) Who would be the possible audience for this piece? (4.) would you visit the place after reading the blog entry? Why or why not? p. 6. SOURCE: English for the Globalized Classroom Series: English for Academic & Professional Purposes by Dr. Valdez, published by Phoenix Publishing House
Thank you, thank you Kristaux! Curiosity has been eating me up. I even emailed the first commenters here to ask about the textbook’s title and author. Not one reply, nada. So bless your heart, Kristaux. You’re one of a kind!
Answer pls.
same question with Kristaux…
I stayed in Bali Hai resort in La Union and had a great time.
The place is so beautiful.
this is our assignment 😂
Omg,this is also our assignment! HAHAHAHA (DWCV SHS, English for Academic and Professional Purposes) Grade 11 be like lols
Good Evening sir AJ! This was also an assignment given to my friends who are now in Grade 11. And I’m helping them to answer the ff questions: “LIGHT UP LA UNION”
by Aniano Jose “AJ” Poliquit
1. What are the activities in La Union that were described by the writer?
2. What is the purpose of his blog entry?
3. What is the role of the writer in this blog entry?
4. Who are the possible audience of this blog entry?
5. Would you visit the place after reading the blog? Why or why not?
I am hoping if you could help us. Thank you! 🙂
Hi Jackie! I’m afraid I can’t answer the questions myself. My answers might not be what the teacher or book author intended for this lesson. I’m pretty sure though that the students have been instructed on what to do.
More power to you!
Gawd this is our assignment!😂
this blog is my homework too 😀
This blog is our Assignment too😊 Thank you Sir AJ for creating this blog😊 I learned a lot from it..😁
Nice to know Millennie. You live, you learn. 🙂
Hi Sir AJ! This is my homework too! Thank you for creating this blog!! 😊 I’ve learned a lot from it! God Bless!😊😊
Thanks Reyaaa! Nice to know there are millennials who love to read. Keep it up!
This is a well-written entry and a great read. The descriptions weren’t lacking and it covered all the interesting things about Poro Point. Definitely entices the reader to consider visiting the said place. Good job. Keep up the good work. 😀
P.S. This is, as countless other people had mentioned here before, our assignment in English for Academic and Professional Purposes.
Wow thanks for the blog love, Faten! Comments such as yours inspire to me to keep on. Somehow somewhere someone in cyberspace will appreciate it. More power to you too!
this is my homework.thanks for creating this blog.i enjoyed it alot.like i wanna be a travel blogger someday.haha
Great, I can retire now! I bequeath to you, Tiffany, this enriching vocation of travel blogging. 🙂 But really, I hope you pursue it soon. Travel and writing and photography are fulfilling endeavors individually and, more so, simultaneously.
And another assignment coming right up hahaha! But I sure do love this blog since I also love to travel.. It just awakens my wanderlust spirit.
I hope it also awakens your inner writer, Phia. Travel is more enriching when you write about it.
The purpose of this context, my dear fellow students, is to help the readers and those who love to travel to get a glimpse of the beauty of La Union and entice them to come and visit these wonderful places and most importantly experience their unique culture and traditions. I hoped this can help you a bit in one of the given questions. 🙂
how about this question,what are the activities in La Union that the writer described?
Hahaha same here. Assignment in English Acads and Professional Purposes. It surprised me. 😂
Please answer the question what is the role of the writer in doing this piece??
Hi, AJ good evening.
Guide Questions: (1.) What were some of the activities did the writer describe in La Union? (2.) What is the purpose of this text? (3) What was the role of the writer in doing this piece? (4.) Who would be the possible audience for this piece? (4.) would you visit the place after reading the blog entry? Why or why not? Please answer.
It’s my first time to teach Engish for Academic and Professional purposes and I’ve just assigned my studs to analyze your blog entry. It’s a well-written text. I am sure, my studs will be inspired to write as well.
Your generous words are much appreciated, Ma’am. Honored that you found my little article useful in class. I’m also a teacher, also in the vocation of inspiring young minds.
Reblogged this on xxhérsadxx and commented:
Hehehehe
what are the activities in la union that the writter describe?
I didnt know about this until my teacher assign this to us it is well written and the way you describe the place la union is brilliant thanks for the blog
Ps:This is our Assignment too😂 im from Naval state university Humms 11-A 2018-2019 Hi! Classmates 😅
hi miss ❤
-STEM 11-A
I’m from NSU too,though from STEM 11-A…
A shout-out to students (especially to Student from Other Dimensions) and teachers of Naval State University! Thanks for the good review. 🙂 Good luck on your assignment!
Hi guys HAHAHAHAAH
HI what would be your possible audience in this piece?
English for Academic and Professional Purposes. my assignment hahaha so amazing to read your blog Sir and tomorrow we should pass it on time around 8 am
Do well, Jane. Thanks for the shout-out!
my assignment how great
it wasnt a coincidence haha
hey aj. this is our assignment and the question is a little bit hahah you know can you help just like the others..
Sorry I was on holiday in Morocco when you posted this comment. I wasn’t able to see it then.
Is the main title is “life’s a beach?
No, Life’s a Beach is a different article. You can find it in this blog too. Thanks.
Hi AJ! I read some comments and was surprised to know they came from students looking for your blog! A teacher here reading the material first before giving the task to my Grade 11! Hahahaha! May you take us to more wonderful places with your words 🙂 Godbless!
Thanks po, Teacher Lourene. I hope my article is useful in class. Yes, I’m taking y’all to more marvelous places. I just got back from an epic Europe-Africa trip.
You’re welcome! I am wondering what made it an epic one… anyway, I think we’ll know why. Soon. Thank you again!
This is part of our exam tomorrow HAHAHA
Really? I’m just as amused as you are. 😀 Good luck, I guess. 🙂
Thank you for this great website. It really help a lot and please continue sharing this kind of blogs!
The parola has lit up the dark curtain of the sea, – I love your poetic way with words. Beautiful.
I appreciate you noticed that, but that’s more an exception rather than the rule in my writing. I’m not always that evocative. I think you’re also poetic in your brief descriptions of your artwork.
HIMCIAN MAG-INGAAAYYYY AHAHAHAHAHA
Hi James! Regardz to Nadz!
Grade 11 – St. Francis A represent ahahahahaha
This is our assignment HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAGAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHA lol😂 by the way I enjoy reading this.
Thanks Rel. You enjoyed it too much. I can hear your LOL over here hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha lol
SHOUTOUT SA MGA G-11 HUMSS ST. THERESE DIYAN HAHAHAHA
Activity namin for this week HAHAHA Wazzap Mam Trilles, EAPP pa more
may god the father bless us…
ASSIGNMENT DEN NAMIN TOH HI POH FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM JK AHAHAHAHA
It’s already 2021 and this is still one of the schoolworks for EAPP HAHAHAAHA
You should ask your teacher to update your lesson. Maybe evaluate a vlog this time. Or if they want to stick to written content, choose my recent posts. At least it’s still from my website. LOL
this is our assigment HAHAHAHA di rin ako makakita ng sagot sa comment😭😭😭😭
PM is the answer key. LOL
humss 12 abraham where u at /j
wew exactly this day HAHAHAHAAHAHAHHAHA
I dont want to suffer anymore pls end this :(((((jasmbdkjdLASDdsad
were sitting right beside each other, ur gucci
Suffering builds character. :))))))
20/9/22
maek was here
Noted with thanks! 🙂