Cover Honouring the friendship you have with people you can count on and consider as family makes Best Friend's Day just as important as any other holiday.

Find out about the friendships of society ladies Ava Daza & Geri Camahort and Techie Hagedorn & Junie Peña

Having a best friend is a gift. Honouring the friendship you have with people you can count on and consider as family makes Best Friend's Day just as important as any other holiday. So, we asked our Tatler friends about their closest pals in celebration of the momentous day. Read on to find out about their friendships and stories that will inspire you to appreciate you besties even more!

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Ava Daza and Geri Camahort

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Photo 1 of 2 Best friends Ava Daza and Geri Camahort enjoying each other's company.
Photo 2 of 2 Best friends Ava Daza and Geri Camahort enjoying each other's company.

Who is your best friend and how long have you been best friends?

I really have two best friends (Geri Camahort and Berta Limjap) but for this, I’ll just choose the one I see more often. Geri and I have been friends for almost 20 years. We met when I was 11 because we both went to Assumption College for elementary.

What do you love doing together? Is there an activity that you both consider a tradition?

We chat all day but mostly we love to eat together! We love going to the beach as often as we can (although it’s been hard with the pandemic) and being with our group of friends. I used to travel with her to their province in Dumaguete too!

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What are your favourite memories together?

We’re always laughing. All our out of town trips are the best! Some of my favourite memories with her would be when we went to Los Angeles to meet her now-husband for the first time. It was super spontaneous and so memorable!

What do you love about one another?

I think what I love most about Geri is that she is so funny and so caring. She knows what I like and don’t like, and she doesn’t bother me about it. She doesn’t try to change me and she knows exactly how to encourage me. I think it goes the same way for Geri!

Junie Peña and Techie Hagedorn

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Best friends Junie Peña and Techie Hagedorn.
Above Since 2001, Junie Peña and Techie Hagedorn have been inseparable best friends.

How long have you been best friends?

Junie: We met in 2001 through Fernando and Phillip (our husbands) and we immediately clicked! We’ve had so many shared experiences since then.

What do you love doing together? Is there an activity that you both consider a tradition?

Techie: During pre-pandemic days, we would do our regular four to five-hour lunches, either just the two of us or with our other girlfriends. We also have a common love for the same types of books, movies and TV series and we love discussing them in detail. And we definitely love a good deal, whether it’s fashion, home, or groceries—anything goes!

What are your favourite memories together?

Junie: Traveling to my house in Washington DC and Techie driving (I don’t drive!) and going to the outlet malls and seeing all the museums. [It's] so much fun! What can beat culture and bargains? Then we made a quick stopover at New York City on the way back to Manila. It was a perfect trip!

Techie and Junie: Our weekends at Tali beach definitely! [Being with] our families over the holidays are also always so special.

What do you love about one another?

Junie: I’m just so lucky to have the most amazing friends. I know without any doubt at all that Techie is someone I can call, text, and basically, one hundred per cent depend on to be there for me, without any questions or judgment ever! Plus, she can make me laugh until I can’t breathe! Incredible.

Techie: I can call Junie and say some silly thing I’m thinking of and she gets it. We really laugh a lot together. Some days we just send silly videos to each other. But I can also count on her when I need advice or just someone who will listen. Junie is dependable and will definitely be there for me and my family, I know this in my heart. She’s such a softie too. So compassionate towards others.

Jessica Tan-Gan and Alexandra Rocha Araneta

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Above Jessica Tan-Gan and Alexandra Rocha Araneta have been best friends for about 15 years.

How long have you been best friends?

About 15 years. We've known each other since high school but our friendship really developed after college.

What do you love doing together? Is there an activity that you both consider a tradition?

Pre-kids and pre-pandemic days, we were always together. For now, we do the most we can to see each other mostly through our playdates with our kids who are close in age. It's a play date and a much-needed break for us moms too! We joke that our kids will be forced BFFs second generation. We love eating together, spending time outdoors in nature. Once upon a time [before the] pandemic, it was travelling together, and going on wellness retreats!

What are your favourite memories together?

We have too many! We had one unforgettable funny trip to Boracay that ended with the both of us being sweaty sardines in the back of a hot shuttle to the airport. But all our trips together were memorable: Phuket, Bangkok, Japan—all our trips together!

What do you love about one another?

What we both value in our friendship is our honesty and loyalty to each other. We've gone through a lot and grown up together and we've worked to reach a level of honesty with each other. We can trust each other, and best of all we can laugh at ourselves and each other without being offended.

Xandra: What you see is what you get with Jes. She’s genuine, loyal, and kind. She has stuck by me through the best of times and the worst of times. She’s someone who lets me vent or cry without judgment but also tells me when I’m being ridiculous or unreasonable. The best part is we can laugh at ourselves and we celebrate the good times.

Jessica: Xandra is loyal like no other. She is funny and so caring to her friends. She will stand up for you and give her all. And best of all, when I am craving something, she'll cook it for me! I've been the recipient of many delicious home-cooked meals!

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