Pinoy Dog-Lover

Every time I visit a new province, I make sure that I’m able to take photos of the native dogs in the area. For some reason, capturing the dogs in their natural environment somehow shows me a glimpse of a province’s culture in one simple photograph.

Life in Batanes is slow and relaxing. The people, called Ivatans, are very friendly. If you’re not from around there, you can expect that they’ll give you a welcoming smile as you pass by. This friendliness, it seems, is a trait that even their dogs share. (more…)

“Boholian” is a term my friends (Aileen, Abe, Marc M., Sharm, Sasha, Rico, and Chris) and I came up with while on a five-day trip to Bohol and Cebu. It can be non-existent currency, or simply an endearment for anything Boholano (yeah, that’s the correct term).

We didn’t meet too many canines during our trip (just a few wide-eyed primates), but we did make friends with a couple friendly dogs at the Dimaluan Beach Resort in Bohol.

This uberly-friendly guy joined us for a couple of beers while hanging out by the beach (no, he wasn’t a beer drinker). Abe chastised him for being too friendly—his friendliness might get him stolen:

This pretty Labrador was the first dog we saw upon checking in at the resort:

We saw her wet and covered in sand, then climbed up the stairs to meet up with a Japanese Spitz. A few minutes later, we saw them go down and head to the beach! Our room had a spectacular view of the Bohol beach, and Marc was able to capture the dogs playing in the surf (apparently, these dogs play on the surf each and every afternoon and particularly liked low-tides) on video. Any chance of getting a copy of that shot, Marc?

One thing my husband and I regret is not being able to bring Sheero with us at Puerto Galera—she would have loved it. Perhaps, just like this dog:

Ahh. Talk about the life: this mutt is having a vacation every single day. He sleeps on the sea shore (the dogs in Puerto Galera seem to particularly prefer sleeping on the shore, close enough to hear the waves but far enough not to get swept away into the sea), while enjoying the smell of grilling pork chops and kebab.

This dog on the picture is owned by a massage therapist servicing a lady nearby. The dogs in Puerto Galera are owned by the vendors and bar owners. We saw one “guarding” the guy grilling the porks and kebab. Another accompanied his ice cream vendor master, waiting patiently while she tried to sell ice drops.