ShareThisMANILA — It’s Christmas time and everyone is thinking of places to visit!
Everywhere, you can see trees draped with blinking, colorful lights. Lanterns adorn lampposts and windows. Red, green and gold paint the town. Christmas carols waft in the air. And the weather gets colder each day.
Indeed, the Christmas season is here again!
Filipinos are known to have the longest celebration of Christmas in the world. In more ways than one, the Philippine-style Yuletide season begins with a nine-day Misa de Gallo on Dec. 16.
Among its features are exchange gifts among friends and family members; parties highlighted with the eating of delicious “lechon” (roasted pig) and joyous as well as sometimes tearful family reunions.
Visiting various places is also a traditional way of marking Christmas.
Here are some places that ought to be seen or visited during the Yuletine season:
* Symphony of Parols at the Ayala Triangle Gardens
The Ayala Triangle Gardens, nestled in the heart of the Makati Central Business District, is Ayala Land’s latest Christmas offering.
The Gardens has a clump of first-class restaurants amid a surprising green foliage in a busy section of Makati. It formally opened with a lights-and-sound show called the Symphony of Parols (Lanterns) last Nov. 17.
Young and old promenaders are in for a breathtaking show from the creative geniuses of Voltaire de Jesus (for the lights) and Jethro Joaquin (for the sounds).
The 30-minute Symphony of Parols is the highlight of a string of events at the Gardens, all aimed to bring Yuletide cheers. It will run everyday until Dec. 23 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
* Policarpio Street in Mandaluyong City
Policarpio Street seemingly is an ordinary street by day. But it bursts into a Christmas wonderland at night. This is an apt description for this famous street in Barangay New Zaniga in Mandaluyong.
Christmas after Christmas, this street has attracted a throng of people and has also landed on the news for the extravagant Christmas decorations of the houses there. It has become a part of Filipino Christmas culture ever since the Policarpio Street homeowners started their elaborate Christmas decorations in 1995.
Although the participating homes have lessened as times called for austerity, the tradition continues to live on. You can visit the place this December. They usually open at 6 p.m until midnight.
* COD Christmas Show at the Greenhills Shopping Center
Who will forget the animated mannequins at COD in Cubao, Quezon City? Time was when Christmas wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the Araneta Center to watch the free show. It was a crowd drawer, because the moving life-sized figurines could be seen even from afar. A lot of kids and old-timers surely enjoyed watching the colorful display.
The annual Christmas show in Cubao folded up in 2002 when COD closed shop. But it has long since found a new home at the Greenhills Shopping Center in nearby San Juan City. This year, the theme is “Christmas in Wonderland.”
The show will run every 30 minutes from 6:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. It can be viewed until Jan. 2, 2011.
* Giant Christmas tree at the Araneta Center
The 100-foot tall Christmas tree in Cubao is probably the tallest Yuletide symbol in the country. The lighting of the said tree has become an annual tradition, observed for 29 years now at the Araneta Center. This year, the multi-color electric lights of the Christmas tree were switched on last Nov. 12. It was well-attended by many Filipino popular actors and actresses.
People are in for a lot of holiday treats with Araneta Center’s fireworks shows, chorale performances, and bazaars this December.
* University of the Philippines Lantern Parade
The annual U.P. Lantern Parade is marked with giant, colorful lanterns and floats. It is held on the last day of classes before the university goes on a Christmas break. In 1922, U.P. President Jorge C. Bocobo established the activity for students to enjoy before each year ended.
The tradition has caught the attention of many people. Every year, U.P. schools and colleges are anticipated to come up with unique lanterns and floats in line with the parade’s central theme. Not only the floats bring Yuletide cheer, but these also send out messages with relevance to the current events in the country.
This year’s parade will be held on Dec. 17 from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Many students participate actively each year in the 2.2-kilometer walk in the academic oval.
* Star City
If you want to experience a white Christmas without going abroad, then go to the Star City near the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCVP) Complex along Roxas Blvd. in Manila. Aside from the rides, the theme park offers “Snow World,” an indoor facility that boasts a below-zero temperature, giant ice slides and life-sized ice carvings. This is the closest we Filipinos could ever get to experiencing snow in the country.
Star City is open from 1 p.m. to 12 midnight on weekdays and 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. on weekends.
Take your pick, or better yet, visit them all! After all, the Christmas season comes but only once a year. Make the most out of it and enjoy the holidays! (PNA)