Christmas in the Philippines

Christmas in the Philippines (Filipino: Pasko sa Pilipinas), one of two predominantly Christian countries in Asia (the other one being East Timor), is one of the biggest holidays in the archipelago. The country has earned the distinction of celebrating the world's longest Christmas season, with Christmas carols heard as early as September and lasting variously until either Epiphany, the Feast of the Black Nazarene on 9 January, or the Feast of the Santo Niño on the third Sunday of January. The official observance by the Church in the Philippines is from the beginning of the Simbang Gabi on 16 December until the Feast of the Epiphany on the first Sunday of the year.

Activities

The various ethnic groups in the Philippines each observe different Christmas traditions, and the following are generally common.

Christmas parties

In urban areas like Metro Manila, many offices organise Christmas parties. These are usually held during the second week of December, or right before schools and universities go on holiday. Common activities include Monito/Monita (Kris Kringle), musical or theatrical performances and parlor games. Food is provided either through potluck, or via a pool of contributions to buy food. Some have fireworks displays.

Sitti

Sitti Navarro (born November 29, 1984 in Las Piñas), also known as Sitti, is a Filipino bossa nova singer. After releasing her first album, Café Bossa, in 2006, other bossa nova acts in the Philippines followed. Navarro is also featured in the segment "A.S.A.P. Sessionistas" of the variety show ASAP.

Early life

Sitti Navarro was born to lawyer Rolando Navarro and Lydia Baiddin, in Manila, Philippines. Sitti is of Samal and Tausūg descent. She identifies herself as being Jama Mapun (Sama Kagayan), one of the Sama-Bajau subgroups in Tawi-Tawi. She graduated from the University of the Philippines Diliman in April 2005 with a degree in Business Economics and was a dean's lister at said university. In high school, she was editor-in-chief of the school paper and graduated as valedictorian of her class.

In college, she was an active member of the AIESEC Local Committee where she was the Vice President for Outgoing Exchange from 2003 to 2004. She was also a member of the Organization of Business Economics Majors (OBEM).