When I took my granddaughter to the gym early on Saturday morning, I was already thinking about Sunday. I wanted to explore the beaches south of the city of Dumaguete and thought I could stop by on the way back and see what was waiting for me.
My destination was Mangnao Open Beach, one of the public beaches in the area. The name “Mangnao” comes from the Visayan region and refers to a traditional method of extracting starch from the trunk of a native palm tree called “Sac-Sac”. The story goes that in ancient times, when the barrio was uninhabited, there was an abundance of Sac-Sac palms in the area, which provided an abundance of starch for food. The process of extracting this starch was known as “mangnao” and gave the beach its name.
When I arrived at the beach, I was greeted by a group of beach dogs who had made themselves comfortable on the sand. It was early and there were few people around. In the distance, a shellfish gatherer roamed the shallow water, while a few cargo ships anchored in the background completed the scene.
I walked across the sandy area exposed at low tide, watching the water play with the seaweed in the light surf. The full moon began to fade and I looked forward to the next day when I would return to film the beaches of southern Dumaguete.
I can’t wait to enjoy the beauty of this area to the fullest and share it with you all.
Check out the video and join me in looking forward to the adventure ahead!