Each year, the silleteros, the men and women from Santa Elena, work tirelessly to create the most beautiful silletas (flower arrangements) possible.
Due to the variety of sizes and themes for the silletas, there are various classes, including: children’s, junior’s, traditional, emblematic, monumental, and commercial.
Before the parade begins, all the silletas are judged in a competition.
Then, once the parade gets under way, the silleteros who placed first, second, third, fourth or fifth in their class get to walk out in that order.
Imagine the excitement those winners are feeling as they just learned the news, and then have to walk with the display on their back for several hours!
In between the silleteros, you’ll see marching bands and dance troupes performing. The whole event is a beautiful display of paisa culture.
The overall winner of the 2013 competition performs a 360-degree turn to show off his winning silleta (flower arrangement)A marching band from Bello, the city bordering Medellin to the northThe 1st place silleta in the children’s division. Often following in their parent’s footsteps, some of these kids will continue as silleteros into adulthood.This silletera placed 4th in the children’s divisionThe 4th place silleta in the children’s division says “Thank you God for this moment.”The 5th place silleta in the children’s divisionA large, human-powered floatBetween the various groupings of silleteros were colorfully dressed dancersThe procession of Junior silleterosThe Junior silleterosThe Colombian version of the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts walk along with the silleteros, helping them to carry the silletas whenever it’s neededThe 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place silletas in the Traditional categoryColorful dressesA long line of traditional silletasThe parade of Emblematic silletasA close-up view of one of the Monumental silletasSeveral of the silleteros in the Traditional group1st place in the Commercial group went to a silleta honoring the local policeAnother commercial flower silleta displays the icon on the Medellin city flagSeeing the police dogs pull little silleta displays on wheels is one of my favorite moments of the paradeA view north shows the tail end of the parade, featuring donkeysThe view to the south, as the parade wraps up. From here, I walked a few blocks through the crowds, and caught a taxi the rest of the way home.
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