Wandering aimlessly through the lush gardens, with its tropical flowers bursting in colors of the rainbow, and bordered by sandy coves whose tranquil waters is home to whales, dolphins and other precious marine life, I was delighted to be in the midst of a private setting, a very special retreat. In one word – Paradise!
The place – Alegre Beach Resort.
Then, it quickly dawned on me, what a challenge it is to preserve this Shangri-la for future generations. Fear not… for they know what they are doing. By sunset, all the angst had vanished completely and rightfully so.
In celebration of its recent 10th anniversary, the officers and staff members of the resort property played hosts to a day of leisure and environmental-related activities.
The cutting of the ribbon by the guests of honor, led by Tourism Undersecretary Rolando G. Reyes and councilor Luis Albao of the resort town of Sogod, signaled the start of the implementation of more projects in addition to the already existing programs that would further conserve the environment.
First on the schedule, and in line with their successful greening agenda, there was the planting of mahogany trees. We then proceeded to the shore to witness the release of new fished for its much-admired sanctuary.
A most informative lecture, conducted by marine biologist Geraldine Sola together with Michael Jordan, the very involved and hands-on general manager, followed. We learned of their ongoing desiltation and reef recovery program which was initiated to restore and improve the reef ecosystem in the resort by totally removing all silt, assisting coral growth through coral grafting and further increasing the population of fish. Future developments will include the culturing of oysters and mussels
Once again, Jordan reaffirmed its firm commitment and dedication to not only maintain but more so improve the environmental beauty of the property and the neighboring surroundings as well.
Thus the Alegre Beach Resort is the recipient of several citations, all well deserved. They received the prestigious Kalakbay Award for Resort of the Year and once again the second time around for Environmental Tourism. Last year the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) honored them with the Environment Awareness Award, an internationally-recognized prize.
Alegre Beach Resort stands true to its sterling reputation as a premier property for so many other reasons. The warm welcome of this slice of paradise is not something that is cultivated but rather a genuine desire to see that every guest arrives full of expectation and departs full of admiration with an unquenchable desire to return and return and return.
Michael Jordan, you have a jewel in your hands.