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Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Dapitan: On the Spotlight
By Danilo V. Adorador
NIGHT lights have become a fascination not only of Parisian French, who delight in calling the romantic megalopolis as the City of Lights--but of astronomers who are now looking back to Earth's luminescence for inspiration.
NASA scientists in the US are now using city light data to map urbanization, while other agencies are utilizing this information to chart the different locations of the Earth's surface.
Even without the underlying map, it is said that the outlines of many continents and countries would still be visible. If so, city lights at night function what the Great Wall of China does during daytime.
I wonder what Hong Kong, the City of Night Lights, looks like way up there.
Racing through this light-craze phenomenon is the historic Shrine City of Dapitan, a sunny town that lies on the northwestern coast Zamboanga del Norte.
Dapitan, which probably got its name from the Cebuano word "Dapit" meaning "to invite," is of course easy to find in the Philippine map sans its riveting night lights because of its cultural and historical importance.
At the height of the Revolution against Spain, the National Hero Dr. Jose P. Rizal was thrown into exile in Dapitan. Here, Dr. Rizal acquired an estate and spent some of the momentous times of his life.
It was Rizal who, in his prose, coined these unforgettable descriptions of the city:
"It is located on a beautiful bay which looks towards the west on a kind of island especially made it, as if to isolate it from the vulgar world, a beautiful river which to accommodate it, has gladly consented to divide itself into two silvery arms, encircling it and bringing it towards the sea as an offering, for being the most beautiful thing that it could find in its tortuous and undulating pilgrimage through mountains and valleys through woodlands and plains."
Dapitan's urbanization has in the past been insulated by its historicity. Blending the modern effects of high-rise buildings and amusement centers to its Hispanic houses and antique edifices would not seemed to be a fitting norm then among its still largely conservative inhabitants.
Now, Dapitan is coming out of the shell.
"People used to be oriented with Dapitan's sluggish growth in terms of urbanization. Now, we are all embracing change towards the path of modernization," said Romeo Dagpin, the executive secretary to City Mayor Dominador Jalosjos Jr.
Already, the town is witnessing a surge of urban developments common to big cities. Its communication facilities are at par with that of neighboring cities of Dipolog, Pagadian and Zamboanga.
Its local tourism, mostly made vibrant by historic sites and unspoiled beaches, has acquired a big boost with the development of parks and other leisure areas.
At the forefront of this urbanization is the construction of Glorietta, a multi-amusement park, which boosts of sports and recreation areas, restaurants and other amenities previously available only in highly developed cities. Conveniently sitting in four hectares of land right at the middle Dapitan, this fountain-filled park promises to add to the sprouting watering holes of the city.
And the lights are truly resplendent. Dapitan City is one of the best-lighted city in the Philippines--thanks to the town officials' investment on giant, majestic lights. Parading across its beach lines, the giant multi-colored lamps doted the city like sentinels in an incandescent kingdom.
At the heart of these splendid lights is Merdeka Ruda Ventures, Inc.--the same company responsible for lighting the Divisoria Park area in Cagayan de Oro City. The company also took pride of having been trusted to provide lighting fixtures in the cities of Iligan and Dipolog and other developing municipalities in other parts of Mindanao and Visayas.
Dapitan's bright lights invigorate the city's nightlife and transform the once sleepy town into a little Hong Kong off the coast of Northern Zamboanga.
"These major developments--the construction of different support structures for tourism and trade, are all private-driven initiatives," Mr. Dagpin explained.
He said the Jalosjos family, who owns the legendary Dakak, which is readily accessible from the city proper, are the leading visionary in leading Dapitan to new horizons. "They play an enormous role in helping this city's remarkable progress."
But Dapitan's quest to enhance its modern aspects has not diminished its zeal to protect its heritage. Its old houses which dates back to hundred of years are still visible along the city's main streets. The city government has been initiating rehabilitation efforts to preserve these relics of the town's once glorious past under the Spanish colonial period.
"There have been moves to formally include these houses as UNESCO's heritage sites," Dagpin explained.
"There is an on-going negotiations with the World Bank to fund the restoration efforts of the city's historic sites," he added.
Dapitan's lights may not be visible from the vantage view of the skies, but the telling signs of progress are everywhere--and the city has shown that it is worthy to be called as the tourism center in the Zamboanga region.
Tourists need not look everywhere, for there lies a fusion of ancient and modern environs in the City of Shrine and sparkling lights--Dapitan.
(August 31, 2005 issue)
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