'Tis the season to be jolly! It really is during the holiday season that one can proudly say “It’s more fun in the Philippines!” with the 4-month Christmas celebration in this predominantly Catholic nation.
As early as September, people decorate their homes with twinkling lights, and shiny green and red decor. Truly a bearer of different cultures, there would be fixtures of the Nativity scene along with the Belen statues, a big Santa coming down the chimney and faux evergreens, adorning not just the Filipino homes but also malls and store establishments nationwide. Despite Halloween taking place first in November, Christmas decors are more popular to put up.
As the Jose Mari Chan memes hint as early as June, you will already hear his familiar melodious voice as soon as the “-ber” months start until the end of January. And by December, street carolers will serenade houses with their make-shift instruments and ensemble to uplift the holiday mood and spirit, as a way for them to also earn some coins during Christmas.
Simbang Gabi
As soon as the middle of December starts, the simbang gabi novena masses will commence until Christmas Day. It is a Filipino tradition to complete the simbang gabi. Some even wake up at dawn to get ready for the 3 a.m. novena mass and even go so far as to visit nine different churches. But as this is impractical for people who are productive throughout the day, they choose to attend the anticipated Eucharistic celebration usually scheduled around 8 p.m., right after they come home from work.
From the crunching of the leaves on the gravel to the lively giggles of children frolicking at the church courtyard, the festive scent of the night air, the quiet chatter of people before the eucharistic celebration, and the occasional yells from the street vendor peddling his freshly-made bibingka and puto bumbong, with steam still wafting off the delicious moist goods… Ah, yes! These are just some of the things that make Paskong Pinoy so familiar, soothing and comforting.
Commonly sold outside these churches are sticky rice cakes or bibingka, some with salted egg and coconut shavings on top, and puto bumbong or purple rice desserts with brown sugar and also coconut shavings. Some choose to pair the sticky goodness with steaming hot chocolate to warm the cold gloomy Christmas weather.
Paskong Pinoy
Truly a celebration for Filipino families, it is also the time when overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) come home to reunite and spend a short but joyous time with their families. As such, it really is something to look forward to for them to finally see their children after a long time—some, even, after long years of not seeing them.
And of course, they do not forget the pasalubong they have for relatives and loved ones stored in their humongous balikbayan boxes filled with the must-have chocolates, toys, lotions, bath goods, keychains, food, and other stuff they got, especially for their children to make up for the lack of time and the moments they had missed.
With family-centric values molded in the hearts of Filipinos, it is common for them to go back to their hometowns in the provinces to spend the holidays with their relatives and loved ones. Definitely a moment for long anticipated get-togethers, Filipinos truly look forward to this season as they save up for food and gifts for the special occasion.
All kinds of Christmas sale will pop up every now and then, whether in malls or through discounts that one can avail online; some even save money, or work overtime or both, or have already planned to spend for their 13th-month pay or Christmas bonus, for Noche Buena, media noche, monito-monita, aguinaldo and other Christmas events.
A tradition of some kind which is popular for locals is to go to the markets or to the stalls of Divisoria to buy gifts in bulk to save a little money. With a lot of relatives lined up for the gift-giving season, this is one of the best ways to spend less but is actually giving more.
Some famous go-to places include Quiapo, Greenhills, and Baclaran. There will also be a lot of Christmas bazaars open around this time but expect to be overwhelmed by the crowd, especially for those who are hunting for yuletide gifts at the very last minute.
For those who plan to put up the holiday decor, some Christmas goers like to take a visit to Dapitan Arcade in Quezon City where people can buy inexpensive but quality items for Christmas decors.
To avoid the Christmas madness, buy things needed for Christmas as early as you can as crowds begin to gather around the start of November, from large department stores to the cheap bargain stalls in Divisoria.
Another popular method nowadays would be to shop online for your needed Christmas items. However, it would also be wise to do it early so as to not get your shipping delayed along with the numerous orders they have.
Christmas parties are also very popular in the Philippines as this is a yearly event for work associates to relax and have fun; college students to take a breather; and long-time friends to catch up. Potlucks, where every individual in the party brings food, is the most popular way to save more but still have more than enough to keep all visitors full throughout the whole celebration.
Taking place right on Christmas day is the Misa de Gallo, where families come together, even the ones who do not go to church often to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas. It starts at 10 p.m. on Christmas eve, just in time for noche buena right after the mass. Another midnight feast will also take place on New Year’s Eve—the media noche.
People would usually spend the actual Christmas day on a relative’s house where a feast would again be held with Christmas dishes such as lumpia, lechon baboy, mango graham, tiramisu, leche flan, fruit salad, and sweet ham with queso de bola. Children also come to get their aguinaldo sealed in ang pao.
All these Christmas festivities would last until the Three Kings’ Day which falls on the sixth of January. The celebration of Epiphany -—also called the Pasko ng Matatanda—takes place on this day also to honor senior citizens.
For some, the Filipino Christmas spirit never truly dies until the Feast of the Black Nazarene every January 9, and the Feast of the Santo Niño every third Sunday of January.
Furthermore, sometimes some people extend their Paskong Pinoy celebrations until Feast of Our Lady of the Candles every February 2 which marks the 40th day from Christmas in correspondence to Lent. Some church still keep the nativity scene up to this day as this is when Mary participated in a rite of purification and Simeon revealed his prophecy about the Holy Child to both Mary and Joseph.