Mandaya Weaving

The Mandaya is one of Mindanao’s surviving minority tribes of the Philippines. They live in the mountainous areas above the coastal towns of Davao Oriental particularly Boston, Cateel, Bagangga, Caraga and Manay.For many generations the Mandaya have woven cloth from fibers of native abaca tree, a variety of the banana family, which is abundant in the region. The finest grade of hemp extracted from abaca stalks is stripped pounded, combed then prepared for dyeing by tying thus, the word tie-dye. The dyes are made from mud, root and other organic materials.
This cloth is known locally as dagmay. It is distinguished from other tribal weaving by the intricate figures and patterns depicting the folklores and religion of the tribe. The Mandaya have carried the human and crocodile motifs to their highest expression. The crocodile is held sacred as shown by the frequency with which it appears in their decorative design. This art is handed down from generation. There is no patterns copy. Each design is an expression of the weaver.

The unique culture of Mandaya is well appreciated through this man made marvel of weaving earning them the title as the "Lumad that Weaves Dagmay"

I'm at City Library

This day proves to be a boring one. I woke up early.Ate my breakfast early. I took my bath early just like I used to and glued myself to morning news at CNN and Umagang Kay Ganda. After an hour, 'di ko namalayan, I had fallen asleep again. haha. and poof, I woke up just when Game KNB players were shouting "Ba-Bye-Ba-Bye" to a contestant who lost the game and when Edu would say, "Let's do the Papaya Dance". Later this afternoon, sa sobrang ingay sa apartment (kasi nga, I was ALONE), and since I can't use my PC ( the CPU is at my friend's house- needs to be reformatted), I decided to go out. I rode a PUB going to the Museo Dabawenyo to browse on indigenous crafts which is one of my interests ever since. I hastily went to open the gate of the said Museum, only to find out that it's close for general cleaning. I thought I was going to get inside. It was pretty dispappointing actually. but I lost no hope, so I decided to go at City Library instead. Here I am, browsing the net and looking at my Multiply pictures, and waiting until my eyes get teary.