Filipino Pawn Shop

Some people call Zamboanga City, Ciudad Hermosa. After a lot of traveling in Zamboanga City, I wouldn’t call it a beautiful city and I wouldn’t a city of flowers(its other nickname). Nevertheless, Zamboanga City is a city like no other in the Philippines. Whether its the language, the culture, or the frontier, Zamboanga City is different.

Zamboanga City has a reputation for being dangerous frontier city. Groups like the Abu Sayaff linger nearby and occassional bomb blasts rock the city. The city is rough and tumble and if you cross someone the wrong way, you might not make it back alive.

Zamboanguenos speak a form of Spanish known as Chavacano, but this creole Spanish is being infiltrated by Tagalog and Visayan words and phrases to the point of losing its pure, dirty, Spanish roots.

The culture is a mix, for the Muslims, it’s Muslims culture, the others, it’s pure Catholic. You can see a saint procession in front of the local Mosque.

Zamboanga City may not be Ciudad Hermosa, but it sure is a one of a kind.