Negros celebrates with a passion that reflects both its pre-colonial roots and its Spanish heritage. The biggest is the MassKara Festival in Bacolod, held every October around Charter Day. The streets fill with dancers wearing elaborate smiling masks -- the name combines 'mass' (crowd) and 'cara' (face). It started in 1980 and has become one of the Philippines' most famous festivals, with competitions in everything from pole climbing to disco dancing.
The Panaad Festival in April is Negros Occidental's main provincial celebration. All 13 cities and 19 municipalities showcase their food, crafts, and culture at the Panaad Park and Stadium outside Bacolod. The Babaylan Festival (19 February) revives pre-colonial Filipino traditions with aboriginal dances and body painting. In San Carlos, the Pinta Flores Festival honours Saint Carlos Borromeo with flower offerings and street dancing. And Murcia's Mudpack Festival on 24 June is exactly what it sounds like -- a parade of dancers wearing nothing but mud, celebrating the connection to the earth.