Here and There
Impressing our home-coming balikbayan
By Gerry Garcia
CHRISTMAS Eve tomorrow, Dec. 24, marks the end of a novena that began on the 16th with the Misa De Gallo, or dawn mass. This ninth day, Dec. 24, is a direct prelude to Christmas Day, after which the city of Dagupan on Dec. 26 will start its traditional festival or fiesta, significantly ending at the end of the current year the end of which immediately ushers in the start of the New Year 2008 — giving Pinoys another chance to display their devastating and explosive talent at merry-making.
The town fiesta to coincide with the day immediately following the Catholic world’s Grand Fiesta honoring the birth of Jesus Christ seems part of a clever plan to draw more people to Dagupan — all meant to drive home the point behind the meaning of Dagu (meeting) and pan (place).
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This explains why Dagupan balikbayans, including OFWs, from the US mainland, the Middle East, etc., choose year-end December as most appropriate time for homecoming.
Even Mayor Al’s recent trip to America, including that of VM Belen Fernandez, commercial entrepreneur par excellence, had been a reassuring reminder for come-backing Dagupeños that there will be more to see in the Dagupan City.
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We’ll bet that come-backing Dagupeños who’d not been around for more than 3 decades will be dumb-founded by the sight of so many people and vehicles milling the streets of laid -out Dagupan as a consequence of more than 4 huge shopping malls and 3 full-fledged universities hogging large portions of a limited land area of less than 50 square kilometers.
The end to the congested traffic in the city’s inner roads that newly returned Dagupeños find disappointing, may soon come with the completion of the 5-km new diversion road from sitio Dawel of Barangay Bonuan passing through Barangay Pantal to Barangay Lucao immediately near Binmaley town.
This is part of the city’s circumferential road intended to ease traffic congestion in downtown Dagupan. The southern portion, already completed, is comprised by the road stretch de Venecia highway starting at the Calasiao boundary and ending up in Lucao to merge with the almost-completed Dawel – Lucao diversion road.
Whether the resulting state of traffic in the city coming after completion of the Dawel-Pantal portion of the proposed circumferential road is acceptable enough to stave off undue criticism from our homecoming balikbayans, especially those from the state of California will soon be seen.
Long impressed by the continuous unimpeded flow of traffic in most heavily travelled and often criss-crossing and elevated free-ways in California, many returning Dagupeños may have become full-blown astigs defiant enough to admit that the proposed circumstantial road once completed would successfully ease congestion in Dagupan’s inner streets.
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Lest we start touching raw nerves, we now wish you, dear readers of the Punch, a Merry Christmas and a glorious New Year.
(Readers may reach columnist at sundaypunch2@yahoo.com. For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/here-and-there/ For reactions to this column, click “Send MESSAGES, OPINIONS, COMMENTS” on default page.)
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