Culture Carried Through the Streets: My Simballay 2025 Experience

The morning air in Nabunturan felt different when the Simballay Festival began. It awakened with warmth and sound of early footsteps along the poblacion. Even before the music started, the town already seemed awake, smiles passed around as freely as greetings. This year’s celebration felt even more meaningful as the town gathered for the 30th Simballay Festival, a milestone that honored both tradition, memory and progress.

The Simballay Festival is celebrated to honor Nabunturan’s identity its history, resilience, and unity. Rooted in gratitude, it reflects the values of a community shaped by cooperation and faith. Year after year, Simballay reminds us that culture is not something kept in the past, it is something we live, move, and celebrate together.

By the time the drums echoed through the streets, the atmosphere turned electric. Dancers in vibrant costumes moved with purpose, their steps synchronized with the rhythm of beating drums. The colors told stories of memories and triumph. Standing among the crowd, shoulder to shoulder with strangers who felt like neighbors, I watched tradition unfold not just as performance, but as lived experience.

One of my personal highlights was joining the parade filled with lights, known as Iwag sa Kadalanan. As night fell, the streets transformed into a glowing path of color and sound. Lights shimmered from costumes and props, music echoed from every direction, and dancers filled the road with energy and pride. Walking alongside them, I felt completely immersed part of a moving celebration where culture quite literally lit the  way.

After the parade, I wandered through the streets and admired the bahay kubo displays created by different barangays. Each structure was handmade, thoughtfully designed with lights, farming products, and native materials. The creativity was undeniable, yet what stood out most was how deeply these displays were rooted in tradition. Though each barangay had its own style, all reflected the same cultural roots respect for the land, shared labor, and pride in agricultural life.

I was equally fascinated by the Gambalay booth thoroughfare, where creativity and livelihood met. Booths proudly showcased local farming products, crafts, and innovations, turning the area into a vibrant showcase of Nabunturan’s resourcefulness. Every display told a story of hard work and imagination, proving that culture thrives when people are given space to express it.

As the celebration reached its climax, fireworks lit up the night sky, drawing gasps and cheers from the crowd. In that moment, gratitude filled the air gratitude for the years of celebration, for the unity of the people, and for the leadership that made it possible. The unwavering support of Mayor Myrocel Clarin Balili was deeply felt, as her leadership and commitment to preserving culture helped bring the festival to life. The fireworks felt like more than spectacle, they were a tribute to thirty years of shared history and collective effort.

What struck me most was how the festival connected everyone. Locals and visitors blended into one crowd, bound by curiosity, joy, and pride. No one asked where you came from only whether you were enjoying the celebration.

As the final lights dimmed and the streets slowly returned to normal, the spirit of Simballay lingered. The Simballay 2025 left me with more than memories it left me with a deeper appreciation of our culture and community. Long after the drums faded and the fireworks settled into smoke, what remained was a quiet certainty. Our culture lives on, carried by the people who continue to celebrate it together.