After several months of being dormant, we are coming back to you! We are introducing a number of changes in our website. For one, we are sporting a new look! Our new layout is sleek, minimalist and it looks good, don’t you think? We also welcome a new writer onboard, Ms. Junette B. Galagala. She is not from Cagayan Valley but she will help me produce content for this website. You will still be able to read some articles from me that relates to blogging, internet literacy and other things. But news and other features will mainly be written by Junette.

I am excited for this year. 2010 promises to be a great year for www.CagayanValleyConnect.com!

Cagayan Valley Connect is dedicated to featuring the best of Region 2: Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino. If you have any interesting article about tourist spots, latest news and updates, business and anything concerning Cagayan Valley, don’t hesitate to submit them to CagayanValleyConnect.

Your articles could be published or unpublished. If you have published this elsewhere, please include the publication information.

As much as possible, we would like submissions in English. But if you have submissions in Filipino and Ilocano, please send them to us and we will also accommodate them.

The copyright for the work you submit will remain under your name.

The articles we accept are mostly news, feature and editorials. If you have any literary submissions, please submit them to us but we will refer your article to another website of literary significance in our network.

Never, never plagiarize. Please make sure that the article you submit is original and is not copied elsewhere.

When you submit your articles, please include short information yourself. Your name, your organization, school or company, where you are from, and any other information relevant to your article.

You have two ways of submitting your articles. One is by sending us an email at magatswimmer@gmail.com.

Another way of submission is by clicking here.

You will be asked to register first.

Choose a username and provide your email address. You have to confirm your registration by checking your email account.

Please login to CagayanValleyConnect.

When you are at the Dashboard page, click on Write

Post your article.

Choose the appropriate category for your article, and then put some tags (example: Isabela, Cagayan Valley, news, local government) and then click on “Publish.”

We reserve the right to edit and disapprove articles that do not conform to the standards of CagayanValleyConnect.

The Internet has changed that. Geographical location does not matter in the Internet. A Filipino accessing the Internet from the United States or the Middle East can get information about Cagayan Valley with a few clicks. Through the Internet, it is now easier for the OFWs to connect with their loved ones and learn what is going on in the Valley.

The youth of today are also very much attuned to the Internet. They play online games, check their Friendster accounts and send emails to anyone in the world. They already have an idea of how powerful the internet is.

Companies and businesses in major cities also realize the power of blogging and websites. That is why they organize events for bloggers and webmasters so they can promote their products and services.

For these reasons and more, CagayanValleyConnect was born.

CagayanValleyConnect.com seeks to promote Cagayan Valley to the world and highlight the emerging trends in the areas of business, tourism, technology, education, and the best of the Internet for the use of students, professionals, businesses, and even government agencies in the region. To do this, we engage in the following goals.

1. Monitor events, news and other noteworthy achievements and happenings in Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Quirino and Nueva Vizcaya.
2. Promote the scenic spots in Cagayan Valley to encourage tourism and stimulate business.
3. Be a venue for professionals and small- and medium-scale enterprises to promote their products and services online.
4. Advocate information technology (internet, blogging and video) literacy among the youth.

To accomplish these goals, we have established our website, www.cagayanvalleyconnect.com. It features diverse stories and articles about Cagayan Valley. As the website grows, it will feature businesses, government agencies, personalities, events, and other topics of great interest to the residents of the region and to the rest of the world. In addition to the website, the following activities will also be undertaken.

1. Establish partnership with schools, colleges and universities to train young journalists in using blogs and other platforms available in the Internet.

2. Conduct seminars and conferences that promote internet literacy among youth, professionals and other interested sectors.

Richie Jackson T Padilla, CPA Board Exam Topnotcher

Kudos to Richie Jackson T. Padilla from the University of St. Louis in Tuguegarao City in the Cagayan Valley for being the Topnotcher of the CPA Board Exam. The results of the board exam were just released on October 21, 2008 and we’re really happy that universities from the Cagayan Valley are making waves and showing to the world that Cagayan Valley folks can compete with the rest of the country.

Richie Jackson T. Padilla is a fresh graduate of BSA. There were 6,663 who took the exam and 2,442 of them passed the CPA Examination given by the Professional Regulation Commission’s Board of Certified Public Accountants. Richie got a total rating of 92.71%, just a few points ahead of the second placer.

Here’s the Top 10 passers of the CPA Board Exam:

1. RICHIE JACKSON TAGUINOD PADILLA
UNIVERSITY OF SAINT LOUIS-TUGUEGARAO 92.71

2. ZIFF CALVIN RIGOR MARABILLO
SILLIMAN UNIVERSITY 92.14

3. JOANES ALBERT BATALLA DE VERA
FAR EASTERN UNIVERSITY-MANILA 92.00

4. RICHELLOU JAMAICA ORTEGA LENON
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES-DILIMAN 91.86

5. HAZEL ANGELINE QUIAPOS ABENOJA
BICOL UNIVERSITY-LEGAZPI 91.57

6. MHARK ALMARIO SERATO
DE LA SALLE UNIVERSITY-MANILA 91.43

7. KRISTINE JENNIFER DISCAYA CHUA
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES-DILIMAN 91.29

8. ADRIAN HIZON BAJADOR
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES-DILIMAN 91.14

9. RAYMUND CHRISTIAN SAYCO ONG ABRANTES
ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY 91.00

TEEJAY TAMAYO BANAL
JOSE RIZAL UNIVERSITY (JRC) 91.00

APPLE AMATORIO CANAYA
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES-VISAYAS-ILOILO CITY 91.00

JESSICA MADRIAGA DELOS REYES
ADAMSON UNIVERSITY 91.00

MELODY JADE FIGUEROA QUILANA
UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN PHILIPPINES-VIGAN 91.00

LEOMAR GABON VELEZ
POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES-MAIN-STA. MESA 91.00

10. EDISON RAMIREZ BAUTISTA
WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES-CABANATUAN CITY 90.86

MARK JERSON RODRIGUEZ PULOHANAN
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES-VISAYAS-ILOILO CITY 90.8

Isabela Socio Cultural Awareness Week (ISAW) Celebration 2008

Here’s the explanation for the theme as quoted from the 2008 ISAW brochure:

For many years, ISAW has been a tool in establishing a cultural identity that Isabelinos can proudly claim and strongly associate with. This year’s ISAW Celebration shall focus on promoting Isabela cultural identity and emphasize the significant role of the youth in unifying an apparently culturally diverse Isabela.

The Province of Isabela is home to an assortment of cultures from all different directions and in all shapes and sizes. The problem is not so much the existence of these different cultures or the lack of connection between them, but that the link is yet to be identified and/or recognized.

ISAW aims to find the “bridge”, the invisible thread that links these cultures — a common ground — and use it to uncover the foundation of what we know as Isabela cultural heritage.

The youth — with their ardor, enthusiasm, and wisdom — are still believed to be the hope for the future. What the youth seems to lack now is the proper motivation and driving force to trust that they can make an impact in society and influence decision-making.

ISAW hopes to cultivate within its participants the urge for active civic involvement backed by a genuine appreciation of Isabela cultural heritage and a clear picture of its future; to empower the youth to take part, to affect change towards a unified Isabela.

I was part of the organizers for the first ever ISAW when I was just in first year college. It was fun and we knew that we were doing something good for the development and appreciation of Isabela’s culture among the students of Isabela. Ten years after, the program is still alive and I am really glad for it.

ISAW 2008 features several contests for high school students: Poster-making, Logo Design, Impromptu Speech, Cultural Show, Quiz Show, Essay-writing and Debate. High school students from all over the province of Isabela will have a chance to showcase their intellectual prowess with their peers and learn about trends and issues facing Isabela.

There will also be a State of the Province Address to be delivered by the Governor Grace Padaca, lectures about issues affecting young people and students in Isabela, and film showing among others.

Isabela is one of the provinces of Cagayan Valley in Northern Luzon.

Cagayan Valley

Cagayan Valley is located in the Northeasternmost part of Luzon. It is composed of five provinces: Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino. It is designated as Region 02 in the regional grouping of provinces all over the Philippines. The center of the region is in Tuguegarao City in Cagayan where most of the regional offices of government agencies could be found.

The region can be found on the valley between the Cordillera Mountains to the west and Sierra Madre to the east. The Cagayan River, which is the longest one in the Philippines runs straight through the valley and then exits to the Luzon Strait, which is located at the tip of Luzon in Aparri, Cagayan. Beyond Aparri to the north, the beautiful Batanes group of islands as well as the Babuyan islands are scattered.

As of 2008, the population is the region is almost 4 million and the population density is about 104.8 per squre kilometer. The land area of Cagayan Valey is 26,837 square kilometers.

There are 3 cities in the region, 89 municipalities, 2,311 barangays and 10 Congressional districts. Ilocanos, Ybanags, Itawis, Gaddangs, and Ivatans are some of the ethnic groupings in the region.

Batanes is the northernmost province of Cagayan Valley and of the whole Philippines. The capital of Batanes is Basco and it is composed of ten islands, the most economically active are Itbayat, Batan and Sabtang. They are also the only inhabited islands. Batanes is 190 kilometers south of Taiwan. Jokes have it that you can actually hear a rooster’s crow from Taiwan.

Cagayan is lcoated east of Ilocos Norte and Apayao and north of Isabela and Kalinga. The name of Cagayan is said to be derived from “tagay,” a plant which can be found all over the province. Hence, “Catagayan” means a place where “tagay” is found. Through time, it has been shortened to Cagayan. The capital of Cagayan is Tuguegarao City, which hosts most of the regional offices of government agencies.

Isabela, which can be found south of Cagayan is the second largest province of the Philippines next to Palawan. Its capital is Ilagan. With its arable land and its rural economy, Isabela has been hailed as the rice and corn granary of Luzon.

Nueva Vizcaya lies to the South of Isabela and is located on the Cordillera mountains. Its capital is Bayombong. Much of Nueva Vizcaya has forest land, grasslands and agricultural areas. It is also in Nueva Vizcaya where you can see the famous Dalton Pass right before you leave the Cagayan Valley and enter the province of Nueva Ecija.

Quirino was named after former Philippine President Elpidio Quirino. The province used to be the forest region of Nueva Vizcaya. Ilocanos are the dominant group in the province. Its capital is Cabarroguis.

These five provinces comprise the Cagayan Valley. They are very rich with culture, tradition and history. Together, the Cagayan Valley is an important component in the development of the Philippines.