Wreath Laying Ceremony in Rizal Monument Kicks Off Winter Escapade from Canada
Philippine Ambassador to Canada Maria Andrelita Austria (right) led the Wreath Laying Ceremony of the 8th Winter Escapade in the Rizal Monument in Luneta, Manila on 19 February 2024. (DFA-OPD photo by Jeffrey Mendoza)
MANILA 28 February 2024—A Wreath-laying Ceremony in the Monument of Philippine National Hero Dr. Jose Rizal in Luneta was held to officially launch the 8th edition of the Winter Escapade on 19 February 2024. With around 260 comprising Filipino-Canadians, Canadians, US and German citizens, participated in the ceremony led by the Philippine Ambassador to Canada, Maria Andrelita Austria and the Philippine Consulates General in Calgary, Toronto, and Vancouver, in cooperation with the Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Tourism, Tourism Promotions Board, and Rajah Tours Philippines. Present in the ceremony were Colonel Rotessa Baylon PN(M) GSC of the Philippine Navy, City of Manila Vice Mayor John Marvin “Yul Servo” Nieto and National Parks Development Corporation Executive Director Cecille Lorenzana-Romero.
After a 3-year hiatus due to the global pandemic, the annual tourism campaign will resume and expects to take the delegates to a nine-day tour of historical sites and prime tourism destinations in Manila, Iloilo, Guimaras, Cebu and Bohol from 19 to 27 February 2024 while savoring choice regional Philippine cuisine and quality Filipino products
The participants, who were mostly first-generation Filipinos who migrated in Canada and hailing from various parts of Canada such as Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Toronto, Vancouver and joined by delegates from the USA and Germany, remarked on the solemnity of the occasion and remarked how they were moved to see the Philippine flags waving in the Rizal Monument and hear the playing of the Philippine and Canadian national anthems.
Aside from rediscovering their roots, the snowbirds consist of families spanning three generations, solo travelers, and friends from various parts of the world. The 8th edition is made more significant as the Philippines and Canada celebrate 75 years of bilateral relations, characterized by a one million strong Filipino diaspora and strong people-to-people ties. END
Philippine Ambassador to Canada Maria Andrelita Austria (2nd in the foreground), together with the Consulates General in Canada, the City of Manila, National Parks Development Authority and the Philippine Navy, lead the Wreath Laying Ceremony of the 8th Winter Escapade in the Rizal Monument in Luneta, Manila on 19 February 2024.(DFA-OPD photo by Jeffrey Mendoza)
Philippine Ambassador to Canada Maria Andrelita Austria (middle, foreground), together with the Consulates General in Canada, the City of Manila, National Parks Development Authority and the Philippine Navy, lead the Wreath Laying Ceremony of the 8th Winter Escapade in the Rizal Monument in Luneta, Manila on 19 February 2024. (DFA-OPD photo by Jeffrey Mendoza)
The 263 delegates of Winter Escapade 8 pose for a souvenir photo with the Rizal Monument after the Wreath-laying Ceremony on 19 February 2024.(DFA-OPD photo by Jeffrey Mendoza)