Preparation for Bacolaodiat 2020 starts

By: Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD City – Preparation for Bacolod City’s celebration of the Chinese New Year, Bacolaodiat Festival, to welcome the Year of the Rat on Jan 31- Feb 2, 2020 has started.

A press statement from the organizers said that 2020 will be the Year of the Rat and will highlight the metal rat which is believed to possess positive, confident, and adaptive characteristics.

Bacolaodiat Festival Chair Oddette Ong Gomez said, “For the first time since Bacolaodiat Festival started in 2006, the members of the Bacolaodiat Inc. decided to hold the highlights of the festival a week after the Chinese New Year’s Day on January 25.”

The three-day celebration will start with a Dazzling Grand Motorcade and Parade—a parade of Tsinoys in their Chinese-inspired costumes, city officials, students of Chinese schools, and the nightly fireworks display accompanied by official Bacolaodiat music in a Symphony of Lights and Sparks.

It will also feature the Bacolaodiat Imperial Village which will showcase the Asian arts and crafts such as calligraphy, wishing tree, and palm reading, among others. And the Chopsticks Alley will offer Chinese food and cooking demos.

Now on its 15th year—crystal year—the festival embarks on new offerings.

“This is still within the 14-day Chinese Spring Festival and is one of the several Lunar New Years in Asia,” Gomez added.

January 25 is the annual welcoming of the Chinese New Year but the festivities will be on January 31-February 2.

There will also be two festival sites: The North Capitol Road at the Tourism Strip in Lacson and Bacolod Government Center.

Bacolaodiat comes from “Baco” for Bacolod and “Lao Diat,” Fookien word for celebration.

Meanwhile, the applications for the Bacolaodiat Festival Asian food stalls, Chopsticks Alley, and kiosks for inasalan are now open.

The Chopsticks Alley at the North Capitol Road will be for Chinese tenants and non-Chinese tenants will be located at some parts of Lacson Street. The inasalan will be at the Bacolod Government Center and parts of Lacson Street also.

Rental rates for the 3-day festival are P5,000 for Chinese tenants while P6,000 for non-Chinese and inasalan.

Each tenant will be provided an 8×8 tent with 1 CFL light and 1 electrical outlet for power supply.

Booth reservations will only be honoured upon payment of booths. Deadline will be on December 28, 2019.

The 15th Bacolaodiat Festival, set January 31 to February 2, 2020, is calling all interested dance groups with a minimum of 25 members for an audition or screening on December 7, 2019 at the Yong Tho Taoist Temple for the Bacolaodiat Festival Lantern Street Dance Competition.

Dance groups may come from private and public schools, barangays, cities and municipalities in the province or a combination.

A total of eight groups will participate in the competition.

Out of all the auditionees, only five groups will be selected.

The 2019 top three finishers have guaranteed spots and need not audition.

Registration forms are now available at the Bacolaodiat office.