Calubcob, Silang Cavite: Then and Now

Ibang iba ang barangay noon at ngayon. These were the words that were spoken by
my interviewee. On the 30th of September, I went home to Cavite which is our province to visit
my grandmother. My interviewee is my grandmother, Maria B. Loyola and she is currently
living in Brgy. Kalubkob Silang, Cavite.
Silang is a municipality of Cavite and is a first landlocked municipality in the province of
Cavite, Philippines. The name Silang was derived from the Tagalog word meaning silangan
meaning east, because the town is seated at the eastern portion of Cavite. A legend claims that
it was coined from the Tagalog word isinilang or "given birth to", referring to the sudden and
unusual emergence of the parish church. It may also refer to the new emergence of the land from
the eruption of Taal Volcano on May 15, 1754. Whereas, three barangays of Silang are called
Tubuan I, II & III. In my research, Silang has a population of 93,790 people during the 1990s
and now comprised of 248,085 residents as declared by the NSO or the National Statistic Office.
I asked my grandma to compare our community before and our community now. She told
me that before the streets now are mostly trees and crops during her childhood. The community
mainly depends on agriculture. There were also Brgy. Captains and konsehals before. She told
me that during her childhood, the community is frequently visited by the Japanese soldiers
because a lot of Filipino Gerilyas are residing here. She also described her experience when one
Japanese Soldier entered their house and saw a lot of crops on their table and so He got too many
fruits. She told me that their way of living before is simple as compared to now because the
roads today are very busy because our barangays location is being used as an alternative route to
Pico De Loro which is located in Batangas. Today, the community is mainly full of houses and

convenient stores. Many Koreans are also buying lands in here for their residential or
commercial property. Private vehicles are also anywhere.
Regarding the strengths and weaknesses of the community, She told me that the strength
of the community is its residents unity and family-oriented behavior. The spirit of bayanihan in
this community is still alive. she told me. I asked her to expound on that statement and she told
me that the residents of Calubcob work together towards the success of the community.
Everyone is actively participating and initiative in the communitys prepared programs
especially when it comes to the church of the barangay. I asked her about the communitys
weaknesses but she only stated few points. She said that the security of the community is very
low because not all tanods are roaming every night and the streetlights are not that enough to
secure and to give light to the residents. Other than that, she told me that the community has a lot
of strengths to offer.
I am greatly sure that our community will still exist 10-15 years from now. Based from
my interview with my grandmother she told me that our communitys location is now an
alternate route for those manila-vacationers who are on their way to Batangas. I can see that in
the future many commercial spaces would eventually pop because our barangay has a potential
to be known for many people are using this route to reach their desired destination. Houses in
here are also beautiful. Korean nationalities are also staring to live in here. Sooner or later, they
will invest a commercial business in here.
During my interview with my grandmother, I realized that change is the only constant
thing in this world as frequently said by the others. The phrase may be clich but it is a clich
for a reason. It is clich because it worked. Through the years the evolution of the peoples mind
and strategies has changed. People are very easily to adapt with the societys rapid evolution

from technologies, to foods, to clothing and etc. I am very excited to see whats in store for us in
the future.