In about 10 hours from now I should be wetting my feet in one of Caramoan’s beautiful beaches. Barring all natural calamities, I intend to have a wonderful time swimming and taking photographs of this awesome part of the Philippines.
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If Caramoan sounds familiar to you, this is probably because Survivor is filming there in Gota beach. Hmm.. I wonder if perhaps I could take a peek? Not sure if there are gorgeous Survivor contestants but let’s see.
This trip didn’t take long to organize. None of the hair-pulling hassles that usually precede any plans my buddies and I have whenever we plan something. We just took advantage of Cebu Pacific’s low fare promo, selected a date and let the chips fall where they May.

After everything was booked everyone had no other recourse but to get on with the program. The tickets were non-refundable of course. Teehee.

So, expect some harebrained adventure tale again next week with photos hopefully.

Ciao!
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Butuan City is a storied place, and not without it’s controversy. It’s been said that even before the Philippines came to be, there was already the Kingdom of Butuan. Of course a lot of people were quick to dispute that claim. In this featured post, Francis of Butuan City Today, gives us a glimpse of Butuan through its artifacts and its month-long Balanghai Festival.
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Today, May 1, 2009 is the official start of Butuan City’s month long Balanghai Festival. We usually hear this word around this time of summer as we usually equate it with the city’s display of culture and tradition as well as its opportunity to show the development highlights it has travailed in its a thousand years of existence, from an influential maritime kingdom in the Sri Vidjayan and Madjapahit Empires, to a gold finders paradise in the early 20th century… to a booming timber-town in the 50’s. From a fragile, perennial calamity hit locality… to a rising highly urbanized regional capital of today…to that of vigorous shining metropolis in the near future. Let us again take a review of Balanghai, and how this great Indo-Malay word came to represent this city’s journey through the past millenia.

Golden Voyage

Since the 10th century, Butuan appeared to have been in good relations with the Srivijayan Empire. Being located on the coast of Mindanao, balanghais are often docking at the Butuan bay keeping good business between the local people of Butuan and traders from the neighboring empire.

During the 1970’s, these balanghais were exposed through an excavation to the modern time and found that through carbon-dating process, the boats were almost a thousand years old.

Building balanghai requires teamwork and unity among workers which is why it was used by the Philippine Government as a term to refer to the smallest political unit, now became popularly pronounced as barangay.

Butuan’s Early Balanghais

A balanghai, or some refer to it as balangay, is a wooden boat adjoined by planks, and believed that the term originated from an Italian archaeologist named Antonio Pigafetta in the 16th century when he mentioned the word spelled “balanghai”.

The balangays did not serve just a wooden boat but stood as a symbol for social unit. In the 16th century, Spaniards found out that balangay also referred to the smallest unit of politics among Filipinos.

Balanghai Boats

Late 1970’s, balangay boats were discovered in Butuan City by the National Museum archaelogists. Nine were recovered during the excavation. The first is being presently preserved and displayed in the museum in Libertad, Butuan City. It had undergone carbon-dating and dated at year 320. The second boat, dated 1250, is presently located at the Maritime Hall of National Museum in Manila. The third was transferred to Butuan Regional Museum while the six other boats are under the process of excavtion and preserved, remaining to their original waterlogged condition to protect the artifacts.

The Historical Butuan

The city of Butuan is the home of treasures such as the Tara, golden figurine of Buddha’s consort, an array of lustrous, most intricate jewelry, a collection of priceless ceramics from the Sung Dynasty, and the remains of the early balanghai.

These precious treasures of Butuan are now found around the globe. The Tara is now at the Field Museum in Chicago, the Chinese precious findings and the restored balanghais are being displayed at the National Museum, and the incomparable gold jewelry is the Metropolitan Museum of Manila’s grandest collection.

The first mass in the Philippines is believed to have taken place near the Agusan River, and it is said that Ferdinand Magellan himself dropped the anchor of the ship in 1521 at the Agusan River, and held a mass to commemorate the event.

BALANGHAI FESTIVAL

The Festival

Balanghai Festival

Commemorating the coming of the early settlers from Borneo and Celebes, Butuan in Agusan del Sur is celebrating Balanghai Festival during the third week of May, coinciding the feast of Butuan’s patron saint, Saint Joseph.

The balanghai, also known as balangay and Butuan boat, is the first water vessel to have excavated in Southeast Asia, serving as evidence to the craftsmanship of the early Filipinos in attempting to transport on water.

Balanghai Festival is one historical event commemorated through a night of exotic performances, costumes in an array of colors and creativity, and dazzling floats. One can also take part in the festivals activities such as contests, exhibits, and many other events.
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Take a Journey to Butuan today…explore ~ www.butuantoday.tumblr.com

This post is the first in a series of featured articles/photos from other travel related blogs. In this blog post, Abbie Maquiling, who owns Discovering Pinas, dives deep into the island of Camiguin. Aided with pictures, Abbie takes us into the heart of Camiguin Island. As you can see from her post, Camiguin offers more than its sweet lanzones and that little strip of sand people call the White Island. Enjoy!
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Camiguin is one of the smallest islands here in Pinas, second only to Batanes Island (smallest) in land area. Camiguin has 5 municipalities namely Catarman, Guinsiliban, Mahinog, Mambajao (the capital) and Sagay. It’s the home of Lanzones Festival held annually in October and Mt. Hibok-Hibok, still an active volcano that last erupted in 1953.

Camiguin Island Sunset

I was fortunate to have met a friend who has friends in Camiguin. We went there for the Holy Week which is one of the most anticipated events in Camiguin. Pinoys and tourists come here to meditate and relax especially on Holy Week. By then, the twelve stations of the cross are all wind up around the island. You can go around the island for a day and visit all the twelve stations. Some come here for the sun and water. Camiguin is a unique island for the fact that it’s an island in Mindanao, has an active volcano and lots of beautiful white sand beaches. Aside from the beaches, it has waterfalls, cold spring and hot spring. Fun, fun, and fun all in one island.
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The first spot that we went to is the Walkway To The Old Volcano and Stations of the Cross in Catarman since it was the Holy Week. This is actually the Mt. Vulcan Daan that erupted in 1871 and which now has stations of the cross. It’s not that hard to reach the summit where the last station is located because stairs were built for easy access. Just a tip though – this is not for the faint-hearted and if you do want to reach the last station, bring water with you.

Entrance to The Walkway To The Old Volcano and Stations of The Cross

The stations of the cross light up just before dark

There are actually two waterfalls that I heard of in Camiguin. One is Tuasan falls in Catarman that we didn’t visit because it’s not easily accessible by vehicle. You have to trek and pass through Barrio Mainit in Catarman. The other one is Katibawasan Falls in Mambajao which is a really spectacular waterfall. The water goes into a icy rock pool and it’s perfect for those hot, summer days. It’s accessible by any vehicle and you won’t get lost because the government installed signs/directions going to the waterfalls.

Katibawasan Falls

Icy Rock Pool

We also visited the Ardent Hot Spring which is still in Mambajao. This is a perfect spot for those weary travelers who seek relaxation. This is your natural jacuzzi and is very therapeutic. There’s also a man-made swimming pool called Soda Water Swimming Pool and i don’t know why it’s called like that. Probably to attract attention. It’s water is cold and the scenic mountain landscape is yours to enjoy. There’s also a cold spring in Camiguin called Sto. Nino Cold Spring in Catarman if you want the opposite of hot. It’s your choice, really. Camiguin has it all.

Soda Water Swimming Pool

Ardent Hot Springs

Camiguin has another tiny island beside it which is named Mantigue Island and is a part of Mahinog. This island is accessible by pumpboat from San Roque, Mahinog. There’s no electricity and water in the island so you better pack a lot of food and water if you want to stay there for the night. I’ve seen a lot of starfish and sea urchins in the island and it’s a very good spot for snorkelling. Another island across Mambajao is White Island which doesn’t need any introduction because it’s really, really famous. It changes its shape from the letter C to letter I depending on the tide. You can also see Mt. Hibok-Hibok from here.

Land Ho! Mantigue Island

Just keep walking...

...in Mantigue Island

Camiguin is also known for the Sunken Cemetery in Catarman which sunk in the volcanic eruption of Mt Vulcan Daan in 1871. Its Cross Marker was installed in 1982 to mark the Sunken Cemetery. This place is actually one of the best dive spots in Camiguin and in Pinas.

The Cross Marker Of The Sunken Cemetery

Remnants of the said eruption can also be seen in the ruins of the Gui-ob Church also known as Catarman Ruins. It’s located just a few minutes away from the Sunken Cemetery.

The Gui-ob Church Ruins / Catarman Ruins

There’s more to discover in Camiguin but i’ll leave it up to my next trip.

An old parola (lighthouse) in Mambajao

Flores De Mayo (Flowers of May) used to be a rather exasperating time for me as a kid. My old folks would force me to attend those bible classes along with dozens of other kids. The only incentive to attend then was the free asucarada (biscuits sprinkled with sugar, totally bad for your teeth) and cute girls. lol. I already had a feeling then that my parents’ insistence was so they could get me out of their hair and have some peace and quiet around the house even if it’s only for a few hours. What can I say, I was a lively kid. But enough about me.
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For this merry month of May, I will be featuring articles and photos from other travel bloggers. I have come to the realization that no matter how hard I try, I will not be able to visit every nook and crany of the Philippines (i’m still hoping I could do it though) much less the world.

I have already contacted these folks and I am flattered that most have responded positively to my request. I am still organizing things so that these articles are given enough webtime so other folks can learn about places that this blog hasn’t covered yet.

Stay tuned!
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Some say that it’s just a piece of white sand; this little strip of dandruff that’s visible from the shores of Camiguin. Too small to be anything significant. Too insignificant to catch the fancy of bigtime developers. And even if it does, it is not commercially viable (unlike the red light district that is Boracay).
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Which is just as well.

The white island cannot be owned gently, or forcibly even. It is a blip of sand that you go back to over and over and find it changed everytime. It is a moveable feast. It will always remain undeveloped. Nature intended it to be such. And we are all oh so lucky for it.

Featured Photo Credits Steve Currington
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