Article contributed by Karen Opeña
Every 2nd week of January, the busy streets of San Pablo turns out into a colorful and festive showground where in locals, tourist from the neighboring towns and even foreigners gather to see and experience the vibrant annual feast in San Pablo Laguna, the Coconut Festival.
Held to celebrate the City fiesta, the coconut festival is a weeklong celebration in honor of the patron saint, Paul the Hermit. The celebration started in 1996, which aim to promote the city and its main produce, the coconut.
The highlight of the event, the Mardi gras is usually participated by students and exceptional groups with alluring garbs made from parts of coconut tree while dancing with an upbeat music.
The festival also earned citation from the Association of tourism Officers of the Philippines (ATOP) and the Department of Tourism (DOT) as the best tourism Event for Festival Category City Level for Calendar Year 2010-2011- (PIA) which placed San Pablo City, a tourist destination.
Photo Credits: http://www.flickr.com/photos/33460873@N05/5354088989/
http://likhafilipino.blogspot.com/2011/08/coco-festival.html
