MAGAYON FESTIVAL 2008 – Albay's consummate celebration of things beautiful ... and other things besides
by Gertrudes B. Guidote

            It is 12:42 in the afternoon. I scurry across the main street in the Albay district of Legazpi City and zigzag my way between the seemingly endless string of cars and jeepneys that nudge each other in the harsh noonday sun. Now that traffic has been diverted away from the streets surrounding the Peñaranda Park and the façade of the Albay Capitol, it is not surprising that Rizal Street will remain clogged with vehicles these days. It is not always that traffic gets diverted: only important occasions merit such move from traffic enforcers of the local government.

            Near the Capitol, people pause and crane their necks at the huge bamboo welcome arch being set up by several men. As they struggle with sturdy ropes to hoist the arch in place, bystanders applaud and shout encouraging suggestions on how to connect the hefty perpendicular wooden bar to the two vertical posts on either side of the street. They are in a cheerful mood that is palpable and contagious.

            As I log in for work, I tell a co-employee at my side, “By the looks of things, it's all systems go!” She nods in agreement, knowing that I was referring to the Provincial Government-sponsored MAGAYON FESTIVAL 2008.

            It IS all systems go for this much-awaited month-long festivity that is being spearheaded by Governor Joey Sarte Salceda.

            This year's version of what used to be the Maytime series of festivities launched by then Governor and current Representative Al Francis C. Bichara promises to be celebrated with a difference. As envisioned by Gov. Salceda, the FESTIVAL strives to “replicate, if not surpass, standards set during its founding nine years ago.”

            Indeed, this time, MAGAYON FESTIVAL 2008 soars beyond ordinary revelry and merrymaking or even the province's usual bid for recognition as a top trade and tourism destination. As pointedly implied by its purposeful theme, Albay Rising!, next month's festival is a serious undertaking – much like an exclamation point – that emphasizes the Albay government's relentless efforts to bring the province back to its feet after the devastation it experienced from last year's natural calamities, particularly Milenyo and Reming, both of which are said to be consequences of global climate changes.

            Hence the symbolic colors which have brightened up the Capitol environs where the FESTIVAL will be mainly celebrated: crisp green and immaculate white. Himself being called “Green Economist,” Gov. Salceda has seen to it that climate change adaptation be an integral part of the festival. For this, events have been organized to reawaken visitors and locals alike to the need for concerned awareness regarding increasing problems brought on by climate change and their responsible involvement in providing practical solutions and viable adaptations to environmental concerns.

            For this, some notable MAGAYON activities have harnessed the arts as a colorful medium for dramatizing environmental issues, such as Pintados sa Magayon and a Mural Painting Contest, both of which tackle themes on climate change adaptation.

            According to Gov. Salceda, “We will use the power of culture and arts to help both the individual and the community foster better awareness and understanding of the adverse impacts of climate change.”

            To cap said environmentally-oriented events, a 2-day International Youth Congress on Climate Change will be held at the Albay Astrodome towards the end of the MAGAYON festivities.

            Youth involvement in the MAGAYON FESTIVAL 2008 has been a key concern for the young Governor. It was precisely to accommodate them – particularly students eager to participate but are otherwise prevented from doing so due to conflicting school schedules – that the FESTIVAL was re-set from May to April, this month being well within their summer break from classes. May usually marks the start of preparations for enrolment and the return to school.

            And speaking of schools, Albay's visionary “aggregator of dreams,” as Gov. Salceda has once described himself, is using the MAGAYON FESTIVAL as a comprehensive and powerful springboard for giving the education sector in the province a much-needed and meaningful boost.

            Such highlights as the Academics Olympics, Schools Fair and the first provincewide Search for Ten Outstanding Teachers have electrified the local world of academe and are being eagerly looked forward to. After all, hefty cash prizes, trophies and plaques of recognition do await deserving awardees.

            According to Dr. Ligaya L. Palcon, Provincial Coordinator for Education, the Search, which culminates on Titsers' Nyt, is one answer the Governor is providing through this FESTIVAL in the face of the deplorable and embarrassing fact that last year Albay ranked a dismal 184^th out of 188 schools divisions nationwide.

            “It is a far worse disaster than typhoons Reming, Milenyo and the Mayon eruptions combined,” the brilliant Governor and Presidential adviser once lamented.

            Meanwhile, Dr. Palcon further elaborated that the Search is being conducted as one more project of the Education Quality for Albayanos (EQUAL), another program launched by Salceda who has astutely perceived how education plays a pivotal and unifying role in the serious pursuit of sustained rehabilitation, development and progress of Albay and the rest of the country.

            This brilliant potpourri of cause-oriented but nevertheless fun-filled and thrilling events likewise offers – among many others – a Street Presentation and Search for Mutya ng Magayon as crown jewels of the FESTIVAL, showcasing Bicolano culture, talent and beauty. Again, huge cash prizes as well as trophies and recognition plaques will be handed out to winning participants. I am told said competitions have already attracted contingencies and individual contestants from distant and neighboring provinces.

            With the initial investment of at least 10 million pesos as seed capital to sell and ensure the success of MAGAYON FESTIVAL 2008, it is no wonder that frenzied preparations are beginning to pay off and are slowly giving way to the blossoming forth of this series of summer activities strung together reflecting the spirit that is uniquely and unabashedly Albayano.

            Transcending the legend of Daragang Magayon and her faithful lover, Panganoron, this Bicolano Festival once more attempts to capture the Volcano's essence of alluring mystery and fiery unpredictability coupled with timeless strength and resilience in the face of adversities that embody all that Albay and its indomitable people stand for.

            Over and above all, MAGAYON FESTIVAL has begun to catch the Albayano's imagination while stirring their collective spirit into becoming more deeply involved in Albay's unwavering aspiration for genuine recovery and upliftment as boldly envisaged and proudly embodied in the Festival's slogan: ALBAY RISING!

            Indeed, MAGAYON FESTIVAL 2008 continues to metamorphose and re-invent itself, making the province of Albay true to its name: undisputably beautiful, undeniably MAGAYON!

            After office hours I head for home and pause for a while. I look up at the imposing green arch that spells out the heartwarming, inviting word WELCOME. As we Bicolanos, famous for our legendary hospitality, are wont to say, DAGOS PO KAMO!

            Proud to be Albayano, I tell myself. And I don't mind telling the whole world, as well. Albay mabuhay! (GBGuidote/PIO – March 28, 2008)

MAGAYON FESTIVAL 2008 – Albay's consummate celebration of things beautiful ... and other things besides
by Gertrudes B. Guidote

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