The Land
The Philippines is an archipelagic nation
made up of 7,107 islands spanning 1,840
kilometers north to south. It is part of the East Indies,
a vast island group lying south and east of mainland Asia,
with Taiwan at its northernmost coast and Borneo on the south.
The three main Philippine island groups are Luzon,
the Visayas and Mindanao
Luzon is the island of contrasts. The most
modern districts in the Philippines, including
the capital city of Manila, are in Luzon,
but so are some of the oldest tribal communities in the nation
like the Ifugao of the Cordilleras. Luzon is
also where a visitor can see the latest model luxury cars
overtaking a carabao sled or modern skyscrapers within driving
distance of primordial volcanos.
The Visayas is famous for its charm, a
trait shared by many other southern regions in the world,
but here seems to run deeper among a people who are intrinsically
connected to their sun soaked island home. The Visayas is
also famous as a seat of history, being one of the earliest
landfalls of western voyagers. It has also gained a reputation
as being a cradle of the nation's future, if the unprecedented
economic growth of Cebu City continues.
Mindanao is our offering
to the Guinness Book of Records with the world's largest
clam, the world's largest Eagle, the nation's highest peak
and the world's largest city. Mindanao is
also home to the Philippines' Muslim population.
With a land mass of 300, 780 square kilometers, the Philippines is
considered a medium-sized nation, about two- thirds the size
of its first colonizer, Spain, and a little larger than the
British Isles. Manila is only one hour and
40 minutes from Hong Kong by jet; Sydney only 7 1/2 hours
away. Flights to Europe take 17 hours and to the American
west coast 15 hours.
The Philippines has many things to offer
the visitor: a mixture of the old and the new, a diversity
of art and culture and a warm, friendly people. Blessed by
nature, the Philippines has something to
offer every sportsman too extraordinary dive sites, forests
to roam, mountains to climb, caves to explore.
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