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Diffun (pronounced "dif-foon") is a municipality in Quirino. It is the most populated town in the province and its main port of entry.
Understand
[edit | edit source]Diffun was originally a barrio of Santiago City in Isabela. It became an independent municipality in 1950, the same year the town, along with the five other municipalities that make up present-day Quirino, was transferred to Nueva Vizcaya. Largely settled by Ilocano migrants and indigenous Ilongot tribes, the town saw an influx of Igorot settlers displaced by the damming of several rivers in the Luzon Cordilleras in the 1970s and 80s, resulting in the town's mixed ethnic makeup today.
Being the nearest town of Quirino to the Maharlika Highway, the main route to Cagayan Valley from Metro Manila, it has become the most-populated town and economic hub of Quirino, with over 56,000 residents and the main campus of the Quirino State University system.
Get in
[edit | edit source]Diffun is along Cordon-Diffun-Aurora Road, the main thoroughfare in Quirino that connects with Maharlika Highway in the neighboring town of Cordon in Isabela. At a junction in Diffun Public Market is a road directly leading to Santiago City.
There are passenger vans connecting the town with Santiago, while the bus from Santiago City to Dinapigue via Aurora also passes through town.
Get around
[edit | edit source]Tricycles are the main form of public transportation within town. Access to some of the outlying barangays, where most natural attractions are located, may require a 4WD and bouts of hiking.
See
[edit | edit source]
- 1 Mount Nagbukel, Cordon-Diffun-Aurora Road, Luttuad. Meaning "round" in Ilocano, it is looming, forested limestone hill along the Ganano River, a tributary of the Cagayan River that forms a 16 hectares (40 acres) ecopark complex run by the municipal government.
- 2 Pusuac Spring, Luttuad. A hot spring surrounded by fruit trees and rock formations.
- 3 Gabriela Falls (Manuela Falls), Gabriela. A cascade within a 30 hectares (74 acres) nature park.
- 4 Mount Batumbaket, Don Mariano Perez. A forested mountain range with wild orchids and a jagged rock outcrop which gives the peak its name, derived from an Ilocano word for old woman.
- 5 Susong Dalaga, Rizal. Translated as "Maiden's Breast" because of its appearance, it is a forested limestone hill that forms a 10 hectares (25 acres) ecopark complex.
- 6 Liwayway Caves, Liwayway. A series of 15 caves scattered across a 25 hectares (62 acres) row of forested hills. The site was also used for religious purposes by the Union Esperitista, a homegrown syncretic Christian group.
- 7 Bagnes Nature Park and Campsite, Baguio Village. An ecopark built on a village were some Kankanaey tribespeople were resettled. It offers cultural activities featuring the Cordilleras as well as hikes to multiple waterfalls in the area.
Do
[edit | edit source]- Pammadayaw Festival. July 2-4. The town's annual festival celebrating local customs and culture.
Buy
[edit | edit source]- 1 Diffun Public Market, Cordon-Diffun-Aurora Road corner Santiago-Diffun Road, Andres Bonifacio.
- 2 7-11, Cordon-Diffun-Aurora Road, Andres Bonifacio. The only convenience store of its kind in Quirino.
Eat
[edit | edit source]- 1 Tropik's, Cordon-Diffun-Aurora Road, Andres Bonifacio. A restaurant known for its Mindanaoan dishes and halo-halo.
Drink
[edit | edit source]- 1 Zam's Cafe (Sam's Espresso Break), Cordon-Diffun-Aurora Road, Purok 2, Andres Bonifacio (beside Saint Joseph Parish Church), ☏ +63 955 703 9773, cafezam.diffun@gmail.com. 9AM-8PM.
Sleep
[edit | edit source]- 1 Disadeco Hostel, Cordon-Diffun-Aurora Road, Andres Bonifacio, ☏ +63 926 932 4945, disadeco@yahoo.com. Starts at P1500.
- 2 Palazzo de Aurea, Purok 5, Rizal, ☏ +63 998 972 4206.
- 3 Diffun Lodge, Purok 1, Epifanio delos Santos Street, Aurora West, ☏ +63 916 917 0620, diffunlodgequirinoprovince@gmail.com.
- 4 Villa Arce, Andres Bonifacio, ☏ +63 905 692 4286, villaarceeventcenter@gmail.com.
Connect
[edit | edit source]The town's postal code is 3401.
Go next
[edit | edit source]| Routes through Diffun |
| Santiago City/Bayombong ← Cordon ← | N  S | → Cabarroguis → Maddela |
