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A MEDITERANEAN CRUISE FOR THEIR GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY by Caloy Las Marias, MD, Batch ‘67b
Brod Felixberto “Bert” Fabella, D.V.M., and his wife Lea recently celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary aboard the huge ship M.V. Norwegian Gem of the Norwegian Cruise Line on a cruise to the West Mediterranean.
From New Jersey, they took an 8 hour flight to Barcelona, Spain, a Catalan-speaking region. From here, they sailed to Vallietta, Malta, a fort originally formerly owned by the British. According to Brod Bert, Malta was crucial during WWII as the fight between Germany and Britain raged in a battle for supremacy over North Africa.
They proceeded to Naples, Italy. Bert says that Naples has one of the most beautiful harbors in the world as viewed from the high mountain cliffs surrounding most of the harbor. They visited the famous ruins of Pompei, one of the cities in Italy that was buried by Mt. Vesuvius centuries ago. Then to Sorrento, a city popularized by the song in its honor, where one can see the narrow streets in Italy lined with non-edible but beautiful orange trees.
Next was Port Civitavecchia, then to Port Livorno, where they took a bus to the leaning tower of Pisa. Next port: Vallefranche, France, where one may disembark and see Monte Carlo, Monaco, made very famous by the wedding of Princess Grace Kelly and Prince Ranier. They also toured Nice, a nearby city in the south of France. From Villafranche, they sailed back to Barcelona, Spain, and traveled to Mt. Monserrat, high up in the Pyrenees Mountain Range.
Brod Bert met his wife in 1954 and got married in 1958, in Cubao, Q.C. They are blessed with Tres Marias – Genevieve, a BSN/RN at the County Health Department; Jacqueline, BA Marketing and works for Wall Street Journal, DOW Jones; Llana, BA Sociology and MA candidate at the University of Florida.
On his choice of profession, he had these to say: “In my course selection at the UP, I was first interested in Agriculture, but the expense involved in staying in Los Banos was just prohibitive. My father suggested Vet-Med. He knew it was tough and that I may not be able make it. Filipino scientists then came from Vet-Med - Dr. Teodulo Topacio Sr., Dr. Angel Gomez, Dr. Zacharias de Jesus, etc.
“After graduation in '57, I started as emergency laborer at BAI. Was sent to Masbate for hemorrhagic septicemia campaign (1957). I was promoted to Veterinarian. I underwent training at various fields in Pandacan, former office of the Bureau of Animal Industry. I was sent to Pampanga for the anthrax campaign. Then sent to Bongabon Stock Farm, for premunization of Sta. Gertrudes cattle from King Ranch Texas, taking blood from Brahmans at stock farm and transfusing it to Sta. Gertrudes to immunize them vs. piroplasmosis & anaplasmosis (protozan blood parasites). I passed the board in December '57. Then I was sent to Surigao as Provincial Vet; stayed for 2 years and transferred to Palawan; again for almost 2 years and later reassigned in Quezon.
“I migrated to US in '72 and worked in State of Florida for 27 years working in animal disease control work mostly in brucellosis in cattle and swine, also in horses, equine infectious anemia and in poultry avian influenza and whatever animal disease problem that cropped up like West Nile Virus outbreak. Retired in 2003. Finally settled in Orlando, Florida.”
To you, Brod Bert and Lea, may you be blessed to celebrate another milestone -- your Diamond Wedding Anniversary!
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