BUTUAN CITY – A 15-meter long and three-meter wide newly built “Balanghai” boat, which is being assembled by local artisans in this city, is set to accompany the “Diwata ng Lahi” that will sail on February 4.

The sailing of the newly built boat that have 22 crew members will be witnessed by top officials of the city government here, Department of Tourism (DoT), and the Mindanao Tourism Council (MTC) led by former City Mayor Daisy Plaza.

The “Balanghai” boat will leave Butuan on February 4 and will proceed to its target routes in seven areas in Mindanao before finally going out of the country.

The “Diwata ng Lahi” is a replica of the balangay or Butuan boat that was used by Butuan’s forefathers in trading with China and other Asian kingdoms long before the Philippines was discovered.

The “Diwata ng Lahi” arrived on the shores of its origin, Butuan City, on November 28 last year after sailing 894 nautical miles from Manila bay last September and enduring at least eight typhoons.

It was gathered that two Butuanons are joining the 22-man journey.

Other members of the expedition are composed of the Philippine Mt. Everest summit expedition team with former Tourism Undersecretary Art Valdez as its skipper.

This adventure event is spearheaded by the “Kaya ng Pinoy” Foundation.

The expedition is aimed to retrace the voyage of Butuan’s forefathers and recognize their maritime ingenuity using the “Balangay” boat as means of transportation.

It can be recalled that several relics of the “balangays” were unearthed at the vicinity of Barangay Libertad here in 1970, aside from antique jars and porcelain wares.

Those found relics of “Balangays,” 1400’s and 1500’s antique jars, porcelain and pieces of jewelry are now preserved and on-display at the “Balangay Shrine” and the regional museum here wherein historians and archeologists from abroad and Manila studied and verified their authenticity through carbon-dating.

These discoveries manifested the greatness and richness of the city’s history and culture as a pre-Hispanic trading center.