Trifter

It was a very fortunate experience to join the prestigious annual convention of the Association of Tourism Officers of the Philippines (ATOP) in Camarines Sur. This is the 8th Annual convention and it is my 3rd time to attend. Lat year’s convention was held in Koronadal City.

CamSur was a great place, and Bicol as a whole.

Shopping was also fun especially for souvenir and pasalubong items, however, it was so sad to note that there are merchandisers who take advantage of visitors.

One comment I would like to throw has something to do with the Pili nut products. We were accompanied by an acquaintance to PNR, Legazpi City with the thought of buying cheap but quality pili nut products, however, it was some sort of deceit.

As we were entering the compound, a guy approached us and offered his merch. Our companions started buying and so did we. The person who accompanied us there was very silent….maybe he was ashamed to tell us that that was not supposed to be the person whom we should buy from. An old woman approached one of my companions and told her that she has merch in her house, so she followed. That was where we were supposed to buy. The products were pure Pili Nut.

As we were leaving the compound, we found out that the Pili nuts packed in plastic bottles that we bought from the man who met us are not pure pili nuts. Only the walls of the bottles were lined up with real nuts and the center filled with caramelized sugar.

We were cheated of course. A waste of money. I hope the local government and the provincial DTI office could monitor this matter. We must consider that both domestic and foreign tourists could help promote these products by word of mouth. We were so disappointed about it.

On our way home, we dropped by the fruit stalls along the highway at Laguna to buy Lanzones and Rambutans. While inside the vehicle, we doubted on the weight so upon reaching home, we weighed the fruits only to find out that it is short of one-fourth kilo. How can those people manage to cheat other people who pay fairly and contribute to their livelihood.

I hope that through this blog, it could somehow reach the concerned so that they could do something to correct this. Tourism is livelihood, therefore tourists should be treated fairly.