FACC showcases slices of Filipiniana in Asian Festival

Me at the FACC Fil-American booth at the 2014 Asian Festival

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

The weather cooperated and the smiling photo of Philippine President Benigno Aquino III greeted Fil-Americans and visitors at the Fil-American booth the 14th Asian Festival here at Carolinas yesterday.

President Aquino's smiling photo shared space with the beautiful Filipino handicrafts and inventions at the Fil-American booth which showed the Filipino's ingenuity. 

The sight of miniature jeepneys and tricycles has Dorena Buten Reynolds commenting that the vehicles were “her favorite rides” back home in the Philippines.

FACC President Dr. Malette-Aquino Oliveros with FACC secretary Lota Macarenas

Jeepneys and tricycles are among the widely used means of public transportation in the country nowadays. 

It started right after World War II when the American troops sold and gave surplus military jeeps to the local Filipinos. 

The Filipinos pimped the jeeps to accommodate several passengers, added metal roofs and decorated the vehicle with vibrant colors. Since then, it had evolved in many forms, shapes and sizes.

The Fil-American booth as set up by the Fil-American Community of the Carolinas (FACC) also showcased  necklaces made of sea shells and other local materials and national wear like barong Tagalog and sequined kimono for women.

The female visitors also found and bought the native “bakya” or wooden sandals with matching crocket for straps. There were also big fans made of banahaw leaves that were used by Filipinos to cool themselves in humid weather.

Outside the booth were posters and streamers showing Philippine facts and figures that were read by young Fil-Americans. The Philippines, officially called the Republic of the Philippines, is an archipelago of 7,107 islands in the Pacific Ocean.

Clad in neon green kimono and matching local skirt, FACC president Malette Aquino-Oliveros manned the booth along with FACC secretary Lota Mascarenas to entertain visitors. 

(Susan Palmes-Dennis is a veteran journalist from Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao in the Philippines who works as a nanny in North Carolina. This page will serve as a venue for news and discussion on Filipino communities in the Carolinas. Visit and read her website at www.susanpalmes-dennis.simplesite.com. Read her blogs on susanpalmesstraightfrom the Carolinas.com. These and other articles also appear at http://www.sunstar.com.ph/author/2582/susan-palmes-dennis.

You can also connect with her through her Pinterest account at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/41025046580074350/) and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Straight-from-the-Carolinas-/494156950678063)