Missing Misa-de-Gallo for the nth time.

Picture taken from google.com

This Christmas season marks the start of the festivities. One famous tradition is the Misa-de-Gallo or Simbang Gabi.

I just got here in the office after taking my wife home first from her Christmas Party. As I pass by CBTL earlier, I noticed a lot of people probably going home after attending their first (or second) "Simbang Gabi"

According to Wikipedia,  Misa de Gallo is the Spanish phrase for Midnight mass, more literally translated as "Rooster's Mass".

It is said that the "Rooster's Mass" owes its name to the idea that a rooster would have been among the first to witness the birth of Jesus, and thus be the one to announce it.

In most Spanish speaking countries, La Misa del Gallo entails a typical midnight mass, starting at around 12:00 a.m. on Christmas Eve. To see "La Misa Del Gallo" clearly go to Montserrat, high in the mountain near Barcelona.

Here in the Philippines, the prayer is done early morning on Christmas Eve, and it is the last day of a nine-day ritual known as Simbang Gabi. Completing the nine days culminating with the Misa de Gallo is equal to a wish come true, and many Filipinos believe this centuries-old promise to this day. Those who cannot wake up early in the morning, there is another version which is done literally at night (from Dec 15-23) aside from the original schedule (Dec 16-24).

Personally, I'd prefer to attend the early morning mass rather than the mass at night as some people just go there to hunt for beautiful chicks instead of listening to the mass (probably, that's one that they're praying though XD). The last time Ive almost completed a Misa de Gallo was way back in highschool around 15 years ago.

Too bad, I'm gonna miss this again. Till next year perhaps. XD