How to Call Philippines from India | Philippines ISD Code | International Roaming in Philippines

The flag of the Philippines has been adopted in 1946 when the country gained independence from the US. It was designed in the 19th century by the leader of the uprising against the Spanish domination Emilio Aguinaldo, who defeated the enemy on 28 May 1898 at the battle of Alapan. Tricolor of white, red and blue was chosen with reference to the United States used to rule the country. Thus, the flag is composed of two horizontal stripes of red, blue, and a white triangle in the left part of the flag. Three golden stars in each of the peaks of the triangle represent the three main islands of the Philippines – Mindanao, Luzon and Visayas. In the middle of the wedge, there is a golden sun with eight rays in the shape of a sword, symbolizing the first eight founding provinces. Interesting fact is that the flag can indicate a state of war if it is displayed with the red stripe on top.

Philippines has a seedy side – the sex industry grew up to service American GIs during the Vietnam War – but it’s easy to avoid this gloomy scene and find more wholesome nightlife, where live bands perform note-perfect covers of any song you could name and even the smallest, palm-thatched village has a karaoke bar.

This isn’t a country that stages dozens of phony cultural shows for tourists, and the islands’ vividly colourful festivals (of which there are many) are predominantly aimed at locals. So it’s down to individual visitors to strike up conversations and discover a country where East meets West and traditional culture meets the modern world in a crash of colour and confetti.