Hi guys! This would be a short post on the trip I had last November 2022. Going on the trip, I didn't have the intention or any idea to post anything about it because even a few days before the actual travel, I wasn't so sure if we'd go through.
We planned this trip last June 2022, after going to my auntie's and nephew's combined birthday celebration. My cousins obliged me to stay for the night for an after-party drinking session. The following day before I went home, my cousin talked about planning a trip to Cebu to visit my cousin / her older sister (Ate Nene) who has been residing there for more than a decade. Just the right timing because Philippine Airlines has an ongoing seat sale promo. The day after that, I checked the price and available dates and immediately communicated with my cousin. In our initial discussion, it would be me, my mother, my aunt, and my cousin with her husband. Suddenly, it blew up and some cousins wanted to come with us too!
Then July and August came when my grandmother became sick then eventually passed away. During those times, I was sure my ticket would be wasted AGAIN. This was supposedly my fourth time going to Cebu. My first time was back in 2017--it was my first flight too--but it was because of work that there was barely any chance to go somewhere. The closest thing I got next to relaxation was having dinner with my cousin at Ayala Center Cebu. The second time should be last December 2018(?). My best friend from the US came here to the Philippines and invited me to go with them for a vacation. He already booked the tickets but I wasn't able to come with them. The third time was in January 2020 with my college friends. I also decided not to go because I just recovered from having measles. Even after Lola died, me and my mother were unsure if we should go on with the trip. On the one hand, we think it might look a little inappropriate considering we're still grieving, while on the other hand, we also need some time off to relax. So we decided to go on with the trip.
Cebu Day 1
It was raining when we arrived in Cebu at around 8 a.m. on November 18, 2022. My cousin picked us up from the airport, she already prepared almost everything; particularly the transportation, and accommodation. We didn't have to worry about anything for the entire trip including most of the expenses. (Thank you Ate Ne!) Upon arriving we went straight to an eatery that was suggested by the van driver for our late breakfast. Their main dish for the day was yellowfin tuna with soup. I forgot the exact name of the dish but it tastes like a combination of sinigang and tinola. It's delicious and fresh. We also ordered grilled tuna belly and grilled pork chop. After eating we went to have a road trip at CCLEX where the longest bridge here in the Philippines is located. Having a road trip at CCLEX Bridge was fun. There were almost no vehicles and we were literally driving in the middle of the sea. The view is amazing already despite the bad weather, I can only imagine how beautiful it would be to drive there on a sunny day. After having a roundtrip, we went on with our Cebu City day tour.
Magellan's Cross and Basilica del Santo Niño
One of the must-go places in Cebu City. It symbolizes the birth of Christianity in the country. Located in a plaza, Magellan's Cross Pavilion is a structure made of stone nestling the giant cross at the center with a background of mural paintings at the ceiling. The place is not that grand, and not many people can fit inside. It looks wider in pictures though. Some vendors in the area would offer to take pictures for tourists. Waiting to take a photo should be expected mainly if there are many visitors. I'm glad that I've finally seen it in person, but I didn't like that the surroundings were a bit busy. I don't know if it's just me but it feels to me like it's more of a tourist attraction rather than a symbol of something more spiritual. Anyways, across from it is where Basilica del Santo Niño is located. It's the oldest Roman Catholic church established in the Philippines. We lit some candles, entered the church, and prayed. It looks so old on the outside but the interior is quite good.
Heritage Park and Yap San Diego Ancestral House
Heritage Monument is located just a few meters away from Magellan's Cross. The sculptures depicted Cebu's history particularly the events during the Spanish colonization. The place is quiet and not that many tourists go there, because there's nothing much to do other than to take pictures. Yap-San Diego Ancestral House, on the other hand, is just located across Heritage Park. It's a two-story ancestral house that was built in 1675. The entrance fee is Php100.00 each. There's a tour guide or caretaker there who would give visitors some information about the house. The first floor has rough flooring that serves as a reception for guests, filled with many antic pieces of stuff. The second floor is basically the main house where there's a living room, dining room, and some bedrooms. Things there were antiques but unlike most of the ancestral houses where tourists were not allowed to touch anything, it's not that prohibited in Yap-San Diego Ancestral House. The caretaker actually said that the current owner sometimes sleeps in one of the bedrooms. It's quite impressive to see a house that has lived through several centuries. After our trip back in history, we proceeded to have our lunch (somewhere I forgot to take the name of but must be around Ayala Center Cebu).
Taoist Temple
As the name suggests, the Taoist Temple is a temple for Taoists or people who have Taoism as their religion, but non-worshipers are also welcome to visit. It is located in an uphill where the temple towers at the peak. The solemnity of the place and the scenic view from the top of the mountin, would really make someone meditate in no time. It's a perfect place to appreciate nature or simply ponder about life. It is filled with writings, sculptures, and religious symbols. Aside from the main worship temple, there are smaller worship structures around. Upon entering the main worship hall, there were various instructions on what should be done but since my companions were already going their way I just followed them in lighting a joss stick, kneeling, and making a wish. Later on, I learned that you're actually supposed to wash your hands, light the joss stick, ask a question/make a wish then throw the wooden blocks. Depending on the position of the blocks would determine the answer to the prayer/wish made.
Sachico's Little Kyoto
It's a tourist attraction that could get guests to have a glance at what it feels like to be in Kyoto, Japan. It's located in the mountains about an hour away from the city. We paid Php100.00 each for the entrance fee. The weather there was cold when we arrived. The place is astonishing, abundant with plants, flowers, and trees of different types and colors. There are signages, Japanese lanterns, and many more. It really felt like we were in some other place outside the Philippines. Reaching the top of the hill where the viewing deck is located involves climbing up stairs but even before reaching that, we're already caught up with various beautiful sites to take pictures of. Every side that could be caught by someone's eye is Instagrammable.
Temple of Leah
One of the famous attractions in Cebu City, and said to be Cebu's Taj Mahal, the Temple of Leah was our last destination for our first day in the Queen City of the South. It's located in the mountains too, allowing a great view of the city's skyline. The area outside the temple is spacious, set up with some tables and chairs near the balcony and the fountain at the center. Upon entering, the entire hallway is Roman-styled with different sculptures, paintings, and other details. There are chandeliers in the ceiling, the grandest one hanging above the center of the small grand staircase where the nine-foot bronze statue of Leah Adarna is built. While we were there, there was a group of musicians who were playing some instruments that added more elegance to the royal vibe. Really worth visiting!
Bohol Day tour
Going to Bohol from Cebu City only takes 2 hours riding a ferry, so we made sure to visit the province as well. We initially checked the schedule of the ferries going to and from Bohol and see which could match our schedule. We only bought our tickets that day when we'd be traveling to Bohol. There are three ports in Bohol where travelers can land from Cebu. We chose Tubigon which is the nearest and is located near the center of the province. My cousin got our IDs and filled in some details to buy our tickets. We proceed to the port/pier where we'll be riding the ferry. It's a small semi-old structure with a few LED TVs to check on the status of each ferry schedule, some food stalls, and long steel chairs where passengers can wait for boarding.
My cousin bought us a premium ticket which allowed us to sit in the airconditioned part of the ferry. It's actually my first time riding a ferry of that size that could allow a hundred passengers and could transport vehicles as well. It looks like a bus inside, except that it's larger, provides more seats, there's a snack store inside and a comfort room. The upper part is where the regular seats were. The view can be more appreciated there because of the open wide windows but the seats aren't that comfortable. After around 2 hours of travel, we arrived at Tubigon Port. There were only a few vessels and passengers there. We were fetched by our rented van to proceed to our first destination in Bohol. After grabbing our breakfast at the nearest McDonald's near the port, we traveled going to Chocolate Hills.
Chocolate Hills
It was rainy weather when we arrived at Bohol. Seeing the Chocolate Hills in photos, I thought the hills were located in a single place but the hills were almost spread everywhere. We first stopped over an ATV Rental Store where tourists could rent an ATV to go around the hills but we didn't try it because the weather made the soil muddy. We only bought a few souvenirs there. Afterward, we went to the Chocolate Hills viewing deck located on top of a hill reachable by stairs. The viewing deck has a wide area that can provide a 360 view of the famous tourist attraction. It was a bit foggy and cloudy when we arrived there so the hills weren't that visible on the camera. Thankfully after a while, the sun peeked for a few minutes and we were able to capture good pictures of the hills.
To see the Chocolate Hills in person is such a fantastic experience. I initially thought the hills were man-made because how could those only exist in a particular place in Bohol?
Bohol Tarsier Conservation Area
Next in our Bohol City Day Tour is the Bohol Tarsier Conservation Area. It's a forest specifically secluded to take care of tarsier. During that time, there was a total of 6 tarsiers in the conservation area. Since it was daytime, tourists were told to try not to make loud noises because it was the time the little nocturnal mammals were sleeping. The use of camera flash isn't allowed either. It's hard to spot the tarsiers because of their small size but we saw all six of them. Tarsiers don't look that pretty because of their big eyes but they feel so soft and harmless. There's a picture-taking spot where tourists could ask the staff to take a photo together with the tarsier.
Bilar Man-Made Forest
According to the internet, The Bohol Mahogany Forest is a dense forest stretching two kilometers along the border of Loboc and Bilar towns in Bohol. The forest is mainly made up of white and red mahogany trees. It is part of a reforestation project started over 50 years ago. It's a must-go place in Bohol, too. The trees were planted on both sides of the road that could form an arch. It was said that because Bohol was heavily destructed during Typhoon Odette, some of the trees fell down and the forest doesn't look fuller than it was. Still looked good to me though. Taking pictures in the area is a challenge because many vehicles are passing by the road.
Floating Restaurant
Also one of the famous attractions in Bohol is the River Floating Restaurant, where we had our late lunch. There were actually two floating restaurants in Bohol, one was in Loboc (which is the more popular) and one in a nearby town in Loay. The van driver recommended the latter stating that it's less crowded compared to Loboc and offers a wider variety of foods. It doesn't look like the floating restaurant actually exists in that establishment outside. We walked on a pathway that was made of rafts built together, then we were welcomed by a larger area where a few chairs were lined up on one side near the entrance to the boat and dancers performing tinkling on the far right side. Their menu for the day is written on a blackboard. We waited for quite a couple of minutes before we rode the roofed raft covered with more than 10 tables inside. The food is served at a long table at the center, with the deck on one side and the performing band on the other. When all the food was served, we proceeded to get our food. Their menu for the day consisted of soup, rice, 6 Filipino dishes, desserts, and fruits. We enjoyed devouring our lunch while being entertained by the musicians and the amazing view of the river. A few moments later, the boat started cruising. The serene view of the river as the boat drifted under the light of the sun that was about to set felt so relaxing and peaceful. The cruise took about 15-20 minutes.
Bohol Butterfly Park
Located in the municipality of Bilar is this butterfly sanctuary. Like most of the sanctuaries, it was a garden full of different flowers and plants entirely covered in net. Someone can explore the place at once since it's relatively small. The friendly staff helped us roam around, shared a few know-how, and helped us take photos. There were not many butterflies when we arrived so we weren't able to enjoy much of their company. The entrance fee to the Butterfly Sanctuary is Php 100.00.
Sikatuna's Mirror of the World
Our last stop for the day was Sikatuna's Mirror of the World which exhibits scaled-down versions of world-famous landmarks or structures such as the Eiffel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Statue of Liberty, Big Ben of London, Merlion of Singapore, and the lot more. The place is so big and the entire panoramic landscape is Instagram-worthy. It's like an exhibit of some of the famous attractions in the world. Apart from the structures, there were monuments and decorative details of the place being featured. There's even a tiny actual bridge that depicts the Golden Gate Bridge of San Francisco. There's a Hollywood or "Bohollywood" sign standing on a hill that has a miniature of the Christ the Redeemer statue of Rio de Janeiro on top on the further right of the park and the Big Ben and Acropolis on the further left side. Although the place is well-lit, I wish we arrived there a little earlier to further enjoy the attraction in broad daylight. The entrance fee to the park is Php100-150.00
Cebu Day 3
It was almost 2 a.m. when we arrived back in our hotel after our jampacked day tour in Bohol, so we decided to rest for Day 3. Most of us were lacking sleep and our initial plans to go to Moalboal went to scratch anyway because the place we were looking to book was to be used by a public official. I expected the trip to be laid-back anyway because my company was all older than me and most of them weren't used to a grueling trip packed to suit all itineraries in a few days. We woke up later than usual and had our lunch in a nearby eatery that specializes in cooking chicken inasal and pork bbq. We went back to our hotel to rest for quite a bit again before going to SM Seaside Cebu for our pasalubong shopping. We decided to shop there because my cousin already asked someone to buy us danggit and pusit and we only need to buy a few delicacies which were already available in the supermarket. Although it was pricier than if we went to a local market, it was more convenient for us. After buying shirts and pasalubong, we also went to Sky Park to enjoy the view of Cebu's city lights. It was nice to see both the sea and the city at the same time. We went back to our hotel after having our dinner and capped off our night with a mini-drinking session in one of the rooms.
Cebu Day 4
For our last official itinerary at Cebu City, we went to Tambuli Seaside Resort and Spa for a day tour. Their weekday tour rate is Php1,800 per pax with a portion consumable for food. The place is quite expensive, their reception in an open spacious area with soft cusions and a few tables on the waiting area. The swimming pools are located just across the reception area while the beach is a few more walks away. While all the resort's amenities looked fancy, it doesn't look that much on the beach since the shore area is small because it is divided by the resorts. The beach area is almost made of white small stone instead of sand. There was cliff area though that's more sandy and where the view is prettier. We first settled on the beach where there were beach chairs, tables and umbrella. It felt like we rented the entire resort because there's no one else there except us. The resort offers a kayak that is free of use, and which we used up to our hearts content. After a while, we've decided to ride the banana boat. It was my first time to actually ride it since the one I've experienced before is the flying fish. We were very cautious and told the staff not to let us fall in the sea. I'm a bit anxious too since it's been a while I've done those kinds of activities. My anxiousness subsided when we started sailing. I looked up in the sky, in the water surrounding us and in the inland that's becoming smaller as we go further in the sea. Being in the sea really just helps me forget my worries for a while, much more being in the middle of it. The banana boat ride stopped in the middle and let us swam there for a couple of minutes. It was an enjoyable and refreshing ride. After that, we went to have our lunch and swam more in the swimming pool.
That's it for our Cebu-Bohol travel last 2022! As I've mentioned, I initially didn't intend to publish a post about the trip because I can't share much details or information about it as my cousin prepared mostly everything. However, for the sake of documenting it and just to post something after missing for a while I willed myself to finish this. It was also my first legit travel to Cebu (deserving of a post here). But then again I'm planning on going back there to explore the city more because our vacation was concentrated on the city itself only. There's more places to visit and one vacation couldn't just be enough.
See you on my next! 
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