every september 01, my friends greet me merry christmas... they wanted to be the first to greet me coz it's the BER MONTH... and in the phils, ber months = christmas is coming....or it has actually began....

i already hear christmas songs on the radio
the malls are starting to put christmas decors - lights, trees, wreaths...

yup yups.. i miss that kind of christmas spirit. here there's no decorations up until after thanksgiving which is like in november so

just yesterday, the news reported that already people are selling:


puto bungbong


bibingka

it is one of the symptoms that christmas is in the phils...

colorful parol...

Wow, I miss the Philippines and the Filipino Christmas! where streets are fill with COLORFUL LIGHTS!!!

Buy the Colorful Parols, when it is still Cheap! Prices go higher when Christmas is getting closer!

Man, can't believe that.

I'm pretty sure Christmas is pretty tiring around the time it starts.

Here in the United States you probably won't hear too much on X-mas until late November.

some filipinos start christmas shopping in sept because they are avoiding the rush... malls are full of people as christmas approaches...

anticipation of christmas is twice the fun... radios are counting the days to christmas...

not just the parol, pretty much everything "christmassy"... go higher as christmas approaches....

You forgot Thanksgiving and Halloween don't exist over there.

OMG! I would die for some putobungbong right now. THE ONES THERE! They have it in chicago but it's not the same with the things that they use in the philippines to cook it with.

of course it exists - we have halloween! nov 1 and 2 is all saints and all soul's day a.k.a. undas or todos los santos...
where we go to cemeteries to bring flowers and candles for our dead loved ones...

other pinoys are reluctant to set up christmas trees in their houses because halloween is still to come but sometimes the people and the spirit is just so enticing they can't help themselves...

but yes, we have no thanksgiving!

They do halloween but not like party or trick or treat .. its more of scaring yourself. Full of scary movies, documentaries, shows on TV

and it's nice to eat after the mass (simbang gabi or misa de gallo) with kapeng barako or as others prefer "salabat"...

I wanna experience simbang gabi =(

well, times have changed...we do have halloween parties now (custome party) but in selected areas. definitely not in rural areas /provinces.
in rural areas mostly, they do carolling (sing some songs around the barrio in exchange for coins/cash)
scary movies in the cinemas...yes!

before, when noli de castro isnt vice pres yet, he always feature scary stuffs in magandang gabi bayan (tv prog) ...we always wait for that but there's none of that anymore...


but hey, this ain't a halloween thread....

hahahaha...

a lot of love relationships developed from attending simbang gabi....hahaha....

Yeah, but they don't celebrate or commercialize it like the Americans do.

Of course in America the Christmas season doesn't start until after Thanksgiving, which is in late November.

But I think there is a "Thanksgiving", I think they celebrate it in mid-June and they don't call it a "Thanksgiving" but it's pretty much the same celebration.

yeah i know...

but halloween is getting commercialize na... especially in the metro...parties in clubs, bars and even the malls....
the west has invaded us already in case you don't know...

we celebrate independence day on june 12...but it's not like thanksgiving...it's the equivalent of your 4th of july!

i don't think there's anything that's similar to thanksgiving in the philippines, first of all there's no turkey. second, no pilgrims came to the philippines and started shooting native americans to claim a land and later celebrate it.. every year.. :]

there's that celebration before christmas eve.. something with a "buena"?

oh man I used to like those segments on magandang gabi where they feature like haunted places and whatever.

it's noche buena...it's the meal eaten by the family after attending the misa de gallo... it's at dawn....

remember balete drive and all the baguio ghost stories...creepy!

pinoys associate noche buena with ham...



and quezo de bola


FILIPINO HERITAGE - PASKONG PINOY

@calliezhou - Only four months to Christmas.
It seems they start Christmas early here too. The other day, Sept. 01, the "Almacen Navideño" (Christmas Warehouse) officially opened for the Christmas season. They even had fireworks.

Here they eat roast pork, which is called Lechón, big time.


They also drink alot for Christmas. Rum and beer.

Christmas in the Philippines must be nice.

Cool, we eat lechon too and prepare it in the exact same way as that picture, makes people fat and gives them high blood pressure hehe

where are you from islander?
yeah we eat lechon too...
111 days to go b4 christmas.... merry christmas!

it's an awful season for those diabetic and high blood family members we have...


leche flan (pinoy custard)

gulaman

buco pandan

buco salad...

these are must-have desserts in pinoy noche buena!

i was home for xmaz last season....

i wish i can go back home again for the holidays....

LOL.. i frikkin agree.. that's like the best part of simbang gabi hehe

too bad there's no simbang gabi for me

i'm gonna complete the 9 days and wish for boyfriend...
nah, they said if you completed the 9-day novena, your wish will be granted...

and every christmas season, aga mulach collects toys in almost all jollibee outlets for the less fortunate children on christmas!
if you are in the phils, donate some toys!

Well of course there isn't, but there is somewhat similar celebration in like the middle of the week of June, but it isn't June 12 Independence Day, more like June 8-10 and many families eat chicken and a whole bunch of crap on this day, I find it too similar to the American Thanksgiving.

HOW NOSTALGIC.... I miss simbang gabi, then eat puto bumbong, then sing carolling all night long and rack up moolah!

receiving gifts from "ninong & ninang"...