A Southern Bolt from the Blue.

When August came, my zest for the upcoming Davao trip was wobbly. I had no idea what to put on the itinerary. Certainly, the "Davao = Durians" thinking did not help. And I was still reeling a bit from the expenses in Boracay back in June. But the biggest thing that almost ruined my gusto? The torrential monsoon rains that pounded the metro!

I was just left asking in the dark, "Will I ever get to say 'Hello Davao!'?"




On the last minute, my sister and I decided to take a more relaxed city tour since our mom was with us. She's not fond of doing extreme activities. I think it was also very fitting to get to know Davao City closely and brush aside the "Davao = Durians". I got some life saving moment when I got my credit card to cover up the whole hotel expense. Miraculously, Mr. Sunshine made a glorious comeback on the day of our trip and erased my worries of cancelling the weekend expedition!

Near the end of the city tour, a certain delay on the schedule had us stumble upon a peculiarly beautiful place. This wasn't really part of the itinerary but our good tour guide (Samuel Libre, yes that's his name) took us there. It's called Ponce Suites Gallery Hotel which happened to be a hotel and an art gallery at the same time. When we entered the place, I began to feel agitated, wondering "This isn't a hotel, is it?"

By the time I was on the landing and started to look at every corner, my art-loving soul screamed "OH MY GOD, THIS IS AN ART SANCTUARY!" Kublai Ponce Millan is responsible for fathering thousands of artwork (paintings and sculptures) displayed all over the place. He's a  Fine Arts graduate of the University of the Philippines.

Warning though, some images are not for the faint-hearted and may creep you out.

Yes, this is a hotel. Just look at those laundry baskets.

I know what you're thinking right now.

Yeehaw. Poor lizard.

Splash of colors. I just love this stairs.

This one's made up. I instucted my mom to pretend on this scene.

I just blended here.

Mom was having fun!

I liked how they photobombed here. :)

Sorry for the hazy photo. The polka-dotted car is the artist's car. Obviously, it didn't escape Kublai's creative cage. He lives on the house across the hotel.

Night fell and I handed over my tip to Kuya Sam for taking us to that brilliant place. The experience just bumped up my love for Davao City even if it was just my first time there. Their value and appreciation for art and design is remarkable.

P.S. Their public park is really spacious. Don't miss that out when you go there.