Christmas Lights Up Cubao

When we were kids, my family made a yearly Christmas season tradition of going to Cubao to see the lights and the annual COD Christmas show.

We'd have an early dinner, bundle up in christmas themed sweaters and pick up cousins, aunts and uncles in the family jeep. We'd join the crowd milling in front of the Araneta mall, looking for a good place to park, where our view sitting on the roof of the jeep would be unhindered by anybody and anything. We'd be munching on chips and sipping cold Coke in plastic bags, trying not to gobble everything up before the show even started. Below us, a sea of people expectantly watch for signs that the show was about to start, as vendors with balloons and cotton candy weave through the crowd. Other enterprising souls set up shop in the fringes of the crowd selling popcorn, hot street food and cold drinks. Sometimes though, we'd be out of luck and the jeep would have to be parked out of the line of sight, us kids would take turns getting shoulder rides from our fathers and uncles when the mechanical wonder show began.

When the lights come on and the music starts, there would be a babble of excited voices, young and old alike, yelling, "Ayan na! It's starting!". And all eyes would turn to the tableux way above our heads, mouths agape in wonder. There would be angels, kings, giant toys, clowns and flying animals in bright lights, music and an amazing background with snow, candy canes and gift boxes.

I could only gaze in wonder at the magical scene before me and long after the show was over and we'd be in bed, we'd still be talking about it in the dark. For us, the COD Christmas show was the great sign that the Christmas season had truly begun. From there, we could properly do the countdown til Christmas day arrived with its presents, parties, family gatherings, food and various Christmas family traditions.

I'm sure many of my generation can remember those days and can empathize with how I felt when COD closed down. Of course, now that I'm older, I know that nothing lasts forever. I still couldn't help but feel so sad that a childhood symbol of my Christmas would be nothing more than a fond memory to share with my kids.

At least the Christmas lights and displays of the Araneta Center still continue according to tradition these days. Now that Cubao is being spruced up and energized by new developments and malls, it's heartening to see that the Cubao of my childhood is not going to be lost to grime and neglect. (I was so happy that the Giant Christmas Tree tradition was still on!) My rediscovery of Cubao and the many Christmas memories I can share with my kids coincides with Coke's newest slogan of shaking up and waking up happiness. The COD Christmas show may be gone, but there are still other Christmas traditions still alive to enjoy and new ones to make with this generation.

I find it comforting, as if recovering a part of my lost childhood, that Coca-Cola's Christmas Caravan kicked off with the annual Araneta Center Giant Tree Lighting last November 12, 2010 at the Araneta Coliseum parking lot with "Shake up the happiness. Wake it up, wake up the happiness. It’s Christmas time!". 

From our friends at Coke :)

Kicking off the day’s funfair was a grand parade led by a convoy of Coca-Cola Christmas trucks carrying Coca-Cola ambassadors Kim Chiu and Enchong Dee with teen celebrities Empress Schuck, Joseph Marco, Matt Evans and the Pinoy Big Brother Teen Clash of 2010 housemates Ivan Dorschner, James Reid, Ryan Bang, Bret Jackson, Tricia Santos, Jenny Sol, Devon Seron and Fretzie Bercede, Starstruck idols Kris Bernal, Steven Silva, Rocco Nacino Enzo Pineda and Diva Montelaba along with the Philippine Navy Band which marched along and rocked out the Araneta Center with lively renditions of popular Christmas jingles.

Right after the caravan spread cheers across the upbeat hub, more and more surprises were opened up as the energetic duo of Nicole Hyala and Chris Tsuper welcomed guests to the various game, activity and photo booths lined up by Coca-Cola just before the official tree lighting ceremony started. The renowned Love Radio tandem DJ’s bonded and shared an early Noche Buena feast with the celebrity guests, granted some of the guests’ heartfelt wishes and gave away raffle prizes to lucky folks all through out the afternoon.

In no time, all the rush and thrill finally led to the much-awaited lighting of the Giant Christmas Tree situated at the heart of Araneta Center, a celebrated custom since 1981. The exciting countdown to the “it-moment” was joined in by officials from the local government, Araneta Center and The Coca-Cola Company along with Kim Chiu and Enchong Dee along with other personalities and celebrity guests. Standing at almost 100ft. this year’s tree is bedecked with more than 10, 000 lights and hundreds of stars and Coca-Cola Christmas balls, with huge ribbons and colorful gift boxes as accents. Through the years, it has been a beacon of hope among the Filipinos; a most cherished icon that signals the beginning of the holiday season and reminds us to always believe in the magic and happiness it brings, the same way Coca-Cola inspires.

Unlike in the previous years, Coca-Cola gave the amazed partakers more reasons to light up happiness among themselves and others around them as it held the first-ever simulated lights and sounds show. The magical harmony of lively Christmas anthems and dazzling beams that sparkled among the Coca-Cola caravan up to the giant tree culminated to a fireworks display, which left guests in high spirits.

Indeed it was a day of wonderful surprises, moreover when Coca-Cola also launched the Coca-Cola Contour Glass promo. “The Coca-Cola contour glass is one of this season’s fun, ultimate merry must-haves that will surely complete our Noche Buena bonding and allow us to keep refreshing ourselves with the deliciously fizzy cola drink we all love. It’s available in five perky colors such as red, yellow, violet and green and the latest addition to the bunch, the aquamarine contour glass. Let’s make moments count this Christmas by sharing them together. Let’s make it more colorful with an ice-cold Coke and these cool contours,” says Coca-Cola ambassador Kim Chiu.

It’s so easy to take home all five Coca-Cola Christmas Contour Glasses: Buy Coca-Cola, Coke Light, Coke Zero, Sprite or Royal Tru Orange in any of the 500ml, 750ml, 1L, 1.5L and 2L packs. Look under the Santa cap for the “Coke Glass” text and collect 2 more regular Coca-Cola Santa caps and exchange these caps for one Coca-Cola Christmas Contour Glass from any 7 Eleven store, selected sari-sari stores or public markets and Coca-Cola Sales offices nationwide. You may redeem from November 15 to December 31, 2010 only.

This Christmas, let us all open and celebrate magical moments together shared with nothing less than the irreplaceable sparkle that uniquely refreshes and makes us happy- Coca-Cola. Energizing Christmas Spirit.

Open Coca-Cola, Open Happiness.

*Greenhills has a Christmas On Display show every night.
*Ayala Triangle has a light and sound show too!

Make your own Christmas traditions :) Watch the shows with friends and family, share the special moments and keep the Christmas spirit alive!

The OLAY Woman

Strong, resourceful, driven but never forgetting to be a lady, beautiful inside and out. That is the Olay woman to me.


My grandmother, apart from having a glass bottle of Oil of Olay on her vanity before I was even born, is a fighter, a survivor and above all, a lady in every sense of the word. She grew up during the Japanese Occupation, orphaned when her mother was shot crossing a river with wares she was to sell on the other side. Relatives brought her and her siblings up and educated her. She was also the local beauty queen until showing a streak of daring, she eloped with and married my grandfather. She said it was not much of a scandal in those days and that the elopement was prepared for by everyone. When my grandfather brought her to his mother's house, all she had to do was put on the prepared wedding gown and go to church in it!

My grandmother, the beauty queen!

She was also a true entrepreneur, holding a puwesto at the Monumento market selling dry goods and operating a canteen. She was a byahera, travelling by boat to buy premium items in Hong Kong, transporting them here and selling them. Clothes, fabric, make-up, perfumes, around the 60's I guess that was when she first picked up Oil of Olay, as it was known back then. She was able to send all her 7 children to school, help her husband, my grandfather, purchase land, build their house and live a life of modest, debt-free means.


Through long, grueling days and late nights at the palengke, my lola nevertheless kept herself fresh and beautiful. She may be tired or her surroundings weren't exactly glamorous, but I don't remember a time when she wasn't neatly dressed, powdered, smelling like flowers and smiling with painted lips. My lola was neat, simple and proper but always pustura. Even as she grew old and stopped travelling. Even as she gave up her spot in the market. Even as we would just visit her at home, she would always be simply dressed but powdered, lipsticked and smelling so nice and fresh.


I actually remember her when I think about Olay, as it is now simply known. She had a nightly beauty routine which included gently massaging her face with the pink beauty fluid. I was supposed to be writing about my Olay experience but I can't help writing about my grandmother or even my mother, for that matter, since my experience encompasses theirs.

My mother on my youngest sister's baptismal.

My mother naman is just as driven as my grandmother, her mom. To help augment my father's income while raising us five kids, she took a leaf from my grandmother's book and sold stuff as well. She did school bazaars, operated a school jeep, even sold jewelry for a time. I remember how tiring it must have been for her. But she must have inherited her strength from my grandmother along with her beauty routine!

Alas. I could not find a picture
of the old Oil of Olay bottles
so I'm making do with these.

Apart from being pustura like my grandmother, I noticed how every night, my mother would put Olay on her face. On heavy make up days, she might even use it to remove her make up. I remember, as a child, I'd be so curious about that glass bottle with the pink cream that I'd open and smell it every time my mom wasn't around. I really loved that smell. The bottle, pink beauty fluid, the scent, the Olay name became a symbol of womanhood as much as make up and high heels were. I knew I was continuing tradition and becoming a woman as soon as I had that bottle of moisturizing lotion on my adolescent vanity.


Feeling and being beautiful in these modern times is made even easier by technology. I'm glad that this time, tradition is easier to celebrate. Olay came out recently with a new line of truly luscious soap bars! Now, I can have the luxury of the Olay experience all over my body! I had understood that the lotion was a luxury for the face and hands so I carried the habit of using Olay sparingly. But now, I can literally bathe in it!


I still consider myself a new mother even if I'm on my 2nd child. I can't even begin to compare myself to veterans like my mother, let alone my grandmother. Even with help from family (because we don't have a nanny or a maid) I still feel like I'm drowning in babies, diapers and milk everyday! I seriously don't know how they did it. In lipstick, no less! And they were able to put in a beauty routine every night! I'm lucky if I get 10 seconds to go to the potty all by myself! So you can bet my beauty routine is non-existent by now.


That's why the new Olay soap bars are such a blessing. I can bathe, refresh myself and pamper my entire body with the Olay beauty routine simultaneously! Maybe someday I'll learn how the mothers before me achieved balance between caring for their families and caring for themselves. Until then, I'm only too glad to be able to indulge myself with the Olay soap bars. It's like I'm swimming in the Olay beauty fluid every time.

(1) Green OLAY Fresh Reviving. It goes beyond cleansing, delivering OLAY deep moisturizers to the skin while helping to wash away dry surface cells. So after you dry off, all that's left is skin that feels clean and revived.


(2)  Orange OLAY Ultra Moisture is specially formulated with creamy, OLAY lather and Shea Butter. It goes beyond cleansing, delivering OLAY deep moisturizers to the skin while helping to wash away dry surface cells. So after you dry off, all that's left is skin that feels clean and petal soft.

(3) Blue OLAY Age Defying Bar. Each bar is formulated with creamy, OLAY lather.

These OLAY soaps are gentle enough to use on your face.You can try everything and see which OLAY bar is for you. 


We all still use Olay. There are a lot out there to try but we keep coming back to this beauty fluid to keep our skin soft and beautiful.And with their full range of skin care, skin LOVE products, it's easier to be a strong, beautiful woman, inside and out.

Party Preps: Oona turns One!

So it's been a year since I went to the hospital, getting pissed at the driver and cracking up the nurses' station with my drug-induced stand-up comedy routine. God, I should be stoned more often. I was never wittier, funnier and never had a much more appreciative audience than when I was in labor.

Now, a different birthing is going on as I attempt to put together Oona's First Birthday Party and Baptismal at the same time and at the last minute.

And nope, we are not chinese.


THE BIRTH/CHRISTENING DAY

If I had a dollar (wag naman dime lang, para sosyal!) for every time I had to explain the practicality of holding the joint celebration, I'd probably have enough to cash in for the restaurant downpayment. It's been explained to me that it's mostly the Chinese who usually does this. Tradition and practicality reasons.

We just figured it was more convenient. Otherwise, we'd have just celebrated the birthday and waited until she's old enough to choose her own spiritual path. Really. However, family tradition will not be denied. Hence, a Baptism along with the birthday.

It doesn't leave a dent on our liberated views on spirituality after all. It wouldn't hurt to "officially" invoke divine blessings for the child. Besides, RF and I came from Catholicism and we've so far survived.

We also think of it as thanksgiving for Oona's first year of life on this Earth. She has given us so much joy and touched so many other people's lives.