UP Diliman: Fallen Fire Trees

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I went to UP Diliman last Friday to enroll myself as a special student once again. I knew I had to bring my camera with me because I had been wanting to photograph the campus' brilliantly red fire trees. I think it's the closest thing we have to Japan's cherry blossoms.


I found the fire trees, yes. But due to the strong winds during the past couple of days, the blooms of the trees had already fallen to the ground. Still, I clicked away. And here be the results.

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Cebu: Fort San Pedro

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The third destination in what turned out to be our historical tour of Cebu City is Fort San Pedro. The fort is in an area now known as Plaza Independencia, just walking distance from the Basilica de Sto. Niño and Magellan's Cross. Facing the front entrance of the basilica, walk down the street to your left. After about three blocks, you'll find the plaza and the fort's walls.


There is an entrace fee of 21 pesos. Well worth it, I think. The place is well-maintained (too maintained, if you ask me). They've developed the interiors into some sort of a park. Good thing the structures are still there. One old-looking building has been turned into a museum. Pity it was closed when we visited.


I discovered later that the fort was built by the orders of Miguel López de Legazpi himself. It's that old. The adelantado wanted a military fortification there in order to protect the then emerging Spanish settlement from raids and assaults. By the late 1800's, the historical site served as a stronghold for Filipino revolutionaries.


Again, walking into the fort, you wouldn't really see this "history." Mainly because the park/garden dominates the interiors. That isn't the case, though, when you climb up the fort's battlements. There are many staircases leading up to the walls, one even wheelchair-friendly. So do go up.


There you'll find stone walkways (again, very well-maintained), out-of-service cannons and some sort of a steel artillery storage bunker. Also, there is a concrete staircase leading to the rooftop deck of the front walls. An area higher than the battlements. From there, you'll have a view of a terracotta rooftop and, of course, the streets and buildings right outside the fort.


Before leaving, make sure you drop by the souvenir shops beside the entrance/exit gates. Aside from the keychains, necklaces and bracelets (which you can get personalized with your names, by the way), you might find there a blind man singing together with a young girl gifted with an amazing voice. They were singing some old songs. Some in Tagalog even. So listen and spare some change.

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Cebu: the Cross and the Basilica

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After visiting Bantayan Island in northern Cebu province, we made sure we also visited some of the more touristy sites of Cebu City proper. Hey, it has to be done. My goal was to find as much old Spanish Cebu as I can get. It is a very historical city this one. In fact, Cebu was for a time the capital of the Spanish colony here. Luckily, it did not disappoint.


First on our list, is, of course, Magellan's Cross. The first time I saw this landmark was in grade school, in a history textbook. So, walking into the small stone kiosk that houses it was actually the first time I was beholding it. Well, I expected something taller, but hey, it's tall enough.


The cross can be found in the heart of downtown Cebu City, along Magallanes Street, right in front of the city hall. As I discovered, though, no one will actually ever lay eyes on the original Magellan's cross. The original one has been encased inside this hollow wooden cross, reportedly done to prevent devotees from chipping off its wood, believing it to have healing powers.


Right beside the cross is the back entrance of one very big Catholic church. The Basilica Minore de Sto. Niño is said to be standing on the spot where a sculpture of a black Holy Child was found. Spaniards stumbled upon this Sto. Niño preserved in a burned wooden box left behind by Magellan's 1521 expedition.


Today, the black Sto. Niño is still there. We saw it inside the church, in a special room beside the altar, along with other things inside the basilica. Again, I could not shoot inside the church out of respect to the many devotees praying there. So, I contented myself on other interesting things I found. Trust me. There are many.


We found a well-maintained patio inside, which had this beautifully crafted wishing fountain. Walking inside the church again, I found this staircase whose intricate design amazed me. The balusters and the steps themselves were all beautifully sculpted from wood. I guess this is why I never actually fully resented religion. If it could inspire beautiful works of art like this one, why should I?

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Bantayan: The Spanish-Era Town Plaza

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After visiting Kota Park, in Bantayan Island, Cebu, we headed straight to the heartland of this small little island: the town plaza. This town plaza is very much what you'd expect of a Spanish-era town plaza. Around it, you'll find big colonial houses, the market and, of course, the iglesia.


The iglesia, now called the St. Paul and Peter Parish, was founded by Augustinian priests in 1580. Construction of the actual structure, however, started more than two centuries later in 1839, finished in 1863. It is said to be one of the oldest churches in the country. A magazine show even claimed it to be the oldest in the Visayas.


The design and details of this church was to me quite breathtaking. The façade is made of corral stones and decorated by intricate sculptures and reliefs. Beside it is the campanilla, the belfry, which, people claim, houses resounding bells that can be heard for miles.


I explored the church a little more and stopped myself from taking photos inside, as a mass was currently being held. I walked to the side doors and found myself on a tree-lined area, where, I suppose, Sunday-mass vendors would set-up and sell candles and other religious paraphernalia.


As I explored the town plaza a little more, I stumbled upon Bantayan's old Spanish-style colonial houses, typical of Spanish-era town plazas. We reckoned one decrepit about-to-become-in-ruins old structure was the former government building. Its walls looked very brittle and it already had holes on its roof. The sidewalk on which it stands, in fact, has been fenced off from pedestrians.


Fortunately, there are some of these old houses that have gone through restoration. We found one whose first floor was converted into commercial spaces. There was a salon, a jewelry store, an electronics store (which we didn't think existed in the island) and various other dry goods.




For other Bantayan-island entries, please see:
Bantayan: Blooms in May
Bantayan: The Historical Kota Park
Bantayan: Brilliant Blue Beach
Cebu: From the City to the Island

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Bantayan: Blooms in May

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No words. Just colors. :)













For other Bantayan-island entries, please see:
Bantayan: The Spanish-Era Town Plaza
Bantayan: The Historical Kota Park
Bantayan: Brilliant Blue Beach
Cebu: From the City to the Island

See the rest of the post here...

Bantayan: The Historical Kota Park

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WALK FLY PINOY:
Travel, Photography, Asia
www.walkflypinoy.com

On our second day in Bantayan Island, Cebu, we arranged for an inland trip. We hired a motorcycle taxi (like a Thai tuk-tuk) for the whole afternoon. There were four of us and we paid 200 pesos each. The taxi picked us up after lunch at a restaurant close to the resort and then, we were off.


Our first destination was Kota Park, located north of the island in the town of Madridejos, a small fishing village there. Our resort was located south of the island, so it was quite a drive to get there. It was pleasant, though. You will pass by Bantayan Island's rural landscapes, tree-lined roads and the island's commercial center.


As I found out later on through Cebu's official website, Kota Park, when it was built in the 1790's, served as a Spanish fort (kota, kuta = fort). It was used by the locals, to protect themselves from pirates, and by Spanish militiamen as a camp and a watchtower, given its strategic location at the northernmost tip of the island.


After the Spanish occupation, the fort became a public cemetery, making it the burial ground for many of the locals' departed beloved. It remained a public cemetery until the 1950's. Obviously now, the fort has been rehabilitated into a park. Still, inside the structure, we found relics and artifacts displayed in each of the four corners, including a tall wooden cross marking this fort's historical value to the island.


Past the fort, but still part of the park, is a small narrow beach. We were told by our tour organizer/guide that this is the place where the sun sets on Bantayan Island. We came here just right after lunch and there was still a lot of places to get to. So, obviously, we were not able to stay.


There is concrete footbridge connecting the shore to what seemed to be a "watch-balcony." Standing on this bridge, you will see from afar a cliff face marked with the name Madridejos. If you look below, you will see in the waters different types of jellyfish swimming around. There were black ones, lots of them, and blue ones. They looked bizarre and scary, but definitely a sight to behold.



For other Bantayan-island entries, please see:
Bantayan: The Spanish-Era Town Plaza
Bantayan: Blooms in May
Bantayan: Brilliant Blue Beach
Cebu: From the City to the Island

See the rest of the post here...

Bantayan: Brilliant Blue Beach

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WALK FLY PINOY:
Travel, Photography, Asia
www.walkflypinoy.com

Bantayan Island is a relatively large island located north of Cebu mainland. It's a good getaway place for Cebu-City dwellers because it's just a four-hour bus and boat ride away from this southern capital. We came here on a really small budget. Thanks in part to Cebu Pacific's 450-peso roundtrip Manila to Cebu fares, we were only set back 5,000 pesos all-in. Good, no?


While in the island, we stayed at Kota Beach. It is one of the resorts found in the southern part of the island. The beach is pretty decent. Admittedly, it isn't really the best beach I have ever been in. But I am sure that you will still find this beach serving you well on a hot summer day.


The waters are extremely inviting. From the beach to the horizon, you will be able to see different shades of tropical blue-green hues, something this archipelago of a country is known for. The view from there is vast. It is so vast that we were able to see rain clouds coming from afar. The rain poured for just about an hour, though. So everything was still good.


By the way, Kota Beach and it's adjacent resort share a sandbar. When the tide is high, water will come into the middle of the beach and form some sort of a kiddle pool, leaving a strip of sand beside the water. Because of its stillness and the heat of the sun, this pool can get relatively warm. So it'll be nice to try the water here, too.


If you're staying at this beach, take note that the sand is better past the hut with stone columns and balusters. From the resort, facing the beach, you will find this hut on the left. Past that hut, the sand is finer. Plus, only a few people bathe there. So you'll have a huge area all to yourself.


One final thing. This beach faces south-southeast. Thus, there will be no sunset here. You will see the sun setting on the far side of the island, not on the horizon. Fortunately, there is a sunrise. So sun-worshippers need to get up early to catch Bantayan's beautiful sun.



For other Bantayan-island entries, please see:
Bantayan: The Spanish-Era Town Plaza
Bantayan: Blooms in May
Bantayan: The Historical Kota Park
Cebu: From the City to the Island

See the rest of the post here...