In Cagayan de Oro, a place to hike, relax and wander around
Posted at 4:38 pm April 15, 2010
Tags: Indigenous Culture, Natural Wonders, Vacation
By Lawrence Casiraya
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, MISAMIS ORIENTAL – It’s a park, a zoo, a hiking/camping/biking trail, a resort and a cultural museum rolled into one. In short, it’s a must-see destination for visitors to this city.
With so many things to do at the Malasag Eco-tourism Village, no wonder they built accomodations for guests so they’ll have more than enough time to do all these activities. Take a hike. Spot a deer. Or simply wander around and fill their tired and beaten lungs with fresh air.
Guests can sniff all fresh air they want because Malasag is situated within a 7.2-hectare reforestation area in the Cugman Watershed. It was established during the early 1990s and was inspired by the Gardens of Granada in Spain and Butchart Gardens in British Columbia in Canada.
Nature in all its green glory is a given and as a bonus, Malasag also seeks to acquaint guests with local culture.
Guests can get up close and personal (if they wish to) with different Mindanao tribesmen — the Talaanding, Subanon, Higaonon and Manobo, or sometimes collectively referred to as Lumads — who are more than welcome and proud to show a local dance or products they make with their own hands – nothing labeled Made-in-Anywhere But-Here.
Blogger Melo talks about his visit to Malasag with local bloggers, and recommends visiting early in the morning or late in the afternoon when the temperature is not so humid. Blogger Lalaine finds Malasag a “relaxing place for busy minds” and says her kids enjoyed walking at the hanging bridge and seeing birds, snakes, monkeys and deer.
Blogger “goma”, whose blog is mostly about his outdoor activities, talks about hiking in Malasag with friends, some of whom brought families along. He describes Malasag forest as a perfect setting for those preparing to climb popular mountaineering destinations in Mindanao like Mount Dulang-Dulang or Mount Hibok Hibok in Camiguin.
Malasag also offers an excellent view of Macabalan Bay, which makes for “downtime” after a day of hiking and trekking in the forest. Or skip the trek if you’re not really up to it; there’s plenty of things to do and see anyway.
The Malasag Eco-Tourism Village is about 30 minutes away from the airport. Available transport includes jeepneys, taxis or habal-habal(motorcyle). Room rates and other information can be found here.
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What a beautiful place to have fun ^_^. i like the location of this place. i love to see the of the city from the top.