Libotero – Philippine Travel Photo Blog

Earlier today, I witnessed for the very first time the T’nalak Festival in Koronadal City, South Cotabato. Thirteen contingents which represented each town in South Cotabato (except Polomolok which did not send a contingent) and Koronadal City. The festival is a wonderful display of the rich culture and heritage of South Cotabato.

Here are the results of the recently concluded 12th T’nalak Festival held as part of the 45th founding anniversary celebration of the province:

T’Nalak Festival Street Dancing Results

Kasadyahan sa Kapatagan
CHAMPION: Tupi National High School
1st Runner-Up: Barangay Saravia National High School, Koronadal City
2nd Runner-Up: Barangay San Jose National High School, Banga

Kasadyahan sa Alalan
CHAMPION: Notre Dame of Sto. Niño, Sto. Niño
1st Runner-Up: Norala National Higj School
2nd Runner-Up: Purok Sison Elementary School, Surallah

GRAND SHOWDOWN:
CHAMPION: Liberty Tampakan National High School, Tampakan
1st Runner-Up: Lugan Central Elementary School, T’Boli
2nd Runner-Up: Sta. Cruz Mission School, Inc., Lake Sebu

The winners of the three categories each received a trophy and a cash prize of P125,000 for the champion, P100,000 for the 1st Runner-Up and P75,000 for the 2nd Runner-Up. All the other participating contingents also received a consolation prize of P10,000.

Congratulations on the success of the 12th T’nalak Festival!

Some of Mindanao’s best dance troupes competed for the highly-coveted grand prize of Kadayawan Festival’s Indak-Indak sa Kadalanan which was held last Saturday, August 21.

Twenty-two (22) contingents, a lot of them being out-of-town contingents, contended for the first prize of P300,000.

Indak-Indak sa Kadalanan, a street dancing competition, was one of the main highlights of the 25th Kadayawan sa Dabaw Festival. It showcased the different colors, cultures and traditional dances of the different tribes of Davao and Mindanao as they paraded along the city’s major thoroughfares on a sunny Saturday.

This year’s competition only had one category. Participating Mindanao-based contingents showcased the festivals of their localities, while participating Davao City-based contingents interpreted the Kadayawan Festival and Mindanao folklores, myths or legends.

For that, I won’t hold you any longer. Here are some photos that I took during the Indak-Indak sa Kadalanan of the Kadayawan Festival 2010:

And the winners are:

5th runner up – P30,000 – Tribu Mapawa, Maragusan, Compostela Valley

4th runner-up – P50,000 – Surallah Central Elementary School, South Cotabato

3rd runner-up – P75,000 – Magallanes Elementary School, Davao City

2nd runner up – P100,000 and Best in Costume and Props – P50,000 – Jesus Soriano National High School, Catalunan Grande, Davao City

1st runner up – P200,000 and Best in Streetdancing – P50,000 – Esperanza National High School, Sultan Kudarat

GRAND CHAMPION – P300,000 – Purok Sison Elementary School, Surallah, South Cotabato

View the complete list of Kadayawan 2010 winners here.

You may view the whole photo set here.

Part 12 of a series.

DAY 2.

The Lake Sebu Seven Falls Zipline was definitely not for me. I was not up for the challenge. And since it was already raining and starting to get dark, we had the excuse to just return to the resort. I heard though that there are plans of putting up a cable car parallel to the zipline. That’s good news for me and I’ll definitely go back once the cable car is operational!

As we returned to the resort, we noticed that the temperature was starting to drop. Cool! We just rested in the room for the remainder of the afternoon and early evening after the long day full of adventures. We had dinner at the resort’s resto and again, it was a tilapia overload!

After dinner, we settled in our room as there’s nothing much to do in Lake Sebu during nighttime. As I looked beyond the resort’s viewdeck, all I could see was total darkness! For that, we had no choice but to sleep and get ready for the next day… ZzzzzzZzz…

DAY 3.

I had a very wonderful sleep at Lake Sebu. The temperature dropped further during the wee hours. It’s not as cold as Baguio but it was definitely cooler than Tagaytay, so it’s somewhere in between. As we woke up, we took a shower and packed up to return to General Santos City. We then had breakfast, still at the resort’s restaurant… Tilapia Overload ever-so-much!

TIP: It pays to wake up early as the colors can be very vivid during these hours.

After breakfast, we checked out of the hotel, texted Manong Habal-Habal Driver to pick us up and send us to the public market, our final jump-off point before finally leaving Lake Sebu. Sigh! We just stayed for a day but I immediately fell in love with the place. I simply love natural destinations and I promise myself that I’ll be back in Lake Sebu soon!

(…to be continued)

Part 11 of a series.

DAY 2.

After buying some pasalubong items at the COWHED Center, Eric and I contacted a habal-habal driver (the habal-habal driver who brought us from the Lake Sebu Public Market to Punta Isla gave us his number in case we’d need a motorcycle to bring us around the sights in and around Lake Sebu) to bring us to Lake Sebu’s prized Seven Falls.

The Seven Falls is located just before the town proper of Lake Sebu, about 10-15 minutes away from the resort.

The Seven Falls is a series of stunning river drops along the lush mountain forests of Lake Sebu. The first waterfalls is the most accessible. From the drop-off area, you just have to pay an entrance fee of P5. While doing that, we already heard the loud sound of the cascading waters. That made me more excited! From there, the first waterfalls is not more than a hundred steps down.

As we got nearer and nearer, the sound became louder and louder, as if the waters were roaring!

And we finally reached the viewdeck of the First Waterfalls. We wasted no time and just clicked and clicked away and appreciated nature’s beauty…

The first falls is named Dongon Falls or Hikong Alu in the local language. It is a block type of waterfall, meaning, the water descends from a relatively wide stream or river. When the water spills over the edge, it looks like a big sheet or curtain. At 40 feet high, the rapid surge and fall of the water from above makes traversing the area around the plunge pool very dangerous.

The way to the second falls is also paved and can be reached by walking at least 700 steps from the first falls! We didn’t have time to do that anymore as the sun was about to set and it was about to rain too. There was another way though. We could have taken the Seven Falls Zipline as it would bring us directly to the second falls and back, and besides that, we’ll also be seeing the other five waterfalls, which are not yet accessible by foot as of the moment, from above. BUT THEN, when we saw the zipline, we WEASELED OUT… It was too, ummm, *finds excuse*, deep! LOL! Maybe next time, pffft!

The Seven Falls Zipline is 700 meters long and is arguably the most quaint, scenic and picturesque zipline in the country!

(…to be continued)

Part 10 of a series.

DAY 2.
After a very fulfilling boat tour of Lake Sebu, Eric and I then proceeded to COWHED. COWHED is just a few meters away from where we were staying, Punta Isla Lake Resort, but if you’re staying somewhere else, the local habal-habal drivers should know very well where it is located.

Flowers abound in Lake Sebu.

(more…)

Part 9 of a series.

DAY 2.

A fountain within a lake, interesting…

Lake Sebu fisherman

Punta Isla Lake Resort’s Floating Restaurant

Food is transported from the main kitchen to the floating restaurant via this pulley, amazing!

Lake Sebu fishpens

After our tilapia lunch party, Eric and I explored the resort and while we were doing that, we discovered that the resort had its own boating service. Without any qualms, we were quick to decide to avail of the boating service! We were just too excited and wanted to see how big the lake really is right then and there.

Each boat can comfortably seat up to 20 individuals!

For that, we informed one of the resort personnel of our intention to do the lake boat tour. Regardless of how many you are, boat rental costs P400.

Actually, Lake Sebu is also the name of the town where the lake is located. Originally, it was part of Surallah, South Cotabato. At present, the town currently has a population of at least 50,000.

Catholic Church in Lake Sebu

The tour brought us around much of Lake Sebu and the fee already includes a guide, an authentic T’Boli at that, who shared the essential information about Lake Sebu and pointed out some places of interest around the lake.

Our tour guide for the afternoon. Lake Sebu is the home of the T’boli tribe which is famous for their colorful costumes, intricate beadwork, woven work and brass ornaments. They are very-well noted for their T’nalak, a sacred cloth made from abaca which is exchanged during marriages and used as a cover during births. Mind you, the tour guides are accredited by the Department of Tourism, so you get a lot of information, and not just a lot but accurate ones as well.

TRIVIA: Sun Cellular subscribers can reflect all the way while in Lake Sebu as only Globe (left) and Smart (right) have communication towers in Lake Sebu. LOL!

The placid Lake Sebu is actually just one of the 3 lakes in the town of Lake Sebu, but it is the largest at 354 hectares! The others are smaller, Lake Lahit at 24 hectares and Lake Seloton at 48 hectares. While on the tour, I really relished the cool and VERY fresh mountain breeze and listened to the relaxing sweet tweets of the birds. It was definitely a feast for the senses and the soul!

Lake Sebu is surrounded by rolling hills and forested mountains and it is, by the way, a protected area so it can be assured that you’ll be enjoying the untouched forest at its best. And having said that, I think that everyone who plans to visit Lake Sebu should keep this in mind: “Take nothing but pictures, bring nothing but memories and leave nothing but footprints”. Let us all help in protecting our environment for a brighter future!

Viewing the lake from afar is one thing and being on the lake itself is another. The boat tour was one worthwhile experience and if you’re planning to visit Lake Sebu, it must be among the priorities in your itinerary! The tour takes less than an hour and you won’t even notice it as you’ll be too occupied taking photos and twisting your head left and right to fully appreciate and digest the sights that appear before you. Lake Sebu is one of the most beautiful lakes I’ve visited and you should too, NOW!

The “tabingi” Lake Sebu shot

The Majestic Lake Sebu

Punta Isla Lake Resort, as seen during the boat tour

(…to be continued)