(SPOT.ph) Filipinos have an extra special way of celebrating Christmas. Festivities start as early as September, Noche Buena food can feed a barangay, and Christmas lights brighten a whole neighborhood. While 2020 upended our holiday plans (and our life plans, in general), eased quarantine restrictions now allow us to celebrate the holidays in a "normal" way—more or less.
Also read: 10 Very 2020 Ways We'll All Be Celebrating Christmas
Here are a few Pinoy traditions that are likely to return during this year's pandemic Christmas:
Jam-packed malls
While people have discovered the joys of online shopping, nothing beats seeing actual sales in malls with big, bold letters. That scene of yourself lugging around shopping bags with gifts for your nieces and nephews just adds to the holiday feel.
The return of the inaanaks
Yes, your inaanak saw your IG story of yourself at the mall; and they expect that one of those shopping bags’ contents is for them. With no restrictions about kids going out, they can now knock on your door come Christmas morning to ask for their gifts. You may have to improve your gift-giving skills, too, as GCash transfers just won’t cut it this time.
Family reunions
The national health agency discourages Christmas parties, but there's probably no stopping families from coming together for Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. Family members abroad have come home for the first time in over a year, so you really have no excuse not to see your parents living in another city. Plus, having complete vaccine shots and boosters won't add to your case against reunions—not even the looming threat of the Omicron variant.
Unnecessary comments from relatives
While we’re on the subject of meeting up with family, get ready to hear those annoying questions from your titos and titas: "May boyfriend ka na?", “Kailan ka mag-aasawa?”,”Bakit di ka pa graduate?”, and so on. Unfortunately, there’s no mute button to silence them this time.
Holiday traffic
The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority announced in October that vehicular traffic in Metro Manila has returned to pre-pandemic levels. And this holiday season, people doing their last-minute shopping, friends dining out at malls, and even movie-goers heading to the cinemas will put even more cars on the road. Companies are going back to the office, too.
Receiving a bajillion alarm clocks or candles
Pandemic Christmas in 2020 taught us to give away useful gifts, like fancy alcohol bottles, PPE jackets, and other COVID-19 tools. Now that we’re somehow over that barrage of cool face masks, we’re back to random gifts that may or may not be useful to our monito/monita.
Actually talking to people
After more than a year of Zoom calls, some of us may have grown accustomed to avoiding small talk—you can just pretend you have a poor Internet connection, which is probably true anyway. We now have to relearn how to be human beings that can fill in the dead air during a get-together with officemates or brunch with friends.
Never-ending karaoke
If there’s one thing that binds Filipinos, it’s for the love for karaoke. Ironically, we also hate people who disturb the whole neighborhood with a karaoke session that lasts the whole night or whole day (or both). Nothing’s going to stop that karaoke-loving uncle from belting out “My Way” now.
Heading out for Simbang Gabi
If your family attended online Simbang Gabi last year, you may have to put on some pants this time as churches are now open. You also lose the option of choosing whichever mass is shorter on YouTube or Facebook.
Noche Buena food lasting for days
With big reunions, come big feasts. That bowl of spaghetti from Christmas Eve may last for three days, while that buko pandan from your reunion potluck may be the third dessert dish on the table. And imagine the plates and utensils you have to wash after the feast. Suddenly, you miss ordering food that’s good for just two people.