The Lost Boys of Sagada
Sunday, May 11, 2008
The PCIJ (PHILIPPINE CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM) has an article on Sagada Guides. Written by Danilova Molintas, the first lines resembles that which you read from romance novels, but over-all, it is a pretty good read. It takes a hard look on the life of several Sagada guides. I just don't recognize the photo of the town center / church in the article. I've never seen that in my lifetime. And I'm 30+.
"The Lost Boys of SagadaThe full article is available here: http://www.pcij.org/i-report/6/sagada.html
The young men who grew up in the midst of Sagada’s tourist rush have fallen to the temptations of easy money, easy women, and what seemed for many years an easy life.
M—'S EYES are closed, but the rest of his bronzed, chiseled features are tight and tense. His heavy, muscular frame, sprawled on a rough-hewn bench of thick pine slabs, seems suspended on his big-boned hands that are desperately grasping a little homemade bong. His thick lips suck furiously on a small bamboo pipe stuck into a disposable plastic water bottle filled to a fourth with water, now swiftly turning green.
There are other ways to smoke hash, and faster ways to get a high. But smoking this circuitous way assures M— that his throat wouldn’t feel raspy, especially after all the smoking he knows he would be doing in the next six weeks.
..."
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4 comments:
First, the church pictured in not in the center of Sagada. I've seen the picture on the Internet before but I can't recall where. Second, the title of the article gives me pause. These are not boys, they are men and they choose their path in life.
The husband of my great-aunt was nicknamed KOLOT as well. :-)
You bring up a good point in that these men did choose their path in life. But had they been in another town, would they have chosen the same path? I doubt it. To me, the article's main message is that tourism in Sagada affected the lives of these guides; enough for the author to brand them "lost boys".
these people can not find a decent job in life to feed their families in a legal way selling nasty is a fulfillment in life to them they grant it as an honor tho their selves and they do beleive that using and selling ganja would bring fame and profit to them which is wrong this article should be a learning to those men and the rest of the specific people who are following their steps and idolizing them in doing so, sagadans wake up and make this as a learnig to protect and care for your community and the society where you are, be more deligent the track for a better future for yourselves and for your village be responsible enough,too much involvement on that trade brings shame to everybody.
The first lines DON'T read like a romance novel, they actually made me laugh -- they seem to be poking fun at the protagonist
M—'S EYES are closed, but the rest of his bronzed, chiseled features are tight and tense. His heavy, muscular frame, sprawled on a rough-hewn bench of thick pine slabs, seems suspended on his big-boned hands that are desperately grasping a little homemade bong. His thick lips suck furiously on a small bamboo pipe stuck into a disposable plastic water bottle filled to a fourth with water, now swiftly turning green.
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