CEBU CITY, Cebu, Philippines (PIA) — An estimated four million people were seen gathered here at the height of the Sinulog Mardi Gras last Sunday, a record turnout, according to observers, in the festival’s 32-year history.

Cebu City Police Director Ramon Melvin Buenafe, who estimated last year's crowd at over two million, said no major untoward incidents were reported.

This year, there were also more contingents – 135 – that joined the grand parade, with the program, capped with a spectacular fireworks display at the Cebu City Sports Complex (CCSC) ending close to 9 p.m.

Vice President Jejomar Binay briefly greeted the crowd at the CCSC’s “Pit Senyor” before mingling with the people outside along the carousel route.

Other politicians also seen during the event included Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr., party-list Representative Teodoro Casiño, and former senators Francisco Tatad and Miguel Zubiri.

Monday’s grand parade elicited appreciation from tourists who watched the event for the first time. One such tourist was Kristin Kidd, a Canadian actress who said the festival was “more fun” compared with other festivals in other countries. It was also “very unique and very cultural,” she added.

Kidd, who was dressed in comical costume, said she was part of a reality film being shot which will eventually be posted in the internet channel, Channelfix.

Another was 911 hero Rebecca Canalija, a Cebuana nurse in her 50s now based in New York who came here to watch and take part in the Sinulog for the first time.

According to Canalija, she had heard good things about the event from her friends in the US who have experienced the Sinulog in previous years.