Photo by: TrapikMedia on Flickr
December is finally here! Few more weeks and we will be celebrating one of the most festive events for the year – Christmas.
Everyone knows that Christmas is more than just a celebration among us Filipinos. Christmas means meeting and spending time with family and friends; this is the best time to reunite loved ones we dearly miss.
Have you planned your trip to the Philippines? There is no other Christmas like spending it in the Philippines surrounded by your relatives, friends and new friends. One of the most anticipated part of Pinoy Christmas is the noche buena.
Literally means “good night”, noche buena is our Christmas dinner. But what makes it different from other culture? We have our noche buena at Christmas eve- just as the clock strikes midnight. So we stay up all night every December 24 planning, cooking and just waiting for the time to dine.
We Filipinos love to eat and this can be seen in our buffet-style noche buena. Dinner consist of more than two main courses ,desserts and free flowing of drinks – alcoholic or not.
Traditionally, families hear mass and just in time for the Christmas eve, we eat together as a family. After dinner, we exchange gifts.
What do we usually share for the noche buena? The centerpieces are the jamon or ham and the queso de bola. Some have lechon, fried chicken, kaldereta and even paella. For deserts, salads are all-tie favourites like the fruit and macaroni salad. Cakes, mango floats and ice creams are present at the dining table.
As our custom dictates, the amount of food is not the mere measure of our happiness during Christmas. Sometimes, we just have the simple pancit or Filipino-style spaghetti or the kesong puti (caabao cheese) and pan de sal with hot chocolate. What matters most among us Filipinos is that we spend it together, not just with our families but even with our neighbors and the whole barangay singing songs and just being merry. 
You still got time to plan your trip to the Philippines. Book your flight and holiday with us!