This season of The Bachelor is nearing its end and with only three contestants left, we are able to get a much closer look at all of the girls. This is certainly true for Italian-Pilipino contestant, Catherine Giudici. On the most recent episode, Sean visited the home towns of the last four girls which gave Catherine time to show Sean the ins and outs of Seattle as well as some knowledge on Pilipino culture. With a middle name like Ligaya (Tagalog for “happiness”) and a mother who’s a Pilipino historian, we were not surprised to see that she was quite connected to her roots.
Before meeting her family, Catherine prepped Sean with a few helpful hints. She taught him to call her grandmother “Lola” which is the Tagalog equivalent. She then taught Sean the polite and formal method for greeting an elder- mano. This gesture is one that is performed as a sign of respect to the elders. The person bows towards an elder’s offered hand and presses his or her forehead on the elder’s hand. After the proper introductions (as well as gestures of Mano), Sean was asked to help make Lumpia with the family- a popular Filipino roll.
In the past, this show has been criticized for its lack of ethnic diversity so we were delighted to see this 26 year old graphic designer bring some of her culture into the mix. To watch full episodes of The Bachelor, click here and be sure to watch the final episodes!
