The Philippines Today, Yesterday, and Tomorrow
Batuin A bright and flashy Christmas is a highlight (pun intended) of Kapampángan culture, and the City of San Fernando is considered the Christmas Capital of the Philippines with its giant lanterns! The star of the festivities—the parúl (which originates from Pampanga)—is iconically star-shaped. BATUIN • (buh-TWIN)starTagálog (Filipino): bituín Example sentence:Kórtí lang batuin ding parul.“The … Read more
Cooked Rice in the 12 Major Languages of the Philippines How do you say “rice” in your language? November is Rice Awareness Month in the Philippines! If you didn’t know, the Philippines is a very multicultural, multiethnic, and multilingual country with more than 180 languages (not just dialects!) native to the archipelago, and we’ve also … Read more
San Pedro Macati Church The Saints Peter and Paul Parish Church stand as one of the few remaining vestiges of Makati City’s Spanish colonial past. The parish began as one of two churches (the other being the current Nuestra Señora de Gracia Church) established by missionaries in the early 1600s. The churches served as stopovers … Read more
On this day, December 23, is the birth of National Artist Victorio Edades (1895). The official calendar of the Republic of the Philippines: an almanac of Philippine commemorations enlivened with illustrations and information. –Manila: Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office, [2014]. On this day in 2001, Argentina announced the suspension of the payment of … Read more
Duman Festival (Santa Rita, Pampanga) The town of Santa Rita celebrates the harvest of its precious Duman every December with its Duman Festival where one can sample Duman delicacies and Kapampangan cooking. Its highlight includes the zarzuela or the Kapampangan musical play performed by the Kapampangan theater group Arti Sta. Rita who spearheaded the festival. … Read more