NiceThings in Davao: Philippine Eagle Center
Day One of my birthday vacay was A.MA.ZING.
Day Two wasn’t as exciting though. We ended up cooped up in the hotel for the entire day. Patintera had to finish writing a speech so I decided to catch up on my zzzs.
Taking a break from writing for a selfie.
We did step outside a bit for lunch. We decided to stay close to the hotel so we explored G-Mall, just a block away.
I was so thrilled to find an art gallery that also sells indigenous products. Got Heart has really great art but I opted to get Kablon Farms dark chocolates for my mom and Sikwate tableya for myself.
Got Heart installation outside the shop, located at The Peak on top of G-Mall Davao City.
I could have stared at their pieces all day.
Patintera admiring the art at Got Heart — and thinking about the possible investment.
I’m still accepting birthday gifts, BTW, and I’m just gonna put that right here. 😉
This piece by Dumaguing is simply mesmerizing.
Day 3: Philippine Eagle Center
We were thinking of going to Samal Island but we’d already lost a day so we decided to spend the rest of our vacay hitting the parks instead.
How to get there:
From our hotel in the city (I’m not gonna name it because it sucked but it rhymes with barnacle), we took a cab to the Annil Transport terminal found a few steps from the corner of San Pedro St. and Quirino Avenue. They have Coasters that will bring you to Calinan Public Market for P50 each. From there, we contracted a tricycle driver to take us to the Philippine Eagle Center, wait for us, and bring us back to the terminal for P250.
On our way to the Philippine Eagle Center.
The Philippine Eagle Center is located inside the Malagos Watershed Reservation. To enter the complex, you pay P5 per head, a small fee that goes to the Davao City Water District.
At the Malagos Watershed Reservation.
Entrance fee to the Philippine Eagle Center itself is P150.
Welcome to the Philippine Eagle Center.
The Philippine Eagle Center is home not only to the Philippine Eagle but also to a host of other animals and interesting plant species.
This Philippine Brown Deer took a break from his snack to give us a fairly decent shot,
White-bellied Sea Eagle be like “Take the photo already!”
This White-bellied Sea Eagle had a lot to say. He was the only one in the whole park who was screaming at the visitors.
If you’ve been reading this blog, you’ll know that I luuurve trees.
Gorgeous trees at the Philippine Eagle Center.
But I have to admit, none took my breath away like the majestic Haribon did.
Philippine Eagle Pag-asa is quite photogenic.
There are stalls outside the Malagos Watershed selling souvenirs. I got a malong for myself and Patintera got a malong, sarong, and keychains for pasalubong.
On our way back to town, we asked our tricycle driver to stop by Malagos Garden Resort so we can take home their famous dark chocolates. This side trip (plus him waiting over an hour for us while we were in the Philippine Eagle Center) cost us extra P50 but we didn’t care, we went home all giddy from our nature and cacao high.
Travel Tip:
Keep your eyes peeled inside the Philippine Eagle Center. There are limited directional signs to follow so if you’re like me and you get confused easily at a simple turn, you might miss out on the other attractions. Good thing, I wanted to make the most of our trip that I was uncharacteristically mindful of the corners I haven’t explored yet.
Just follow the unlabeled path.
The heat in Davao is no joke. So, we were pretty beat after spending an entire day outside. After dinner, we went back to the hotel for a well-deserved rest.
Day 4 concludes our adventures. Watch this space for our trip to Museo Dabawenyo, Crocodile Park, and Tribu K’Mindanawan.
Nice Things 