One of the major festivities in Bacolod is the Bacalaodiat Festival which is being celebrated every spring as a way to celebrate the Chinese New Year. Since nandito naman na ko sa Bacolod, why not enjoy this bonggang festival in Bacolod? It is located and gnacelebrate along the road of Lacson St.
There are plenty of activities that await visitors during this time. As in. it’s somehow para na ring dinagyang sa sobrang daming activities and balita ko nga the budget for this festival is five million pesos lang naman ayon sa google. This festival never fail to amaze me. They create fun activities derived from both Filipino and Chinese Culture. Activities done in the Bacalaodiat Festival includes: Lantern Parade, Lion Dance, Street Dancing Competition, Fireworks Display, and the Chopstick Alley that showcases both Filipino and Chinese Food.
And since I’m here at the Bacolod para sa field work, for sure dyna is not around sa mga places na napuntahan ko and pupuntahan pa lang instead I would like to introduce my new friends but old workmates. Bacolod gives me a new bonggang friendship. Let’s start at the far left corner, that’s Carla – my roommate for the whole month, next is ma’am Leona – supervisor with the same agenda na meron ako that’s why nandito ako sa Bacolod, next is my beautiful friend jother – kawalwalan ko & lastly, niel – driver namin sa mga pupuntahan namin.
See how alive is the street of the Bacolod in the 3 day celebration of Chinese New Year. But before that I would like to sturya gamay about the not so history of this event. (since its starts four years ago pa lang naman) - The word Bacalaodiat was derived from the words Bacolod and Lao diat which is a Fookien word for Sinadya (Ilonggo) meaning, big celebration. The Bacalaodiat Festival began only four years ago with the aim developing good Filipino-Chinese relationship and of course to improve tourism in the city. It was started by the Chinese community in Bacolod and it showed a lot about Chinese culture and history.
Look how emotera is my friend, jother. Hahaha. We really enjoy the festival especially that there are foodstalls everywhere. Hinding hindi ka magugutom, pero for sure mabubutas bulsa mo. We were looking at our palms that time since we were comparing it in the pictures in the bulletin illustrated, since were curious what the hula for this year.
Bacolaodiat Festival is celebrated every February of the month, so if you have been planning to go to Bacolod, travel around February so you can experience this Bonggang Chinese New Year.
“How does Bacolod City celebrate the Chinese New Year?” Not Just simple celebration but a big event. More like a festival. This is my first question while were walking towards Lacson Street. And the answer is just simple - Just like any other major city in the Philippines, Bacolod City also has a rich Chinese influence which is evident in its Chinese temples, prominent Chinese businessmen and the existence of a Chinatown. It’s not surprising then that Bacolod is one of the few cities outside Metro Manila with a grand celebration of the Chinese New Year.
As you can see above, amuna ang scenario on Bacolaodiat festival. May mga naka pwestong food stalls at the sidewalk. Most of the food na piniprepare is mga inasal. Cause we all know that Bacolod is the home of the famous inasalan in the Philippines so di na talaga ako nagtaka bakit puro usok along the street of Lacson kasi along the street na rin nila iniihaw.
I would like to introduce the famous cup with bonggang light. While walking along Lacson St. turning to Lagoon, we saw something new to our eyes & since manol kami, we try to find the store where it came from & voila! di mahirap hanapin since pinagkakaguluhan talaga and maraming pumipila para sa basong umiilaw. Halatang Filipinos are curious in nature.
Ang lakas daw makaganda ng baso. Instead of umiilaw na baso, We can already call it “Ang Mahiwagang Baso” since Jother said lain gd ya daan ang feeling kung may dala kang baso while walking along Lacson Street. Ang lakas maka festive vibe. Parang Hala Bira Bacolod lang ang peg. By the way, for the information of all, PHP50 po ang bili namin dun & with some alcohol na yun mga
beshy.
Okay lets end my story here by posting two portraits & one “nag enjoy na tayo beshy tonight, so lets take a last picture & puli na kay may duty pa bwas”
