CEBU, Philippines - Filipinos love festivities. In the Philippines almost every day there is a fiesta celebration somewhere. Some experts say this is because Filipinos have a merry nature; others attribute it to the nation's intense religiosity, as the merry celebrations are often held to memorialize the feast days of patron saints.
Certain sectors believe that fiestas are the Filipinos' way of taking relief from the drudgery of the difficult day-to-day life. Since the celebrations originated in the mainly in rural Philippines of old where most of the people were farm workers, the fiesta was the big idea that made the heavily laden farm life seem a bit lighter in anticipation. Even today, fiestas are generally taken as a time for treating oneself with fun and for letting loose.
It is very likely, however, that celebrating fiestas is a practice brought to the country by the Spanish subjugators, in which case fiestas are basically a religious event. But the celebration has since become equally secular. These past few years, Philippine fiestas have taken on yet another dimension.
Fiestas nowadays also run a cultural extravaganza showcasing the place's features for tourism come-on. There are festivals that have a street dancing or parade components that highlight local colors and attractions for visitors. Good examples would be Cebu's Sinulog Festival and Baguio's Panagbenga Festival.
But there are other exciting festivals all over the country. In Negros Oriental, for instance, the most anticipated festival is the Yagyag Festival. This one really stands up to the new standards of Philippine festivals, particularly in terms of its eye-catching aesthetics.
"Yagyag" is Visayan word meaning "to spawn eggs," which is an annual phase in the life cycle of edible crabs known in the area as "kagang" and mangrove crabs that thrive abundantly in the shores and riverbanks of Barangay Cangmating, Sibulan town, near Dumaguete city. The spawning occurs in the last quarter of every year, referred to by locals as "pagyagyag," or "yagyag" for short.
The spawning season prompts the people of the barangay to get their covered "bakat" (bamboo basket), their "sulô" (torches made of dry coconut leaves), and "pasgong" (bamboo crab traps). It's time to harvest the crabs. This harvest season brings livelihood to the barangay folks, who used to barter their crabs for farm crops in the neighboring barangays.
The Yagyag Festival is characterized by fast-paced and complex choreography. Some describe it as resembling the panicky behavior of the crabs during harvest. As can be expected, participation in the Festival is by contingents, where concerted effort fosters camaraderie and solidarity among the members in particular and the community in general.
The contingents' presentations depict the exemplary values of the local folks. The rich natural resources of the barangay and the whole town are also highlighted. It draws hordes of visitors every year.
Yagyag Festival has already brought home numerous awards and honors, both locally and internationally. It holds the record as consistent champion in the Negros Oriental provincial Buglasan Festival in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Wow Philippines has awarded it as Best of the Best Street Dancing Festival in 2003, in Quirino Grandstand, Manila. Yagyag Festival has also been awarded Best in Street Dancing in Sinulog 2005, and champion in the Sinulog sa Kabankalan in 2016, in Negros Occidental.
To top it all, the Festival has also represented the Philippines in the 2005 World Expo in Nagoya, Japan, together with world-class Filipino performing artists such as Ballet Philippines, Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, Street Boys, Sining Kumintang and others.
The Yagyag Festival has also brought to the attention of the whole nation the delicacy of Barangay Cangmating. It's a special dish called "Nilubihang Cagang" or crab in coconut milk. The dish is made of "cagang" crabs stewed in coconut milk and local spices. It has won the grand prize in the Buglasan Lutong Garbo and as national champion during the Philippine Folk Festival in 1982.
Once again, come last Sunday of this month, on April 24, the annual Yagyag Festival takes place in Barangay Cangmating, culminating in Cangmating Covered Auditorium. It is expected that the streets of the barangay will teem with people, locals and visitors, as usual.
Sibulan town, where barangay Cangmating is located, is quite accessible to Cebuanos via the port of Liloan, in the town of Santander in the Cebu southwest. Once in Sibulan, it is easy to get around, as the friendly locals are always ready to assist visitors. Definitely, the Yagyag Festival is worth everyone's time and effort to make the trip for.