The first-ever “Sinulog-Santo Niño Festival” held on the street of Taipei, bringing Taiwanese & Filipinos together

The first-ever “Sinulog-Santo Niño Festival” which is an annual cultural and religious festival held in the Philippines, was organized by the Manila Economic and Cultural Office and St. Christopher’s Church on the street of Taipei.

Filipinos in Taiwan celebrate this holy festival with dance, music, and parades along the streets, hoping to make Taiwanese people have a better understanding of the Philippine traditional culture.

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Taiwanese and Filipinos in Taiwan sing and dance together. (Photo / Retrieved from Facebook:菲律賓Fun鬆玩)

The Sinulog-Santo Niño Festival is held on the third Sunday of January in Cebu City, and on the fourth Sunday of January in Carmen, Cebu, in the Philippines. Sinulog is known for its street celebrations in addition to the religious aspect of the event. Sinulog is derived from the Cebuano adverb sulog, which roughly translates to "like water current movement" and defines the Sinulog dance's forward-backward movement. To the beat of drums, the dancers take two steps forward and one step backward.

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“Sinulog-Santo Niño Festival” is an annual cultural and religious festival held in the Philippines. (Photo / Retrieved from Facebook:菲律賓Fun鬆玩)

The organizer stated that 80% of the people in the Philippines believe in Catholicism, and the Sinulog is the soul of the faith. The migrant workers expressed their devotion to God through dance parades. The event also reproduces the customs and culture that can only be experienced by visiting the Philippines.