20th Panagbenga Festival 2015
ALSO known as the Baguio Flower Festival, the Panagbenga Festival is held annually during the month of February and lasts five weeks or until the first Sunday of March. A kankanaey term, Panagbenga is believed to be of Malayo-Polynesian origin; it means “a season of blooming” or “a time of flowering.”
Accounts have it that the festival was born from the idea that Baguio, like other towns and cities in the country, should have its own “fiesta.” Unlike other towns and cities that were created during the Spanish period that had a patron saint with a feast day, Baguio was created during the American occupation of the Philippines.
In 1995, the proposal to organize a flower festival to be held in February was approved by the directors of the John Hay Poro Point Development Corporation. The festival’s official logo was selected from among those submitted by students at the Camp John Hay Art Contest. The entry of Trisha Tabangin, which was a spray of wild sunflowers, was selected.
Now on its 20th year, the festival will kick off with a parade, street dancing, drum and lyre competition, and the opening of the Baguio Blooms Exhibition at Lake Drive, Burnham Park. Other major events include the Handog ng Panagbenga sa Pamilya Baguio at the Melvin Jones Arena which will feature “Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom,” family painting activity, kite flying challenge, variety show and fireworks display; PMA Grand Alumni Homecoming; a grand street dancing parade and grand flower float parade; a Pony Boys’ Day which will highlight horseback riding shows and competition.
The most popular street in Baguio will be closed from March 1 to 8, 2015 to give way to “Session Road in Bloom” where pedestrians can walk freely and enjoy the various food and non-food products and entertainment activities. The closing ceremonies on March 8, 2015, will be capped with a grand fireworks display.
Panagbenga Festival is a story of a people with a distinctly rich cultural heritage, and a city gorgeously endowed with a colorful landscape of a myriad of flowers that stands proud as a favorite destination of local and foreign tourists.
We greet the Baguioeños on the occasion of their 20th Panagbenga Festival. May this annual event continue to serve as an opportunity for retracing roots; showcasing the local folks’ ingenuity; and promoting a deeper appreciation and a better understanding of local traditions and values that form part of the heritage that makes us distinctly Filipinos.