Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Daisy's souvenir

Just outside Ardent Hot Spring Resort lined souvenir shops of Camiguin Island items. The rain didn’t stop me from visiting the shops even if most of it were close and only one at the far end was open for business. As expected there were T-shirts with big prints of the island, burloloys, keychains, figurines, malongs and shoals were on display. I purchased a grey shirt and an orange painted wooden turtle keychain, all in less than Php 100 (how’s that for budget spending). The attendant offered if I wanted the keychain to be printed with my name on it. I said yes with out hesitation. The workplace where it is to be printed was just a stone throw away. It’s where I met the owner of the souvenir shop, the motherly but very candid, Nang Daisy. I requested for a photo opt which she gamingly participated in. While waiting for the guy (which I briefly instructed on operating my digital camera) to figure the click button, I stroke a conversation to Daisy which I regretted later.

Copy_of_with_daisy_the_shop_owner

Sunday, April 6, 2008

Sakay na!

A misquoted saying that became a joke, “ang di lumingon sa pinanggalingan…” is rephrased and became “ ang di sumakay, di makakarating sa paroroonan”. On my trip, the typical Pinoy rides were my reliable companions (I have to pay for it of course). I listed the top 5 vessels and vehicles of my recent Northern Mindanao trip.

Inside_king_long
 

Yes it is King Long and not King Kong. And yes, as a metaphor to the giant beast this is huge and could simply pass through as the luxurious grand transport in this part of the hi-way. The air conditioning is on superb condition, well for now I guess. And it can easily be manually controlled unlike the old traditional air-con buses where air outlets all busted. Just be sure to bring along jackets for those traveling a long trip. Among its commendable features are, two flat screen monitors, good audio system, per seat lighting fixtures and the seat can automatically recline and decline according to your body position and pressure - Now that’s total comfort.

Saturday, April 5, 2008

Historic Butuan and Magallanes

I think it was in my fifth grade, in our HEOKASI subject (Heograpiya, Kasaysayan at Sibika) that we took up the balangay lessons. The balangays (balanghai as called by Pigafetta) were wooden plank-build and edge-pegged boats that were used by early Mindanao settlers long before the Spanish conquerors set foot on Philippine soils. There were 9 of it discovered in Butuan City and the oldest is believed to date back to 320 AD. The balangay if you still don’t know is where the barangay, Philippines’ basic political unit, came about. These balangays were also called Butuan boats.

I really don’t see the actual graveyard of the balangay (in Libertad) and Butuan museum because it was already Sunday that we arrived here and these sites were closed, but the above long introduction was for a friend who argued why the title ‘historic’ when all places has histories. I understand his point but Butuan and other neighboring towns have tangible evidences of early inhabitants through discovered artifacts. Now I realize that it is not just historic, ‘the-320-AD discovery” is prehistoric and it would aptly be retitled as “Prehistoric Butuan and Magallanes”

Copy_of_boat_docked_along_agusan_river