Excitement grips Pampanga city over giant lantern fest

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO— Ten Christmas lanterns, each 20 feet in diameter and fitted with 4,000 to 8,000 bulbs, are vying to be the most colorful modern-day replica of the Star of Bethlehem in this city’s Giant Lantern Festival on Dec. 17.

The competing lanterns are from the villages of Telabastagan, Calulut, San Juan, Dolores, San Pedro, Sta. Lucia, Del Carmen, Del Pilar, San Jose and Sto. Niño.

Alfrito Mah, chair of the Giant Lantern Festival Foundation Inc. (GLFFI), said six entries were using new metal frames, which meant these would have new designs.

Barangay Calulut is joining the contest for the first time since the festival was believed to have started in 1908 when Francisco Estanislao built a big lantern for a religious procession Christmas that year, according to Ching Pangilinan, city tourism chief. Barangay Del Carmen is rejoining the race after 57 years, she said.

The event is called “Ligligan Parul” or showdown of lanterns. It is celebrated as a religious feast only in this city, according to historians.

Mah said GLFFI and the city government gave a P120,000 subsidy to each participating village. But since costs could run up to P400,000 to include rotors, village officials look for sponsors and solicit donations.

Rotors are aluminum tubes that are moved so hair pins and a series of bulbs connected to these are exposed to the electricity source. The movements dictate when the bulbs will light up and project images.

The lantern designs are tightly guarded until the night of the competition when 20 judges are assembled in front of a large crowd. The winner gets P100,000. Tonette Orejas, Inquirer Central Luzon