“I truly wonder how people can live with the sound of traffic full time.” – Old Sean
Snoozing Snacks
After a short break in Manila, I managed to catch a cheap flight to Cebu. Unfortunately, the Manila airport is a bit of a slog; it’s generally pretty hot and crowded. Fortunately, the luxury lounge is a fairly cheap buy-in, only costing $25 dollars to rest inside AC with unlimited snacks.
I eventually I landed in Cebu where I would stay in Lapu Lapu.
This, as it would turn out, was a minor mistake. There isn’t really anything to do in Lapu Lapu and traffic makes further transit a bit of a pain. Nevertheless, I found a decent little apartment where I could work and once I’d learned the flow of rush hours, I was able to be a bit more mobile.
For breakfast each day, I would make a quick trip to The Outlets at Pueblo Verde, where I was often approached by Filipino folks who were pleased to practice their English. I was asked about everything, from my time in other countries to my local knowledge of the Philippines to my religion to my favorite foods. I got to experience life as a mini-celebrity, which was fun in its own right.
However, my real goal was to explore Lapu Lapu as quickly as possible so I could set my sights on further adventures, taking ferries and busses to nearby islands and wilderness lands. Unfortunately, I lost a fair number of hours trying to use Grab, the Filipino ride share. It usually took an hour or so to secure a ride, making it necessary to sit down somewhere with AC whenever I wanted to jump to another part of the city.
Day of Downtown
During my first jaunt into Cebu, I made a point of visiting the old downtown area. I was expecting something a bit like Manila’s Spanish heritage site, but Cebu is a lot more chaotic. I ended up striding through a lot of narrow streets with dense traffic, studiously ignoring the many children who walked up to me, hands outstretched for money.
There’s something horrible about having kids plead for cash, because it’s nearly impossible not to feel like a proper bastard when ignoring them. And it’s better to ignore than say no, as engaging inevitably results in a far more persistent crowd trailing behind. In many areas, especially where tourism is prominent, children don’t ask for their own well-being. But instead, they are instructed to reach out their hands, after which adults collect the offered change.
This was all rather moot, since I didn’t have any cash. I was walking through Cebu exclusively with credit and debit cards.
Regardless, I started passing by some of the tourist sites fairly quickly.
My journey started at Fort San Pedro, which is a military defense structure built by the Spanish under the command of Miguel López de Legazpi, the first governor of the Captaincy General of the Philippines. Originally made of wood, it was converted to stone in the early 17th century to repel Muslim raiders.
I wandered around the fort for a while, but since I’ve just come from a long stay in Central America, colonial-era Spanish fortifications don’t hold a tremendous amount of interest for me. Eventually, I departed for some more compelling sites.
These sights included Magellan’s Cross, the Minor Basilica of the Holy Child of Cebu, the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral, the Rajah Humabon Monument & Humabon Historical Marker, the Yap-San Diego Ancestral House, the Heritage of Cebu Monument and the Casa Gorordo Museum.
The walking tour can essentially be described as a historical visitation following the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan, the famed Portuguese explorer who led the 1519–22 Spanish expedition to the East Indies. Prior to Magellan’s arrival, there is very little verifiable historical narrations regarding the community site.
Magellan’s Cross Pavilion is especially interesting since it showcases a Christian cross planted by explorers of the Spanish expedition of the first circumnavigation of the world, led by Magellan. The cross was risen upon arriving in Cebu in the Philippines on April 21, 1521.
According to a slightly dubious historical account, the original Magellan cross was encased inside another wooden cross crafted of tindalo wood in 1835. This additional outer cross was made to protect the original cross, since people often chipped away parts of Magellan’s cross, believing that the cross possessed miraculous powers.
Regardless, the cross remains a pilgrimage relic, the mark of Christianity arriving in the Philippines. The surrounding church areas are quite popular, with numerous artworks, churches, statues and lines of red candles around fountains.
Breeze By
After a concerningly sweaty walking tour, I stopped at a coffee shop before wandering into the Robinsons Galleria Cebu Mall. The walk wasn’t very pleasant, since I had to walk past several drainage rivers which are, and I remark this as an understatement, putrid in stench.
But by holding my breath, it was simple enough to soldier past. I arrived in Robinsons Galleria Cebu Mall to find a huge performance ongoing in the mall’s center. There were singers, dancers and children performing. A giant tree rose in the middle. Also aligned with the Christmas spirit was a fun little upstairs Christmas village space. The Christmas Village of Love is a mini train set going past lots of fake snow and tiny buildings, a nice touch on the holiday spirit.
Meetings in IT Park
Following my downtown forays of Cebu, I made my next trip out to Cebu IT Park, where I was meeting some locals for interviews about Philippine mythological creatures (a little hobby of mine). We ended up getting dinner at an Italian place called Trattoria da Gianni, which served a robust pasta.
Afterwards, we walked around the surrounding area so I could explore IT Park. The space is rather upscale and popular with foreigners in Cebu, with numerous shops and restaurants around a mall and plaza space. There were a surprising number of fireworks (sound only, not the bright skylit displays) which continuously caused me to jump.
Eventually, we grabbed some ice cream before heading off to our respective homes. It was a nice way to wind down for the day, though the humidity of Cebu is fairly intense, even late at night.
The Area around Mactan
The following day, I tried to make a point of visiting sites across Lapu Lapu with mixed success. Lapu Lapu isn’t the best area for tourism or exploration, though there are a few sites of note.
I was able to find a decent massage studio to take a bit of stress off my shoulders. Later on, I had some luck trying traditional Filipino foods at a seaside restaurant. I walked along the beaches of Lapu Lapu for a few minutes, but much of the coast is controlled by massive resorts and the rest of them are a bit scummy and touched by litter.
Eventually I met a tour guide who led me around The Mactan Newtown, a developing mall area. It’s known for the nearby park which hosts historical reenactments near the Mactan Shrine.
Also known as Liberty Shrine or Lapulapu Monument, the statue of the native warrior is another historical epic character in the mythos of the Philippines. There’s a nearby monument just past the Lapu Lapu statue called the Magellan Monument, which displays his bitter enemy, Magellan.
Historical accounts recall Lapu Lapu, the native leader who successfully defeated Spanish soldiers led by Magellan in the 1521 Battle of Mactan. The site is believed to be the approximate location of the historic battle, Due to Lapu Lapu’s victory, he is widely considered a heroic resistor of colonial invasion.
Magellan’s death during the battle decisively ended his voyage of circumnavigation. It also delayed the Spanish occupation of the Philippine islands by over forty years until the expedition of Miguel López de Legazpi in 1564. Despite the lack of historical data, monuments of Lapu Lapu have been built all over the Philippines.
Mini Island Hopper
The rest of my time in Cebu was spent frantically finishing work before the holidays or taking swift rides to nearby islands. I enjoyed my time in places like Olango Island, Pandanon Beach and Buhol, though these visits mostly consisted of short swims, motorbike rides and meandering walks on beaches. It was enormously relaxing, but not terribly fun to write about. I didn’t even bother with taking photos, leaving my main phone at home in exchange with my disposable “mugging” phone, only really used for offline maps and burying in the sand at the beach.
Mall Days
The only other notable recreation I had time for in Cebu and Lapu Lapu was the time spent wandering malls for Christmas gifts. I was visiting family friends in Manila just before Christmas and loathed the idea of arriving empty-handed. So I made gift bags, picking up scented soaps, small candies, fun little cards, colorful stickers, Japanese decorative paper, little word puzzle books, fun Christian poems and bonus snacks.
I was only able to find a few items of interest at each mall, but my wanderings were fairly widespread. I got to see the Mactan Town Center, the ICONIQUE Mall, Parkmall, City Time Square, and my favorite, Ayala Center Cebu. Air conditioning is a bone deep relief when wandering Cebu midday.
That concluded my time in Lapu Lapu and Cebu. I had another couple of trips that took me out of the city and into the wilderness. By orders of magnitude, obscure islands in the Philippines are far more comfortable and lush than the crowded city centers.
So until my time in Moalboal,
Best regards and excellent trails,
Old Sean
Written December 24th, 2024
Activities Around Cebu
