October 19, 2006

Dagupan City Fiesta 2006

Watch out for the celebration of Dagupan City's Fiesta 2006

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May 3, 2006

Inkalót A Bangós

Inkalót A Bangós

Source: bucaio

 

Inkalót A Bangós 

 

May 1 is observed across the globe as Labor Day. As the day falls on a Monday this year, it translates to a long weekend, as it is usually declared a special non-working holiday. An opportune time to schedule that long-postponed vacation trip.

 

Pangasinenses attach a special meaning to May 1, but for another reason. Because May 1 had also been observed for years in the province as Písta'y Dáyat, literally translated as "Feast of the Sea," which is a celebration in thanksgiving for the seas' bountiful harvest.

 

So it means a trip to the beaches surrounding the Lingayen Gulf, going across Tondalígan (or Blue Beach) in Dagupan City all the way to San Fabian which borders La Union.

 

One of the highlights of the celebration is the pageant to choose the Limgás na Dáyat, the "muse of the sea," (literally translated, limgás means purity), and her eventual coronation around midnight.

 

The past several years saw the stretching of the festival to about a month of activities, like all other festivities that have seen the light of commercialization, especially with the bid for fame with the longest bangós grilling station in the world. That development has since segregated the celebration to each municipality, with the festival in Dagupan City renamed to Bangus Festival, to properly attribute the source of the best bangós.

 

I've never attended a Písta'y Dáyat, for the simple reason that crowded beaches can be one of the most disgusting places in the world to be in, due from both the wastes littering the otherwise pristine waters and humans wasted by alcohol and too much karaoke. Even during the other holidays of the year we avoid the beaches like the plague.

 

But, of course, that doesn't keep me from commemorating the occasion. Just rub a fresh Bonuan bangós with coarse sea salt (from Pangasinan, of course) and plop over live coals, innards intact (excluding the gills and minute bile sac), grilling until the scales blacken.

 

Eating the hot, succulently sweet, fatty flesh dipped in Lingayen bagóong with a squeeze of calamansi is always a cause for celebration, for me. Even the scorched, sea-salty scales are not spared by Pangasinenses, as we eat the entire skin, leaving only the tail and big spine (the head is sucked to pieces).

 

The only things missing then would be the sand under my toes and the whiff of sea breeze playing with my hair.

 

But with bangós production on full scale across the country, buying real Bonuan bangós can be actually tricky. All bangós vendors in Pangasinan will say their bangós is from Bonuan, when about fifty percent of the time it is not. There are other bangós ponds in the province, after all. And some Pangasinan bangós can be maáblir, smelling and tasting like mud.

 

A skill is most of the time needed to differentiate the real Bonuan bangós from that just pretending to be one. But the most telling characteristic of a Bonuan bangós is its size - so great is the demand that it is rarely harvested past its prime length, which is about 15 inches. A jumbo bangós is from elsewhere and is best made into a relleno.

 

A small head (relatively stunted) and short tail, which means a longer body, are also characteristic traits of a Bonuan bangós, as an uneven tail (one prong is shorter than the other, although not so obvious at first glance). Scales are light grey turning to white.

 

A bulging stomach is considered first-rate bangós, as it spells heavenly thick fat that enhances the flavor of the fish as it grills. Pangasinenses are self-avowed bangós belly worshippers, including and especially those who eat bangós as pulutan. The latter always offer prayers for a miracle that would turn the bangós into an all-belly fish, the thick, black fat running from head to tail.

 

Such is this obsession that all bangós sold in the province have slit bellies to show how thick the fat is, which also shows how fresh the fish is from the overflowing innards. Which is to say, no bangós is sold without the proper incision.

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April 3, 2006

Pista’y Dayat

Pista’y Dayat is Paco Duque’s legacy to Pangasinan

By Restituto C. Basa

Source: People's Digest and Forum
May 3-9, 2005

Posted by:

 

Lingayen Gulf 

COME May 1, the Pangasinan towns along the Lingayen Gulf will celebrate Pista’y Dayat, rather than Labor Day.

 

Pista’y Dayat started a simple fishermen’s thanksgiving mass along the beach in Barangay Pangapisan in Lingayen. The fisherfolk of Pangasinan held it every May 1, since ancient times. It is older than Labor Day.

 

In 1964, the governor of Pangasinan was Dr. Francisco Quimson Duque, Jr. The tourist trade was in its infancy. Governor Duque conceived the idea of making the Lingayen Gulf a tourist attraction.

 

He conceived the Pista’y Dayat. He based it on an ancient tradition of the fishermen of Pangapisan, Lingayen who held a thanksgiving mass at the beach every first day of May.

 

Pangasinan beach 

I was a member of Governor Duque’s staff at the time. By that time, I had already several years experience as a newspaperman, although I held the position of Assistant Chief of Administration Division in the Office of the Governor.

 

Three months before the festival, we sent invitations to natives of Lingayen, who were residing in Metro Manila, Baguio and other parts of the country to visit their hometown on May 1 to join the first Pista’y Dayat. We publicized it in both the national and local media.

 

The response was very encouraging. They visited their old hometown by the families.

 

On May 1, 1964, the Lingayen beach was crowded with people. Every family brought its own food and had a picnic at the beach. The mood was festive.

 

There was a simple program which opened with a thanksgiving mass officiated by the parish priest of Lingayen. The town mayor delivered a welcome speech and the governor expressed joy for seeing old friends come to join the festival.

 

Mayor Liberato Ll Reyna of Dagupan City noticed the huge success of the Lingayen Pista’y Dayat. The following year, Dagupan also held its own version at the Bonuan beach. In the course of time, the other towns along the Lingayen Gulf joined the festival.

 

People from the landlocked provinces like Tarlac and Nueva Ecija now come by chartered buses to take a dip in the gulf.

 

What makes the sea so attractive to tourists is the belief that the salty water of the sea is medicinal.

 

Pista’y Dayat has become an established tradition.

 

Duque was governor from 1964 up to 1967. Before that, he was secretary of health for two years in the Diosdado Macapagal cabinet. He conceived of the Medicare to provide medical care to indigents. His son, Dr. Francisco Tiongson Duque III was appointed by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo as head of the Philippine Health Care Commission, formerly Medicare, and he is now holding the position of the Secretary of Health.

 

In Dagupan City, under Mayor Benjamin Saplan Lim, the Pista’y Dayat has become bangus festival. It promotes the native bangus industry, which is the backbone of the local economy.

Filed under Tourism, History, Festivals, Events, Travel by The Pangasinan Blog.
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March 22, 2006

Dagupan Bangus Festival 2006

Welcome and Celebrate with us

The Dagupan City Bangus Festival 2006 

Schedule of Activities

 

April 1-30-May 1-2

Trade Fair - Affordable apparels, housewares, furnitures, accessories, bags and other stuffs galore in this exhibit along Jovellanos Street.

 

April 8

Mayor Benjamin S. Lim Cup – an invitational shootfest by Dagupan City Mayor Benjamin S. Lim participated in by various gun clubs to be held at the Dagupan Practical Shooters Association Firing Range in Bonuan Binloc.

 

April 21/ 7am

Interfaith Thanksgiving Prayer – Religious organizations gather to offer prayer for the city, the country and the world for unity, progress and peace to formally open the celebration of the Bangus Festival.

 

April 21/ 1 pm

Bangus Fest Caravan (motorcade) – Bangus Festival 2006 starts with a big bang as city government officials, employees and festival sponsors shares the Bangus festival mania to nearby towns and municipalities as part of the festival’s formal launching.

 

April 21/ 6pm

Bangus fest opening ceremony – A grand opening program featuring grandiose fireworks display and marching bands showdown to welcome the almost month-long celebration of Bangus Festival 2006.

 

April 21/ 7pm 

Drum and Bugle Exhibition – An electrifying and colorful display of renowned marching bands from colleges and universities nationwide will spice up the Bangus Fest Opening Ceremony. Dagupan City’s multi-awarded University of Luzon Drum and Bugle Corps spearheads the event.

 

April 21/ 8pm

Parokya ni Edgar Concert – a free concert by the MTV awardee Parokya ni Edgar starring actress Ara Mina and RnB Princess Kyla to be held at the Magsaysay Bridge.

 

April 22/ 7am

Inter-Barangay & Inter-Dep’t. fun games – Barangay officials and city government employees enjoys the day off from work as they are treated to a day of revelry and parlor games.

 

April 22/ 8am

Car show – Auto lovers will surely love to check out the hottest and latest car models as well as the vintage and classic ones in this exciting automotive event.

 

April 22/ 7pm

Al Fresco Acoustic Night - Spend the night with a music that’s smooth and soothing in an intimate concert with top acoustic singers performing in a sentimental ambience as mini bars are set up within the People’s Park simultaneously with the Car Show.

 

April 22/ 12–1pm

Tour Pilipinas (Padyak Pinoy) – Philippine cycling is alive this summer as the country’s top riders competing for the Tour Pilipinas cycling competition arrives in the city as part of their race destination.

 

April 23/ 7 am (start)

Bangus Fest Amazing Race – A team composed of 2 males and 2 females are caught up in this 5-day travel adventure game derived from America’s most popular reality show The Amazing Race and the local show Extra Challenge.

 

April 24

Bangus Challenge (Luzon Karate Games)– Tough karate athletes will showcase their talent in martial arts.

 

April 26/ 8 am

101 Ways to Cook Bangus –Seasoned cooks will present the succulent Dagupan bangus in many distinctive recipes.

 

April 26/ 3pm

Basketball "gaymes" (Battle of the 3rd kind) – The famous basketball game became more enjoyable and exciting as gays try to prove that they also play basketball like real men.

 

April 26/ 7pm

Battle of the Bands – Up and coming Pinoy rock bands will definitely make you jump out of your skin as they compete with live performances on the concert stage.

 

April 27/ 3pm

Opening of Beach Volleyball –Youngsters have the opportunity to participate in this much-anticipated volleyball competition that involves lots of action and spiking in the sand featuring veteran players of beach volleyball from colleges and universities in Metro Manila.

 

April 27/ 7 pm

Bangus Fest King and Queen – The city’s summer spectacle heats up in this Bikini Open contest that celebrates the beauty of swimsuit fashion worn by the candidates from other towns and cities nationwide.

 

April 28/ 8 am

Bangus Rodeo (featuring Lumbay Bangus)– A fun-filled contest on who is the fastest bangus deboner, eater and classifier. It is also highlighted by the search for the biggest, heaviest and the sexiest bangus. Aside from the traditional activities, watch how the world famous Dagupan bangus outperform each other in the bangus marathon called "lumbay bangus."

 

April 28/ 7pm

Rave Party – Sayaw at Saya- The city streets give way for avid partygoers craving for an exceptional experience of dancing and partying at the middle of the Perez Street.

 

April 29/ 3pm

Grand Creative Float Parade & Gilon! Gilon! street dancing competition – This traditional event in the Bangus Festival features the pageantry of bangus-inspired floats parading the entire stretch of the downtown area interspersed by lively Gilon! Gilon! street dancers depicting the bountiful harvest of bangus.

 

April 29/ 7pm

Singing Contest - Amateur singers display their singing prowess during this event.

 

April 30 /4:30 pm

Kalutan ed Dagupan – The culminating activity of the Bangus Festival highlighted by the longest barbecue party in the street dubbed "Liket tan Gayaga ed Dalan".

 

May 1/ 7am

Fluvial Parade – A unique display of boats cruising along the main rivers of the city up to the Lingayen Gulf Bonuan Tondaligan.

 

May 1/ 9am

Pisasalamat – A thanksgiving mass in honor of the city’s patron saint St. John the Evangelist.

 

May 1/ 10 am

Palaro sa Dagat – Beach action and excitement intensifies further in this premier sports competition held at the city’s Tondaligan beach.

 

Sand Sculptor Park Competition – Sand castles exquisitely crafted will transform the city’s beachfront into a summer tropical garden

 

Bangus in the Sky – Multi-colored kites decorating the summer sky are featured in this kite flying competition at the Tondaligan Beach.

 

May 1/ 7pm

Rock the Beach Concert –Metro Manila bands and singers will rock the night away in this concert party catered for all ages.

 

Check out this site for updates

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