Mountain Province's Lang-ay Festival is now being hailed as the biggest "attraction" come-on of this province every year. Born on the 38th founding anniversary of Mountain Province, the Lang-ay Festival was the brainchild of the present crop of provincial leaders led by Governor Maximo B. Dalog, in a bid to call attention to this province's rich and diverse culture as well as the people's pride for their God-given wonders and gifts.

Lang-ay's birth pains started from conception. When the idea was first broached months back before it was staged last April 3-7,2005, not a few eyebrows were raised as if to say "it would be a miracle just to get it off the ground". So it really was a welcome surprise for the cynics that the Lang-ay did not only proceed as scheduled, but it was also one of the well-attended affairs this province has ever known for quite a long time.

The naysayers were without reason to doubt that the present provincial administration could not pull this off. Governor Dalog and the members of the Association of Provincial Executives (APEX) headed by the Provincial Administrator, Paulo P. Pagteilan wanted an all-encompassing term that would be acceptable to all the constituents in the province. This in itself was already a daunting task as the province is composed of various tribes with their own persuasions. The ten towns of this province are even grouped into three subdivisions.

The six municipalities of Bauko, Besao, Sabangan,Tadian, and Sagada are considered to be "western" towns being situated in the western part of the province. On the other hand, the capital town of Bontoc together with Sadanga is said to comprise the "central municipalities" while Barlig,Natonin, and Paracelis is said to be the "eastern" municipalities. The difficulty was in finding one term that could be acceptable to these three unofficial subdivisions- a generic term that would embody the idea of gaiety agreeable to the people of the eastern, central and western divisions.

During the series of meetings held by the APEX and representatives of the DTI provincial office there came at least four suggestions: First, Pattong Festival; second, Am-among Festival; third, Fayash Festival; fourth, Begnas Festival. Then, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) suggested "Lang-ay" to coincide with the name of the One Town, One Product or the provincial OTOP which is then the Lang-ay wine since October 2004.

Together with the provincial officials, Lang-ay was the closest they could come up with. As it turned out, it was really the best choice whether by design or by chance- the idea of community members visiting their neighbors to partake and share food and drink is exactly the concept needed to break the barriers keeping the three divisions from becoming one whole province.

As defined generically, Lang-ay is to share happiness, promote family solidarity, hospitality, and nurture friendship with a toast of home-brewed wine.

On September 12, 2005, the supportive Sangguniang Panlalawigan headed by Vice-Governor, Benjamin M. Dominguez passed Resolution No. 361- To enact an ordinance institutionalizing "LANG-AY" as an annual cultural festival in Mountain Province.

Finally, Provincial Ordinance No 67, known as the Lang-ay Festival Ordinance, institutionalizing "LANG-AY" as an annual cultural festival in Mountain Province to be part of the celebration of Mountain Province Day was enacted .

The Lang-ay Festival is a week-long event commemorating the anniversary of the province held in Bontoc, the capital town of Mountain Province.

Activities of Lang-ay consist of series of events that shall be planned and coordinated for each year as agreed upon by the working committees.

The Lang-ay as was seen when it was first held ,did not only revitalize our rich culture but made us happy and proud of our diverse culture. Lang-ay too, is a profitable venture especially among our people in business sectors.

To note, funds generated from Lang-ay tickets were used to procure materials for the repair of destroyed facilities at the Bontoc General Hospital such as door knobs, faucets and light bulbs. Convenience outlets were also provided. Broken door glasses and window panes were changed to new ones. New ceiling fans and five television sets were installed thereat.

The improvement of Children's park and the construction of amenities at the Rizal park were also among those funded by Lang-ay.

Moreover, Lang-ay Festival bagged awards in the street dancing parade and the most colorful award category during the WOW Philippines Grand Cordillera Festival held in Baguio City last December 4, 2005.

As highland-inspired festivals go, Lang-ay promises to be the future crowd-drawing tourism event this province can have. Mixing indigenous cultural practices with modern traditions has made Lang-ay a unique showcase of the past and present.

To quote Governor Dalog's remarks regarding Lan-ay- "Lang-ay is ours, it is our pride and identity, the spirit of Lang-ay draws us closer as a united Mountain Province."

Like the first Lang-ay, the staging of the second Lang-ay last April 2-7, 2006 was as successful, drawing more crowd where numerous visitors, domestic and abroad flocked to our very own Mountain Province.

Once again, we are launching the Lang-ay 2007 come April with the theme: Moving Forward: One Community, One Heritage. Our unity and cooperation is once again to be seen and the spirit of Lang-ay sparks again.