Destination: Davao!

[chris dvo]

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tsada kaau diri white sand beaches, bat caves, and mountain adventures

[BaiLeY]

Can you please be more elaborate with your thread sir?

[Blue_Sky]

The City of Davao is the largest city on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. It is the country's largest city in terms of land area, occupying 2,444 square kilometers. Its international airport and seaport are among the busiest cargo hubs in the southern Philippines. Davao City is also one of several cities in the Philippines that are independent of any province, though it is usually grouped with Davao del Sur for statistical purposes. The city is also the regional center for Davao Region (Region XI). Davao City has a population of 1,725,355 people (2005 estimate) in 240,057 households (2000 census).

In recent years, the sprawling urban metropolis has emerged as the business, investment and tourism hub for southern Philippines. The city boasts of some of the finest beaches and mountain resorts in the country, and proximity to the Philippines’ most captivating diving spots as well as its highest peak, Mount Apo.

Asiaweek ranked Davao City among the 20 most livable cities in Asia, and the number one as the most livable city in the country. Foreign Direct Investment Magazine conducted a study which named Davao City as the 10th "Asian City of the Future".



Geography
The land area of Davao City is 2,443.61 square kilometers. In terms of land area, it is considered as one of the largest cities in the world. It is divided into 3 congressional districts, which are further divided into 11 administrative districts containing a total of 184 barangays.

Almost 50% of its total land area is classified as timberland or forest. Agriculture utilizes about 43%. This is reflective of the fact that agriculture is still the largest economic sector. Big plantations that produce banana, pineapple, coffee, and coconut eat up a large chunk of the total land area.

Presently, built-up areas used for residential, institutional, commercial, and industrial purposes represent about 10% of the total land area. Under the approved land use plan built-up and settlement area will cover 15% of the total area while agricultural will be maximized with 67.19%. The remaining 17.68 will be devoted for forest and conservation.

Davao City is typhoon-free. The city enjoys a weather that remains balmy all year round. It is characterized by a uniform distribution of rainfall, temperature, humidity, and air pressure. It has no pronounced wet or dry season. Weather predictability makes it highly conducive to agricultural production. Temperature ranges from 20 to 32 degrees Celsius and average rainfall is up to 2,000 mm yearly.

Infrastructure

The presence of basic infrastructure within the city such as airport, seaports, roads, bridges, telecommunications, condominiums, malls and first class hotels has sustained the economic growth in the last 10 years. Due to the city’s unprecedented growth, a clamor for higher capacity infrastructures resulted to a number of modernization projects now ongoing to meet the demands of the new millennium.

The Francisco Bangoy International Airport (Davao International Airport) is the busiest airport in Mindanao. Expansion and modernization began in 1998. Today, the new DIA (opened in December 2003) has begun accommodating wider-bodied jets such as the Boeing 747.

Construction of more roads and bridges are also underway. The construction of the City’s third major road - the Buhangin underpass was completed in the 1st quarter of 2003. A Traffic Management and Computerization Scheme was also implemented. Davao City is ranked no. 5 among cities in Asia with better traffic flow based on vehicles per kilometer of city road.

Davao City has 2 government international seaports in (the Sasa Wharf and the Sta. Ana Wharf) and 9 privately owned ports. The City Government is currently in the process of taking over the management of the seaports to modernize facilities, such as 3 big modern quayside cranes and expand capacity. In addition, the Toril international Fish Port Complex accommodates small and large-scale fishing activities as well as provide among others cold-storage facilities.

Communication links within the key business areas are adequate. With the deregulation and privatization policies of the Philippine government, the number of telecommunications player is projected to increase as well as offer affordable telecommunications services to subscribers/clienteles.

Recreations

On December 15, 2007, Mayor Rodrigo Duterte led local officials in opening the P 72-M People’s Park (old PTA Ground) in Davao City, which features a mini-forest and large sculptures representing indigenous groups in Southern Mindanao.[1]

A full size replica of Michelangelo's David can be found in the same waterfront area as Queensland Lodge, which ironically is a short time motel where couples can get a room for as short as 3 hours. The statue is painted in gold with a fountain at its base and a long narrow 50 meter decorative pool in front of the statue. The area is privately maintained by the owner of Queensland Lodge as a public park, known to locals as Seawall. On Saturday nights, weather permitting, the whole area is filled with hundreds of people drinking from the trunks of their cars with David glowing in the background. The statue sparked much controversy because of the naked depiction and criticism as a marketing ploy for the lodge.

Accessibility

Davao City is very accessible and is the gateway to the BIMP-EAGA. It has regular air, sea, and land linkages to major points in the country. It is one (1) hour and 40 minutes away from Manila (the country’s capital) by plane and only 30 minutes away from Cebu City. It has daily flights to Singapore - serviced by Silk Air, twice weekly flights to Manado, Indonesia, and chartered 3-4 times a week flight to Seoul. The city can also be accessed from Zamboanga City while Cagayan de Oro City in Northern Mindanao is linked to the city by the scenic Davao-Bukidnon Highway.

Government

Unique to the local government set-up of the city is the designation of a deputy mayor by the city mayor. Although an appointed official only, the deputy mayor serves as a direct link to the city mayor, especially for people living outside the city proper. The deputy mayor also serves as the city mayor's representative in community events. The functions of the position are considered complementary to the functions of the city vice-mayor, given the large territorial jurisdiction of the city.

The city is politically subdivided into 184 barangays.

The current mayor of Davao City is Rodrigo Duterte, a former government prosecutor and congressman. He is assisted by city vice-mayor Sara Duterte, his daughter.

The City Government of Davao is now proposing to add two more Congressional Districts.

Security and Civil Defense

The city government has invested millions of pesos to ensure the security of people living and working in Davao City. Aside from the usual forces of the Philippine National Police, a special military task force has been formed to insulate the city from terrorist attacks and other forms of criminality. The Task Force Davao, as it is named, is affiliated with the Philippine Army and is headed by an army colonel.

The city government also maintains a 24-hour emergency response system patterned after the 9-1-1 systems in Canada and the United States. People can dial the 911 number to report emergencies and criminal incidents.

A curfew is also observed in the city. All business establishments, in particular bars and discos, are mandated by a city ordinance to close at 2:00 AM. Also, motorcycle drivers with no helmets and motorists with defective lights are not allowed to enter or drive in the city. Regular checkpoints in key parts of Davao City and at the city boundaries are conducted 24 hours to ensure the strict implementation of traffic rules.

The use of fireworks and other similar pyrotechnics, as well as smoking, is strictly prohibited in the city. Violators are made to pay hefty fines, perform community service, serve jail time, or a combination of the three. Littering is also prohibited.

Foreign relations

The influx of foreign visitors and the presence of expatriates and migrants in the city have prompted the governments of Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia and the United States to open consular offices in the city.

The US Embassy in the Philippines opened a virtual consulate where inquiries regarding visa issuances, foreign relations concerns and travel to the United States can be made on the Internet by e-mail and chat. The virtual consulate website [1] is maintained in coordination with Ateneo de Davao University.

[SamuraiArcher]

daghan na ba mag bakasyon sa Davao?...

[Blue_Sky]

^^oist patiwasa sa ko... wa pa ko nahuman.. hehe.. seriously..

[SamuraiArcher]

^^daghan naman ni nga topic, gi-merge naman gud ni...all about Philippines top city....mao nag ask na lang ko if mi-daghan na ba ang bakasyonista sa Davao ....

[Blue_Sky]

Demographics

Cebuano is the most widely spoken language in the city, while the national language based on Tagalog comes a distant second. Japanese is spoken by the Japanese Filipino community and Chinese is spoken by the Chinese Filipino population. This fusion though is not generally held acceptable in any formal level. English is the medium of instruction in schools and is widely understood and spoken especially in the business community.

The most dominant group is the Roman Catholic at 83.83%, other Christian groups comprise 15% and the remaining 1.17% belongs to other non-Christian faiths (Islam, Buddhism, etc).

Health

The average life expectancy of Davaoeños is 70 for females and 65 for males. There are about 31 hospitals with a total of 1,963 beds in Davao City. Very affordable medical services are made available to poor residents through the Davao Medical Center, which has the most hospitals beds at 600.

On the other hand, hospitals such as the Davao Doctors Hospital, San Pedro Hospital, Brokenshire Memorial Hospital, Ricardo Limso Medical Center, and Davao Medical Center are training hospitals that also offer specialized medical care services. Davao Regional Hospital in neighboring Tagum City, also offers the same quality specialized physician training and health services.

Psychiatric hospitals, psychotherapy clinics and counselling centers are also found in the city, directed and manned by internationally-trained counselors, psychologists, psychometricians and psychiatrists.

In Davao City, there are currently six large tertiary hospitals: Davao Doctors Hospital, San Pedro Hospital, Brokenshire Memorial Hospital, Davao Medical School Foundation and Hospital, Ricardo Limso Medical Center, and Davao Medical Center.[br]Posted on: February 02, 2008, 04:35:41 PM_________________________________________________

^^daghan naman ni nga topic, gi-merge naman gud ni...all about Philippines top city....mao nag ask na lang ko if mi-daghan na ba ang bakasyonista sa Davao ....

pwede man ko mubuhat ug ing-ani kay sa davao lang man siya unya dili man siya nagahisgot ug top cities...
let me finish this...[br]Posted on: February 02, 2008, 04:36:51 PM_________________________________________________Education

The government provides free education at the primary (grade school) and secondary (high school) levels. Government scholars from all over the island enjoy free college education in state-run universities such as the University of the Philippines Mindanao and the University of SouthEastern Philippines. The literacy rate of the country is 93.9%. Davao City on the other hand has a higher literacy rate at 98.05%.

The city has contributed much to the country’s ever increasing pool of masters and doctorate degree holders helping the Philippines gain the distinction of having one of the highest numbers of Masters in Business Administration (MBA) graduates in the world.

The city is considered the Center for Learning and Education in Mindanao Island. Currently, it has 374 elementary schools, 65 secondary schools, and 46 colleges and universities.

[dabawenyo]

daghan na ba mag bakasyon sa Davao?...

Wala naga bakasyon diri. Puro iro, iring, ug ilaga ra ang naa diri. Daghan pud diay langaw, kay gilangaw tanan establishments. Mao man na imung gusto madungog diba? HAPPY? God bless you and your WONDERFUL place, wherever that may be! Hahahahahaha!

[SamuraiArcher]

Wala naga bakasyon diri. Puro iro, iring, ug ilaga ra ang naa diri. Daghan pud diay langaw, kay gilangaw tanan establishments. Mao man na imung gusto madungog diba? HAPPY? God bless you and your WONDERFUL place, wherever that may be! Hahahahahaha!

not exactly whta i want....but that is how you reply my inquiry,...it just shows...

[worldpeace]

now that you get what you want, maybe you could just ignore this thread ok samurai? there are so many CEBU praising threads out there, why bother this thread devoted to davao city. but of course you can continue, it's just a suggestion.