BAGUIO CITY – An estimated 48,000 to 50,000 people converged in this city on Sunday to witness Cordillera’s unique heritage displayed through Panagbenga Festival 2023, particularly the grand float parade which is the highlight of the famous event.

The crowd estimate was provided by the Baguio City Police Office, according to a statement of Evangeline Payno, chief of staff of the Baguio Flower Festival organizing committee.

The grand float parade that showcased thousands of fresh flowers made the city bloom once more after the pandemic, honoring the beauty and bounty of the Cordillera Region.

“Panagbenga is a celebration of our culture, our community and our natural surroundings,” Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong said in his speech at the grandstand after the parade.

The floats, which conveyed a message of joy, harmony and unity, were carefully and skillfully created by local craftsmen and artisans who used mostly fresh and real potted plants grown by farmers from Benguet and Baguio.

Nine groups for the small category and eight for the big category, including private firms, joined the float competition, whose winners will be announced on March 1.

The city government’s eagle-themed float was the first to parade down Session Road onward to Harrison Road and straight toward the Melvin Jones football field.

It was followed by the Department of Tourism’s garden-themed float and Baguio Country Club’s Aladdin-themed float.

There was also a non-competing float, Jeepito, touted as the world’s smallest Philippine jeepney at 2,336 millimeters long and 4 1/2 feet in height.

The theme of this year’s Panagbenga Festival, “A Renaissance of Wonder and Beauty,” highlights the city’s journey toward tourism revival, sustainable and responsible tourism development, and entry into the new normal after the pandemic.

Meanwhile, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco lauded the highly-anticipated return of Baguio City’s annual Panagbenga Festival, which was postponed for three years due to the pandemic.

“After three years of hiatus because of the pandemic, Baguio is back, and what a beautiful return!” said the tourism chief. Cristina Lee-Pisco, Philippine News Agency

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Cristina Lee-Pisco