Known as a must-visit pilgrimage site in Pangasinan for housing a holy relic, the Holy Cross Parish Church has stood in Alcala since 1881 and received the relic around 2013. After an earthquake destroyed the original building, a new one was constructed in 1968.
The San Fabian Central Beach is known for its vast stretch of soft gray sand. Various shops and vendors can be conveniently found within the vicinity while cottages line the shore. The San Fabian Central Beach is also significant in history when professor and historian Dr. Ricardo Jose from the University of the Philippines-Diliman claimed, during a forum last January 9, 2020 in Lingayen, Pangasinan, that Gen. Douglas MacArthur originally landed in San Fabian Central Beach during the liberation of Luzon.
The Calamansian ed Lekep-Butao in San Fabian started out as a small plantation but grew overtime to occupy around two hectares of farmland. The plantation is owned and managed by various farmers in Brgy. Lekep-Butao and has become a major livelihood in the community, with calamansi growing all year round. Majority of their harvests are brought to the Bagsakan Market in Urdaneta City but they also supply several restaurants in Dagupan City. Aside from calamansi, duhat, guyabano, kamias, mangoes, and chili peppers are also grown on the farm.
The farm also produces a variety of food products out of their calamansi like fresh calamansi juice and delicious calamansi crinkles.
The Angalacan River is a refreshing spot frequented by both locals and visitors in the homey town of Mangaldan. The river is 10 kilometers in length and is a major source of livelihood for the community. Visitors may sit along its embankment as they fish, have picnics or simply relax and wait for time to pass.
Aside from the “Metamorphosis,” a giant carabao monument, Urdaneta City boasts of another monument designed and created by four national artists, the “Urdaneta Park Landmark Monument.”
Unveiled in the year 2009, the monument is dedicated to Fray Andres de Urdaneta from whom the city was possibly named after. The event also marked the culmination of the 500th birth anniversary of Fray Urdaneta who accompanied the Loaísa expedition to the Spice Islands.
The remarkable and instagrammable monument was designed and built by four National Artists, namely: Napoleon Abueva (National Artist for Sculpture, 1976), Abdulmari Imao (National Artist for Visual Arts, 2006), Ildefonso Santos (National Artist for Architecture, 2006) and Alejandro Roces (National Artist for Literature, 2003).
The remarkable giant farmer and carabao figures of bronze finish have been solidly constructed in the year 2006 fronting the town plaza of Bugallon. Since then, it has become a famous landmark of the municipality. The monument was built with the help and creativity of a local artist group in Pangasinan called, “Anak Pawis.”
The farmer and carabao monument serve as a reminder of the history and significance of the earliest livelihood in the town which is farming. This was strategically built along the road for the commuters and passersby to see in order for them to remember the relevance of farming in the local community and for the people of Bugallon to take pride of the rich history of their town.
Located in Urdaneta City is a monument of a giant carabao known as the “Metamorphosis.” Unveiled to the public in 2011, it is a cast bronze statue of a carabao, the city’s official seal, and has a backdrop of granite wall tempered with cascading man-made waterfall.
The “Metamorphosis” is a sculpture of Ram Mamalio, a professional monument and portrait sculptor and a native of Urdaneta City, Pangasinan. He specializes in realism – capturing the natural likeness of his art subjects (model). Some of his other significant works in the province are the bronze statue of former Governor Daniel Maramba, along the Maramba Boulevard in Lingayen and the bust sculpture of National Artist for Literature Francisco Sionil Jose in Rosales.
The Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (KWF) has launched a special project called “Bantayog-Wika” to give recognition to major languages in the Philippines, and the Pangasinan language is one of those recognized by the KWF as a major language in our country for its uniqueness.
In 2018, the Province of Pangasinan was one of the recipients of the project by the KWF, and the language monument in recognition of the Pangasinan language was unveiled in a befitting ceremony.
The Bantayog-Wika ng Pangasinan is an added tourist spot along Maramba Boulevard, promoting love for our native language and culture.
Don Daniel Bautista Maramba was the Municipal President (now mayor) of Sta. Barbara from 1907 to 1908, and the seventh Governor of Pangasinan from 1916 to 1922. He is dubbed as the “Grand Old Man of Pangasinan.”
It was during his time as governor when the construction of the Provincial Capitol Building was started in April 1917 and was finished in December 1918. The Capitol today houses the offices of the Governor, Vice Governor and Provincial Board Members, and the session hall of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan.
The Maramba monument was unveiled in April 2007 in recognition of his life and contributions to Pangasinan. It is located in Maramba Boulevard, Lingayen, Pangasinan, which was named after him.
In Lingayen, the capital town of Pangasinan, lies the ASNA Monument. “ASNA” is an old Pangasinan word for “asin” or “salt,” the main product of Pangasinan.
First unveiled beside the Sison Auditorium on April 5, 2011 during the 431st Agew na Pangasinan, the monument is composed of several fibre resin cubes that symbolize salt cubes. These cubes are attached to stainless pipes and connected together in an upward position. The monument is placed on top of a platform made of jet black granite.
A sculpture by Ernesto V. Elduayan, it is a tribute to outstanding men and women of Pangasinan. The provincial government confers the ASNA Award annually to Pangasinenses with exceptional services and achievements in the fields of government and community service, arts and culture, medicine, agriculture and aquaculture development, mass communications, business and entrepreneurship, science and technology, education, law, and sports.
The monument was transferred to its new site beside the Veterans Memorial Park en route to the beachfront.
Since its inauguration in 2012, the St. Clare Monastery of St. James the Apostle in the town of Malasiqui has been known to be a must-visit pilgrimage site for locals and tourists. A white church and a monastery occupy a vast grassland and emanate a quiet and solemn sanctity around the grounds. Some say that masses held in the church are sung by the nuns who live in the monastery and that the image of St. James the Apostle that is housed within the church miraculously grants prayers for devotees.
The construction of the first church and convent was headed by Fr. Luis Delfin in 1746 but these buildings were destroyed in a fire in 1763. Another convent was built in 1770 and then a new church in 1773 but these buildings, too, perished in a fire on February 29, 1820. After another fire destroyed the church that was built in 1823, a provisional church and convent were set up but were eventually destroyed during an earthquake in 1880.
The St. Ildephonse Parish Church that stands today in Malasiqui was constructed by Fr. Juan Cardaba in 1885 and although half of this was destroyed in the tremors of 1892, the overall edifice was repaired during the time of Fr. Salvador Millan.
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