A Little Place Called Kalsangi

All Set and Ready to Go

It was summer of 1990 when my parents told me that we’ll be moving (again) but this time, we would have to ride a plane because we were going to one of the places in Mindanao.

Mindanao?! I thought. Back then my idea of Mindanao was that of chaos, as usually is the misconception. My mom continued to explain that we had to pack all of our things because my dad got accepted as a manager in one of the multinational companies.

Being 10 years old, I was sad yet excited at the same time. Excited not because we were moving, but because I was about to ride on an airplane and sad because I had to leave my best friend behind.But then again, I had no other choice and so we packed our things and in just a matter of days, we were all set and ready to go to a place called Kalsangi.

Pineapples as far as your eyes can see

An hour and forty-five minutes on the plane was a torture. As soon as the plane landed, I already had jetlag and was nauseated. What’s worse was we still had to travel for another 45 minutes on land and my stomach still kept on churning.

While on the van, the person who picked us up from the airport pointed to Mt. Matutum. “That’s where we are heading,” she said,”That’s where Kalsangi is.”

Kalsangi is located at the foot of Mt. Matutum, an inactive volcano. I suddenly thought that the place where we were heading is literally nowhere.

The road leading to Kalsangi was literally like riding a roller coaster for 5 minutes. The only difference between riding a real roller coaster and this was the pineapple field. All we see around us are pineapple crowns as far as our eyes can see.

I suddenly wondered what I was going to see when we finally arrive to our destination. But then again, after a few minutes, I see Norfolk trees .  “This is just like in another country”, I thought.

All in One

After five grueling minutes of that roller-coaster ride, we had finally arrived at our destination.I was amazed when the guards actually saluted! I felt like I was a princess. That is not the most wonderful part yet. I was so used to having perimeter fences in people’s homes but here, there’s actually none. When I asked why, my parents just said, ”It’s totally safe that you can go out of the house without even locking your doors.”

Isn’t that so heavenly? Well, we weren’t able to move in to our house yet because all we brought with us were our clothes so we had to check in at the Clubhouse.

The road to the Clubhouse was uphill. On the way, I saw a ballpark and a school. When we reached the clubhouse, there’s a tennis court, a swimming pool,and a golf course.  All the amenities of a rich kid, I presume is just within reach.

Kalsangi has been and will always be a part of my life. This was where I grew up and I am proud to say that there is nothing like this anywhere else in Southern Mindanao. Kalsangi is the only place you can relax and enjoy. It’s like having a vacation all year long.