Rizal’s 'green' house appalls CalambeñosBy Maricar Cinco
Inquirer Southern Luzon
First Posted 11:33:00 06/05/2009
Filed Under: history, House building
CALAMBA CITY, LAGUNA, Philippines -- The Rizal Shrine that stood silently over the decades in this city has suddenly caught everyone's attention after it was painted green about three weeks ago.
Not only have irate text messages started going around the town, but emails and calls from other provinces and abroad have expressed "shock and horror" over the shrine's new hue.
"We don't like it," Linda Lazaro, who was for 15 years a member of the Rizal Day committee, said.
"We are not against the painting per se. But it (the house) symbolizes Rizal (and) it is an insult to his memory," she added.
The school teacher, who is in her 70s, claimed to be a descendant of the national hero through the wife of Rizal's brother Paciano.
The shrine that used to be gray was reconstructed in the '50s with the funds coming from 25-centavo contributions of students and their families from several schools.
The National Historical Institute recently repainted the shrine's outside walls in a light shade of green. The walls inside were painted yellow and the ceiling blue.
"Even the well (in front of the house) was painted green," Lazaro said.
In his column in the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Wednesday, Ambeth Ocampo, head of the NHI, wrote that the reason for painting Rizal's house green was to "highlight the meaning of his surname."
The surname Rizal had its roots from the Spanish word "ricial," which meant a green field ready for harvest, he said.
"It does not follow that your house should be painted the way your surname means," said a resident of Calamba, who preferred not to be named so as not invite the ire of Ocampo.
"It's a flimsy reason. It doesn't hold water," Lazaro said.
She said townsfolk have been joking about painting their houses according to the meaning of their surnames.
"If our last name is Guinto, should our house be painted in gold?" Lazaro recalled one sarcastic remark she received.
To placate irate residents, the curator placed a tarpaulin about four days ago, explaining why the house was painted in green.
People, mostly on educational trips, visit the Rizal shrine, especially during the weekends.
"That's all we have here in Calamba and we lost our symbol," Lazaro worried about losing the town's main historical and tourist attraction.
She said a British guest recently came to see the house and "was horrified" with the color.
"It's embarrassing. We are having a hard time explaining to them (guests) why it is green," she said.
It was a different reaction before the house was painted.
"Children would turn silent upon entering the house. There was a certain ambiance and romance, it being an old house," she said.
On Thursday, a guest referred to the Rizal shrine, with its green facade, as a "toy house,"
Lazaro said.
She said teachers, who were on a tour with their students in Calamba, were angry because they could not explain why the color had to be changed.
The office of the curator also received reactions, some containing invectives, about the changes in the house's color.
"We are being blamed (for turning Rizal's house green)," said Lazaro.
She said an elderly resident of Calamba even cried over the changes. Teenagers also started referring to it as a "disco house with neon colors."
A text message from a concerned individual read, "sansala po ako sa bagong pintura ng bahay na bato, kung mangalap kaya tayo ng pondo para po sa repainting sigurado ko po marami ang bukas-palad para dyan (I was surprised by the way the house was repainted. If we solicit funds for the repainting, I am sure many would give willingly.)"
Lazaro, however, said it would be too late to repaint the house in time for June 19, Rizal's birth anniversary.
Some people have mixed emotions about the repainting.
Another resident said Rizal's house "looks like a cake."
Dr. Virgilio Lasaga, tourism officer of Calamba, confirmed the negative feedback they have been receiving about Rizal’s green house.
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