I am now in Legazpi City, the capital of Albay province, at the southern tip of Luzon, Philippines. I have been here for 10 days now and ready to tell tales.
The city is a very small one, with population less than 200,000. The main livelihood is agriculture in coconut and rice. Not much, really. It is overshadowed by hills and volcano – the Mayon. The language is Bicol. It is a city that attracts natural disaster, I would say. Not only the worst kind of typhoon hits once a year around November and December, but the volcano is an active one. It has given out its worst hit – hot black sand and boulders, killed many and destroyed a lot more just two years ago.
It is a pretty little city with a lot of greenery – I suspect the earth is very fertile because of the mineral traces from the volcanic ashes. From the first glance of the map, I was thrilled that because it is a coastal town, there must be beautiful beaches in the bay area. Yeah it’s not. The whole area is barricaded by sea wall. The resorts build small stairs for tourists who wants to take a dip or a swim. But it’s not really beach vacation I had in mind.
The city has not stopped raining since I got here. It has been raining for 8 days straight. I have not seen sun and clear sky. Nobody has seen the tip of the volcano for weeks. I got the photo posted here from one of the staff in the office. It is difficult to catch the volcano in clear day, so I am quite pessimistic if I could get one.
the mayon
What would one do in a small city like Legazpi … That question will be answered in my posts tomorrow and many days to come …
Let’s hope the rain stops awhile for you to see some blue skies..
Happy Vacations, and Happy Relaxation!
It can’t be that bad..
The photo proves it: sun and blue skies in Legazpi. Or is this a case of photoshopping?
And the number of inhabitants, 200.000, maybe seem small in comparison to Medan, but is over three times the number of people of my town ( just to mention one example). So, who is worth of here?
Moreover: half of the world population can say they’ve been in cities like New York, Paris or Shanghai ( sóóó common), but who but you can claim to have been in Legazpi??!!
But, seriously: I sympathize with you. Let’s hope the volcano will keep it’s temper and the rain will stop soon.
Goodness gracious!
Please read
“maybe” = may
“worth”= worse
in my previous comment.
Is it possible to see the pictures with Andie Summerkiss in it?
Yes, living in Belgium, where it rains a lot, I can understand why you hate it so much! I hope it cleared?
Dear LB,
Well, no luck so far. It rains 24 hours a day. Today the water level is increasing and people at D’s office came in to work in rubber boots.
Dear Colson,
Yes, seriously, I am thankful that no more typhoon and no eruption. That would be really nasty. No photoshopping. I got it from the local staff in my husband’s office.
Yes, that is true, it’s somewhere I would have never come, if not for my husband’s job. He goes to some weirdass places.
Dear Jientje,
I really hope so. It’s very gloomy, too.
Dear Adit,
I am the photo taker … so quite impossible to be in the picture .. but I will show up soon. Keep an eye on the photos!
Andie, dare to try ballot?
oh my! i hope it won’t rain much at the end of this month…we’re going to legaspi kasi. nice photo you got there tho.
The name of the volcano is Mayon which is a short for Daragang Magayon (Beautiful Maiden). Like the typical Bicolana (the term for ladies of Bicol), Mayon is also a shy one. I have a friend who stayed there for a month but still failed to see Mayon’s tip. It didn’t rain during my friend’s stay, though. Local folks say Mayon was so shy to show her face o my friend. Hopefully she won’t be shy to show her face to you, too.
Unluckily, my friend already had his three visits to Albay bt to no avail. The only thing he can do is t be contented with the volano’s pics
hello mam,
i leave at legazpi city philippines… there is a lot o beautifull spots you can visit near municipalities or cities in legazpi city.
to know more about in our area try to visit this website
i’m developing a website more about ALBAY PROVINCE which is legazpi city is part of it. i wish i can finish this before year 2009..
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=670594
http://www.rdc5.gov.ph/albay/tourist_spots.htm
that was an awsome picture.try to hike linion hi so that you will see how beautiful legaspi is.