Balsa Festival A Floating Cultural Showcase Like No Other

A Balsa (raft) is a flatform float made of timber or other buoyant materials like bamboo or banana trunk commonly used by people living in coastal areas or riverbanks in the olden times.

It is propelled by using a long bamboo pole that reaches down to the sandy sea floor or muddy river bottom. Since boats are faster and easier to navigate, rafts were soon relegated to the country’s backwaters.

In Matabungkay, a picturesque coastal village in the town of Lian located at the west coast of Batangas, fisherman used the bamboo balsa was used by fisherman since time immemorial to ferry them to their fishing boats moored out in the bay, and back to the shore due to its shallow coastal waters.

Now, excursionist back in business to serve as a floating mini hut rents the balsa. Designed like a small floating bahay kubo with thatched roof, it has a changing room, a table, and a bamboo lounge chairs for those who just want to relax and get away from the madding crowd.

Chinese traders who founded Lian in 1768 could have chosen to land in what is now Matabungkay due to its wide, arching two-kilometer long coastline. If they had arrived in the flowery month of May, the coast was ablaze with bright red-orange blossoms of countless caballero trees (also known as arbol de fuego or “tree of fire”) that carpeted this coastal area during that period.

Matabungkay, one of Lian’s 19 barangays, has a fabled beach, which was the most popular weekend destination among city folks during the 1970’s. Out-of-towner litterbugs, however, soon tarnished its beautiful beige beach. As a result, the more discrimination tourist shied away from the place in the late 1980’s.Then came the coup de grace in the form of the economic meltdown in the region in mid 1997.

Instead of being a bane, it became a boon to Matabungkay’s dying backyard tourism industry. To some degree, the regional economic crisis adversely affected the free spending lifestyle of weekenders with disposable income. With learner pocketbooks, they soon decided to find out if matabungkay, which has since been cleared up, was worth revisiting.

Aside from its affordability, going to Matabungkay, which is 112 kilometers south of Manila, is just as fun and as exciting as flying (or cruising) to the more expensive resort towns outside Luzon.
Tourism has always been regarded as a major contributor to Batangas’ economy with its many pristine beaches and world class resort hotels like the 24-year old Matabungkay Beach Resort & Hotel (MBRH).

“Matabungkay had been out for some time and (it needed) exposure to bring back on its feet again when we conceptualized the first Balsa Festival in mid-May 2002,” explains Charlie Leviste, MBRH vice president for operations. “We thought of having this unique fluvial festival not only to honor the balsa that was a vital component in the local fishing industry in the olden days, but also to attract visitors and put Matabungkay on the tourism map again.”

This year, the Matabungkay Beach Resort & Hotel will host again, as it did before, the third Balsa Festival on May 7 to 8, 2004. This year’s celebration will be bigger, more colorful and have lots of fun-filled activities.

A motorcade of music and dance will signal the start of the celebration on May 7. A one-of-its kind balsa race, balsa décor competition, and a colorful cultural dance competition will be the highlights of the two-day fair.

“Through the balsa festival we aim to help the community by bringing back the town’s popularity,” reiterates Charley. “With the continued support of the Department of Tourism (DOT), this annual event will surely be a means for both local and foreign tourist to come here and experience a different kind of celebration.”

To further liven up the event, a concert and dance party featuring Manila-based bands will be held on both the eve and the night of the festival. Adding color to the fiesta are millions of blazing caballero blooms that serve as natural buntings hemming in the narrow asphalt road leading to the famed resort village.

“We hope that the balsa festival will continue to serve as a catalyst in attracting more visitors to Matabungkay just like in the good old days,” says the youthful hotel executive. “This is especially true now, since Western Batangas has one of the most beautifully preserved marine environments in the country,” concludes Charley. “You can even see sea horses in its shallow waters, and manta rays near Fortune Island some 10 kilometers away.”

A Scandinavian hotel executive, who used to live in the area once told Lian’s former mayor, “You have an uncut diamond in your midst. All you have to do is cut and polish it to make it sparkle.” Now, Matabungkay is beginning to glimmer once more.

Randy V. Urlanda, May 2,2004, Philippine Panarama Manila Bulletin

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