Sandcastle, Boracay

             Boracay is an island of the Philippines located approximately 315 km (196 mi) south of Manila and 2 km off the northwest tip of Panay Island in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. Boracay Island and its beaches have received awards numerous times.
The island comprises the barangays of Manoc-Manoc, Balabag, and Yapak (3 of the 17 barangays which make up the municipality of Malay), and is under the administrative control of the Philippine Tourism Authority in coordination with the Provincial Government of Aklan.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boracay

Nagtabon Beach, Palawan

                    Nagtabon is a lovely stretch of white sand beach with crystal clear waters offshore located 45 kilometers west of the city proper. The beach stretches 800 meters long and 15 meters wide ideal for sunbathing, swimming and other water sports. Small resorts offer food and lodging facilities for visitors.

Philippine Tarsier

                 The Philippine tarsier (Carlito syrichta), known locally as the kupal in Cebuano/Visayan and mamag in Luzon, is an endangered species of tarsier endemic to the Philippines. It is found in the southeastern part of the archipelago, particularly in the islands of Bohol, Samar, Leyte and Mindanao. It is a member of the approximately 45 million year old family Tarsiidae, whose name is derived from its elongated "tarsus" or ankle bone. It is the only member of the genus Carlito, after the species was removed from the genus Tarsius. The new genus is named after Carlito Pizarras, known as the tarsier man, is the field manager at the Philippine tarsier and wildlife sanctuary on the island of Bohol,^[ and a champion of tarsier conservation in the Philippines.

Luzon

Map	Region (short name)	Regional center	Component local government units

Add caption

National Capital Region
(NCR)Manila

• List of cities

Cordillera Administrative Region
(CAR)Baguio City

• Abra
• Apayao
• Baguio City^[3]
• Benguet
• Ifugao
• Kalinga
• Mountain Province

Ilocos Region
(Region I)San Fernando City, La Union

• Ilocos Norte
• Ilocos Sur
• La Union
• Pangasinan
• Dagupan City^[4]

Cagayan Valley
(Region II)Tuguegarao City

• Batanes
• Cagayan
• Isabela
• Santiago City^[4]
• Nueva Vizcaya
• Quirino

Central Luzon
(Region III)San Fernando City, Pampanga

• Aurora
• Bataan
• Bulacan
• Nueva Ecija
• Pampanga
• Tarlac
• Zambales
• Angeles City

CALABARZON
(Region IV-A)Calamba City, Laguna

• Batangas
• Cavite
• Laguna
• Quezon
• Rizal
• Antipolo City
• Lucena City

MIMAROPA
(Region IV-B)Calapan City

• Marinduque
• Occidental Mindoro
• Oriental Mindoro
• Palawan^[3]
• Romblon

Bicol Region
(Region V)Legazpi City

• Albay
• Camarines Norte
• Camarines Sur
• Catanduanes
• Masbate
• Sorsogon

[edit] Visayas

Map	Region (short name)	Regional center	Component local government units
	Western Visayas (Region VI)	Iloilo City	Aklan Antique Capiz Guimaras Iloilo Iloilo City[3] Negros Occidental Bacolod City[3] Palawan
	Central Visayas (Region VII)	Cebu City	Bohol Cebu Negros Oriental Siquijor
	Eastern Visayas (Region VIII)	Tacloban	Biliran Eastern Samar Leyte Northern Samar Ormoc City[4] Samar Southern Leyte Tacloban City[3]

[edit] Mindanao

Map	Region (short name)	Regional center	Component local government units
	Zamboanga Peninsula (Region IX)	Pagadian City	Isabela City[5] Zamboanga City[3] Zamboanga del Norte Zamboanga del Sur Zamboanga Sibugay
	Northern Mindanao (Region X)	Cagayan de Oro	Bukidnon Cagayan de Oro City[3] Camiguin Iligan City[3] Lanao del Norte Misamis Occidental Misamis Oriental
	Davao Region (Region XI)	Davao City	Compostela Valley Davao City[3] Davao del Norte Davao del Sur Davao Oriental
	SOCCSKSARGEN (Region XII)	Koronadal City	Cotabato Cotabato City[4] General Santos City[3] Sarangani South Cotabato Sultan Kudarat
	Caraga Region (Region XIII)	Butuan	Agusan del Norte Agusan del Sur Butuan City[3] Dinagat Islands Surigao del Norte Surigao del Sur
	Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)	Cotabato City	Basilan (excluding Isabela City) Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu Tawi-Tawi



Map of the Philippines



        

         The Philippines ⁱ/ˈfɪlɨpiːnz/ (Filipino: Pilipinas [ˌpɪlɪˈpinɐs]), officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (Filipino: Republika ng Pilipinas) is a sovereign country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam. The Sulu Sea to the southwest lies between the country and the island of Borneo, and to the south the Celebes Sea separates it from other islands of Indonesia. It is bounded on the east by the Philippine Sea. Its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire and its tropical climate make the Philippines prone to earthquakes and typhoons but have also endowed the country with natural resources and made it one of the richest areas of biodiversity in the world. An archipelago comprising 7,107 islands, the Philippines is categorized broadly into three main geographical divisions: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Its capital city is Manila.

With an estimated population of about 94 million people, the Philippines is the world's 12th most populous country. An additional 11 million Filipinos live overseas. Multiple ethnicities and cultures are found throughout the islands. In prehistoric times, Negritos were some of the archipelago's earliest inhabitants. They were followed by successive waves of Austronesian peoples who brought with them influences from Malay, Hindu, and Islamic societies. Trade introduced Chinese cultural influences which remain to this day.

The Philippines has been part of several empires: the Spanish Empire during the age of Imperialism, the United States after the Spanish-American War of 1898, and the Japanese Empire during World War II, until the official Philippine independence in 1945.

The arrival of Ferdinand Magellan in 1521 marked the beginning of an era of Spanish interest and eventual colonization. In 1543, Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos named the archipelago Las Islas Filipinas in honor of Philip II of Spain. Miguel López de Legazpi arrived in the Philippines in 1565 and consolidated Spanish rule in the islands, which remained a colony of Spain for more than 300 years.

Manila became the Asian hub of the Manila–Acapulco galleon fleet. Christianity was widely adopted. As the 19th century gave way to the 20th, there followed in quick succession the Philippine Revolution, which spawned the short-lived First Philippine Republic; the Spanish-American War; and the Philippine–American War. In the aftermath, the United States emerged as the dominant power. Aside from the period of Japanese occupation, the United States retained sovereignty over the islands until the end of World War II when the Philippines gained independence. The United States bequeathed to the Philippines the English language and a stronger affinity for Western culture. Since independence the Philippines has had an often tumultuous experience with democracy, with popular "people power" movements overthrowing a dictatorship in one instance but also underlining the institutional weaknesses of its constitutional republic in others.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippines

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