Pahiyas means 'precious offering' in Filipino. The festival is the town's way of saying thank you for the harvest. Each family chooses their own way of decorating their house: long strings of yellow corn, baskets of fresh tomatoes, hats woven from rice stalks, garlands of leafy vegetables.
The stars of the show are the kiping. These are wafer-thin pieces of rice paste that have been shaped like leaves and dyed in bright colours - pink, green, orange, purple. They are hung up like flags, swaying in the breeze. After the festival, the kiping can be fried up and eaten as a crispy snack.
All along the parade route, judges walk slowly, looking at each house and giving it a score. The most beautifully decorated house wins a prize at the end of the day. Families have been preparing for weeks, sometimes months - this is their one big day to show off.
Visitors come from all over the Philippines to walk the streets of Lucban during Pahiyas. They eat local food, watch dancers and marching bands, and take photos in front of every decorated house. By the next morning, the kiping comes down, the vegetables go back to the kitchen, and the town goes back to its quiet life - until next May.