PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #12: TAWO-TAWO FESTIVAL

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TAWO-TAWO FESTIVAL

3rd week of December/ Bayawan City, Negros Oriental

The Tawo-Tawo Festival is celebrated annually every month of December in Negros Oriental.  Street dancing and showdown competitions are held the day before the fiesta, which is joined by hundreds of visitors both local and foreign.  They celebrate the scarecrows (tawo-tawo) through paper mache higantes and guardians of the town's crops.  (Photography by Charlie Sindiong).

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #11: HIGANTES FESTIVAL

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HIGANTES FESTIVAL

3rd week of November/ Angono, Rizal

The Higantes Festival, Angono's joyous fiesta in honor of San Clemente whose image, resplendent in papal vestment, is borne by male devotees during a procession accompanied by "parehadoras" (devotees dressed in colorful local costumes, wooden shoes and carrying boat paddles and "higantes" giant paper mache effigies.  The street event culminates in a fluvial procession in Laguna de Bay amidst revelry that continues until the image is brought back to its sanctuary.  (Photography by Dave Deluria).

Source:   DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #10: MASSKARA FESTIVAL

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MASSKARA FESTIVAL

2nd week of October/ Bacolod City

The "Masskara Festival" which made Bacolod famous all over and celebrated annually every month of October, began as an event to "inspire the locals to face the hard times with a smiling face."  Thus masks with smiling faces are worn by locals and visitors alike who join the parade.  Street dancing, drum beating, drinking, eating and just being merry - all these shows the resiliency of Negrenses and their zest for life.  (Photo courtesy of the Department of Tourism/George Tapan).

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #9: PENAFRANCIA VIVA LA VIRGEN

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PENAFRANCIA VIVA LA VIRGEN

3rd week of September/ Naga City

The feast of "Penafrancia Viva la Virgen" is Bicol Region's biggest celebration that combines religion with culture and tradition, packing it all in a 9-day fiesta of biblical proportions.  Stay until sundown for stirring climax:  the fluvial parade as it make its way down the river, surrounded by a sea of glowing candles - a fitting end of this truly spiritual occasion.  (Photography by Jade Tamboon).

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #8: KADAYAWAN SA DABAW

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KADAYAWAN SA DABAW

3rd week of August/ Davao City

Davao's annual festival popularly known as "Kadayawan Sa Dabaw" held every monthy of August, promises another weekend of fanfare and fun - tribal style.  Watch as the festivities reach a glorious climax on Saturday morning:  that's when the Kadayawan parade is held, featuring colorful, orchid-bedecked floats and more than a dozen "ethnic" groups dancing to the beat of wooden drums.  (Photography by Ian Ong).

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #7: SANDUGO FESTIVAL

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SANDUGO FESTIVAL

3rd week of July/ Tagbilaran City, Bohol

The Sandugo Festival is celebrated with an all-out fiesta each month of July in Tagbilaran City to commemorate the historic Spanish colonization of the Philippines, which began with a blood-sealed peace treaty on the shores of Bohol.  Check out the Sandugo street dancing parade featuring ten colorfully-dressed groups dancing to the beat of drums.  There's also a Traditional Filipino carnival, a martial arts festival, and Miss Bohol Sandugo Beauty Pageant, among the dozen of other exciting activities.  (Photography by Ryan Macalandag).

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #6: PINTADOS KASADYAAN FESTIVAL

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PINTADOS KASADYAAN FESTIVAL

4th week of June/Tacloban City, Leyte

The Pintados Kasadyaan Festival is held every month of June in Tacloban City.  Back during pre-Hispanic years, tattoos signified courage among the natives of Tacloban. These days, they symbolize a cultural revival during this wild and wacky fiesta wherein the town residents deck themselves out in body paint, mimicking the warriors of old while dancing to frenetic beat of drums.  (Photography by Michael Maglasang).

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #5: PAHIYAS FESTIVAL

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PAHIYAS FESTIVAL

2nd week of May/Lucban, Quezon

The Pahiyas Festival is celebrated in the province of Quezon every merry month of May, when flowers bloom their sweetest to usher in a bountiful harvest and smashing good times.  But these aren't the only things flaunted during this grand celebration, in the town of Lucban, Quezon, there's also the "kiping" - a colorful, transluscent rice tortilla that serves as an edible ornament of sorts.  It's a free for all, grab-all-you-can affair with suman - sweet, sticky native rice cakes - as the center of contention.

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #4: BANGUS FESTIVAL

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BANGUS FESTIVAL

4th week of April/Dagupan City, Pangasinan

The Bangus Festival or the "Pistay Dayat" is highlighted by the longest bangus grill, covering more than 1,000 meters of the whole stretch of the main road.  This one-of-a-kind celebration includes the "City Bangus Rodeo", "Gilon (Bangus harvest dance parade in bangus inspired costumes amid the beat of drums and upbeat music), "Mutyang Dagat," sports competition/exhibition and others.  (Photography by Gladys Tolete).

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #3: KAAMULAN FESTIVAL

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KAAMULAN FESTIVAL

1st week of March/Malaybalay, Bukidnon

The Kaamulan Festival is celebrated every month of March by the people of Bukidnon, when the streets of Malaybalay take on that familiar "tribal" and Fiesta theme.  Banners, banderitas and beer will be norm, as well as the sweet, haunting sound of native music.  An early morning "Pamuhat" ritual kicks off the festivities, to be followed by an ethnic food fest, trade fairs and a lot of native dancing.  (Photo courtesy of the Department of Tourism)

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #2: PANAGBENGA FESTIVAL

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PANAGBENGA FESTIVAL

4th week of February/Baguio City

The Panagbenga Festival which is celebrated every month of February in Baguio City, showcases the unique culture of the city.  It is one of the most colorful festivals in the Philippines.  It draws both local and foreign visitors in the "City of Pines" - eager to witness the colorful procession of multihued costumes worn by locals, mimicking the various blooms of highland region (or any of its 11 ethnic tribes).  These are flowerbeds disguised of course as the Panagbenga floats.  (Photography by Michael Alim).

Source:  DOT website

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PHILIPPINE FESTIVALS #1: FEAST OF THE BLACK NAZARENE

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FEAST OF THE BLACK NAZARENE

2nd week of January/Quiapo, Manila City

The feast of the Black Nazarene in Quiapo, Manila, which is celebrated every 9th day of January is joined by millions of devotees around the country who believed that by continuing their yearly "Panata", the Black Nazarene will grant their prayers and keep them and their loved ones safe from all kinds of calamities, whether natural or man-made.  (Photography by Rodolfo A. Sabayton)

Source:  DOT website

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