Pagsanjan: More Than Shooting the Rapids

For decades, the town of Pagsanjan in Laguna province has been popular for its majestic waterfall – the Pagsanjan Falls – and for shooting the rapids. The latter is an adrenaline-fueled boat ride where the Bumbungan River flows swiftly downstream over rocks. This boat ride is also the best way to see the Pagsanjan Falls.

In recent years this waterfall has come to be known as the Cavinti Falls since it lies within the boundaries of Cavinti town. However, the boats used for shooting the rapids still originate from the Pagsanjan portion of the Bumbungan River (commonly referred to as the Pagsanjan River) which runs all the way to the waterfall. Leo did get to shoot the rapids in 1991 when it was still one of the most popular tourism activities in the country. Mention the name of Pagsanjan and shooting the rapids is the one thing that readily stands out for Filipinos and international tourists.

Over the years however, numerous other waterfalls in Laguna province such as the ones in the nearby towns of Cavinti, Luisiana and Majayjay have grabbed a share of the limelight from Pagsanjan Falls. But, as we later discovered when passing through Pagsanjan town on our way to destinations in Laguna and Quezon, this town is more than just the Pagsanjan Falls or shooting the rapids.

Echoes From the Past

A Spanish-era stone arch welcomes visitors to the center of town. Pagsanjan originated as a settlement at the confluence of the Balanac and Bumbungan Rivers and became a strategic trading center for Laguna. At its height steam boats would run regularly to Laguna de Bay and into the Pasig River and the Escolta district – the economic center of Manila during the Spanish and early American colonial periods. This made Pagsanjan prosperous and many of its citizens developed a comfortable and cultured lifestyle. The town was also made into the capital of Laguna province before that was moved to the adjacent city of Santa Cruz.

Pagsanjan retained the old Spanish colonial town setup with a población or town plaza forming the center of the town’s government, economic and religious activities. This rectangular plaza was originally dubbed as Plaza de Reina Regente Maria Cristina in honor of Queen Regent Maria Cristina (an Austrian royalty who married King Alfonso XII) who ruled Spain from 1885 to 1902. At the southern end of the plaza and across Rizal Street, the major road running into the town center, is Pagsanjan’s municipal building, originally built during the mid-19^th century and reconstructed following its devastation in World War 2. At the eastern side of the plaza and at the corner of Rizal and General Taino Streets is the historic Church of Pagsanjan or the Diocesan Shrine and Parish of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Originally built using bamboo and nipa and with conscripted labor in 1688, the crude church was replaced in 1690 by a larger structure utilizing adobe stone blocks cemented by a lime mixture. The whole structure was roofed over by fire-hardened red tiles. The bell tower is of Romanesque design while the belfry is Mexican in style. This church was heavily damaged during an American aerial bombing in 1945 but later reconstructed with the help of the resources of Pagsanjan natives who had resettled in Manila.

On our first trip of the new year to Laguna, we opted for a DIY tour of the ancestral houses in town, majority of them along Rizal Street, the major thoroughfare running through Pagsanjan. A few were already in an almost run-down state but majority were relatively well-preserved. Many featured elaborate metal and wood works.

From what we have observed among ancestral homes in the Philippines, these houses are probably from the late Spanish to early American colonial eras. The two-story dwellings usually have a ground floor made of stone or masonry and a wooden second story – a throwback to house designs in the 18^th to 19^th centuries. They harken back to the days of the affluent principalia or educated upper class who governed Philippine towns and the illustrados or the educated middle class who would eventually plant the seeds of Filipino nationalism and revolution in the late 19^th century.

Surviving historical accounts talk about a Pagsanjan that looked even statelier than at present. However, World War 2 would cause the destruction of much of the town’s elegant architecture. American bombers raided the town when it was occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army and the latter, before retreating to the Sierra Madre Mountain Range, razed much of Pagsanjan to the ground. The Pagsanjan Church, the municipal building and many of the houses along Rizal St. were reduced to smoldering ruins by the combination of American bombs and the Japanese initiated-conflagration. Gone with the houses and other establishments were priceless works of art, crafted furniture, private libraries and historical records.

After Japanese troops abandoned the town, the residents returned to rebuild what remained of Pagsanjan. Fortunately, only a few lives were lost and many of the houses remained standing, although a good number of the older, more elegant homes were destroyed. Enough remained, however, allowing us to imagine and marvel at what the town could have been if not for the war.

Dining Destinations

Because of its popularity as a tourist town, Pagsanjan has seen a proliferation of resorts and dining establishments. While we never stayed overnight in town, we have dined here several times in the last 5 years. The following are some of the more popular spots we had visited.

Aling Taleng’s Halo-Halo has been serving locals and visitors for 90 years with its array of local cuisine, snacks and pasalubongs or delicacies bought by visitors to give away to friends and families. However, its specialty is halo-halo, a famous Filipino cold dessert made up of crushed ice, milk, and various ingredients, the whole mixture often topped with ice cream.

Top left: This old house used to be the home of the Balai Ilocos Restaurant back when we first visited 6 years ago. Other photos: Today it is the site of 227 Mucho de Nero’s Restaurant where, according to Nina’s Uncle Rene, they serve the best bulalo (beef shank and bone marrow soup – bottom right photo) he has ever had.

One of the notable houses we somehow missed was the ancestral home of Conrado Benitez, just a few houses away from the Pagsanjan Church. Benitez is the first Filipino dean of the College of Liberal Arts and the founder of the College of Business Administration both at the University of the Philippines (UP). Benitez also co-founded the Philippine Women’s University among other establishments and was one of the drafters of the 1935 Constitution. This struck at note with Leo because he would often pass by the Benitez Hall during his college days – the UP College of Education building which was named after Conrado Benitez.

A few steps away from the Benitez House is the Gomez House or Casa Gomez along P. Caballes St. Built in 1912, this house offers a view of the Pagsanjan River which is just at the back. An ice cream house used to be located at the ground floor of this house with the sign still visible on the concrete wall.

After touring Pagsanjan and imagining how the town would have looked like during its heyday in the 19^th century it was time to move on to another municipality not too far away. This one was able to retain a good number of its ancestral homes after making it through the Second World War largely intact. In our next post…