Ang Dabawenyo

The intrepid bloggers, Andrew, Ria, Winston and I, went to see what the buzz was all about at the Outland Adventure camp in Ma-a, Davao City. For nearly a decade, it’s been known for their ropes course, a corporate team-building facility out in the boondocks. Now there’s the Xcelerator — the longest zip line in Asia!

I’ll let the video tell the story. This is a home-made and -edited amateur vid, so please bear with me.

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Happy New Year!!!

I celebrated the coming of 2009 A.D. and spent the last hours of the year 2008 with good friends & family at Eden Nature Park in the south of Davao City. It was my first time to spend New Year’s Eve at this mountain resort that I love so much — a big Thank you! to my friends at Eden for making this New Year’s celebration a wonderful one!

Each year — and this has been going on for almost a decade now — Eden Nature Park hosts a New Year’s bash that everyone talks about. It’s an event for the whole family, with entertainment and shows for all ages. This year, the Park put on magic shows, a Narnia wardrobe (playroom) for the kids, face-painting, henna tattooing, even fortune-telling. ••• Read on »

In spite of the looming economic crisis, Filipinos still find it in their hearts and spirits to celebrate the holidays, especially the Yuletide season. This has nothing to do with religion — we just love to be festive, whether we’re Muslim or Christian or otherwise.

Each year, Mana-Davao delights Dabawenyos with their roadside Christmas lights display in front of their building in Bajada. Unlike some establishments that churn out the same set every Christmas, Mana makes it a point to put on a different show every time. And what a treat it is indeed! It’s actually become a local tourist attraction, and many flock to the spot to take pictures come December. ••• Read on »

Davao City has led the country in aggressive anti-smoking initiatives, foremost of which is the ordinance that banned smoking in many public places. Several years ago, Davao City imposed strict rules against smoking in restaurants, hotels, transportation terminals, etc. Eventually, the national government followed suit and made it into a law.

Now, the city’s legislative body has passed on first reading an ordinance which seeks to ban the sale of cigarettes on city streets. According to an article in Sun•Star Davao yesterday:

The proposed ordinance defined public places as streets, sidewalks, parks, playgrounds, schools and gymnasiums. Those prohibited from retailing cigarettes include sari-sari stores, groceries, supermarkets, public markets and vendors, especially the “takatak” boys.

“This is to complement our Anti-Smoking Ordinance which has been implemented for eight years now,” Laviña said.

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Ten days to go before Christmas. Is it just me, or are there a lot more beggars on the streets this year? I think I’m seeing more Bagobo and Ata beggars trying to scrounge a few bucks from the lowlanders compared to last year.

We’ve all heard of alleged syndicates that’re responsible for ‘fielding’ beggars into city streets. But whether or not this is true, we mustn’t forget our innate generosity. If there really are unscrupulous elements taking advantage of the poor by having them beg for money to line their own pockets, that’s their problem.

If you gave a few pesos to a beggar who happens to be under these syndicates, don’t worry, you still store up blessings in heaven. You’re being generous, and the Father above will recognize this. ••• Read on »

On our way back from Cagayan de Oro via Bukidnon, my friends and I came upon this huge sculpture jutting from the side of the road, precariously sitting on the edge of a cliff. By the looks of it, it would be safe to assume that it’s the work of Davao artist, Kublai Millan. ••• Read on »

On my latest trip to Northern Mindanao, I had an interesting road trip with a couple of friends to and from Cagayan de Oro City. The trip going was uneventful and rather tiring because I had little sleep the previous night, and it rained hard.

On the other hand, the trip from Cagayan de Oro back to Davao via Bukidnon was quite rejuvenating, even though it was physically tiring. I’d missed traveling by land, that’s why I jumped at the chance to go with my friends.

I had mixed feelings, though. Not much has changed in the landscape, if you consider the larger picture. But when you look close enough, you’ll see that progress has indeed started to make inroads in the countryside. There are quite a few more buildings around, especially in places like Malaybalay and Valencia. Even in Buda (short for the Bukidnon-Davao border) you see more people and houses around. ••• Read on »