Discovering the beauty of Vigan City's Longganisa Festival

Every January 22-25, the Vigan City Fiesta is held. This celebration, which also includes the Longganisa Festival, takes place in late January. This UNESCO World Heritage City attracts both residents and tourists thanks to the street dance, carnivals, cuisine festivals, and arts and crafts fairs. St. Paul the Apostle, the town's patron saint, is honored throughout the festival with a procession, musical performances, beauty contests, and cultural exhibits. The city will host a fitness event called Zumba Night at Plaza Burgos to kick off the festival.

On January 22, 2023, my friends and I came to Vigan's Plaza Maestro and watched the Longganisa Festival Street Dancing Competition. The Longganisa Festival is the happiest festival I have watched in my 16 years of living here in Vigan City. We were taken aback by the intense drumming, simultaneous lyre ringing, and the magnificent costumes worn by the performers as they carried a dish of longganisa and a statue of St. Paul. With their perseverance and hard work, the San Nicolas National High School is the champion of Category A, and the University of the Northern Philippines is the champion of Category B. Along with the faces of those watching, you can also see the dancers' joyful expressions. The best part of Vigan's festivities has always been the street dancing. Even though the most recent celebration was cheerfully observed, there is nothing that compares to the joy of the Longganisa Festival in an environment free from the pandemic, where we can freely mingle and socialize with others. 

We celebrated as a community as a result of this "new normal" and are no longer afraid about mingling with others in crowded places. In addition, Vigan, a heritage city, never ceases to astound me. It seems as though we must enter some kind of contest to showcase our talents. As the thrill of living in this small heritage city grows stronger every day, leaving is getting harder and harder. It exhibits the sense of belonging that people have and serves as a symbol of their principles.

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The first and third pictures were taken by Jhovia Paz.