DAVAO CITY (PIA) - -  Creative artisans and artists from Davao City were featured in the first leg of the 'Philippine Experience' organized by the Department of Tourism (DOT).

The Philippine Experience is a promotional project which highlights the country’s rich heritage, culture, and arts. It aims to complement the new tourism campaign slogan 'Love The Philippines.'

The first caravan was conducted in Davao Region, where the culminating activity was held on June 30 at the seaside Waterfront Insular Hotel in Davao City and participated in by artisans from different parts of the region.

“Davao is known for its art and culture. Our beads and garments are part of our culture and our heritage.  It showcases our tradition; it presents who we are as Dabawenyos,” said Dabawenyo fashion designer Christopher Zamora, a participant at the event where he displayed several of his apparel.

His Toping Zamora collections feature the diverse influences of the city’s ethnolinguistic communities.

“I worked with the different communities in Davao and in Mindanao. Some of my collaborations are with the Bagobo-Tagabawa, Tagacaolo, Yakan in Zamboanga and the Mandaya, B’laan and Manobo communities as well.  So it showcases the various arts and crafts of our indigenous artisans,” Zamora said. For fashion accessories maker Kay Fanlo, their participation in the Philippine Experience is their way of expressing the diverse cultures of Mindanao.

“Our culture is very unique, the range of our cultural tribes which is very unique to us, we can show it to the world through our creations,” Fanlo said.

She said her brand is partnering with different communities, creating a fusion of cultural designs and sharing not just the culture of Davao but also helping provide livelihood opportunities to the cultural communities.

Fanlo and Zamora are among the young artisans who have won acclaim for their Mindanaoan-inspired fashion and accessories creations.

Immersive Experience

“By giving a view, a taste, a feeling of what it’s like to be here in Davao, to be here in Mindanao we have endeavored and hope to achieve the goal of giving you the Philippine Experience. One that gives you opportunities not only to visit the beautiful natural landscapes of the region and more importantly to have genuine and authentic immersions with the local and indigenous communities,” DOT Secretary Maria Esperanza Christina Frasco said during her speech at the Waterfront event.

This year’s rollout of the Philippine Experience presents the Filipino brand and identity in all aspects of the travel and tourism experience which will facilitate cultural tourism circuit development focused on heritage, culture, and arts to enhance current tour and domestic circuit offerings.

Also included in the caravan are thematic experiences on Food and Gastronomy, Pilgrimage and Wellness, Festivals, Living Cultures and Heritage, and the Arts.

Sec. Frasco said the new tourism slogan “Love the Philippines” through the Philippine Experience will tell the world that there is so much to love about Mindanao and the Philippines.

“We’re here for the very first leg of the Philippine Experience to give our friends from all over the world, the diplomatic and consular corps the real picture of the viability of Mindanao as a tourism destination,” Frasco stressed.

For the Davao caravan of the Philippine Experience the group toured the Philippine Eagle Center, and the Chocolate Museum in Malagos, Davao City, then went towards the province of Davao del Norte visiting the Pearl Farm in the Island Garden City of Samal, Agriya Estates in Panabo City, Tagum Historical and Cultural Center in Tagum City. The DOT-led group then proceeded to Lubi Plantation in Davao de Oro. (RIGA - PIA Region XI)