Cagayan de Oro City Museum (The Old Water Tower)

The Cagayan de Oro City Museum is an odd-looking white cylindrical structure that is located along Fernandez Street in Barangay 1, which is just a few steps from Gaston Park and Saint Augustine Cathedral. This structure is an old water tower built during the American era in 1919 and completed in 1922. Its surface has three red stripes from the top to the base. The actual long unused water tank is on the highest level which is marked with thick red stripes on the top and a thin red stripe on the bottom. Right under that marker is a window. Further below are three enclosed levels which also serve as the support of the water tank. These levels have spaces that can be used as an office or a repository of things. On the side are vertical steps that go all the way to the tank.  On the base is a door and above it are Roman numerals A. D. MCMXXII which is A. D. 1922 in the Arabic numbers.                                                                                                         

When it was in operation the water tank used to provide water to an estimated 3,000 residents in the heart of Cagayan de Misamis. Its water was sourced with the use of steel pipes from Mahuganaw spring in Malasag, Baranggay Cugman. The Second World War caused massive damage to the infrastructures of Cagayan. Fortunately, the water tower survived the bombings and remained active until the early 70’s. Over the years, with the city’s growth in population and economy, the facility could no longer meet the water demand of the populace. Eventually, the water tank had to be closed, but the whole structure was not abandoned. The lower levels were still used for office work or other activities.

The old structure is not aesthetically pleasing. Its levels inside are not an ideal design for modern-day offices either because of their circular areas. However, the structure is the oldest in the city. Keeping it holds relevance to the city’s history. In 2008, Mayor Constantino Jaraula and the city council approved a resolution to convert it into a museum, and it became operational in 2010.

Inside the museum are mementoes, memorabilia and other objects that are relevant to the city’s history and culture. They include framed written accounts of the city’s history, pictures or portraits of past city mayors, weapons and uniforms, fragments of old China wares, fossils, gold nuggets, indigenous persons’ heritage items, and other things of historic values.

Today, the city museum is available for free to visitors from 9:30 am to 5 pm. It is open from Monday to Friday, and close on Saturday and Sunday including public holidays. Visitors can get inside by first registering at the museum admin office building which is just adjacent to the old water tower.

Filipino Surnames Relating to Faith, Biblical and Religious Characters

 

                     

Some Filipino families have surnames taken from words specially from Spanish that have religious or spiritual connotation especially in relation to Jesus Christ and His mother, the Virgin Mary. There are also other surnames that are taken from Biblical characters and those taken from the name of saints that are not in the Bible. Although these names are used mostly as given names, there are Filipino families who used them as surnames. Below is a list:

Angeles- angels, Apostol- apostle, Asuncion- the ascension of Jesus to heaven, Banal- a Tagalog word for holy, Bautista- baptized, Concepcion- the Immaculate Conception, Contemplacion- contemplation is the act of thinking on spiritual things, Consolacion- refers to the Lady of Consolation, Cruz/de la Cruz- cross, Cuaresma- lent, Custodio- guardian angel, Divinagracia-Divine grace, Encarnacion- the incarnation of God’s spirit in human body, Espirito- spirit, Evangelista- evangelist, Gino-o- Cebuano for god, Iglesia- church, Infante- the infant Jesus, Martir-martyr, Martirez- plural of martyr, Mesias- messiah, Monasterio- monastery, Monge- monk, Natividad- nativity which refers to the birth of Jesus Christ, Nazareno- Nazarene, Obispo- bishop, Oracion- prayer, Papa- pope, Paraiso- paradise, Pascua- easter, Pastor- shepherd, in English, a church leader, Purisima- the Virgin, Querubin- cherubim, a kind of angel, Resurreccion- Resurrection, Rosario/del Rosario- rosary, Sabado- sabbath, Salvacion- salvation, Salvador- savior or redeemer which is Jesus Christ. Santos/de los Santos- saints, Trinidad- trinity (the God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit), Veneracion- veneration

Biblical characters from Old and New Testaments are also adopted by Filipino families as surnames. The names come mostly from the account of Jesus life and ministry. They are always used as given names, but they are used too as surnames. Most are in Spanish. Below is a list with their English equivalent. If there is no name translation, it means that the spelling in Spanish and English is the same.

Adan- Adam, Andres- Andrew, Alejandro- historically, Alexander the Great. He is also mentioned in the Catholic Bible in the Book of Maccabees, Baltazar- Balthazar, Bartolome- Bartholomew, Alejo- short for Alexander, Dario- Darius, David, de Jesus- of Jesus, Diego- variant of Santiago, Eleazar, Esteban- Stephen, Emmanuel- God with us, Felipe- Philip, Gabriel, Gaspar- Caspar, Isaac, Ismael- Ishmael, Israel, Jacob, Jaime- James, Jose- Joseph, Juan- John, Judith, Lazaro- Lazarus, Levi, Lucas- Luke, Manuel- short for Emmanuel, Marcos- Mark, Mateo- Matthew, Melchor- Melchior, Miguel- Michael, Pablo- Paul, Pedro- Peter, Rafael- Raphael, Samson, San Diego- Saint James, San Jose- Saint Joseph, San Juan- Saint John, San Miguel- Saint Michael, Santa Ana- Saint Anne, the mother of Saint Mary, Santa Maria- Saint Mary, Santiago- variant of Jaime, Simeon, Simon, Solomon, Tadeo- Thaddeus, Tobias, Tomas- Thomas, Zacarias- Zacharias

Below is list of other religious figures not in the Bible. They are mostly popes and patron saints in different places in the world.

Adriano- Adrian, Agustin- Augustine, Albano- Albans, Alberto- Albert, Antonio- Anthony, Antonino- Antoninus, Basilio- Basil, Benedicto- Benedict, Bernardo- Bernard, Bonifacio- Boniface, Casimiro- Casimir, Clemente-Clement, Cristobal- Christopher, Domingo- Dominic, Eugenio- Eugene, Eusebio- Eusibius, Felix, Francisco- Francis, Gregorio- Gregory, Guillermo- William, Ignacio- Ignatius, Jacinto- Jacinto, Javier- from St. Francis Xavier, Marcelino- Marcellinius, Martin, Mauricio- Maurice, Nicolas- Nicholas, Pascual- Paschal, Quirino- Quirinius, Roque- Roche, Sebastian, Silvestre- Sylvester, Sixto- Sixtus, Teodoro- Theodore, Vicente- Vincent

 

Filipino Surnames Derived from Names of Places

 

Majority of surnames carried by Filipinos are either Spanish or indigenous in origins. Some surnames of the Spaniards are names of places in Spain and other countries. With Spanish contacts especially during the era of colonization, some Filipinos have Spanish surnames  as a result of Spanish ancestry or adaptation of the decree on November 21, 1849, by Spanish Governor General of the Philippines Narciso Claveria Y Zaldua urging the inhabitants to select and adopt surnames based on the list provided in the Catalogo Alfabetico de Apilledos.

Below is a list of Spanish surnames that are derived from places in Spain that some Filipino families also carry as their own. Some of the names have changes in Spelling when used by Filipinos.

Abenoja (Abenojar), Agudo, Alava, Albarracin, Alcantara, Alcaraz, Alcazar, Alfaro, Almazan, Almonte, Aragon, Arevalo, Astorga, Atienza, Avila, Barcelona, Barrameda, Barriero, Bilbao, Brosas (Brozas), Burgos, Cadiz, Cartagena, Caspe, Collado, Cordova, Cuenca, Daymiel (Daimiel), Escatron, Espina (La Espina), Estremadura (Extremadura), Figueras, (Figueres), Figueroa, Fontanosas, Galvez, Garlito (Garlitos), Girona, Granada, Guadalupe, Jaca, Ledesma, Ligazpi, Linares, Logroӣo, Lugo, Madrid, Manzaӣares, Martos, Mayorga, Molina, Mondejar, Monsanto, Monteroso (Monterroso), Montilla, Monzon, Navarra/Navarro, Olivenza, Onda, Oropesa, Palencia, Pamplona, Peӣafiel, Peralta, Poblete, Quezada, Quintanar, Quinto, Robledo, Sagunto, Sahagun, Salamanca, Salas, Salcedo, Saldaӣa, Santander, Sepulveda, Sevilla, Soria, Talavera, Teruel, Toledo, Tolosa, Tortosa, Trillo, Trujillo, Valdepeӣas, Valencia, Vigo, Villahermosa, Viloria, Zafra, Zamora, Zaragosa

Spaniards also bear surnames that are derived from other places or countries, and when they do, the word or the spelling of these names is Hispanized. Below is a list of some of those names that are also adopted by Filipinos including names of places in the Philippines that are only used by them as surnames.

Avelino (Avellino, a City in Italy), Babilonia (Babylonia), Bacolod, Baguio, Basilan, Bayona (Bayonne, a port in France), Beja (a Portuguese city), Belen (Bethlehem), Belgica (Belgium), Bohol, Bordeos (Bordeaux, a city of France), Braganza (Braganca, Portugal), Capistrano (Capestrano, a town in Italy), Cerdeӣa (Sardinia, an island of Italy), Chavez (Chaves, a city In Portugal), Cuba, Damasco (Damascus), Davao, Egipto (Egypt), de Asis (Assisi, a town in Italy), Evora (a city in Portugal), Filipinas, Florencio (Florence, a city in Italy), Gante (Ghent, a city in Belgium), Israel, Jerusalem, Jordan, Lamigo (Lamego, a city in Portugal), Luzon, Medina (a city in Saudi Arabia), Montenegro (a country in Southeast Europe), Napoles (Naples, a city in Italy), Padua (a city in Italy), Pedroso (a municipality in Portugal), Piamonte (Piemonte, a region in Italy), Rabat (the capital of Morocco), Ravena (Ravenna, a city in Italy), Surigao, Tiro (Tyre, a city in Lebanon), Tolentino ( a town in Italy), Valenzuela (little Valencia), Villareal (Vila Real, a city in Portugal)

 

 

Saba Banana, a Cheap and Delicious Staple Food in the Philippines

Saba or Sab-a banana is an staple food in the Philippines that is widely available in the local market any time of the year. Unlike other banana varieties which are eaten raw as a snack or dessert, Saba is a cooking banana that can be eaten ripe or not. And it is the only variety of cooking banana that is native to the Philippines.

Cooked ripe Saba is a popular street food because of its affordability to the masses. It is sold by vendors in the street or near public schools and establishment canteens.

The fruit is rich in minerals and vitamins such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, iron, Vitamin C, zinc, and B vitamins. It is also a good source of carbohydrate and dietary fiber which can keep the body’s digestive system healthy.  

In their homes, people usually go to the easiest way to cook the fruit which is to boil or fry it. The following are some ways to prepare Saba for business purposes or personal consumption:

Maruya- the banana is sliced fan shaped without separating the pieces and is then coated in a batter of flour and deep fried. When cooked, the surface is sprinkled with sugar.

Banana cue- the peeled bananas are cooked in a syrup of water and sugar. Cooked bananas in a group of two or three are then held together with bamboo stick skewers.

Grilled banana or ginanggang- the best Saba bananas for this purpose are the under-ripe ones. Unpeeled bananas are skewered to hold them together and grilled over a flaming charcoal. When done, the bananas are brushed with margarine and topped with sugar.

Turon- the bananas are sliced and rolled in sugar. They are then topped with jackfruit flesh and wrapped in lumpia or spring roll skin and deep fried and coated with caramel when done.

Binignit or tabirak- is a dessert made from mix of sweet potatoes, ube, Saba banana, jackfruit flesh, bits of glutinous rice, gulaman and other ingredients that are cooked in water and coconut milk and sweetened with brown sugar.

Saba banana is also used as vegetable in pork or beef stew which is called lau-ya.

Factory-made and exported Saba banana products:

Banana chips- under-ripe Saba bananas are sliced and then deep fried and dehydrated and covered with sugar to make banana chip which is a dollar earner for the Philippines. They are exported to countries such as the United States, Canada, EU, Australia, Japan, South Korea, China, and others.      

                       

Banana catsup- in the industrial aspect, Saba banana is an alternative main material for the more popular tomato in the manufacture of catsup. Maria Orosa, a Filipina food technologist in response to the scarcity of tomatoes in 1942, looked for ways to deal with the issue and invented the tomato catsup. Her product became an instant hit, and until now is availed by household consumers as well as the hospitality industry to cater to its food and drinks business.

 

Green Saba Banana, a Diabetic-Friendly Food

                              

Saba banana is one of the staple foods in tropical regions, especially Southeast Asia. It is a species of banana that is cooked rather than eaten raw like dessert bananas. Ripe Saba bananas are more delicious and have many culinary uses, and unripe or green Saba bananas also have their share of usefulness as food. Unripe Saba is cooked by boiling it whole with its peel on. It can also be roasted. Boiled green Saba is eaten to pair with kinilaw, a Filipino version of Mexican raw fish dish ceviche or to roasted fish. Most often it is eaten alone as snack or eaten together with salted fish or salted shrimp or alamang which are called bagoong in Filipino. A linupak or linusak in Cebuano is a banana snack on which a boiled green Saba is mashed in a mortar and pestle and mixed with grated coconut, brown sugar and butter or margarine. 

What is good about Saba is that it is one of the cheapest foods in the local market and is always available all year round.

Green Saba banana, a fruit that is good for diabetes.

Green or unripe Saba banana may be a fruit that is good for diabetics because of its low glycemic index that means its consumption results in slow rise of blood sugar in the body. It is rich in dietary fiber and contains a resistant starch that acts as prebiotic that feeds gut bacteria. Eating cooked green Saba may improve long term blood sugar management and gut health.

An unripe green banana has a glycemic index of 30 which is low while ripe banana has a medium glycemic index of 60. For this reason, green bananas should be cooked and eaten within three days after purchase or harvest to benefit from their low glycemic index because they easily ripen.

Like all foods, green Saba bananas should be consumed in moderation. Consult a health care provider or dietician if you would like to incorporate green Saba banana as one of your chosen foods for your long-term diabetic management.

Higalaay Festival Kaumahan Agro-Fair and Garden Show 2025

The Higalaay Festival has become a traditional annual event to celebrate the feast of St. Augustine, the patron saint of Cagayan de Oro City. It is a month-long festivity that starts in the first week of August and culminates on August 28, the feast of Saint Augustine. Some of the highlights of the event include city sponsored activities such as culinary show, street parade, bisperas fireworks show, religious procession, horse show, marathon and beauty pageant to select and crown the Miss Cagayan de Oro of the year. In addition, private enterprises like night market, carnivals and others provide more enjoyment to the celebration. August 28 is a non-working holiday in the city and residents, especially the Catholic faithful, celebrate the fiesta by preparing and serving sumptuous foods to share with family, relatives, friends and other guests. In some cases the merriment include drinking, singing, and dancing.

The fiesta sa Kaumahan Agro-Fair and Garden Show 2025 is one of the Highlights of the Higalaay Festival where agricultural plants and products are displayed in Gaston Park near the Saint Augustine Cathedral. These plants are there for people to see or buy. These plants come from farmers of the city and other nearby municipalities and provinces as far as Davao.

Here are pictures of the Kaumahan Agro-Fair and Garden Show 2025.