And yet, it is exactly this seeming insignificance that gives its residents a sense of pride – where continuity is still a virtue and the goodness of community still counts. To put it simply, there is pride of place. It is this persistence of tradition that gave rise to its gastronomic fame: The duman (Read "For the love of Duman" by Mary Ann Quioc-Tayag, Philippine STAR, Dec. 11, 2002.); or the equally famous turrones de casuy and its incomparable sans rival. It is also home to three outstanding Pampangos: Rep. Satur Ocampo (for social justice), Andy Alviz (performing arts), and Catalina Saplala (women’s rights), as well as prominent families, like the Guanzons (whose ancestral house is the setting of the movie Tanging Yaman), the Coronels (of the Cinderella stores), the De Castros and Carloses (banking), and the Lagmans (Alen Group).
On the evening of the said pasko, we dressed simply in barrio clothes (baro for the ladies, camisa chino for men,) trooping to the farm of the Alviz family in Barrio San Augustin, Sta. Rita. The invitation sent by text promised an evening celebration of matuang pasko, pamangan manyaman a nilaga, bibingka kalame, puto bungbong ampong suman at tsokolate (loosely translated as Christmas of old – delicious boiled meat dinner, assorted rice cakes and hot chocolate).
As we, a strong Angeles City contingent of 20 persons, parked our vehicles beside the San Agustin chapel, we walked through a long narrow earthen dike amid rice paddies, guided only by the light from bamboo torches. At the other end of the pathway, the drama unfolded as cries of welcome greeted us: Mayap a bengi. Malaus ko pu! (Good evening. Please come in!) It was a festive oasis right in the middle of nowhere. There was a flurry of activities happening all at the same time: The sound of guitars being strummed, as native Christmas carols filled the cool December air; cups of hot tsokolate (made with carabao’s milk, none other) were being passed around; the sweet smell of bibingka and puto bumbong wafting in the air; the old local folks wrapping suman with banana leaves; ube jam being stirred in a large vat by a katutubo; and cauldrons of food simmering in the makeshift kitchen.
As we queued at one of several food stations, there were generous servings of nilagang pasku, a very traditional Pampango noche buena fare of boiled chicken, pork, beef and assorted vegetables, slow-cooked for several hours over charcoal, deeply flavored with ham hocks, much like its progenitor cocido madrileña. The local version is made with saging saba, though, making the nourishing broth a bit sweet and intensely flavorful. It was such a comforting and heartwarming delight sipping a cupful of the hot broth, especially on a cool December night that was. There was also asadong babi (inasadong baboy) and kilo bangus (kinilaw na bangus). The dishes were constantly replenished, literally feeding a battalion of guests.
As we settled on the dulang (low dining tables) strewn around the yard, plates and plates of bibingka, puto bumbong and panara (empanada filled with green papaya) were served. More hot tsokolate followed as the ArtiSta.Rita choir serenaded us with Pampango songs on a makeshift stage right in front of the bahay kubo.
The Artistang Santa Rita Foundation, or ArtiSta.Rita for short, started two Decembers ago when the local parish choir was gathered together to stage a Christmas eve concert, under the directorial guidance of Andy Alviz (resident choreographer of the Miss Saigon productions in Manila, Singapore and Hong Kong), and the musical directorship of Recy Pineda and Randy del Rosario, all natives of Sta. Rita. The three realized there were a lot of gifted young people in their town, but only a few lucky ones get to hone their talents and get the break they deserve. Most, however, were left undiscovered. From this observation was born the dream to help discover, cultivate and showcase talent, and hopefully pave the way for a child’s bigger dream.
After that successful Christmas serenade came the realization that it would be such a terrible waste to leave this abundant gathering of raw talent undiscovered and undeveloped. Thus, the ArtiSta.Rita was born.
There was much laughter and camaraderie shared that night. Our spirits soared with the enjoyable company of fellow cabalens as our stomachs were filled with the local delicacies offered us, not to mention the wonderful musical presentation that regaled us. It was an uplifting experience – a feast for both body and soul!