Fiesta

Fiesta is one of the good Filipino traditions. It is one of the many religious motivations used by the Spaniards during Christianization time to encourage people to go to church. It is so effective that after 400 years it is still around gathering people not necessarily to the church but to different houses. Some say it is economically destructive and many Filipinos are hooked to it to the point of bankruptcy.

We attended one Fiesta one time at the nearby town, together with a teacher friend and her French boyfriend. I humorously tried to shock the Frenchman culturally by telling him that we were to visit 12 houses and that in all he was expected to eat full meal or else his host would feel insulted. First he took it as a joke but after visiting three houses and eating full meals in them he requested me to forgo the remaining houses that we scheduled to visit. He must have enjoyed the experience although it was the simplest fiesta celebration without even a fair, the colorful arks and street buntings or the marching brass bands.

The spirit was still alive. Barrio folks were coming to town to pay homage to the patron saint. The church was full the the rafters with the noises of the vendors outside merging with the homily and the prayers inside.

Fiesta is the Filipino "broad spectrum antibiotic" to all kinds of ailments. A Filipino is always happy and alive during Fiesta days.