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Ocean andJungle Escapade
The recent winners of Miss Earth, the international beauty pageant with a conscience, embark on an trip that takes them from historical Bataan to the lush jungles of Subic. Elizabeth Reyes tags along
HICH CAME FIRST:
"The Ocean and Jungle Escapade" to Subic Bay, Bataan; or the "Caravan for Mother Earth with Miss Earth". That was the trivia question of the weekend, to our minds at least. Whose advocacy, whose agenda was the main theme of this eco-tour of Bataan? Until we joined the latest GO NORTH caravan, Ocean and Jungle Escapade, we never knew the promotional ploys and workings of international beauty pageants. We didn't know what was in store, besides an out-of-town journey to discover Subic and Bataan with our road-tripping host, Office of President Undersecretary Rene Diaz and his merry band. He explained, "Subic is an example of how-development resulting from ttade and investment can go hand-in-hand with the protection of the environment." This trip, the OPNL tourism caravan had special guests-of-honor to entertain and parade: six international beauties of the recent Miss Earth 2003 Beauty Pageant. "We're taking Miss Earth and her court to Bataan!!" was Diaz's battlecrv. The whole tenor of the trip starred at the boat wharf by the Cultural Center of the
Philippines, early in the morning. Six sleepy beauties in skimpy tops and big hair sat in corner seats of the waiting room, having videocams and digicams thrust in their faces at every turn. They would smile automatically, then turn away and resume chatting to each other in Spanish. This was the smile-and-wave routine. Apparently they had been at it for thfee weeks around the Philippines.
"Most people don't know it takes just one hour to get from here to Orion, Bataan—by the Mt. Samat Ferry!!" Trip leader Diaz crooned this over and over to all who'd listen. "It's as easy as driving to Quezon City—no, easier!" The public ferry boat was indeed comfy-cozy cold and fasr across the bay. We relaxed on theater-style seats; watched a Matrix movie; and emerged, painlessly, in Orion mid-morning. A short drive to the Mt. Samat Shrine landed the six Miss Earth beauties—and all their media groupies—at the foot of the great cross, soaring for all to see from afar. The Shrine ofValor is visited by Ptesidents and war veterans alike. "Let's not forget Bataan," reminded chieftain Diaz. "Historically this rugged peninsula was one of the first provinces that revolted against Spanish tyranny. It's also the last bastion of democracy, where Filipinos and Americans made rheir last stand—for five months—in WWII." The tall,
doll-like "Miss Earth 2003", Dania Prince, and her beauteous court smile for the escort of cameras; and plant trees for the first of the "photo-ops."
Our next Bataan stopover is La Vista Inland Resort, a spacious country resort built round a bulbous giant of a banga—a mascot ciaypot from whence came the capital city's name, Balanga. Two high water slides, red and blue, spew gleeful folk into a kidney-shaped swimming pool. The Miss Earth beauties arrive to a marching band a-playing; and "street-dancers" a-dancing on the grass in the sun. They smile, wave, and glow; are touched and followed by doting fans. They proceed to the planting ground, where each beauty wearing her title-sash plants a small tree, offering smiley photo-ops standing between big OPNL chief Diaz and young Balanga City Mayor, Albert S. Garcia. Then comes a seafood lunch buffet; a modern interpretative show featuring Balanga's nine dance-educators; and socializing with Mayor Garcia. The "new-breed" mestizo mayor in white barong explains, "the banga—ciaypot—is where we place the blessings of Mother Earth... and so we welcome Miss Earth, Dania Prince." He praises Balanga for being the cleanest and greenest city in the region. And then he dances with Miss Earth and her court; and poses at the center of the photo-ops. Miss Earth delivers her short gracias message
en espanol, which is translated by an urbane gentleman-in-shorts, Jaime Legarda. More photo-ops, then wild happy dancing take over the open-air stage, which feels like a noontime variety show. The Miss Earth beauties dance up a storm with the Carousel Production stylist, who is also a great dancer, gay escort, and tiara-bearer. Onlookers comment on the lanky beauties being sexy on the dance floor; on three Latinas, one European, and one African representing three continents; and how Miss Earth from Honduras looks like Carmi Martin, and Miss Poland resembles Kuh Ledesma!
Our next stop is Subic Bay, where we're booked into the Legenda, the only five-star hotel on the 18,000-hectare property. The 250-room hotel has the requisite comforts, classy bathrooms and spa, numerous international restaurants— services suitable for foreign investors and media frenzies. But the earthly beauties beg off the program for the rest of the afternoon; they need to go "chill out" in the sun. When we visit the beauties on the beach fronting the hotel, just a handful of fisher-folk get a treat watching the bikinied foreigners take turns on the jet skis. They're guided by TV host and friendly bloke Jeffrey Quizon, who's palsy with blonde Miss Germany. The Latinas Miss Honduras and Miss Costa Rica ride tandem together. Young Miss Brazil prefers to be alone, to take a walk.
River rafting—using a traditional Aeta bamboo raft—at the jungle survival demo.
Miss Poland wants a tan, so lays her towering self down on the grayish sand 50 meters away. For a while all seems "chill" enough, but soon there are four avid cameramen practicing art-photography on the Polish sleeping body; and stage directing the sweet Brazilian into sexy poses. But the real misadventure of the day is frisky Miss Ethiopia getting "lost at sea" on hef jet ski. She had bolted off along the coast at full speed; gone out too far and ran out of fuel, mid-sea! Not a swimmer, she panicked, till she was rescued by a small fisher-boy and pulled to anothet resort, from where she was driven by jeep to the beauties' beach—which was by then crawling with Carousel Productions' search and rescue teams.
Meanwhile, media folks were given the annotated bus tour of Subic—fotmet US Naval Base on the Bataan shore; today's export industry zone for 700 investors; and futute public recreation centet for jungle and ocean escapades. Subic is a unique property: the deepest seaport bay in the country, rimming 18,000 hectares of prime land, including 2,200 hectates of naval magazine covered with jungle vegetation as we've never seen before. Rolling mountain-scapes are thick with hardwood trees amid natutal forests so expansive that our bus driver gets lost in Subic space, and we must seek directions from the Forest Rangers in the wild. Former bunkers are being transformed into the Butterfly Garden and the family-oriented Forest Adventure Park, with thematic gateways, mechanized dinosaurs and exotic cement structures expressing Disneyland fantasies. A special treat is the stopover to view eight huge tigers,
just delivered for the open-ait Zoobic Safari Park in the
making!
DAY 2: FINALLY SUBIC'S JUNGLE AND
OCEAN ESCAPADE BEGINS IN EARNEST.
We are driven to the jungle's edge, to the start of the Pamulaklakin Forest Trail; walk across a stream to a clearing just 500 meters off the main road. There amid the timeless untouched forest, where birds and monkeys can be heard in the trees surrounding, are six G-stringed Aeta warriors with spears, bows and arrows, waiting for their photo-opportunity with Miss Earth and her court! The girls smile through the requisite tree-planting poses; do vacuous interviews with the TV media; and friendly Miss Ethiopia tries to get an Aeta warrior to teach her to shoot an arrow.
Next stop along the eco-tour is the Aeta Presentation and Jungle Survival Demo: a cultural show of the ethnic type! Frizzy-haired Aeta women in matching sarongs dance in the motning light, then enjoin the Miss Earth beauties to imitate their waving, bird-like dances. An elder Aeta guide named Tata Kasoy petforms a jungle survival demo, using just a hollow bamboo pole and his sharp bolo. It's an engaging showpiece, originated in the American days of the naval base. Resourceful and amusing, the hardy Aeta Kasoy starts a tiny fire (without matches), makes a bamboo oven, cooks an imaginary meal (soup, rice, fish) and makes gender comments on Filipino femininity. Eventually, the Aeta matrons recognize TV host Jeffrey Quizon among us, and thete are squealing photo-ops of
and all, especially blonde beauty Ms. Germany, who is a professional photo model. "It's just my job," she says. (Tour-chief Diaz says, "Oh the girls love it; they're all models who love to pose, they don't have to do it, but they love the attention and are very accommodating.") We emerge back on shore among the rows of sleek and glamorous motor yachts, all moored at Subic Yacht Club by big-ticket travelers and resident millionaires. The pink sunset over the boats was spectacular that evening. For our last supper on the Subic escapade, we dine in Moonbay Marina's cabana just off the beach. The restaurant staff stare at the Miss Earth beauties, while the single showman-singer performs a three-voiced repertoire in great volume. Everyone enjoys the playback of 400 digital images on media-warrior Mike's laptop.
Then we're back on the bus to head homeward to Manila. Miss Earth and her court are the attention-winners and stars, after all, of this eco-tour of Subic, Bataan.
another kind. We get our feet delightfully wet at the next eco-tour highlight, Ocean Adventure, a marine park on the open-water edge of Subic Bay. CEO Tim Desmond—the "environmental zoo-keeper"—briefs us (at high speed) on the prime conservation aspect of the park; the interactive nature experience for the public; and the alternative livelihood and conservation "messaging" going on at Ocean Adventure. While the zoo-consultant rattles the eco-bytes about marine animals and their facilities, the beauties and the media wade into the shallows to stroke and caress four teenaged "false killer whales"— black and gentle whales, friendly as chimps! At the sea lion pen, the marine mammals themselves steal the show, planting sloppy wet kisses on the Miss Earth titlists' cheeks.
At the Greenview Chinese Restaurant, we taste the best cooking of the Subic weekend. There's a short spin around the Subic golf course for more photo-ops of Earthly beauties doing their swinging poses for the cameras. All the female caddies in red uniforms flock round the foreign beauties like doting fans.
Finally it was time for beauty-rest—on the Bay Cruise Tour; getting away from fans, groupies and PR-duties aboard a massive private yacht—courtesy of Rene's industrialist friend. For one breezy hour around the bay, the Miss Earth court relish privacy—and undivided attention. They're soon posing on the breezy back deck for the five lucky photographers on board. The beauties strike up saucy, sultry poses with windblown hair
THINGS TO DO IN SUBIC
GO ECOLOGICAL
Of Subic Bay Freeport Zone's (SBFZ) 18,000 hectares total land area, approximately 10 to 11,000 has a forest cover of lowland dipterocarp trees (tropical Asian trees that yield valuable woods and aromatic oils and resins). Protected from exploitation for more than 50 years while under the jurisdiction of the US Navy, the area has become one of the most valuable legacies that the Americans left in Subic Bay - 745 species of plants, 83 species of birds, 16 species of mammals, 15 species of reptiles and 8 species of amphibians thrive in the area now referred to as the Subic Watershed Forest Reserve. In addition, the waters of Subic Bay itself has remained a healthy environment as indicated by its living reefs, the 75 species of fish, and the existence of two of the world's rare and endangered Olive Ridley and Hawksbill turtles in the bay. Six thousand hectares of SBFZ has been allocated for industrial use; but for the rest of the property a low-impact, eco-adventure tourism development was opted. So when in Subic Bay check out their eco-tourism programs:
Hiking through the Apaliin Trail for a peak of the Subic forest. : • Hill 394 is 394 meters above sea level and offers a spectacular view of Mt. Natib and Subic Bay.
•       Meet the largest and the smallest bats in the world at the Bat Kingdom and Bat Highway.
•       Enjoy a scenic boat ride across the bay and chill at the beaches of Grande Island.
: • Learn the ropes of jungle survival techniques, visit a mini zoo or spend an enchanting afternoon at JEST Camp (Jungle Environmental Survival Training) and Butterfly Park.
•       Join the Mt. Pinatubo Crater Trek through lahar fields and canyons and ghost towns, dip in a hot or cold spring, and finally spend a quiet afternoon kayaking across the crater lake.
•       Pamulaklakin Forest Trails/Pastolan Aeta Village is an Ecology Tour that lets you trek, have a unique picnic or camp out in the jungles of Subic or immerse yourself in Aeta culture.
Pretend your Robinson Crusoe and explore the beautiful undeveloped beaches of Redondo Peninsula
Other areas worth mentioning are the Mangrove : Graveyard, El Kabayo Equestrian Center, Bicentennial Park, the
» Subic Beaches, and the Waterfront Boardwalk. For more information log on to www.sbma.com or call the SUBIC BAY TOURISM DEPARTMENT/ TEL (6347) 252-4242, 252-4123, 252-4154; EMAIL: TOURISM@SBMA.COM.
WATER FUN
Water sports enthusiasts can have a full day of fun in the bay with
Subic Bay Aqua Sports and Scuba Shack/ Tel (6347) 252-6097;
252-7343; E-mail: sbas@svisp.com who offer equipment and guides for kayaking, surfing, scuba diving/wreck diving,
parasaillng, jet skiing, wind surfing.
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