Kadayawan Festival '08

Yes it is the time of the year. August is the time for the Festival's of all festival here in Mindanao, the Kadayawan sa Davao 2008. For those of you who doesn't know what I am talking about. Kadayawan is a festival in Davao City, Philippines. It is to thank God for our bountiful harvest of fruits and flowers. We celebrate it every year in August.

Two of the highlights of the festival are the Indak-indak sa kadalanan ( street dancing competition) and the Floral Parade. Although there are a lot of events during the week long celebration, the two said events are the most popular. I suggest you don't miss it.

The festival, generates tourist from all over the world. Foreigners come and experience the way we celebrate our festivities.


Indak-indak sa kadalanan

Photo by Jojie Alcantara



Indak-indak sa kadalanan is a street dancing competition where people from all over Mindanao participates. There is a handsome prize for the groups that will win. The participants apparently practices what they are going to present months ahead. With a lot of groups joining, you will definitely have a great time.



People would dress up in costumes and perform steps together. They should all be synchronized and their moves should be unique. If you want to watch and feel festive the Indak-indak sa kadalanan will be tomorrow, August 23,2008. See you guys there. For more photos like this visit Jojie Alcantara's Site .


The Floral Parade



The floral parade, is the parade of floats that are decorated in flowers and fruits that is harvested from Davao. It showcases the beautiful flowers that we have and of course the delicious fruits that are available. The king of all fruits of course is the Durian .

Yes, I know a lot of people don't like it because of its strong smell. But actually once you have tasted it, you'll find it to be very delicious. Your visit to Davao is not complete without having tried durian.

Floral parade will be on August 24, 2008, Sunday...

I love my hometown. I have been to a lot of places, but nothing makes me feel more at ease. Davao is a peace loving and very beautiful place. Visit Davao for you to find out how beautiful it is...



Please visit the Kadayawan Website for more details.



Photos shown here are from the previous celebrations and I have just borrowed it to some people here on the web, for illustration purposes. I hope to have my own pictures this coming kadayawan... Will keep you guys posted.

An Island Called Siquijor...

Siquijor is definitely the most misunderstood place here in the Philippines. All because of local folklore, ghost and witches that are vividly described in movies and books. Growing up here in the Philippines, that's one island I don't want to set foot in. Whenever people meet someone from Siquijor, they immediately assume that they are witches, ghost or man-eaters.

My bestfriend Ace and I, had this crazy idea to go to Siquijor and check if there were really witches there. But we don't have a clue on how to get there. So, we bought a map (very typical). Without any thoughts about anything, just went to Cagayan de oro City. Ace has relatives there, so we went and visited them.

There we have learned that we need to go to Iligan City to ride a barge going to Ozamis City. From there, we are going to ride a bus to Plaridel... We arrived at Ozamis late already. I forgot which part of Ozamis the bus driver took us. It was 9pm and all the townsfolk were asleep. We tried looking for a hotel or a place to stay, but all are in the Central part. So the bus driver took us to a very old house. All the people there were old, and the house look like a set for a horror movie, complete with casts. I was near freaking out. We entered the room it was all modern... In the morning we discovered that it was an ancestral house, Built in 1786... Forgot the name though... :(

I regret the part of not taking pictures from Cagayan to Ozamis City.

We went early i the morning to get to Plaridel, when we got there, the ferry was scheduled to leave a day after. So we got stucked and stayed at a resort there.

The day after, we boarded the barge going to Larena, Siquijor. It was a 6 hour ride. We arrived at night. Everythings dark. So I told Ace, isn't there no electricity here? Maybe it is true, there are witches here. So we both held each other tightly... Then a small portion of the island was bright. So that was Larena port. We went there and looked for Ace's cousin which she hasn't seen since she was 7 years old. Everything went fine, we saw her cousin Aguilo. We stayed at a resort and slept all night.

In the morning, we rented motorcycles. One for Ace and one for me. In Davao, we cannot drive because we don't have license, in Siquijor, they allow you to drive. Even rent a motorcycle, cause it's an island, you cannot run off with the motorcycle.(Our pictures coming soon)


One of the many beaches in Siquijor

We practically toured the whole island. We visited a lot of resorts and it was so magical. Siquijor's beach were the best. White sand, clear blue waters, just like Boracay. We enjoyed our stay...

Our Trip to Enchanted Kingdom

Enchanted Kingdom, a place for the young and the young at hearts... Enchanted Kingdom is located at Sta. Rosa, Laguna. You can get there by riding the bus, they have their bus terminal located at Ayala Bus terminal. For ticket prices Click here.

Enchanted kingdom is like the Philippines own DisneyLand. First time I went there was with my Mom and brothers... We had a blast... We rode practically every ride there...

Been there about 5 times already...

Me at the bump car rides Ace and me having fun bumping boats



Ace and me at the carousel ride pose with mr. wizard

We had lots of fun here... Sadly we don't have pictures of the wet rides... I somehow lost it and haven't got it scanned... These pictures were from the digicam we brought. If you haven't gone there yet, go with your family or friends... It is really fun and your kids will love it there...

Enchanted Kingdom

Went to Enchanted Kingdom about 5 times already. But every time I go there it is like a new experience. Enchanted Kingdom is like the Philippine counterpart of Disneyland, except it is smaller. But once you get there, it brings out the child in you...


To be continued...