Bacolaodiat Chinese New Year
The Chinese New Year is one of the celebrated occasions in the world, especially in Asia, and definitely in parts of the Philippines. Bacolod City, on its part, celebrates it through the Bacolaodiat Festival. It is a conjoined word from Bacolod (the City of Smiles in the Philippines) and Lao Diat, which is a Fookien word for celebration.
Various activities are lined up for the Bacolaodiat. From February 5 to February 8, there are parades, shows and other attractions. You can see the Bacolaodiat page for the full details. Below is the schedule of activities.
Yesterday, the first day of the celebration, my sister and I went to Lacson St., wherein a portion of it, from fronting the Capitol Lagoon to 11th St., was closed for the festivities. Eateries line up the sidewalk and various products were up for sale. There were stages in different points of the closed area, where sponsors held their respective shows.
Lights, smoke and people fill Bacolod’s Lacson St.
At the Capitol Road, there were booths featuring Chinese lanterns, watermelon carving, palmistry, and many other traditions that can be traced back from old Chinese practices.
Watermelon carving.
While the rest of Lacson St. was more of a Masskara Festival than a New Year’s celebration, with grilled chicken and chicken innards throughout both sides of the closed street area, Yuan Thong Temple along Burgos St. was really of Chinese feel.
Yuan Thong Temple filled with lighted lanterns.
There were Dharma words, wishing papers, blessing rice packets, incense, wishing wells, and other pure Chinese traditions. Temple volunteers gave us a small packet of rice and some incense as blessings.
Incense and blessing rice were given out to visitors.
I remember the Chinese New Year adventure that my friends and I had two years back in Binondo, Manila’s Chinatown. People were dressed in red, a lucky color among the Chinese, and Chinese food were a craze. Three years ago, when I was still working in the wasla Hotel, we did our own Chinese New Year festivities inside the hotel, particularly in Mabuhay Palace, the hotel’s Chinese Restaurant.
Chan Lim also had a Chinese fan painting activity and exhibit at Manila Hotel three years ago.
As the Chinese tradition spreads across the globe and Chinatowns sprout all over the world, variations of the Chinese New Year celebration has also evolved.
A snake display at Lacson St.
The Chinese New Year is celebrated is the Lunar New Year in the Chinese calendar. It is often referred to as the Spring Festival. In fact, this is celebrated for 16 days, starting with the New Year’s eve and culminating to the Lantern Festival. Some trace the origin of this celebration to an old Chinese mythology about a beast who said to be eating children. Villagers offered food to appease the beast. But one villager found out that the beast was afraid of the color red and firecrackers. Thus, that was how some of the practices began.
The tiger.
The New Year also marks the change in the animal zodiac. There are 12 animals in the calendar and they are associated with the five elements: wood, water, fire, earth and metal. The year 2016 is the year of the red fire monkey. In my travels, I found out that Chinese calendar of the traditional Lanna culture of Thailand has replaced the pig with the elephant.
The food prepared at the streets of Bacolod are grilled chicken and chicken parts, a local delicacy.
During the celebration, traditional Chinese foods are prepared. There are hot pot, meat dishes, fish dishes, fruits like Mandarin oranges, noodles, sweets, dumplings, and taro cake, to name a few. Red packets or red envelopes, often containing money wherein the amount is an even number, are given out to children or younger people.
Palm reading guide.
Chinese lanterns.
Others exchange gifts or visit family members or relatives. Larger families make this a time for their reunion, especially during New Year’s Eve. Preparations for the New Year is also observed by cleaning the house.
Chinese lantern display at the Capitol Road.
Chinese lanterns are displayed.
During New Year’s Day, there are lion and dragon dances, offerings to ancestors, firecrackers and fireworks displays, lantern exhibits and parades, and so much more. Lanterns, paper cutouts, New Year paintings, and spring couplets are placed for decoration. New Year markets are often set up, just like what we have in the Bacolaodiat.
The vibe along Lacson St.
How about you, how does your place celebrate Chinese New Year?
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42 thoughts on “Bacolaodiat Chinese New Year”
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Very colourful photos that capture the festive atmosphere so nicely. Chinese New Year celebrations are on world-wide.
That’s right. Chinese New Year is celebrated worldwide.
This is pretty awesome! They really put a lot of effort into celebrating the Chinese New Year! It would be so much fun to be here.
After being absent in my home town for two decades, I never expected Chinese New Year to be celebrated this big here.
Lovely and colourful festive photos you have captured. Singapore is all decked up with lights in red.
I can imagine how festive it would be in Singapore. I have visited the Chinatown there and I’m sure it was filled with so much revelry.
i love to see art on watermelon, its good to see all the color are filled with joy and fashionable to the outsiders. Thanks for the information nice work. Keep it up
It was fun watching them carve figures and Chinese characters on watermelon.
Wow! Sure looks fun. I miss Bacolodiat. I used to attend that every year and just have a blast walking around Lacson St. lol Great pics! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
At least, you get to be updated through my blog. 🙂
The watermelon carving looks really amazing! Just shows how talented and artistic those guys are! 🙂 Love that there are a lot of activities to check out during the event 🙂
I was also mesmerized watching them do the watermelon carving.
There’s so many activities set for the Chinese New Year. I would surely love to try all the street food and join the festivities.
Visiting a Chinese temple was also a great experience. 🙂
Wow I had no idea other cities in the Philippines celebrated the Lunar new year too! This looks so festive! To be honest, I haven’t celebrated the Chinese New Year in the Philippines (even if I’m part Chinese). Looks like I’ve been missing out!
It’s a fun event. The Chinese community in Bacolod are really active this time of the year. 🙂
CNY really is such an awesome holiday! I wish I was here as well! So cool! 😀
I hope to someday celebrate CNY in China or Taiwan or Hong Kong or Singapore. 🙂
Wow! I’m glad to know that there’s also a big celebration of Chinese New Year in Bacolod. It’s not only the Chinese that celebrate CNY but also Filipinos who happen to have friends who are Chinese.
It’s an appreciation of culture, so, yes, we love to celebrate CNY, too, in deference to our Chinese brothers and friends.
Interesting the name of the event is Bacolaudiat. Laudiat is a Fukienese term. I guess the owner of the establishment is a Chinoy. Good to see how Chinese New Year is celebrated in Bacolod. Has it always been so festive?
The event Bacolaodiat is organized by the Chinese community in our city. I never realized this was a festive celebration in Bacolod until I came home recently.
Thank you for sharing this experience!
Craft has been a hobby since childhood. I liked the watermelon carving. Would definetely love to know more about that.
It’s amazing to watch so much colour! The lucky colour red surely excites the eyes. And what a fun occasion!
The watermelon carving was one of my favorite attractions, too.
Wow i hpoe i can do all these things on my upcoming trip to china!
That’s my wish, too!
Love the brightly-lit lanterns and the festivities going around the world. Your photos bring in the mood of the lunar new year well 🙂
Thank you so much.
We don’t have a big Asian community here in Colorado but we still had a celebration which I actually posted today. I would LOVE to go to one of yours because it looks amazing!!
That’s great to know that you have a CNY celebration there as well. 🙂
Love the vibrant colors and decorations during Chinese New Year. Now many parts of the world celebrate Chinese New Year also.
That is so true. It has become a worldwide celebration.
Happy year of the monkey!!
My friend hosted a party a couple days back and she brought the entire chinese feel and vibe to our home…
Oh, wow! That sounds fantastic!
I was also mesmerized watching them do the watermelon carving. THis is such an amazing post
They were really amazing!
Wow! That’s an elaborate schedule for the holiday! I love Chinese New Year! But the last time we actually went on a holiday trip to celebrate it two years ago. We went to Boracay for it!
I want to go back to Boracay! It’s been awhile since the last time I was there.
It’s always nice to know that another country is celebrating the same festival as I am! It makes one feel home no matter where they are!
It gives a feeling of inter-connectivity that makes us live like one big family, one big community.
There are many Chinese around the world, another reason why the CNY has become a global celebration. Happy New Year to all!
That’s so true.