Cagayan de Oro: The City of Golden Friendship

I was recently in Cagayan de Oro, a city way down south in the province of Misamis Oriental….only for the third time in my life. The first two were way back in May of 2003. I was then part of the OMB team as facilitator and support staff that conducted capability-building seminar workshops on the investigation and prosecution of ombudsman cases. This time, I headed the OMB secretariat for the first leg of a nationwide series of seminar- workshops on procurement training for trainers, observers and monitors. All these three events were conducted in the same venue, the Country Village Hotel in Carmen, Cagayan de Oro City.

Dubbed as the City of Golden Friendship, Cagayan de Oro lives up to its reputation. People were indeed friendly, a trait i think that is generally characteristic of Filipinos anywhere, but most especially so in the not so urban places of the archipelago. In Mindanao, where poverty and religious intolerance sadly continues to fuel strife in many places, Cagayan de Oro is one of those areas that show peace and harmonious co-existence between people of different faiths is very possible indeed!

Ably assisted by OMB Mindanao staff Cheryl Lu and Vivian Matugas

A Religious of the Virgin Mary (RVM) run school in Cagayan de Oro

With CSO participants by the hotel's poolside

With some of the training participants and organizers

Trying out the city's alternative means of transportation - the "motorela"

A cultural melting pot and important booming commercial center for Northwestern Mindanao, this is often seen in the wide variety of merchandise that can be bought in the city from various places of the region. Delicasies for example such as the famous Pastel (dinner rolls or buns with sweet 'yema' filling) from the province of Camiguin can now be bought from a local branch of the award-winning Vjandep Bakeshop in Cagayan de Oro. Roasted peanuts by Chedings and the 'pinakurat' (spicy fermented coconut vinegar) i bought in the city actually come from Iligan City in the province of Lanao del Norte. So with the case of the aromatic arabica coffee produced by the Benedictine monks of the Monastery of the Transfiguration in Malaybalay, Bukidnon.

That's not to say that Cagayan de Oro is not famous for anything genuinely Cagayanon. One should try out their local version of the ham and other pork products from establishments like Oro Ham. For the more health conscious visitor, i recommend local delicasies like Fely's Homemade Baked Garlic Peanuts and Cheese Sticks manufactured by SN Food Products as pasalubong to one's family back home.

Buying pasalubong at the heart of the city's commercial district known as "Divisoria"

As always, one doesn't really get so much time to see the sights during official travels like in the conduct of these trainings. As a springboard to scenic areas like Mt. Kitanglad National Park of Bukidnon, the Maria Cristina Falls of Lanao del Norte and Lake Lanao of Lanao del Sur, and equally famous for its white water rafting, it leads one to wish he had all the time to experience all the sights and adventure of Cagayan de Oro.

Home sweet home