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Big Filipino crowd in Tapochau trek
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Posted on Apr 14 2006
A large number of Filipinos in the CNMI, probably a thousand of them or more, joined the annual Good Friday trek to Mt. Tapochau yesterday morning.
Likewise, many Filipino groups set up tents along the road to Tapochau to serve water and snacks to trekkers for free.
Some of the volunteer organizations were the Bicol Association, MDX Amateur Radio Club, MOVER, and Knights of Columbus, among others.
Aside from water, the Bicol Association put bread and peanut butter on the table, while MOVER offered hard-boiled eggs with salt on the side, to the delight of the hungry walkers.
Another popular station was that of the Knights of Columbus, which distributed free ice candies or ice keke to the hikers.
“Come, hurry so we can still get it [ice candy],” said one of the hikers to a friend on their way back from the mountain.
Others on the opposite lane also wondered where to get the thirst-reliever ice candy. “Just where are they [people] getting it?”
While yesterday’s hike was primarily a religious sacrifice to many, others walked for the experience. Many of the participants were actually first-time Tapochau hikers.
A company executive who has been on island for 17 years said it was her time to actually walk up the mountain.
“It’s for fun. It feels great but I don’t think I’m doing it again soon. It’s just hard to climb up and down,” she said.
Ten-year-old Anne Madrid Angeles said she woke up at 5:30am to join the walk.
“I was the first in the house to wake up. I haven’t been there [Tapochau] yet,” she said.
She and her family parked their car at the Department of Commerce at about 7am and walked from there all the way up the mountain. They reached the top after an hour, rested and took pictures for about 30 minutes, and walked back down. They arrived at the parking area at about 10:30am.
“I thought it’s easy to come down, but it’s actually hard. It took us a longer time to return. My feet are hurting but it’s okay,” she said.
