CATBALOGAN CITY, August 10 (PIA) -- The Provincial Government of Samar adapted a non-traditional way of celebrating Panurundon: Samar Day 2020.

With the COVID-19 pandemic, the province opted to use online platforms for the different activities.

Mr. Michael Cristobal, designated provincial information officer said, "This year, we limited our activities that may engage a big crowd, that is why we utilized online platforms. We are encouraging everyone to stay at home, and watch online."

For this year's celebration, online competitions include Facemask Design, Digital Poster-Making, Online Singing for Kids and Adults, TikTok Dance Challenge, and Spark Samar Vlogging.

For the vloggging contest, the vlog will revolve on the Secret Kitchens of Samar, which was supposed to be launched by the Provincial Tourism Office last March, had it not for the pandemic.

"Supposedly, the core project for Tourism this year is the Secret Kitchens of Samar. We had to postpone the launching because of the pandemic," Mr. Cristobal said.

The Secret Kitchens of Samar features the heirloom recipes of Samarnons that are kept by families for generations and hardly shared to anybody outside their family. It is the aim of the Spark Samar Campaign to share the food of Samar and at the same time protect these heirloom recipes and establish ownership.

"We want to sustain the Secret Kitchens of Samar, that is why we incorporated it in our vlogging competition. This is our food brand and our next goal is for Samar to become the next food destination," Cristobal shared.

For the past years, Samar Day was a grand celebration with the Samarnons anticipating the different activities.

Among the activities usually held were the Tandaya Festival, Festivals of Festivals which is a competition of festivals of the different Samar municipalities, showcasing their talents through a dance showdown. The winner of which will compete at the different festivals outside the province.

Mutya ng Samar was also one of the highlights of the festivities where the beautiful ladies of Samar compete for the crown and title of Mutya ng Samar. The winners are supposed to pursue their advocacies and promote the sustainable tourism campaign of Spark Samar.

"We are not cancelling the Mutya ng Samar competition, but we postponed it to December hoping that the situation will be better by then. We do not want to draw crowd, hence, the decision to postpone," Cristobal said.

"In December, we will be having our annual Light a Tree month-long celebration and all the rest of the activities we are supposed to have during Samar Day," Cristobal added.

Samar Day is celebrated every 11th of the Month to commemorate the day when Queen Isabel of Spain signed the Royal Decree separating Samar from the Province of Leyte and establishing it as a separate province. (LDL/GMT/PIA-Samar)