The people of Bicol are accustomed to danger. For centuries they’ve lived in the shadow of four active volcanoes on this peninsula, which juts out on the southeastern end of Luzon, the Philippines’ largest and most populous island.
The tallest volcano, Mayon, is said to be home to Gugurang, the supreme god of Bicolano mythology. It’s this god who’s praised — or blamed — for Bicol’s tempestuous moods: the heat, the monsoons, the typhoons, the eruptions.
Still, the Bicolanos stay. Modern disaster-monitoring methods have made the region far safer. But what’s perhaps more important
