A Date Idea
These past few months have been quite the roller coaster ride.
Early this year, I got a notification, a message request at 2:22am, I was obviously asleep then, I saw the notification in the morning. I don't normally open my message requests, much more send replies to people I do not know. But I accidentally clicked "accept", and for a second I felt panicked. But I told myself to just politely reply as the message did not sound harmful. Little did I know that accidental acceptance of a message request will lead into something unexpected.
Fast-forward.
Now I am stressed out on what to do, where to go, and what to eat in the coming weeks. I can't take him to fancy restaurants because he might be he having what these restaurants serve on a daily basis.
I thought to myself, with the limited time my guest will be here, I need to make use of each day to make his short stay worthwhile, if I were given a day to go out and introduce the city, where should we go and what should we do?
Being the chronically online doom-scroller that I am, I looked up the stored photos in my cloud storage and scanned through my old posts for the places I’ve been to and places I keep coming back to, I listed the places that are close to each other or those we can visit for a stopover along the way.
First up, BUDA (Davao-Bukidnon Road
BUDA (Davao-Bukidnon Road) is a high-altitude mountain-side area between Davao City and the Province of Bukidnon; a place away from the heat of the City, I always hear him complain about how hot it is in his country for the past few months so I thought it will be nice to take him somewhere cold.
The area houses tourist destinations like several standalone resorts with the perfect view of the sea of clouds.
A personal favourite is Sonnen Berg Mountain View – it has a stunning view of the morning’s sea of clouds, witnessing the phenomenon while sipping a cup of local hot chocolate called sikwate sounds a good idea, right? The problem is the sea of clouds only lasts for a few hours after sunrise, so the challenge will be waking up super early and driving for hours to get to there.
Another place that I keep going back to whenever I go to Buda is Jaca Mountain Peak – it is a restaurant located along Arakan Valley Road. Their pizzas are must-tries. They serve meals and coffee, so this place is good option to have breakfast after seeing the sea of clouds. Plus they have cute dogs and a view of Arakan Valley.
Next in our itinerary is Malagos Garden Resort and Chocolate Museum
A little nature-trip won’t hurt, right? A place where we can see some animals (this time we are not eating them), and inhale some fresh oxygen. Malagos is a place known for their interactive wildlife shows, a mini-zoo and their local variety of cacao. The past few years, the place has found their name on the international stage when they won various awards in International Chocolate Awards, Academy of Chocolate Awards, appointed as Heirloom Cacao Destination, and a place in TasteAtlas’s Top 100 best Chocolates in the World.
To showcase their chocolate, Malagos has created their own Chocolate Museum - a first in the country, and a place to visit if you have the curiosity and passion for chocolates. This place is one of the places I am most excited about, it might spark a little banter or maybe a friendly competition because my guest comes from a place where chocolate is taken very seriously, if you can think of a place known for their chocolates, you already know.
Meanwhile in their Butterfly Sanctuary, you can see and spend a short time with different species of Butterflies, and learn their life cycle inside the museum. They also have their Bird Show where you can get a front-row seat at the Philippines longest-running bird show, and their Falconry shows that highlights the park’s birds of prey and their skills.
We’re not done yet, here’s where I’m taking him next – The Philippine Eagle Center
Do you want to see the world’s largest eagle in terms of length and wings surface area? Philippine Eagle Center is the place to go. A sanctuary dedicated to preserve and rescue the Majestic Philippine Eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi), at the moment, this eagle species is facing a critically endangered status and has around 400 individuals left both in captivity and in the wild. A fun fact, you see that handsome bird on the local currency’s 1000 bill? That is Viggo – a handsome boy and a resident of the sanctuary. You can come see his majesty and some of his friends when you visit the center.
The best way to end the tour is to have good food, and when you head to Davao from Buda, you will notice a line of eateries and restaurants along Tugbok road. The area is known for their Hitoans.
Hito is a local species of catfish. Typically grown in farms and delivered to restaurants still alive, you get to choose the size of the fish you want to eat. All you have to do is check their menu, choose the size and optional weight of the fish, and decide which dish to make out of it. I personally love the deep-fried one and the grilled one. It has a deep, fresh taste and a texture so soft and tender you will surely go for round two.
If we are lucky enough to get back to the city before places close down, I might also take him to Magsaysay Fruit Market.
Magsaysay fruit market has become an iconic tourist destination in the city. This is where most locals take their visitors to buy fresh fruits and taste the King of Fruits – the Durian.
Davao City is known for its abundance of fruits, and the fruit it’s mostly known for is the Durian – a fruit that has become a symbol of the city. It is a fruit with a hard shell covered in sharp thorns, but the inside is a bunch of big seeds covered in creamy, custard-like flesh that tastes heavenly, sometimes overly sweet and creamy, sometimes a bit bitter and crunchy, it really depends on the variety you’re getting; though most people know and fear it because of its strong smell. I personally do not like the smell but I do enjoy eating the meat.
The market though known for Durian also offers other fruits, Mangosteen is my favourite among them. Marang is another fruit visitors often wonder about, a fruit covered in leathery skin but is full of seeds with sweet flesh. Pomelo is also one of the crowd-favourites in the city and the usual pasalubong tourists bring back home.
Overall, the day will surely be hectic and tiring but I think this itinerary is good enough.
Since he will be staying here for weeks, I have to come up with another itinerary – this time I’ll introduce him to Davao’s history and culture. We’ll be visiting museums next!
I want this person to experience the life that is in Davao. And I thought that the City itself is hectic, but the places outside the metro also deserve to be seen. The life far from what we hear in the news, the life away from bashing, away from cultural differences, and a life that awaits him, char. Introducing my city and the places I love to go to, to someone special means that I need to represent it well, it means showing other people that we do live a good life here, we have good food, quality places to go to, and life experiences waiting to happen; and I look forward to him seeing Davao City through my lenses.
Ik kan niet wachten om deze dingen met jou te beleven.
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