Campa on The Rocks

VACATION A necessary ritual

Spending a holiday in a remote sea village may not be as enticing as with a Boracay escapade. Not with a relatively unknown barangay that may have been neglected as far as tourism-style beatification is concerned. So secluded was the spot that a journey to a nearby municipality would consist only of a single pump boat ride for the day, that is if you choose the wavy sea over the bumpy road ahead. I did, however, settled for the latter. The sea seemed too risky a choice lately since the tsunami scare, and I don’t want to spoil my vacation simply by basking on it.

For the past couple of years, going to Campa for the Lent is a necessary ritual in the schedule. A remote sea barrio along the immense Surigao del Sur coast, Campa has remained almost unhampered by any vestiges of investment and infrastructure, where most of its residents are still very much into the business of manual labor and conventional fishing. And like precious stones sticking deep into the blue and unto the reefs, theirs are just the kind of habit oscillating in their way of life like some hard sea rock, still but rough on its edges.

And true enough; rocks are very much a part of the Campa scene as with their sea to shining sea. Even on its outback deep inside the dense Surigao forest just outside the barangay, a variety of rocks could be found sprouting on the road, jagged and protruding that vehicles had to stop at times just so to take some extra precaution. But when it culminates onto its seaside community, however, one is rewarded with a sea that knows no chaos and contamination, and that its rocks along the bay area serve as its mounting glory.

BETWEEN THE ROCK...

And with only my cell phone camera and a chilling barefoot, I took some pictures of the various rock structures exposing within the banks of the Campa on a vast low tide. What started out as mere curiosity turned into a discovery of something hidden waiting to be unearthed. I then took notice of an array of intricate structures only nature could probably mold. Their shapes were so elaborate that you have to shake your head wondering about the mysteries of nature as exemplified by these rocks. They were so spontaneous that it was quite hard to imagine their formations as deliberate.

It was only recently that I discovered that Campa has such a sight to see, aside from their lobster cuisine and pearly shores, of course. These rocks, some of which do have a prehistoric feel, had stood the test of time, much like the relatively few residents of the barangay. Despite being threatened some years ago by a sudden rise of sea water, many of the folks in the community decided to stay, like those rocks rising along the shores. They remain, as always, a closely-knit village in that side of the Pacific.

... AND A HARD PLACE

Only residents of Campa can benefit the sea in front of them. And this village directive works at an advantage to these rocks, in the same way that it has sustained the folks in the barangay over the years. It enabled visitors like me to enjoy the full range and regalia of such an environment that is almost unimpeded by the damaging effects of some outside influences such as industrialization and commercialization.

Seeing these rocks for the first time brings wonder even to a critical eye. We see rock walls having semblances to the Stone Age, where its edges cutting like runic doodles from afar; rocks torn apart to give way for some strange causeway leading to the waters; and large, reddish stones with some holes facing the sea. It was an experience that could have been rough to digest, but by letting it all sink in with a nervous camera and some cold feet; the pleasure was mine for the taking.

And in a span of a year, these rocks will change its structure, its shape, its spontaneity, but they will remain stolid to the test of the sea. By that time though they will expose again their roughshod beauty for the pleasure of some wayward visitor basking on the shores. Perhaps it is only through the sight of them that nature will reveal a portion of its meaning other than its obvious appearance. But as for me, it couldn’t have been more perfect, it was a Good Friday worth spending about.

PEARLY SHELLS As part of the two-piece wardrobe and a smile on top of it.

(photos courtesy of Jeneka Realista Ferolino, 
more "Campa On The Rocks" photos on Jeneka's Facebook account)