By: Jaymee Pilarta
The fragrance of durian welcomed me on my first Davao visit. I smiled and took the scent in, a scent as distinctive and unique as its home city. It was last August 19, a time when the city was busy with the festivities of its world-renown Kadayawan Festival.
Kadayawan Festival is a celebration of Good Harvest. It is a week-long thanksgiving, which is held every 3rd week of August. The festival’s name was derived from the word “madayaw,” a warm greeting, also depicting anything that’s valuable, superior, beautiful, or profitable. For the Dabawenyos, these are the “gifts of nature, wealth of culture, bounties of harvest, and serenity of living.”
I stayed in Davao City for 3 nights and 2 days with my Mom and Ate Lovely from the Jesus is Lord (JIL) Church’s Management Information System (MIS) Department.
The Apo View Hotel
For the first night, we stayed at the Apo View Hotel, which, I later learned, was the first hotel in Davao. The hotel’s history can be traced as far back as 1948 when it opened its doors to the pioneering Filipinos looking for homes and business opportunities as Davao was slowly recovering from the ravages of war.
The hotel was a confluence of ethnicity and elegance. At the lobby was an exhibit of paintings of Davao’s natives, their musical and livelihood instruments.
There was also a huge fruit landscape, which features durian, mangosteen, banana, coconut, melon, and other fruits that the city is proud of producing.
There was also a plant and flower exhibit on the side, encircling a large durian paper mache.
On the way to the elevator were souvenir stands of Davao’s delicacies and hand-made crafts.
An entire wall was set-up for the display of designer gowns.
Opposite the gowns was the hotel’s fine dining area. There’s dress code!
And, of course, I won’t forget to mention the elegant rooms, just the perfect place for tourists who are tired from a long trip.
If you did not bring the right clothes for fine dining, no worries. Food may be served in your room.
Other amenities and services include a grand ballroom, swimming pool, mini gym, computer rental, barber shop and massage, and others. My favorite was the free seats Apo View Hotel provided to witness “Indak Indak sa Kadalanan.”
Indak Indak Sa Kadalanan
One of the highlights of the Kadayawan Festival is “Indak Indak sa Kadalanan,” which literally means dancing in the streets. It is a long, fun, and colorful street dance competition that highlights Davao’s unique culture.
Before heading to the main venue of the competition where judges and guests await, participants were to parade the streets first, making some stops to present a part of their routine, complete with their musical instruments and props.
I smiled with the children as they performed their ethnic dance moves, as if not feeling the scorching heat of the sun. The spirit of joy and gratefulness was evident in their young faces, as if it was no longer competition for them, but purely a celebration.
Ponce Suites: The Unconventional Center
From the historical and elegant Apo View Hotel, we moved to the fascinating and unconventional Ponce Suites for our second night in Davao.
The hotel’s entrance itself says that this is not your ordinary hotel.
We were all ears as the manager, Ms. Maximiana Ponce Millan, shared with us how Ponce Suites started.
Ms. Millan did not want Ponce Suites to be just any ordinary hotel. She wanted it to be one that no one has ever seen before. With this desire, she went to Manila and met with interior designers, only to fail. None of the suggestions were even close to her desired outcome.
It was in 1995, when her artist son, Kublai, just graduated from the University of the Philippines, that the idea of setting up a gallery hotel was born.
In 1998 the building was built from the funds provided by Ms. Millan’s brother from the states. Though there was no working capital to start with, the hotel managed to operate through a few loaned appliances and equipments. There was a time when workers had to move air conditioners or china wares from one floor to another to suit the guests’ needs. It wasn’t an easy start but the business managed to prosper, and is still successfully operating today.
One of the major factors of Ponce Suite’s success is Ms. Millan’s concept of worker-management-investor relationship, as illustrated by Kublai’s giant paper mache at the center of the hotel’s lobby. It was the artist’s first masterpiece for the hotel.
The sculpture is a picture of deep cooperation between the workers, management, and investors. The worker, at the bottom, is the one who carries the manager, who then carries the investor, whose hand reaches out to the light, symbolizing success. This huge sculpture reminds them that each without the other is useless.
Each and every artwork in Ponce Suites was made by Kublai. Occasionally, he would replace the old ones so as not to bore the guests.
The artworks are not limited to framed paintings of sculptures. Even the furniture are touched by Kublai’s art.
This table in Kublai’s Kafe, the hotel’s cafeteria, is composed of chairs:
I also found our room’s lamp shade unique:
From scrap, Kublai was able to make masterpieces which suited his mother’s preferences.
Aside from Kublai Kafe, there’s also a dental clinic inside Ponce Suites.
Pamulak Kadayawan
Kadayawan Festival won’t be complete without “Pamulak Kadayawan,” the grand flower float parade. The event started with the procession of different groups, organizations, and native tribes in Davao.
Followed by the beautiful flower floats:
Personalities from television networks also joined the celebration as they rode their network floats:
It was the fusion of beauty, creativity, and culture. I was personally amazed at how Davao was able to preserve this unique culture up to this age, when everything seems to be “modern.”
Other Kadayawan Events
Different events, competitions, and exhibits were also held simultaneously in different malls, to promote Davao’s culture to the tourists.
I was specifically fascinated with these human mannequins in NCCC Mall.
Eden Nature Park & Resort
And, of course, I won’t forget to share our visit to the very beautiful Eden Nature Park & Resort – just the perfect place to relax, unwind, and have fun.
As we reached the reception, we were greeted with the warm smiles from these Dabawenyos:
We took the 45-minute shuttle tour around the park to get a glimpse of what the park has to offer. If I could describe it in one word, it was perfect!
Eden Nature Park is a mountain resort that is 95% man-made. From a logged-over area covered with grass, they were able to recreate the entire 80 hectares with terraces, pine trees, and a secondary forest.
Nature. The entire Eden Park is a garden of various herbs, crops, vegetables, and fruit trees. It is also the home of some exotic and indigenous creatures, like Philippine Deer and Indian Peacock.
Adventure and Leisure. This feature is what I liked most about Eden Park. You can do a lot of outdoor activities during your stay.
Activities include the 4-kilometer Mountain Trail for hikers:
The 200-meter long zipline called Skyrider, which I personally enjoyed:
For your kids is a baby version of Skyrider, called Indiana Jones.
There’s also a playground and some campsites, complete with specialized sites for favorite Pinoy outdoor games like piko, patintero, and tumbang preso.
You can also do horseback riding, swimming, or fishing at the park’s Fishing Village.
Culture. Within the heart of Eden Park lies a cultural Park called “Tinubdan,” which showcases the customs, traditions, beliefs, and way of living of the indigenous people of Mindanao, who prefer to be called ‘Lumad.’ This is Eden Park’s way of preserving the diverse culture of Southern Philippines.
Gastronomy. There’s The Vista Restaurant, Fishing Village, and Snack Bars where eating is a delight. The salads, dressings, and vegetables were handpicked from Eden Park’s own gardens. The restaurant serves daily breakfast, lunch, and dinner buffet.
Special Events. Eden Park also has the perfect spots for weddings and anniversaries.
Tough But Sweet
This Davao adventure would always be memorable for me. Aside from the fact that this was my first ever flight to Mindanao, it was also fulfilling to be able to be in close contact with a very special culture, that I do hope would be preserved up to later generations.
The Davao Mix is exactly like Durian – tough on the outside, while carrying that distinct
sweetness, and unique scent at the same time.