Fil-Am summer campers ‘see, feel, taste’ PH at Sentro Rizal SF

Young participants in the University of the Philippines Alumni Association of San Francisco (UPAASF) Cultural Immersion Summer Camp, during their field trip to Sentro Rizal San Francisco on  August 3. CONTRIBUTED

SAN FRANCISCO – Young summer campers hosted by the University of the Philippines Alumni Association of San Francisco (UPAASF) got to “see, feel and taste” the Philippines at Sentro Rizal on Aug. 3.

Consul General in San Francisco Neil Ferrer welcomed to their “second home” 42 young Filipino Americans, aged six to 14, who were taking part in UPAASF 9th Cultural Immersion Summer Camp.

A host of activities for the summer campers included a lecture on Philippine national symbols, government and Filipino citizenship, an introduction to Philippine national hero Dr. Jose Rizal, a virtual tour of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, and a familiarization of Philippine-made products.

To make the visit to the Consulate more interactive the Department of Tourism Office in San Francisco held a coloring activity featuring the Philippines’ top tourist draws, such as the Ifugao Rice Terraces, the Puerto Princesa Underground River in Palawan, whale shark (butanding) diving in Cebu, and the Philippine eagle of Davao.

Making things more immersive, DOT San Francisco and PTIC Silicon Valley brought in items from the Philippines that the summer campers got to see, feel, and taste.

These include the vakul head dress of Batanes, pili nuts from Bicol, a sample of Boracay’s world famous white sand, and dried mangoes from Cebu.

The immersive experience sparked the participants’ interest in Filipino products that can be bought in the U.S., as well as their desire to visit and explore the Philippines.

To wrap up their day at the Sentro Rizal, the Consulate treated the youngsters to lunch consisting of Jollibee Chickenjoy, Filipino-style sweet spaghetti, and banana and langka pie.

Participants, facilitators and volunteers of the annual Cultural Immersion Summer Camp of the University of the Philippines Alumni Association of San Francisco (UPAASF) pose for a photo upon the conclusion of their field trip at the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco’s Sentro Rizal on  August 3. Joining them in the photo were (back row): Vice Consul Adrian Baccay; Tourism Attaché Soleil Tropicales; Trade Assistant Mylene Juan; UPAASF President Liza Gino; UPAASF Summer Camp co-founder Sonia Delen; and UPAASF Summer Camp Directors Candy Bandong and Tanya Cruz Duldulao. CONTRIBUTED

Vice Consul and Cultural Section Head Adrian Baccay, Tourism Attaché Soleil Tropicales of the Department of Tourism (DOT) Office in San Francisco, and Trade Assistant Mylene Juan of the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC) in Silicon Valley served as resource speakers and facilitators during the Consulate leg of the summer camp.

Since the program’s inception nine years ago, the Consulate and UPAASF have partnered for the Cultural Immersion Summer Camp, which allows second-generation Americans of Filipino descent to broaden their knowledge and deepen their understanding about their parents’ country of birth. The Consulate’s support to the summer camp is in line with its cultural diplomacy program in the U.S. Pacific Northwest.