Philippine Dolphins &
Whale Watching
Whales Islands Philippines
Whale Watching is the practice of observing whales and other cetaceans in their natural habitat. Whales are watched most commonly for recreation but the activity can also serve scientific or educational purposes. While individuals do organize private trips, whale watching is primarily a commercial activity, estimated to be worth up to $1 billion per annum worldwide to whale watching operations and their local communities. The size and rapid growth of the industry has led to complex and continuing debates with the whaling industry about the best use of whales as a natural resource.
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History of Whale Watching...
Organized whale watching dates back to 1950 when the Cabrillo National Monument in San Diego was declared a public venue for observing Gray Whales. In 1955 the first water-based whale watching commenced in the same area, charging customers $1 per trip to view the whales at closer quarters. The spectacle attracted 10,000 visitors in its first year and many more in subsequent years. The industry spread throughout the western coast of the United States over the following decade.
In 1971 the Montreal Zoological Society commenced the first commercial whale watching activity on the eastern side of North America, offering trips in the St. Lawrence River to view Fin and Beluga Whales.
By 1985 more visitors watched whales from New England than California. The rapid growth in this area has been attributed to the relatively dense population of Humpback Whales, whose acrobatic behavior such as breaching and tail-slapping thrilled observers, and the close proximity of whale populations to the large cities there.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s whale watching spread worldwide. In 1998 Erich Hoyt carried out the largest systematic study of whale watching yet undertaken and concluded that whale watching trips were now available in 87 countries, with over 9 million participants, producing direct and indirect revenues of over one billion dollars. His estimate for 2000 was for 11.3 million participants spending $1.475 billion, a five-fold increase over the decade.
Whale watching is of particular importance to developing countries. Coastal communities have started to profit directly from the whales' presence, significantly adding to popular support for the protection of these animals from commercial whaling.
Travel Quotes:
The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes. Marcel Proust
Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living. Mary Ritter Beard
Philippine Cuisine Island Philippines
Dishes range from the very simple, like a meal of fried salted fish and rice, to the elaborate paellas and cocidos created for fiestas, of Spanish origin. Popular dishes include: lechón (whole roasted pig), longganisa (Philippine sausage), tapa (cured beef), torta (omelette), adobo (chicken and/or pork braised in garlic, vinegar, oil and soy sauce, or cooked until dry), kaldereta (meat in tomato sauce stew), mechado (larded beef in soy and tomato sauce). More details at Philippine Cuisine Island Philippines
