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[Vigan] ► Ramada: Thanksgiving Culture and Traditional Games

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"The ramada traditional games happen every Tres de Mayo. Tres de Mayo is a feast day honoring Apo Lakay or the Sto Cristo Milagroso de Vigan who is believed to have saved Vigan from a plague in 1882."

[VIGAN, ILOCOS SUR, PHILIPPINES]► When you visit Vigan on the first week of May during the feast of Sto Cristo Milagroso de Vigan, you'll notice that there are huge structures made of light materials scattered around the city poblacion. These structures are built on the streets of Vigan. It's like a welcome arch made of bamboos, palms and/or coconut leaves. Fruits and goods are hanging from these light structures. In Vigan, we call this ramada.

RAMADA VIGAN TRES DE MAYO

[VIGAN] ► HELLO! WELCOME TO VIGAN!


These ramadas are usually set up in Vigan's poblacion barangays (Brgys I to IX). I live outside the poblacion barangays of Vigan but I've been seeing these ramadas ever since my brain started to store memories.

Each ramada is made for the feast of Sto Cristo Milagroso de Vigan or locally called as Apo Lakay. It's a tradition here in Vigan that every barangay or village in poblacion should set up a ramada. The main event falls every third day of May (Fiesta del Tres de Mayo honoring Apo Lakay) where traditional games happen under the ramadas.

Actually, I've never blogged about ramada before and honestly, I didn't know its significance in our Bigueño culture. But when I started documenting and sharing my love for culture and heritage, a huge curiosity developed in my system that in every little thing I see or observe, many 'whys' occupy the corner of my mind that is hungry for answers, facts or trivia. So last May 3, I decided to document this ramada thingie so I made rounds in the city.

RAMADA VIGAN TRES DE MAYO

[VIGAN] ► THIS IS HOW A RAMADA LOOK LIKE.

RAMADA VIGAN TRES DE MAYO

[VIGAN] ► THIS RAMADA WAS DECORATED WITH FRUITS AND OTHER AGRICULTURAL PRODUCES THAT ARE COMMON IN ILOCOS LIKE THE ILOCOS GARLIC AND THE VEGETABLES FOR PINAKBET.

RAMADA VIGAN TRES DE MAYO

[VIGAN] ► A RAMADA SET UP ON JOSE SINGSON STREET, SANTA ELENA VILLAGE, BRGY VIII

RAMADA VIGAN TRES DE MAYO

[VIGAN] ►THIS RAMADA WAS BEING SET UP FOR BRGY I.

RAMADA VIGAN TRES DE MAYO

[VIGAN] ► RAMADA IN BRGY I


I asked my grandma and my mom why there are ramadas in Vigan's poblacion district but they too didn't know the answer. My mom was kind enough to ask his friend (tito Ted) living in Cabasaan (a village in Vigan's poblacion district in Brgy VIII) who has been into this culture since childhood.

So I learned that the ramada is about thanksgiving. If you notice, there are fruits hanging under every ramada. It signifies prosperity and a form of giving thanks to God for the blessings He showered to the people.

According to tito Ted, during their childhood days, longganisa, bagnet and even litson were also hung under the ramada. Traditionally, these food I mentioned are all brought down after the ramada games for the community picnic. Usually, the rich families of the community donate these stuff but as time passed by, no one seemed interested to donate anymore.

Today, only fruits, toys and sometimes cash placed inside a transparent plastic bag are hung. On the third day of May, children of the poblacion barangays gather under these ramadas to play traditional games.

The ramada traditional games happen every Tres de Mayo. As we all know, Tres de Mayo is a feast day honoring Apo Lakay or the Sto Cristo Milagroso de Vigan who is believed to have saved Vigan from a plague in 1882.

The Tres de Mayo feast starts with a mass in front of the Simbaan a Bassit where the image of Apo Lakay is enshrined. If you notice, the mass platform and the altar is also placed under a ramada with fruits hanging signifying the bountiful blessings received by the people of Vigan.

RAMADA VIGAN TRES DE MAYO

[VIGAN] ► A RAMADA HOUSES THE ALTAR AND THE PLATFORM FOR THE TRES DE MAYO HOLY MASS


The things I shared above are, I believe, just a little part of the rich culture of Vigan during Tres de Mayo feast day. I haven't made further research and study about the ramada tradition so I only have a limited information to share. Next time, I will post additional photos featuring the children of Vigan playing traditional games.

If you want to correct something on this post, feel free to share them. You can email me at edmaration@gmail.com or you can also contact me using my social media accounts (fb.com/edmaration, twitter: @edmaraition, IG: @edmaration).

If you want to share your knowledge about the Vigan ramada tradition, I would greatly appreciate it. I envision this blog to be a reliable source of information about the rich culture and heritage of Vigan so for my fellow Bigueños who are knowledgeable in this field, I hope you could impart to me your knowledge so that I can improve the contents of this blog, especially the posts related to Vigan. At the end of the day, my goal is to educate the world about the culture and heritage of my hometown Vigan as accurate as possible. | end |
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More posts related to Tres de Mayo ►[1]

[VIGAN] ▬ The Holy Mass for Sto Cristo Milagroso de Vigan


TEASER▬ This time, it's a team. The image of Sto Cristo Milagroso de Vigan was placed above the middle of a temporary altar that was especially set up for today's use. The altar was on a platform accentuated by ornamental plants.

| [2]

[VIGAN] ▬ The Lion Dance and the Culture on the 3rd of May


TEASER▬ I thought I already know a lot about its history and culture but I realized that the more I discover new things, the more questions leave me hanging.


03 MAY 2016: RAMADA IN SANTA ELENA VILLAGE, BRGY VIII
THIS RAMADA WAS COLORFULLY DECORATED WITH BANDERITAS.

TRES DE MAYO VIGAN

[VIGAN] ► HELLO! WELCOME TO THE RAMADA OF TRES DE MAYO


► FOOTNOTES, DISCLAIMERS, ACKNOWLEDGMENT, ETC

[1] This post is filed under the category "Customs and Traditions." This is a category here on my blog where I write my experiences, note down my insights and post photo essays about customs and traditions I've seen or experienced then I weave them into stories. There is a section below where you can see other related posts from this category.

[2] All maps I used on this post are the works of Eugene Alvin Villar and Mike Gonzalez published on Wikipedia. Source: 1 | 2


[3] All photos are mine.

[4] The insights, conditions and name of places or properties I mentioned here are based on the facts and situation on the day of my visit. Take note that you may have a different experience when you experience or see the Tres de Mayo ramada in Vigan. Names of places and properties may also change by time.

More Stories from #Vigan

Map Showing the Location of #Vigan


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MORE POSTS FROM THIS CATEGORY: *CUSTOMS AND TRADITIONS*

[VIGAN] ► Rakit Race: Bamboos and Balance at Mestizo River

_________________
TEASER▬ The historic Mestizo river is the place to see. For the very first time, I witnessed an event called rakit race.

[VIGAN] ► The Lion Dance and the Culture on the 3rd of May

_________________
TEASER▬ I thought I already know a lot about its history and culture but I realized that the more I discover new things, the more questions leave me hanging.

[VIGAN] ► The Holy Mass for Sto Cristo Milagroso de Vigan

_________________
TEASER▬ This time, it's a team. The image of Sto Cristo Milagroso de Vigan was placed above the middle of a temporary altar that was especially set up for today's use.

[VIGAN] ► How Holy Week is Celebrated in Vigan? (What You Need to Know)

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TEASER▬ ...you can't take away the fact that Good Friday is Vigan's most crowded day and Vigan's religious culture is the phoenix. The minority creeps out in oblivion—its powerlessness revealed.

[VIGAN] ► Unveiling of Christmas Tree, an Annual Bigueño Tradition

_________________
TEASER▬ Our Bigueño culture is so rich that it is not enough to express it in words—we need to express them in festivities and manifest it in our intangible good traditions for other people to understand.

[VIGAN] ► Domingo de Ramos (Palm Sunday) Scenes

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TEASER▬ This is Holy Week up north. This is Vigan, like any other places in the Philippines.

[VIGAN] ► Procession: Observing the Semana Santa in Vigan

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TEASER▬ I hope everyone shall change for the better. It should not just be a tTRADradition but it should be a goal to enrich our spiritual lives.

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Thank you for visiting my travel blog!

EDMAR GUQUIB, Travel Blogger
EDMARATION #TownExplorer



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