What’s Your 3 Philippine Spots?
Earlier this month, as part of Let’s Go Sago!’s 3rd anniversary, we asked our readers for their three favorite spots in the Philippines. This could either be the top 3 places they fell in love with or the three places in the Philippines they want to go to.
Thank you to all our readers and subscribers who participated. There were a total of 14 entries. A number of entries came in at the last day though, so some articles seemed rushed and was not able to beat the 11:59pm deadline last August 30, 2011. A few also missed some rules such as the required proper links. There were also some problems encountered in Facebook tagging but was eventually resolved after verification with the concerned parties. Most disappointing, I would say, is when some articles exceeded the 300 word limit indicated in the mechanics. Perhaps they were carried away in writing their awesome articles. 🙂 Sadly, we have to abide by the stated rules and mechanics in ranking the Top 3 for fairness purposes.
Three Weekly Winners
Prior to today’s judged entries, three winners were selected through a raffle in the past three weeks where the following won a gift pack worth P300 each:
Mystery Co-Judge
In selection of the Top 3, we also mentioned that aside from Sago, we will be having a guest judge whose identity we will only reveal today.
She is no other than Jenny F. Manongdo. Jenny taught briefly at AMA learning center in Novaliches, Quezon City before she became a news reporter for the Manila Bulletin since 2002. She has been blogging since 2005 in blogspot and livejournal and has moved to a new platform last December – mannaforjenny.tumblr.com. It is where Jenny discusses practical fashion, beauty, travel and faith in accordance to her blog’s motto: “There are many things in life that are beautiful and exciting and these go beyond the latest fashion and momentary perks. Physical beauty is worth celebrating and so is kindness and love.”
On judging the entries, this is what Jenny has to say:
“I actually enjoyed reading all the entries. It made me think ‘sana October na para time na ng bakasyon ko.‘” 🙂
We equally averaged our scores together and came-up with the Top 3 Winners.
Without further adieu, the Top 3 Entries are:
“The moment the boat ride started, I fell in love with the place due to its nostalgic, turn-of-the-century feel.“
– The Bohol Highlight Reel (93%)
by Lawrence Fernandez
“thank God for a mother who understands her daughter’s wanderlust and trust her enough to know that no matter how far from home she goes, she’d always come back…”
– Why I Love My Mother (Reason # 3) (92.5%)
by Aubrey Graze Pareja
“I have never seen the cultural heritage of the Philippines as clear as day the moment I visited back Luneta Park.“
– My Top 3 PH Spots (88%)
by Urban Pinay
Top winner ‘Chova N Chorvalyn’ focused on the beauty of Bohol. While ‘Tula (at tuwa) ni Aü‘ choose Cagayan De Oro, Caramoan, and Mt. Pulag, third placer ‘Urban Pinay‘ shared her experiences in Baguio, Albay, and not-so-common-choice Luneta Park! 🙂
But wait, there’s more! 🙂 As an additional recognition, we are picking a LetsGoSago.net Choice Blog among the entries regardless of mechanics and criteria!
Not known to many, I am also an instructor at a local college here in the Philippines and the chosen article was able to eloquently convey a teacher’s heart for her students and love for Philippine travel, at the same time.
“I always believed that for children to appreciate the country, they must see it with their very own eyes. It is only when they get the feel of a certain place that they would learn to love it.“
We would like to recognize the article entitled Teaching to Love the Philippines Through Travel by Blanca Santos Dela Cruz.
Congratulations! Lawrence Fernandez gets a free overnight accommodation for 2 at Tides Boracay with breakfast. Aubrey Graze Pareja gets a free 1 year Basic Webhosting plan from SolidHosting.ph while Urban Pinay gets an awesome Philippine Travel Guide book received from the Department of Tourism.
LetsGoSago.net Choice Blog writer Blanca Santos Dela Cruz will also receive a gift pack worth P300.
All the winners will be contacted within the week through your FB accounts to get your addresses where the prizes will be couriered.
We leave the other entries here as a list for your pleasure of reading. Check them out and enjoy reading!
My 3 Favorite Spots in the Philippines by Brenna Bustamante
For the Win, Let’s Go Sago! by Melody Co
My Top 3 Dream Philippine Spots by Stacey Liong
My Top 3 Philippine Destinations by Divine Grace Bongolan
I’m ready to travel again! Let’s Go Sago! by Marjorie Pineda
My top 3 Philippine Travel Spots by Rhon Delos Angeles
Favorite Travel Spots in the Philippines by Ellis
My 3 fave spots in the Philippines by Vivian Aguilar
My Top 3 Favorite Philippine Spot! by Myk Rome
My 3 Favorite Spots in the Philippines by Will
Hi sago. Thank you for promoting our lovely tourist sites.:)
Thank you for this contest, Jonel. I enjoyed writing about my fave spots.
Thanks Jenny and Vivian! 🙂
Congrats to the winners! Just noticed my name is spelt wrong. It’s Ellis, not Ellie.
Thanks Ellis! I also corrected your name na. 🙂
Yaaaay! 🙂
Congrats to all winners! More power to you Sago!