It's Christmas day and night at Greenhills Shopping Center

(The Philippine Star) Updated November 26, 2010 12:00 AM Comments (0) 

MANILA, Philippines - Yes, it’s Christmas day and night at Greenhills Shopping Center (GSC), where a Christmas show, bangketa
fair and night market attract hordes of visitors from morning till midnight.

The Christmas Bangketa Fair offers a wide variety of gift choices like clothes, shoes, bags, fashion accessories and novelty items at
bargain prices.

This event which serves as the Christmas edition of the yearlong bangketa fairs at the GSC, runs up to Jan. 3, 2011.

“During this period, the bangketa stalls at the shopping center are increased to almost 2,000 stalls,” said GSC general manager
Cathy Casares-Ko.

 “And to give more time for Christmas shoppers to find their gift choices for their loved ones, the GSC night market is open from 6
p.m. to 12 midnight, allowing busy individuals to do their shopping after office hours,” Ko added.

 The night market features at least 200 stalls offering Christmas bargain items, and serves as a venue for “gimmicks” and
relaxation as it provides a nightly band performance.

At the same time, the GSC Christmas show provides children and their families with nightly entertainment from 6:30 p.m. to 11
p.m.

This animated Christmas display situated at the main entrance of the GSC runs up to Jan. 2, 2011.

here was a time when only the rich went to the Greenhills Shopping Center. Over time, though, it evolved into one of the biggest
centers housing flea markets in the country. Its destiny to be a tiangge behemoth was realized that it even landed in Vogue
magazine once.

Now, people from all walks of life go here for various reasons. Greenhills is the place to get the latest cell phone models not yet out
in the malls and at cheaper prices at that. Apart from this, old cell phones may also be traded for newer ones, repaired, enhanced,
etc. The tiangge stalls are in the middle, where the imitation clothes, shoes, bags, watches, coats, accessories, electronics, and toys
are--all at a discount if you know how to ask for it. 

The jewelry stalls are innumerable, and you could get dizzy from the blinding white pearls on display, plus the glitter of the crystal
accessories with Swarovski elements. Handicrafts line the side entrances and the hallways. Rows of furniture are on the second
floor: Blims have various sala sets, office tables, bookshelves, to CD towers; La Ferriera Arts & Crafts have wrought-iron day beds,
four-poster beds, side tables, eight-seater dining tables, shelves, swinging couches, garden sets, bar stools, consoles; other types
of furniture made of wood, rattan, etc.

Unlike Divisoria that is solely for bargain-hunting, Greenhills has grown into a complex that offers something for everyone in the
family. After a billion-peso renovation within the last two years, it has added more establishments for limitless activities. Plus,
virtually the whole complex is now air-conditioned. The Shops feature boutiques and other beauty shops just like those found at a
regular mall. There are modern movie theaters, a bowling alley, and places of worship within one roof. 

Restaurants are now found all over: from the fast food places at Virra Mall on one end, to the fine dining places at the Carpark on
one side, and the coffee shops at Theater Mall on the other end. Here at the Theater Mall are two modern, state-of-the-art cinemas,
plus the Music Museum where many big artists' concerts and stage plays are held throughout the year.

More dining places will be found across the Theater Mall at the Promenade, the newest structure boasting of mall hours that extend
way beyond 9 PM, the hour that the rest of Greenhills closes. Besides numerous restaurants, the Promenade also has three new
cinemas, a karaoke club, bookstore, and arcade for kids.

On occasion, a night market--also known as Bangketa Fair--opens at the GSC Parking 1 from 6 PM onwards. At Christmastime, a
Christmas Carnival is featured, with nightly shows every 30 minutes between 6 PM and 10:30 PM. This is a longtime tradition that
began in the C.O.D. mall in Cubao but has since been transferred to Greenhills. The Carnival is not a full-blown show with a meaty
story as with a stage play, but it is worth watching for the few minutes it is held for the characters made out of wood that showcase
distinct Filipino artistry