Viva Vigan: holding the meaning of Culture amidst pandemic

                                                                               

 

A year has passed again and occasions are yet to come. January 25th is known as the Vigan City Festival Day! It is one of the most awaited and widely celebrated occasion in the city amidst the season of January. We Bigueños look forward to this day because we are used to celebrate this   kind of occasions. The festival includes many events including dance competitions, parades, and other fun and cultural activities that symbolizes our beloved city. However, since the pandemic is still taking part in our society, this kind of events are truly affected. Most of the religious festivals at this time of year celebrate prosperity, hope and light, and it is important that we hold onto the meaning of these celebrations all the more if we cannot mark them in the way we might have in the past.  I truly agree that celebrating any kind of festivals, traditions, and occasions amidst the COVID-19 pandemic is really hard.

Amidst the pandemic, People are strictly prohibited to go to places and enjoy different events, because minimum public health standards still needs to be strictly and religiously followed. Thus, big gatherings are discouraged and some opted to celebrate virtually instead of physically having it with friends and others. But, with abundance of faith, hope and love, the celebration seems to be not fully affected by the pandemic. Even though public gatherings are prohibited and some events of the festival are pretentious, there are still ways to celebrate this kind of occasion. Just like in the previous year, they made the events happen thru online, all events and activities of festivals are done online. Thus, this events may done online again this year since the pandemic is still going on. Activities like essay makings, historic orals, and even dance competitions are done with the help of technology. The usual celebration of Fiesta’s that we have been accustomed would not be possible this year. Indeed, despite the pandemic and the various difficulties it has brought to many and the world at large, most particularly on how these occasions, celebrations and festivities have been altered and restricted to some extent, our celebration of these kinds of gatherings should not be ruined with COVID as we can still celebrate our traditions and cultures simply and meaningfully.

Although the implementation of this event is truly challenging due to the various number of covid-19 cases, it will not fully affect us to continue our celebration regardless of the trials that we are facing at the moment, and even though we may not do this the usual way, at least we showed the true meaning of hope, faith and love for our beloved city.

Resources:

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/travel/369711/govt-campaigns-for-vigan-in-penultimate-stage-of-wonder-cities-search/story/