Two out of 12th Paradise

I am a wild reader, the reason why I hate to write about the things that transpired during my travels. I think my writing is not enough to describe the beauty I saw and the feelings I felt; however, one thing I will admit is; I wrote this article straight from my heart.

The 12th paradise are places found in different municipalities of region 12. I am lucky that I already visited most of them, but this article will be all about the 2 municipalities I visited recently together with the craziest, coolest and most talented travel buddies you will ever have, the “ByahengMindanaw” team. Ehem!

Day 1
The day after T’nalak Festival we were fetch by the LGU of Tupi, South Cotabato for the first leg of our two day trip. We had to travel for an hour to reach Mt. Matutum protected landscape where Brgy. Linan wildlife sanctuary is situated; a home to different endangered species including the famous Tarsier or “Tukay mal” for the B’laan tribe which means small monkey, famed to be only found in Bohol. Did I say tarsier right? Don’t get too excited packing your things and head on to Linan, Thank God the place is not yet ready for mass tourism. The reason? I forgot.✌
I think we could ask www.thetravelingkit.com or www.thetravelteller.com, I saw them jotting down notes when Sir Rolly the tourism officer of Tupi was explaining facts about the protected landscape.

We also experienced the hospitality of the B’laan tribe where they had prepared a very sumptuous and native lunch for us.

Afterwards, we had to rush for the largest pineapple plantation of the Philippines at the foot of Mt. Matutum and have our photo/video shoot in our chosen tribal attire.
We had to do it in just 20 minutes considering we are already late in meeting our ride for Kiamba, Sarangani. Nonetheless, we really had fun posing and dancing under the sun and grace of Mt. Matutum.

We arrived at General Santos city around 3:00 in the afternoon, 2 hours late of our ETA. Our ride was waiting for us at Robinson’s mall, so after buying our provisions for the next journey we were all set to go.
The whole day activity was tiring since I had only 4 hours of sleep from last night’s partying (can’t help it, t’was a festival after all), I fell asleep only to woke up when we were already in Kiamba.

We were supposed to sleep overnight at Tuka bay but due to weather and other reasons, we were advised to stay at the town proper and save our trip for the next morning.
We stayed at Villanueva's homestay, a 46 year old house with type of architecture prominent during American era. The owner was very hospitable and friendly, He told us that the house was built by his parents and withstand two earthquakes, the first was during 1976 with a magnitude of 6.5 which left the house with a crack lines at the corner of their bathroom. Don’t worry peeping tom couldn’t have a pass on you, the bathroom is located at the 2nd floor. ;)

Day 2
The next morning, I was up early to stroll around the plaza and bay walk; and was impressed of the surroundings. I would describe Kiamba as a quaint town with deep roots of history.

After having breakfast we prepared ourselves for our journey in Tuka bay. We rode on a small boat, lucky as we are the sea was calm. Our boatman told us that sometimes dolphins can be seen in the area, after all, Tuka bay is a protected marine sanctuary. We really enjoyed the ride to our destination, beholding the wonders of nature.

Upon arriving in Tuka bay resort, we were like kids running on their lengthy white beach; a place to relax and throw caution to the wind. The resort was also adorned by a very beautiful beach house and colorful cottages.

We were supposed to have snorkeling but due to big waves another activity was not materialized. Yet, it did not stop us to relish the place; we played under the rain, rode the big waves and laughed our hearts out. Did I say rain? Yes, it rained shortly after we arrived and tampered our hope to have a photo-shoot in the area.

However, an hour before our departure Mr. Sun slightly graced the place; presto! We had our photos worth of a FrontPage. I told you so, we were always lucky. Hahah!

My two day trip was indeed a journey to showcase the hidden gems of the 12th paradise. So, what are you waiting for? Pack your bags and discover for yourself the gems I was talking about.
How to get there? Simple. Just Google it. X

Our special thanks to ACTS office of South, Cotabato; LGU Tupi, South Cotabato; LGU Kiamba, Saranggani; Department of Tourism XII; Mindanao Tourism Council; Smart Telecom; ByahengMindanaw team; Brgy.Linan Council; The B’laan tribe of Brgy. Linan; and every person who made this trip possible. Bong Selamat!

P.S: I would like to congratulate our group the "ByahengMindanw" team for this worthwhile travel. Once again, we showed the world that Mindanao is a place with beautiful culture and people, along with spectacular sceneries.

Photocredits: www.thetravelteller.com; www.thetravelingkit.com; Madayaw WowDagway; www.voyagertransversevelocity.blogspot.com