Jandy and I arrived at typhoon-ravaged Tacloban, via a Cebu Pacific flight, on the morning of June 29. Grace, Cheska, Marve and Kyle were already in the city, having left the day before. We arrived at my brother-in-law Manny’s house just in time for lunch.
The Sangyaw Pasasalamat Parade
His house was conveniently located along Avenida Veteranos, one of the major city streets that the Sangyaw Pasasalamat Festival (which honors Señor Santo Niño de Leyte, Tacloban City’s patron saint) parade would pass through (Real to Imelda then Rizal towards Romualdez and will end at the Kanhuraw Hill).
The Sto. Nino de Leyte is a favorite theme
The parade, held nearly 8 months after Typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan) devastated the city and other parts of the Visayas, was a simple affair, tame and devoid of much extravagance and glamour as with previous festival parades.
Thank you in many languages
Foreign aid workers also join in
The parade was participated in by more than a thousand merrymakers from 8 schools, 5 barangays, private companies (LBC, Talk and Text, Monterey, ABS-CBN, etc.), government agencies (PhilHealth, Department of Health, Department of Education, etc.), delegates from the various branches of the country’s armed services, and the humanitarian international non-government organizations (iNGOs) such as Oxfam, Save the Children, Volunteers for the Visayans, World Vision, Plan Philippines, Care Philippines, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), etc.. Eleven non-competing and six competing groups will join in the merrymaking. There were only 5 participating floats.
One of the participating floats
With its theme “Pasasalamat,” the parade now focuses on thanksgiving for those who survived the wrath of the super typhoon as well as for Taclobanons and Leyteños to express their gratitude to the different iNGOs whose heartwarming assistance and support helped Tacloban and the Taclobanons get back on their feet.
Lion dancers from the Filipino-Chinese community
The iNGOs also made this parade possible by taking care of the logistics, giving a subsidy of not less than PhP30,000 to each participating barangay and contingent. During, the parade, thanks was expressed in the languages of the iNGOs – Australia (Thoinks Moite), Belgium (Dank U), China (Xie Xie), France (Merci), Germany (Dankeschön), Greece (Efharisto), Hungary (Koszonom), India (Nandri), Indonesia (Terima Kasih), Italy (Grazie), Japan (Arigato), Korea (Kamsahamnida), New Zealand (Kiaora Koe), Russia (Blagodarya), Spain (Gracias), U.S.A. (Thank You), etc.
A drum and lyre band
Though it was a gloomy Sunday, with scattered rain showers (but no excruciating heat from the sun), it was nice to see the people enjoying again and the city colorful, with many Taclobanons, in colorful costumes, joining the parade, exhibiting their unique innovations and creativity.
It was still a parade with a rainbow of colors
The parade somehow relieved the stress and trauma that the Taclobanons have experienced after Typhoon Yolanda. At the same time, it also helped people in the area to feel that life is returning back to normal in the city.
Kyle, Marve, Grace, Cheska and Jandy enjoying the parade
City Tourism Operations Office: City Hall, Kanhuraw Hiil, Tacloban City, Leyte. Tel: (053) 325-8955, (053) 325-2491, (053) 523-9671 & (053) 325-6248.