It's been more than a month since the Pamamanhikan happened but my fiancé and I are still having hangover with it. Both of us really enjoyed the moment and were surprised by how it turned out.
Pamamanhikan is a tradition that marks the beginning of a long preparation for a big celebration on lovers' life. Once it’s done, preps for the wedding will commence "legally" since all the planning will take place during this meeting of two families - for old timers. I guess our modern pamamanhikan no longer requires the guy's family to visit the girl's family house especially if in a distant place. This is one thing that my fiancé and I considered why we chose to have it here in Manila even if my parents live in Aurora province - a not so distant place.
We considered renting a room to have the pamamanhikan since I live with my sister's family in a condo unit. And knowing its size, it surely cannot accommodate everyone and my fiancé also didn’t want me to look haggard preparing the food and venue (isn’t he so sweet?hehehe).
First I called Mesa located at the 2nd level of Atrium of Megamall ((+63 2 470-4660) that serves Filipino dishes. We know they have function rooms for private meetings but as advised, they don’t reserve rooms on weekends (just a first come first serve basis). On top of that, they require 6,000 pesos worth of food which we believe is too much for 3hours. Tipid mode kame ni h2b. By the way, we chose Megamall since it's the nearest mall for both of us.
The next resto I called was Chef's Quarter in the same mall (+63 2 706-5336). They serve American dishes like pasta, pizza, etc. They require 12,000 worth of consumables which is also out of budget but they do reserve function rooms on weekends.
Then we saw Nipa Hut, a Filipino-Japanese Restaurant in Pasig. It’s along Capt. H.P. Javier St. Oranbo, Pasig City (Contact number is (632) 671-5321). I called them and reserved for 15 pax. The only available room was for 30pax with aircon. They required 3,000 pesos worth of food and 300 peso rent for the room for three hours which is not bad at all.
Fast-forward, h2b family came first and already pre-ordered the foods -with his parents, two older sisters and their families and one yaya- total of 8. Mine was - my mom, brother and his girlfriend, my niece and 4 titas that totaled to 9. Our bill reached around 8k as per h2b so I was like what???!! That much??!! What can I say, there are many left-over foods so they were able to take home almost all of it. The food was simple yet it satisfied everyone's hungry stomach.
Fast-forward again...h2b's dad was really accommodating. Ofcourse his mom also but his dad acted as a real host and always starts a good topic in all conversation. He offered free accommodation in Astoria which was great since we'll no longer spend some of our budget for that. Unlike the old pamamanhikan, the guy’s family will bring with them a mediator and offer something to the girl’s family before the wedding. I’m not sure if it’s just me, but that practice looks like they’re buying the girl from her parents. Anyway, we informed everyone about our plans and asked their opinions and suggestions. Some couples no longer do this tradition, they just tell their parents about their plans and that's it. But for h2b and I, we want to involve them since they are part of the family that we’ll be creating.
Pamamanhikan for me need not be formal, it’s just a way of knowing your partner’s family more and letting them mingle with yours. - just bonding of two families that will help you mold your future family better. Hope those B2Bs out there can find time to still practice pamamanhikan.
Pamamanhikan is a tradition that marks the beginning of a long preparation for a big celebration on lovers' life. Once it’s done, preps for the wedding will commence "legally" since all the planning will take place during this meeting of two families - for old timers. I guess our modern pamamanhikan no longer requires the guy's family to visit the girl's family house especially if in a distant place. This is one thing that my fiancé and I considered why we chose to have it here in Manila even if my parents live in Aurora province - a not so distant place.
We considered renting a room to have the pamamanhikan since I live with my sister's family in a condo unit. And knowing its size, it surely cannot accommodate everyone and my fiancé also didn’t want me to look haggard preparing the food and venue (isn’t he so sweet?hehehe).
First I called Mesa located at the 2nd level of Atrium of Megamall ((+63 2 470-4660) that serves Filipino dishes. We know they have function rooms for private meetings but as advised, they don’t reserve rooms on weekends (just a first come first serve basis). On top of that, they require 6,000 pesos worth of food which we believe is too much for 3hours. Tipid mode kame ni h2b. By the way, we chose Megamall since it's the nearest mall for both of us.
The next resto I called was Chef's Quarter in the same mall (+63 2 706-5336). They serve American dishes like pasta, pizza, etc. They require 12,000 worth of consumables which is also out of budget but they do reserve function rooms on weekends.
Then we saw Nipa Hut, a Filipino-Japanese Restaurant in Pasig. It’s along Capt. H.P. Javier St. Oranbo, Pasig City (Contact number is (632) 671-5321). I called them and reserved for 15 pax. The only available room was for 30pax with aircon. They required 3,000 pesos worth of food and 300 peso rent for the room for three hours which is not bad at all.
Fast-forward, h2b family came first and already pre-ordered the foods -with his parents, two older sisters and their families and one yaya- total of 8. Mine was - my mom, brother and his girlfriend, my niece and 4 titas that totaled to 9. Our bill reached around 8k as per h2b so I was like what???!! That much??!! What can I say, there are many left-over foods so they were able to take home almost all of it. The food was simple yet it satisfied everyone's hungry stomach.
Fast-forward again...h2b's dad was really accommodating. Ofcourse his mom also but his dad acted as a real host and always starts a good topic in all conversation. He offered free accommodation in Astoria which was great since we'll no longer spend some of our budget for that. Unlike the old pamamanhikan, the guy’s family will bring with them a mediator and offer something to the girl’s family before the wedding. I’m not sure if it’s just me, but that practice looks like they’re buying the girl from her parents. Anyway, we informed everyone about our plans and asked their opinions and suggestions. Some couples no longer do this tradition, they just tell their parents about their plans and that's it. But for h2b and I, we want to involve them since they are part of the family that we’ll be creating.
Pamamanhikan for me need not be formal, it’s just a way of knowing your partner’s family more and letting them mingle with yours. - just bonding of two families that will help you mold your future family better. Hope those B2Bs out there can find time to still practice pamamanhikan.
