Who’s up for a fun-filled trip to Bacolod for the Masskara Festival this October? Considered as one of the liveliest and most colorful festivals in the country, the festival is definitely the perfect time to visit Bacolod City.
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| photograph by: pinoyadventurista |
The festival does not have a fixed date, but is set on the third weekend of October to make it as close to the Charter Anniversary as possible. This year, the festival committee has not yet released an official schedule to guide the public, but the tentative, unofficial schedule is this:
Masskara Festival 2014 Highlights
- October 17, 2014 (Friday) - MassKara Street Dancing and Arena Competition (School Category)
- October 18, 2014 (Saturday) - MassKara Street Dancing and Arena Competition (Barangay Category)
- October 19, 2014 (Sunday) - Bacolod City Charter Day Celebrations
What to Expect
If this is going to be your first time to join the festivities for the Masskara Festival, then be prepared for the best – and the worst! Most of the streets along the grand parades’ routes will be jam-packed with people from all walks of life, children and adults alike. Be prepared to deal with crowds – and to pick your way among the throng should you wish to leave your spot.
Hotel rooms and transients homes will be, more often than not, fully booked in the weeks leading to the festival; in fact, there is a high chance they get fully booked months before the festival! Such would be the case for the hotels located along the route as well as favorite spots in the city.
So, some piece of advice: book early so you can secure the best rooms in the best hotels in the city.
About the Festival
Going to the festival is worth your money, especially because you get to enjoy not one but two grand Masskara parades: one for the school category and another for the barangay category. It is the barangay category that draws the most viewers, however, and is considered to be the main highlight of the street dancing competition.
Expect to see a splash of color in the stunning dresses and amazingly colorful masks the dancers will be wearing for the parade and street dancing competition. These masks are always painted with smiling faces, bringing cheer to everyone.
The festival was born at a time of suffering, when a crisis hit the sugar industry, which is the main livelihood of the people in Bacolod City at the time. It emerged in the same time frame as the tragedy that claimed 700 lives, many of whom were from the city: the sinking of MV Don Juan.
The happy masks are a tribute to the city’s nickname as the “City of Smiles” as well as a way of uplifting the people’s spirits, bringing smiles and happiness to the gloomy hearts of the people. The Masskara Festival is the city’s way of rising up from the ashes of despair, to survive and triumph over the sad situations.
It was called Masskara as a pun to “mascara” or mask, but the true reason behind its name is “mass” for the people and “kara” for face, a term created by the late artist Ely Santiago. So, the term “Masskara” for the festival means a “multitude or a mass of faces”; that really is something you can look forward to this October.
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