Kapaw Festival 2017

Basay – Negros Oriental

The Kapaw Festival 2017 in Basay did once again exceed all expectations. Even we were this year on a very tight schedule we manage to get to the lovely municipality of Basay following the invitation of the local tourism officer, Analie Lobaton, to spend some great time in the municipality on the border to Negros Occidental.

The Kapaw Festival is best described as a family and neighborhood festival and we are glad to count ourselves to the extended family. Each year we go there we make more friends. Even the festival is not that popular as the Tawo Tawo Festival in the neighboring City of Bayawan, everybody in Basay puts some extra effort in to make it special.

The Kapaw Festival 2017 started with the showdown in the municipality gym. While it was announced at 9 am, we all know that this is rather a rough suggestion, but not the real time. After the anthem was sung, the prayers preached, VIPs greeted and the rules announced the first contingent started their performance in front of a cheering, enthusiastic crowd.

The combination of the typical drumbeats with the festival music is something which makes the showdown and of course the performance special, as the festival jingle is just great and will sit in our ears for the next few days.

After the showdown was a short break where dancers could relax and we could have some lunch. When the street-dancing started through the streets of the municipality, thousands of people along the route witnessed some great performances and thanked the dancers with enthusiastic applause and cheers.

Due to our tight schedule, we had to pack and head back to Dumaguete after the street dancing. However, we had a blast at the Kapaw Festival 2017 and are certain to be back to have more quality time with our friends in Basay very soon. Once again, thank you for having us with you, Basay rocks!