SEASON OF BLOOM:
Elementary school students perform during the street dance parade of the 2016 Panagbenga Festival in Baguio City yesterday. This year’s celebration of the flower festival carries the theme ‘Bless the Children with Flowers.’
BAGUIO CITY – The color and pomp of the annual Panagbenga festival brought out the best of the highland region yesterday.
“It’s the rawness and it being a natural event,” said British tourist Nick Dewhirst.
Dewhirst said he has been to the Mardi Gras in Brazil but Panagbenga, which means a festival of flowers, is quite different.
“There is a lot of strong colors that brings out the theme ‘Bless the children with flowers’,” he said.
Dewhirst has also been to the Sinulog, Dinagyang, Maskara and Ati-atihan festivals.
He observed the integration of the element of indigenous people’s culture made street dancing perfect.
“The Philippines should hold on to its roots,” he said.
Dewhirst said he approved of the festival’s integrating indigenous culture into the decades old fest.
“It is very nice to see how passionate Filipinos, especially children, are on these kinds of festivals,” the Englishman continued. “I’d like to come back again next year.”
US Ambassador Philip Goldberg said he came here to show support.
“We have a long time relationship with Baguio and its people,” he said.
Goldberg said the US embassy is doing various programs in the city, including exchange programs with universities.
Sixty- three- year- old Zenaida Paderanga from Manila, who joined the revelries with her daughter yesterday, also believed this year’s street dancing is much livelier.
“There’s a distinct change,” she said, pointing to the costumes of the participants and the onstreet performances.
Recyjane Rumbaoa, 16, a student of the University of the Philippines in Baguio, said, it is a satisfying experience to witness the country’s muchsought after festival.
Sixteen street dancing contingents showed off the Cordillera’s diverse culture.
Coming from as far as Lubuagan and Balbalan towns in Kalinga, tribal folk, young and old, demonstrated authentic Kalinga traditions, while Ilocanos from Laoag City and San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte performed their own “Pamulinawen” and “Damili” festivals that showed the lowland color.