Baguio City was filled with festivities as it marked the Panagbenga Festival over the weekend, featuring vibrant street dancing and flower float parades. The theme of this year’s celebration was “Celebrating Traditions, Embracing Innovations.”
Participants from public and private schools in Baguio City and neighboring areas such as Benguet, Palayan City, Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan, Ilocos Sur, and Kalinga dazzled spectators with colorful dresses adorned with flowers. The street dancing parade, which spanned from Session Road to Harrison Road at the Central Business District, attracted both locals and tourists who joined in the revelry.
Adding to the lively atmosphere was the marching brass band of the Philippine Military Academy. Lucban Elementary School emerged as the champion in the drum and lyre competition, taking home a prize of P150,000. Tuba Central School from Benguet secured the second spot with P100,000, while Manuel Quezon Elementary School placed third, winning P70,000.
In the Festival Dance contest, students from Tribu Rizal of Kalinga claimed the top spot, earning a cash prize of P200,000. Naisangsangayan group of Narvacan, Ilocos Sur took second place with a prize of P150,000, followed by Baguio City National High School-Special Program for the Arts in third place with P100,000.
Other notable street dancers included groups from Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan, Ilocos Sur, and Kalinga, all of whom received praises from the audience. The long-standing tradition of the flower festival in Baguio City, now in its 28th year, continues to thrive due to the unwavering support of the community and stakeholders, according to Mauricio Domogan, chairman of the Baguio Flower Festival Foundation Inc.
