On an ordinary day, the highway leading to the municipality of Gov. Generoso in the middle of the western side of the long and narrow peninsula of Davao Oriental is lonely. Except perhaps for the occasional bus or private vehicle traveling to Mati, the province’s capital or to Tagum in Davao del Norte. Sometimes, a habalhabal, a motorized public transport, passes filled with passengers.

I really don’t know why the Agora bus terminal in the city of Cagayan de Oro always fascinates me. Its a modest strip of land just beside the Agora market in the often chaotic part that is just near the pier.

It is bisected by a short two lane road where the buses come and go. On each side is the covered bus bays, housing eateries, turo turo style, side by side with regular pasalubong stalls and a few ticket booths.

It was a marketing plan hatched by the city government of Cagayan de Oro that the night cafe sprung to life in 2004, probably a first in Mindanao. Located in the open air plaza in Divisoria, the roads leading to this area are blocked off as early as 5 o’clock in the afternoon every Friday and Saturday.

Limketkai Mall (LKK) is a landmark in Cagayan de Oro not because that it is now modern and huge but it has always been identified as a homegrown commercial destination in the city. Before the major facelift a few years ago, it is open air and has that certain regional charm in it: not too boxed up and alienating compared with the mega mall structures in most urban cities.

Iloilo is a beauty that beckons. I have long read and heard of its rich history, culture, food, people and many wonderful things that it has to offer. Unfortunately, in my lifetime, I have only stepped on its hallowed ground thrice: a half day’s trip from Bacolod just to gaze at the marvel that is the fortress church of Miag-ao and to eat the much touted La Paz batchoy in the La Paz district of the city.

While I have been to this island sporadically, it is still not enough to familiarize me with the many wonderful things that the province has to offer. Below are additional photos from La Carlota and Villadolid, Negros Occidental. These are towns south of Bacolod.

Negros to a non local conjures images of Masskara, extensive sugarcane fields, old rich sugar barons with their haciendas and elegant turn of the century homes. Malnourished children during the height of the devastating economic situation in the 80s when world prices of sugar plunged or the ever suffering and long exploited plantation workers, the sacadas and many others.

If all things went as planned, I would’ve touched down in Dumaguete last Thursday to spend two days there and visit Dauis, Zamboanguita, Bacong, Amlan and Manjuyod for those old colonial era churches as well as have a taste of budbod kabog (steamed sweetened millet wrapped in banana leaves) that can often be found in the southern city.

Baguio City conjures images of misty mountains, cool weather and denizens neatly bundled in jackets even if Metro Manila is sizzling in high temperatures during the hot summer months. But what about Baguio City on a wet weekend with the ITCZ (intertropical convergent zone) playing up in this part of the world bringing the occasional rains and drizzles and just wet, wet weather? Not bad!

The jeepney from Ketkai pulled to a stop as I signaled the driver to when I reached Agora, more specifically known as the old bus terminal just beside the market in the fast growing city of Cagayan de Oro in the northern-central part of Mindanao.