Beside waiting for the first rain of May, Filipinos wait for this month because of an important festival, the Flores de Mayo. This month-long festival is observed among many towns in the Philippines in honor of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. During the feast, young girls would offer flowers to the Virgin Mary in a daily basis for the whole month.
The feast then culminates with a colorful and pomp parade of beautiful town ladies in their best dress, escorted by young lad and a decorative arc. This parade is the procession of Santacruzan. The ladies are the Reynas and other muses portraying characters from the Bible and female figures in Christian history. It celebrates the finding of the Holy Cross of Christ by Queen Helena.
If you’re not familiar with the santacruzan and the symbolisms it carries, you are in the right page to know the queens and their corresponding symbols. Here’s an infographic from M2Comms to help you know the details of this procession.
