Originally publish:

http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/248100/tayumans-shelter-mercy/

Tayuman area in Manila is the hub for many illegal settlers who have no access to basic needs such as education and even toiletry. Some—both children and adults—resort to drug use and petty crimes just to get by. Every day, the homeless face abject poverty and go deeper into depression that goes hand in hand with living an unlivable life. Some of the elderly homeless have been abandoned by their families. Some of the homeless are young mothers who were victims of sexual abuse or domestic violence. They are often found traveling around Tondo with makeshift pushcarts made of wood and metal scraps fished out of trash bins and the nearest dump. Educational recreation for children at Arnold Janssen Kalinga sa Kapuwa Center. But every Thursday, there is a place in Tayuman that opens its doors to the impoverished; it is where children, young mothers, and the elderly can drop by for a little relief—the Arnold Janssen Kalinga sa Kapuwa Center (AJKKC).

It has been a year since the center, whose establishment was spearheaded by Fr. Flavie L. Villanueva, mission secretary and coordinator for justice and peace issues of the Philippine Central Province of the Society of the Divine Word (SVD), started helping those in need. Primarily a feeding and hygiene (toilet and bath) center, AJKKC provides food, bathing and toilet facilities, education, and spiritual guidance to the less fortunate. People from all walks of life head to the center for some much needed physical, emotional and mental rejuvenation.

Batanes  is an archipelago province in the Philippines situated in the Cagayan Valley region.  The Northern beauty is a photographer's paradise due to it's picture-sq  scenery with an  ancestors of today's Ivatans descended from Austronesian who migrated to the islands 4000 years ago during the Neolithic period. Historic lighthouses were used during the war, it was a site of the  American period telegraph facilities that connected Batanes with the central government until it was destroyed by the Japanese Imperial Army bombings at the start of World War II. 

Originally Publish:

https://explorepartsunknown.com/manila/christmas/

In a tiny shop built with metal wires and an old tarpaulin on the outskirts of Manila, employees are hard at work. It is October and Christmas is fast approaching, meaning the orders are rolling in for parols, traditional lanterns that are hung up throughout towns and villages in the Philippines.

Christmas season here starts as early as September and involves a massive network of balik bayan boxes sent from near and far, extravagant parties with colleagues, friends and family, and a whole lot of pig roasting.

Between 100,000 to 150,000 overseas Filipino workers return home to spend Christmas with their families. Those who can’t make it send gifts and money. In 2016, their remittances reached an all-time high of $28 billion.

Photographer Jilson Tiu roamed Manila, from the high end shopping malls to the night markets, to capture the atmosphere in his city during the holiday season.

A day in a life of a community of mussel harvest in Cavite, Philippines.

Annual International Hot Air Balloon Festival, Philippines