DOLEFIL give back to it's community!

 DOLEFIL (Dole Philippines), Polomolok, South Cotabato was part of our itinerary in the last SoCSarGen Experience Tour: Part Deux which was organized by Avel Manasala of the GenSan News Online Mag.

We are one of the lucky visitors of the Dole Philippines Plant , since they invited us to their exclusive Kalsangi Restaurant and Club, where only the top executives and employees of the plant are allowed there.

DOLEFIL  is one of the largest pineapple plantation in the world and it contributes a lot to the economy and the people living in the area. They export around 80% of their production and the rest are sold locally.

The company does a lot more than just that, they are also doing a lot of corporate social responsibility to its community. They advocate tree planting in the surrounding community and in return they give classroom arm chairs and help farmers have their own pineapple farm.

They also hosted a merienda for all who participated the event. Of course pineapple is present on the menu. Nothing taste like the sweetest pineapple by Dole, accompanied by their famous Clubhouse sandwich, Pancit Palabok from their restaurant and their famous Dole fruit juices.

Pinoy Big Brother Audition in Tagum City on March 19!

Pinoy Big Brother Season 4 will have its Davao auditions on March 19, 2011.

The venue will be at Gaisano Grand Mall in Tagum City, Davao del Norte.

REQUIREMENTS FOR AUDITION:

Age - 18 to 35 yrs old.

Bring any Valid ID (SSS, School ID, Drivers License, TIN, Passport).

Mutya Ng Dabaw 2011 finalist named!

THE top five finalists of the Mutya ng Dabaw 2011 were named at the Summit Bar of the Apo View Hotel on Wednesday. The pageant is part of Araw ng Dabaw celebration and the winner will become the ambassador of goodwill of the City of Davao.

The top five finalists are Carmen Smith, who got the highest score; Irene Lascuña, Glenn Camille Villanueva, Imari Haifah Mama, and Reemae Mozar.

The coronation night at the Davao City Recreation Center (formerly Almendras gym) on March 15.

Join the 4th Mt. Apo Boulder Face Challenge (1st international Version)!

 



4TH MT. APO BOULDER FACE CHALLENGE (1st international Version)
Date : April 29-30, 2011
Location : Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur

The high adrenaline, heart-thumping endurance challenge is open to teams with three members (1 male, 1 female, 1 logistic crew). However, the competition will only limit thirty teams to participate in order to comply with the carrying capacity of the trails along the course to Mt. Apo National Park.

The winning team will receive US$3,500 or roughly PhP154,000.

Brief Description

Mt. Apo Boulder Face Challenge is one of the toughest adventure races in the Philippines. It is a 24-hour extreme challenge starting from Sta. Cruz beach lines to the skyline of Mt. Apo's boulder face through disciplines of mountain biking, trekking, water tubing and road running. It is one of the highlight events of the annual Pista sa Kinaiyahan celebration conducted by the Municipality of Sta. Cruz.

For three (3) consecutive years, the conduct of Boulder Face Challenge has made Davao Region a leading destination for eco-adventure tourism considering that it hosts a major portion of the country's highest peak. It also lured several participating teams from the Southeast Asia region and even from as far as Canada. This early, the Local Government of Sta. Cruz, along with the Department of Tourism XI is preparing the event to make it international.
The race will consist of mountain biking – 22.5 kilometers of road/uphill biking – water tubing for 15 kilometers and road run of 12 kilometers, The distance is 85 kilometers from the municipality of Sta. Cruz to the boulder face.

For more info click here, and to register online click here!

Kiamba's Children's Park and Tuka Marine Sanctuary visit!

As part of the Soccsksargen Experience Tour we visited Kiamba, Saranggani Province and it was awesome experience I should say!

The children's park in Kianmba is one of the best in the province. It is well maintained with a mini zoo inside a great experience for the locals and visitors alike. The park is just along the beach great place to unwind, bring your kids along and enjoy the scenery along the beach.

The beach house by the children's park is where the local government of Kiamba, Saranggani Province hosted a sumptuous lunch for the blogger who participated in the Soccsksargen Experience Tour.

The next stop is the Tuka Marine Sanctuary and the the jump off point for the boat rides is just at the back of the children's park.

Tuka Beach and enclave is a pristine marine sanctuary that play host to a rich and biodiverse fauna. It is just a few minutes boat ride and what welcomes the visitors are the white pristine beaches along the coast.  We had the pleasure to snorkel along the Tuka Marine Sanctuary and there are lots of fishes and corals just a few meters away from the coastline. But a sad reality struck us most, is the presence of  crown of thorn star fish.

The crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) is a large nocturnalsea star coral polyps. The crown-of-thorns is a corallivore, a carnivorous predator that preys on reef coral polyps. They climb onto reef structures, and then extrude their stomach onto the coral. This releases digestive enzymes that allow the starfish to absorb nutrients from the liquefied coral tissue. The crown-of-thorns also preys on brittle stars in a similar fashion.

They are voracious predators. An individual starfish can consume up to 6 square metres (65 sq ft) of living coral reef per year.

The local government of Kiamba are worried about the presence of the Crown Thorns in the Tuka Marine Sanctuary. If only we could help them to save the corals. All we could do as a blogger is to let the world know that the marine sanctuary in the brink of ecological disaster.

Lot of thanks to Avel Manansala who spearheaded the Soccsksargen Experience Tour Part II and the local government of Kiamba, Sarrangani Province for their hospitality. It was really an experience of a lifetime.

Araw ng Dabaw 2011 Schedule of Activities!

The 74th founding anniversary of Davao City's kick off will start on March 14, 2011!

74th ARAW NG DABAW SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES

DATE/TIME ACTIVITY   VENUE

14-Mar-11/7:30am Opening Ceremonies Quezon Park

14-Mar-11 Pakonsiyerto ni Mayor Rizal Park

14-Mar-11 Kaon ta Day, Lingaw ta Bai Bolton St

15-Mar-11/1-6pm Sayawan sa Da'n City Hall Drive-San Pedro-Legazpi-Rizal-Bolton Sts

15-Mar-11/8pm Mutya ng Dabaw (Finals) Davao City Recreation Center

15-Mar-11 Pakonsiyerto ni Mayor Rizal Park

15-Mar-11 Kaon ta Day, Lingaw ta Bai Bolton St

16-Mar-11/6am Thanksgiving Mass San Pedro Church

16-Mar-11/7:30am   Parada Dabawenyo/Banda Hudyaka

16-Mar-11 Pakonsiyerto ni Mayor Rizal Park

16-Mar-11 Kaon ta Day, Lingaw ta Bai Bolton St

 

Maitum, Saranggani's culture and white water tubing experience!

A journey to Maitum, Saranggani Province is like journey in the past. It is considered Mindanao's Old World. This is where hundreds of anthropomorphic jars were found in the caves of Maitum which were used as cover for burial jars associated to the Metal Age in the Philippines circa 5 B.C. to A.D. 225. And to experience their water tubing in Pangi river is a must do adventure in Maitum.

I was one of the lucky bloggers invited during the Soccsksargen Experience Tour last weekend  which was spearheaded by Avel Manansala. The Municipal hall is a grand building with mini archaeological and ethnographic exhibit, on the second floor which also houses the replica of the jars that was found in the area. The local government cannot place the real old jars since the National Museum requires that the original jars and other museum pieces should be housed separately in its own museum and not in the city hall. But none the less, the exhibit that they have gave most visitors the history that Maitum has to offer.

Maitum is 127 kms from Gen. Santos City, to get there air-conditioned vans are the most convenient way to go and you have to shell out P140 for the fare going there.

After experincing the culture of Maitum, we are off to an adventure with white water tubing at Pangi river which is around 15-20 minute ride from Poblacion, Maitum.

This time we are off to getting ourselves wet in the wild river of Pangi. We have to change our clothes to get wet and enjoy the water tubing experience of a life time. This is the first time that I will ride the water tube going a river downstream. The excitement and fun is an experience of a lifetime.

If you want to try water tubing, you can ride a motrocycle (habl-habal) at P25/person from the national highway in barangay Pangi or by tricycle at P100 one way trip from Poblacion.

For a school trip or group tour in Maitum with water tubing adventure you can get in touch with the right person at the Maitum Tourism Office.

• Ms. Elizabeth Ramos-Palma Gil (Information Officer) 0921-5944228;


• Arnelito Ramirez (Tourism Operations Assistant) 0918-6133022;


• Arlex Narte (Tourism Operations Assistant) 0919-3738007

What are you waiting for? Plan your next culture and adventure in Maitum, Saranngani Province now!