Tuba and Balimbing

The long vacation for this year's Semana Santa (Holy Week) gave me the opportunity to visit Davao once again. It felt so good when we landed at Davao International Airport and smelled the scent of durian in the air.

The place that I went to is a remote town somewhere in Davao del Norte. It is remote because it is in the middle of banana plantations. The nearest sub-urban area is a bus ride away. People had to leave the town if they want to go to a mall, college school and banks.

People who grew up in the city will see the town as boring and slow. It is not their fault because they are accustomed to hustle and bustle of the Metro. I, on the other hand, welcomed the laid-back atmosphere of the town as my respite from the stressful life that I had in Manila.

Coconut trees can be found everywhere. The odd thing that I saw is this coconut:
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Future Father-in-Law told me that the small container hanging from the coconut trunk contains unfermented tuba (palm wine). He gave the small container so I can drink the palm sap that he was collecting. The fresh tuba tastes sweet and I like it. It already had a faint tang of alcohol even though it is yet to be fermented.

Tuba is a local wine made from the sap of the cut flower of coconut. The fresh tuba is to be fermented and mixed with tungog (bark of mangrove tree) before it becomes the tuba that is being sold by the sari-sari stores in Davao.
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(Source: Proudly Philippine Made)

I first tasted the reddish tuba during my first visit to Davao. A friend, who is an owner of a sari-sari store, always allow me to drink a glass of tuba every day.

Another thing that delighted me is when I saw this fruit:
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This many-sided fruit is called “balimbing” (starfruit). This fruit is used to perfectly describe Filipino politicians who are known to change their political affiliations at whim. I was delighted to see this fruit because it is rare in Metro Manila. It is sad to know that young people in the Metro knows more about apples, oranges, and pears than the local fruits like balimbing.

The taste of this fruit is not delightful, however. It tasted mapakla (bitter?) and sour. My father told me that balimbing is in the family of the very sour kamias.

I enjoyed my Semana Santa stay in Davao. I met a lot of people and enjoyed a very long rest.

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Postcards around Davao Gulf

I was browsing through my collection of photos in my external hard drive, when I chanced upon the folder of my first visit to Davao. It is almost three years since my first visit to Davao and I am missing it so. I miss its delicious fruits. I miss its crystal clear seas. And of course, I miss the ambience of Davao with its nice and friendly people.

I had my great luck during my first visit to Davao. This is because I got the chance to visit all the parts of Davao Gulf, thanks to a mapping project. We traveled on a banca (boat) from Davao City following the coast down to Sarangani Islands to the West. Then from Davao City to the Southernmost part of Davao Oriental, wherein we were rocked by the extreme waves of the Pacific. Samal and Talikud Islands also did not escape our visit. We even stayed a night at Kaputian in the City Samal.

Davao Region is a place of great food and interesting places. I hope to come back to Davao soon. But for now, I’ll just be content with the photos I shot and collected around Davao Gulf:
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 Starfish aplenty in the seas of Davao Oriental

I love Davao Oriental’s pristine seas that are alive with corals and many marine animals. Our fisherman friend told me that I could bring the starfishes to Manila. I pitied the lot of the starfishes so I returned them to the sea after taking some photos.
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Large fishing boat in Davao del Sur

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 The two towers, Davao del Sur

I always pass by these two trees whenever we go to the southern part of Davao del Sur. I dubbed these two as the “Two Towers.”
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In the town of Don Marcelino or Jose Abad Santos in Davao del Sur, you will encounter these walls “protecting” the land from invaders.
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Dugong tower. New Argao, Davao del Sur

Dugongs are still alive in Davao Gulf and the people of New Argao are working hard to protect them. This Dugong Tower is used to observe the dugongs. Luckily, we saw one dugong while we are on this tower.
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Cape San Agustin, Davao Oriental

This is my favorite photo. This is my proof that I reached the southernmost part of Davao Oriental and met with the Pacific Ocean. This is the Cape San Agustin Lighthouse.

These are some of the photos that I took when I visited Davao. I do hope that I get more photos when I return them someday.

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A Grace of Friendship

I went to Davao two years ago to gain further experience in practicing my profession as an engineer. However, without foresight, I had also gained a good friendship that survives up until now.


Megumi had been a best pal even though he had just met for a few moments and were separated by a great distance. Due to her, I began to believe that friendship is not just based on how many times friends have seen each other personally. Friendship relies heavily on the sincerity that friends share with each other.


In our life, people come and go but there are those who stick with us in the time of happiness and in the time of distress. These people are what we human beings treasure greatly and what we call as friends.


Thankfully, I thank God to have sent me to Davao to meet a good and sincere person that is Megumi.

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