Negros Island to Davao

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Best Tourism Oriented LGU Award
It was a short notice a few days ago when I got a call to attend the 6th Tourism Educators Council of Negros Oriental and Siquijor and the Forum on the  Mutual Recognition Agreement on Tourism .

TECNOS Congress and MRA Forum in Dumaguete
I packed my bags, and took an air con bus to Dumaguete City, it was fun seated at the front seat and paid the student rate which was exactly the same amount I pay a taxi from the mall to where I live here in Bacolod. The road network is well paved and cemented towards Mabinay and a few meters still repaired  at the Bais area, it was a five hour bus  ride on a sunny day.By  four in the afternoon I was already at Bethel Guest House  just right at the boulevard, where food at Café Filomena is great, and  an early morning walk under the acacia trees with the view of the sunrise is simply  irresistible this is why I always bring my rubber shoes when in town.

The forum and congress was well attended with tourism educators and students from as far as Siquijor came to the City of Gentle People. I just had to come to support Rafael Duhaylungsod, TECNOS President and Provincial Tourism Officer Myla Abellana in their one day celebration of the World Tourism Day, they also had a tourism quiz to cap the event.

ATOP Presidents with ARMM Secretary for Tourism 
I also received an invitation from the Association of Tourism Officers of the Philippines to attend the 16th ATOP National Convention as Past President that same day, thanks to my high school classmate, he brought me back to the City of Smiles in the afternoon, it was swift, and we forgot to drop by Tanjay for pasalubong. Good thing we got in touch with by Mabinay  tourism officer Gharie Caceres and ordered bud bud, it was hot and well packed , we just could not miss this as this was mom in laws order to bring for her.

ATONO at the Airport
The next morning, I was at the Bacolod Silay Airport together with about thirty tourism officers of Negros Occidental with Dumaguete City tourism officer Woodrow ‘RR’ Maquiling,  this was now the whole Negros Island Team representing the NIR on a direct flight to Davao from Bacolod, Cebu Pacific flies to and from Davao every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

ATOP PAst Presidents
The 16th ATOP Convention  was held at SMX Lanang, there were 1,164 delegates who were in their regional attire for the opening day  parading at the mall to the convention center.
NIR Delegates Parade at the SMX Lanang
ATONO goes to Davao

At the Park Inn
Breakfast at Park Inn
Kublai works of Art at the Banana Plantation
On official time for my travel, I was billeted at the Park Inn by Radisson, Davao together with past presidents  Catalino Chan III who is now Regional Director for Region 10, and Ms. Roselyn Merlin the City Tourism Officer of Surigao City. We were honorees for the said event and sat beside officials and special guests. Director Chan, the founding president  in his message was emotional with the creation of more tourism offices in the country  and the passage of the National Tourism Act which defines the function of tourism officers being implementing arms of the Department of Tourism today.

Tourism Officers had a choice of different tours like the Davao City Tour on the D’Bone Collector Museum, Davao City Central 911, Davao Crocodile Park, Tribu K’Mindanawan, Philippine Eagle Center, Sul. Orchids, Malagos Garden Resort,  Island Garden City of Samal, Compostela. Valley, and a tour of Davao del Norte where I participated in. 

visiting the EAGLE in Davao


shooting
We visited banana plantations, a sports complex and a forest where we saw warty pigs and monkeys just walking around, there were more than 300 monkeys in this huge plantation, the rule tho was not to feed them in their natural habitat. There was a hanging bridge and a shooting range plus the Banana Beach. It was a long ride back to the city as they have speed limits from 30kph and some areas would be 60kph.
          
ATOP Awards Night
Highlight of the affair is the 10th ATOP-DOT Pearl Awards , this started in 2005 here in Bacolod City. Today, we are proud Negrenses having bagged three major awards such as the Best Tourism Week Celebration , Best Tourism Event-Panaad sa Negros Festival and the most prestigious award of all, Best  Tourism  Oriented Province  in the Philippines, Silay, Sagay, Sipalay, Bago and Pulupandan and Dumaguete City  also won major awards in various categories with Negros Island Region as the region with most awards with a total of 16 awards all in all.
Presentors Michalle Palispis and JDC

We have always been achievers  and Grand Winner for the 




Laguna and Negros delegates
Tourism Week Celebration since 2006, 2008,2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, this is the second time that we won First Place for the Panaad sa Negros, the first time in 2008. Since the competition on Best Tourism Oriented LGU in 2012, we already won three times in 2012, 2014 and 2015 and second place in 2013. Governor Alfredo Maranon Jr. challenged  the winners and tourism officers to win more awards in 2016.




















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