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Sunday, February 24

2013 Panagbenga Street Parade

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Colorful costumes and props adorned this year's Panagbenga Street Parade.


Fun is over the weekend when the awaited Panagbenga Street Parade started earlier. A number of expected and unexpected street dance numbers were performed and thousands and thousands of flowers adorned the performer’s props and costumes. There were a lot of tourists who witnessed the parade and most of them, as I saw them, enjoyed the 2013 event.

Street Dance Parade. You can turn on HD settings.

Panagbenga 2013 Series: Street Parade

University of Luzon marching band
The street parade was less speculated compared the grand float parade which usually happens on the last Sunday of February—but wait, did I just say “less”? Oh I guess I’m wrong because there was an army of visitors who came to this town to celebrate with us in this year’s flower festival! Hundreds of thousands came over to Baguio to see how we celebrate Panagbenga Festival.

Street parade was like the opening day, there are drum-and-lyre performances and of course street dances. Only that more dance numbers were shown this time and most of them were enjoyable. The locals of Cordillera, collectively known as “Igorots” showed their intact culture by performing G-string local dances which jive to the beats of the gongs. Somehow I noticed when the Koreans performed too, the way they dance is similar to how Cordillerans dance too—in tune of the beats of drums and gongs. Unlike dances which were influenced by colonizers, their dances don’t have musical melody at all. It’s because it’s the dance that counts, not the song, which shows the body sway and movements and what it mimics culturally.
Koreans presented their own cultural dance.
Entries for the Let A Thousand Flowers Bloom painting activity.
Drum-and-lyre winning group (elementary division)
  

The winners of drum-and-lyre competition on the opening day performed again. Some marching bands and cultural groups like those of University of Luzon and Saint Louis University also showcased their talents. This time, Kalinga, a northern Cordillera province, joined this year’s street dance parade by showcase of their cultural dance. All the dances were fun and Panagbenga Festival only shows that it is one of the highlight festivals in the Philippines.

The show started before 9 AM (I was expecting this to start by 7AM). As early as 5 AM there were already a lot of tourists who secured their spaces alongside Session Road. Unlucky me, I was not able to wake up early so the result, I was not in an ideal slot where I can see a good view of the performances. Thanks to that optical zoom, I was still able to take pictures somehow up-close.



People of the Cordillera present their own cultural performances during the street dance parade.

The wooden kart, or bike, of the people of Kalinga.
 The street parade only lasted for almost two hours but it was totally fun. I can’t describe how the people smile and laugh when a kid dancer who is a little boy gives the best of his “kembot”. Haha. Besides we were lucky to be seen on TV! Hehehe.

Well, if you still happen not to see any street parade, I guess it’s time for you to visit 2014 Panagbenga Festival in Baguio. The 2013 street parade just told us how alive Cordillera culture was. And not only that, the dances, the people and the place—they’re lovely. Panagbenga 2013—amazing!



Andrei Felix of Umagang Kay Ganda (ABS-CBN)


Miss Benguet

Mayor Mauricio Domigan of Baguio City

See how many tourists attended the event! Unfortunately most of these tourists didn't know how to manage their trash and littered our beautiful city.

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