Journey Through the Philippines. Kiki Deere

Ati-Atihan Festival that features street dancing and wild costumes.

      Filipinos’ friendly disposition is captured in the numerous cultural dances that originate from all corners of the archipelago. Ethnic tribal dances in the Cordilleras feature wooden instruments such as bamboo flutes, while dances in the highlands of Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago embrace Muslim Filipino culture and echo the islands’ Arabian and Indo-Malayan influences.

      While the country had a rich musical tradition long before the arrival of the Spanish, Catholicism strongly impacted Philippine musical traditions. In the 19^thcentury the piano and European string instruments were introduced. Bands of musicians were formed and began playing at town celebrations. Groups often gathered to form a rondalla, a band of stringed instruments played with a plectrum, such as the double bass and twelve-string guitar. During US rule there was a shift to American tunes and songs, and it was only in the 1970s that OPM (original Pilipino music) took off.

      Participants at the Sinulog Festival reach out to a statuette of the Santo Niño, or Baby Jesus.

      A marching band carrying percussion instruments sports colorful dress at the annual Ati-Atihan Festival on Boracay Island.

      A man stands on a large float atop two model lions at the Aliwan Festival, which celebrates the country’s diverse cultures.

      WONDERS OF NATURE

      A SPECTACULAR NATURAL DIVERSITY, NOW UNDER THREAT

      Comprising over 7,000 islands with a complex geological history, the Philippines is home to some of the world’s most spectacular wonders of nature. The diversity of the country is astounding: active volcanoes, limestone formations, white-sand beaches, coral reefs teeming with marine life, jungle-clad peaks, age-old rice terraces—the list goes on.

      The Philippines has a plethora of unique biodiversity, with hundreds of endemic species of plants, mammals and birds such as the Philippine Eagle. Once carpeted

      in lush rainforest, the archipelago is today one of the world’s most threatened hotspots, with less than 10 percent of original forest remaining. Lying between the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean, the country is located on the volcanic Ring of Fire. With over 20 active volcanoes, Mount Mayon in southern Luzon is the most active of all. The Cordillera highlands in northern Luzon rise to about 9,020 feet (2,750m) and, along with the province of Mindanao in the south, have rainforests that are home to dozens of tribal groups.