Yakan Weaving Village, Zamboanga City

The trip to Zamboanga cannot be complete without getting souvenirs. On our first day there, we tried to go to the Yakan Weaving Village after we finished our meetings that day. We, however, did not look up the place ahead and at first could not figure why we couldn't get a tricycle to go there. As it turned out, the village was a bit far from the city center and one cannot conveniently just go there. Fortunately, the following day a friend took us to a quick tour of the city and that included a stop at the village.

Weaver creating a work of art

This is an example of a very intricate, complicated patterns woven by the Yakan. These are one of a kind and are understandably the more expensive items.

There are the more common weave designs but still difficult to make. I decided on this design, which was colorful, and perfect for our dining table. It ended up unfurled and displayed at our staircase. You can actually get half of the weave but given the significantly lower price of the item (compared to if you got them at a bazaar or trade fair), I got the whole item.

Other items you can purchase at the village as souvenirs are swords (kris), chests with pearl inlays, brass decors and wood carvings. There are antiques, too, but we opted not to take a look as we had limited time to purchase items before proceeding with our quick tour of the city.

The shops at the village provide excellent selections for customers. There are table runners, pillow covers, shawls, scarves, etc. of various sizes and designs. You can haggle prices but don't go so low as these are hand-made, authentic designs by a people who are proud of their work that you cannot get elsewhere just like weaves from other parts of Mindanao, the Visayas and the Cordilleras.

Here are more designs to choose from. One of my colleagues bought place mats for their dinner table. The lady bug pillow is not included in the items for sale. :)

I had a really difficult time choosing from among the items. I thanked the shopkeeper/owner for being patient with me.

Your budget is basically your limit if you come to the village to get some souvenirs. I promised to myself to return to Zamboanga soon and that is somewhat sure because of a couple of projects we are doing in the city. The next time would likely be with a few more friends in tow as some would like to just go there and enjoy the place.

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