Cebu, Philippines
A 1 hour flight was all it took to get to the beautiful province of Cebu! I was excited to return to Cebu because I hadn’t been since I was a child. Cebu is known for its iconic heritage spots, so it was only right to embark on a city tour for our first day. Our tour was given by Manong Mario. (Manong is a polite way to address an older person that you don’t know–similar to the English word “Mister”).
1. First stop: Heritage of Cebu Monument is a tableau of sculptures made of concrete, bronze, brass and steel showing scenes about events and structures related to the history of Cebu. The monument is located at the Plaza Parian just a short 10 minute drive from our hotel.
2. Next Stop: Yap-Sandiego Ancestral House is one of the oldest existing houses in the country and is also considered one of the oldest “Chinese houses” outside of China. The house was made out of coral stones, the roof made out of red clay tiles and the posts and beams were made of hard wood. This house has withstood many earthquakes so of course my first thought was: great. watch me go upstairs and make the whole house crumble.This October the Ancestral house will be celebrating its 340th year!!
3. Next Stop: Magellan’s Cross is a Christian cross planted by the Portuguese, and Spanish explorers ordered by Ferdinand Magellan upon his arrival in Cebu!! Magellan landed in Cebu in the 1521 and the cross is next to the Basilica del Santo Nino. I fought off many Koreans to take a selfie.
4. Next Stop: Santo Nino Church is located on Osmena Boulevard near the sculpture depicting the Holy Child Jesus left behind by the Spanish explorers. The Santo Nino Church was damaged by an earthquake so the main entrance wasn’t open for us. However, the inside of the church was still stunning and reminded me of the churches I saw in Italy.
5. Fort San Pedro was the last stop on our city tour. The fort was built by Spanish and indigenous Cebuano laborers under the command of Spanish conquistador Miguel Lopez and the Spanish Government. The fort is located in the area now called Plaza Indepencia in the pier of Cebu City. It was really cool to stand by the old cannons and walk along the top of wall. It was an awesome view of the port and a great way to end the historic city tour!
