Sta. Maria, Laguna
31 July 2021
It rained incessantly in the past two weeks so when the weather became forgiving last Saturday, I squeezed in a ride en route to Laguna's last frontier in the east—Sta. Maria, the town that borders Rizal and Quezon provinces. I was bound for Marilag Eco Park where the Three Falls nestles within its jungles. On the way there, the town reveals why she's called the Rice Granary of Laguna. Armed with Google Maps, I drove across the seemingly interminable roads bisecting the vast tract of rice paddies, thence the path I was taking became part of an undisturbed environs surrounding a river. The road was fringed with lush trees, all you could hear were the gushing streams—the soothing ambience of an ecological sanctuary. The river holds the water that comes from the waterfalls and flows down into the town's irrigation system, portions of which are visible on roadside. The trek and the ride were not short of excitement.
But I went home to the news of our grandfather's passing. I lost a family while on the road. Anticlimactic ending to an enthralling trip to what was to me a terra incognita. I was about to share this photo when I received the call from my mother—this supposedly peaceful, soothing photo that suddenly became somber and speaks merely of silence. ▣
Like a postcard, but digital: SNAPSHOTS features a random photograph from the road and a short story behind it. See the blog's SNAPSHOTS gallery.
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DJ Rivera is an I.T. professional, entrepreneur, travel blogger, writer and the online publisher of PinoyTravelogue.com based in Rizal province, Philippines. Click here to know more.
