El Nido, Cebu mango candies a hit in Canada expo

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine destinations, notably El Nido in Palawan, and food products attracted attention at a recent culinary and travel exhibit in Canada, a report from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said. In its website (www.dfa.gov.ph), the DFA said the Department of Tourism participated in the EAT! Vancouver World Culinary Travel Expo at the BC Place Stadium late last month. “Many event-goers from Vancouver and other cities and towns in the province of British Columbia became interested to visit the Philippines as they were amazed by the country’s enchanting and exotic 7,107 islands. The Philippine booth was among the favorite spots as many guests opted to do photo shoots at the eye-catching El Nido backdrop," it said. Visitors gathered tourism brochures from Travel Cafe Philippines were delighted with the specialty dishes and premium coffee offered at the restaurant, the report added. Mango-rind (mango-tamarinds) candies from Cebu City were popular as give-away items among young and adult Canadians, the DFA added. EAT! Vancouver World Culinary Travel Expo is an annual festival showcasing world tourism through regional food, cuisine, cooking, chefs, hospitality and beverages. Representatives from various countries distributed samples of their culinary products during the Expo. Visitors also had a chance to browse holiday destinations of exhibitors. Other countries represented in this year’s festival were Japan, Barbados, Turkey, Peru, Malaysia, China, Israel, Antigua, Indonesia, Spain, Korea, and Kenya, and the states of Florida and Louisiana in the US. The DFA said the Philippine Culinary Booth Pavilion was a favorite among the visitors. “A substantial number that collected Philippine tourism materials were interested in learning more about traveling to the Philippines and indicated their plan to visit it in their next travel. They were also attracted to the colorful backdrop of the booth which featured a large photo display of the big lagoon at El Nido Resort in Palawan," it said. - GMANews.TV