Fishing: A fun and lucrative activity for Pinoys

With the Philippines consisting of more than 7,000 islands, it is nearly impossible for Filipinos not to know how to fish — or know someone who does. (Pexels Photo)

MANILA — With the Philippines consisting of more than 7,000 islands, it is nearly impossible for Filipinos not to know how to fish — or know someone who does.

Aside from providing Filipinos with their major source of protein and livelihood, fishing is also considered a fun recreation by some.

Carlo Canlas, 20, of Tondo, Manila shared his delightful experience in fishing with his friends.

He learned fishing from his friends in high school, and they usually made their own fishing rods and bought nylon strings and hooks.

“Masaya at sobrang fulfilling kasi totoong pinaghirapan mo yung kakainin mong isda (It’s happy and fulfilling because you caught the fish that you will eat through hard work),” Canlas said of his fishing experience.

He said they prefer to catch “tilapia” from ponds as it is easier to get them there.

“There is another way of fishing we do, wherein we go down the “sapa” (creek or swamp) and find holes,” Canlas said, adding they might try to catch the fish with their bare hands.

And if successful with this method, he said they will clean and cook the fish they caught.

While for Joniel Asas, fishing is a fun learning experience during his childhood in Bicol.

He added that the fishing is one of his hobbies, saying he learned how it works by watching someone who knows how to do it.

“Nung bata pa ako noon kasama mga kaibigan ko nung sa probinsya pa kami nakatira. Sa Bohol noon, dun kami nangingisda. Kinakain lang naming yung nakukuha namin (When I was young, I was with my friends in the province. In Bohol, we learned how to fish. We eat what we catch),” he recalled.

Their usual catch are “bangus” (milkfish), tilapia, and “hito” (catfish).

Darwin Fernandez, 19, a resident of Antipolo City, said he learned fishing from his relatives in Agusan del Norte.

For him, fishing was fun when they were still in the province, especially as it is the source of income for his relatives.

“Sa tingin ko masayang experience ‘yun. Yung mangisda na walang ka pang iniisip, sariling kuha ang kinakain mo,” Jeremiah Monreal, 20, from Manila said as he reminisced how he learned fishing from his relatives in Cavite.

Meanwhile, Alvin Ilustrisimo, a resident of Rodriguez, Rizal, considers fishing a good way to relieve stress.

“Nakaka-relax mangisda eh. Tapos nakakatuwa kasi kung may mahuhuli kang malaking isda (Fishing makes me feel relaxed. You feel happy when you catch a big fish),” the 20-year-old said.