Cebu Heritage with a hint of action

Happy new year everyone, let’s start 2015 with a bit more effort on this blog again. It has been a while since I sat down to write about my travels. I will pick up from where I left last year by finishing my entries for the Philippines. Yes, that’s how far behind I am at my trip blogging, but not to worry, no one complaint ;)

After I left Palawan I headed towards Cebu. Please be so kind and correct anything I write, given the time gap between this entry and the actual trip, I might have forgotten one or two things. I should mention that I forgot already how much the departure cost at the airport had been, therefore just keep in mind to always have some pesos for this fee in your wallet.

After I arrived in the afternoon in Cebu I met again with Eye to continue the journey together. We took a cab to the hotel, first time that I stayed at the AirAsia Hotel Chain and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised. It was clean, basic and comfortable, exactly what I think of value for money.

After a quick fresh up we stepped out of the Hotel for our first activity of the day. We took the Jeepney to the Crown Regency Cebu for some action. Beyond the actual action that the Sky Experience offers, the view from the top is not to be underestimated. 

The website for this place is: http://www.skyexperienceadventure.com/page/rates-and-schedules

Looking at the prices on the site nearly a year later I can see that they have changed the range for the combos. I probably paid around half of it (or maybe it was just a special offer). You  probably have to consider as well that it was a Wednesday in the early afternoon and it was not busy at all. I didn't have to queue and could jump on each ride straight away. Most people like to go apparently by sunset and when the lights of the city are visible. Sure that's pretty, but given the time you spend there as well as the activities, I am not sure it is worth it beyond some pretty pictures.

Upon arrival we took the lift to the  top level to reach the Xtreme Rides level 35. They offer packages for all rides and I decided on the spot to just take all 4. Given my history with heights, the  rides taken weren't really scary, they were simply just fun for me, just having a laugh. While I walked around the edge a Japanese Group came up behind me, as cute as the guys were, they were totally scared and didn't want to get to close to the edge. I found this very adorable to watch and wish I could have taken a picture of them, but no cameras were allowed on the walk.

Once the adrenalin spike for the day was done, we continued leisurely with a walk around and buying some fruits while we headed to the tops.

The name 'rambutan' is derived from the Malay language word for rambut or "hair", a reference to the numerous hairy protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. In Vietnam, it is called chôm chôm (meaning "messy hair") due to the spines covering the fruit's skin. It tastes pretty much like lychees.

Only the white flesh of the purple mangosteen is edible. This fruit is very sweet in its taste and unavoidably attracts ants etc. immediately. 

Once again I was really glad to do this trip with Eye, not only took he once again great care of me, he was as well the once who did the haggling with the taxi driver. The driver drove us all the way to the tops (around 30 minutes from Cebu downtown) where we decided to sit down and watch the sunset while nibbling on the fruits we brought with us. The view, the atmosphere as well as the weather made this place more than perfect for the moment.

Although the place overall was great, the view for the actual sunset is set a little bit unfortunate into just one corner from the tops.

After the sun settled and the night started to spread its wings around us we decided to head for some traditional Buffet. Over consumption on Buffets is pretty much known worldwide, but for the first time I saw a restrictions on the food you take. If you leave food on your plate (beyond some reasonable crumbs) you will have to pay extra for it. This ensures that you really only take what you want to eat and go back only if you are sure you can eat more. Pretty good concept if you ask me. 

Please don't ask me for the name of the restaurant, I honestly forgot.

After our filling dinner, Eye had decided on a movie for us to watch in the cinema.Of course the movie was local, so no English translation, but regardless of that. based on the scenes the movie was good to understand. For the parts that confused me, I had Eye right next to me for quick translations.

The romantic movie 'Starting over again' doesn't actually differ too much from its western counter part. It is a little bit more cheesy and less sexual, more funnier and less serious. Overall it was fun and I look forward to do it again!  

The very next day we got up semi early around 9am, which I find very reasonable, considering we would be doing a lot of walking. The first stop included a nice traditional Filipino breakfast and the Sinangag Station before heading off to a less known part of Cebu.

The San Pedro Calungsod Chapel in Cebu only opened in 2012 and wasn't really well known, so it wasn't a surprise to us that the church was pretty much empty when we got there. We took a cap from the city as it was further out. 

Right in front of the church you are able to see the construction works happening to a mall, that might become one of the largest known in the Philippines (or only in Cebu?). Since we knew we wouldn't stray away the taxi driver had been asked to wait for us. Otherwise it might have been a little bit difficult to get back for us.

Next on our route was the Taoist Temple a very scenic and vibrant place. I found overall that the temple is kept really clean and not a lot of people were visiting at the time we went, I can certainly recommend a visit.

From there we headed on towards the Basilica del Santo Niño. The Santo Niño Church, is a minor basilica in Cebu City in the Philippines that was founded in the 1565. It is the oldest Roman Catholic church established in the country on the spot where the image of the Santo Niño de Cebú, a statue depicting the Child Jesus was found in 1565 by Spanish explorers led by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi.

You might wonder after all the churches/temples why I am, as a non-religious human being, go to places of worship even though I don't worship. Simply put, these places are in my eyes not just for praying, but have also historical and architectural values, making it worth seeing these places.

In front and around the church you can find several street sellers and buy candles, water balloons, hats, umbrellas and a lot of other things you probably didn't think you need.

The church itself I found was partly destroyed, that is mainly because of the Typhoon Haiyan, but the locals were busy restoring the parts.

Obviously the visit to Chowking is a must and I really enjoyed my little snack on the way.

From there we headed to the famous Fort San Pedro. It is located in the area now called Plaza Indepedencia, in the pier area of the city. The smallest, oldest triangular bastion fort in the country was built in 1738 to repel Muslim raiders. In turn, it served as a stronghold for Filipino revolutionaries near the end of the 19th century. This served as the nucleus of the first Spanish settlement in the Philippines.

If you now think that this has already been a lot for just a day, you will be surprised that the tour continued. I really enjoyed the walking around, it kept me busy all day and gave me a really good impression about this corner of the world.

Next we enjoyed a little bit more history and stopped by the Heritage of Cebu. Visiting this particular monument was certainly worth the time. Funnily enough at the front of the entry gate two poorly looking woman tried to convince us that it was closed but that they would let us in if we would pay them some pesos. Once again, I was glad to have Eye with me.

Just around the corner was the Yap-Sandiego Ancestral House in Parian District of Cebu City, which is one of the oldest existing structural residential houses in the Philippines. The inside of the house was very well kept and you were only allowed to walk with shoe protectors around.

But we didn't stop there, we continued to the Casa Gorordo Museum.

In the evening we decided to go for final classic Filipino Good-Bye Dinner and I have to say it was really delicious and new. I am afraid though that I have completely forgotten the same of the dishes, it just slipped my mind.

I am sure for a local this is very easy recognisable. I am really glad I had Eyes company, who not only has been a perfect travel partner, but the kindest host that I have met so far. 

And that pretty much was my trip to the Philippines. I haven't seen enough yet, that I know for sure. I have heard so much about this country that it is most likely my planned destination again for 2016 or if I really feel generous, maybe already 2015. The below is a picture from the LCCT Terminal in KL on the day of my return to London. This was on the 8th of March, the day, as we all know, didn't bring good news to a lot of people.

Therefore all I can really say to complete this entry: SAFE TRAVELS!