It's the time of the year again of the most festive season in the Philippines. This Yuletide Season, you could visit many sights and attractions nearby where you could really feel the true meaning of Pinoy Christmas, especially when celebrated with your loved ones.
Known as the "Christmas Capital of the Philippines," the City of San Fernando Pampanga once again brought us the annual Giant Lantern Festival. Dubbed as "The Biggest, Brightest and Most Colorful Christmas Event in the Country," the Giant Lantern Festival or "Ligligan Parul," exhibition night happened last December 14, 2019 (Saturday) at Robinsons Malls Starmills, Pampanga. It is a yearly competition of larger than life and extravagant Christmas lanterns in glittering and colorful lights, dancing in spectacular and kaleidoscopic patterns accompanied by lively Christmas Carols, popular songs, as well as a live band. Each giant lantern measures up to 20 feet with more than 10,000 light bulbs and manually controlled by rotor operators. It was participated by various barangays (villages) of San Fernando City, Pampanga to showcase their amazing talent and ingenuity in lantern making.
The yearly Giant Lantern Festival is one of my most recommended Christmas Destinations near Metro Manila that should not be missed every Yuletide Season. This year marks the 111th year of the Giant Lantern Festival celebration - one of the biggest since 2006 in terms of the number of participating villages. A total of 12 villages joined the event and showcased their Giant Lanterns during the exhibition night at Robinsons Malls Starmills Pampanga. They are Barangays San Agustin, San Pedro, Telabastagan, Bulaon, San Nicolas, Del Pilar, Sindalan, San Juan, Sta. Lucia, Sto. Niño, Calulut, and San Jose.
During the event, the participating barangays battled it out in 3 rounds which delighted the guests and visitors who attended competition night last weekend. The first round is an individual presentation where each participant was given a maximum of 7 minutes to showcase their glittering Giant Lantern. The second round is the group presentation where they displayed their parol side by side with other participants in their group. Lastly, the 3rd round is where all the giant lanterns were lighted and danced to one surprise music played by a live marching band.
Emerging as winners are the following:
- 3rd Runner-up: Brgy. Sidalan
- 2nd Runner-up: Brgy. Del Pilar
- 1st Runner-up: Brgy. Calulut
- GRAND CHAMPION: BRGY. STA. LUCIA
The Giant Lantern Festival is indeed a grand display of spectacular and glittering lights, amazing interplay of colors and kaleidoscopic patterns accompanied by lively music. The talent showcased by the local lantern makers were truly incomparable! It's a unique Filipino tradition that should be preserved and definitely a must-see this Christmas season!
Celebrating Christmas has always been an important part of Filipino culture and tradition. Experiencing this year's Giant Lantern Festival made me really feel the Filipino holiday spirit and unique way of celebrating Christmas. Families and friends flocked to Robinsons Malls Starmills Pampanga and enjoyed the amazing and spectacular interplay of colors, lights, and sounds showcasing the incredible craftsmanship of the Kapampangans. Indeed, it's one of the must-see and must-experience events in the Philippines during Yuletide Season.
Did you missed last weekend's Giant Lantern Festival?
Don't worry! You can still see these Giant Lanterns at Robinsons Starmills Pampanga until January 1, 2020. Show starts at 6:00 pm. Admission is FREE!ALSO READ: Top things to do in Pampanga, Tourist Spots and Itinerary
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