INSTEAD of the usual gift items this holiday, why not opt for a different kind of present? One that  fills tummies and helps young women scholars graduate.

Starting this month, the Punlaan School, an NGO-managed technical-vocational school that focuses on food and beverage services training, is organizing a food sale that will offer Christmas goodies baked by its own students. The gift ideas are very affordable: Read More »

By Tonette Orejas, Inquirer Central Luzon
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO— Every year, Pampanga’s giant Christmas lanterns light up the night sky and bring in the crowds.

In last year’s Ligligan Parul (Lantern Festival), eight lanterns, each measuring 5.5 meters in diameter and fitted with 3,000 to 6,000 bulbs, danced for the first time in 20 years to the music of a brass band, a tradition being revived in this Pampanga capital. Read More »

ANYWHERE ELSE in the world, Christmas is a December ‘thing .’ But in the Philippines,  the season unofficially begins as early as September, or the first of the ‘ber’ months, when department stores and certain radio stations start playing Christmas music.

Preparations for the year’s most awaited holiday— shopping for Christmas trees and decor, and even for Christmas gifts—go full blast after the Halloween. Read More »

Once a white elephant that slept soundly in the dark,  the Ninoy Aquino International Airport -Terminal 3 finally flickered into life before dawn of July 22  and accepted the first passengers of the very first flight out of it.

That was after six years of lying idle due to contract controversies and building safety concerns.

Today, three months after its opening and after a few more glitches, the NAIA 3 terminal is in business, providing passengers, as well as the airlines operating there,  a reprieve from the old domestic terminal. Read More »

EVERY CHRISTMAS season for the last 50 years, Filipinos have been receiving a very special treat from the Rosarios of COD Department Store-a colorful Christmas show free of charge.

This early, the Rosarios are busy preparing for this year’s Christmas show at the Greenhills Shopping Center, which is opening on Nov. 15.

The very first COD Christmas show was staged in 1957 at the department store’s original  location on Avenida Rizal in Manila. It started as a mere marketing gimmick to lure customers into going to and, eventually, shopping at the COD. Read More »