ati-atihan in kalibo 2012, part 2

The Ati-atihan Festival lasts for a week. This year, it started on Monday, 9 January 2012 and culminated on Sunday, 16 January 2012. My favorite portion is always Saturday morning, after all the tribes go through the judges' station and then literally flood the streets with color.

ati-atihan in kalibo 2012

Kalibo's Ati-atihan Festival: Often imitated, but never equaled.

But what is it, exactly? Well, first and foremost, it is a pilgrimage. Although Ati-atihan (literally, pretending to be ati, a Negrito ethnic group of Panay Island, hence the blackface make-up) dates back to pre-Hispanic times, when the Holy Roman Catholic Church invaded the Philippines in 1521, the Spanish friars took over our existing feast days and that's how these pagan-Christian festivals came about.

my day

Have I ever mentioned that I have water lilies growing in my bathtub?

inspiring

Before

After

Happy birthday, Hot Tuna!

the other side

A few years ago, I thought about taking up kiteboarding because it looked so cool. But I keep putting it off because it looks like hard work to me. Or is it? My former diving friends are now kiteboarding friends, and they seem to be addicted to it.

When old scuba diving instructors retire, they take up kiteboarding.

Diablo flies a kite.

And away we go!