“Hello from the Philippines!” Friend, January 2026, 8–9.
Hello from the Philippines!
The Philippines is a large group of islands in the western Pacific Ocean. More than 100 million people live there! The official languages are Filipino and English.
Island Country
There are more than 7,640 islands in the Philippines. People live on about 2,000 of those islands.
Summer Chocolate
The Chocolate Hills are on the island of Bohol. During the dry season, these hills turn brown and look like big mounds of chocolate!
A Huge Eagle
The Philippine eagle is the national bird and one of the biggest eagles in the world.
Bamboo Fishing
People do a lot of fishing here. One way they catch fish is to slap the water with a long piece of bamboo. This startles the fish into their nets.
Time to Celebrate!
In the Philippines we celebrate Christmas for four months, starting in September. We start playing Christmas music and decorate until the season ends in early January.
Illustrations by Minna Miná