Kasalang Filipino 2009 marks Tagaytay as international wedding hub

The staging of Kasalang Filipino 2009 in Tagaytay City on Feb. 13-15 affirms the growing distinction of this cool and scenic city as an international wedding and honeymoon destination in this part of the Philippines.

Out to confirm the city’s new prestigious reputation is a myriad of wedding suppliers, bridal fashion designers, floral arrangement specialists, photo and video artists, tourism industry players, and local and foreign guests led by international couturier Aureo Alonzo, and government officials spearheaded by Cavite Gov. Ayong Maliksi and Department of Tourism regional director Louella Jurilla.

They will troop to Olivarez Plaza for the three-day “My Wedding in Tagaytay – Kasalang Filipino 2009,” comprising bridal exhibits, fashion shows, and other exciting activities. Admission is free.

Olivarez Plaza operations manager Ephel Olivarez cited other event highlights as wedding presentations, bridal make-up competitions, entertainment, and raffle draws featuring honeymoon packages and appliance showcases as prizes.

“Most of the activities will be held at the 1,000-seat convention center of Olivarez Plaza,” Olivarez said.

Olivarez Plaza is a sprawling lifestyle center and tourism destination that also includes the Olivarez College, the 48-room Tagaytay Country Hotel and its La Costa Spa, a garden pool with Jacuzzi, a coffeeshop and restaurant, a 500-seat amphitheater, the OP Supermarket and its specialty boutiques, the El Pueblo tiangge and its electronics and ukay-ukay stores, an indoor recreational center with badminton courts, open landscaped sports facilities for tennis and basketball, and an 18-wheeler entertainment truck called “e-Truck” for live street performances.

This lifestyle center is a tourism landmark at the left side of the Aguinaldo Highway, just a few blocks before reaching the Tagaytay Rotonda.

The Olivarez Plaza is where a motorcade will culminate to kick off Kasalang Filipino on Feb. 13 amid street dancing and the start of the daylong Chefs on Parade competition at 9 a.m.; opening of the wedding exhibits at 10 a.m.; cultural show, raffle draws and the hourly tour of Tagaytay’s famous wedding reception venues and free pre-nuptial photo sessions at 11 a.m.; Bridal Makeup Talk by Ever Bilena Cosmetics at 1 p.m.; makeup competition at 2 p.m.; online wedding planning with Kasal.com at 4 p.m.; and free food tasting, audio-visual presentation of Tagaytay weddings, bridal makeover by HBC and raffle draws at 5 p.m., Olivarez said.

The second and third day of Kasalang Filipino will include showcases of ethnic gowns, wedding flower arrangement demonstrations, fashion shows, talk on wedding trends and the country’s spa industry, and other special attractions, Olivarez added.

Participants can register online at www.kasal.com or e-mail at [email protected].

My Wedding in Tagaytay constitutes the second leg of Kasalang Filipino, a nationwide wedding fair roadshow covering 12 cities and co-presented by Kasal.com and the ABS-CBN Regional Network Group.

The first leg was held earlier in San Pablo City. The succeeding legs will be staged in Tarlac, Dagupan, Bacolod, Legazpi, Dumaguete, General Santos, Cagayan de Oro, Davao, Manila and Cebu.