Pavia, Iloilo will
showcase and preserve its local way of life between the people in the community
and carabaos through the Carabao-Carroza Festival. Celebrated every April 25
till the 4th of May, the town known for championing its relationship with them
through this annual festivity annually pays homage to their carabaos in the
most delightful of ways.
With this year’s
theme, “Journeying Towards Excellence,” the festivity will open on April 25
with daily Agri-Trade and Food Fair and nightly entertainment till the 4th of
May.
Every 3rd of May, on
its festival day, 18 beautifully-decorated carrozas with their muses depart
from Barangay Ungka-I passing in front of the main streets leading to the
town’s poblacion and arrive at the football grounds of Pavia National High
School at around 8:30 a.m. Savoring a traditional atmosphere, Pavianhons watch
with joy the star of parade, the carabaos, some, fitted with brightly colored
cloths and lots of decorations.
The much-anticipated
race follows after a short program declaring the opening of the celebration.
Locals and guests and those from neighboring villages pour into the festival
grounds from all four directions as the excitement heightens. They gather
around the carabao racing track, hundreds of spectators stand and are packed
there and are in high anticipation of the upcoming races.
Flagpoles are staked
out to mark boundaries, their colourful flags fluttering against the vast blue
sky. Then the carabao race begin, both races involve a special riding skill. Two
major race types are observed annually: the flat racing, a race of carabaos
with their owners; and the carroza-racing. Both races are of a 100-meter long
run along the parallel grassy track of the field.
It was about 46
years ago that this event was first organized as a reward for the carabaos
which had toiled so hard in rice planting and harvest. This came to form part
of the festival celebrating the completion of rice planting or harvesting,
which is a tiring task not only for man but also for carabaos. The carabaos are
treasured to such an extent that the custom of people living together with them
in the same area where the house is still remains.
The Carabao, known
to many as the “Beast of Burden,” but to Filipinos as the “Farmer’s Bestfriend”
is a living symbol of strength, power,
efficiency, perseverance and hardwork.
For the people of
Pavia, the carabao represents its history and strength. It is no wonder that
when you speak to Pavianhons, they are proud of their heritage through the
annual celebration of their Carabao-Carroza Festival.
A prosperous town of
dynamic people, Pavia is 9.6 kilometers or a 30-minute drive north from Iloilo
City. The town is 2,703-hectare big and
comprised of 18 barangays and is bordered by the municipalities of Oton, San
Miguel, Sta. Barbara, Leganes and Iloilo City. To get to Pavia, one can take a
jeepney in Jaro Plaza, Iloilo City.
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