Mantianak: Sugbongcogon's Pride

Welcome to my hometown!

Sugbongcogon is one of the few towns of Misamis Oriental in Northen Mindanao. The town is quite infamous for its urban legends. We have heard of stories from our parents such as "engkantos in balete trees", possessed cousins of evil spirits and among others. But as they say, these are just urban legends.

The town got its name long, long time ago from the first settlers who came from Sugbu (Cebu) and the grass that abound the place, cogon. Hence, the name.

One of the few things to look forward to when going to my hometown is a visit to the now trying-so-hard-to-be-famous Mantianak Botanical and Zoological Park. It was established in the year 2006 by the Municipal Government. It was pretty ambitious at first and no one would think it will go this far. After 6 years, the park has proven its worth. Until now, it is the only existing botanical and zoological park in Northern Mindanao decent enough to visit. It is beautiful, clean and well-maintained.

Currently, the features of the park includes the must-see tigers (all four of them), a crocodile (the favorite part of Buboy), different type of birds and other exotic animals. The park also offers room accommodation, a canteen, a children's playhouse and other park amenities. I once heard that they are developing a zipline area as well.

Mantianak was once a forested place. Nobody would dare go to this place before as it was believe to be enchanted. The place got its name from a crying mother looking for her lost child.

Actually, Sugbongcogon is so full of places with weird names. Aside from Mantianak, we can also take a deep plunge in Mimbuaya Falls. A 15-minute ride via tricycle will take you to this beautiful and enchanting falls named after a white "buaya" or crocodile. Dive at your own risk. Just kidding. When we were younger, we used to swim here and nothing ever happened to us.

If you go the opposite direction, you can find the white sand beach called Alibuag. The Municipal Government is really trying to develop this place. But i say, nothing is more beautiful than its natural look. Alibuag is the colloquial term for spring. You can feel the coldness of the spring once you swim near it because it is actually located in the middle of the sea. But there are tiny springs in the shoreline.

You can reach Sugbongcogon by bus or hired van going to Balingoan or Butuan from Cagayan de Oro City.

Amy Winehouse (1983-2011)

May you rest in peace.

ZestAir now flies to CDO

On July 22, 2011, I was able to experience flying the earliest flight going to CDO via ZestAir A320. The flight was at 3:30 in the morning arriving at around 5:00 in the morning at Lumbia Airport.

The plane was a bit comfy as compared to A320s from other airline companies. They have bigger seats and comfortable cushions. They have only 29 rows, so they were able to give bigger leg space in every rows. But you can really tell that the plane was already old.

This entry of ZestAir to CDO will again benefit the flyers. The more airlines going there, the lesser the fare price.

Here is the flight schedule for Manila to CDO flights:

You may click on the image for better viewing.

Blackberry Playbook priced, arrives on August 6

Finally, bbmers rejoice as the Blackberry Playbook will be available in the Philippine local market on August 6, 2011.



All three WiFi models will be available, with storage capacity of 16GB, 32GB and 64 GB. The BlackBerry PlayBook features an ultra-portable design and delivers industry leading performance, uncompromised web browsing with support for Adobe® Flash®, true multitasking, HD multimedia, advanced security features, out-of-the-box enterprise support and a robust development environment.

The suggested retail prices are sa follows:

16GB - Php 23,000++
32GB - Php 28,000++
64GB - Php 33,000++

Can i have one?

Hunger Games First Poster

As a die hard Hunger Games fan, it would be a sin not to share this to you.

Lo and behold, the first ever poster of Hunger Games. For everyone who had read the trilogy books, you will have an idea why the symbolic Mockingjay is on fire!

Two And A Half Men New Poster

With the axing of Charlie Sheen, the filming of the show was put in hiatus. And a lot has happened afterwards.

On May 2011, CBS has announced that Ashton Kutcher will join the show and finally, a teaser poster revealing not only the date of its relaunch but a lot more.

Despite Sheen's departure, the show's naughty charm is still there.

Black Box for Cars!

We have all known that black box can only be found in airplanes. Now, your car can have one too.

Introducing, black box for cars! It is a monitoring device for your car as in literally you can view all the activities recorded as the device comes with two cameras. The installation is very easy, its just plug and play and the cameras can now be viewed real time or post time. The cameras are for the inside and outside view.

It also comes with a GPS, so you will never be lost in your directions. And if ever your car has been missing, it can easily be found with the tracking device provided the black box still is functioning.

This device, I guess, is very useful for car owners as we all know about the rampant carjacking incidents. Also, this device is very helpful to car rental owners and taxi operators as they can monitor all the activities not just of their cars but also with the drivers.