Getting Lost With Names - Carmen

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Have you been to Carmen? Carmen who?! Ha, there are 6 towns in this country that bears that name? Which came fist, the name of these six towns or the opera bearing the same title? We will know soonest! Curiously enough, these towns that bear the name Carmen are all in Cebuano-speaking places.

First is the town of Carmen in the island province of Cebu (Region 7 – Central Visayas). Yes, the town is just about 40kms from Cebu city and just after Danao City! Oh yes, guns are still an industry in Danao, but thats a different topic hehe. Carmen in Cebu is a hub of small boat builders and the womenfolk weave sinamay. Well yes, there are caves and falls and that famous monastery up in the mountains. And of course, there is the M Lhuiller hacienda that you pass by going to the monastery.

The next Carmen is a town right in the heart of the island province of Bohol. Yes, this town is your destination if you want to see and experience the Chocolate Hills. And we all know, the hills are better remembered by tourists than the town that cradles them!

Moving down to Davao Del Norte (Region 11 – Southern Mindanao) is another town named Carmen. Yes, this is the rich agricultural town down south with a lot of birds and rivers and swamps and birds and birds, oh my badness – the people and government there don’t even recognize the touristic potential! This town is so progressive that some of its barangays are being converted to independent towns. The bounty of many a Davao table seems to always come from this place.

Farther west in the province of Cotabato (Region 12 – Central Mindanao) is another big town named Carmen. By its sheer size, development and progress, this town will probably become a city soon. Oh don’t forget, this is the other side of Mt. Apo!

Moving northwards to the province of Agusan Del Norte (Region 13 – CARAGA) is another Carmen. The town is the province’s border with Misamis Oriental. Its shores are the Butuan Bay so there are beach resorts with diving and snorkeling facilities. Most notable is the Carmen Ecological Tourism Center. Mangoes are abundant in this town too. Even Bananas!

Let’s move east. Still in Region 13, there is another Carmen in the province of Surigao Del Sur. So this is our 6th Carmen! Of course, like almost all of the towns in this province, Carmen also shares its portion of the pacific ocean.

Now, to complicate things, there is another town up in the province of Surigao Del Norte that is named Del Carmen. At least there is the “Del” before Carmen. Just the same, the place is ‘of Carmen’ hehe! Yes, Del Carmen is that town with a small airport and is west side of the island of Siargao so it does not face the pacific. Just the same, this town has many unexplored areas.

Oh Carmen!

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