by Teresa May Bandiola

When it comes to the red and green season, there’s no other country in the world that celebrates it longer and probably merrier than our country, the Philippines. The season kicks off on September 1, or the beginning of what we call “Ber” months, and extends until Three Kings Day in January. Christmas songs, especially the local classics, start playing on the radio, in commercial establishments — basically everywhere — complimented by gigantic colorful lanterns in celestial spectacle, springing an irresistible vibe of cheer and the anticipation that something bountiful and far from day-to-day ordinariness is about to take place. The thrill is further enhanced by the 100-day-until-Christmas countdown that begins on September 16.