DIY: Half-day Unguided Cebu City Tour

BACKPOSTING: 2011 Cebu-Bohol Weekend Getaway!

I was just invited by Jack to accompany her to Bohol, because she won the Panglao Trip for Two during our company’s 65th anniversary last August. Being a kaladkarin, agad-agad naman akong pumayag! ehehe! libreng trip na yun eh! @_@ Nahiya naman ako di ba, so I was the one who made all the arrangements, (i.e., finalizing the date of the trip, getting our flight sched and all, coming up with an itinerary—kase yung free lang talaga sa prize na yun ay tix and accommodation at Panglao).

Since malapit na ang Cebu sa Bohol, I decided to include the Cebu side-trip in the itinerary, and I came up with this one:

Click Itinerary_DIY Bohol-Cebu Trip 2011_ResidentSlacker for the complete itinerary. :)

Research ng research, reading other blogs, just to come up with a sulit trip. It’s my second time in Cebu, the first time was during college (part of our Management class requirement or something); pero de-film pa yung litrato nun, kaya wala na’kong mashadong kopya—kaya heto, na-tripan kong balikan yung mga dating napuntahan! :D

Medyo sagad yung schedule namin from Tagbilaran to Cebu—no room for delayed flights! Pero annyare??! Delayed ng mga around 30 minutes yung paglapag ng eroplano sa Tagbilaran airport, kase “crowded” ata nun sa runway! Hay ewan, paikot-ikot yung plane around Bohol habang inaantay ma-clear yung lalapagan. Kaya eto, aerial shots muna ng Chocolate Hills!!! :D

When we finally set foot at Tagbilaran Airport, we hurriedly ran our way to find a trike to take us to Tagbilaran Seaport; oh the hassle! Buti na lang, naka-backpack lang kame, madaling kumilos! ehehe! Soon enough, we found a trike, and after haggling with the driver, we agreed at a fair fare! ‘Lam ko kase malapit lang ang seaport sa airport eh, so di pwedeng pa-loko sa driver! :D Caution: Be careful of those drivers that, knowing you are tourists, take advantage and overprice the fare!

Sabi na eh, malapit lang yung seaport sa airport..pero okay na rin yung P20 each na fare, TIP na lang sa driver! We were just in time for Weesam Ferry’s trip to Cebu! Hooray! You may click this link to help you out in the scheduling of your trip! :D

Hello Cebu!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hanginnettt! ehehe! From Cebu Seaport, we walked our way to Sugbutel kahit super init! :D Tipid-trip nga eh! Exercise na lang ‘to! :) Konting lakad lang, Sugbutel na! :)

And here’s a how Sugbutel looks like:

Shared room ang economy class, backpacker na backpacker ang dating namin! ‘stig! hahaha! perstaym ko mag-stay sa gan’to sa mga tour! ehehe saya lang! :) #simple joys! Php250 per night ang rate dito, keri lang! The place’s safe, ayus yung interior and malinis, in fairness! So after making all the arrangements with the receptionist, nilapag lang namin ang aming backpack, then gala na!!!

Just outside Sugbutel, we waited for a jeepney to take us to our first stop, Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral. You can ask the guards outside Sugbutel to guide you as to which jeepney you should ride into, to take you to the right place hahaha!

CEBU METROPOLITAN CATHEDRAL

From Wikipedia:
The Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral is the ecclesiastical seat of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Cebu in Cebu, Philippines. Cebu was established as a diocese on August 14, 1595. It was elevated as a metropolitan archdiocese on April 28, 1934 with the dioceses of Dumaguete, Maasin, Tagbilaran, and Talibon as suffragans.

The architecture of the church is typical of Spanish colonial churches in the country, namely, squat and with thick walls to withstand typhoons and other natural calamities. The facade features a trefoil-shaped pediment, which is decorated with carved relieves of floral motifs, an IHS inscription and a pair of griffins. The Spanish Royal Coat of Arms is emblazoned in low relief above the main entrance, reflecting perhaps the contribution of the Spanish monarch to its construction.

After visiting Cebu Metropolitan Church, we decided to take our late lunch sa tabi-tabi; we found this carienderia, a few steps away from the church ehehe! After a few minutes, we headed on to our next stop:

BASILICA DEL STO. NIÑO

I managed to get a few shots, super crowded ang place nun, kase pala it’s Sunday! Plus, medyo na-hahassle-lan ako mag-pikchur nung time na yun, kaya heto lang nakuha ko:

From Wikipedia:
The Minor Basilica of the Santo Niño or Basilica Minore del Santo Niño is a 16th century church in Cebu City in the Philippines. It was built purportedly on the spot where the image of the Santo Niño, a sculpture depicting the Holy Child Jesus found by Spanish explorers in 1565 preserved in a burned wooden box which was left behind during the 1521 Magellan expedition.

After saying our short prayer, we headed on to the next stop. The Church’s really crowded that we hardly made our way out. hehehe!

MAGELLAN’S CROSS

From Wikipedia:
Magellan’s Cross is a Christian cross planted by Portuguese, and Spanish explorers as ordered by Ferdinand Magellan upon arriving in Cebu in the Philippines on (depending on source) April 14 or 21, 1521.

This cross is housed in a chapel next to the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño on Magallanes Street (Magallanes being the Spanish name of Magellan), just in front of the city hall of Cebu City. A sign below the cross describes the original cross is encased inside the wooden cross that is found in the center of the chapel. This is to protect the original cross from people who chipped away parts of the cross for souvenir purposes or in the belief that the cross possesses miraculous powers. Some people, however, believe that the original cross had been destroyed or had disappeared after Magellan’s death, and the cross is a replica that was planted there by the Spaniards after they successfully colonized the Philippines.

Hesitant at first, tinuloy-tuloy na rin namin ang lakaran until we reached Plaza Independencia and Fort San Pedro!!! Andun na eh, sagarin na kahit mainit! :)

PLAZA INDEPENDENCIA

According to a source:
Plaza Independencia is the most historically significant plaza in Cebu. Its land and age-old acacia trees are witness to the many phases and stories of Cebu’s rich history. The plaza is strategically located between Fort San Pedro and the building that used to be the Gobierno Provincial in the downtown area of Cebu. The plaza is a popular hangout for many living or working around the area. It is one huge garden filled with trees, ornamental plants and flowers. There is also a public skating rink and a kiosk at the center of the circular skating rink. An obelisk dedicated to the memory of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, the first Spanish governor-general of the Philippines, is planted at the very heart of the plaza.

FORT SAN PEDRO

From Wikipedia:
Fort San Pedro or Fuerza de San Pedro is a military defence structure, built by Spanish and indigenous Cebuano labourers under the command of Spanish conquistador, Miguel López de Legazpi and the Spanish Government in Cebu. It is located in the area now called Plaza Indepedencia, in the Pier Area of Cebu City, Philippines. 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 entury. This served as the nucleus of the first Spanish settlement in the Philippines.

We didn’t get inside the museum anymore, kase may bayad! hahahaha! And also, we wanted to catch up with our schedule. So off we went to the Taoist Temple after some picture-taking at the Fort :) Initial plan was to take 2-jeepney rides to the temple, pero naha-hassle-lan na kame, so we decided to take a taxi. The Taoist Temple in Beverly Hills is quite far from the Fort; inabot kame ng about Php140 papunta dun.

THE TAOIST TEMPLE

Actually, we were a few minutes to an hour ahead of our schedule kaya natuwa kame…Initially, 5:15pm sa sched, pero 4:05pm pa lang, ready na kame mag-Taoist Temple! After a 15-minute ride from the fort to the temple, aba eh! Isang masaklap na balita bumulaga samin pagkababa ng taxi: 4:30 po ang closing time ng temple!!! anu daw???! wahhh!!! “Manong Guard, may 10 minutes pa o!!!” . So nagmakaawa kame sa labas ng gate, along with some other pips na kakarating lang din…Haist! Pinayagan kame pumasok, pero sa isang side lang…Di ko na nakita yung dating dinaanan namin nung unang pagdalaw ko dito sa temple, yung may malaking dragon! wahhh!! kaya gan’to lang mga pictures namin:

From Wikipedia:
Built in 1972, the Cebu Taoist Temple is located in Beverly Hills Subdivision in Cebu City, Philippines. The temple was built by Cebu’s substantial Chinese community. With an elevation of 300 meters above sea level, the temple is a towering, multi-tiered, multi-hued attraction accessible by three separate winding routes.

Unlike the neighboring Phu Sian Temple, the Taoist temple is open to the worshipers and non-worshipers alike. A ritual among devotees is where one prays to the gods to grant one’s wish. The ritual includes washing of hands, going inside the chapel barefoot and dropping two blocks of wood. If the blocks of wood are both face up then one could make a wish. If not then it is not yet the time for one’s wish to be granted and one has to come to the temple some other time.

Sadness! :( Photo op na sana un o! hmp! The temple closes at 4:30 on Sundays and at about 5pm on other days.

So we had no choice but to stick to the rules: the temple’s gate closes at 4:30 on a Sunday, period! Sayang ang pamasahe o, tinaxi pa naman namin papuntang Beverly Hills! ehehe! So bumalik na nga lang kame… On our way down from the temple, we met a guy that led our way to a jeepney station kung sa’n daw kame pwedeng sumakay papuntang Larsian (kainan)… Nag-short-cut kame somewhere just to get to that station! Sorry, I forgot to take note of the street na dinaanan namin, medyo kabado kase ako nun kase a total stranger (isang malaking mama!) walked with us (pero actually, nauuna syang maglakad) to a place we didn’t know. Pero yun, pure intention naman pala, nakasakay naman kame sa jeep na byaheng Robinson’s Cebu—which is near Larsian.

After a few minutes, sabi nya baba na daw kame, Rob Cebu na kase…Yun! Robinson’s na! Then the guy just instructed us on where to pass by to get to Larsian’s, kaya heto, nakarating kame sa fufood-tripan namin ng safe. Pero pagpasok namin ng around 5:15pm, medyo nagpiprepare pa lang yung mga stalls…napaaga pa ata kame for dinner! hahaha! So we decided to pass the time off at Robinson’s… Upo lang kame sa mall, resting our tired feet! hahaha! Nakakapagod din maglibot sa Cebu ng buong hapon! ehehe! At about 6pm, we went back to Larsian’s para mag-foodtrip na!!!

Hayun o! Super busog ako sa dami ng rice na kinain ko! hahah! Foodtrip kung foodtrip to!!! :D Busssoogg!! Burp! After this overwhelming dinner, we decided to take the cab back to Sugbutel… :D Tapos, rest, ligo, then ready to sleep na in preparation for an early trip back to Bohol! :D

Such a tiring day, but all good! :) A half-day DIY tour isn’t enough to see all the interesting spots in Cebu!!! Hayyst… Dami pa sana, pero kapos sa oras at budget eh! ehehe! Nung perstaym ko, napuntahan ko na yung Lapu Lapu City, tapos yung mga pagawaan ng multi-cab, yung mga madaming gitara, at kung anu-ano pa na hindi ko na matandaan! hahaha!

Pero eto, the next time I’ll visit Cebu, pupuntahan ko’ng mga ‘to:
– Bantayan Island!!! —beach bummin’!
– Sky Experience Adventure

Hoorrrayyy!!! :D

Update: 21 February 2017
Uy! I’m coming back to Cebu this May/June 2017, so I hope I can make an updated itinerary for a Cebu trip–ung medyo mas maayos hahaha! I actually went back to Cebu with my family in 2012 but didn’t really blog about it in detail. So babawi ako this time… :)

On the list: Oslob, Kawaasan, Moalboal, Osmena Peak and Simala-Lindogon Marian Monks. It’s going to be a hectic homecoming and full-packed itinerary for me (as always!). So wish me luck! ♥

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