“First time.First place, First Travel." These are the words that lingers unto my head. It’s a powerful word that most of us agreed. Something that we never forget because it was our first.
The very first time that I travel alone and live alone is when I work at a far-flung area of Datagan, Sominot, Zamboanga del Sur as a teacher. It was the moment that I first leave the house and arrived at the place where I thought scary but a scenic place. The humid is cool and ambience is serene, and the views are astounding. And It seems like I wasn’t just there just to teach but to travel and enjoy the scenery every day.
The school - Subanen Agricultural National High School is one of two High Schools of Sominot (Don Mariano Marcos) and is located at Datagan Plateau and is situated at the heart of every mountain of 3 Municipalities of Sominot, Midsalip and Labangan.
To get there, you need to ride a habal-habal (a motorbike) for around 20 minutes and started to walk for around 2 hours. But since there are improvements, as of today if the weather is good you could arrive at the place by just riding a Habal-habal for an hour.
What I love in the place is that since it is a plateau, the climbing trail gives you a thrill and physical activity, the flat surface at the top make you feel the breeze and enjoy the place. That even a small drizzle made the place blurry and cloudy for the place was surrounded by fogs easily. I remember one time as I travel early going to school the morning breeze is quite different than usual so I went to the cliff of our place and saw the sea of clouds beneath my feet. I feel ecstatic as I saw it, a once in a while experience seeing it where the sun shines above it. I feel like I was in heaven and took many pictures as I can. It just sad that I don’t have a tripod or monopod to use but still manage to get a good photo.
As I’ve been teaching there for 6 years, I also tried to do trail on the other purok as it is also part of our job and saw their culture, their houses and the view they enjoy every day. The problem is just their essentials are not easily acquired due to the distance.
Together with my students, we even went to a secret river in the area and swim and dive with its crystal-clear water. It was so memorable and fun for I could bond with my students and gain new experience as well.
At night Datagan gives you a wonderful starry night where moon shines so bright where no other trees or building blocks your sight that the sky seems like a 360 view. So whenever there’s an eclipse or lunar phenomenon, moon viewing and sky seeing in Datagan will never fail you.
Firsts will always leave a mark in our hearts, not because they are perfect, but because they are moments of courage and discovery. My first journey to Datagan was more than just about teaching — it was about finding and creating joy in challenges, beauty in simplicity, and growth in unfamiliar places. The memories of the foggy mornings, the sea of clouds, the river adventures, and the starry nights will forever remind me that sometimes the hardest roads lead to the most unforgettable destinations.
