4 Things I Did in General Santos City

One of the perks of being a corporate employee is getting to go places for free. Though the main purpose is work related, like attending meetings, seminars, or field work, etc. at the end of the day, even an hour or two there will always be free time to explore places. Like last week, together with my boss and some colleagues, we attended a meeting at the General Santos City.

Skipping the work related activities because the issues and concerns discussed there were highly confidential, here are the other things that I did in General Santos City;

1. Shopping

I arrived in GenSan earlier than the rest of the team, and still have free time for myself. So, I went to SM General Santos which is about 3-5 minutes by tricycle from East Asia Royale Hotel where I stayed for a quick shopping. I could have walked because of the short distance, but the weather did not cooperate with me, hence the tricycle.

 

If you’re thinking I splurged, you are definitely wrong. I went there to get 3 sets of Avent feeding bottle nipple for my girl (because I have no time to shop when I get home) + 2 blouses at 50% discount.

2. Relaxing with Coffee

I spent like 2 hours at SM then decided to wait for my colleagues at the hotel. It was a cold, rainy afternoon and I was craving for a hot coffee. I would have settled for an instant 3-in-1 coffee if there was a complimentary on the cupboard but sadly there was none. Checking the room service menu, a cup of cappuccino is quite okay at P100.00. I ordered one, requested a super-hot coffee and 10 minutes later it came knocking on my door. The cappuccino definitely made my afternoon relaxed and sleepy. I’m a person who takes coffee as a sleeping pill, quite the opposite huh?

The next day, after our meeting we went to SM again, this time with my colleagues. Dropped by at Starbucks Coffee hoping to find a ceramic GenSan city mug for a souvenir, but sadly there were none and was treated for a free cup of hot cappuccino by sir Montes, who was already there. Weeeh! Thanks Sir!

3. Food Trip

Aside from the world renowned boxer champion Manny Pacquiao, General Santos is also well known as the Tuna Capital of the Philippines. If you are in the city, make sure to try the yellow fin tuna.

Crabs are also quite abundant in GenSan. Six (6) of us actually devoured about 2.48kg crabs, an order of less than 1 kg of grilled tuna belly, an order of shrimp vegetable and fruit salad, and a pitcher of strawberry daiquiri at Gusteau‘s Crab Hauz. (I’ll make a separate post for this soon…)

Our total bill was approximately P3,830.00. Quite expensive huh! Thanks to our boss who paid the dinner. winks*

The next day, without our boss we had our dinner in a much cheaper food destination in General Santos City, the Tiongson Arcade in Lagao, where you can choose fresh sea foods, barbeque, etc. and have it cook your choice like the Dampa version in Manila. This time it's an all-tuna dinner! Yippee!

We waited about 20-30 minutes and tadaaah! The freshly grilled tuna panga, tuna belly and adobo tuna bihud (fish eggs adobo) were served right in front our very hungry eyes. Plus a bottle of soft drink, our food trip ended with full and smiling tummy.

4. Sightseeing

After our meeting (it ended earlier than expected), we still have time to explore places. With the blessing from our boss, we went to SaranganiHiglands. A stunning Garden Restaurant and Hotel located on a hilltop overlooking the Sarangani Bay.

With a P100.00 entrance fee consumable, you’ll get to relax in the restaurant and get awed by the breathtaking view and stillness of Sarangani Bay, the lush flowering plants, and the artistic bonsais. Just in front of the hotel, you’ll find the Paseo Gobernador Miguel, an open space perfect for weddings.

If I’m to marry again, I’ll definitely choose this site. Imagine how wonderful the wedding would be with that breathtaking overlooking view. Just splendid! 

After strolling and taking a lot of pictures, we finally had our break with a tall glass of the dragon fruit shake.

This sweet and delicious pink dragon drink completed our trip in General Santos City.