Tribu ATub-ATub headress :)
|
Every start of the Year several people (locals and foreign) flock to the celebrations of Senior Sto. Niňo Feast in the Visayas regions. They celebrate the festival season with grandeur and week-long festivities. They have Ati-atihan of Kalibo in Aklan, Sinulog of Cebu and Dinagyang of Iloilo among others.
Being a 50% Ilongga (my father is a 100% Ilonggo), I promised myself to see the Dinagyang this year. I have spend my childhood years in Iloilo but never have seen the Dinagyang during those years. Same us revisiting my roots and celebrate with my fellow Ilonggos. Although now I cannot speak the dialect fluently being away from Iloilo for 25years – I can understand very well but can only answer in Tagalog or a word of Ilonggo that I can crack from my brain. It took me like an hour to remember what is mangoes in Ilonggo as we will buy some in Guimaras ..So I invited my BFC (Breakfast Club) buddies to join me for a weekend and celebrate the Dinagyang.
with Tribu Atub-Atub Warrior Dancers..
|
Jacque and Madel joined me, yes, just the 3 or us and off we go to join Halabira Iloilo!! Since Iloilo is like my home extension, I have several “parientes” (relatives) and friends there. We were assisted by my dear amigo Arnel on our 2 days Dinagyang experience. This is Jacque and Madel’s first visit to Iloilo so everything is new to them
and I took the lead as Arnel would instruct me where to ride a jeepney or a taxi and where to eat..
We flew in by Cebu Pacific via the first flight from MNL.. it was 4:55 am and only gate 1 of terminal 3 was open, as we went in—whoa!! Queue to check-in is also endless!! Good thing Cebu Pacific now has a “do it yourself” check-in kiosk!! Yeaaahh.. you can check-in yourself.. pick a good set (FOR FREE) without waiting in line. On-line check-in seats is with a P100.00 fee, so better do it in the airport arrive early. Well, of course if you still have a luggage to check-in you can drop it off at the counters. Since we are only have backpacks, off we go straight to breakfast with our boarding pass and seats on the 2nd row..
Due to the Dinagyang festival it is quite challenging to get a Hotel accommodation. Iloilo has a lot of nice hotels and very affordable. We stayed at Queens Pensionne House at Commission Civil road. The room has 1 queen size bed and since we are 3 pax, we requested for an extra bed. The room is cramp for 3 persons, but we don't really care since we are just staying overnight and sleeping is just merely a few hours between our schedules.
.. for P799.00 per night to sleep - this is very affordable and convenient. the hotel is walking distance to jaro plaza and you can practically take all modes of transpo from here.. .. the room is new, well painted and not bad for P799. if you are just 2 pax or couples, the room is perfect..only drawback is there's no hot shower on our room, showering at 5am is a challenge! They should really install water heaters soon..
Queens Pension Hotel
09189659544
Raymen Beach Resort
|
We just drop off our luggage at the reception and off we go to Guimaras. Guimaras is famous for its mangoes and white sand beaches.. We really didn’t plan to go swimming so we just wanted to do site seeing, buy mangoes and treats. From Ortiz Port, Iloilo it was just a short boat ride fare is P14.00 to Guimaras. Boat ride is merely 15-20 mins and you are in Jordan port of Guimaras. It was my 3rd time in Guimaras so I was like travelling like a local but don’t speak the language.. hahhha.. it was really funny, understanding them and cannot speak back with the same dialect. From Jordan one of the famous beach in the area is Raymen Beach Resort in Nueva Valencia. It was like 45 mins ride on some bumpy ride and country side view. They have newly built rooms and well maintained beach front, they also have cottages for day tour at a very affordable price with capacity enough for the whole family.
Raymen Beach Resor, Tel No.: 0333960252/ 0918 5207271
From Raymen you can also do Island hopping for a very minimal amount of P750.00 to P1000.00 for 3 hours. You can visit several islands with white sand beaches. One that really interest me from my previous visit is the BFAR facility approximately 30 mins. boat ride from Raymen, they have huge fishes on pens that really amazed me. I could believe bangus (milkfish) can grow that big! Before leaving Guimaras, buy some sweet mangoes to eat and pasalubong.. buy the green ones for pasalubong and it will be ripe in a few days if you will be flying back to Manila. You can tour the island renting a trycle (3 wheeled vehicle famous in the country) for P450-500.00 or a multicab if you are in a bigger group. Negotiate.. negotiate for the rates.. they are kinda putting a price for tourist..
Back in the city, we had our lunch at Tatoys in Villa, it was on the outskirt of the city but they are famous for their native lechon Manok (whole roasted chicken), prices are very affordable. For a lunch for 3 people, we spent P750.00. We had lechon manok, pork lechon, sinigang na isda with Buko.. J (Tatoy’s Manokan and Seafood Restaurant, Baluarte-Calumpang-Villa, Iloilo (033) 337 4276).
You can also try Breakthrough (BREAKTHROUGH Iloilo, Villa Beach, Barangay Sto. Niño Sur, Arevalo, Iloilo, Phone Number: +63 33 337-3027).
That night we explore the city, Bachoy at Decos.. chill at Starbucks.. and street party at Delgado.. Dinagyang the next day.. we need to sleep early.. finally off to bed by past midnight..
Dinagyang is one of the most spectacular cultural festivals, a showcase of the rich heritage, colorful history, passionate devotion, and fun-loving spirit of Ilonggos. The festival traces its roots as a religious thanksgiving celebration in honor of Senyor Santo Niño, the child Jesus. The festivities filled the main streets with colorfully clad and dark painted skin dancers with their heart racing drums, awesome props and ethic dances that truly will amaze all spectators. We went to the Capitol Area (one of the judging site); the Ati Competition starts at the Freedom Grandstand to the rest of the 4 judging areas. The area is full of guests, local and tourists to witness the grand dance competition. We arrived early (we left the Hotel at 630am) so we had the chance to had pictures with the dancers. I enjoyed the dances, giant props, brilliant and very impressive costumes. Each Tribe as they were called showcase a show that depicts traditional life and dances of the native Atis of panay.. the cut above the rest..
The Panayanon Dragon
|
The Panayanon Tribe with their giant dragon and great dancers was the overall champion. It was a very hot day but people took time and brave the sun to witness the event. I had some burns!! J It was fun and I look forward to see it again next year.
Dinagyang Festival starts for a First Salvo sometime in November, so as early as November tickets are selling out. If you plan to see the event, get your tickets early.
The Panayanon Warrior Dancers
|
Iloilo can be reach by Air, sea and land/sea combi or Roro (Roll-on, Roll-off). AirPhil Express, Cebu Pacific and Zest Flies have frequent flight to Iloilo International Airport daily. Yes, they have an international airport that can also be flown direct connecting from Hong Kong and Singapore.
Check here for flight schedules and fares:
SEE YOU PANAYANON ON THE Aliwan Festival :) this April 11-13, 2013 here in Manila.
No comments:
Post a Comment