As I stood proudly on the deck of BRP Capones—a spanking new Japanese-made Parola-class patrol vessel belonging to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG)—where we hitched a secure ride going to Tawi-Tawi to cover the Agal-Agal Festival, I quickly surveyed my surroundings. I saw the sacred mountain of Bud Bongao lording it over a picturesque coastal landscape, gently covered by the morning mist.
Yet, I was clearly able to spot the glowing silhouette of the town’s Mosque and the faint outlines of a modest village with fishing boats and passenger ferries that were just starting to stir the day’s activities. And then it finally dawned on me: I had successfully reached the southernmost province of the country. Tawi-Tawi, I have arrived!
Agal-Agal Festival: A Vibrant Celebration of Tawi-Tawi’s Culture
Festive Revelry in Languyan
The Philippines, strictly as an archipelago nation, possesses a deeply diverse set of culture that differs immensely from one region to another. Thus, it came as no surprise to discover a highly fascinating one even here in the Philippines’s southernmost province of Tawi-Tawi.
Agal-Agal is a local term widely used across the Sulu archipelago, which translates directly to seaweed. It deeply represents the massive importance of seaweed cultivation within the flourishing seafood industry reigning heavily in the province of Tawi-Tawi. To most people here, it naturally became a way of life and successfully embodied much of their core culture.
Tawi-Tawi’s culture, intricately adorned with both intrigue and allure, was dynamically showcased through a vibrant street celebration that culminated this year’s Kamarhardikaan sin Tawi-Tawi—a massive celebration of the province’s 44th founding anniversary, which perfectly coincides with the Agal-Agal Festival. It is already amazing enough to have securely traveled here on a regular day, but to travel all this way specifically to witness a cultural festival makes the experience far more outstanding.
This year’s festival impressively took place in the rural town of Languyan. For tourists, the town essentially appeared like it was just founded recently because of all the newly constructed concrete structures placed along heavily unfinished, dusty roads. We later learned that Languyan was once an impoverished fishing town until a major mining company firmly tapped into its natural deposits of nickel ore. The aggressive mining activities brought local residents heavy employment opportunities, which subsequently raised Languyan’s annual income, radically skyrocketing its classification to a first-class municipality.
However, mining activities always come with a harsh price—and heavily at the expense of the natural environment. The very first thing we saw when the PCG’s BRP Capones approached the coast of Languyan was the massive denudation of a green hill fronting the sea, completely stripped down due to the aggressive quarrying operations. One could only fiercely hope that the local government is seriously addressing the situation to properly mitigate the long-term effects of mining in the eco-balance of the region.
Agal-Agal Festival: Celebration of the Sama People
Just when I was stubbornly starting to conclude that most of the Philippine festivals are actively starting to look and feel exactly the same, the Agal-Agal Festival successfully left me with a completely different, refreshing vibe.
Showcasing the incredibly rich Muslim culture of the Sama people—as well as deep traditional influences from the Tausugs, Badjao, and Jama Mapun—a stunning display showed off flamboyant native costumes, skillful playing of upbeat native music, and highly graceful dance performances.
I was particularly impressed by the ensemble of unique dance choreographies. The Sama style of dancing involves highly expressive fingers and pointed long fingernails, paired carefully with sinewy arm movements. It was easily the absolute highlight of the performances originating from the nine municipal contingents representing the province.
On the eventful eve of the Agal-Agal festival’s street parade, a massive show was held directly at the town’s gymnasium, where highly skilled performers from the other municipalities of Tawi-Tawi beautifully showcased various cultural performances. After which, both local residents and visiting tourists feasted joyously on a sumptuous set of local cuisines.
Aside from the highly flamboyant costumes perfectly patterned from traditional designs and strictly made from local materials—such as native rattan, dried seaweeds, seashells, and even actual starfishes used as heavy earrings—the performers also beautifully showed off local dances. This included the igal ma lan and the pangalay, executed flawlessly to the rhythmic beat of the kulintang musical instruments.
The primary gist of the street-dance competition brilliantly depicted the Sama people’s unique way of living and beliefs by theatrically dramatizing the seaweed farming process and native courtships, as well as staving off pagsuran—a local term for demonic or spiritual possession believed to be caused by a sting of a tawti (catfish)—by enthusiastically performing the traditional tawti dance.
This year, exactly nine out of the eleven municipalities of Tawi-Tawi aggressively participated in the highly anticipated street-dancing competition of the Agal-Agal festival, which loudly paraded around the dusty town and triumphantly concluded at the main gym of Languyan. The participating municipalities of Simunul, Sapa-Sapa, and Bongao proudly bagged the top three spots and went home with a cool PHP 1-million cash prize.
A Cure for My Unfounded Notion
While admittedly, strictly prior to my trip to Tawi-Tawi, I held a stubborn, preconceived notion of a southern province marred completely in conflict and consisting of a highly volatile situation. Experiencing the Agal-Agal Festival not only successfully gave me a completely new perspective about the deeply rich culture reigning securely in this province, but I also vividly witnessed the genuine warmth of the people of Tawi-Tawi, saw many stunning untouched islands and pristine beaches, and fundamentally felt an overall sense of well-being that is anything but troubled.
After an almost weeklong trip, I went home heavily armed with a fresh and factual concept of Tawi-Tawi—where allowing fear will only continuously deny you another incredible, off-the-beaten-track location completely worthy of discovery.
This travel article first appeared on the official pages of BusinessMirror on December 10, 2017.
