Christmas is a special occasion to bond with the people we love. So are you celebrating Christmas Day today? Get to know how these well-known personalities spend theirs.
Liz Uy, stylist
Always with family and loved ones. Sometimes in Manila,
sometimes we go out of the country, but always together. Usually we all exchange gifts and open it on Christmas Eve (before noche buena); we welcome friends who don’t have families here so we end up having a big celebration.
Ilocos Sur Gov. Ryan Singson
I usually spend Christmas with my family and relatives in the house in Vigan. I like to keep it simple. We have dinner, then Mass before midnight, then drinks on Christmas Eve. I choose to stay in the province for the holidays because it’s like spending Christmas together with all my constituents.
Bea Alonzo, award-winning actress
I always celebrate Christmas with my family. This year, we just stayed here in Manila because my brother started working (he just graduated). We see to it that we hear Mass and prepare sumptuous dinner/noche buena for my family. I usually host every year. The kids are in charge of the entertainment. They sing or dance. So you know you are old when you are not part of that program anymore. We are very traditional.
Paloma Urquijo Zobel, owner, Piopio
Christmas is a special time for me as I get to spend it with my whole family. Each year, we alternate between my mother’s family and father’s family. This year, we are spending it with my father’s parents in their country house outside Madrid. I’ll be joined by my 16 cousins where after the exchange of gifts on the 25th, we usually go horse riding or take a nice walk through the countryside before a nice lush meal prepared by my grandmother. There’s always a lot of singing, dancing and eating.
Quezon City Rep. Alfred Vargas
We heard Mass on Christmas Eve and visited my mom at her resting place before partaking of noche buena with the rest of the clan in QC. Today, there’s a Christmas program with singing and dancing by family members, gift-giving and thanksgiving.
Rosanna Ocampo-Rodriguez, fashion designer
The 25th starts bright and early for us no matter how late we sleep on Christmas Eve. This is when we light up the tree and have the kids finally open their presents while carols play in the background. We then proceed to having lunch with my relatives and dinner with Marco’s family before seeing more of my relatives later in the evening. Needless to say, it is a day packed with fun and revelry.
Tinee De Guzman, restaurateur, Mr. Cochinillo
Waited for my last order to be picked up last night, got cleaned up from the kitchen so we could all be together — as a family — for noche buena.
Former DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman
We celebrate Christmas as a family with an early start. Aside from putting up the Christmas tree, the celebration really begins with ube halaya-making by husband Hector. It is a tradition that my father-in-law inherited from his mother. On Christmas Eve, we attend Mass with social development colleagues and friends in Ateneo, which began during the martial law days and has been sustained by Fr. Noel Vasquez; a time to reflect, draw strength from each other, nurture the courage to continue to stand for truth, justice and love. Then we go home and my family together with our siblings have a fun-filled media noche and opening of gifts. We get to bed early morning so we sleep most of the day on Christmas day.
Joyce Makitalo, jewelry designer
Our family spends the day with close friends, exchanging presents and feasting on Filipino and Finnish favorites, mainly casseroles and pies. In the evening, we attend a Christmas kirtan party with friends in yoga, a practice that keeps us mindful of the true meaning of Christmas.
Tessa Prieto Valdes, interior designer, lifestyle columnist
We have celebrated Christmas day in so many wonderful places around the world as we normally spend the holidays abroad but this year, we are home for the Christmas break. Our two children, Tyrone and Annika Valdes, are coming home during their season break from college. So, today, we will be attending Christmas Mass and enjoying noche buena at the Rufino house with the entire clan of more than 75 family members. After our traditional exchange of gifts, we play games and try not to have too much bubbly!