LONDON HOSTS BIGGEST PHILIPPINE BARRIO FIESTA IN EUROPE  

18 July 2007 — Philippine Ambassador to the United Kingdom Edgardo B. Espiritu reported to the Department of Foreign Affairs that on 14 and 15 July 2007, Lampton Park in Hounslow, Middlesex once again became the stage for the biggest Philippine barrio fiesta in the UK and throughout Europe .  

“On its 23^rd year now, the Hounslow Barrio Fiesta is the longest running and the most attended Philippine barrio fiesta in the UK , which Filipinos from all over the UK and other cities in Europe take time off just to attend,” Ambassador Espiritu said.  

This year, more than 70,000 people joined the fiesta celebration as Filipinos and British alike trooped to Lampton Park as early as 9:00 a.m. to join the fun.  

Around 80 stalls were put up, showcasing various Philippine products from canned goods to native delicacies, Philippine remittance companies and banks, travel agencies, cargoes, real property developers, restaurants and catering services, retailers and other service providers.  

The Philippine Embassy also had a booth to provide information on consular services, tourism, labor, PAG-IBIG, and SSS.  

The first day kicked off with a cultural program featuring various Filipino talents based in the UK , The program lasted through the afternoon. Ambassador Espiritu also addressed the crowd at the fiesta.  

In his remarks to the crowd, Ambassador Espiritu said, “As you celebrate and enjoy the festive atmosphere of this event, I hope that you will not forget to use the occasion as a venue for promoting our rich cultural heritage so that our young generation of Filipinos and our British friends present today will have a greater understanding and genuine appreciation of our cultural tradition.”  

He also took the opportunity to appeal to Filipinos present to actively participate in the country's development endeavors, saying, “I encourage you to remain active players in our economy, not only as remitters but also as investors in your respective provinces.”  

In the afternoon, the Philippine Tourism-London Office hosted a reception for Friends Philippines & the Embassy booth.  The reception was attended by more than 100 friends of the Philippines , mostly British nationals involved in promoting Philippine tourism to the British market.  Former British Ambassador to the Philippines Paul Dimond and his wife were also guests at the reception.  Hounslow Mayor, Councillor Andy Morgan-Watts and his wife were also present.  

The second day started off with a parade around Hounslow High Street through to Lampton Park .  Philippine Deputy Chief of Mission Reynaldo Catapang and officials of the Philippine Centre led the parade. More than 300 people representing various professional and geographical Filipino organizations in the UK as well as Embassy personnel and youth groups joined the parade. The WOW Philippines taxi promotion and the Igorot Association UK with their native costumes were two of the main attractions at the parade.

The parade was followed by a cultural show, which featured local Filipino talents and the Miss Little Philippines contest.  Mr. and Mrs. Catapang crowned the winner of the pageant and Mr. Catapang also addressed the crowd on the day.  He echoed the importance of barrio fiestas in promoting Philippine cultural traditions in the UK .  

The crowd braved the afternoon rain to have a glimpse of Filipino artists Regine Velasquez, Epi Quizon and Nyoy Volante, who all came from the Philippines to perform at the fiesta.  

The Hounslow Barrio Fiesta is a project of the Philippine Centre, an umbrella organization of more than twenty Filipino organizations in the UK dedicated to promoting Filipino culture through barrio fiestas and other cultural activities.  END

/jay

(Home)