Showing posts with label Philippine Festival. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Philippine Festival. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Fascinating Festivals in the Philippines

The Philippines, one of the premier travel destinations in the Asia-Pacific region, is at the forefront of countries banking on colorful festivals to promote its rich culture and heritage. Almost everyday there is an event celebrating a momentous occasion in the country such as a town fiesta or a feast of a local patron saint or a patroness. These fascinating festivals, according to experts, prove that Filipinos are fun-loving people.

Festivals, both cultural and religious in nature, are celebrated all year round across the country's three main island groups - Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Every region, province, city, municipality, and barangay has its own way of merrymaking. That's why most Philippine travel guides declare that there are countless ways to enjoy and explore the beauty of this archipelago of 7,107 islands.

Festivals are considered a primary engine for driving the tourism industry aside from the country's unspoiled beaches and other man-made and natural attractions. These colorful events are magnets to local and foreign travelers who are often awed by the way people celebrate festivals with high energy and much enthusiasm.

Here is a list of some of the grandest and exquisite festivals in the country.

Sinulog Festival
Sinulog Festival is the pride of Cebu City. Celebrated on the third Sunday of January, this colorful event is a way of the province's thanksgiving to the child Jesus. The Sinulog Festival, which usually lasts for nine days, features a street parade wherein participants dressed in bright costumes dance to the rhythm of drums, trumpets, and native gongs.

Panagbenga Festival
Every February Baguio City, the "Summer Capital of the Philippines," stages a month-long flower festival called Panagbenga. One of the highly anticipated events during the festival is a parade of floats decorated with colorful flowers. It is patterned after the world-renowned Rose Parade in Pasadena, California.

Moriones Festival
Moriones Festival is one of the most colorful religious events in the Philippines. Held during the Holy Week in Marinduque, the festival is highlighted by a parade participated in by people wearing colorful masks and garbs replicating that of the biblical Roman soldiers. A similar celebrated is held in Valencia, Spain, in April.

Pahiyas Festival
The spotlight shifts to Lucban, Quezon, every 15th day of May, when this second-class municipality hosts the Pahiyas Festival. On this day, a street of houses is adorned with various agricultural produce and colorful rice ornaments called kiping. Pahiyas Festival is held in honor of St. Isodore, the patron saint of farmers.

Kadayawan Festival
Kadayawan Festival in Davao City is a celebration of good harvest. Held every third week of August, local folks go out on the streets and celebrate a bountiful yield in various ways, such street dancing competitions, parades of decorated floats, and power boat races. Trade fairs, flower shows, exhibits, and horse fight competitions are lined up during the weeklong festival.

There are other notable festivals that tourists must not miss out. Usually the golden months of Philippine festivals are January, April, May, and December. That's why it is advised to place your reservations to hotels and resorts for your preferred accommodations and vacation packages in advance.

Local Philippines is your travel buddy. We have information about the destinations, how to get there, what to do while in the area and more! Destinations in the beaches or in the mountains, destinations under water, destinations right at the middle of the urban hub, name it and Local Philippines will most likely feature it.

About the Author

Allan Leandro Merin has been writing for a living since 2008. After leaving a career at a daily electronic crew newspaper, he joined a web development outsourcing company and linked up with Local Philippines, the most comprehensive online directory of Philippine destinations, events, and attractions.

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Most Visited Festivals and Important Events in the Philippines

This are the important Events and Most visited Festivals in the Philippines through month of January tel December.

- Month of January


Feast of the Black Nazarene - The feast of the Most Holy Black Nazarene is celebrated every 9th of January. Black Nazarene came from a boat that caught fire, turning it from its original white into black wooden sculpture of Jesus Christ held to be miraculous by many Filipinos. The origine if the Black Nazarene is from Mexico to an anonymous carver carpenter and transported by a galleon from Acapulco Mexico. The image is currently enshrined in the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene in Quiapo, Manila Philippines where novena celebrations are held every Friday throughout the whole year.

Pasungay Festival/Festival of Bulls - Pasungay or Festival of Bulls is a festival of bulls on the hillsides of San Joaquin, Iloilo held every 2nd Saturday of January.

Ati-atihan Festival - Ati-Atihan, held every January in the town of Kalibo in the province of Aklan on the island of Panay, is the wildest among Philippine fiestas. Celebrants paint their faces with black soot and wear bright, outlandish costumes as they dance in revelry during the last three days of this week-long festival. a feast in honor of the Santo Niño, is celebrated on the second Sunday after Epiphany. Catholics observe this special day with processions, parades, dancing, and merrymaking.

Philippine Balloon Fiesta - An annual event at the Omni Aviation Complex in Clark Field, Angeles City, Pampanga. features multicolored hot air balloons with more than a hundred balloon pilots from around the world. This three to four day hot air balloon event is the biggest aviation sports event in the Philippines.

Sinulog Festival - Sinulog is a dance ritual that commemorates the Cebuano peoples Islamic and pagan origin, and their acceptance of Roman Catholicism. Sinulog is an annual festival held on the 3rd Sunday of January in Cebu City, Cebu Philippines. The festival honors the so called vision of the child Jesus, known as the Santo Niño or Holy Child.

Dinagyang Festival - A religious and cultural festival in Iloilo City, Philippines held on the fourth Sunday of January. Dinagyang Festival is both to honor the Santo Niño and to celebrate the arrival on Panay of Malay settlers and the subsequent selling of the island to them by the Atis.

- Month of February

Panagbenga Festival/Baguio Flower Festival - The festival, held during the month of February, was created as a tribute to the city's flowers and as a way to rise up from the devastation of the 1990 Luzon earthquake.

Feast of Our Lady of Candles - The church of where the Our Lady enshrined, the famous Parish of Our Lady of Candles, is also known as Jaro Metropolitan Cathedral, is also the site of the miraculous image of Virgin Mary, which was canonically crowned by Pope John Paul II in 1982. This feast includes a parade and candlelit blessing to honour Nuestra Senora de Candelaria.

International Bamboo Organ Festival - Las Piñas Bamboo Organ in the Parish Church of St Joseph in Las Piñas City, Philippines is the nineteenth-century church organ made almost entirely from bamboo: only the trumpet stops are made from metal.

- Month of March

Moriones Festival - The Moriones is an annual festival held on Holy Week on the island of Marinduque, Philippines. The name Moriones is derived from the Spanish word 'Morion' meaning mask or helmet. The Moriones or Moryonan tradition has inspired the creation of other festivals in the Philippines where cultural practices or folk history is turned into street festivals.

Bantayan Island Fiesta - Bantayan Island in Cebu City, Philippines is also celebrating there annual feasta during Holy Week or Lenten Season on which this island is famous of white sand beautiful beaches.

- Month of April

Bataan Day/Death March of Bataan - The Bataan Death March took place in the Philippines in 1942 and was later accounted as a Japanese war crime. A 97 km march occurred after the three month Battle of Bataan and parts of the Battle of the Philippines in World War II.
Imbayah Festival (Banaue, Ifugao)- Is the Feast for all native tribal men in Banaue Ifugao, a feast for thankgiving for three-day Ifugao tribal gathering known as the Imbayah festival in April.

- Month of May

Antipolo Pilgrimage - The pilgrimage is in Antipolo Rizal a month-long celebration that sees devotees trekking up a much-trodden path leading to the religious shrine, more popularly known as the Virgin of Antipolo. The image is believed to be already three hundred years old and is said to manifest miraculous powers.

Pulilan Carabao Festival - A 2 days Celebration on which the people of Pulilan in Bulacan Province, San Isidro in Nueva Ecija Province, and Angono in Rizal Province pay tribute to there Carabaos or Water Buffalos every 14th of May.

Pahiyas Sa Quezon - a simple celebration as a form of thanksgiving to the ANITOs for the good harvest of farm products such as palay, vegetables, fruits, and fish. the farmers used to gather their harvests inside the chaplet ("tuklong"), where they used to converged and partake of a sumptuous meal. They drink "tuba" (natural wine) from the flower stalks of coconut, buri or cabo negro (kaong).

Obando Fertility Rite - A dance ritual every year during the month of May, to the tune of musical instruments made out of bamboo materials and wear traditional dance costumes to dance on the streets followed by the images of their patron saints San Pascual Baylon (St. Paschal), Santa Clara (St. Clare) and Nuestra Señora de Salambao (Our Lady of Salambao), while singing the song Santa Clara Pinung-Pino.

- Month of June

Independence Day - Kawit Cavite is Celebrating the freedome during World War. The Independence Day Celebration is marked by a flag raising ceremony on the balcony of the Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine, where the first Philippine flag was unfurled.

- Month of July

Paaway Sa Kabayo - It is a religious devotional festive dance with a mock battle depicting the war between the Moros and the Christians in Granada. It is based on the legend that St. James miraculously aided the Christians by riding on white horse from the heavens and slew hundreds of Moors.

- Month of October

Oktober Feast - A festival of overflowing beers. This is celebrated with parties on different locations all over the country. The price of beer during this celebration plunges so deep that a glass of beer can even cost only one peso. This happens during the opening of the festival and mostly on the closing ceremonies. We should thank San Miguel Corporation for inventing this kind of Festival.

Masskara Festival - A prominent feature of the festival is the mask worn by participants; these are always adorned with smiling faces. The festival features a street dance competition where people from all walks of life troop to the streets to see colorfully-masked dancers gyrating to the rhythm of Latin musical beats in a display of mastery, gaiety, coordination and stamina.
- Month of November

Grand Cordillera Festival - People in Baguio City gather annually to celebrate the culture and tradition of the major enthnolinguistic group of the region. This week-long festival features tribal dancing and thanksgiving ceremonies.

Feast of San Clemente / Higantes Festival - A prominent feature of this festival are the gigantic paper machés of human figures paraded in the town of Angono. In honor of San Clemente (patron saint of fishermen), participants of the procession dress themselves with fishermen's clothes and local costumes while carrying boat paddles, fish nets, and other fishing gear.

- Month of December

San Fernando Giant Lantern Festival - The annual celebration of Lantern Festival has become a major attraction during the Christmas season. A stunning display of lights and color happens during the festival night of lanterns in San Fernando as the designers of each lanterns (parols) compete for the biggest and most dynamic interplay of each creations during the five-minute show.

Feast of the Immaculate Conception - The Feast of the Immaculate Concepcion is a grand celebration in Puerto Princesa for the City's Patroness highlighted by parade of the images of Virgin Mary.

Bikol Pastores - A unique Christmas celebration of Legazpi, Albay believed to have originated in the province where "pastores" - young men and women dressed in colorful shepherd costumes - joyfully dance and sing "Pastores a Belen" through the city streets.
Binirayan Festival - A festive commemoration of an episode in the history of the Filipino race through colorful pageants acted on the beaches of Maybato in San Jose and Malandog in Hamtik. Particularly interesting is the drama of the first Malay settlement at Malandog which runs for several days and nights. Binirayan is also an occasion for reunions of family, relatives and friends with homecoming Antiqueno expatriates.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Philippines Top 10 Destination this Holy Week



Philippines are lots of destination for foregn and even locals specially this holy week. The majority of the people of the Philippines are Catholics, there are know traditions that are being upheld every Lenten season or Holy Week. Majority the Filipinos are celebrating Holy Week or Lenten season true stay with family and go together in the church or some are visiting there relatives in the province.

Here are the top places in the Philippines where you can enjoy and relax while summer of the heat and some privacy this Lenten Season o Holy Week.

1. Boracay Island in Aklan Philippines
2. Puerto Galera in Puerto Princessa
3. Coron in Palawan Puerto Princessa
4. Batangas in Manila
5. Camiguin Island in Cebu City
6. Cebu in Cebu City
7. Bohol in Bohol Philippines
8. Baguio in Baguio City Philippines
9. Pampanga in Pampanga Philippines
10. La Union in La Union Philippines