Baguio City launches Panagbenga 2010
by Lito Dar
Baguio City (28 November) — The City Government of Baguio, in partnership with the Baguio Flower Festival Foundation Inc. (BFFFI), launched the schedule of activities for the Panagbenga 2010 in a simple program Monday morning.
Panagbenga 2010, the 15th staging of the Baguio Flower Festival, adopts the theme: “Celebrating 15 years of Festival Excellence.”
In his message, Baguio Congressman Mauricio Domogan stressed that the “Panagbenga” should be included in the annals of the city’s centennial history.
According to Domogan, the whole of Baguio should be enjoined in celebrating such tourism activity as it is an opportunity for all, regardless of color, tribal group or religion, to work together in promoting the city and Cordillera’s cultural identity. This is not only to sustain the city’s tourism industry, but also for the visitors and our own happiness as well, he said.
“It is also gives us the time to thank the Lord for giving us a beautiful environment, with all the trees and flowers. It is also a time to remind us of our own obligation to maintain and preserve such environment, so as to avoid the serious consequences of climate change,” Domogan added.
Confetti rained and balloons were released as Baguio City Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr proclaimed the declaration of the Opening of the Panagbenga 2010. This was done simultaneous with the unveiling of the 15th Flower Festival banner, by the festival’s co-chairmen, Baguio Country Club General Manager Anthony De Leon and Camp John Hay Chief Operations Officer Freddie Alquiroz. The University of Cordillera also gave a performance as the Philippine Military Academy Band played the Panagbenga Hymn.
In a press conference, Alquiroz, assured the public of a grander staging of Panagbenga, that would equal if not surpass the Panagbenga 2009. He also highlighted the media’s important role on promoting the festival, so as the city’s tourism industry, could have a faster turnaround from the adverse effect of the recent disasters that hit the region.
“Through the media’s help, we can push forward the message that Baguio is here, up and about and never went out of business,” Alquiroz said.
De Leon bared that there will be new activities for the Panagbenga 2010, which will run from February 1 to March 7. Among these are new musical concert on the lake titled “Camelot,” during the staging of the Fluvial Parade at the Burnham Park Lake on February 14, and the staging of a “Mardi Gras,” at the Harrison road, in time with the Session Road in Bloom on March 1-7.
Other regular scheduled activities for the flower festival include Market Encounter at the Burnham Park (Feb. 1 – March 7), Legarda Rocks (February 12-14), Abanao Nights (Feb 26-28), Pony Boys Day (March 6), plus the usual highlights of the Panagbenga: a Grand Street parade on February 27 and a Grand Float Parade on February 28. The Chinese Lunar New Year Celebration (Feb.13) and the PMA Homecoming (Feb. 20 – 22), are also entwined with the Pangabenga 2010.
Meantime, Department of Tourism (DOT-CAR) Regional Director Pura Molintas also stressed the importance of sustaining the Panagbenga, which is a major tourist festival that has already gained an international stature. She said this is a major economic activity that plays a major role not only in boosting the city and the region’s tourism but also the country’s development as well. (PIA)
Feature: Discovering the Ibanags
by Oliver T. Baccay
Hon. Delfin Telan Ting, City Mayor, spearheaded the celebration highlighting the unity of the Ibanags in working against difficulties and obstacles in achieving growth and development.
Tuguegarao City is known as the Premier Ibanag City, the center of excellence in education, commerce and culture in Northeast Philippines, that’s why every patronal fiesta, the city officials used to line up activities that showcases the Ibanag tradition and culture such as the Street dancing in the tune of Ibanag courtship dance’Kalingkingan’, the Battle of the Bands in the tune of Sampaguita March, the original Ibanag children’s game, the folksong writing competition and performing the traditional Maskota wedding dance.
In the midst of a sunny day, the students played their role gracefully with a smile and with feelings in the street dancing competition. Kalingkingan is a kind of bird that thrives in the Callao Caves of Peñablanca, the town adjacent to the city and the cavers’ paradise of the north.
Kalingkingan birds go out from the cave every 6 o’clock in the evening to look for food and to have merry making, and then goes back every 6 o’clock in the morning to take a rest.
The Kalingkingan dance was formulated by the Ibanag ancestors, converting the birds’ nature and characteristics to an Ibanag culture. The birds’ characteristic of going out every 6 to look for food is like an Ibanag gentleman who looks for a lady to court every night. Their characteristics also of looking for food together and goes back together from the cave where they came from is attributed to the Ibanags togetherness, which is the essence of’Pavvurulun Festival’-oneness. Later, it was transformed to a song and dance.
Though the dance is an original festival of Peñablnaca, the city wants to showcase it also because the essence of the dance jived to the city’ festival theme of reminiscing and reviving the Ibanag Culture.
City Vice-Mayor Danilo Baccay said the street dance competition highlighting the Kalingkingan Ibanag dance is one way of reviving and preserving the Ibanag tradition and culture.
On the other hand, the students also displayed their talents in playing the instruments in the Battle of the Bands competition using the’Sampaguita March’ as the common tune of the bands.
The competitors displayed their strategies and styles in playing the bands using their colorful uniforms, but the judges chose only 3 winners in the competition.
Schoolchildren also enjoyed playing the original’Gaggayam na Cagayan’ or the children’s game that preserves the Ibanag culture.
In all activities which was conducted, it depicts on how the Ibanags live a simple life, on how do they work together to achieve progress, on how they preserve their hospitality.
Vice Mayor Danilo Baccay said it is being observed that nowadays, the new generation doesn’t know how to speak in Ibanag that’s why they are now planning to pass a resolution mandating the schools teach Ibanag dialect to schoolchildren.
The hospitality of the Ibanags was also one among the limelight of the festival. With the’Pancit Batil Patung’, the specialty of Tuguegarao, visitors really felt the real Ibanag taste as they were warm welcomed with the delicious ‘pancit batil patung’.
In the mass wedding, several couples were given blessings to tie a knot in a traditional way the Ibanag celebrate wedding. The Maskota Dance is always practiced, the real Ibanag wedding celebration.
“The true essence of this festival is the celebration of our original tradition and culture, our act of showing that we are proud of being an Ibanag,” Baccay said in an interview. (PIA 2)
Tuguegarao City celebrates Pav-vurulun Festival 2009
Among the major activities is the 2009 Pav-vurulun Trade Fair on August 10–16, 2009.
The Trade Fair aims to promote the emerging entrepreneurs from the livelihood projects of the city and to exhibit the different products of local producers.
There for this year’s trade fair is “Kultura Ibanag” and this will be opened to the public on August 10, at the Paseo Reale Grounds, Tuguegarao City.
Other highlights of the celebration on August 10-14 include distribution of PhilHealth cards to indigent families; pancit festival; healthy lifestyle exercises and food technology demonstration; a variety show, business management seminar and the battle of the bands.
On August 15, there will be street dancing, mass wedding, games for children, and a cultural show with the “maskota” dance competition. (PIA 2)
Kalinga IPs join Luzon cultural festival
Tabuk, Kalinga (22 November) — Twenty performers from the province joined recently the Timpuyog Cultural Festival of Luzon, an occasion for indigenous peoples (IPs) in Luzon to celebrate the richness of their unique culture and an opportunity to exchange what they have for better understanding among themselves, held recently in Santiago City, Isabela.
According to National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) Commissioner Domingo Bakilan, the festival also served to foster deeper understanding and
an avenue to preserve the culture of peace among IPs in Luzon. He said the province’s representatives came from Tanudan headed by Cultural Master Vicente Gummuang.
Various students from colleges and universities in Region 2 came to watch the historic affair as part of cultural awareness and for them to appreciate the diverse Filipino cultures still practiced today.
Bakilan said sixteen major cultural communities gathered for the celebration that promoted the advocacy of preserving and integrating traditional culture and various creative expressions in mainstream society.
Heherzon Alvarez, Presidential Adviser on Climate Change and Global Warming who was Guest Speaker stressed on the importance of culture as a way of life, according to Bakilan. In his message, Alvarez told participants to be proud to be Filipino even if they belong to different cultural communities with diverse culture.
NCCA Chairman of the Board and Department of Education Undersecretary Vilma Labrador encouraged the IPs not to allow themselves to be exploited. She directed school administrators in Luzon to stop teaching modern dances to their pupils and students but teach them instead the traditional and cultural dances in the locality.
The six-day celebration according to Bakilan is a project of Sub-Commission on Cultural Communities and Traditional Arts of NCCA hosted by the City government of Santiago. (PIA-Kalinga)
photo credit: glenmcbethlaw
