More than Beauty and Brains, Alegria Pageant Promotes Ecotourism

‘Que Alegre’ Alegria showcased their rich culture and natural wonders through Miss Alegria Tourism 2016 in Alegria Sports Complex last December 3.

Twelve lovely ladies representing their eco-tourism sites competed for the reign and supremacy with a flaring endeavour.

Mayor Verna V. Magallon, a staunch environmental advocate, aimed to give awareness of the eco-tourism present in their town in order to preserve and protect them.

“More people are now becoming more and more aware of how important it is to preserve the natural beauty of the environment, so eco-tourism is a great way to attract people to our town. It helps build commerce, giving people more jobs, but most importantly, it gives us a very persuading reason to encourage people to look after the environment,” Magallon explained.

She added that tourism is more than the artistic man-made structures, theme parks and restaurants.

“More than the structures, eco-tourism is a timely program not only to attract people to a place and provide jobs, but more importantly, to raise awareness about the environment,” said Magallon.

Twenty-three year old Guivenchy Abundo, representing the Marine Sanctuary, crowned as the first-ever Miss Alegria Tourism.

Abundo committed to support the plans of their active town in promoting the natural wonders all throughout her reign.

Some other ecotourism destinations represented by the ladies were Libo Hills, Cambais Falls, Tañon Strait, Organic Farm, Canyoneering, Alegria BMBR, Salay Caves, Heritage Park, Mount Lanaya, Wonder Falls and Montepeller Falls.

Magallon cited Alegria’s Libo Hills, as a scenic view in the highlands where you can enjoy horseback-riding. She also boasted of the Heritage Park, a historical site and tourist attraction in the town plaza, the captivating Cambais, Wonder and Montpeller Falls, and the alluring Canlaob River where the famous canyoneering activities take place.

“In promoting eco-tourism in Alegria, we added a few things and enhanced our already beautiful tourist sites like in Libo Hills where we added eco-friendly activities such as bird-watching and horseback-riding as well as installation of pathways and picnic areas in the heritage park,” she said.

Though not easy, Magallon believed that eco-tourism can be managed to benefit Alegriahanons and the environment.

“Of course, this will not be easy as it will require time, money and more importantly, strict efforts to ensure visitors respect the environment. But with the right people and training in place, I believe that eco-tourism can be managed so that it benefits both the people of Alegria and the environment,” she said. (Chad Cordova Bacolod)

SOURCE: www.cebu.gov.ph