Tuna Capital of the Philippines. Land of the Champions. These are what come to mind at the mention of
General Santos City. I visited
the city for some R&R together with colleagues in the media. Our trip started on a good note as our Cebu
Pacific flight arrived at the General Santos International Airport 10 minutes
early, which meant we had more time to tour the city before checking-in at Microtel
General Santos.
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| Statue and tomb of Gen. Paulino Santos, Sr. |
THE GENERAL
Our first stop was the Plaza Heneral Santos where the remains of Gen.
Paulino T. Santos, Sr. and his wife Elisa are entombed at the bottom of the general’s
statue. The general was among the 62
pioneers who settled in the area in 1939.
He led the group, organized under the National Settlement
Administration, into Cotabato’s vast lands and rich marine life. Soon after, thousands more, mostly from the
Visayas, migrated there. It later became
a full-pledged municipality named Buayan, but was later renamed to General
Santos as a tribute to the great general.
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| Gen. Santos's personal diaries and passport displayed at the museum |
Important memorabilia and personal effects of the general are proudly
on display at the General Paulino Santos Sr. Museum, located at the University
of Notre Dame of Dadiangas. Among the
collections are his clothing, shoes, diaries, letters and other important
documents. Also housed in the museum are
equally important cultural artifacts and documents about South Cotabato and
General Santos City. One corner of the
museum is devoted to the people’s champ, Manny Pacquiao, where his trophies, championship
belts, boxing gloves and more are showcased.
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| The writer with Pacquiao's memorabilia at the Gen. Paulino Santos Museum |
TUNA CAPITAL
General Santos City is the
largest producer of sashimi-grade tuna in the Philippines. The city also has the reputation as having the
2nd biggest daily total catch of fish in the entire country, the first
being Navotas. It yields more than 700
metric tons of fish catch daily which are distributed across the country and
exported abroad. Due to this, the city
is home to 7 tuna processing plants.
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| The busy tuna market at the Fishing Port Complex |
The 36-hectare Fishing Port
Complex is located in Brgy. Tambler and employs about 7,800 workers.
Cleanliness at the complex is strictly observed. Sleeveless shirts and shorts
are not allowed. Also, everyone from the
workers to the visitors have to wear white boots before entering the
facility. It has 4 markets, one of these is solely
for tuna, which was our group’s destination. We were amazed by all the tuna, its
huge size and how it is handled with great care. We noted that aside from the boots, the
workers also wear plastic aprons and gloves.
Even more remarkable was the lack of bad smell and flies in the area.
FOOD
Of course, tuna, cooked in different ways, is never absent in the menu
of every restaurant in the city.
Filipino is the dominant cuisine in Gensan as guests are served savory
and sumptuous fresh seafood dishes and other agricultural produce. At Tiongson Arcade is a line of restaurants to
choose from. We dined at Dine Ko, where
we feasted on simple but mouthwatering Filipino dishes on our first night in
the city. Sarangani Highlands is another
must-try as one will be treated to a view of the beautiful landscape of Gensan
and Sarangani while having a bite of their gastronomic dishes.
ACCOMMODATIONS
Our group stayed at Microtel General Santos, the newest hotel in the
city, located at Valley High along the National Highway. It is equipped with complete and modern
facilities, first-rate security, and friendly and very efficient staff. Our room has two large chiropractor-approved
beds, which made us sleep like babies every night. The room goes with free buffet breakfast. The hotel offers free Wi-Fi in the rooms and
it is so fast that surfing the net or uploading pictures on Facebook is a
breeze. One may contact them thru
(83)553-8080 or visit their website www.microtelphilippines.com.
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| Our room at Microtel Gensan |
SHOPPING
Since Microtel General Santos is located smack in the middle of the
city’s commercial district, we didn’t have any hard time traveling to shopping
malls as two are very accessible. SM
City is simply a stone’s throw away. Robinson's
Place is just a few blocks and will cost you only 8 pesos when taking the tricycle. Also among the city’s more notable malls are
KCC Mall, Gaisano Mall and Veranza by KCC.
If you are a fashion aficionado who loves signature items and have the
budget for it, Jinkee’s Fashion World, is the place for you. It is located along Aparente Avenue, City Heights,
General Santos City. Pre-owned signature
bags of the owner, Jinkee Pacquiao, are also sold there.
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| The writer with Michelle de Guzman of Cebu Pacific, Louine Hope Conserva, Raymart Escopel, Zedrick Señeres and Justine Obando. |
General
Santos City is one scenic destination that I recommend to travelers since it
offers limitless splendors of the region. It is bounded by other municipalities
that offer many tourist attractions, and is teeming with the rich cultural
heritage of South Cotabato.
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