UP Diliman Oblation by Night
After that isaw sessions at Mang J’s near Kalayaan dorm, my blogger friends and I decided to go tour the campus by night. Walk the academic oval towards Quezon Hall where Oblé is and chill there and talk everything under the sun and the clouds.
UP Diliman’s Academic Oval is bustling with people jogging by night. Health buffs, lovers, students, barkadas and the like. Even though my campus at college is at UP Visayas, seeing these really brings back memories of those happy go lucky days as a university student. Different campuses have different characters but something really binds all UP campuses in my own opinion. I felt home and comfortable, as if UP Diliman campus is an oasis of calm and expression amidst the sea of chaos of Metro Manila.
While we were walking towards Oblation, I’ve noticed flying lights near the lagoon area. One, two, three of them flying besides the gracious acacia trees. And they multiplied. We thought these may be enchanted trees. After all, UP Diliman is full of those ghastly and enchanted tales.
The UP Carillion By Night
But no. My heart was filled with bliss and said, “Mga alitaptap! Nakakita na rin ako ng alitaptap at sa Kamaynilaan pa! Sa Iloilo pa ako huling nakakita nyan! (Fireflies! Finally I saw fireflies and here in Manila! The last time I saw one was at Iloilo!)
I’ve read somewhere that fireflies are good indicators of air quality of a certain area because they are sensitive to pollutants. If you see one or several lights flickering at your area, they may indicate that you have a good quality of air. And I believe UP Diliman has the quality of air that really makes it an oasis itself.
And as we’ve approached the Bulwagag Quezon (the administration building of UP Diliman) and the ever heroic Oblation, seeing the fireflies and the new Carilion makes me feel that UP, my beloved alma mater, is part of who I am now.
And as for the fireflies, I hope they keep on flickering at the cool nights of Diliman…I hope I haven’t seen the last of them yet flourishing besides the embrace of the old acacia tree. UP Diliman, a place of the graceful diwatas and great anitos.
