lagawan.info

The 37th Iloilo Paraw Regatta, an annual race of colorful native sailboats in the strait between Iloilo City and Guimaras Island every third weekend of February, is now sailing for bigger festivities.

City Tourism Officer Ben Jimena said this year’s theme “Sailing the High Seas, Mooring for More” showed the attempt of Paraw Regatta to get out of its comfort zone – to try the uncharted route out of the routine – and at the same time to gear up for change.

“Connecting this to the sailboat, it could be interpreted as making the paraw ready for bigger challenges in a dynamic environment, keeping its outriggers strong to fend the big waves, the sails sturdy to dance with the wind, and the hulls solid to counter the under current,” Jimena said.

Iloilo Paraw Regatta Foundation (IPRF) Chairman Manny Villa said Paraw Regatta has been facing the challenges for the past 37 years since 1972 while it was first launched in 1973.

The sailing contest has been touted to be the oldest and largest of its kind in the Philippines as well as in Asia.

Called “paraw” in the local dialect, the native outriggers survived the centuries and became a vital part of the Ilonggo seafaring life.

The paraw race yearly draws thousands of spectators to the beach lines of the 36.5 kilometer route from Tatoy’s Manokan to Fort San Pedro in the city all the way to Sto. Rosario in Buenavista, Puting Balas straight to Morobuan in Jordan, Guimaras and back to the finish line at Villa Beach.

Paraw Regatta aims to bring back the old glory of Villa Beach in Arevalo district, protect marine resources and provide nautical scholarships to poor but deserving children of seafarer-participants.

Villa Beach is popularly known among tourists with the array of seafood restaurants offering by-the-sea fine dining ambience.

But informal settlers, who have sprouted like mushrooms in the area through time, have changed the scenery of what once was the city’s top tourism attraction.

Included in the Department of Tourism Region 6 (DOT-6) Calendar, the annual sailboat race aims to help develop local tourism industry and showcase the paraw as a legacy from the earliest period of Ilonggo history.

The city and provincial local government units and DOT-6 have been supporting the sailing competition that boosted the skills of local seafarers.

The first Paraw Regatta was organized by DOT-6, city government, municipalities of Oton, Iloilo, Jordan and Buenavista in Guimaras;

Philippine Coast Guard, Negros Navigation, the late Antonio de Oteyza, Iloilo Boat Club, Panay Amateur Radio Club, Iloilo Jaycees, Anhawan Beach Resort and a host of others.

The IPRF has since then generated more sponsors for the successful staging of sail fest. (PNA)

Photo courtesy of Marie Tess