With all the bright fairy lights, colorful lanterns, gaily carols, generous gift-giving and over-all festive and merry mood, you can bet Christmas is my favorite time of the year! In the Philippines, it has been customary to start the Christmas countdown once the -ber months kick in. Don't be surprised if you hear Christmas carols blasting at the mall starting on the first day of September ;D
Last Friday I attended the Coca-cola Caravan and Giant Tree Lighting Event held at the Araneta Coliseum which my good friend from college Ed invited me to. My good friend/ officemate Mich also went with me, and I am sooo glad we came!
We weren't able to watch the parade of the new Coca-cola endorsers spearheaded by Kim Chiu and Enchong Dee [with teen celebrities Empress Schuck, Joseph Marco, Matt Evans, Kris Bernal, Steven Silva, Rocco Nacino, Diva Montelaba, as well as the housemates from Pinoy Big Brother Teen Clash of 2010] because it started at 3pm (which was the time our shift at work ended). We knew it was going to be a long day so we ate at McDonald's first and then roamed around the adjacent mall, Gateway. When we went back, the program was about to start so off we scurried to find seats after taking quick photos of ourselves at the photowalls.
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| ÜÜÜ |
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| The giant Christmas tree waiting to be lit up |
A mini program started at around 6pm. Local singer Kitchie Nadal opened the show with two songs, plus her version of Coca-cola's Christmas 2010 theme which is originally sung by Train. Kim Chiu and Enchong Dee also addressed the audience to the delight of their fans. It got too crazy that Mich and I were forced to transfer seats since we were sitting very near the teenagers who I believe are members of their fan clubs XD Radio tandem Nicolehiyala and Chris Tsuper of Love Radio 90.7 were hosts of the evening.
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| The only decent photo of Kim and Enchong I was able to take. |
After a quick message by Coca-cola's CEO and countdown participated by everyone, the Christmas tree was lit up while a beautiful fireworks display started simultaneously. It was enthralling and guaranteed to shake the Grinch off everyone! I actually took a video of it but I'm having problems uploading the video x_x
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| Sorry for the crappy photo, I assure you the real thing looks more magical, what with more than 10,000 lights and hundreds of stars, Coca-cola Christmas balls, ribbons and gift boxes adorning it! |
After the lighting of the Christmas tree, it was the ABS-CBN stars' turn to take the stage as they presented Once Upon a Christmas Tree, a show featuring performers from Sunday noon variety show and actors from their primetime block. I am not really a big fan of local showbiz in general but you gotta love the way they performed with so much energy. Martin Nievera, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Karylle, Carol Banawa, Yeng Constantino, and Juris were just some of the celebrities who graced the stage and performed by singing much-loved Christmas carols. And! I never thought I'd get to say this, but when I saw Bb. Pilipinas-Universe Venus Raj in person, I got suddenly insecure of my weight! The lady is sooo thin! And tall! :D
Another friend from college, Dewi, arrived just as the show was wrapping up. It was so great to see her! :)
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| This girl is such a fashion-savvy, she never ceases to wow me :) |
We just waited for Ed to finish up with some of his tasks, then we went to Gateway to have dinner at Pizza Hut. We exchanged stories over delicious food. Our range of topics included: my and Dewi's recent trip to Singapore and Ed's future trip to Thailand, our other friends in college, Mich's and my officemates, and plans for Ed's birthday party. :)
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| Pasta, Seafood Paella, and Meat-lovers Pizza |
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| Mango Smoothie, Iced Tropical Fizz, and Cheese Sticks |
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Tired but happy :)
Me, Ed, and Dewi |
I got home at 11:30PM but managed to not be late for work the next day :) It was indeed a memorable night! My personal countdown to Christmas has officially started!
I'm going to leave you now with Coca-cola's Christmas 2010 Commercial because I totally love the song. I hope it inspires you to shake it up and wake up the happiness! :)
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| Thank you Coca-cola! Now I'd better start collecting those caps so I can get myself the Coke Christmas glasses! :D |
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