Travel affords a person a unique experience of learning about a different country’s culture and history first hand. Being in a different city gives a traveler the chance to personally see the many amazing places of interest, hear the language of the people, interact with the locals and taste the flavors of the many different dishes the country is known for. Creating a perfect travel itinerary could be quite challenging since there is a need to balance everything that you would want to see and do within a limited period of time. It is therefore useful to read up and do a bit of research so that you could make the most out of your vacation.Our Travel Guide Philippines is an easy way to learn more about this Southeast Asian travel destination. Being in the Philippines, you could easily see the many different cultural influences that the country has undergone, from the way the people speak to what they eat. No traveler should leave the Philippines without trying two of the signature dishes of the country: adobo as well as halo-halo. Also, travelers will be surprised to know that there are many animals endemic to the Philippines. This is one of the reasons why the Department of Tourism extensively promotes the country’s eco-tourism. Learn more about the food and animals of the Philippines.

Signature dish and dessert: Adobo and Halo-Halo

One of the joys of travel is getting to taste the authentic flavors of the country. Nothing says Filipino like a dish of adobo. This savory dish made of either chicken or pork (or sometimes even both) is a signature classic that has a distinct aroma and unforgettable flavor.

Many travelers might think that adobo is a result of Spain’s influence on the Filipino cuisine. In Spanish, adobo means a marinade, sauce or type of seasoning. It was done to help preserve meat, since the refrigeration process hadn’t been invented yet. However, Filipino cooks have long been making adobo when the Spaniards arrived, since they have been stewing meats in vinegar.

To prepare the dish, the cuts of meat are marinated in soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and pepper. To enhance the flavor, a piece of bay leaf is added to the marinade. The perfect balance of tangy and salty flavors is then achieved. There is adobong manok, which uses chicken as the meat; adobong baboy, which uses cuts of pork; and even adobong pusit, which uses squid cooked in squid ink and soy sauce.

All social classes in the Philippines eat adobo. Also, although it is quite a heavy meat dish, it is often served for breakfast, along with garlic fried rice or steamed jasmine rice. This may seem unusual to travelers, but a Filipino breakfast is quite a heavy meal since rice is eaten for breakfast.

Another unique Filipino dish that travelers would enjoy particularly during summer and for dessert is halo-halo. The name of the dessert is the Tagalog word for “mix,” because the dessert is a mixture of a number of ingredients and it is mixed before eating.

Halo-halo is served in a tall glass. In it, there is a mixture of shaved ice, evaporated milk, sweet boiled beans, preserved fruits cooked in sugar syrup such as sugar palm fruit (kaong), coconut sport (macapuno), jackfruit, gulaman, nata de coco and other delicious items native to the country. For extra flavor, a bit of leche flan (custard) and purple yam preserve or even ice cream is added to the top. Halo-halo special means that there is an added scoop of ice cream. Some halo-halo sellers also top the sweet dessert with crispy pinipig (pounded immature glutinous rice). The combination of ingredients lends the dessert a unique mixture of various sweet flavors and different textures.

It is eaten as a snack on a hot afternoon, or served as a dessert after lunch or dinner. Halo-halo is meant to be shared, given the portion of the dessert. It appeals to the sweet tooth of the Filipinos. A serving of halo-halo could help a traveler find some relief from the blistering heat outside and at the same time satisfy the craving for something sweet yet refreshing. It is a very popular dessert item in the country, especially during the warm summer season.

There are many restaurants in the country that serve halo-halo. There are even some that specialize in serving only this dessert, along with other merienda or snack food items. Be sure to try a glass when visiting the Philippines.

Animals of the Philippines

There are a number of animals that live only in the Philippines. Thanks to its many surrounding waters and its lush forests, it is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world. The country has been tagged as a mega diversity country, as well as a global diversity hotspot. Land, sea or air, the Philippines is home to a number of animals that could only be found in the country.

The Philippines boasts of 332 species of reptiles and amphibians. Of these, 215 are found only in the Philippines. There are about 165 different species of mammals found in the country. Of these, 121 are endemic to the area.

The smallest mammal with hooves is the Philippine mouse deer or pilandok, which is found in Balabac Island in Palawan. The mouse deer is not actually a deer, and is actually a member of the chevrotain family, which is closely related to goats. The pilandok grows to only about 40 centimeters tall. The most endangered deer in the world is the Philippine Spotted Deer or the Visayan Spotted Deer stands only 80 centimeters in height. They were previously known to roam in several islands in the Visayas but are now only found in the islands of Negros and Panay. Worldwide there are just about 2,500 Philippine Spotted Deer left. Another endangered deer that is found only in the Calamian group of islands in Palawan is the Calamian Deer. Males grow up to a height of 60 to 65 centimeters. There are less than 900 of these left in the world.

The smallest primate in the world is the Philippine Tarsier. It grows to only about 12 centimeters and has two large fixed eyes. It could turn its head 180 degrees, however. Today, only a thousand of the world’s smallest primates are left in Corella town in Bohol, also in the Visayas. The Philippine Tarsiers are very shy, nocturnal animals living deep in the forests and only go out at night to feed on crickets and grasshoppers. They belong to the genus Carlito, species syrichta, named after Carlito Pizarras, tarsier conservationist and general manager of the Philippine Tarsier and Wildlife Sanctuary in Bohol. It was only in the 18th century when the rest of the world learned of this tiny primate.

The largest endangered animal in the Philippines is the Tamaraw. There are only about 20 to 200 Tamaraws or dwarf water buffalos left in Mindoro. In the world, it ranks in the top ten most endangered species in the world. Although it closely resembles the common water buffalo or carabao, the Tamaraw has many distinguishing marks that indicate it is not a subspecies of the carabao. One of the most prominent of these marks is the animal’s shorter horns that are V-shaped. It also has a hairier body and has lighter facial marking.

The Colugo or flying lemur is a unique creature because it is able to fly or glide up to a hundred meters even without wings. These nocturnal creatures resemble Canadian flying squirrels but are of the same primitive order as the Cynocephalus variegates or flying lemur of Malaysia. The people of Mindanao call these creatures “kagwang.” Flying lemurs used to be abundant in the forests of Basilan, Leyte, Samar, Bohol and Mindanao, although commercial exploitation and deforestation have caused their numbers to dwindle.

The giant golden crowned flying fox (Acerodon jubatus), also called the golden capped fruit bat is in the endangered list. It is one of the largest bats in the world, with a wingspan that is somewhere between 4 feet and 10 inches to about five feet and seven inches. The local government of Sarangani in Mindanao and the conservation research facility in Subic Bay, Zambales are embarking on and studying ways for its conservation. The giant golden crowned flying foxes are also seen in the Subic Forest National Protected Area, one of the largest site of bats anywhere in the world.

The giant flying fox (Pteropus vampyrus) is also an old world fruit bat, often confused with the giant golden crowned flying fox. This bat, one of megabats in the world is so named because its face is fox-like. Like many fruits bats, it does not have the ability to echolocate, although it is still nocturnal. Habitat destruction is one of the reasons why the giant flying fox’s status is “near threatened.” It is found in many areas in the Philippines living in coconut groves, mangrove forests and orchards where mixed fruit trees are grown. Its staple foods are flowers, fruits and nectar.

At the same time, the world’s smallest bat could also be found in the Philippines. This is the Philippine Bamboo Bat, which lives in a small hollow in a bamboo shoot, away from known predators like snakes. It is comparable to the size of a bumble bee, which is around 40 millimeters or just 1.6 inches. Its wingspan reaches around 150 millimeters or 5.9 inches. The bamboo bat usually weights about 1.5 grams.

The country also boasts of an extensive avian population. After all, the country has the most number of birds and butterflies anywhere in the world. Birdwatchers will find some 86 different avian species and 895 different kinds of butterflies in the Philippines. More than 350 of these butterfly species can only be found in the archipelago.

Some of the largest eagles in the world are in the Philippines. The monkey-eating eagle or the Pithecophaga jefferyi is found in the rainforests of Samar, Leyte, Isabela and in the Mindanao region. This massive eagle stands to a height of one meter. It is a carnivorous eagle, feeding on snakes, flying lemurs and monkeys. This is an endangered specie, as there are only about 100 to 300 left in the country. Most of the ones left are in Mindanao, while in other places in the country, they have become very rare.

Other avian species endemic to the Philippines are the Philippine cockatoo, the Palawan Peacock-Pheasant, the Sulu Hornbill, the Black Shama of Cebu and the Mindoro Imperial Pigeon. The Palawan peacock-pheasant is one of the handsomest of the Polyplectron genus. It has a crest that is erect and has a white stripe over each eye. Its plumage looks quite wonderful with its black and iridescent metallic green color, contrasting with its tail feathers that have big ocelli that are blue-green in color. The tail feathers spread out like a fan during courtship. Female peacock-pheasants on the other hand are dark brown in color, with whitish feathers on their eyebrows, cheeks and throat. They also have short crests.

The Philippine cockatoo, or the Red-vented Cockatoo, which is endemic to the Philippines is already extremely endangered. Locally called Kalangay, it grows to about 12 inches. As of 2008, there are only less than 1,000 Philippine cockatoos left. The bird is mostly now found in the forests of Palawan, Tawi-Tawi, Masbate and Mindanao. The Sulu Hornbill, Mindoro Imperial Pigeon and the Black Shama, which is only found in Cebu are all in the endangered list due to loss of habitat.

The waters surrounding the Philippines are home to 2,117 species of fish. Of these, 330 species have been identified as unique to the country. The marine waters of the Philippines also have more than half of the 800 known coral reef species in the world.

The largest fish in the world, the butanding or the whale sharks are found in Donsol, Sorsogon. On the other hand, the smallest fish in the world, the dwarf goby or the Pandaka pygmaea also makes the Philippine waters its home. The smallest commercial fish in the world, Sinarapan, could be found in Camarines Sur.

Local fishermen mistook dugong or sea cows for mermaids. These are the only herbivorous marine mammals in the world and make their home near Palawan and Mindanao.

The Philippines Sea Turtle is unique because it cannot retract its head or limbs back into its shell. Locals call these sea turtles pawikan. Five of the seven saltwater sea turtles could be found in the country.

However, the biodiversity of the country is being threatened. According to the Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), out of the over 52,000 species in the country, 418 of these are now being threatened. This is because of the massive deforestation in the Philippines. As much as 93% of the country’s forests have been destroyed in the last five centuries. Every year, as much as 123,000 hectares of forest cover are lost. Unless things are reversed, all the country’s forest cover would be gone by 2036. Given the many unique and incredible flora and fauna species found in the Philippines, it’s important to preserve the natural pristine condition of the country’s forests and marine waters.