Medellín’s Annual Flower Festival

Every August the already bustling city of Medellín bursts with life and merriment during the annual Flower Festival, one of Colombia’s most famous events. The two-week party includes numerous cultural events, with free concerts, exhibitions and parades, all of which are designed to show off Colombia’s second city to the world. People from all over Colombia and, indeed, all over the world, descend on Medellín to partake in the festivities which include an antique car parade, an orchid and bird exhibition in the city’s botanical garden, and a six-hour horse parade with more than 10,000 participating (and in many cases, inebriated and/or scantily-clad) riders. 

Without a doubt, the largest and most famous event is the Silleteros Parade, in which dozens of campesinos, or farmers, from the neighbouring municipality of Santa Elena walk slowly down the mountain into Medellín, painstakingly carrying intricate flower arrangements on their backs. The parade is one of the proudest moments for the city, a spectacle that demonstrates the lingering memories the Paisas have of the agricultural beginnings of their city, and the strong connection they maintain to the surrounding countryside and to nature in general.

Motivated by the wonderfully festive atmosphere that pervailed in the city, and taking advantage of Colombia’s Independence Day falling on a Tuesday, the children and staff at one of GlobalteerVolunteer Colombia Children’s projects decided to throw a big party at their project. The pijamada, or pajama party, took place on the Monday night before the holiday, and was attended by around 20 children, staff and volunteers. 

The all-night event included numerous co-operative games in which the children had to work together in order to beat the opposing team. Ex-volunteer Alex used some of the skills he had learnt during his time in the Canadian Army to instruct the children on his team in the best ways to duck under or jump over an extended rope, or to successfully snatch away the other team’s flag. The kids stayed up all night, first enjoying a large meal of soda and Chinese rice, and then being entertained with ghost stories, karaoke, and scary movies. 

To further celebrate the Flower Festival the children at the Globalteer Volunteer Colombia Children’s project took a cue from the Silleteros Parade and spent the following week constructing their own silletas. Instead of flowers, they used coloured tissue paper, and made constructions specifically to represent the project at a large children’s parade in one of Medellín downtown parks. 

The parade, El Desfile Infantil, was attended by numerous children from various foundations from Medellín’s downtown area, each foundation arriving with their own unique silleta and with their children adorned in traditional costumes. The children from each foundation took turns walking behind their silletas, proudly showing off their finished products to onlookers.