BAGUIO CITY – An early morning drizzle that persisted until noon failed to dampen the festive parade of flower-decorated floats of this city’s 13th Panagbenga or Flower Festival yesterday.
The Panagbenga – from the Kankanaey word that means “a time to bloom” – has been drawing hordes of tourists from all over the country because of its unique parade showcasing the flowers grown here and in nearby Benguet province.
“No other else in the Philippines,” beamed Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr.
Despite the drizzle, hundreds of thousands of spectators, with their rain gear, lined up the streets as early as 7 a.m. Many wore sweaters and jackets as the temperature dropped to 16 degrees Celsius.
The float parade and the street-dancing competition on Saturday reportedly drew half a million spectators.
Despite the drizzle, the “show must go on,” said Panagbenga media committee head Gerry Evangelista, although the route of the parade was shortened and the sea of umbrellas obstructed the view.
Last Saturday, former President Joseph Estrada, who visited the city to witness the Panagbenga celebration, almost stole the show.
If the “strict advice” of the organizers and Mayor Bautista Jr. against any “politicking” was unheeded, Estrada and opposition stalwarts like Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, president of the United Opposition, and former Senator Ernesto Maceda could have paraded with the street dancers.
But Estrada and his group just watched at the sidelines at the Baguio Athletic Bowl where the final presentation of the street-dancing competitors took place.
Before leaving, Estrada shelled out P90,000 for the winning contingents, according to former Benguet governor Raul Molintas.
Besides Estrada, Binay and Maceda, no other politicians were around, except for former congressman Prospero Pichay.
Earlier, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Bayani Fernando, touted as a presidential hopeful in 2010, vowed to come with his own float. But he never came as organizers wanted to keep politics off the festival.