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Cockfight
Cockfights are a local tradition since thousands of years. Pigafetta, the chronicler of Magellan’s expedition, mentioned them in his diary in 1521, and today the cockfight is still the number one pastime of (almost) every Filipino. Every village has its own arena, the so-called cockpit.
Now, for foreigners it’s not everybody’s cup of tea to watch the cocks to be locked in mortal combat, and it happens that in particular the women pale slightly. However, once you will have got accustomed to the incredibly compact atmosphere of a fully packed arena you will encounter a very particular experience, and it might well happen that you, too, will succumb to the omnipresent “betting fever”.
 
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| Fighter cocks are the very best friends of a Filipino. He will raise them carefully, feeding them, bathing them, massaging them, and petting them, in order to make them strong and ready for fight. There is a rumor that, should the house of a Filipino become ablaze, he will first save his precious cocks before he will try to rescue his wife and children. |
