Isabela’s dancing scarecrows…and more
By Bernard L. Supetran (Business Mirror) - February 18, 2018
Dubbed the “Queen Province of the North,” Isabela is regarded as the country’s agriculture powerhouse being the biggest producer of corn, the second-largest producer of rice and a host of other major crops. Sandwiched by the Sierra Madre and Cordillera mountain ranges, it boasts of vast fertile plantations as far as your eyes can see.
In the middle of these sprawling farms are the ubiquitous scarecrows or straw human effigies, the old-fashioned figures used to keep birds away from feasting on the crops to ensure a bumper harvest.
So, when Isabela decided to throw a party to celebrate its bountiful yield, it can be no other than a tribute to its unlikely hero, which has been quietly helping them since for ages—the scarecrow, known locally as “bambanti.”
Thus, in 1997, the provincial government under then-Gov. Benjamin Dy formally introduced the Bambanti Festival to pay tribute to the farm icon through a colorful and well-choreographed parade of contingents from the towns mimicking the animated dance of the scarecrow if he is to come to life.
But what makes this festivity unique is the massive parade of some 1,000 dancers around the Isabela Sports Complex in a spectacular multimedia production putting the spotlight on the role of the tell-tale bambanti. A fusion of synchronized dance, and an opera- and ballet-type musical purposely-written for the event, the show could be easily compared to an opening number to the Olympic Games.
Coupled with cartoon animation, techno-pop music, and capped by a pyrotechnics display makes the show a cut above the rest, enough to make it a perennial winner in the Aliwan Fiesta competitions.
Held originally in May to coincide with the provincial founding day, it was moved to the fourth week of January a few years back to time it with the harvest season.
Adding spice to the festival is the agri-ecotourism exhibit at the Bambanti Village at the Provincial Capitol Grounds in Ilagan City, which showcased a giant scarecrow, tourist spots, farm produce, handicraft, native delicacies, processed food and souvenir items from Isabela’s various towns and cities.
The municipalities of Naguilian and Burgos topped the agri-ecotourism booth and giant bambanticontest, besting some 30 entries.
A make-shift purpose-built theme park, which overlooks the recreational lagoon of Queen Isabela Park, the Village was abuzz with food samplings, shopping galore and the Makan ken Mainum Culinary Competition, where the locals brought their best food forward, dominated by goat meat, which is an Isabelino staple.
Another interesting fringe event of the weeklong fest is the choral competition, which pitted the various vocal groups in a grand auditory feast featuring the best musical instrument—the human voice.
After the dust of the tightly fought contests has settled, the City of Cauayan emerged overall winners in the festivity with their Gawagaway-yan Festival, which is based on the city’s humble beginnings as a vast bamboo plantation.
But with the feast for the senses the Bambanti offered, every political leader, participant and spectator went home a winner with the great show of unity displayed in the conduct of the festival.
According to Gov. Faustino G. Dy III, this year’s fete is special because of the string of awards earned by the province in 2017, most notably the Gawad Kalasag where Isabela was adjudged the Best Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council and was elevated to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council’s elite Hall of Fame.
He said that the province is also recipient of a wide array of awards from various national government and private bodies recognizing Isabela’s excellence in good governance, cooperative development, agro-industry, business-friendliness, education, entrepreneurship and revenue collection, among others.
Dy added that the Bambanti serves as an invitation to explore Isabela’s diverse attractions, which are largely uncharted in the archipelago’s tourism map.
With the lush biodiversity of the Sierra Madre mountain ranges, a 113-kilometer stretch of the Pacific Ocean, and everything in between—Spanish-era churches and ancestral homes, adventure parks, a food bowl which never runs empty and a warm people—Isabela is a tourism frontier worth discovering.
And by the way, their official mascot, Bambanti the Scarecrow, will welcome you with open arms.
Getting There: The province can be reached by bus or private vehicles via the Cagayan Valley Road, which is part of the Maharlika Highway system. The southern towns can be reached by air via Cauayan, while the southern towns can be accessed via Tuguegarao.
