As typhoon Odette approaches our home in Cebu we thought the timing was perfect to write a new blog. Earlier this month (December 4th to be exact) our family was invited to attend a kid’s birthday party. The birthday boy is named Jansen Rivera, the son of the owner’s of RD Pawnshops here in the Philippines. If you are from the Philippines you have most likely heard of their business as they have branches nationwide and support a lot of different communities with their community outreach programs that have helped countless families through the pandemic. We were curious how they would manage to include so many guests through the strict protocols here in the Philippines and how many people would actually attend. Those questions would have to wait as the first order of business was to get Cora (our daughter) ready for her first kid party!

P.S. in “Pamilya Abilla” fashion we brought more than the allowed plus one and included Cora’s older cousin, Aizel and her friend, Aiche. This fact is important and would help us for later on in the story so try to remember it hehe.

Needless to say, the kids were hyper and giddy in anticipation of the event. From what we’ve heard, the RD Pawnshop family always puts on a giant party for their son’s birthday every year with different themes and activities for the kids to enjoy (as well as great food and music for the adults). This year the party was to be held at the Raddison Blu Hotel in Cebu, where the hosting family rented out an entire ballroom for the festivities. By the way, we would highly recommend booking with Raddison Blue, Cebu, for your next event if you want an amazing experience for everyone involved (however, quite expensive). The theme of the party was a giant carnival. Our family had never attended a party quite like this one so we were excited to see what a kid’s carnival themed party would entail. After Cora, Aizel and Aiche were ready to go we set off on the road and tried to hurry as we were (as usual) late.

Upon arriving at the hotel we made our way to the basement parking so we could take the elevator up to the main lobby floor with Cora in her stroller. The lobby of Raddison Blu features a 50+ foot tall ceiling with pillars that of ancient Greece. The incredible open space has 2 separate bars where you can order cocktails, food and have any business meetings that you might want to have while in the city. There is also an all you can eat buffet that has international food of very high quality called Feria of which we’ve been to several times (before having Cora). Just outside the buffet sits a hand sculpted gingerbread village which the kids found amazing! All of these features were great but the one that stood out the most and was the most unforgettable had to be the 40 foot Christmas Tree that sat in the middle of the giant room lit up in a dazzling blue light arrangement. After reigning the children in, much to their behest, we made our way towards the ballroom where the carnival party was.

As we made our way down the dimly lit hallway towards the unmistakable sound of children playing, loud music, and sight of colorful balloons, we noticed a small line of people at a desk towards the entrance of the party. This brings us back to the question: how would the RD Family cope with the strict covid protocols while having so many guests? Well, the answer is that they hired a covid testing company to test everyone who entered the party. We fell in line. The kids were restless and didn’t have the patience to wait so they started running around (which we though was hilarious) and disturbing the peace. Maybe we are a bad influence? Maybe not? We believe that the best comedy comes from the most serious situations as bad as that may sound to the layman. Anyways, Cora was sitting peacefully in her stroller waiting along with us while her cousin and cousin’s friend were running around anxiously. It came to be our turn and we all passed the test with flying colors. We then strolled into the party late, as it should be.

Making our way through an entrance of balloons and confetti the feeling was almost mystical, so much so that we felt lost. We had to ask where our table was. We had table 18 which was towards the back, but we found it to be a good thing because that means we could eat as much as we want without the judgment of other people (not that we cared anyway) and also made it easier to handle the kids and their shenanigans. The first thing we noticed was the 2 people dressed as clowns who were walking on stilts. Everyone wanted a picture with the stilt-walkers. After taking pictures, we decided to turn in some of the free vouchers given to us at the door and get some cotton candy for the kids. Aizel got pink, Aiche got orange and Christian got green (of course). Next was the games.

Games. A child’s past-time and parent’s break-time. The kids were ushered to the front and split up into separate teams in which they had to compete for the large array of prizes. The prizes were great and ranged from; dolls, rubix cubes, board games, stuffed toys, musical instruments (Cora got a drum) and many other toys. As they kids played the carnival games they started to win more and more prizes. Each time they won they had to walk up to the prize table and pick on out. The prize table was located next to the table that held the cake and presents for Jansen. The cake display table was in the theme of a carnival as well but featured different things including; vintage cars and other interesting designs. Once the games and play time was over the RD Family invited all the friends and family for a picture.

The first people to take a picture was friend of the family (which included us) and after the group photo we were invited to head to the buffet and grab our food. The buffet was fully-catered and had a giant lechon and a variety of other food options. After we munched out and got our fill of grub it was time to relax… NOT. The kids were going crazy at this point and they were so happy to be out of the house and playing with other kids (the Philippines has incredibly strict rules, at this point, where children aren’t allowed in malls, or restaurants etc…) because they’ve been stuck inside for over 2 years. Anyways, the kids kept playing while being supervised by the many parents in attendance. The time ticked away and the end on the night came.

Everyone had a great time including and most importantly the kids. Anyways thats it for this one. Have a great day everyone!

We have an entire video on this exact story on our YouTube Channel, "Pamilya Abilla" if you want to see the full-detailed story!

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