The province of Quirino in Cagayan Valley, named after the former and sixth president of the Philippines Elpidio Quirino has often been overlooked and misplaced as a destination. Maybe because they are in a land-locked area between three provinces of Nueva Vizcaya, Isabela and Aurora and no direct access on the main national roads or flights. This makes Quirino quite interesting alternative destination. “What’s here? What can we see and do?” Are just about some curious queries unraveled on our recent visit. But before any exploration, we made our way to Cabarroguis, the province’s town capital.
In and Around the Capitol
Quirino province is young, having gained independence from Nueva Vizcaya in 1966. From our walks around Cabarroguis, we could see the rural rawness of the town that usually remote towns feels like. Yes large portions of the landscape is rugged with plenty of greens still but there are signs of development here and there bringing in some promise of what’s ahead in this province.
We visited the Quirino Provincial Captiol which was only a short walk from Capitol Plaza Hotel and Restaurant, where we stayed in town. It’s prominent dome overlooks the Capitol Sports Complex. The lobby centrepiece, under the dome lines, is a bust of the former president Elpidio Quirino.
We also visited the Governor’s Cottage, a beautiful residence usually reserved for government officials and special meetings. Overlooking the property is an area they are developing as a wakeboard park. The town is marketing itself as an active adventure and sports area, their motocross track have already been a major venue for motocross events.
More on the province OTOP and how to get to Quirino on the next page…
Ferdz Decena is an award-winning travel photographer, writer and blogger. His works has found print in publications such as Singapore Airlines’s Silver Kris, Philippine Airlines’ Mabuhay, Cebu Pacific’s Smile and Seair InFlight. He has also lent his expertise to various organizations like the Oceana Philippines, Lopez Group Foundation, Save the Children and World Vision, contributing quality images for their marketing materials.
