Merry Christmas! You’ve probably been busy preparing for the merry holidays, but Christmas isn’t the only festive day to look forward to.
Different localities celebrate their town festivals during December and showcase the product they're proud of the most at the same time. Here are some agri-related festivals which also incorporate the holiday spirit into their festivities.
SumBingTik Festival | Cainta, Rizal
December 1
SumBingTik is a combination of suman, bibingka, and latik, all of which are specialty delicacies made in Cainta, Rizal. The SumBingTik Festival coincides with the town’s founding anniversary and the fiesta of their patron saint, Our Lady of Light.
Festivities include a Miss Gay pageant, a color run, dance competition, a grand float parade, and the town’s Christmas tree lighting. However, the highlight of the festival is the house decoration competition, where different barangays decorate a mock house with a combination of the town’s specialties and the Christmas spirit, and then display it in one area for all to see.
Mock houses are decorated creatively and cheerfully during the SumBingTik Festival. (Cainta Tourism / Facebook)
Kabakahan Festival | Padre Garcia, Batangas
December 1
Padre Garcia honors cattle, their primary source of income, through the Kabakahan Festival. The festival is not only held to celebrate cattle trading, but to also hopefully boost tourism in the area.
Street dancers of the festival dress in costumes resembling the animal, and give cheer to all spectators. Other events inclue an agri and food bazaar, talent show, dance competition, cooking competion, a grand parade, and the search for the Kabakahan Festival Queen.
Street dancers have cattle-themed costumes to honor the cattle trading industry of the town. (Municipality of Padre Garcia / Facebook)
Kahumayan Festival | Kapatagan, Lanao del Norte
December 2
Rice is life! As what the locals of Kapatagan would say. ‘Humay’ is a Visayan word for rice, and this town is abundant in rice. They celebrate this fact and the hardworking farmers by having the Kahumayan Festival.
Locals have fun at festival events which include bazaars, sports competitions, a dance showdown, the search for Mutya ng Kapatagan, and the grand parade.
Rice is life for the locals of Kapatagan. (Discover Lanao del Norte PH / Facebook)
Coco Festival | San Teodoro, Oriental Mindoro
December 8
Coconuts are the star product of San Teodoro, and it has brought plenty of blessings to the people of the town. The Coco Festival is held to celebrate this product, as well as the farmers who are behind this industry.
The festival coincides with the town’s founding anniversary and the Feast of the Immaculate Concepcion which gives plenty of reason for the town to celebrate. Event highlights are the street dance competition with coconut-themed costumes, parades, pageants, and more.
