STO. TOMAS, Pampanga, Philippines –A village in this town has begun its bid to have its chapel declared as the site of the first terracotta retablo (main altar) in Central Luzon.
Ronaldo Tiotuico, regional director of the Department of Tourism, has visited the chapel at the invitation of Mayor Lito Naguit, said Teresita Juarez, barangay captain of Sto. Niño (formerly Sapa).
So far, what Tiotuico has confirmed is the claim that Sto. Niño has the first clay altar in Pampanga.
The Archdiocese of San Fernando and the Center for Kapampangan Studies of the Holy Angel University have yet to validate the claim, at least at the provincial and regional levels.
Juarez said the title is being sought on the 25th anniversary of the segregation of Sitio Sapa from Barangay San Matias in 1985. read more...
The Mt. Pinatubo “Kabuhayan sa Turismo” Project was envisioned to provide social and economic benefits to the crest-fallen community of Brgy. Sta. Juliana in Capas, Tarlac thru the conduct of ecotourism program.
The project was conceived upon learning of the presence of a number of unexpected visitors to the community who are bound to chance upon the locality on their way up to the crater of Mt. Pinatubo. Thus when the tourism regional office came into the picture, the overall outlook of local residents for tourism took on a new twist. Local residents looked up to the newfound activity as their means of enriching their social and economic status in life. The project won two international awards (PATA and ASEANTA) and one national award (Kalakbay) for Best Ecotourism Project. HERE IS THEIR TRUE-TO-LIFE STORY. read more...
The Department of Tourism – Region III recently teamed up with private sector groups and individuals in providing better quality of lives to the less privileged sectors of society thru various communitarian endeavours coupled with social responsibility.
The year 2008 started with a campaign among the members of civil society and business community to help in establishing the foundation for a more stable social and economic wellbeing of people in the grassroots as a prelude to the establishment of a happy community – one of the basic ingredients of a flourishing tourism and travel society. Pride of place is necessary to make the tourism industry prosper. Pride of place takes roots when the quality of people’s lives is well off. read more...
SM City Clark Denounced for Cultural Injustice vs IPs from the Cordilleras
The organizers of the 3rd North Philippines Travel and Tourism Expo which was staged at the SM City Clark in Pampanga on November 14-16, 2008 decried the discriminatory acts - tantamount to committing cultural injustice - of the sales department of SM Supermalls represented by Ms. Lana Erroba for arrogantly trying to stop the staging of the indigenous cultural performance of the Pines City National High School Teatro Pino from the Cordilleras saying that the performers are wearing skimpy attire and therefore are bound to “scandalize” the children watching the show.
She further said that SM has a reputation of being a family-oriented shopping mall and thus cannot allow such “obscene” acts from being displayed like the ones shown by the cordillerans read more...
Here is your opportunity to be blessed with spirituality by taking on a journey to the famous pilgrimage sites north of Manila - from Bulacan to Pampanga, Tarlac to Pangasinan, and Cagayan to Baguio. Among the churches to visit include the Barasoain church of Mt. Carmel, Holy Rosary Cathedral in Angeles, Church of the Risen Christ (Relic of the Holy Cross) in San Jose, Tarlac, Our Lady of Manaoag in Pangasinan, Our Lady of Piat in Penablanca, Cagayan and Baguio Cathedral in the Pines City. Start your journey now in time for the Christmas season. It's a 3N/4D holiday caravan! CLICK READ MORE..... read more...
Environmentally Good Practices in Hotels and Restaurants
As part of our contribution to mitigating the impact of Climate Change, we are introducing a book published by the International Hotels and Restaurants Association (IHRA) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) on the best practices (Success Stories) in hotel and restaurant management and operation in various countries in the hope of encouraging hotel and restaurant operators to do the same for the sake of our Wounded Planet. Please click on "Climate Change Alert" on the left menu, this page, for review of the compilation. Let us all consider saving this planet Earth part of our daily lives! WE INVITE HOTEL AND RESTAURANT OPERATORS TO POST THEIR COMMITMENT ON HOW TO SAVE THIS WOUNDED PLANET! read more...
One of the most frequented pilgrimage sites in Central Luzon, the Monasterio de Tarlac is home to the most revered Relic of the True Cross upon which Jesus Christ was crucified and died. Now enshrined at the Church of the Servants of the Risen Christ, the reliquary may be venerated during Saturdays and Sundays when liturgical services are held at 10:00 a.m. by the monastic congregation of the Servants of the Risen Christ. Every September 14, during the Feast of the Triumph of the Holy Cross, the reliquary is laid open to the public for veneration. read more...