Tuna Festival in General Santos City
Tuna festival, is an outstanding festival in the city of General Santos City, on account of the abundance of tuna fish. The town has water bodies around it where the yellow blade fish and other breeds of fish thrive. The city is known for its fish supply and source; making it the perfect host for Tuna festival. The colorful weeklong festival is celebrated during the first week of September and is purposed to develop the fish industry in the Philippines.
The festival is a celebration of everything fish; the perfect place to go when you need to appreciate fish dishes. The holiday involves fish dish cooking challenge where you will find cooked fish delicacies. There is also a display of fiery exhibitions. Where local people entertain visitors with their unique way of life. The festival is the best place to go if you want to learn about the diverse fish quality in the city. You will also be able to interact with the local people of Santos city and learn about their unique and varied ways of life. It is also very colorful involves fun events with a thematic showcase of aquatic color and products.
History of Tuna Festival
The tuna festival began due to the fish abundance in the city back in 1988. The General Santos City Tourism Association(GSCTA)-a constitution of hotels, resorts restaurants, and travel agencies staged the festival to promote its marine natural resources. The GSSCTA showcased tuna cuisine through fish-cooking competitions which were meant to be a significant part of the festival among other activities labeled “Tuna Revolution.” The mayor thought that the theme could be the basis of an annual festival: thus the colorful Tuna festival was born as a yearly tradition.
There was also a street dancing parade and float parades as the main interests during the onset of the festival. Over time as the years continued, there were shows incorporated as part of the festivities. The celebration made tuna a prevalent dish not only in the Philippines but also worldwide.
What happens during the Tuna Festival?
The event primarily celebrates the fish cuisine and is purposed to promote its marine resources. Some of the activities you would not fail to see include:
Tuna float parade
The tuna float parade is one of the major highlights of the Tuna festival where locals showcase the city with catchy colorful ocean-themed floats.
Sugbahansa Dalan
In this event, people set up grill stalls along the streets of the city where people grill a lot of fish. These delicacies are free for locals and visitors to the festival.
Dragon boat race
This event involves competition of different water sports. It includes various boat race, skimboarding, motorboats, and jet skis challenge
Parada sa dagat
Parada sa dagat is a vibrant street dancing competition.
Other events to be expected at the tuna festival include Grand fish Fest Sa Fish Port, Mr. and Ms. Tourism pageant, Gabi ng Mandaragat, and the tuna man triathlon.
Come to Tuna festival in 2020 and enjoy these events of the Tuna festivals while beholding colorful themes as well the diverse way of life of the locals of General Santos.
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