Biggel's home province of Marinduque

 Biggel photo: LBM Group

It is the home province of one of the most publicized Pinoy Big Brother (PBB) housemates these days, (landing at least four times as trending topic in Worldwide Trends), where he was raised by his poor grandparents - Joseph Biggel, Marinduque’s ‘promdihirang tisoy’. Few people know that Marinduque is also really the geodetic center of the Philippines. 

Atop a mountain near Balanacan Port is a marker appropriately marked as Station Balanacan, the origin of Luzon Datum of 1911. It is the mother of all datums in the country.

Also, the roots of various expressions of Tagalog culture, traditions, indigenous arts, including the language that originated here and has evolved into today's modern national forms, could still be clearly seen, heard and learned in Marinduque - yes, Biggel speaks that language throughout his stay at the famous PBB house.

In its long and colorful history, this island-province measuring only 959 sq.km. became part of Batangas, Mindoro, and Tayabas (now Quezon). By the 1920s an act separating Marinduque from Tayabas laid the basis for the island-province's existence as a separate province,  celebrated February 21st - off and on.

Marinduque is widely known for the colorful Lenten pageant, Moriones Festival, and for the fierce patriotism displayed by the revolutionary soldiers during the Philippine-American War in the Battle of Pulang Lupa and Battle of Paye, both commemorated annually, for sure.