Not a lot of people attended the Guam Liberation Festival Tuesday night.
Not a lot of people attended the Guam Liberation Festival Tuesday night, a contrast to Liberation Carnivals in previous years, which often drew a large crowd as a local summertime staple.
The July 11 opening event saw a sizable crowd. However, a week later, attendance has subsided.
Island resident Amada Manzana was disappointed with the lack of people on Tuesday night and left the festival after arriving.
"Schedule says it starts at 5 p.m. so we were there at 5:30 p.m. (to beat the crowd), but it was empty, so we left," Manzana said.
Castro said hopefully it’ll change July 19, when the usual Chamorro Village Wednesday Night Market is held. The weekly event is a major attraction for visitors and locals.
Other employees for vendors at the market also said the attendance at the festival was low and anticipated the crowd would be better July 19.
The vendors are situated in the concrete huts at Paseo. At about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, there weren’t many people in the area. The festival isscheduled to run nightly from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. through July 19 .Hours are extended July 20-21 to 11 p.m. The last day of the festival is on July 22 when it will run from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The Liberation Carnival in past years was handled by the Mayors’ Council of Guam but after a law was passed prohibiting gambling at the carnival grounds and other Liberation Day activities, the mayors said there wasn't any funding for the carnival. Gambling at the carnival helped pay for the event, mayors said.
Gov. Eddie Calvo in April stepped in and formed a team from the Guam International Airport Authority, The Department of Chamorro Affairs, the Guam Visitors Bureau and the Guam Economic Development Authority.
The carnival this year was called the Guam Liberation Festival and had about 20 vendors, according to the governor’s office.
Adelup announced the band Tribal Theory will be performing at the festival on July 21 and July 22.