We were lucky that when we were in Puerto Princesa, Palawan last year, they had their Baragatan Festival. The festival is an annual week-long event celebrating the founding anniversary of the civil government of Palawan.
Baragatan is the Cuyuno (a dialect) word for "beggar" and means a convergence of people coming together from various municipalities bringing their songs, dances and music and presenting these aspects of their life through cultural presentations, trade shows, exhibitions, float parade and street dancing (definition paraphrased from Palawan's official website). Baragatan also has an official website. Click HERE for details.
In the afternoon of our arrival, we were told there was a float parade but we already had our tours of Iwahig, Crocodile Farm, Butterfly Garden, Mitra Ranch, Baker's Hill and Puerto Princesa scheduled in our itinerary that we decided to just skip the float parade.
On our third night, after having dinner at Kinabuchs Grill & Bar, we decided to go to the plaza where the trade show was being held. In there were booths of various municipalities of Palawan that showcased their products.
There were food stalls too as well as booths selling Palawan souvenirs and products like bags and of course, the perennial shirts. I did not buy any shirt though as I did not like the quality. But I did buy a pair of slippers as my sandals' strap got cut. Must be from all the walking. LOL.
A tip to those who plan to join this festivity: It can get too crowded especially at nights when there's an artista (local movie star) or banda (local band). This was the reason why for the past two nights of our stay, we evaded the plaza like the plague as the line in the entrance was too long.
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