Just a jeepney ride from the city center, near the Yakan Weaving Village and inside La Vista del Mar restaurant is a quiant art gallery named after the former mayor of Zamboanga Hermosa.

While waiting for the curacha to be cooked at La Vista del Mar, Tutubi and his friends took a night stroll to the nearby art gallery which was already closed but the caretaker accommodated the group and even let Tutubi take pictures of the various items on display.

native handicrafts on display are also for sale





Note: all items on display are the property of their respective creators and therefore copyrighted. Pictures taken using Canon 300D kitlens at ISO 1600.


Maria Clara Art Gallery
La Vista del Mar:
Address: Calarian, Zamboanga City
Telephone Number: +63.62.983.0099

how to get there:
At Poblacion, ride a jeepney/multicab going to Rio Hondo and drop off at the entrance of La Vista Del Mar Resort

Related Posts:
La Vista del Mar
Fort Pilar
Pasonanca Park
Camp Jose Atilano
Garden Orchid Hotel

Labels: Art, Zamboanga City, Zamboanga Peninsula

Due to Tutubi's insistence, he was able to persuade his officemates to eat out at the famed La Vista del Mar restaurant on the seafront of Zamboanga City due to information from their driver that they also offer Zamboanga's sought after curacha, a certain species of sea crab endemic in the waters around Zamboanga peninsula.

Going to the place from Garden Orchid Hotel was quite a long drive since it's quite far. Checkpoints were everywhere and security was tight due to the presence of American troops participating in the Balikatan (shoulder to shoulder) exercise, a military exercise between US and Philippine soldiers.

the vinta-lined tables of La Vista del Mar



Picture of La Vista del Mar's last remaining curacha as shown by the waiter on a basin. The curacha is a crustacean found only in the area around Zamboanga peninsula.
the underside of curacha with legs that look like crabs and lobsters

Curacha is the Chavacano word for the crustacean that looks like a crossbreed between a large sea crab and the big spiny lobster that's also meaty and delicious! Best to cook it minimally to preserve its unique exotic taste.

Tutubi was surprised that there were no other people except a group of foreigners, tourists that is, who came to explore the area in spite of the travel advisories. The tourists seem to enjoy their stay where most people dare not tread out of fear even if they haven't been there.

seafood rice with evil aligue (crab fat)

Comments/Review: La Vista del Mar's place is cozy with ambiance of Zamboanga truly captured with great vista of the sea. Menu prices are cheaper than that of Hai San Restaurant but can't give you actual prices since Tutubi didn't shoulder the bill.

Adjacent to La Vista del Mar is Maria Clara Art Gallery. Also proximate is the Yakan Weaving Village where you can buy handwoven products of Yakan people of Basilan.

How to get to La Vista del Mar:

Board a jeep in the city (pueblo) with signboard Rio Hondo (a Muslim village of houses on stilts built over water). The place is near Yakan Weaving Village.

Note: cucaracha is the spanish word for cockroach

Related Zamboanga City Posts:
Fort Pilar
Camp Atilano, Pasonanca Park
Hardin Maria Clara Lobregat, Pasonanca Park

Labels: Restaurants, Seafood, Zamboanga City, Zamboanga Peninsula

With his limited time to explore Asia's Latin City i.e. Zamboanga City, Tutubi set out to visit interesting places the city has to offer. He was able to reach Fort Pilar by walking from Universidad de Zamboanga,past City Hall and Lantaka Hotel to the old stone fort.

the stone walls of Fort Pilar: Manila has Fort Santiago, Cebu and Iloilo both have Fort San Pedro, Cavite City has Fort San Felipe, Romblon with Fort San Andres, Zamboanga City's Fort Pilar as fortification.
inside the stone fort with the old military barracks in view. The place is now a popular events venue for weddings and other cultural occasions.
Entrance of Fort Pilar Museum with colorful sails of the famous Zamboanga vinta

The fort was built in 1635, then known as "Real Fuerza de San Jose" later renamed "Real Fuerza de Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Zaragoza", in response to raids by the Sultans of Mindanao and Jolo, and is now simply called Fort Pilar. It survived Dutch bombardment in 1646 and the British in 1798

History of Fort Pilar written on the NHI marker

Fort Pilar is now a museum (alternating as a venue for weddings, art exhibits, and other events). The museum galleries has on display of the Griffin, a ship that sank off Mindanao in the 18th century (similar to the San Diego galleon's artifacts displayed at the National Museum in Manila), and ethnographic and marine biology exhibit. (No picture taking is allowed inside like most museums' policy without a proper permit. Entrance to the museum, however, is free)

The exterior of the Fort is a shrine to the Nuestra Señora del Pilar (Our Lady of the Pillar), the patroness of Zamboanga (and also of Santa Cruz, Manila, the Diocese of Imus) with fiesta celebrated on October 12.


Image of Our Lady of the Pillar outside Fort Pilar and is a popular Catholic Pilgrimage site in Mindanao

Our Lady of the Pillar, another of the numerous titles of the Blessed Virgin Mary, according to ancient tradition, narrates that in the year 40 in Zaragoza, Spain, Mary appeared to James the Greater on the Ebro River while St. James the Great was preaching. She appeared on a pillar, and the pillar is preserved and venerated within the present Basilica of Nuestra Señora Del Pilar in Zaragoza, Spain. Thus the image is called "La Virgen de Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Zaragoza (Our Lady of the Pillar of Zaragoza).

Fort Pilar Museum Entrance Fee: None

How to get there:

Fort Pilar is walking distance from Zamboanga City Hall, Rizal Park and Zamboanga University. You may hire a tricycle if you don't feel like walking.

Related Posts:
St. Clare Monastery
Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage
Our Lady of Manaoag
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Lipa
Kamay ni Hesus
Visita Iglesia Manila
Visita Iglesia Rizal and Laguna

Fort El Triunfo, Ozamiz City
Fort Pilar, Zamboanga City

Labels: Museums, Pilgrimage Sites, Spanish Forts, Zamboanga City, Zamboanga Peninsula

Flower pictures and exotic butterfly at Jardin Maria Clara L. Lobregat in Pasonanca Park, Zamboanga City where flowers are in bloom and a butterfly farm is also located

the sign in front of the garden
the gumamela, or hibiscus, incidentally, is the national flower of Malaysia
a lantana, common in exotic butterfly gardens as source of nectar

a black butterfly called Common Mormon (not sure though, have to confirm with local butterfly watching enthusiasts)

Note: Entrance fee to park and the butterfly garden: Free!

All photos taken using Canon 300D either with kit lens or 50mm...

Labels: Butterfly Garden, Flowers, Parks, Zamboanga City, Zamboanga Peninsula

As soon as Tutubi was able to check in at Garden Orchid Hotel and secured a tourism brochure, he boarded a tricycle to Pasonanca Park. It was a miscalculation since the road going to the park was sloping uphill that made it difficult to traverse. Ended up doing quite a trek going to the first visible part of Pasonanca Park: Camp Jose Atilano which is a popular camp site by the Boy Scouts of the Philippines' jamboree.

Pictures of Camp Atilano:

the tree house you'll often see on Zamboanga City's tourism brochures

inside the camp were flocks of sheep without a shepherd

The lost sheep of Camp Atilano with tents looking like tepees in the background

After the brief photo opportunity, walked forward to the public swimming pool and serendipitously stumbled on a beautiful corner of the park: Jardin Maria Clara Lobregat.

To be Continued...

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Park Entrance Free: None (as in Free)
How to get to Pasonanca Park:

Commute: At city center (called Pueblo) board a jeepney with Pasonanca signboard.

Labels: Parks, Zamboanga City, Zamboanga Peninsula

"Bienvenido aqui na Zamboanga" what greeted Tutubi in Asia's Latin City's Zamboanga International Airport where people speak Chavacano, a Spanish Creole language.

There were so many policemen at the airport, not because there's trouble, but due to an on-going security conference, incidentally, held at Tutubi's hotel: Garden Orchid Hotel.

A stone's throw,literally, from the airport, Garden Orchid Hotel, would be Tutubi's home for a few days.
photo of Garden Orchid Hotel lobby

The the check-in counter ladies of the hotel were nice and accomodating. Even the bellboy was kind enough to give Tutubi the last copy of the Zamboanga City tourism brochure that Tutubi used to explore the city of smiles.

To be continued...

Labels: Hotels, Zamboanga Accommodations, Zamboanga City, Zamboanga Peninsula