Invading the Queen City of South

Cebu, dubbed as the “Queen City of South” is one of the historical places that I have always longed to see. My interest was stirred up when I met a thoughtful Cebuana friend in college. Sim and I agreed to book our flight six months before the scheduled trip. To make it more sentimental, we came to an agreement that it’s going to be a post observance of our third wedding anniversary. We missed the timely celebration due to Sim’s short-lived work assignment at the Fregate Island Private in Seychelles. Just a few days after the Christmas festivities’ euphoria, we’re still in high spirits as we came to Cebu City’s domestic airport. I am wowed and impressed with what I saw while inside the cab. It’s like I was still in Manila. The place is highly urbanized. Jim fetched us in front of the Cebu Doctor’s Hospital. Little did we know that the Saavedra residence is located in the bustling business district. I could see from the gate a tall building of the University of San Carlos. We visited Cebu in January so we were no longer surprised by the overwhelming influx of tourists and devotees to catch a glimpse of the phenomenal Sinulog Festival. We took advantage of setting foot to a number of historical landmarks and scenic places like Magellan’s Cross, Lapu-Lapu Shrine,Fort San Pedro, Buddhist Temple, Bethany Chinese School, Ayala Malls, and Shangrila Hotel. The Saavedras, our second family in the South gave us a welcome treat – a dinner to a cozy seafood restaurant, Ocean Garden. The “ituro mo, iluto ko” style of dining is so impressive because you’ll see before your very eyes how fresh the seafoods that are being served to you. Cebu is also known for its delicacies and dishes but for a food-lover like me, I guess nobody beats the mouth-watering and sinfully appetizing lechon in Cebu (especially the one bought from CNT). As expected, we got an overload of hospitality from Jim and Nice’s family. They introduced us to “puso” (cooked rice wrapped in coco leaves), sukang pinakurat, and biscuits found only in Cebu. And of course, our trip would not be complete without a souvenir item. We went to Lapu-Lapu City to buy a beautifully made guitar direct from the manufacturer - Master Guitar. We were delighted to acquire it at a much cheaper price. The Cebu tour is an enriching experience that truly counts in our memory bank. Just being with my husband Sim makes the whole experience worthy of reminiscence. It’s God who made everything wonderful and we saw how His mighty hand worked in this trip.