History of Bohol

Bohol was first settled by Australoid people, like the rest of the Philippines. They still inhabit the island today and are known as the Eskaya tribe. Their population also was absorbed into the Austronesian/Malayo-Polynesian peoples who later settled the islands and form the majority of the population. The Austronesian people living on Bohol traded with other islands in the Philippines and as far as China and Borneo.

The people of Bohol are said to be the descendants of a group of inhabitants who settled in the Philippines called pintados or "tattooed ones. Boholanos already had a culture of their own as evidenced by artifacts unearthed at Mansasa, Tagbilaran, and in Dauis and Panglao.Bohol's first indigenous people settled in the Anda peninsula. These people came from northeast Mindanao. These people were responsible for theAnda petrographs which are one of the most important indigenous rock writing in the country. Around the 12th century, a group of people from Northern Mindanao settled in the strait between mainland Bohol and the island of Panglao. Those people came from a nation in northern Mindanao called Lutao (probably the animist kingdom of what will soon be the Islamic Lanao). Those people established the kedatuan (kingdom) of Dapitan in western Bohol because the true indigenous people of Bohol in the Anda peninsula and nearby areas were not open to them, forcing them to establish settlement in the western part of the island. They occupied both shores and the entire island of Panglao. The kedatuan was first built with hardwood on the soft seabed. It engaged in trade with nearby areas and some Chinese merchants.

Alcina tales about a rich nation he called the 'Venice of the Visayas', pointing to the kedatuan of Dapitan at that time. A legend tells of a princess named Bugbung Hamusanum, whose beauty caused her suitor, Datung Sumanga, to raid parts of southern China to win her hand.

By 1563, before the full Spanish colonization agenda came to Bohol, the Kedatuan of Dapitan was at war with the Sultanate of Ternate in the Moluccas (who were also raiding the Rajahnate of Butuan). At the time, Dapitan was ruled by two brothers named Dailisan and Pagbuaya. The Ternateans at the time were allied to the Portuguese. Dapitan was destroyed and Datu Dailisan was killed in battle. His brother, Datu Pagbuaya, together with his people fled back to Mindanao and established a new Dapitan in the northern coast of the Zamboanga peninsula. When the Spanish came, the people of Dapitan were influential in the Spanish conquest of the Sultanate of Ternate and in the Christian colonization of northern Mindanao.

Bohol is derived from the word Bo-ho or Bo-ol.The island was the seat of the first international treaty of peace and unity between the native king Datu Sikatuna and Spanish conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi on 16 March 1565 through a blood compact alliance known today by many Filipinos as the Sandugo.

About Chocolate Hills

CHOCOLATE HILLS

The Chocolate Hills form a rolling terrain of haycock hills – mounds of a generally conical and almost symmetrical shape.Estimated to be from 1,268 to about 1,776 individual mounds, these cone-shaped or dome-shaped hills are actually made of grass-covered limestone. The domes vary in sizes from 30 to 50 metres (98 to 164 ft) high with the largest being 120 metres (390 ft) in height. Bohol's "main attraction", these unique mound-shaped hills are scattered by the hundreds throughout the towns of Carmen, Batuan and Sagbayan in Bohol.

During the dry season, the grass-covered hills dry up and turn chocolate brown. This transforms the area into seemingly endless rows of "chocolate kisses". The branded confection is the inspiration behind the name, Chocolate Hills.

Vegetation

The vegetation of the Chocolate Hills is dominated by grass species such as Imperata cylindrica and Saccharum spontaneum. Several Compositae and ferns also grow on them. In between the hills, the flat lands are cultivated with rice and other cash crops. However, the natural vegetation on the Chocolate Hills is now threatened by quarrying activities.

Origin

The Chocolate Hills are conical karst hills similar to those seen in the limestone regions of Slovenia, Croatia, northern Puerto Rico, and Pinar del Río Province, Cuba. These hills consist of Late Pliocene to Early Pleistocene, thin to medium bedded, sandy to rubbly marinelimestones. These limestones contain the abundant fossils of shallow marine foraminifera, coral, mollusks, and algae. These conical hills are geomorphological features called cockpit karst, which were created by a combination of the dissolution of limestone by rainfall, surface water, and groundwater, and their subaerial erosion by rivers and streams after they had been uplifted above sea level and fractured by tectonic processes. These hills are separated by well developed flat plains and contain numerous caves and springs. The Chocolate Hills are considered to be a remarkable example of conical karst topography.

The origin for the conical karst of the Chocolate Hills is described in popular terms on the bronze plaque at the viewing deck in Carmen, Bohol. This plaque states that they are eroded formations of a type of marine limestone that sits on top of hardened clay. The plaque reads:The unique land form known as the Chocolate Hills of Bohol was formed ages ago by the uplift of coral deposits and the action of rain water and erosion.The plaque also makes reference to a fanciful explanation of the origin of the Chocolate Hills that is unsupported by any published scientific research, i.e. either Hillmer or Travaglia and others, when it states:the grassy hills were once coral reefs that erupted from the sea in a massive geologic shift. Wind and water put on the finishing touches over hundreds of thousands of years.Self-published, popular web pages present a variety of fanciful and less credible explanations about how these hills formed. They include sub-oceanic volcanism; limestone covered blocks created by the destruction of an active volcano in a cataclysmic eruption; coral reefs that were raised from the sea as the result of a massive geologic shift; and tidal movements. The lack of any exposed or associated volcanic rocks anywhere in the Chocolate Hills refutes the popular theories involving volcanic eruptions. These theories involving either a sudden, massive geologic shift, coral reefs being erupted from the sea, or tidal movements lack any collaborating evidence and support among geologists.

Legend

Three legends explain the formation of the Chocolate Hills. The first tells the story of two feuding giants who hurled rocks, boulders, and sand at each other. The fighting lasted for days, and exhausted the two giants. In their exhaustion, they forgot about their feud and became friends, but when they left they forgot to clean up the mess they had made during their battle, hence the Chocolate Hills.

A more romantic legend tells of a giant named Arogo who was extremely powerful and youthful. Arogo fell in love with Aloya, who was a simple mortal. Aloya's death caused Arogo much pain and misery, and in his sorrow he could not stop crying. When his tears dried, the Chocolate Hills were formed.

The third legend tells of a town being plagued by a giant carabao, who ate all of their crops. Finally having had enough, the townsfolk took all of their spoiled food and placed it in such a way that the carabao would not miss it. Sure enough, the carabao ate it, but his stomach couldn't handle the spoiled food, so he defecated, leaving behind him a mound of feces, until he had emptied his stomach of the food. The feces then dried, forming the Chocolate Hills.

Best of Bohol Beaches

ALONA BEACH

 
Alona Beach,an 800 meter stretch of white powdery sand, in the south of Panglao Island, is south west of Bohol and only 18 kilometers or 30 minutes away from Tagbilaran City, the one and only city of the province. There are many full-service beach and dive resorts reside in Alona Beach. Dive tours to Balicasag and Pamilacan Islands, famous dive spots, can be arranged. 

BOLOD BEACH

 Bolod Beach is located at barangay Bolod and situated on the south side of the island, about two and a half kilometers east of Alona Beach. The beach has a one and a half kilometer stretch of white sand, the largest shoreline in the area.

DOLJO BEACH

Doljo Beach is located at Barangay Doljo, Panglao Island. It lies on the northwest side of the island and at its very tip. The 3km beach is relatively unexplored and undeveloped, wide and with white sand that stretches so far out and the sea bed slopping gently towards the deep. It is fringed with tall coconut palm trees which add much to its tropical look. The place is noted for its beautiful and exquisite seashells. With calm, deep and clear waters and the sea bed free of sea grasses plus myriads of colorful marine life, it is a favorite hang-out of local folks.

MOMO BEACH

Momo Beach is likewise blessed with white sand and cool crystal blue waters. It is located in the northern part of Panglao Island, specifically in the Barangay of Tangnan of Panglao town. The beach is relatively unknown of and is patronized by the locals. Momo beach is nearer to Doljo beach than to Alona Beach which is 20km away; a 40min ride away by motorized banca or 20min by car. There are no resorts as yet at Momo Beach.

BAGOBO BEACH

 Bagobo Beach is located at Barangay Libaong, Panglao, Panglao Island. It is a beach with very fine white sand and fringed by tall coconut palm trees and other tropical varieties. The water is crystal clear and reveals an underwater world of such beauty that made divers and snorkelers come back from time to time bringing in their friends and acquaintances.

DANAO BEACH

 Danao Beach is located at Barangay Danao, Panglao, Panglao Island, Bohol. Like Alona, its nearest neighbour, it boasts of fine white sand, cool azure waters, teeming aquatic life and is also home to some famous dive spots.