Davao: Lovers’ lures

We were recent guests at Seda Abreeza (www.sedahotels.com) along J.P. Laurel Ave. in Bajada, Davao City; for the opening of their Executive Lounge on the 11th floor, as well as the completion of their 186 Deluxe, Club and Premier rooms.  The hotel is right next to the huge Abreeza Mall, across the Redemptorist Church. Hence, lots of locals from neighboring towns and cities stay in Seda Abreeza on weekends for some shopping, relaxation and a convenient Sunday worship before driving back home.  So that even if the hotel is less than a year from its opening, it is regularly fully booked!

Positioned as a world-class business hotel (a joint venture between  AyalaLand Hotels and Resorts Corp. with the Anflo Group of the Floirendos), Seda Abreeza’s rooms are configured with the busy executive/entrepreneur in mind: a downright sleep-inducing bed & pillows, with a complete work area : a media panel w/HDMI, USB and A/V connectivity.  Easily accessible free wifi is in the rooms and in all public places within the hotel premises. The e-lounge at the lobby offers guests free access to high-speed Mac computers.

Starting this love month of February, Seda Abreeza is offering an affordable package consisting of one night in the hotel and the next night in the world-renowned Pearl Farm in Samal Island. This is ideal for a romantic weekend getaway for couples… even for barkadas and families.  Truly, a Valentine’s offer that is hard to pass up!

The Floirendo-owned Pearl Farm in Samal & Malipano islands offer different kinds of accommodations, from the charming cottages on stilts (Samal Houses) resembling Maranao dwellings – the most popular, to hilltop rooms with a nearby swimming pool ideal for kids, to rooms overlooking the beach, to 3-bedroom, 2-level exclusive villas in Malipano Island. There’s a Dream Honeymoon Package for 3days/2nights stay at the Samal House, inclusive of all meals with a special dinner,  and one-hour body massage.

All meals are inclusive for a Pearl Farm stay, so you may wonder about the food.  We had lunch at their newly-renovated Maranao Restaurant on Samal Island, and we were delighted with the wide buffet selection – there was even a Mongolian barbeque! Of course, you can’t beat the freshness of the seafood and the luscious local fruits. When we inquired about breakfast room service for guests in the villas on Malipano Island, the staff advised us to pre-order the night before so breakfast will be delivered on the time requested. Perfect!

Back to Seda Abreeza: as in all Seda Hotels, interiors are accented with local artworks and furnishings; the buffet in  Misto All Day Dining Restaurant features sought-after Davao fruits in season, like pomelos, mangosteen, guavas, marang and durian; world-famous Malagos cheeses made by Davao-based Olive Puentespina who is internationally known as a cheese artisan and a chocolate-maker.

The unobtrusive black creation of world-acclaimed Davao resident Ann Tiukinhoy-Pamintuan  is the foyer’s centerpiece.  Considered as the hotel’s “iconic accent”, Pamintuan’s “Eagle’s Wings” belongs to her “Lazo” line of convoluted metal sculptures that reflect her minimalist discipline.  The multi-awarded furniture and accessories designer attributes her stamp to her early “ikebana” lessons which demanded a “no waste” method, so that she explains that her pieces are “functional, elegant and simple, from the small items (jewelry, evening bags, Christmas tree decors) to the huge structural designs.”  Ann’s engaging giraffe sculptures also grace the premises of Seda Hotel in Bonifacio Global City (Taguig, Metro Manila). Truly, Ann’s creations reflect the serene, laidback and soft-spoken versatile artist who I am proud to claim as a friend from many years ago. When in Davao, if you are an art lover, be sure to visit Ann Pamintuan’s The Guilded Expressions at Apo View Hotel (hotel is owned by the Pamintuan family) and you may be enticed to bring an item home!

The imposing Abreeza Mall has restaurants offering a wide variety of cuisines, a good number of which are homegrown like Ranchero Grill (where we had a sumptuous lunch upon arrival), Hanoi, Grab a Crab, Pastanni and Ristorante Spirale – where Olive Puentespina’s sought-after soft and fermented cheese varieties are served.  A haven for foodies! Be sure to check out the fruit stands in the food court.

For shopaholics, the T’nalak Home concept store of Maricris Floirendo-Brias in the mall can boggle your mind with all the tastefully crafted home decors and fixtures in T’nalak cloth and tribal beads, as well as banana by-products from the banana plantations, like art paper. Maricris came up with the T’boli Weaving Center that has upgraded the traditional tribal offerings of souvenir placemats and throw pillows into a high-end home design export line recognized worldwide, notably in Australia, Japan and Europe.

And how can you leave Davao without bringing some south sea pearls home as a souvenir of your trip? If you are not a pearl expert, then be sure to buy from a reliable source.  Abreeza Mall has pearl outlets in all price range, notably Mindanao Pearl Center, Pearl Farm and Nurlika’s Shoppe where the group got most of our pearl purchases. The best south sea pearls are harvested in the Philippine Deep, off Jolo, Sulu.  Hence, Davao is the pearl hub.

Don’t you now agree with me when I claim that Davao has lures for lovers of all shapes and shades – the food lover, the art lover, the romantic lover, as well as the jewelry lover? The money lovers may stay away, for they will have to part with their beloved moola to indulge in all the lures for lovers in this place called Davao.