Holiday Destination: Cebu City
Known as the Queen City of the South, Cebu offers a perfect marriage between the old and the new. It is home to the oldest street in the country, Calle Colon and the oldest religious icon brought to the Philippines by the Spaniards, the statue of Sto. Nino de Cebu housed in the Basilica Minore […]
Holiday Eats: Crispy Pata
Lechon is perhaps the most festive of all Filipino dishes! But for people who don’t have access to lechon or find it beyond their budget, crispy pata is a great alternative. Just like the equally tasty lechon kawali, crispy pata has the same crunchy pork skin and flavorful meat, only the former is made from […]
Simbang Gabi: The 9-Day Filipino Christmas Tradition
Simbang Gabi is a religious tradition brought by the Spanish to the Philippines. Nine mornings before Christmas Eve, Catholics wake up very early to go to church and attend mass. Most Filipinos believe that whoever attends all nine morning masses until Misa de Gallo will have a wish granted. Everyone attends Simbang Gabi starting on […]
The Longest Christmas in the World
Filipinos are proud to claim that they have the longest Christmas in the world. At the start of the months ending in ‘ber’, mothers start rummaging through boxes for all things Christmas. Trees, twinkling lights, angel figurines and baubles begin to adorn homes. Carols begin to play on the radio and pipe-in music in shopping […]
Holiday Destinations: Metro Manila
Bright lights, big city. Metro Manila is a destination for the modern globe trotter! Experience the sights and sounds of the Filipino Christmas without traveling too far from the comforts of an ultra-modern city. Manila is a melting pot of different cultures, not just from all over the Philippines, but from other parts of the […]
Holiday Eats: Lumpiang Shanghai
Christmas dinner and Noche Buena is not quite complete without lumpiang shanghai. Certainly not the case for our family. That is to say, the crunch of that first bite into the juicy goodness of lumpia makes it difficult to resist reaching out for one more roll. Lumpia is probably not originally Filipino. I daresay it’s […]
Parol: The Filipino Christmas Lantern
Filipinos call the local version of the Christmas lantern “parol”. The traditional lantern is a five-point star made of bamboo sticks and colored Japanese paper or cellophane. Originally, people place a lighted candle inside during nighttime but due to fire accidents, they switched to LED twinkling lights. The parol represents the star of Bethlehem that the […]
Christmas for Filipino Children
Just like anywhere else in the world, Christmas in the Philippines revolves around children. Christmas for Filipino children often means receiving more gifts and being the center of attention, especially on the day itself. Perhaps this is because the first Christmas was about the infant Jesus who was born in humble manger. Pamamasko – Caroling […]
Christmas in the Philippines
The Philippines is not called the “Land of Fiestas” for nothing. With a celebration for each day of the year, this tropical paradise of 7,107 islands truly deserves its title. Of all these festivals, Christmas or ‘Pasko’ is the most awaited. Pasko comes from the Spanish “Pascua de Navidad” which refers to Christmas. Filipinos consider […]
