Blaans in the Hinterlands of Davao del Sur

Photo credits: Ms. Marideth Franca-Enrique

The b'laans are one of the indigenous peoples of Southern Mindanao in the Philippines. B'laan is an indigenous group that is concentrated in Davao del Sur and South Cotabato. Their name could have derived from "bla" meaning "opponent" and the suffix "an" meaning "people". Other terms used to refer to this group are Blaan, Bira-an, Baraan, Vilanes, and Bilanes. The Blaan, are neighbors of the T'boli. They practice indigenous rituals while adapting to the way of life of modern Filipinos.

They are famous for their brassworks, beadwork and t'nalak weave. The people of these tribes wear colorful embroidered native costumes and beadwork accessories. The women of these tribes, particularly, wear heavy brass belts with brass 'tassels' ending in tiny brass bells that herald their approach even when they are a long way off.

In the hinterlands and mountainous parts of Kiblwan, a town in Davao del Sur, you can find the B'laan settlers in the area. Take a look at these photos:

typical village in the hinterlands

performing a tribal ritual

B'laans in their colorful costumes

doing their tribal ritual

tribal assembly

typical B'laan house design

beautiful designs

B'laan women

B'laan woman in her tribal costume

B'laan man with his musical instrument

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Camiguin White Island

I was really excited when we were heading for Camiguin. I have never been there and I heard from friends that the island is very beautiful. From Cagayan de Oro Port, we ride Paras super cat, a fast craft, comfortable one because it's air-conditioned. It was a two-hour ride and I kept on looking if i can see an island to the direction where we were heading. When we were approaching Benoni port at Camiguin island, there were a lot of placards with names written on it welcoming the arrival of some of the passengers. Then I saw the name of the head of our team who made the booking at Highland Hotel and resort, the place where we are gonna stay. We were fetched by their van and it was a 25-minute ride from the port to the hotel. We then settled our selves in our room and get ready with the tour which was part of the package. We first visited the walkway of the old volcano with the station of the cross. Our next stop was the old church, then the sunken cemetery, the soda swimming pool, the cold spring and then the Ardent hot spring. Honestly, the ones we visited failed my very high expectations.

On the second day, we were scheduled to visit Katibawasan falls and white island. It was the white island that I love very much about Camiguin. It is about 3-5 minute ride through a boat and the island is gifted with powdery white sand and turquoise waters. When you are at the white island, you would feel the perfect art of the Creator - the white sand, the pristine blue waters and the beautiful mountains forming as a backdrop. Just perfect! We went there at the breaking of the early morning because only a small portion of the island will be seen in the afternoon and the waves are kinda scary so we were able to witness the beautiful sunrise.

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