Watch fishing boats blessed at Festa San Pedro on 29 June
Fishing boats blessed on 29 June
A fixed-date Catholic festival in the Portuguese Settlement at Ujong Pasir, in which the community's fishing boats are decorated and blessed on 29 June. It is free and open, and it sits in a wider Kristang festival calendar.
Why it's unique
The Kristang festival year runs from Intrudu, the water-throwing Sunday before Ash Wednesday, through the Good Friday procession, Festa San Juang on 24 June and Festa San Pedro on 29 June, when the settlement's fishing boats are decorated and blessed. San Pedro is the big one, and it is a working fishermen's rite rather than a re-enactment staged for visitors.
Boat-blessing festivals exist across the Catholic world. This is the only one in Malaysia, and it belongs to the Kristang community specifically, which is why the branyo and malhao danced at it are the same tradition the language belongs to. Turning up means standing on a working waterfront on a fixed date, not buying a ticket.
Before you go
The boats are decorated in the days beforehand, so going on the 27th or 28th gets you the preparation, which is more interesting than the crowd on the day itself.
Intrudu is the one to know about if you are here in February or March. Locals call it pincha agu, and everyone in the settlement, passers-by included, gets drenched. The branyo and malhao dances performed at these festivals are the Kristang music tradition and are worth staying for. The other fixed dates are Festa San Juang on 24 June and the Good Friday procession.