SANTA MARIA, Ilocos Sur – Local officials and residents of this world’s heritage town due to its well-preserved Our Lady of Assumption baroque church have formally opened on Easter Sunday morning, April 9, their week-long Balikutsa Festival.
THIS attractive balikutsa and other agri-products–inspired float parked in front of the historic Our Lady of Assumption Church attracts the visitors during the opening of the 2023 Balikutsa Festival in Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur on Sunday. (Freddie G. Lazaro)
Santa Maria Mayor Brigido “Boy” Camarillo Jr. said the opening of their annual Balikutsa Festival was noteworthy as it coincided with the Easter Sunday celebration of the Holy Week.
“The opening of our Balikutsa Festival is very timely to reflect on ourselves and to rejoice on the rise of Jesus Christ from death, and at the same time to give tribute and appreciation of the sacrifices of our constituents, our farmers, and fisherfolk in our town,” said Camarillo.
Aside from the celebration of the Easter Sunday Eucharistic Mass at the Our Lady of Assumption Church, the parade of the 11 attractive Balikutsa and other agri-fishery products-inspired floats graced the opening of the festival which will run until April 14.
The town’s festival became noted because of Balikutsa (sugar cane candy), the town’s One Town, One Product (OTOP), which attracts tourists and visitors.
Santa Maria became well-known because its centuries-old Our Lady of Assumption church was recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site on Dec. 11, 1993, as part of the Baroque Churches of the Philippines, a collection of four Baroque Spanish-era churches.
Highlighting the activities of the festival are the following: Day of Thanksgiving – April 9 with the other opening activities: Marching band contest, mass calisthenics contest, and search for Miss SantaMaria 2023; Day of Balikutsa, April 10 with Balikutsa Cooking Contest and Balikutsa Community Cultural Festival; Day of the LGBTQ, April 11; Balikbayan Day, April 12; Day of Saint Mary, April 13; and Day of Creativity, April 14 with the 1st Balikutsa Festival Motorshow.