Another much-anticipated colorful festival will be taking place in the Philippines this month.  This festival is none other than the San Isidro Pahiyas Festival.

The Pahiyas Festival is an annual event that takes place every May 15. It is well attended by people who come from different parts of the Philippines and visitors from all over the world. This festival is held in the historical town of Lucban in the province of Quezon. Lucban is approximately located 160 kilometers from Metro Manila if via Lucena City. If coming from Sta Cruz, Lucban is only 133 kilometers from Manila.  There are tour packages that are offered during the the “Pahiyas Season” and some agencies organize travel groups in hotels along Roxas Boulevard like at Aloha Hotel Manila.  Travel time can last anywhere from two and a half hours to three and a half hours.  Because of this town’s popularity, the Department of Tourism of the Philippines has given the prestigious honor of “Cultural Heritage Site” to Lucban.

A BIT OF TRIVIA:  This festival is held in honor of San Isidro Labrador who is known to have served his wealthy master, Juan de Vargas, well.  San Isidro always spent his time praying in church that his co-workers complained that his faith was distracting him from his work.  When his master found out about this, he followed San Isidro and saw that San Isidro appeared to receive some sort of supernatural help.  Juan de Vargas was dumbfounded by what he saw that he literally fell on his knees.

One of the main attractions of this festival would have to be the Pahiyas decorating contest. Houses that line the street, where the procession is held, participate in this decorating contest. Those who join this friendly contest are always excited to win the different prizes that are offered each year.  Decorations can come in different forms – some are ordinary while some are a little bit on the quirky side.  Decorations include different vegetables, fruits, grains of rice, green leaves, longganisa (local sausage), and many others.  Households showcase their different produce as a form of thanksgiving for a bountiful year.  A local folk who takes care of pigs would tend to decorate the house with lechon (roasted pig) while a craftsman can decorate his house with different bags, hats, etc.  Even with all these materials, the main decoration and the integral ingredient of the Pahiyas is still the KIPING.

Kiping is a thin rice wafer that is usually leaf-shaped and comes in very bold and bright colors.  Foreign visitors would always ask if the kiping is edible but no matter how colorful and how yummy they look, kiping is definitely not edible and are used only as decorations.  Kiping are sewn or strung together to create different shapes in various sizes like flowers, chandeliers, and many others. I have always been fascinated by the lovely kiping which comes in different radiant colors like fuschia, orange, yellow, green, purple, red, and have wondered how to make Kiping. Read on to find out how kiping is made.

How to Make Kiping

Rice paste that will be used to make kiping is prepared by soaking rice (that has been kept for a full year) for two hours.  The soaked rice is grinded with water then mixed with three sachets of food color and half a teaspoon of rock salt.  According to locals, silence must be observed during the cooking process to prevent cracks from appearing on the kiping.

It is also important to choose the proper molding leaf for the kiping. Examples of leaves that are commonly used are kape leaves, talisay leaves, kakaw (cocoa) leaves, and banana leaves just to name a few. The molding leaves must be mature leaves and must come in uniform sizes. If needed, excess parts of the leaves have to be cut off with a pair of scissors.  Molding leaves would have to be cleaned thoroughly before use.

Spread the rice paste on each molding leaf then steam for about thirty minutes.  After the steaming process, leave the steamed kiping to dry before peeling off the paste.  After peeling, kiping will be piled together.  A considerable weight will be placed on top of the kiping pile for about twelve hours.  Once done, kiping will be separated, dried, and stored in a clean box until such time when these will be used.

Another highlight of the Pahiyas Festival would have to be the procession of the image of San Isidro Labrador. It is said that the houses are blessed by San Isidro Labrador during the procession. Aside from this procession, visitors enjoy the Tiyangge sa Lucban where the different produce and delicacies of Lucban are showcased. Some items that are sold here are the Lucban Longganisa, different rice cakes, and broas among others.  For this year, Tiyangge sa Lucban selling started last May 8 and will run until May 17.

With all these wonderful things that will happen at the Pahiyas Festival, it would be a shame to miss it. So what are you waiting for? Make those travel arrangements and hope to see you there!

Posted in Events, Philippines

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 12th, 2009 at 9:58 am and is filed under Events, Philippines. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.