12 September 2013 - The Philippine Embassy in The Hague participated in the First Embassy Festival organized by the Municipality of The Hague on September 07. Dubbed as “A Cultural World Tour in 1 Day,” a total of 28 embassies, international organizations and non-governmental organizations placed on display various products and information materials. Visitors were entertained with music and dance performances of various artists, while enjoying food and drinks served at some of the tent pavilions. Entrance was free.

Visitors of the Philippine table were given a free taste of traditional delicacies such as fried lumpia, chicken empanada, dried mangoes, yema and polvoron. Mr. Alex Aragon, owner of “Manong Alex,” the new and only Filipino restaurant in the Netherlands, provided complimentary “dynamite lumpia” (stuffed chili in lumpia wrapper) for visitors to taste.

On display at the Philippine Table were abaca products from the Fiber Industry Development Authority (FIDA) and Philippine tourism brochures and maps. The organizer was effusive in his praise of the presentation set-up of the Philippine booth. He said that by mid-afternoon, the count of Embassy Festival visitors was at 8,000.

The Hague Deputy Mayor Marjolein de Jong hosted a reception for participating Ambassadors as a side-event of the Festival. Philippine Ambassador Lourdes G. Morales attended the reception. END