One of the most important dates in Philippine history is Independence Day. It signifies the nation’s independence from centuries-long of Spanish colonization on June 12, 1898. Filipinos celebrate this important event every year on June 12. June 12, 2014 marks the celebration of the 116th anniversary of Philippine independence.
Of course, Filipinos won’t trail behind in coming up with ways to celebrate this historical milestone. This is particularly true among the Filipino population who lives in a condominium. Creativity in coming up with ways to party is one of the rare traits that only Filipinos hold.
Celebrating Independence Day in your condo can be both enjoyable and knowledge-oriented as both you and your family can strengthen nationalistic spirit along the process.
Below are some exciting condo party guides to celebrate Independence Day at the comfort of your own condo.
Have a decoration detonation
Decorate your living room with blast of flag colors in preparation of the big condo party. Show your nationalistic pride by accenting the basic flag color theme. Decorate your living room with yellow, blue and red crepe papers all around. Enlist your kids’ help in putting up the colorful decorations in your condo. You may just perk up their curiosity on history while they are having fun, creatively hand picking the decoration styles for your living room.
Assemble yellow, blue and red flowers in your living room to create a festive holiday decoration in preparation for the party. Use cut flower arrangements or potted plants to create a great centerpiece. You may also opt to have your patriotic flower decoration serve as souvenirs to your guests.
Compliment your flower decoration with balloons of yellow, blue and red colors to complete the party.
Find out who’s the best chef
Enjoy a friendly cooking contest between you and your guests before having an Independence Day party. In commemoration of this special national event, require your contestants to only cook Filipino dishes during the contest. Dishes such as sinigang na baboy, kare-kare and tinolang manok make amazing and sumptuous food entries in your contest.
Make sure to prepare the prizes for the top winners. Prizes such as Philippine Independence mini memorabilia souvenirs will surely complete the day of your guests. Of course, part of a proper condo conduct is also accepting losses from a friendly competition. Motivate yourself and your guests to accept losses with an open heart. After all, friendly competitions value each contestant, regardless whether or not they win. Feast on the delicious Filipino cooked meals after the contest, while enjoying great light-hearted conversations.
Wear matching wardrobe
One of the perks of a condo dweller is having the privilege to take charge in hosting your own party right in your unit. Give a dress code to your guests in your condo party to celebrate Independence Day. Require them to only wear the colors of the flag - red, yellow or blue - to show their nationalistic spirit and pride. You’ll surely spice things up wearing uniformed colors on such a special national event. Match your party’s patriotic wardrobe theme with red, yellow and blue colored purses, for the ladies, and neckties of the same color combination for the gentlemen.
Bake patriotic pastries
Prep your condo kitchen by doing some baking before your Independence Day party. Bake some cakes and cookies designed in Philippine flags. Serve these pastries to your guests and get them to appreciate monumental history at its best. Put colorful icing on your cakes and cookies to emanate a realistic Philippine flag decoration on them. Proudly show your guests your creativity by making these the best special pastries that they can ever enjoy. Put some Philippine flag on toothpicks on these pastries to boost their appeal. You can make these decors yourself at reasonable costs.
Of course, your desserts will not be complete without having some Filipino native delicacies before the party ends. Feast on bibingka and puto to get into the national spirit even more.
A Filipino barbecue cookout
Being a good condo resident does not mean that you can’t have a good time. Enjoy rowdy times with your family and friends while having a barbeque cookout. Make things more exciting by hosting extraordinary Filipino-native dancing sessions, like Tinikling, while having your barbeque to make the event more extra special. Ask your guests to bring native costumes in time to dance to the Tinikling. Partner your guests accordingly in dancing. You’ll be amazed to see how a regular cookout can be a lot more fun if you take the initiative to put in efforts to make it so.
Nevertheless, think Filipino even though you may find yourself having an American-like barbecue cookout. Barbecue pork belly skewers and get the feel of being truly Filipino on this special day.
Get into the yearly movie tradition
As a condo dweller, you may have the opportunity to enjoy using your furnished DVD player in your condo. Take advantage of the opportunity after hosting your Independence Day party by getting into the yearly movie tradition afterwards. A movie tradition for Independence Day lets your whole family get enriching knowledge of Philippine history. Movies about the revolution towards Philippine Independence, such as “El Presidente”, would be a good fit for an after party movie night.
Organize a movie quiz after your movie marathon. You and your guests, especially kids, will find it productive and educational to have a knowledge drill in time for an important momentous historical anniversary.
Play historical roles
One of the unique ways of celebrating Independence Day in your condo is by showcasing your talent nobody would have thought you had - acting. Motivate your guests, especially the little ones, to participate with you in reenacting the Independence revolutionary movement in the form of a mini condo theatrical play. Rearrange the stuff in your living room to have a sufficient space for the play.
Assign roles to yourself and your guests in the play. Choose the persons who will best fit the roles of revolutionary leader, Emilio Aguinaldo, and his revolutionaries, respectively. Ask your guests to bring in props for the play. You may also contribute some props yourself to show your initiative and dedication.
Make Simple Filipino handicrafts
Making Filipino handicrafts is one of the unique personalized ideas for Independence Day. Show off your Filipino national pride by making simple baskets, banig and walis ting-ting for your handicraft making session. Spice up the day by having a storytelling session on the origins of these Pinoy handicrafts.
Time for sports
Celebration ideas for Independence Day are not complete without the most exciting part of the party-sports. Enjoy a Filipino sport that is easy to have in your condo community, such as piko. Be extra nationalistic by drawing a Philippine flag on a sand paper covered terrace ground. Challenge your guests to jump to the stars of the flag without stepping on the other parts of the flag. Whoever steps on the other parts of the flag is eliminated from the game. The remaining players become the winners of the game.
Enjoy a Videoke session
Surely, there are still some things you can do during Independence Day, away from your condo terrace, even if it’s raining. Get hyped up singing your favorite Filipino oriented songs in a Videoke in your living room. Enjoy some laughs while showcasing your singing skills on this special national day.
Condo parties have grown in numbers as real estate in the Philippines continues to enjoy booming popularity. Condo parties make you feel more at home in your condo, more than ever. They make you feel blessed and thankful to have a place that can accommodate your customized needs, while providing a safe haven and refuge at the same time. Seize the gift and the opportunity of having independence right at the comfort of your self-sufficient condo.