Forget H1N1, Filipinos revel in pork at annual festival Posted: 19 May 2009 1744 hrs
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Manila, Philippines: While there may be some who would keep as from swine and pork, in the Philippines they love their pork so much they make a feast and fete of the meat.
La Loma, a district in Manila is considered the best place to buy roast pigs, and in June an unusual festival gives new meaning to dressing up pork.
There will be no mutton dressed up as lamb, thank you very much. Just whole roasts that would give Porky Pig and Miss Piggy a good run in smart dressing up.
Think suits, bridal gowns, biker threads, hula skirts, curly wigs, sunglasses, you name it - the La Loma porker has it.
Lechon draws on the Hispanic past of the Philippines and originates from the Spanish term meaning roasted suckling pig.
It is a traditional dish cooked during festivals (or fiestas), the holiday season, and other special occasions.
The lechon is for Filipinos, a dish that brings the community together. And that's taken to new heights once a year in the La Loma festival which in no way shows any disrepect to food or tradition.
In fact, it's the very opposite.
The La Loma festival of roasted pigs on parade isn't a chance for Filipinos to be playing with their food - -the real reason the roast gets its toast is to honour St. John the Baptist.
The connection between St. John and roasts isn't quite clear, but then, the predominantly Catholic Philippines is renowned for unusual holy feasts, so the parade of succulent roast pigs in celebration of St. John the Baptist only seems natural.
With pig-roasting a town tradition, the festival dawns with the sizzle and scent of hundreds of skewered suckling pigs roasting over hot coals along street kitchens.
Basted with their juices and water, the pig is roasted till the skin turns golden brown with a smooth crackling that is trademark lechon.
Once ready, the pork pieces are decorated and dressed up in costumes.
It's an unusual line-up that stands outside a 300-year-old church in the district, waiting till the end of the Catholic mass, which signals the start of the fun.
The air is filled with drumbeats, as pigs in their festival best begin their bizaare procession through the La Loma district of Manila.
The pigs are then carved up and the meat distributed to the crowds of tourists and locals who line the streets for the funny, yet colourful annual parade.
The best part - there is no dress code for lechon-feasting, which is best savoured with sauce, plum sauce or vinegar.
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