THE MESSAGE. BRINGING INTO FOCUS FILIPINO PRESENCE IN AUSTRALIA
www.kalatas.com.au | Volume 6 Number 10 | JULY 2016
14
ESSAYS
The Philippines through the eyes of young Fil-Aussies
BELOW are the winning essays in two categories written by young
Filipino-Australians at an on-the-spot essay writing contest held at the
'Pista sa Nayon' last month.
The Philippines: Its people and cultural traditions
LAMUEL WONG, Year 9
THE unique ethnic group that is native to the Philippines is known as the
Filipinos or Pinoys. Filipinos are the people of the Philippines which is
a country of islands located in Southeast Asia. They are a people rich in
distinguishable tradition, values and culture.
The Philippines has over 7,000 islands. These islands are mainly divided into
three geographical regions: Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. It is a land abundant
in natural resources, beauty and a myriad of flora and fauna. The capital city is
Manila while the most crowded city is Quezon City.
With a population of over a hundred million and with an additional ten million
overseas, Filipinos are one of the most populous people in the world. They are also
the third largest English-speaking group in the world despite Tagalong being their
official language. The majority of Filipinos are multilingual and often speak a
mixture of Tagalog and English known as ‘Taglish.’ They are also known for their
hospitality and adaptability.
Hospitality is a common trait found in Filipinos. Ever since old times, the
natives have welcomed foreigners into the country. This is evident today as many
Filipinos enjoy and welcome the company of foreigners. This hospitality is also
seen in Filipino communities overseas. Often they support and help their fellow
Filipinos find jobs, homes, like-minded friends and in certain situations of need,
open their own homes for them to have temporary accommodation.
Their adaptability is also a known common trait among them. Since there are
a number of them overseas as well, they have been known to easily adapt (find
communities, financial security) and get into multicultural social groups. The
Filipinos adaptability also is a coping mechanism for them. Victims of natural
disasters in the Philippines are seen to be joyfully smiling and waving at cameras
and children having fun swimming in floodwaters.
Lemuel Wong (third from left) receiving his plaque from judges Titus Filio, Violi Calvert and APCO founding president
Dr. Cen Amores.
The Filipino culture is also a prideful and essential element of them. Their
culture has a blend of Western and Eastern aspects; western as in being emotional
and passionate about life, and Eastern as in being close with family and friends.
My favourite cultural tradition is ‘Mano Po.’ This is an act of respect children
and young people do to their elders. The youth would place their elders’ hands on
to their foreheads, showing their respect and also receiving blessings from them.
One such blessing Filipinos have is the ‘bayanihan’ spirit. This spirit enables
strong ties between members of the community. One common example is when
members of a village would carry a family’s house or hut together to a different
location. The family would then treat those who helped them to a meal. The
bayanihan spirit may have also been the driving force that enabled Filipinos to be
caring to other individuals, thus making them known for their aforementioned
hospitality.
Speaking of cultural tradtiions, a popular Filipino culture is our cuisine, love
for music and our clothing.
The Filipino cuisine is the hot pot of Asia, combining many aspects of different
countries’ cooking such as India, China and Spain. Some popular examples of
Filipino dishes are adobo, lumpia, lechon babooy, halo-halo etc.
The Filipinos’ love for music is also seen in many aspects. There is a plentiful
of different kinds of Filipino instruments ranging from woodwind, string and
percussion. Even nowadays, many Filipinos love different kinds of musical arts.
In conclusion, Filipinos are a passionate people with close ties to their
community. Their distinctive culture influenced by their contact with Western
and Eastern communities gives them values and pride like no other.
Georgia Marie Fenton (centre) receiving her plaque from judge Romy Cayabyab and APCO founding president Dr. Cen
Amores.
The Philippines
GEORGIA MARIE FENTON (Year 6)
THE Philippines has a long history tracing down to 1521. In this year,
Spanish men founded this unknown land. Later on, Chinese men travelled to
the Philippines to try and seek new lands for their country. Eventually the
Philippines was known for being a mix of China and Spain. The Philippines
consists of many islands, too many to remember!
The Philippines was the name given to the land by a Spanish man. It was
named after King Philip 3rd and the word ‘pines’ in the Philippines signified that
the land owned many pines. The name is still used in today’s society.
The Philippines is well known for its festivals and celebrations. As 90 per cent
of their citizens are Catholic, most traditions are based on Catholicism. These
traditions include food, dance, acting and singing; like today’s celebration, we
have eaten, walked for the SantaCruzan, Ellelouise and I did the ‘tinikling’ (a
Filipino folk dance) where we danced and jumped over bamboo sticks. Now we are
yet to dance ‘heel and toe’ in another traditional Filipino folk dance.
Performers usually wear a unique dress, the one I wore was red with flowers
(they are not casual wear nor formal), they have distinctive colours, designs and
graphics, which tells them apart from casual or formal wear.
In the Philippines, there are large malls and outlets, the most known is ‘SM’
which is a big mall including many items inside. Another great feature in the
Philippines is their outstanding water resorts, which often are the ones that you’ll
sleep overnight in. These water resorts have many water slides, pools and cabins.
In my opinion, the water resorts are the best feature!
There are numerous theme parks in the Philippines. I remember when I was
at one where I saw cute little houses from Peter Pan in the dark, the windows lit
up. Other than the resorts, I absolutely went nuts for their theme parks! The
theme parks usually have a creative theme, that’s why it’s called theme parks.
Many people would not want to travel to the Philippines because of the poverty
and danger but the question is: is it really poor and dangerous or not? Most
parts of the Philippines share the same interests and beliefs, so it shouldn’t be
a problem; the bad truth is that the Philippines is still a third world country so
they still lack in richness and those rich are selfish and keep it to themselves,
this is why rich countries need to donate to the Philippines. Many of their
people live in a weak brick house or sometimes just a straw house, but to say
that the Philippines is dangerous is equivalent to saying that anywhere you go is
dangerous. But the Philippines does hold a record for being slightly nerve-racking
due to all the greedy robbers and abusers who also send out child buskers!
Overall, the Philippines is an eventful and exciting place to be. All the kind,
patient and caring citizens will make you welcome. Yeah, it won’t feel like home
but the features in the Philippines will ensure a unique trip for you!