WITH the new administration in Davao Oriental vowing to continue what has already been started –specifically ecotourism designed to provide the needed economic support for all other endeavors in the province, there is great reason to enjoy the facilities that have been put up in the province.
In his inaugural speech last Friday, July 1, at the Provincial Capitol, Governor Nelson Dayanghirang praised his predecessor now First District Representative Corazon Malanyaon for the vast improvements the latter has done for the province and vowed to continue with everything that Malanyaon has initiated.
During her three terms as governor, Malanyaon has focused on highlighting the province’s ecotourism destinations, putting up facilities that will make the long travel to Davao Oriental worth it all.
Specifically in two of the destinations developed, the Mt. Hamiguitan World Heritage Park in San Isidro, Davao Oriental, and Pusan Point Science Discovery Center and Eco-Park in barangay Santiago in Caraga, Davao Oriental, the experience is infused with learning.
Visitors get to learn about nature and the various flora and fauna in Mt. Hamiguitan that has earned its inscription as a Unesco World Heritage Site. At Pusan Point, tagged as where the sun first rises in the Philippines as it is the eastern-most point of the archipelago, learning about science becomes fun as it features a interactive activities in its Science Discovery Center, a planetarium, a galaxy walk, and shares snippets on astronomy, chemistry, and technology.
In this generation where travels and adventures mean a lot, and the generation where selfies are a must, it helps that both young and old are still able to pick up knowledge about science and the environment such that learning becomes a major part of the experience. Both facilities were completed just this year as Malanyaon was set to end her three terms.
Other ecotourism facilities that have been put up and improved throughout the nine years of Malanyaon as governor are the Davao Oriental Welcome Park in Barangay Pintatagan, Banay-banay, which was reopened in November 2015 after a major rehabilitation such that now it is one of the major pitstops of visitors going to the province; the Subangan Museum in Mati City, which has been drawing in the visitors from all over who get to learn about the province, its natural resources and unique sceneries, and its people, specifically the Mandaya; the Aliwagwag Falls Eco-Park in Cateel, which now features a 680-meter zipline, a canopy walk, swimming area, canteen, and picnic area; the Baganga Sunrise Boulevard, which features mangrove trees that were throttled by typhoon Pablo leaving remnants of the sturdiest of them all; and the Boston Pacific Park.
No other province in the region, and even in the whole country, has given as much focus on learning about the environment and its people in an awe-inspiring yet fun manner than Davao Oriental.