MANILA – Thousands of people have started flocking to the graves of their departed loved ones in Catholic-majority Philippines, breathing life into cemeteries, which Filipinos could not visit during All Saints’ Day in the past two years due to pandemic lockdowns.

Families started pouring into graveyards as early as Monday, a day before the country usually marks the ancient Christian tradition of visiting the dead.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr made Monday a holiday in addition to All Saints’ Day on Tuesday to give the public more time to observe what the locals call Undas – a play on the Spanish word for honour or “ondras”.

Before the pandemic, Filipinos usually mixed this religious tradition with their penchant for festivity. Families reunited at the tombs of the dead, where they held feasts and played games throughout the night.

There was none of that this time.

Cemeteries are open only until late afternoon. Loud music, card games and cigarettes are prohibited. Unvaccinated individuals and most minors are not allowed inside.

But these rules did not stop Filipinos from honouring the dead, a custom they could not do in-person the past two years because the government temporarily closed cemeteries during this period to prevent potential superspreader events.

More than two years into the Covid-19 crisis, life is slowly getting back to normal.

Mask-wearing is now optional in most public places. More than 73.48 million out of the 109 million population have received their Covid-19 jabs.

In the Manila North Cemetery in the capital, close to 275,000 people have already visited as at Tuesday.

They braved the rain still being caused by tropical storm Nalgae, which has killed at least 112 people.

They helped revive the seasonal livelihood for the thousands of slum-dwellers who clean graves and sell candles inside the 54ha cemetery.

There was a flurry of activity outside the cemetery, as vendors called out to customers to buy their flowers or street food.

The family of Mr Aldwin Muyon, 22, travelled from Marilao town in Bulacan, a province some 21km away from Manila. They sat on their dead relatives’ tombs as they ate grilled meat and rice noodles.

“I really wanted to be here because we don’t get to visit my late father that much.... Last year, I only lit a candle and prayed for him at home,” said Mr Muyon.

The crowd was a welcome sight for candle vendor Editha Parian. She is among Manila’s poorest residents who have been living in abandoned mausoleums.

Ms Parian earns a living by “recycling” the melted wax that neighbourhood children would collect from around the cemetery. She reheats and moulds the wax into candles, which she then sells for between 50 pesos to 70 pesos (S$1.20 to S$1.70) per set.

“This is such a big help for us. All Saints’ Day is the only time we get to earn 1,000 pesos to 3,000 pesos a day. When the pandemic happened, we were lucky if we earned 100 pesos,” Ms Parian said.

Some visitors also seized the opportunity to clean their relatives’ graves.

Ms Marianita Gumangan, 62, watched as her son-in-law put a fresh coat of paint on the grave marker of her late husband, who was laid to rest in one of the cemetery’s “apartment-style” tombs, placed on top of one another for a cheaper price.

Ms Gumangan said nothing beats lighting a candle for him directly inside the cemetery.

“I don’t want to forget him,” said Ms Gumangan, tears welling up in her eyes. “This is my chance to still be with him”.