Loitering Around Cagayan De Oro

A happy afternoon! Thanks to those jolly folks at the City Tourism Office, but no thanks to their kadaldalan just like me hehe. It felt like they’ve been my long time friends even if I just saw them this afternoon. Mga bungisngis din. Fun to be with! Anyway, after having seen the map and hearing tips from them, and after realizing it was already too late to head anywhere outside the city, I opted to just continue strolling around city center, oscillating towards my Demiren Hotel in time for dinner (since I earlier saw some ‘promising’ eating places there) and bedtime.

Here are some of the places I saw…

Bistro Mercedes. Dainty looking little façade. I like how they tried to preserve the original look of the house. That wall (whatever) on the side spoils the view though and I hope its not theirs. Let’s just say it’s of an ugly neighbor's hehe. And the ‘black spaghetti’ also all the more ruins the lovely look. Those wires are at least neatly clipped on this portion, but still… ang sarap guntingin ‘no?! True all over the world! Sorry to all of us, our forebears didn’t have much on streetside aesthetics hehehe! But I will check this bistro out next time I head for CDO!

Vacation Hotel. I thought "parang club house ng golf course”. The roof does evoke some sense of the "Pinoy touch". It actually reminds me of the roofs of the old Zamboanga Airport and the old Cotabato City Hall. But this place looked to me like its either low on business or not anymore in the league hehe!


Lokal Grill & Seafood. Nice outside view. Another place to check-out I guess. Soon!


An old house that still looks good but hey, there’s a whitewater rafting booking office! Okay, noted! Ironically, it seems this house is now a school! I went nearer to read that signage by the left-most window. It says “Mindanao Master Technical Training Center, Inc.” Hmm, whatever technical things they master there, I wonder!


Tsada! A nice little pasalubong store. Don’t tell the doctor what sweets I’ve been devouring in there. And they also have Coke! Yeah, but when I came out, I had nothing in my hands – all already in the stomach! Hey, while it looks like a dainty little boutique, it is actually (I realized inside) an OTOP Store. This is afterall within the DTI compound!


YMCA. Am not sure if this is a real Y-House or just a building owned by YMCA. Main entrance signage says “Court Of Appeals” but I wouldn’t believe the building is owned by the Supreme Court. The CA is probably just a tenant like they do so everywhere else. Nice of Y to have permanent tenants! Nice even of CDO to have a Y-house. Hey, let me reveal a frugality secret: when I was roaming abroad, Y-houses were my primary targets for accommodations. Usually (though not always) a good value for money!


Misamis Oriental Provincial Capitol. Can’t take a good front shot lest those folks playing basketball think nahumaling ako sa kanila! Couldn’t also circle around the building as it was either already dark or had a lot of people playing or exercising. There’s always a next time – at least now I know this building is an afternoon shot.


Heritage Monument. I went near to read the inscriptions. In summary, wala lang hehe! The dedication dwells on motherhood statements like "- a legacy of history, culture, commerce, industry" etc etc; or "symbolizes the tradition our forefathers established" yadadayadada. But who those people and what those things depicted are, you will not find anywhere in this fairly new monument. The 3 single-spaced short paragraphs are instead followed by a litany of officials in double space. At the bottom it says created by Eduardo Castrillo, Artist (alangan namang, psychiatrist ang gumawa nyan 'no?). Ah, the very last line is some kind of an erasure or addendum that says February 2010. So, just a few days ago, probably!


Chessboard Tables. I like these kinds of multi-functional recreational tables. Have seen these in other towns and cities (esp Mindanao) and yes, CDO is not left out! Than the menfolk downing red horse as early as midmorning, churning their brains out on these tables is definitely a better alternative. And I have seen many who play really well. Naturally, some kids do get enticed to playing this game that even me myself and I can’t seem to concentrate on. I think am not just for this kind of analytical games. Mind twisting really! I salute them who play chess! Also very new.


Press Freedom Monument (or whatever they call it). Nice monument, touching even. The streamer ruins it though. I wish they’d put that black cloth somewhere above or on the side. The gold inscriptions say “Tribute to the slain members of the press”. If only to remind Filipinos that this country also tops the world at killing their own journalists! Good one.


BSP Building. Yup, Boy Scouts of the Philippines. I like this one. A good study (specimen) when it comes to talks about preserving “legacy edifices” or “historic buildings” (if you may) versus “commercialism”. What boy scout things require the use of such a big building ‘everyday’ anyway, right? So, it is better put to use by leasing part of it to a bank. And do you see the right portion with men working on a scaffoldings The streamer there says “Marigold Hotel, Soon To Open”!


The Pelaez Sports Center. Another example as above. That is actually a ‘grandstand’ (bleachers) of the sports center. But the underside is put to good use by leasing spaces to commercial establishments, I think. This is a common practice everywhere by the way - Albay, Ormoc, Tacloban Astrodome, Cebu Coliseum, etc.


Walking onwards, I knew I was like circling back towards city hall. But I liked what I was seeing, how already too urbanized/commercialized CDO is. I passed by malls, banks and other things urban. And then I was at some park near the Jollibee and two well known pharmacies. Looking left and beyond seemed like where I came from earlier on my walk as I could see snippets of Xavier (Ateneo) University again. Nice that they have parks in the middle of commercial establishments. And...


Tourism Showhouse. Argh! This time I kind of blamed myself why I went looking for their tourism office at the city hall. This one is a kiosk right in the middle of a commercial area, and not to mention complete with all the information we tourists need. Then again, I wouldn’t have enjoyed those four jolly employees at their ‘main’ office if I did not go there.


Oh, this one is definitely nicer than that at the city hall. A real showcase with glass walls and well-placed product displays. Plus the lady that mans this place is ultra helpful too. Not as “ki-at” as her cityhall colleagues but definitely as knowledgeable. I joked if she has ever done the whitewater rafting and the zipline and she proudly beamed with a resounding “of course, sir”. Oh ha?!


Ayan. As everywhere I go, when available, I buy their music – whether katutubo or pop. Now I remember the sidewalk vendors near Estosan Hotel in Cotabato. Too many choices of pop Muslim love songs etc.!


I passed by many other places on the way back to Demiren. But the sun was down and out, so the camera can’t anymore snap good pics.

Oops, its 9PM now and though am not yet that hungry (thanks to the many things I devoured at Tsada!), I think I need to go find dinner, its getting late.

Let’s cover this nighttime story next!


To read the chronology of stories on this trip, click the following article numbers:
01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26
27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52

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