By Milovy Mariel Ramos
Throughout its 7000 islands, the Philippines brims with cities slowly coming their own. like shiny lamps, they slowly light up the sky. General Santos City is one of them. New constructions ring through the city. Bustling shopping malls, fast food chains, hotels appear. Widened roads, an airport heralds new flights to Manila. The old comes face to face with the contemporary.
From Sydney hotel’s penthouse view, i see a modern skyline emerge above the meek faces of the locals, beyond the tuna fish port and beside the 13M- worth park. After the sunset call, another world beckons. A budding nightlife of live bands at the Oval, Dining and Karaoke at Piyesta and Clubbing at Sun City. a new and vibrant city is emerging.
At a lively downtown junction, an enormous shell of concrete and steel is taking shape where probably a vast and unused land once stood. In months time after its construction, the city will be officially holding under its name SM Gen San. Probably still, will be the contemporary centerpiece in GenSan as a burgeoning regional center.
Sooner than most people think, the mention of General Santos will no longer be met by quizzical faces or just by the sound of the name Pacquiao. to truly emulate the cosmopolitan metropolis it aspires to be, this city by the bag faces a herculean task, but it is a challenge made much lighter by the people’s optimism.
With its people’s love of the city, strategic geo-political location, natural beauty and go-getting leadership geared for progress, General Santos may indubitably be Mindanao’s next big thing.
-Milovy Mariel Ramos is a graduate of University of the Philippines Diliman. She finished International Studies as her undergraduate degree. She also enrolled in the Creative Writing Course during her one year stay at the University of the Philippines in Mindanao. This article was crafted when she visited GenSan and celebrated with the Generals during the Tuna Festival 2010.
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General Santos City
