The developed culture in the Philippines was formed under the influence of local customs and other countries. In the culture of the country, a special part is occupied by love songs, literature, and traditional theater. People here prefer beauty contests, soap operas, sentimental and energetic films, concerts of local bands that imitate popular Western melodies perfectly. Filipinos have a surprisingly calm temperament; they are slow and always late. Therefore, if in any public institution you ask an employee for something and he says “One minute”, then it is not surprising if he returns twenty minutes later. For this country, this is quite typical. The positive side is that in the minutes of waiting you can drink something, smoke a cigarette, or talk to someone. Americans are not particularly respected here, but the Spaniards are welcome. The achievements of technology in this country are also frowned upon, even television sets, since the drop in the birth rate is attributed to them.
In current times, only Muslims and some other small tribes have retained their identity and are not influenced by American and Spanish culture. In general, in this country, you need to be prepared for many non-standard tricks of Filipinos, who would prefer disrespect and rudeness in another country. For example, dark-skinned islanders like to pester white-haired tourists with bold questions. Their curiosity has no limits.
It is also worth knowing that in the Philippines, it is not customary to sunbathe being nude on the beach, get drunk and kick up a row at night on the city streets. Very religious Filipinos simply do not understand this kind of behavior.
The life of people in this country is similar to the life of a Mexican TV series hero. If at restaurants you have not been delivered a dish, then you should not be shy but remind about it. After all, the locals are very lazy by nature. And sometimes the request must be repeated several times in order for the Filipino to understand it.
Filipino women are very amorous and sentimental, so when dealing with them, you need to be very careful, as they fall in love and get used to you quickly. However, with puritan customs and morals, public manifestations of tenderness are condemned in the Philippines.
It is customary to arrange many different celebrations and holidays in this country. Also, a leveled life in the Philippines is diluted with many fiestas. This is a national tradition that was inherited from Spain. This is a period of incredible spending for the locals: they eat in bars and restaurants, lose in the casinos, smoke, and dance. It is not surprising that after such noisy celebrations, people get to know each other more closely. Weddings become a frequent occurrence. During the fiestas, beauty queens, kings of various institutions are chosen, competitions and tournaments are held. It is also customary to arrange fireworks and turn on loud music on city streets.
Philippine wedding traditions
In ancient times, the wedding lasted three days, and the bonds of wedlock were sealed with blood literally. A drop of blood was required from the bride and groom, which was mixed with water and given to drink as a sign of the unity of their souls and bodies. Over time, the ceremony has undergone changes, and the marriage became not only a union of two people but also the union of their families, the merging of clans. According to the Philippine law, by the way, you should attend family planning courses before the wedding. There are such Filipino wedding traditions.
Marriage Proposal
The marriage proposal in the Philippines begins with the so-called pamanhikan. The future happy groom comes with his parents to the parental home of the bride to ask for the hand of his beloved. As soon as the bride’s parents agree, a stormy discussion of the details of the future wedding begins. The expenses are usually incurred by the groom’s family. The pamanhikan tradition speaks of the importance of the family in marriage. It happens that all the relatives of the groom go to pamanhikan. This action ends with the feast of two families who will soon become the one.
Another tradition is called Despedida de Soltera. This is a farewell to a bachelor life party. Often Despedida de Soltera is a bride’s party organized by her family. It is like a hen-party, but more official and moral.
Engagement
After pamanhikan, the future couple makes a series of visits with an engagement alert and personally presents the invitations. Relatives and friends have a chance to become “sponsors” of the ceremony. This does not mean that they get a “happy” opportunity to pay for a wedding reception and a trip to the Canaries to boot. “Sponsors” are witnesses of the marriage. Each witness has their own role in the solemn ceremony.
Philippine Wedding Ceremony
At the marriage ceremony, the bridegroom arrives one hour before the bride to take in guests. During the ceremony, the bride holds a rosary and a wedding bouquet.
“Sponsors”
“Sponsors” and “wedding suite” are responsible for special ceremonies: lighting the wedding candles, throwing cover on the bride and the groom. The small members of the “retinue”, usually boys, are assigned the role of ring men and coin keepers.
Wedding Attributes
Attributes of the Philippine wedding ceremony: wedding rings, wedding coins, candles, a bedspread, and a decorative cord. During the ceremony, the groom gives the bride 13 gold or silver coins as a sign of the material welfare of her and future children. Both wedding rings and coins are blessed by the priest first. Candles personify the divine presence in the sacrament of marriage. Then the “sponsors” put a white cloth cover on the shoulders of the groom and the head of the bride, symbolizing their unity.
Wedding Reception
During the reception, the newlyweds liberate white doves to attract peace and harmony. Anyone who catches happy birds can take them home as pets. A Philippine bride usually does not throw a bouquet (although this custom has already become popular with young couples). She leaves it near the icon of the Virgin Mary or at the grave of a deceased, respected relative. What do bridesmaids who want to get married do? Follow in the footsteps of the newlyweds. This promises a quick wedding!
It is not customary to give piercing and cutting objects as a wedding gift in the Philippines.
It remains to add that a luxurious Filipino wedding is an inadmissible luxury for many young couples from not very well-off families. That is why the Filipino government annually arranges mass weddings on Valentine’s Day, during which more than 300 couples are married at the same time, and then plant mangroves together. It remains only to build a house and give birth to a son!
Philippine wedding venues
The Philippines is a perfect variant for a wedding ceremony and honeymoon. There are uniquely intertwined historical values, bright routes through the jungle and stunning beach resorts. There is one of the richest underwater worlds on the planet and snow-white deserted beaches in the Philippines. A new completely uncharted experience that everyone will absolutely like. Those who are used to relaxation want to experience and see a lot during their honeymoon. There is the widest choice of excursions and entertainment. You are offered travels to the volcanoes and swimming with turtles, climbing the mountains and canyoning to the waterfall. Water sports are also developed, such as surfing, kiting and even wakeboarding. Diving in the Philippines is recognized as one of the best in the world. The Philippines is a tropical wedding fairy tale by the ocean with the most vivid impressions and emotions. It’s sheer paradise for travelers in love!
You can visit the sights of the Philippines like:
– Mayon Volcano
Mayon Philippine volcano is rightly considered one of the most beautiful in the world. Unlike other volcanoes in the Philippines, Mayon has a regular cone-shaped shape, on top of which you can see smoke going into the sky.
– Villa Escudero
Villa Escudero is located half an hour from the city of San Pablo and about two hours from the Philippine capital – Manila. Many tourists tend to get there to see the life of past centuries of the Philippine people.
– Malacanang Palace
The presidential palace of Malacanang in Manila is a vibrant representative of Spanish colonial architecture. Its look harmoniously combines the grace of the Baroque and the restraint of the later neoclassical style.
– Intramuros
Intramuros is the historical core of Manila, an area where families of Spanish conquerors settled since the 16th century. The location was chosen in such a way as to provide protection from Chinese pirates who tested the strength of the defense of Manila Bay regularly.
– Manila Oceanarium
The Manila Ocean Park Aquarium is a full-fledged entertainment and educational complex, built in the capital of the Philippines by a large Chinese company in 2008. There is an incredible variety of species found in the warm seas of the Asia-Pacific region.
-Puerto Princesa Underground River
The underground river Puerto Princesa is considered to be one of the most visited natural attractions. In addition, it is officially recognized as the longest underground river in the world. Despite the fact that the path to this spot is not close at all, tourists still come here in droves.
– Boracay Island
Boracay Island is considered to be the best island for a beach holiday in the Philippines. You can fly to it through the island of Panay – from Hong Kong with a transfer either in Clark or in Manila. There are two airports in the cities of Kalibo and Caticlan. The small boats go to Boracay Island from Caticlan. If you decide to fly through Kalibo, then from Kalibo to Caticlan you can get there in an hour by taxi for 1,300 Philippine pesos ($ 30). To rent a house right on the spot is most profitable. The price of rooms starts from 500 pesos a day (about $ 11), and for 2000 pesos (about $ 44) you can get a suite in a cozy mini-hotel on the first line.
– Cebu Island
On Cebu Island, you can stop for a couple of nights for a trip to whale sharks! You can swim with sharks near the town of Oslob. You can get here for 150 pesos on an air-conditioned bus that goes from Cebu for a little more than two hours. Swimming with sharks lasts 30 minutes and costs 1000 pesos (about $ 22) per person. This price includes the rental of a boat, a mask, a tube and a life jacket, which is mandatory. For 500 pesos, you can rent an underwater camera. There are a few rules for swimming with whale sharks: do not swim in front of sharks, do not touch the sharks, do not swim closer than 4 meters, do not use sunscreen. Nobody instructs sharks and they are allowed to swim and touch you.
Traditional Philippine Wedding Dress
Male and female Philippine wedding gowns are similar. Filipino brides make a wedding dress by hand, and in no case buy them in stores. The wedding dress is called Barong Tagalog, or simply Tagalog. These outfits are hand-embroidered and usually worn by both men and women. Brides wear their best dresses of bright colors (sometimes black) for the wedding. Orange is used for wedding bouquets and church decorations. The groom wears a barongo – it is a traditional Filipino formal wear that is almost transparent. Embroidered shirts made from silky pina (pineapple fiber) or jusi. A man can also wear a barong tagalog, i.e. long translucent dress, under which they wear a shirt.
