The Lake is a Bay: Bay (Ba’i), Laguna

* the fields of Bay with Bundok Tikew in the background

Although there are many themes or places that one can immediately say when one speaks of Laguna, I believe two things must come up first. Certainly Laguna de Bay, and Bay itself should be put in the top list.

Not that I am playing the role of a homegrown history kido. But the point is it was in Bay that some of the pre-Spanish activities (i.e., trading, etc.) were encountered and got their ways into history books. The story of Juan de Salcedo and its conquest was not without mentioning Ba’i.

We have a small account on the place in Nick Joaquin’s ‘Rizal in Saga’ about Ba’i being made the capital of the newly created Provincia de La Laguna.

A ‘walk on the back trails’ of the town is certainly a worthwhile one.