DINAGYANG 2020

It was a blessing to watch one of the Philippine's grandest festivals, Dinagyang 2020 in Iloilo City on 24-26 Jan 20. Dinagyang is a yearly festival held on the 4th weekend of Jan. It is a religious and cultural celebration to honor the early settlement of Malay immigrants and most importantly, to show reverence to Child Jesus, Santo Nino.

The event started on Fri, 24th Jan, with school band performances, the fluvial procession to celebrate the arrival of Child Jesus, Santo Nino from Cebu, lighting parade in the evening which ended with a grand long fireworks at Megaworld Iloilo.

On Sat, 25th Jan, the event became more exciting with colorful procession and street performances of various groups in colorful and tribal costumes in the morning and afternoon. In the evening, colorful lights were illuminated on the colonial buildings in the old city, followed by a prayer session called religious sadsad, where the Father of the church gave a sermon with songs to honor Santo Nino with thousands of worshipers and revelers gathered. I personally think this is the most fun day, we get to take pictures with colorful performers and witness in close up the live performances on the street.

The last day of the festival on Sun, 26th Jan, was the grandest event ever held, the Ati Tribe Dance Competition called Dinagyang 360 Degrees. A so called gold ticket cost around 2200 peso to watch, even though I was seated at the 3rd row. It was a half day event with performances by 9 competing school based performing tribes. The winner would win 5 million peso to be announced in the evening.

Overall, Dinagyang is a once in a lifetime experience to witness and I am glad I made the right choice to visit Iloilo at the right time!