SW FQ-537 Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines

Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano in the Cabusilan Mountains on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. Before the volcanic activities of 1991, its eruptive history was unknown to most people.

The volcano's eruption on 15 June 1991 produced the second largest terrestrial eruption of the 20th century after the 1912 eruption of Novarupta in the Alaska Peninsula. The eruption produced high-speed avalanches of hot ash and gas, giant mudflows, and a cloud of volcanic ash hundreds of miles across. 847 people were killed.

The 1991 caldera afterwards filled with water from monsoon rains and a crater lake, Lake Pinatubo (seen in the postcard) was formed.

This postcard came from Joanna P. (8 September 2015) Swap-bot.

The Sinulog Festival in Cebu City, Philippines.

The Sinulog Festival is an annual cultural and Catholic festival held on the third Sunday of January in Cebu City. It is the centre of the Santo Niño (Child Jesus) celebration in the Philippines.

The Sinulog celebration lasts for nine days, culminating on the final day with the Sinulog Grand Parade. The day before the parade, the religious Fluvial Procession sponsored by the Archdiocese of Cebu is held at dawn with a statue of the Santo Niño carried on a beautifully decorated pump boat which sails from Mandaue City to Cebu City, decked with hundreds of flowers and candles. The procession ends at the Basilica Minore del Santo Nino de Cebu where a re-enactment of the baptism to the Christian faith (that is, the acceptance of Roman Catholicism) of Cebu is performed. In the afternoon, a more solemn procession takes place along the major streets of Cebu City, which last for hours due to large crowd participation in the event.

One of the main highlights of the festival is the grand street parade which lasts for 9 to 12 hours (practically the entire day) with participants coming from the different towns and cities of Cebu and from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao across the Philippines. The Sinulog dance contingents are dressed in bright coloured costumes dancing gracefully to the rhythm of drums, trumpets and native gongs. Smaller versions of the festival are held in various parts of the province, also to celebrate and honour the Santo Niño.

This postcard came from Ronan P. (8 July 2015) Direct Swap Postcrossing

SW DL-279 Banaue Rice Terraces

The Banaue Rice Terraces (Filipino: Hagdan-hagdang Palayan ng Banawe) are 2,000-year-old terraces that were carved into the mountains of Ifugao in the Philippines by ancestors of the indigenous people. It is commonly thought that the terraces were built with minimal equipment, largely by hand. The terraces are located approximately 1500 metres (5000 ft) above sea level. They are fed by an ancient irrigation system from the rainforests above the terraces.

Locals to this day still plant rice and vegetables on the terraces, although more and more younger Ifugaos are opting for the more lucrative hospitality industry generated by the terraces.

Close-up of the terraces

This postcard came from Elle (3 September 2014) Swap-bot.

  

PH-59906 Camiguin Province, Philippines

There are 81 provinces in the Philippines grouped into 17 regions.

Camiguin is an island province of the Philippines located in the Bohol Sea, about 10 kilometres off the northern coast of Mindanao. It is politically part of the Northern Mindanao Region of the country. Camiguin is the second-smallest in the country both in population and land area after Batanes.  Mambajao is the capital of the province.

The province consists primarily of Camiguin Island, as well as a few other surrounding minor islets including:

White Island, about 5 kilometres west of the town of Mambajao

Mantigue Island, about 14 kilometres south of Mambajao.

The multi-view postcard above shows (1) Katibawasan Falls (2) White Island beach (3) Sunken Cemetery (5) Mt. Hibok-hibok (6) Paras Beach Resort and (7) an aerial view of Camiguin Island.  The main image is that of the beach of White Island

This postcard came from Maru (22 January 2014) Postcrossing.