Return to Bethlehem

For a change, I'll stop bitching about political systems gone wrong and move on to happier things. It is Christmas time after all. 

Every year, an extraordinary event takes place during the Christmas season. Remember the 11 million people working hard overseas in order to send money to their families back home? Well, around the second week of December until early January, about two thirds (estimated) fly back home. 

Plane ticket prices soar to monumental proportions. Even budget carriers are charging 600 - 800 USD for a 3 hour flight to Manila (it gets more expensive the further the worker is staying). In spite of it, flights are still fully booked. Money is no issue during this time, as long as it means being with their respective families. 

Why? It's because in the Philippines, Christmas is the happiest time of the year for Filipinos. It is such a festive season that fieldwork for marketing research cannot be done because all the respondents are too happy. Every house would have Christmas decors, every mall would be littered with red and green designs. TV shows are bombarded with Christmas ads and TV shows about the season. The Christmas lights and parols are truly unique spectacles to behold and experience.

And so Christmas in the Philippines for Filipinos is truly something that cannot be missed. If it means spending a lot of money and scrambling for flight tickets, it's a small price to pay in order to experience something that's worth way more than money; spending the festive season with those we truly love. 

layman