GenSan’s Tuna Floats Now and the Floats of the 60s

Bariles Republic was amazed at the entries to the recent Tuna Float Contest held during the culmination of the 10th Tuna Festival last September 5th, 2008.  Companies from the fishing, academic, private sectors tried to outdo each other in terms of coming up with the float that best represents their take on the festival theme which was: A Decade of FISHtivities and OpporTUNAties.

Here then are the non-winning but equally notable entries.  You may click on each image for a larger view.

But did you know that Float Parades in GenSan did not only occur during the onset of the Tuna Festival? During the 60s and up to the 70s each Civic Military Parade also comes with FLOATS courtesy of a civic organization, a school or just about anybody.

Here are two samples from the BAUL of my late mother.

This float with a paper-mache lion up front belongs to the Mt. Matutum Lions Club with seven lovely Lionesses (wives of Lions) in their yellow gowns. My mother is the one directly behind the man trying to raise the banderitas strung up across the streets. (Click on this photo to enlarge it.)

The Lioness at the center is the prettiest,  Tita Elsie Golingan. The rest of the ladies I recognize are Mrs. Chayong Enojado (SLN, owner of Matutum Hotel), Tita Rose Malayang, and Tita Sonia Yumang, (SLN, wife of then City Engineer).

This float belongs to what was then the Notre Dame of Dadiangas Girls Department in Beatiles Street, now known as Notre Dame of Gen. Santos City (in Barangay San Isidro). Click on this photo to enlarge it.

This was taken in 1969 when I was in Kindergarten. I should know because that’s me, the little Bariles in Barong Tagalog up there as consort of the Princess, the late Marilou Onorio, one of the many times we were paired in events like this one.

One of the other girls in front of the float (extreme left), a mestiza wearing her Damean uniform is Councilor Meggie Santos, who was then in Grade 1. Now you already know our ages!!!! 🙂

The building at the back is the old structure presently still standing beside Sarangani Rural Bank along the junction of Pioneer Avenue and Morrow Boulevard (now Pedro Acharon Boulevard).  Check out how it looks now in this picture below.

The old buidling beside MLhuillier as it looks now with its rusty roof.

Amazing lessons in history, right?  Who could have owned that building then and who owns it now?

More HISTORY LESSONS like this coming up, only here at BARILES REPUBLIC’S GenSan News Online Mag.

If you like this post, why don’t you just subscribe to this blog then?