Cebu City - The Queen City of the South

Last May 20, I went to Cebu for the first time.

Bro. Gerry and Sis. Chona Santos (Our neighbors and chapter leaders in the CFC community) were very gracious in giving me a ride to the Centennial Airport that morning. They along with their children were also flying out of Manila that same day for a vacation in Boracay Island via Kalibo, Aklan. My trip on the other hand, was still part of the series of procurement trainings were had organized around the country.

We’re off to exciting places!

Inside the Centennial Airport

during its less busier periods

My first photo in Cebu!
(This picture was taken in front of Robinson’s Department. At the back is the historic and recently controversial Fuente Osmeňa Plaza in Uptown Cebu City)

To those who are relatively unfamiliar to Metropolitan Cebu, it is the country’s second biggest metropolis and the economic, educational as well as cultural center of the Visayas.

Aptly described as “an island in revelry”, Cebuanos participate in lively, luxuriant fiestas that show their rich cultural heritage and love for merrymaking. The biggest and most popular of which is the Sinulog Festival, held annually on the 3rd Sunday of January. The celebration is in honor of Seňor Sto. Niňo de Cebu.

Known as “Zugbu” or Zubu” to pre-Hispanic merchants, Cebu continues to be the hub of trade and commerce in the country’s southern area due to its strategic location. It is the land of the nation’s earliest Christians, the oldest academic institution, fortress and street.

The Holiday Plaza Hotel was our procurement training venue in Cebu

for the Trainers’ Training session

First day class picture!

Notable persons present included the former Ombudsman Simeon V. Marcelo, who attended the whole training as a participant, Director Virginia Santiago of OMB – Visayas who gave the welcoming remarks and European Commission Delegation to the Philippines Deputy Head of Operations Roger De Backer who attended some of the early training modules.

My able staff from OMB Visayas – Fe Molina and Zosima Lazarte

Late in the afternoon of the third day, I was so blessed to have been toured around the city by no less than the Officer-in-Charge of our area office in the Visayas, Director Virginia Santiago and Graft Investigation Officer Bel Quijano.

I was able to see some of the city’s landmarks and the OMB – Visayas building all for the first time. The only problem though was that since the procurement trainings run practically through the whole day, when I leave the venue, there is little precious daylight time left. That’s the reason why some of my pictures didn’t come out due to poor lighting in the evening.

Cebu’s Provincial Capitol building

The OMB – Visayas building

With the Officer-in-Charge of our Visayas Area Office – Director Virginia P. Santiago



The Basilica Minore del Sto. Niňo by night

I couldn’t imagine going to Cebu for the first time and then leave without visiting the Church of the Sto. Niňo. Built by the Augustinians Friars and Miguel Lopez de Legazpi way back in 1565, it is home to the Sto. Niňo de Cebu, “the oldest and most celebrated religious relic in the country”. The image was the gift given by Ferdinand Magellan to Queen Juana in 1521 after her conversion to Christianity. The original church was gutted down by fire in 1566. The second structure was also destroyed by fire in 1628 but soon rebuilt in 1629. The massive edifice that is now standing in honor of the Child Jesus was constructed in 1737.

Standing beside one of the country’s oldest churches

Part of the Basilica’s courtyard




Magellan’s Cross in Magallanes Street, Downtown Area, Cebu City

This place marks the spot where in April 14, 1521, Ferdinand Magellan planted a cross to mark the place where around 800 natives, led by Rajah Humabon and his wife Queen Juana, were baptized into the Catholic faith.

Magellan’s Cross is another Cebu landmark that you dare not miss when in the province. Housed in a roofed kiosk near the corner of Magallanes and Burgos streets, the original cross was believed to have healing powers that locals chipped off parts of it until it was encased in a hollow hardwood cross which is the one that visitors now actually see.



By the gate of Fort San Pedro, the heart of the Spanish settlement during the Spanish colonial period and stronghold of the Filipino revolutionaries during the war for independence.

Located at the Pier Area of the city, Fort San Pedro is the smallest triangular bastion fort built of wood in May, 1565. It was rebuilt in 1738 using coral stones to repel Muslim forces.

By Wednesday afternoon, I was off to a new adventure. Couples for Christ (CFC) brods came by the hotel to accompany me to a Gawad Kalinga (GK) site within the city. You see, as I have come to experience and appreciate, members of the CFC community are everywhere in the planet! This is so true especially in the country’s urban centers like Cebu where several of our procurement training participants and fellow OMB employees were members of the community. These include Sis. Jane Aguilar, an OMB lawyer and member of the first batch of Singles for Christ (SFC) in Cebu in 1993 and now an active Handmaid of the Lord (HOLD) involved in TEODORA and Pro-life concerns; Sis. Rosemarie Tongco, a Graft Investigation Officer who joined the HOLD in 2005 and cureently serves as a household head; Sis Emily Mendoza, a Senior Administrative Assistant who joined HOLD in 2006 and serves in the music ministry and last but not the least, Sis. Zosima Lazarte, Administrative Assistant who along with her husband, Bro. Nick, joined CFC in 2003. Nick and Zosima are presently unit leaders in Cebu’s South Sector I.

Sis. Jane Aguilar through CFC sector leaders made it possible for me to visit one GK site near our venue. Bro. Danny Lagahid, GK Provincial Coordinator and Bro. Dodong Suarez, Sector Head of South 4, both full-time workers with Cebu’s Provincial Mission Center (PMC) took me to GK Budlaan Village supported by Smart Communications and Buddhists from the Sian Tian Temple.

Like in many GK sites, I’ve visited around the country, I was met with smiling faces and warm greetings. The hard life isn’t exactly erased from the beneficiaries but you feel a sense of renewed hope and community among the people.

GK “Smart” Village – People work together to construct a wooden bridge for people to use during the occurrence of heavy floods



The community center

Budlaan’s model house

According to Bro. Danny, there are currently twelve (12) GK sites in Cebu. GK Budlaan is home to 95 families from different parts of the city. At present around 125 GK houses have been constructed out of a targeted total of 220 (with a land area of 20 square meter each) homes for the poor.

Livelihood projects are undertaken inside this housing unit residents fondly call as “Little SM”

The GK site is gently nestled in a valley between two enormous mountain ranges
where posh villages are being constructed



With CFC elders Danny Lagahid and Dodong Suarez

These pieces of wood are processed for livelihood



They have a vegetable garden of tomatoes in its infancy stage






I think they are building a Mabuhay Ladies Guest House






You see SIBOL (means “to grow”; GK program for young children) school houses to the left









A far view of the community center

As always, my visit to various GK sites like Budlaan was an enjoyable and learning experience. It’s very inspiring to know that GK’s work for the poor is thriving and making a difference in many parts of the archipelago.

After the trainers’ training session ended by noontime on Friday, we packed up our gears ready to go home. However, I along with training resource persons like Heidi Mendoza and Dave Lucero who had the same return flight schedules back to Manila that afternoon had an interesting side trip to the Archbishop’s residence in Cebu where the former Ombudsman Marcelo and OMB Director Santiago were having lunch with Cardinal Vidal.

The Archbishop of Cebu’s residence

Later, we passed by CNT Lechon Restaurant on route to the airport where Dave treated me to lunch and Heidi bought lechon pasalubong for her family. I’m not so much into lechon so I ate something else for lunch. But this place was so full of patrons just willing to wait to buy chunks of the famous roasted suckling pig. For lechon lovers of the north, don’t expect any Mang Tomas type of sarsa (gravy) around. In these parts of the country, they use a spicy vinegar/soy sauce type of condiment for the lechon which reminds me of the Pinakurat of Iligan City which I have simply grown to love!

Speaking of Pinakurat, the airport didn’t allow me to carry on board the plane two bottles of the fermented vinegar which I bought from Robinson’s Cebu even if it was to be checked in with my luggage bag. They wanted me to buy a Styrofoam container where I was suppose to put and seal in the two bottles of vinegar. The cheapest Styrofoam container was P195. The two bottles combined were worth around P63-64. I painfully left the bottles with the airport security, mumbling and grumbling all the way up to Manila (and beyond!).

It was very warm (around 30 degrees Celsius) and humid in Cebu all week long. Strong rains though came in at different times during the day. Thank God it seemed to always stop whenever I was touring the city.

Obviously, my stay in Cebu wasn’t enough to even see half of what it had to offer. Case in point, I didn’t even see a single beach Cebu is internationally famous for! Needless to say, there will be more than one reason to come back to this tropical paradise. Hopefully with my family members next time!


Dayon na sa Cebu!!