Surely, you will with Panagbenga Festival!
Panagbenga Festival is an annual festival event celebrated in the mountain city also known as the Summer Capital of The Philippines and the City of Pines, Baguio City. It is a festival known for its elaborate flower parades and festive street dancing and other FUN activities that draws thousands of tourists to the city of Pines.
Panagbenga came from the native Cordilleran dialect which means " a season of blossoming". It is an event that pays tribute to the city's flowers and flower industry and as a way to celebrate Baguio's rise from the devastation it sustained from the 1990 earthquake.
Panagbenga is a month long celebration that begins on February 1st until the first week of March. The main attractions include the Opening Float Parade, Fluvial Parade, Grand Street Parade, Grand Float Parade and Session in Bloom. The Grand Float and Street Parade are events usually slated on the last weekends of February. The Grand Float Parade is the event wherein different floats of different sizes, shapes and designs are decorated beautifully and elaborately with countless flowers, whereas the Grand Street Parade is the event where different schools, business establishments and guests from all over the country dressed in different costumes display their dancing skills and other technical abilities for the delight of the crowd. After the two events, the famous Session Road is closed for traffic and the road space is used by different business establishments to set up their stalls for selling stuffs: handicrafts, native delicacies, foods of different cuisine and others.
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| Float Parade |
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| Session in Bloom |
Tips to remember:
- Reserve in advance! As the event draws a lot of tourist, its essential to choose a hotel and reserve at least a couple of weeks before the main events.
- If you want to watch the parade where the usual route is atop Session Road to the Athletic Bowl, BE EARLY! People usually line up the streets as early as 4am and the parade starts at around 8-9am.
- Have your legs prepared for walking. Have a comfortable pair of shoes and a comfortable outfit. Expect foot traffic!
- Don't bring your car! Youll just end up in traffic!
- Eat your breakfast as the parade may take long depending on the number of entries and also the long walks, you need that energy!
- Charge up your camera batteries or bring spare, you don't want to miss all the picturesque almost perfect moments!
So, what are you waiting for, want a breath of fresh flowery pine-y air? Come and enjoy the FUN in Baguio City, and experience a thousand flowers bloom in Panagbenga Festival!
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For the 2012 Panagbenga Schedule
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| Photo Courtesy of Panagbenga.ph |
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