Luzon Festivals You Should Not Miss!

GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN CULTURAL EDUCATION (GDCE)ST. PAUL UNIVERSITY SURIGAOBY ANDREW B. VILLASORTEACHER- SCHOLAR, TAFT NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOLSURIGAO CITYTO: PROF. REBECCA TORRES

Luzon is the Philippines’ largest island and is composed of a lot of provinces, regions, cities, towns, cultures.  As such, it is home to the country’s best festivals.  Most of Luzon may be reached via land travel, unlike the Visayas, which is comprised of several islands and islets.  If you live in Luzon, make it a point to see these six festivals in your lifetime. You can even do it in a year, as it seems that the best of Luzon festivals are spread out throughout the year and a major one is held almost every month.

THE PAHIYAS FESTIVAL

Held on May 15 of every year, the Pahiyas Festival is carried out to give thanks to San Isidro Labrador for the good harvest.  It is one of the country’s oldest festivals tracing its origin way back to the 16th century.  Back then, farmers bought food to the foot of Mt. Banahaw as a sign of Thanksgiving, but eventually this tradition — done in the hopes of having a good harvest year — was modified to make the church the central offering place. The Pahiyas is commonly associated with Lucban, Quezon, but it is also celebrated in two other Quezon towns: Sariaya and Tayabas.

LUCBAN CHURCH

An 18th Century church in the town of Lucban, Quezon Province, the Philippines. There are many such churches in the largely Catholic Philippines, legacies of some 500 years of Spanish colonial rule that started when Ferdinand Magellan claimed the islands for Spain in 1521.

Kiping

The "arangya"

or the colorful

decoration is made on rice, it is a an annual tradition in this town.

Pahiyas festival

Every 15th of May, the town of Lucban in the province of Quezon celebrates the Pahiyas festival. It is to honor San Isidro Labrador, patron saint of farmers. To celebrate bountiful harvest, the houses of Lucban are decorated with rice, vegetables, fruits and other farm produce. The most beautifully decorated houses are awarded with prizes. In this photo are two ladies posing for souvenir photos, framed by fruits and vegetables.

Why you should be there!

Pahiyas is one of the most lively, most colorful and the most elaborate festival in Luzon.  The whole place comes alive in color and music.  Not to mention Lucban food that includes Lucban’s world famous longanisa, broas and kiping, the star of the pahiyas.

It used to be thatFebruary was BaguioCity’s least favorable month, experiencing a doldrum in the numberOf visitor arrivals that usually peak in December (for theholiday season) and March or April (for the Lenten Season), on top of the summer months.  However, with the introduction of the Panagbenga Festival, February became a time of pageantry, fun and merrymaking in Baguio City as the city becomes covered with the most beautiful flowers in the region.

Simultaneously get a taste of Baguio’s tribal culture and the Tournament of Roses parade.

Simultaneously get a taste of Baguio’s tribal culture and the Tournament of Roses parade.

Together with its blooms, Panagbenga also showcases the different cultures of its 11 tribes such as the Igorots and the Ibalois.  In fact, the street dance of the Panagbenga features dances that are inspired by these cultural tribes.

Fertility Dance at Obando

Couples who wish to have a child flock to Obando, Bulacan, and every May 17 to 19 to join the street dance in Honor of Santa Clara.  The street dancing is said to be a prayer made by the couple.  The belief stems from early practice and is said to be effective, as some have been miraculously blessed with an offspring soon after they joined the dancing.

Why you should be there?

The benefits are obvious if you are childless, but for other people, the Obando dance is only one of the very few religious Luzon festivals that featured street dancing on a major part of the area.

St. Claire Hymn

“Santa Clarang pinong-pino! Ako po ay bigyan mo ng asawang labintatlo sa gastos ay walang reklamo!”English translation: (To the very refined Saint Claire, I pray that you grant me thirteen spouses all in all. To the costs, I won’t complain at all!)

Variation, in Filipino: (Santa Clarang pinong-pino, ang pangako ko ay ganito pagdating ko sa Obando, sasayaw ako ng pandanggo).

English translation: (To the very refined Saint Claire, this is my promise upon reaching Obando town, I will dance the fandanggo.)

. The three patron saints were introduced on separate dates. They are San Pascual de Baylon, St. Claire of Assissi and the Nuestra Senora Immaculada Concepcion de Salambao

The latter was fished out of the river by three fishermen in Malabon, an adjacent town of Obando with their "salambao". This is a big net framed by cross braced bamboo poles raised and lowered from a barge or casco. Originally, the fishermen wanted to bring the statue to the town of Navotas, just across Malabon. The weight of the statue became so heavy that the fishermen got the idea of bringing it to where the weight will lighten up and eventually, they brought it to Obando. Every May 17 is the fiesta where San Pascual de Baylon is at the center of the procession with dance and St. Claire is for the 18th of May and the Nuestra Senora Immaculada Concepcion de Salambao has the last day,May 19.

The mass and the procession with the dance is believed to breathe life spirits into the womb of barren woman. For the men, they are made fertile and for the single, a wife and a husband is found. There are so many petitions answered and the celebrants are petitioners who return year after year in thanksgiving for their child, wife or husband or bountiful harvest.

. Bangus Festival

Dagupan is known as the Bangus Capital of the Philippines, and the City lays its claim to this by holding the Bangus Festival for 19 days in April, culminating on April 28. The bangus, or milkfish, festival pays tribute to the City’s biggest industry and features various activities that center on the fish.  From deboning to eating, from the longest to the heaviest and even to the most beautiful, each year attempts to put out a record with its bangus competitions.

                 Aside from being there while the City or  its citizens bag a possible Guinness World Record,  the  festival  also  features  street dancing  contests,  the  search  for  the  Bangus  Queen  (a  beauty pageant), fluvial parades, and a citywide sale  for  the shopaholics on a budget!

A possible Guinness World Record. Kalutan ed Dagupan” – everyone is enjoined to partake the longest barbecue party;

PAGODA SA WAWA

Festivals are a time for celebration, but it is also a time for food.  Bocaue, Bulacan’s Pagoda sa Wawa combines both.

THE RIVER FESTIVAL IS HELD EVERY JULY, WHEN A BARGE CARRYING A HUGE DECORATED FLOAT IS RELEASED ALONG THE BOCAUE RIVER.  THIS IS WHERE DOZENS AND POSSIBLY HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE PARTAKE ON GOOD FOOD AND GREAT MUSIC.  THE FLOATING FEAST ACTUALLY COMMEMORATES WAWA’S HOLY CROSS, WHICH WAS FIRST FOUND FLOATING ON THE BOCAUE RIVER.

After a tragedy left dozens of people dead a few years ago, the Wawa festival has been closely scrutinized to ensure the safety of future pagoda riders.

IF DAGUPAN HAS ITS BANGUS FESTIVAL, ISABELA’S FOLKS HOLD THEIR BACAO FESTIVAL IN HONOR OF ST. JOSEPH FOR THEIR GOOD HARVEST OF CORN.  LIKE THE BANGUS FESTIVAL, ACTIVITIES ARE MORE PROVINCIAL FEATURING STREET DANCING, RODEOS, FLOAT COMPETITIONS, AND OTHER CONTESTS. HELD FOR FIVE DAYS STARTING ON MARCH 15.

THE BACAO FESTIVAL PARADE’S CARABAO DRESSED IN COSTUMES, AND HAS A CONTEST FOR THE BEST-DRESSED BEAST OF BURDEN.

Procession of the Black Nazarene

The Feast of the Black Nazarene every January 9 is among the most celebrated liturgical feasts for Filipino Catholics. It is usually the single largest festival of the year in the Philippines. At least one million people from all over the country come together to commemorate the translacion, or the relocation of the original image of the Nazarene from Luneta to the Parish of Saint John the Baptist, more popularly known as the Basilica of the Black Nazarene or Quiapo Church.

The Scramble to Touch the Statue

Devotees of all ages flock to the image of the suffering Christ to seek the fulfillment of their personal intentions or to express their gratitude for answered prayers.

The feast of the Black Nazarene on January 9 is considered one of the most spectacular religious events that take place in the Philippine history.Every year thousands of devotees from all walks of life come to the district of Quiapo to take part in the procession as a way of strengthening their faith or fulfilling their “panata” (vow) to Lord.The Black Nazarene is the patron saint of Quiapo, a small but well-known part of Manila, a hub of trade and commerce because of the Quiapo market and the many stores located there

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The life size image of the Black Nazarene shows a “black” Jesus Christ carrying a cross. The statue has been housed at the Saint John de Baptist Church in Quiapo, Manila also known as the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene since 1787. The image of the Black Nazarene is brought out in procession on its feast day and Good Friday.The statue was brought to Manila by a Spanish priest in 1607 aboard a ship. The ship caught fire, burning the image and thus came to be known as the Black Nazarene. Though the image was burnt, the people decided to preserve and honor it. Since then, miraculous things have been reported to those who touch the image.

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he statue is placed in a gilded carriage for the procession. As the procession starts, procession participants garbed in maroon tops grab two long ropes and pull it to make the carriage move. Many will attempt to touch the image while some throw their handkerchiefs and towels in the air. People who join in the procession walk barefooted as a sign of humility.

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THANKYOU

ANDREW B. VILLASOR