What is one of the things that you missed the most during the pandemic? If you ask me, aside from going out and meeting family and friends, I really missed celebrating Festivals.
Are you fond of parades? street dancing? singing? being with the crowd? fireworks? If you are, check out this blog cause you want want to book a ticket to Cebu City over the weekend.
The Philippines is known for a variety of colorful and fun festivals, and one of the biggest in the country is the Sinulog Festival in Cebu City. Sinulog is like the Mardi Gras of the Philippines. The street is filled with people in festive costumes, with parades, fireworks, and parties everywhere. This will be the first Sinulog since the pandemic, and with the ease of restrictions on travel and other safety protocols, we are expecting tons of tourists and locals over the weekend for the celebration.
What is Sinulog?
Viva Pit Senor! These are the shouts you will hear throughout the celebration. Sinulog is a religious festival in honor of the baby Jesus, Sr. Sto Nino. Sinulog festival is celebrated every third Sunday of January. During the Magellan Expedition is 1521, an image of the Sto Nino was given by Magellan to the King of Cebu – Rajah Jumabon. This event in history paved the way for the birth of Christianity in the country.
Sinulog is a prayer dance; history says that when Queen Juana received the holy image, she started to dance with joy and the locals followed, thereby marking the very first Sinulog.
Sinulog comes from the Bisaya term "sulog," which means water current. This also depicts the forward-backward movement in the Sinulog dance step.
There are a lot of things to do during the Sinulog week. Here is the schedule of activities from January 12 until January 15, as published by the city government:
What should we expect for this year's Sinulog?
It has been a rainy week in Cebu, and per the weather broadcast, there are good chances of rain during Sinulog. Since the venue for the grand parade has moved to SRP grounds, we are expecting a muddy Sinulog this year. Bring raincoats, boots, and umbrellas, plus an extra shirt, because it’s about to get a little wet and muddy for this weekend’s party.
Some Practical Tips for Sinulog Tourists
Book your hotel near the places where the Sinulog activities are located, like Fuente Circle or within SRP grounds.
The Fuente Osmeña Circle is located at the very heart of uptown Cebu. It is easy to spot with the rotunda park at the intersection of General Maxilom Ave. and Osmeña Blvd.
Here are some of the hotels near Fuente:
- Best Western Plus Lex Cebu
- Hotel St. Mark
- M Citi Suites
- Bayfront Hotel Cebu—Capitol Site
- Pillows Hotel Cebu
Hotels & AirBnb near SRP
- San Remo Oasis at City di Mare
- Fili Hotel at NUStar
Wear comfortable clothes and footwear.
There will be a lot of walking on Sinulog Day as most of the public transportation won't be available, especially on the routes where the parade is located. Make you wear comfortable sandals/shoes.
Bring your tumbler and keep hydrated.
Bring a refillable tumbler or water bottle during the day, and make sure you are bringing your own water bottle. This won’t only help lessen plastic waste; you will also save a lot from overpriced water bottles at the venue.
Don’t bring too many valuables with you; avoid flashy jewelry.
Beware of thieves; the streets will sure be crowded. Based on previous experience The streets will be filled, and it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Don’t drink and drive.
Golden rule. Party responsibly.
Be patient.
The streets will be crowded, tons off people will be outside and you will sure bump here and there. Trust me, been there, done that. Patience is a virtue; let’s just all chill out and try to have a good time.
Reminiscing our last Sinulog before the Pandemic (2019)
How about you? Do you also have colorful festivals in your place? What is your favorite? Do tell me on the comment section or share your very own experience about Sinulog.
That’s it. I hope you are also excited for Sinulog as much as I am. I hope to see you on the streets this weekend!
Liked what you read? show some love by sharing your comments and upvote the content. Feel free to re-blogged the post and help spread positivity by paying it forward. Don't forget to follow her for more stories and adventures here on Hive.
All photos were taken and edited by me unless stated otherwise. Images may have been shared to my social media accounts prior posting to the blog.
As much as I want to do prititit but rest is my priority. Hehe
⋆ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʟᴀᴄᴇ ғᴏʀ sᴏᴜᴛʜᴇᴀsᴛ ᴀsɪᴀɴ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ ᴏɴ ʜɪᴠᴇ
⋆ sᴜʙsᴄʀɪʙᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀsᴇᴀɴ ʜɪᴠᴇ ᴄᴏᴍᴍᴜɴɪᴛʏ
⋆ ғᴏʟʟᴏᴡ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀsᴇᴀɴ ʜɪᴠᴇ ᴄᴏᴍᴍᴜɴɪᴛʏ ᴠᴏᴛɪɴɢ ᴛʀᴀɪʟ
⋆ ᴅᴇʟᴇɢᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ʟɪɴᴋs 25 ʜᴘ⇾50 ʜᴘ⇾100 ʜᴘ⇾500 ʜᴘ⇾1,000 ʜᴘ
Sinulog finally yey!!
Congratulations, your post has been added to Pinmapple! 🎉🥳🍍
Did you know you have your own profile map?
And every post has their own map too!
Want to have your post on the map too?
Daily Travel Digest #1758.
Become part of our travel community:
- Join our Discord
- Learn more about our travel application
Hiya, @LivingUKTaiwan here, just swinging by to let you know that this post made it into our Honorable Mentions in Your post has been manually curated by the @pinmapple team. If you like what we're doing, please drop by to check out all the rest of today's great posts and consider supporting other authors like yourself and us so we can keep the project going!yes, I'm really looking forward to the grand parade this weekend. Thanks for dropping by and have a great day!