Antonio Peneyra & Ela De Castro: From Barcelona con amor
MANILA, Philippines - Their love story began in October 2009 when Antonio Peneyra, a Filipino-Spanish citizen, was introduced by his brother Geoffrey to Ela Castro. Their first date at the Starbucks Coffee Maremagnum in Barcelona, Spain was followed by four and a half months of wonderful courtship. Ela accepted Tony to be her boyfriend in March 2010, before he left Barcelona for a holiday in the Philippines.
Tony was so far away from Spain, but Ela was on his mind at all times. It came as a surprise to Ela when on a long distance conversation between her and her mother Carmencita Castro, Ela found out that Tony went to her hometown in Jaen, Nueva Ecija and sought permission from Ela’s mother for Ela to live together with him in Barcelona.
She was further reassured, after the initial shock, when Tony presented to her an official document from the Philippine’s National Statistics Office. It was a Certificate of No Marriage (Cenomar).
Both of them later decided to take a Philippine vacation together to seek their parents’ blessings in marriage and the date was set for 2014.
Far from easy, the couple worked on the requirements they needed to complete for the church wedding in San Agustin Parish, Jaen, Nueva Ecija. Arriving from Barcelona, Spain in Febuary 2014, they immediately started the processing of papers for their March wedding.
With the assistance of their friend Christian Chester D. Clarkson, who works in a law office, the couple understood the procedure before going to the Bureau of Immigration in February 2014.
Another obstacle confronted Ela and Tony. They found out that the release of the dual citizenship would take a whole month.
Clarkson advised the couple to write a letter addressed to the Commissioner of the Bureau of Immigration to tell him the reason why there was an urgent need for the dual citizenship. Antonio Ragsac Peneyra and Ela Castro-Peneyra were married on March 12, 2014 with the civil wedding solemnized by Judge Francisco Ante of the Metropolitan Circuit Trial Court, Vigan, Ilocos Sur.
