When we were young children going to school, we passed by this sundial that sits in front of the municipal hall and thought nothing of it. The monument with the face of a clock was just there. Some of us may have climbed it, scaled it, or out of simple curiosity perfunctorily inspected it - but in reality, we never really appreciated its purpose much less researched on what it was supposed to be. 

Today, this sundial is one of two surviving time keeping monuments that attest to the Spanish cultural influence in our hometown. Today, many tourists – some coming from from all parts of the world - visit our town just to look at these time pieces. 

St. Augustine Church

Another treasure that puts our town on the world map is the church of St. Augustine. Its façade speaks of another time, another world - its massive, heavy  wooden doors that bear the carvings of artisans who worked with chisel and mallet – no prefabricated plastic moulding for these craftsmen – stand facing the plaza proper.

When we attended school the church was a major part of the school campus – yet how many of us took the time and trouble to inspect and appreciate the workmanship that went into building it? It is a massive structure, its rafters made out of rough hewn timber, its sides held rigidly by towering buttresses of layered stone, held together with mortar, lime and other available primitive binders.

During the monsoon season rain water would cascade down on the buttresses along the side of the church. As part of a game we played in the rain, we would run in, and dart out from underneath the spray. The sides of the church building would sprout the greenest of fine moss covering it to form a velvetine surface.