Kabayan tops festival street dancing award; Lhulliers is best float

By Rosenda Brett and Maureen O. Llusala

BAGUIO CITY – Kabayan town of Benguet won first place in street dancing category during the Panagbenga Festival here last week even as this year’s first place winner for the float competition was M. Lhuiller’s.

Lhuiller’s float was designed with Malaysian mums, chrysanthemums and everlasting bloom shaped like a 4 wheeler vehicle laden with the beauties of last year’s Miss Earth Pageant.

Second place went to the float of the Department of Tourism with sun and stars concept.

Chief operating officer named Mark Lapid rode the float.

The third placer was the Manila North Tollways Corporation’s Expressway.

Flower bedecked floats were spectacular this year with the designs depicting popular games like Angry Bird for the float of the city government.

The Baguio City Country Club float was inspired by Star Wars. Also the eye catching was a giant colorful dinosaur of SM City Baguio.

Various Filipino stars were also spotted during the parade. Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera for the float of GMA; Kim Atianza, Ryan Bang, JhongHilario and Vice Ganda in the float of ABS-CBN; Amy Perez, Shalani Soledad and Tuesday Vargas for the float of TV 5.

This, as visitors said this year’s street dancing competition was truly a regional of indigenous culture, music and dance.

In the street dancing parade, performances included native indigenous dances from Bag-o Tribe, Benguet’sBendiyan Dance, Kalinga’sMatagoanKawayan Rite, Nan BiagasnanNukan de Agew, GutadadIfugao, Tadek from Mt. Province, Turuyan, Senapor Eagle Dances and AmmuranganGaddang Dances.

Among the 14 participants, the best three performers were picked as the winner of the competition.

The Kabayan, Benguet’sAdivay Festival presentation got the first place and received an amount of 200,000 pesos.

Tabuk City’s Matagoan Festival grabbed second place and also received P150, 000.

Baguio City High School-Special Program in the Arts recieved third place and received P100,000.

Other participants received P30,000 pesos each.

Meanwhile, all of the hotel rooms and even inns were already fully booked as early as the 17th of February, organizers said.

National and international media networks also covered the Panagbenga and aired the festival in Korea and United States.

The telecommunications companies had also provided free wi-fi access along session road which gave the audiences the opportunity to blog, twit and upload the pictures and photos taken from the event.

Panagbenga is a kankanaey term for "a season of blooming."

It is also known as the Baguio Flower Festival, a homage to the beautiful flowers the city is famous for as well as a celebration of Baguio's re-establishment.

Since February 1995, it has been held to help Baguio forget the 1990 earthquake that distressed much of the city.