Recently I was invited to a festival in TAGUM. Tagum is the capital city of Davao del Norte. At first, I was really hesitant to go as the festival heading read that I was being invited to the annual “Gay Summit” in Mindanao! OMG! I was like thinking to myself…this will be the end of me!!! After a few days of calls and research, I was assured that it was extremely safe and with a wing and a prayer, I took the first flight out to Tagum. The flight was like at 4am, so I was in a zombie-like state when I arrived.
Tagum is an hour’s drive out from Davao city. On the drive out, I was really impressed with the roads and the infrastructure. I was greeted by the First Lady of Tagum, Mrs. Alma Uy. Her husband Dr. Ernie Uy is the Mayor. They toured me around their beloved city and I was really impressed! The city was super clean and the everyone seemed very happy. I was doubly impressed when I saw the local government buildings, like the public schools and the hospital, as they were all well built and quite beautiful.
Tagum was quite a revelation! I had to divide my 24 hours there in 2 entries so here is part 1. Enjoy!
I always enjoy the fresh air when I am outside of the city.
There was this really cool tricycle system in Tagum. All the tricycles were of this lime green color. There was a real sense of order to the place.
My very first stop was the livelihood center in Tagum.They had a training seminar going on.I was informed that Muslim women are often discriminated and have very little options in terms of livelihood. This is indeed very sad I was more than happy to help out these women and find ways to contribute to better their lives.This Lady is Ma'am Putri, one of the instructors in the center.
Here is a lady working on some beaded panels.
They use these panels for home decor, but I gave them some suggestions and in a few weeks will be seeing the outcome. Will keep all of you posted.
I gave a workshop to the designers of Tagum.
I found my tag line quite adorable. The festival that I went to is called the Binuhat festival. Binuhat is the new term for gay, it means special creation. I found that beautiful.
After the workshop we headed to the home of the Mayor for lunch. They had durian trees growing in their gardens.
The beautiful Durian!
Mrs. Alma Uy shows me the various species of Durian that she grows.
I could not wait to try it. Eating durian is really an acquired taste. It's not for everyone, but I like it in moderation. The taste is like a sweet soft cheese. Here in Mindanao, everyone goes nuts over Durian. LOL!
My plate! I learned so many techniques on how to eat durian and how to get the smell out my hands and breath. To get rid of the smell on your hands, you must use the pit or the seed of the durian like soap. To remove durian breath, you put the pit/seed in a glass of water and slowly drink this. It was like magic. The smell really disappears. Try it next time.
Mrs. Alma Uy has a Durian factory. Apart from her farms, here are some samples of her Durian delicacies. We had Durian pies, candies, yemas, breads, hopia, polvoron....the list goes on and on! LOL!
Durian Hopia! By the end of the day, durian was coming out of my eyes! LOL! It was all good though.
We also had Lechon! We all love Lechon!
They also served us local soft shell crabs that were really DELISH! I loved it with the local vinegar.
After lunch, we headed out to see the town of Tagum. Here is a perspective of the city hall! They used only local resources! Can you imagine that?
Another view of the city hall! AMAZING! This was designed by a Filipino architect based in Australia.
The city hall in construction! IMPRESSIVE!
HUGS!
RAJO!
stylebibleph
previewmag
themallph
iluvbeautyph
Follow us
Facebook Twitter Tumbler RSS