In commemoration of the Galleon Trade from 1565 to 1815, the National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) spearheaded the first International Dia del Galeon Festival together with the Baler 400 Steering Committee headed by Senator Edgardo J. Angara and festival director Cecile Guidote-Alvarez.
The festival kicked-off with the arrival of Galleon Andalucia, a replica of the 17th century galleon which traded between Spain, America and Asia for almost three centuries.
Galleon Andalucia is a 51-meter long vessel built by the Fundacion Nao Victoria in Spain. It has six decks and can accommodate 100 persons at a time.
My J and I were so lucky to be on the first batch of viewers. We arrived two hours before the scheduled viewing time, took the registration (we were on the sixth and seventh spot on the queue), looked around the trade hall and listened to a short introduction about galleon by Professor Malonzo.
Professor Malonzo told us that a galleon is a war ship, cargo ship and passenger ship rolled into one.
Here are photos of the majestic Galleon Andalucia. By the way, the ship is guarded by friendly Spanish personnel. They greet passengers and are even game to have photos taken with them.
For more information about the Dia de Galeon Festival, click here.
Friendly reminders if you’re planning to see the ship:
(1) Arrive at least an hour before the opening time so you can register right away. When we left the premises, we saw large groups of students coming for a visit. If you arrive late, you will have to wait in the queue.
(2) Be sure to register and get a sticker. This will serve as your entrance ticket to the ship. No sticker, no entry. That’s a strict policy.
(3) Wear comfortable shoes/sandals since you will have to walk from the registration hall to the ship. If possible, bring an umbrella for sun protection. A bottle of drinking water will be valuable as well.
Be part of this historic event! Enjoy!
6 comments:
i love the pictures you took.. so pretty <3 very vibrant !
you make the toilet look good =D lol
thanks for sharing !
awesome pictures! i wanna go too. thanks for sharing:)
The ship is beautiful....I would love to sail about in such a gorgeous ship ^^
Hello! Thanks for liking the photos. :)
It was my first time to see a galleon and it was really huge.
i went on the last day of viewing, and i bet i wasn't the only one who can attest to the ineptitude and stupidity of the organizers. for one, i had to stand in line for 8 hours -- yes, 8 freaking hours! -- just to see galeon andalucia. during that time, i've been subjected to stampedes and rowdy crowds, thanks in large part to a non-existent crowd control system. second, all of us regular visitors had to be under the scorching noontime sun followed by heavy rains, and once it was over, dun pa lang nilabas ng staff ng port area ang silong. third, there is virtually zero system to keep everything in check. and then when it came to view the ship -- 8 freaking hours later without food or water and all sweaty -- we were gladly informed na di na pwedeng umakyat ng ship, and that we had to be content taking pictures na lang for 5 minutes sa concrete ground sa pier 13. super effin stupid ang event na ito. i wasted a whole day, from 7 am to 5 pm, for nothing. seriously, whoever is in charge of this event should be jailed, and NCCA should never be entrusted with event-organizing because obviously it lacks decent brainpower to execute such a simple task. heck, even the queues at Pulp Summer Slam are way better than the hell i've been subjected to just to view this galeon.
Oh I'm so sorry to hear that.. =c We went there on the first day and we were on the first batch. We didn't experience such aside from the fact that we had to walk from the hall to the galleon under the heat of the sun. Well I presume that was the first time NCCA hosted the event but yes, that is not an exemption for not having a reliable crowd control system.
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