#QCBlogventure : Historical travel and adventure is available right here in Quezon City

Enjoying the wonderful world of Quezon City as it celebrates this month of October its 75th Diamond Jubillee Anniversary.

It’s always more fun in the Philippines and traveling within the city I think is a must and discovering good spots in Quezon City is a journey. And here's a part of our historical and fun experience in this years #QCBlogventure to celebrate Quezon City’s 75th Diamond Jubillee Anniversary.

I am one of the bloggers in the group that assigned to journey with the nature and arts in QC.

The first adventure is at the Ecopark at La Mesa Dam La Mesa Ecopark and La Mesa Watershed Nature Reserve.

The Ecopark at La Mesa Dam, what used to be the virgin forest beside the road has been adopted by ABS-CBN Foundation and was lately given a new facelift, converted into an Ecopark.

Now open to the public, undeniably, the most complete family-oriented Nature Park in Metro Manila.

The Ecopark offers a lot of family-oriented activities like Boating Lagoon, Bicycle rides, Swimming Pool, Fitness Trek, Fishing Pond, Camping Ground, Open Amphitheater.

ABS-CBN Foundation's Bantay Kalikasan (Nature Watch) Project collaborated with Metropolitan Waterworks & Sewerage System (MWSS, the government agency that owned La Mesa Watershed) and the Quezon City government to stop illegal settling, poaching and logging through a proactive Bantay Kalikasan Project that aims to rehabilitate, reforest, preserve and protect the area. The Adopt/Protect-A-Tree/Hectare Program was so successful that out of the 1,500 hectares that needed reforestation, only about 158 hectares remain to be planted, providing children and adults with experiential learning about environmental and biodiversity conservation.

La Mesa Ecopark has become a center for Bantay Kalikasan's environmental advocacies and causes. La Mesa Ecopark continues to be a venue for both recreation and raising environmental awareness.

We were lucky and I am really glad that our next adventure is for the first time to see one living hub and nerve center of the arts within a place in Quezon City.

Erehwon Center for the Arts 

The Erehwon Center for the Arts devoted to the Arts, aims to bring together artistic energies of the Filipino here and around the globe, and create a new brilliant rebirth of the arts, which the opportunity of working together with both traditional and modern concepts, media, tools and resources will inspire. This is a living hub and nerve center of the arts in the Philippines and in the region as a whole.

According to Erehwon Chairman and CEO Mr. Rafael Benitez, "it is a space which will provide a multi-sided colloquium of artists eager to advance art to a new and higher level in our world and to strengthen art as a means of communication and understanding among people throughout our contemporary world."

To achieve this, the Center opens a project of space residency for working together in a non-formal education program, exhibiting in large and small shows, as well as storing and documenting artists’ works. 

The Center hopes to stimulate and invigorate art-making in the region, and will give the needed boosts to artists and to their role in the contexts and in the region as a whole.

The company, Erehwon Artworld Corporation is a business enterprise offers integrated publishing, design and modern printing services.

The Erehwon Center for the Arts Building is located #1 Don Francisco Street, Villa Beatriz Subdivision, Barangay Old Balara, Quezon City.

After the journey at the arts, we just had a quick sneek at the Ninoy Aquino Parks & Wildlife Center.

Ninoy Aquino Parks & Wildlife Center, a 64.58-hectare (159.6-acre) zoological and botanical garden located in Diliman, Quezon City. It was named after Benigno S. "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. The Ninoy Aquino Parks & Wildlife Center has a lagoon, an aquarium, a playground, botanical garden and a Wildlife Rescue Center, which the Department of Environment and Natural Resources uses as a temporary shelter where confiscated, retrieved, donated, sick, abandoned, and injured wild animals are placed to be taken care of. The park houses several indigenous plants and animals such as crab-eating macaques, water monitors, Philippine deer,binturongs, Palawan bearded pigs and several varieties of birds.(Wikipedia)

Quezon City is really one of my comfort places in the country. As the final bloggers adventure is the foodtrip, food journey with side trips to some of the attractions in the vicinity.

We had our snack time or early dinner at Kenny Rogers Roasters at the Matalino St., Brgy. Central, Quezon City.

Kenny Rogers a casual dining restaurant that offers friendly service in a comfortable setting of serving home-style family foods. Kenny Rogers Roasters is well known as "the favourite place for rotisserie roasted chicken.” And it also makes healthy lifestyle choices.

Known for all-time favorites, like Round-up Platter, a medley of 3 side dishes complemented with 1 Kenny's Home-made Muffin.

We also witnessed the Grand Parade of Lights at the Quezon City Hall where we started and ended up the #QCBlogventure this October 10, 2015.

The whole Saturday is not enough to do blogdventure around Quezon City to celebrate the city's 75th anniversary. And on Sunday, I joined the Concert and parade of lights held at the Quezon City Memorial Circle with celebrities and Mayor Herbert Bautista. (Watch out for more updates in the coming stories here)

There are many places worth visiting in Quezon City, Quezon Memorial Circle, a national park and a national shrine, Quezon Memorial Shrine, an entertainment capital and media houses TV and radio buildings, education as UP in Diliman, Ateneo and more.. a shopping destination too, a health and wellness center and hospitals, like Heart Center and many places of government operations, places or restaurants, streets where people can take their foodtrip and festivals… and more.

#QCBlogventure Bloggers group at the rooftop of Erehwon Center of the Arts Building with Erehwon Head and staff (photo: Martin Andrade)

With all these happenings and celebrations, I agree to Quezon City Mayor Herbert M. Bautista as he said in one of the events before:

“The 75th Diamond Jubilee of cityhood gives us the perfect opportunity to show off what Quezon City has to offer not only to the country but also to the world, and this can only be achieved successfully if we work hand in hand.”

This is one fun and awesome historical adventure and educational trip! We have seen some and experienced what Quezon City achieved. More great opportunities, travel and adventure is available right here in Quezon City.

Thank you very much to the organizer of ‪#‎QC75‬ ‪#‎QCRocks75‬ #QCBlogventure #‎QuezonCity75thJubileeAnniversary who invited us bloggers to become part of Quezon City’s celebrations.

Happy 75th Anniversary Quezon City!