Now Back to Our Regular Program...

DAY 3 (of our Trip to Koronadal)

Early the next morning, we left our dorm to drive over to Polomolok, where Dole Philippines is located, for breakfast... o ha? It was a beautiful day... the sun was rising... there was a light haze which was slowly lifting... and we were accompanied by the majestic outline of Mt. Matutum all the way. Our friend from Dole, Mr. Leo Balito, met us at the entrance and gave us a quick run-through of the place as we drove towards their exclusive clubhouse in the middle of their Manager's Compound.

Of course, having been born and raised in Del Monte Philippines myself, I couldn't help but compare the two. DM soil is clayey, while Dole's is sandy; Cawayanon has fewer houses than Dole's compound but the former's golf course has 18 holes where the latter has only 9. On the other hand, there were tons of similarities: their education systems are both based on American schools, their houses were build to fit American lifestyles and, the signature feature of American suburban living-- wide open spaces!

After breakfast, we headed back to Koronadal. Since we weren't in a hurry-- we weren't really interested in the morning topics-- we decided to stop by the famous Durian Garden, of which Leo had spoken so highly of. According to him, we could have our fill (eat-all-you-can) of durian for only P99. By all means, let us prove that to be true. When we got there, we were pleasantly surprised to see that not only did they have durian, but also ornamental plants of all shapes and sizes! Our plant-lovers were in ecstasy!

That night, though several chambers had already left for home, the ones that remained were invited by none other then the owner of the mall (Fit Mart Mall) in which the convention was held. It was there that we felt we were Paupers in Queens' clothing because all the other delegates were owners of large capital businesses (malls, schools, supermarkets, etc.). Then again, knowing this just added to our enjoyment of the evening, which consisted, again, of a lot of food, impressive entertainment and good company.

Only one thing marred the evening: around 7:54, a shaking began. At first we thought a truck had passed by, but as the shaking extended to 7:55 by my watch, we knew that we were experiencing an earthquake. No one was hurt, in fact, since we were seated out in the courtyard of this huge house, we were appeased to know that nothing would accidentally fall on us. Other than this, the party was a success.

As soon as the program ended (9:30pm), we left, pleading fatigue, but actually it was to ensure we had a good night's sleep for our travel home the following day.

Strengthening Ties

We just got back from a road trip to the City of Koronadal, South Cotabato, where, along with my colleagues at the North Bukidnon Chamber of Commerce and Industry, I stayed for 4 days. This series of blogs will cover all four days and all the places we were able to visit.

DAY 2

Our second day in the City of Koronadal dawned bright and sunny, after a night of heavy rain and thunder. For the opening ceremonies of the 18th Mindanao Business Conference, we had been advised to wear the traditional Filipiniana costume. (Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures of us, sorry.) Among the expected guests were none other than Hon. Kristie Kenny, US Ambassador to the Philippines and Sen. Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan, author of the PROPEL movement of PCCI.

After the day's convention, we were again invited to attend a dinner, this time sponsored by the Province of South Cotabato. Here, we were serve

d with unlimited sashimi and fresh, fresh fruits in season -- pineapple, rambutan, mango, guava, watermelon, durian, lanzones, papaya, banana and what have you! If you didn't want to have the fruit salad, that was okay, because they were all mixed in your stomach anyway.

While we were eating, we were pleasantly serenaded by a very talented singer, an amazing choir and a very entertaining troupe of folk dancers. It was after dinner that we were surprised to discover Koronadal City's secret: FASHION!

(I apologize for the quality of my pictures. I was using a 2 MP camera phone.)