Bewitched in Siquijor

A motorcycle ride quickly brings you to the island’s many attractions

Text and Photos by Eric Cabahug

“Mom, are we gonna see the witches?” a young girl excitedly intoned as the ferry boat docked at the Siquijor port.

Ah, the stuff elders tell their kids! Then again, the mother probably felt compelled to be extra colorful to get the young one stoked for their visit to the island, which is so far from anything even remotely Disneyland in this part of the world. It is, in fact, far from anything urban even, in the first place.

Kiddo most probably got disappointed. The so-called witches of Siquijor are not the type who don long and loose black robes and pointy black hats, don’t have

furiously crumpled skin and pointy noses and long fingers, and don’t ride flying broomsticks. (But then, what kind of modern-day real witches do, if they even actually exist?)

They are really mostly self-proclaimed faith healers apparently “gifted” with all sorts of abilities—such as, among the more exotic and incredible, bringing back to life fish that had already been made into readyto-eat food called ginamos. They converge in Siquijor from all over the country during Holy Week for a local government-sanctioned, Catholic church-supported healing festival to hawk their services and products. There is also a smattering of other alternative medicine practitioners serving up a variety of concoctions, such as potions for a wide array of “interests.”

The festival is held for four consecutive days, from Holy Wednesday to Black Saturday, in Mt. Bandilaan, the tallest in the island and home to a national park. It continues to attract ever-increasing crowds of Filipino and foreign tourists every year. In fact, it has grown so big that it now includes a musical show featuring several local bands on the night of Good Friday at that. (No, it’s not called Healingpalooza. Not yet, anyway.)

None of this sounds kid-friendly, so I’m guessing the young girl who wanted to see the “witches” had to find her fun somewhere else. My hunch is she found it at the beach, which Siquijor has plenty of, some of them with fine white sand and very clear blue water. And perhaps in one of the two waterfalls, both picturesque and safe even for small children. And maybe at the famous huge old balete tree that boasts a manmade fish spa at its

foot. She may, if she’s the religious type, also have found it in any of the many imposing centuries-old Catholic churches scattered all over the island.

I’d been to Siquijor once previously. Several years ago, my friends and I went on a day trip from Bohol. Actually, it was only less than half a day trip. We got to the island at around 10 a.m. and left about five hours later. It wasn’t enough to cover all the popular tourist sites. And the sightseeing that we did had be done à la Amazing Race. But it was enough to get me, uh, bewitched, pun intended. I knew I wanted to go back.

This time around, we had more than a full day to explore the island, but we still failed to cover everything. I did get to experience Siquijor riding a motorbike, not just once, not even twice, but three times on this trip. I was just a passenger, though, and I was the better for it. I got to chat with my drivers who were all locals and learned a bit more about the island. The last ride was most memorable. We traversed a long stretch of the coastal highway to get me back to my resort from Siquijor town proper. It was nighttime of Good Friday, and the moon was huge and a pale shade of orange. The scenery was beautiful and surreal. It provided a perfect backdrop for the stories that my companion was telling me. Among them were myths and legends about Siquijor’s encantos, tales of travelers getting bewitched on the island, and hearsay about locals who do actual witchcraft, one of whom is quite famous for her truly effective deadly curses that are available to everyone for a hefty fee.

I don’t suppose the mother would ever take her kid to see that witch.