Buling-Buling Festival is a religious and cultural event celebrated annually in Pandacan, Manila in the Philippines on the third Saturday of January, in time with the town's fiesta, to honor its patron saint, Santo Niño — a wooden image of child Jesus Christ. It is a festival of street dancing where its people, Pandaqueños who are well-dressed in traditional Filipino costumes, dance along the streets of Pandacan accompanied by marching bands. In 2005, it was adopted as Manila's official cultural dance identity. History The cultural dance, Buling-Buling, comes from the Filipino word “buling-buli” which locally means well-polished or well-prepared signifying something or somebody well-groomed for an event or occasion. This is manifested in its colorful celebration with graceful and well-practiced dance movements and detailed indigenous costumes. According to the narrative of historian Mendoza (1979), the street dance festival first began in 1800, decades after the establishment of the town's parish church. In those days, only the ladies in Pandacan participated in the street dancing as well-described by Mendoza (1979): “There is a beautiful performance by the ladies in Pandacan that dates back to early times and this is done during the vigil of the fiesta, called Buling-buling. Beautiful ladies are chosen for their ability to sing and dance well, as they will sing and dance along the streets accompanied by guitars or an orchestra. And while they do so on the way to the church, young men throw them coins, flowers, and confetti from the roadside. Everyone is joyous.” When the Second World War broke out, lives changed including the Buling-Buling which ceased to be practiced by the people. It was only in the late 1970s when the Samahang Sining at Kalinangan ng Pandacan (SSKP), founded by Ricardo B. Mendoza, initiated the revival of the colorful dance festival. Since then, it has been instituted as a kind of ritual by men and women who dance to the accompaniment of musical instruments such as guitars, bandurrias, orchestra, and marching bands. Purpose The main purpose of this festival is to give praise and thanksgiving to Santo Niño de Pandacan for all the blessings its community has received. This is particularly shown during the performance when the image of Santo Niño is moved around the dancers to keep them under His protection — suggesting the real life experience of its people when they ask for guidance and protection at times in need. The