Top Five Tips to Survive the Sinulog Festival

Cebu is ready. Are you ready for Sinulog 2013? Chinese Dragon Dancers during the 2012 SinulogThe Sinulog Festival is an annual Cebuano festival held on the third Sunday of January. It is a Catholic festival celebrating Cebu's patron saint, the Santo Nino. It is touted as the biggest mardi gras festival in the Philippines. The Santo Nino at the end of the ProcessionOn the Saturday before the grand parade, the Cebuanos hold the "Procession." Locals and tourists alike join a lengthy walk around the city holding with them their Santo Nino. For some, this is a panata (devotion) which they do every year. It's very hard to go around the city on this day as most streets are either closed or redirected. Taxis are nowhere to be found and jeepneys are only on selected routes. On the Sinulog day itself, there's a Sinulog Festival Grand Parade of colorful floats, schoolchildren, and street dancers go around the city. Spectators fill the streets to the brim. It is one of the grandest and most popular festivals in the Philippines. The Sinulog Crowd of Santo Nino DevoteesI hesitantly joined the Sinulog Festival 2012 and I was surprised to have totally enjoyed it. I'm…