Last Sunday in Volcan there was a Parada de Flores, or Flower Festival, so Cedo and I went to check it out. We picked up her friend Daisy along the way and headed up the mountain, arriving in Volcan about 10 AM. People were arriving in cars and buses, and lining the main street of Volcan to wait for a parade.
A policeman told us there should be a parade starting shortly since it was scheduled for 10AM. We found a place to sit on the steps in front of some nearby stores. This turned out to be a great spot because there was an overhang for the rain that was to come. We waited.. 10:30… waited some more … 11:00… by 11:20 or so my behind was getting sore and I was restless so I walked down the street to see if I could see the parade getting ready.
I walked quite a ways, almost to the other end of main street but I only saw more people waiting, and I eventually turned around. On the way back I asked a policeman about la parada de flores. He told me that was down another street, and the parade is another event that was coming ahorita (right now).
By the time I got back to my friends it was close to noon. I wasn’t back long when it started to rain, and soon it was raining hard! This is when the first of the parade arrived at our location.
It was a rather slow parade but there were a lot of pretty floats and flowers. One thing would come along and wait for a while, then move on. Sometimes it was a while before the next thing would arrive. A truck or float would stop so everyone could come close and take photos, and maybe the next would be close behind or maybe it would be a ways down the street. Thankfully the rain didn’t last long and though everything was still wet, one could put down the umbrellas and come out from under overhangs.
The band from Chitre marched in this parade, and I noticed something about the Rose Bowl Parade on their drums. I was told that they won the chance to go to the parade, a great honor, so I did some research. Check out this article and this other article. How exciting!! The band won out of 105 bands and is not only the first band from Panama to march in the Rose Bowl Parade, but it is the first from anywhere in Latin America!! There is also a video, a bit long but I really enjoyed watching it. You can see them marching, their half time performance on the field, and a few photos also.
OK, back to Volcan. Here’s some video of the parade we saw on Sunday.
I am very glad that we went in the morning. We headed down the hill after the parade and the road was full of cars coming up to Volcan, bumper to bumper traffic almost all the way to Cuesta de Piedra! Every stopping point and restaurant along the way was overflowing. My friend Hydeé said a coworker went in the afternoon. It took them 3 hours to get there, and when they arrived there wasn’t much to see and do. This is the first year of the event and I’m sure they didn’t expect such a huge turnout. Next year they can be better prepared, but if we go we will definitely go in the morning again. For us, it was a day well spent.
The Panama Adventure 
It is good to know that the boys worked very hard to participate in Rose Parade. They come from a small interior town with limited resources. They got the invitation but didn’t have the money for airplane tickets and travel expenses. But they worked harder. Gave concerts, did raffles and activities to raise the money needed. Close to the date they were still short on the money and people asked the government to sponsor the money needed… And the government gave them the money. How happy were those young boys and young girls.. a dream came true. In the video you see how proud they were and their big smiles. An experience thy won’t forget ever.
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They should be very proud! I saw in the articles that they worked very very hard, and it’s great the government gave them the money. Not going just wouldn’t have been an option. And, I was thinking as I watched their video, many people in the US don’t even know that Panama exists, and there were all these beautiful young people doing a great job and putting Panama on the map. It’s a wonderful thing.
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Very cool and the band must be so proud!! I’m impressed they continued the parade amidst the downpour because I think here it would have been cancelled. They were dumping out water from their instruments…can’t be good for them. I use to play clarinet for 6 yrs.
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The band should be very proud! Roger in his comment above says a bit more about all they went through to get to the Rose Bowl. As for instruments in the rain, that crossed my mind too. Maybe they are plastic clarinets that do better in the rain. They should be because it rains a lot here during holiday and parade season, and nothing stops for rain. The rain here is warm though so you are only wet, not cold.
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Nice desfile in spite of the rain. I believe there was/has been Mexican band(s) and Guatemalan(s) in the Rose Parade. It was also a long wait but it didn’t rain when I saw it.
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Hola amigo! One of the articles said they were the first band from Latin America, but I other than that info I don’t know. If they invite bands from other countries its hard to believe that none of the neighbors to the south have participated.
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Hola,
The article must be Panamanian and not counting countries north as part of Latin America.
Here is a link that seems to show one of these bands: http://ktla.com/2014/12/31/the-126th-tournament-of-roses-parade-preview-live-from-the-tournament-house/
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Yes, I think most would consider Mexico also part of Latin America. I’m sure they were really excited too! Thanks for the link.
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