On the dot, Martin Nievera went on stage to talk, chat, sing, and joke. Not necessarily in that order or of importance. But he showed up. He even started before his scheduled 5 pm slot. He wowed the over three or four thousand fans and onlookers who gathered at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby for the Pinoy Festival: Panahon na para Magsaya 2 on Saturday, June 22nd.
Martin Nievera was the main attraction. The crowd was already packing the bleachers of the grandstand at Swangard Stadium where the main events of the 9 to 9 Pinoy Festival were run.
Less-known entertainers, local bands and soloists performed at different areas of the open-air stadium. Some upcoming bands entertained the crowd at a nearby stage before and after Martin’s performance.
Many Pinoys missed Martin’s brief “concert.” It lasted for about 35 minutes, give and take a few minutes. Hundreds, including my wife, were still lining up at the various food carts and food trucks behind the grandstand. Most food queues were exceptionally long and slow. If you leave the line to get photos or videos of Martin on stage, you lose your spot in the food queues. So, many persevered with lining up and satisfied themselves with the songs and chatters of Martin booming through the loudspeakers. Feed the stomach first. Basic need above entertainment.
One shortcoming of this festival was the limited number and variety of food offerings. The back area of the grandstand was too small to house the few food trucks and stalls. The lines to those food trucks crisscrossed at times due to the limited spaces. The organizers very well knew that food was center to any Pinoy gatherings and events. Lesson learned, and next year’s organizers would definitely look into this.
This year’s Pinoy festival was slated to start at 8:30 with a Zumba. While some women and a sprinkling of men were doing the dance exercises, a larger crowd was frantically setting up display tents along the stadium tracks. Food stalls and trucks jockeyed for positions at the back of the stadium. Organizers completed sound checks and final touch-ups at the center stage.
Local associations of Philippine provinces, ethnic groups, Philippine university alumni, Filipino merchants, realtors, professional Pinoy groups, and enterprising individuals set up display tents. Over two hundred tents in all.
The RCMP, the hospital and nurses’ unions, Filipino professional groups, and the four main provincial political parties set up their own booths. Provincial elections are coming. Filipinos are the third largest ethnic voting bloc in the Greater Vancouver cities. A Filipina is running for one of the opposition parties; she won’t win, but at least she is representing the Pinoys in her big riding. I congratulated her for her positivity and courage. Another Filipina (half Pinay) is a current provincial legislator. Her ruling party had a booth across from the opposition parties’ booths. But she was nowhere to be seen; if she runs again, I’m sure the Pinoys in her district will continue to boost her chances, again and again.
The crowd was well over a thousand by 10 a.m. when the opening parade promptly snaked up from Kingsway to Swangard Stadium. The participants, led by the Canadian, BC, and Philippine flag bearers and the staff of the Vancouver consulate, walked behind their organizations’ banners.
Who thought of having the Bicol contingents and the Ilocano groups walk one after another? Three very vocal Bicol ladies shouted “Kurakut” along the way. Political bitterness still pervaded, this far away from the Philippines?
Many groups wore Philippine ethnic costumes and walked or danced to the beat of native drums and the music of the accompanying bands.
The contingent from the Mountain Provinces (BIBAK-BC: Benguet/Baguio, Ifugao, Bontoc, Abra/Apayao, and Kalinga) looked very impressive in their Igorot native costumes. Six ladies in the contingent swayed with the drum beats, balancing clay pots on their heads.
The Bisayan (Cebu, BISDAK: Bisayang Dako) contingent shone in their flowing bright yellow outfits with a statue of the Santo Nino in the lead. The MASSKARA delegation also wore very bright orange dance costumes.
The Mindanao contingents were not to be outdone with their island’s ethnic wear.
Even the other contingents wearing merely their associations’ t-shirts added to the colorful parade.
Here’s a link to a very good video of the opening parade: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhJ0HwV0REA (Thanks to the video creator).
More Filipinos added to the parade participants when the favorite and much-awaited Santacruzan extravaganza swept along in midafternoon. The crowd ballooned to over three thousand.
Filipinos love pageantry. Santacruzan usually is done in May during the Flores de Mayo celebration. But Pinoys find any reason and any time in the summer to roll out a religious pageantry and turn it into a public entertainment and attraction.
Luckily, the slight drizzle in mid-afternoon held off until the Santacruzan was completed. The colorful crepe papers, tulle, and artificial flower decorations of the many Santacruzan arches and the gowned and heavily made-up ladies and the onlookers would have been wet. But the brief drizzle couldn’t have dampened the enthusiasm of pageant and parade participants. Not even heavy rain could ruin the parade; there might have been some sprinting for covers, but many Pinoys have umbrellas on ready.
Children and young adults strutted on the small makeshift stage minutes before Martin Nievera’s show. The models wore gowns and barongs made from musa or banana fiber, to promote Philippine native textile materials.
Speeches, some short, others too long, were peppered all over the program of the day. Speakers included the organizers. Others were considered important enough to share greetings and messages. One particular speaker hugged the mic far too long exalting her company’s products and services. She, or at least her company, must have paid a lot as one of the main sponsors of the event.
Pinoy entertainment ran throughout the day and even a little past the closing time of 9 p.m. Hip hop dancers and small groups of singers, bands and other local Pinoy entertainers continued the celebrations on the main stage. Beatbox Back2Beats, Center Lane, Maria Charmane Angelika Borbe, Kimmortal, and Street Smart wowed the crowd after Martin left the house. I hadn’t heard of them. But the crowd’s support for each entertainer was very loud. Laudable.
The live bands were scheduled to take the stage from 6 to 9 p.m. But the crowd was still there way past 9 pm. Pinoy events are known to start late and to end late. This despite the reality that punctuality and following schedules are virtues clearly pushed by Canadian society. Filipino time, what else can I say.
Vendiola Personal Blog Stories 