Quezon province is truly blessed. It has majestic mountains and forests, beautiful beaches, delicious food, and the most amazing festivals. You’re probably thinking of Pahiyas Festival – and yes, we had an amazing time there. But besides the famous colorful Pahiyas, the rest of Quezon celebrates different festivals in honor of San Isidro de Labrador every May 15.
One such festival is Hagisan ng Suman Festival (or Hagisan for short), where you literally throw and catch suman (a type of rice cake). The festival, celebrated in the city of Tayabas, signifies bountiful harvest and sharing of blessings. The procession starts from the Minor Basilica of Saint Michael the Archangel, commonly known as the Tayabas Basilica, and goes around the different barangays in Tayabas.
When I first learned about this festival from Daryl, I was so excited (even more excited than I was for Pahiyas) because it sounded wild. And wild it was. I was surprised when we arrived outside the church and saw this.
Men had knapsacks and big plastic bags and sacks. SACKS, guys. Really. In my head I was thinking, have they never had suman their whole lives that they had to bring sacks with them?! And it also bugged me a little bit that there were mostly men in the crowd and almost no females. I would later learn that the festival turns rowdy, even violent at some point. But it is truly fun.
We left the church once the procession started and then went back to the hotel to eat our late lunch. When the procession passed by the hotel, we threw out suman (provided by the hotel for guests) and it was super fun.
When we ran out of suman to throw, we left to catch up with the procession so we could also experience CATCHING suman. Take note that households don’t throw only suman but also snacks, coupons, school supplies (we got a pencil and a sharpener) and cash (coins and bills), and that’s where it gets a little bit violent. People would push each other for some cash, especially when there are paper bills. It got a little scary. So if you’re a girl and you want to join, be extra careful. Stay in the sidelines, if you can, and don’t attempt catching some cash.
What did we get out of this stint? HA! I’m proud to say that we caught 9 sumans, all of which we ate for merienda (paired it with coffee and tea — sarap!), a pencil, sharpener, one peso coin, and 3 bubble gums. Not bad eh?
If you ever decide to hit Quezon during festival season, don’t miss Tayabas City’s Hagisan ng Suman Festival. It will show you the fun and wild side of the province. And really, the suman‘s good. 🙂
3 Comments