Araling Pangmanlalakbay: Mga Komento, Puna, at Rekomendasyon sa Isang Bagong Sublarangan ng Araling Kabanwahan

Last April 20, 2023, the book Banwa at Layag: Antolohiya ng mga Kuwentong Paglalakbay ng mga Pilipino sa Ibayong Dagat was officially launched. Edited by Axle Christien Tugano, it contains 56 chapters written by 52 contributors about their own experience of traveling outside (and inside [in the case of one particular chapter]) the country. It is for this occasion of book-launching that this review was written. In particular, it focuses on the introduction of Tugano as the editor entitled “Kapookan ng Paglalakbay ng mga Pilipino sa Ibayong Dagat sa Konteksto ng Banwa at Layag sa Wikang Filipino,” especially on his formulation of Araling Pangmanlalakbay as a proposed new subfield of Araling Kabanwahan. The review is divided into three parts. The first part will take note of some “Pantayo elements” that can be found in the introduction of Tugano, such as the linguistic exploration of travel, formulation of new field as a critic to its Western form, periodization of travel’s history, diagramatic tendency, and emphasis on Filipino language. The second part focuses on mentioning some comments and criticisms about his on-going project of Araling Pangmanlalakbay (including the seemingly arbitrary use of the term lakbay [travel] and layag [voyage], auto-orientalist tendency in the face of Travel Studies, and insufficient connection between the internal and external aspect of Araling Pangmanlalakbay). Lastly, the review will offer some proposed projects that can be embarked on in the future for the development of Araling Pangmanlalakbay, like focusing on domestic travel, translation projects, exposition on the thought of Filipino experts on travel, life-story of and conversing with OFW travelers, among others.