On Wednesday, December 17, 2008 the University of the Philippines (UP) staged its Christmas lantern parade to the delight of the students and the entire school. The show of lanterns did not come with the usual multi-sided illuminated stars, the traditional symbols of the light which brought the three wise men to Jesus in the manger. Instead, attractive parols like luminous heavenly bodies in the sky thrilled the crowd.
“This is the best of them all,” says former school president Jose Abueva of the annual holiday event. He explains the significance of the exhibition which marks the end of the school’s colorful centennial year.
The gleaming display materialized from the modern-day artistic imagination of Diliman’s educational hub— better known as the government-funded people’s “national university.” Stunning bright contraptions under the cover of the evening’s shadows ignited the pageantry. In the backdrop of trees and “the oblation” the occasion drew elated on-lookers as the night set in.
Hordes of dolled-up merry-makers wearing garish masks and eclectic gaudy costumes came. They clowned, danced, and laughed to mark another distinctive Filipino Christmas. Fireworks, music, and lights entertained those who attended. (Photo Credit: Lynnzy; Lynnzy; Lynzzy)=0=
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