BAGUIO, Philippines – If there’s something MaryKay Carlson would want to be other than the US ambassador to the Philippines, it would be the Ambassador to the North Pole or wherever Christmas begins. 

“What I love about the Philippines is their long Christmas season,” she said during her Christmas party with the Baguio media and other city personalities at the Ambassador’s Residence at Camp John Hay. 

She was so excited about the long Christmas season and the Christmas trees she kept here and in Manila, that she actually started decorating the three Christmas trees she kept here much earlier. 

“I started on August 28 instead of September,” she announced.

Last year, Carlson was guest of speaker of Baguio Day on September 1 and she made use of her time to trim her trees here as well.

She has three Christmas trees here, one at the so-called Yamashita Room on the first floor (where Japanese General Tomoyuki Yamashita signed the instruments of surrender at the end of World War II), one in the dining room and the other at the receiving room of the second floor. 

The second floor tree was trimmed in gold and silver while one of the other tree was decorated in green and red. 

If you think this is too much, the ambassador keeps not three but seven Christmas trees back in the three-bungalow Ambassador residence in Makati. 

Here in Baguio, she also lets her guest taste the special “Christmas” drink of her family back home composed of raspberry and bourbon. 

Meanwhile, Carlson began the reception by reflecting on the residence’s pivotal role in history: “Next year, we will mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. As many of you know, the war came to an official end in the Philippines right here in this residence, when, on September 3, 1945, General Yamashita signed the instrument of surrender in front of General Jonathan Wainwright – on the very table that still graces the dining room.”

She added: “It’s fitting to close the year with a celebration, as the last 12 months of US-Philippine relations have given us much to celebrate! I can confidently say that 2024 was a banner year for US-Philippine relations as friends, partners, and allies.”

Carlson then mentioned the milestones of PH-US relationship: “Secretary of Commerce Raimondo led a delegation of 22 businesses for the historic Presidential Trade and Investment Mission to the Philippines, announcing more than 55 billion pesos in US investments. Secretary of State Blinken and Secretary of Defense Austin each visited the Philippines twice, including a joint visit in July for the first US-Philippines 2+2 dialogue to be held in Manila. During Secretary Austin’s second visit, just two weeks ago, we broke ground on a new command and control fusion center at Camp Aguinaldo, which will allow our forces to coordinate on exercises and operations in-person and in real time, a significant step forward in our Alliance.”

She added: “We broke records in our people-to-people ties, processing more visas than ever before and sending the most Filipinos to study at US higher education institutions in more than 15 years. And that’s just scratching the surface of all that we have achieved during the past twelve months!”

– Rappler.com