Panagbenga flower fest returns to summer capital

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — The Panagbenga Festival, or the Baguio Flower Festival, is back with a vengeance, as thousands of revelers from all over the country’s northern provinces, and even as far as Mindanao, flocked to the summer capital and joined the street dancing parade yesterday.

With this year’s “A Time of Blossoming” celebration that carried the theme “Renaissance of Wonder and Beauty,” revelers – visitors and local residents alike – excitedly watched flower-clad and Cordillera traditional costume-dressed street dancers sway to the beat of bronze gongs and drums.

As early as Friday night until the wee hours yesterday,

revelers started occupying spaces along Session Road leading to Burnham Park, making sure they had a clear sight of the parade – a scenario last seen during the festivities in 2019.

The annual month-long celebration was canceled in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Baguio City government also canceled the festival in 2021 as the virus infection was still high.

In February last year, the local government decided to push through with the festival, but toned down the celebrations, cancelling the street dancing and flower float parades, the two major crowd-drawing events.

Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong said the influx of revelers exceeded their expectations, as revelers have poured into the city since it was a “no-holds-barred” celebration after the pandemic.

Quoting the Baguio Flower Festival Foundation Inc. (BFFI)’s estimate of a 20-percent rise of revelers participating in various events of the festival post-pandemic, the local government is challenged to level up the month-long festival all the more in the coming years, according to Magalong.

“We are looking at more improvements in the coming years,” he said.

Four entries competed in the drum and lyre category, where elementary pupils from three public schools in Baguio City and one from the neighboring municipality of Tuba, Benguet delivered performances high on artistry, theatrics and energy.

In the cultural dance category, 17 contingents from the city and Cordillera provinces in their traditional attires danced to the beat of the gongs and other traditional instruments native to the highland region.

Eleven contingents from various Cordillera and Ilocos provinces competed in the much-coveted street dance competition.

Meanwhile, Magalong said the crowd is expected to double in the flower float parade scheduled today as over a dozen small and big flower-bedecked floats will roll down from Session Road to the Melvin Jones football field.