It’s rather unusual that this year’s Semana Santa is rather wet. Weather forecasters say that its because of the ITCZ or intertropical convergent zone currently affecting the country that’s bringing showers. Especially that I’m now in Infanta, Quezon and the weather seems gloomy.
14 photos of patterns and close ups of the decors during my visit to Lucban last 14 May for the eve of the Pahiyas celebrations. Fruits and vegetables, palms and anahaw fronds, kiping, split bamboo, weaves and flowers. Certifiable Pahiyas symbols and what-have-you that marks this annual harvest festival. Really, I didn’t have much choice as the Lucbanins were still in the thick of preparations due to the howling winds and wet weather brought about by typhoon Caloy the previous days. But why not? It would be a good thing to focus on the rich decor of these festival 
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Pahiyas Festival
Series 8: Pahiyas Festival
Pahiyas
Initially my plans were to file a leave of absence for 15 May but when I learned that one can already see the Pahiyas (literally, decoration) on the 14th, I’ve decided to go to the latter date. Unfortunately, typhoon Caloy blew across the country the previous days and despite being worried about Lucban, I still proceeded to go there. By the way, this is the second time that I’ve visited this festivity. The first time was last year.
The original plan was to pass by Sariaya as well as Tayabas to check out the preparation in these two other towns since they also celebrate the Pahiyas. When already there, I was just disappointed as the preparations were still not under way. Maybe it was because of the rather wet weather that the townspeople opted to decorate later in the afternoon.
Together with Ryan, we arrived in Lucban almost lunch and visited Jayson to give him the photo series that I’ve captured during my stay there last Holy Week. After having food at their house, we proceeded to give the other photos to two old women that I also took a picture. After which, we just walked around the procession route and found that the Lucbanins were still preparing for the Pahiyas.
While Pahiyas has been celebrated for more than a few decades already, it hasn’t escaped the commercialism that has stung other celebrations and festivities. Originally, the processoin of San Isidro and his wife is done in the afternoon of the 15th of May, today, its now done in the morning. During the 50s, as an old man from Lucban told me, as children, they used to grab the fruit and veggie decors along the processional route once the image passes. Now, you cannot get these so that other tourists can still see them. With it under the supervision of the Department of Tourism, more activities were added, dancing lights were incorporated so that visitors can still marvel it during the night, and the higantes, giants made of papier mache (it is said that the higantes of Angono originated from here) being paraded were already draped with the name of sponsors, big names like Globe, San Miguel Corporation, etc. A really unfortunate development.
If one would want to still see a Pahiyas that might still look like those of yesteryears, I was told that the one in Sariaya is it. Haven’t witnessed that one but maybe next year. As for Tayabas, they have trasformed it into the Mayohan wherein suman (rice cakes wrapped in coconut leaves are steamed) are tossed. Wierd huh?
Left, the day was cool and humid due to the still lingering aftereffects of typhoon Caloy. But this didn’t deter the Lucbanins to go and proceed with the pahiyas or decoration. Already kipings (rice crispies formed in the shape of leaves and flowers in different colors –> made from ground rice flour) were hung from houses. Some were still inside their sala or rooms waiting to be placed outside. As for these two boys, kiping formed into the petals of a sunflower were transported to decorate a house.
Right, one of the house’s decoration. Pahiyas being a harvest festival, the decor can come not only in the form of kipings but of different fruits and vegetables, rise straws and husks, parts of plants and different wild plants taken from the forests of Mt. Banahaw are used formed into human and animal effigies, mosaics, birds, smiling squashes as well as elaborate assemblages that boggles as well as delights the mind.
left, human effigies made from rice straws being prepared. This is part of a farm tableau complete with a carabao effigy. Right, one of the houses being decorated. The route of the Pahiyas changes from year to year and it was only now, as I was told, that a typhoon came before the celebrations.
Left, the Veluz family residence undergoing a major facelift in time for the festivities. While the decoration is also a time for competition on who has the best pahiyas, the Veluz family didn’t participate for obvious reasons. They own one of Lucban’s best products: Buddys, a fastfood chain that is already in various places in Metro Manila offering not only the usual fastfood menu but exclusive Lucban faves like pancit Lucban, budin (a very delicious cassava cake that is so unlike those commonly sold in the bus terminals of Lucena), lucban longanisa to name a few. Their business is so successful that they were able to build this very large house several stories high that at first I thought it was a hotel! Of course, with their wealth and success, they probably had the very best (or extensive) pahiyas decor. During the Holy Week, other than the Santo Senor Sepulcro, they had one of the most expensive and organized (with uniforms) processional carrozas.
Right, detail of a mosaic of a map of Lucban made from hundreds (thousands?) of seeds and beans painstakingly assembled. I was very much impressed. These was part of two works, the other, a mosaic of the church.
Left, One of the kiping decors being kept inside one house. I noted that because of the wet weather, some of the kiping decors started to wilt. The rice concoction softened and some were already deformed. Right, a woman, doing double time, is still busy working on her piece.
During the Holy Week, while shooting images of the two carrozas for the Easter Sunday procession, an old woman, Terry Apollo approached me and asked that I take her picture. She will just pay me. I agreed but will do it for free. She also called Aling Hely Obmerga, above, and I also took her shot. I told them that I’ll be back during the Pahiyas and give them a copy of their photo. When I came back, I was able to give it to them but Terry was not around so her daughter received it. On the otherhand, Aling Hely was very ecstatic and happy when I gave it to her. She even joked that its a good picture to place at her own casket. NGEE! But I was amused
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Pahiyas Festival
Series 8: Pahiyas Festival
Series 32: Pahiyas 2006
In gratitude to the invaluable assistance accorded to my by my friend from Lucban, Jayson Maceo, I gave him this series of pages, 34 in all comprising 64 images that I’ve done during the Holy Week festivities in Lucban, Quezon.
This is the last post for the Semana Santa 06 Series. Whew!
Related posts:
Series 31: Semana Santa 06
Semana Santa 06: Santo Señor Sepulcro
Semana Santa 06: Dressing the Santo Señor Sepulcro
Semana Santa 06: Domingo de Ramos, 1
Semana Santa 06: Domingo de Ramos, 2 and Pabasa
Semana Santa 06: Via Crucis
Semana Santa 06: Senakulo
Semana Santa 06: Flagellants
Semana Santa 06: Paete and Pakil processions
Semana Santa 06: Maundy Thursday
Semana Santa 06: Good Friday, 1
Semana Santa 06: Good Friday, 2 - procession preparations
Semana Santa 06: Good Friday, 3 - the procession
Semana Santa 06: Good Friday, 4 - Procession of the Senor
Semana Santa 06: Black Saturday and Easter Sunday
Semana Santa 06: Insights
It was a good thing that I’ve decided to cover the Holy Week activities in Lucban, Quezon and surrounding areas. I wasn’t expecting much in the first place but the experience as well as the many, many new things that I’ve learned and witnessed was really priceless. It also provided me with ideas of projects that I can embark on in the future.
The activity would have never been accomplished, or should I say, never had become what it is if not for the very important contact I had: Jayson Maceo, a young man who’s knowledge of the religious aspects and practices as well as his love and devotion to the Catholic faith was very instrumental in realizing this documentary. It also helped that his family is taking care of the image of the Santo Senor Sepulcro, the main figure of the Lenten season. Through him, I was able to learn many important things, the practices, the rituals, the history as well as trivial notes and stories that made my Lucban experience rich. In gratitude, I’ve gifted him and his family high quality printouts, 65 images in all, that I’ve captured during my stay there. This is the least I can do. The openness that was given to me as well as the invaluable assistance provided will forever be cherished.
Holy Week is one of the most important religious activities that Filipino Catholics hold dear. I’ve always taken for granted this particular event. Whereas I’ve always enjoyed this as it only means an end to school days and thus vacation, I remember vividly that its also a time wherein no meat starting Ash Wednesday and every Friday (until Good Friday) is eaten. On Good Friday, my family would not even be using pork lard for cooking and the food is limited to stewed fish (in vinegar, that is, that I just don’t like) and mung bean soup. For merienda (afternoon snacks), we have binignit, a local snack that is delicious and sweet whose ingredients include slivers of jackfruit, ripe saba bananas, camote (sweet potato), gabi (don’t know the English term but it’s a root crop that also thickens the soup; I especially like the purple variety), landang and different colored sago à pearl like in form (jelly like products derived from the buli palm) boiled in a sweet and slightly thickened soup. This has always been a treat for us.
We also joined the Good Friday procession in my hometown. Before the carrozas were big and the images lifesized. The last time I was there, around 5 years ago, I was just shocked to see that the images had gotten smaller and badly carved while some carrozas disappeared and was replaced with decorated jeeps where the image was mounted! These changes came as my hometown also saw its transformation from a lively town into the newest city in the province of Cebu. Over the years, I also saw my transformation: from a deeply religious person to one who now don’t care about religion or faith. But I should clarify that the different old structures that are the Spanish era churches as well as the different religious rituals and festivities always fascinates me. This may also be the reason that it has a special place in my photography. Maybe, this is a way for my supposed religiousness, though suppressed (?), is finding an outlet?
Documenting the Holy Week rituals in Lucban was an opportunity to cover first hand the innate religiousity of Filipinos. Just like in the frenzied Black Nazarene festivities in Quiapo or the rather tame Sto. Niño fiesta in Cebu, it was also an opportunity to observe firsthand the religious fervor that Filipinos has accepted, lived and transformed the rather foreign god into their own and molded it into something uniquely theirs that was imposed on them when the Spanish missionaries and conquistadores came into these islands almost five centuries ago. It was also an opportunity to celebrate my own culture, my being Filipino, as well as to look back and examine myself of my transformations: before and now. What will I become in the future? Will I eventually find my God?
Related posts:
Series 31: Semana Santa 06
Semana Santa 06: Santo Señor Sepulcro
Semana Santa 06: Dressing the Santo Señor Sepulcro
Semana Santa 06: Domingo de Ramos, 1
Semana Santa 06: Domingo de Ramos, 2 and Pabasa
Semana Santa 06: Via Crucis
Semana Santa 06: Senakulo
Semana Santa 06: Flagellants
Semana Santa 06: Paete and Pakil processions
Semana Santa 06: Maundy Thursday
Semana Santa 06: Good Friday, 1
Semana Santa 06: Good Friday, 2 - procession preparations
Semana Santa 06: Good Friday, 3 - the procession
Semana Santa 06: Good Friday, 4 - Procession of the Senor
Semana Santa 06: Black Saturday and Easter Sunday
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