Five hundred fifty three(553) kilometers from Manila, the capital city of the Philippines, rises a near perfect cone volcano and one of the seven wonders in the world, the famous Mayon Volcano. Its summit measures 2,421 meters above sea level (masl) while its circular base has a radius of about 48 kilometers. Mayon Volcano is surrounded by five (5) municipalities and three (3) cities with a total land area of 5,775.70
hectares. Its symmetrical form at any horizontal direction made this volcano a truly scenic wonder.
Mt. Mayon is the most active volcano in the Philippines,It is considered one of the 22 active volcanoes in the country.records showed that a total of 47 periodic eruptions occurred during the last 323 years. The earliest volcanic eruption occurred in February 1814, which has caused severe destruction and the worst bringing cagsawa in a complete ruin of the town and submersed it to mud, boulders and ash. Another destructive eruption occurred in 1897 and the latest occurred in June 2001. But inspite of the rearing threats faced by Albayanos, Mt. Mayon is still loved and admired regarding it as their fountain of strength and persistence.
Local and foreign tourists thrill at the sight of Mayon’s almost perfect cone, whether seen up close or from a distance.
Department of Tourism (DOT) records showed that total foreign and local tourist arrivals in the Bicol Region increased every year during the period 2002-2004. In 2002, it was recorded that foreign tourist arrivals reached 12,209 while local tourist arrivals totaled 377,509. The figures increased in 2003 when foreign tourist arrivals reached 20,372 and local tourists also rose to 388,589, and still continued to rise in 2004 when foreign tourists arriving in the region totaled 25,143 while domestic tourist arrivals reached 449,295.
The DOT records further indicated that of the six provinces composing the Bicol Region, Albay province topped in the number of tourist arrivals, even higher than that of Sorsogon where the famous Butanding is located.
Then it was to the Hoyop-Hoyopan Caves. Artifacts of more than 2000 yrs old have been found in these caves and evidence of early “settlers” are found in the walls of the caves in the form of preserved human bones. The name means “blow-blow” which is a reference to the wind that rushes thru the caves. It was actually pleasant and cool in the tour. It had the natural air-conditioning feeling in there. Also, the locals hid in these caves from the Japanese during WWII. The Locals also poured a concrete platform to designate as a disco floor. They regularly met here during the curfew days of Ferdinand Marcos reign.
hectares. Its symmetrical form at any horizontal direction made this volcano a truly scenic wonder.Mt. Mayon is the most active volcano in the Philippines,It is considered one of the 22 active volcanoes in the country.records showed that a total of 47 periodic eruptions occurred during the last 323 years. The earliest volcanic eruption occurred in February 1814, which has caused severe destruction and the worst bringing cagsawa in a complete ruin of the town and submersed it to mud, boulders and ash. Another destructive eruption occurred in 1897 and the latest occurred in June 2001. But inspite of the rearing threats faced by Albayanos, Mt. Mayon is still loved and admired regarding it as their fountain of strength and persistence.
Local and foreign tourists thrill at the sight of Mayon’s almost perfect cone, whether seen up close or from a distance.
Department of Tourism (DOT) records showed that total foreign and local tourist arrivals in the Bicol Region increased every year during the period 2002-2004. In 2002, it was recorded that foreign tourist arrivals reached 12,209 while local tourist arrivals totaled 377,509. The figures increased in 2003 when foreign tourist arrivals reached 20,372 and local tourists also rose to 388,589, and still continued to rise in 2004 when foreign tourists arriving in the region totaled 25,143 while domestic tourist arrivals reached 449,295.
The DOT records further indicated that of the six provinces composing the Bicol Region, Albay province topped in the number of tourist arrivals, even higher than that of Sorsogon where the famous Butanding is located.
Then it was to the Hoyop-Hoyopan Caves. Artifacts of more than 2000 yrs old have been found in these caves and evidence of early “settlers” are found in the walls of the caves in the form of preserved human bones. The name means “blow-blow” which is a reference to the wind that rushes thru the caves. It was actually pleasant and cool in the tour. It had the natural air-conditioning feeling in there. Also, the locals hid in these caves from the Japanese during WWII. The Locals also poured a concrete platform to designate as a disco floor. They regularly met here during the curfew days of Ferdinand Marcos reign.
Then on to Cagsawa Ruins. About 8km northwest of Legaspi, the remains (basically the bellfry) of the sunken Cagsawa Church. This site is popular because it gives the tourists a beautifull view of Mt. Mayon. In 1814, the 1200 people who took refuge in the church during Mt. Mayon’s violent eruption were buried alive. It gives you an eerie feeling knowing the story, but this is no memorial as there are vendors hawking anything and everything. So, there is quite a bit of hustle and bustle going around. There were only about two-hand full of tourists this day, but I could see it during the peak season how loud this place could be. Also, the typoon Remming’s flood of legaspi river just missed this site by less than 100meters of wiping this site out
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