Toughening out in life: The UP Narra dorm experience *
ENERGY, INFRA AND ECONOMICS - Bienvenido Oplas Jr. - The Philippine Star
July 10, 2025 | 12:00am
https://www.philstar.com/business/2025/07/10/2456761/toughening-out-life-narra-dorm-experience
Last Sunday, July 6, I attended a reunion of former residents of UP Narra Residence Hall (Nareha) hosted by UP president Jijil Jimenez at the Executive House. Narra was the only all-boys dormitory in UP Diliman, the other dorms are co-ed or all-girls, and Jijil himself was a Narra resident in his undergrad days.
I stayed in Narra dorm from 1983-1985, my first batch of roommates were all engineering majors, all classmates from Philippine Science High School. When they graduated, my second batch of roommates were my friends from UP Sapul, political science and math majors.
Our room was near the famous “Lean Alejandro room,” just a few doors away. Intelligent, articulate and brave student leader Lean Alejandro and his roommates Sarge Colambo, Jojo Abinales and Alvin Batalla were kind people who would welcome gate crashers in their room so long as we knock first, then engage us in any discussion from politics to history, economics, natural sciences, to Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series.
Two of my engineering roommates were fratmen. When they have a rumble against another fraternity, my roommates asked me to allow their other brods to stay in our room as holding area. I saw plenty of weapons except guns – baseball bats, steel chains, lead pipes, chaku, small knives, etc. Around 15 boys in our room, they allowed me to see their armaments as compromise for my permission that they hold out in our room. I think none of those weapons were used because the next day, the rumble is over. Until the next semester rumble/s.
Most dormers were from the provinces, I am from Cadiz City, Negros Occidental where I took my high school. Far away from our parents and families, when our allowances are delayed or there were some emergency spending, the first thing to do is borrow money from roommates or other friends, or simply scrimp on food – eat food not at the canteen but at the lady selling street food outside the dorm on credit, to be paid few days or weeks later.
Last Sunday night, many former Narra residents came, mostly from the 90s and 80s. A number of personalities came including a provincial governor, corporate leaders, lawyers and other professionals. Lots of food, beer and whisky on the table, microphones ready for karaoke singing, no program. I said to Jijil that I can create a program spontaneously and he should be the first speaker to give a welcome message. He nodded.
I briefly introduced myself, not even my college and proceeded to call on Jijil, then representing residents from the 1970s Sarge Colambo, a former congressman sectoral representative in the 80s and now TESDA deputy director general. Another speaker I called representing the 80s residents was Peter “Pidro” Sing, a successful entrepreneur and PR guy, very “galante” when treating us his former Narra dormmates to nice food. Representing the residents in the 90s I called on Raj Palacios, now associate dean of UP College of Law but I chose him because he is the younger brother of our friend in the 80s, Earl Palacios.
Everyone enjoyed the speeches and sharing of experiences of all the speakers I mentioned. There was ample time as no one seemed interested to do karaoke singing, so I called everyone to speak, one minute each and it turned out to be another blockbuster sharing of funny and wild experiences in Narra.
Famous wood sculptor and architect, and fellow Narra resident in the 80s, Clifford Espinosa somehow summarized what most residents shared. Cliff said in Filipino, I translate into English:
“In Narra, residents created or adjusted to an environment of total discomfort, both internal and physical, our ego gave way to other residents’ observations and advise and we showed who we are. To survive, we were forced to accept the environment without judgment. To survive we did many things, some became soldiers, gays, shrewd, politicians, etc. We were trained in real life ahead.”
I agree, and I think the main lesson from our stay and socialization in Narra, it forced us to be more humble, to be more tough and not a softy cry baby. We developed a sub-culture of camaraderie within UP culture. For instance, many fratmen stayed in Narra and when their respective frats have a rumble, residents know the guys from the other frat and they avoid hitting each other. Rumbles and bitterness will soon end and they will see each other in dorm corridors, in the lobby and TV room.
One funny and wild issue during my time, there were many stray cats roaming the dorm especially at the canteen – one-eyed Jack, have skins peeled 1x1 square inch, sometimes 2x2 square inch. One time I saw a cat with peeled skin both sides, the neck tied to a bench and shivering. I let it go, it turned out that the cat was under observation by a vet med student. There was a short shouting match because other residents chimed in.
The Narra dorm council held a big meeting for residents just about the cats, the lobby was full of rowdy and lively residents. The “Colambo Commission” was formed and chaired by Sarge Colambo, suggestions by residents were funny and wild. Among the advisers then was UP Law faculty Raphael “Popo” Lotilla, recently DOE Secretary and now DENR Secretary. Sec Popo stayed in Narra from undergrad to law student to law faculty, he developed many friends from different colleges and different batches.
Four decades later, among my close friends from UP are my Narra dormmates. It was a beautiful, colorful and humbling experience.
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* Note: above photo not part of the original article in PhilStar, I only added here.
See also my previous story about the dorm,
https://funwithgovernment.blogspot.com/2013/06/weekend-fun-43-tales-from-narra-dorm-up.html (June 22, 2013)
