Calamba City
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Calamba is a city located in the province of Laguna in the Philippines. The city is famous for being the birthplace of José Rizal, the country's national hero. Situated only 54 kilometers south of Manila, about an hour by chartered bus, Calamba City is a popular tourist destination with its numerous hot spring resorts, most of which are located in Barangay Pansol, and the Canlubang Golf and Country Club, site of many Philippine Opens. Calamba is also an important modern industrial center in the CALABARZON region as shown by the large number of industrial parks and business estates that are located in the city.
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
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Image:Ph_seal_laguna_calamba.png
Founded—August 28, 1742
2000 census—281,146
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Image:Ph_locator_laguna_calamba.png
Calamba lies at the northern slopes of Mount Makiling, an extinct volcano. The southern terminus of the South Luzon Expressway is in Calamba and this geographic position makes the city a gateway to the southern provinces of Luzon. The highway at the end of the South Luzon Expressway leads east to the other towns of Laguna and south towards the provinces of Batangas and Quezon. Calamba City is bordered by Cabuyao to the north, Los Baños to the east, by the province of Batangas to the south, specifically the municipalities of Santo Tomas and Talisay, and by the province of Cavite to the west, with Tagaytay City and Silang. Laguna de Bay the country's largest lake, forms the city's northwest border. The provincial capital, Santa Cruz, is located 45 kilometers by road to the east.
History
The name of the city came from a legend that during the early time of the Spanish period in the country, a "guardia civil" or soldier was passing through what is now Calamba. The soldier met a young lady who came from a river carrying a jar of water. Asked by the soldier as to the name of the place, the woman, in her confusion, uttered “kalan-banga” or “water jar”. Supposedly since then, the town has been called Calamba. This legend is immortalized with a large concrete water jar erected in the city plaza with the names of the city's barangays written on its surface. This same jar is also found in the city's seal.
Before it became a separate town, Calamba was then a part of Tabuco, now known as Cabuyao. Calamba became an independent pueblo on August 28, 1742. With the passage of Republic Act No. 9024 on April 7, 2001 and the approval of the residents in a plebiscite on April 21, Calamba was promoted from a municipality into Laguna's second component city after San Pablo.
An SM Mall will be established here in 2007.
External links
- Town of Calamba information site (http://www.msc.net.ph/calamba/)
- Calamba web page in the Official Website of Laguna (http://www.laguna.gov.ph/Articles/05_05_Calamba.htm)
- Calamba Association of Northeastern USA (http://calamba.50megs.com/)