Looking through my books again, an essay on Lucban reminded me that the town fiesta, a celebration in honor of San Isidro de Labrador in thanksgiving for a good harvest, is on May 15.
The essay by Monina Allarey Mercado was originally written for the Weekly Graphic (1967) and reprinted in “Rediscovery: Essays in Philippine Life and Culture,” edited by Cynthia Nograles Lumbera and Teresita Maceda (Ateneo de Manila and National Book Store, 1977).
Mercado wrote about her hometown the way I have heard others talk about their own hometowns—naming the distinguished families there, the religious feasts (apart from the May fiesta), the town’s best produce (lambanog for Lucban), the nicknames given to families because of their business or their “glaring faults,” news from the town’s acknowledged gossip and, of course, the town’s unique dishes.
But I can’t imagine that there will be throngs of people on their way Lucban this weekend as it was in past years for what is perhaps the most unique and colorful fiesta in the country.
First fiesta
Years ago, on my first fiesta (Pahiyas) attendance, I had to wake up early because we were told we had to leave before dawn because of the traffic. Then we couldn’t park inside the town so we had to walk. Then, sadly, we were told we had to leave before the procession in the afternoon and the march of the higantes or we’d end up reaching Manila at midnight.
Each of us had to make our own itinerary but that didn’t include going up any household as it used to be in the “old days.” Because of the crowd, only friends of the family were invited inside; a security concern, I suppose.
Since I didn’t know where my friends’ families lived, the next best thing was to look for a restaurant. They were all booked. So the photographer and I made do with street food.
There was very good pancit habhab at one corner, noodles distinctly Lucbanin (of Lucban), with only sayote and doused with Del Monte vinegar then eaten directly from the banana leaf container sans fork and spoon, the sort of slurping action known as habhab—hence the pancit name.
And for dessert, we had local sorbetes (ice cream) with ube, cheese and mango flavors, small scoops one on top of the other in a sugar cone.
It was easy to get water or soft drinks because there was a lot of commerce going around and big food companies set up tents to sell their wares. And there were local businesses selling the town’s specialties to hundreds of visitors—habhab noodles, longganisa with a hint of oregano and the local paminton, broas (lady fingers) and the lethal lambanog.
Most of our time, however, was spent going from house to house, recording on film (no phone cameras yet) the excellent façade décor using fruits of the land as well as the local art form called kiping—rice flour mixed with water and food coloring then shaped into a kabal leaf, sometimes assembled into a chandelier called arangya. The house ornamentation can be described as the best food art exhibition.
‘Jardinera’
My first Lucban experience, however, was watching how the Lucban meatloaf called jardinera was cooked, although it was done in Makati. A friend’s friend demonstrated her grandmother’s recipe, which was cooked for her grandfather’s friend, Manuel L. Quezon, when the latter visited to play ajedres (chess).
Another jardinera experience was during a visit to research with the authors of “Panaderia: Philippine Bread, Biscuits and Bakery Traditions,” Amy Uy and Jenny Orillos. It was at the Dealo Koffee Klatch, the bakery that is known for its broas. The family matriarch, Milada Dealo-Valde, published “The Cuisine of Quezon” (Zoom Printing Company, 2013). I must confess that I haven’t cooked her excellent jardinera recipe, the best I’ve tasted.
The next visits were quieter times, I think the best time to visit Lucban. Then you can really appreciate this quaint town, savor the local specialties at a slow pace, dare to drink lambanog, enjoy the cool weather even if it drizzles now and then, appreciate how clean the town is and the canals where clear water from the mountain passes, and eat fried or toasted kiping dipped in vinegar.
Maybe you should visit after May 15.
Micky Fenix discovers local flavors from around the country and writes about them in her weekly column Country Cooking.
