🇵🇭 Philippines

  Simala Parish Church, Sibonga, in Cebu is known as Simala Shrine, Simala Church, Mother Mary Castle Church, Birhen sa Simala, Mama Mary Shrine of Simala, and Miraculous Mama Mary Church. Its real name is Monastery of the Holy Eucharist, and although it’s not the oldest Church or the Holiest Church in Cebu, it’s one of the most well-known and most visited new Churches in Cebu. For believers, Simala Church is said to be a solemn place to reflect, and a visit will give your life more perspective. Described by many as one of the most beautiful Churches in Cebu, Simala Shrine is a place of pilgrimage for devotees. Known as the Miraculous Mother Mary Church after the Virgin Mary statue housed within the Shrine was seen crying, it attracts hundreds of people every day hoping their prayers will be answered. Visitor Information: Entrance Fee: FREE Parking Fee: P20 – P50 Opening Hours: 8am – 8pm Toilets on site: Yes – pay P20 Food/Drinks for sale: Outside the Church, there are a fe...

  About ten kilometers away from downtown Cebu, a popular destination among tourists sits on top of the summit of Mt. Busay in Lahug. Tops Lookout or simply Tops to locals is an observatory deck and a picnic place overlooking the city of Cebu, Mandaue, and Mactan Island. On top of the mountain, an interesting concrete fortress-like structure can be found where small stores, bars, and cafés are located. There are small benches around the deck where tourists can relax and breathe in all of nature’s glory. What to Do Families, groups of friends, couples, or even solo travelers have a wonderful time in Tops. Tourists enjoy a picturesque view of the entire city of Cebu, even the coast of Bohol. The view of the sunset from the mountain is spectacular so tourists appreciate its beauty while drinking in the company of family or friends. Food and drinks are available at the snack bars but guests who prefer to bring their own food and drinks may do so. There is also an available grilling...

  Colon Street Colon Street is often called the oldest national road in the Philippines as it was built in 1565 during the Spanish colonial period. It got its name from Cristobal Colon, who is more widely known as Christopher Columbus. Under the leadership of Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, the street was developed and became the center of commercialization in Cebu. Colon was where the first few business establishments like movie houses, fashion shops, and offices were built in Cebu. It was also where social events were mainly held. Universities were built near Colon Street as well, such as the University of San Carlos, the University of Cebu, and the University of San Jose-Recoletos. The charm of Colon was never lost and forgotten when it comes to bargain shopping and quality service. It has now become the go-to place for shoppers who are in search of good value for money. Shops along Colon Street are now known for quality goods sold at cheap prices like jewelry and ready-to-wear clo...

  The Fuente Osmeña is a heritage site strategically located in the heart of uptown Cebu city, along Jones Avenue and General Maxilom Avenue.  The rotunda park is named after President Sergio S. Osmeña the fourth President of the  Philippines from 1944 to 1946 in commemoration of his service and contribution to the city and  the country. He was the patriarch of one of Cebu’s prominent political families.  Feature of the Fuente Osmeña  The Fuente Osmeña features a century-old fountain at the center of the park. The fountain was  built-in 1912 during the inauguration of the city’s first waterways system.  Today, this picturesque landmark serves a variety of purposes from early joggings and daytime  picnics to evening parties. It has become a venue for different social events, political gatherings,  and cultural activities including the Sinulog Festival  Feast  Apart from its historical value, Fuente Osmeña is the center of all ...

  This is the barangay "that never sleeps". The numerous open-air tiendas where people converge to drink, talk and sing in merriment, do not close until early dawn. By the time these people go to sleep, fishermen or fishertraders start preparing to go out to the seas or to the market. Jose Raymond Reyes described Pasil in his write-up " The Fishy Business of Pasil" At two in the morning, Pasil begins to teem with people. Large tin tubs of fish are the orders of the day for the eager customer. The place begins to smell of sea and sweat. But for the fish vendors, it's just another early morning at the market. Pasil's market's early beginnings were traced to a few "sakayans" or outrigger boats trading fish along the shore behind Plaza Gines. The area was reclaimed before the war and the market was erected... Pasil has become a byword, from the kitchens of the filthy rich to sidewalk grills of food stalls. According to Manuel C. Enriquez, C...

  Crossing the longest bridge n the Philippines. Cebu Cordova bridge. The 8.5km-long Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEx), is the country's longest and tallest bridge. The expressway links Cebu, the second-largest city in the Philippines, with Cordova on Mactan Island. CCLEX is built by Cebu Cordova Link Expressway Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary by the Manuel Pangilinan-chaired Metro Pacific Tollways Corp., in partnership with the Cordova municipality and Cebu City. It's a Php. 33-billion project, which measures almost nine kilometers, is considered as one of the country's largest infrastructure projects. The CCLEX is highlighted by is iconic crosses on top of the twin pylons of the cable-stayed main bridge over the Mactan Channel to highlight Cebu’s title of being the Cradle of Christianity in the Far East.

  F E R D I N A N D   M A G E L L A N Ferdinand Magellan (1480 – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer who organized the Spanish expedition to the East Indies from 1519 to 1522, resulting in the first circumnavigation of the Earth, completed by Juan Sebastián Elcano. Born into a Portuguese noble family in around 1480, Magellan became a skilled sailor and naval officer and was eventually selected by King Charles I of Spain to search for a westward route to the Maluku Islands (the "Spice Islands"). Commanding a fleet of five vessels, he headed south through the Atlantic Ocean to Patagonia, passing through the Strait of Magellan into a body of water he named the "peaceful sea" (the modern Pacific Ocean). Despite a series of storms and mutinies, the expedition reached the Spice Islands in 1521 and returned home via the Indian Ocean to complete the first circuit of the globe. Magellan did not complete the entire voyage, as he was killed during the Battle of Mactan...

  Mactan Shrine, also known as Liberty Shrine, is a memorial park on the island of Mactan in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, Philippines. It hosts two monuments, namely the Magellan Monument, which is dedicated to Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan and the Lapu Lapu Monument, a bronze statue that commemorates Lapu Lapu, a native leader who defeated Spanish soldiers led by Magellan in the 1521 Battle of Mactan. The Lapu-Lapu memorial statue is on top of a pedestal surrounded by a low-level fence and shows the Cebuano hero in his native costume with a sword in his right hand and a shield in his left. The Lapu-Lapu Shrine is inside a plaza commonly known as the Magellan Shrine park that commemorates the events of the Battle of Mactan. Thousands of foreign and local tourists visit the park every year. The park includes the Magellan Shrine, a covered structure that houses a huge mural painting of the Battle of Mactan, and a commemorative marker. The covered structure in the park houses a...

  Lapulapu or Lapu-Lapu   (1491–1542), whose name was first recorded as Çilapulapu, was a datu (chief) of Mactan in the Visayas in the Philippines. He is best known for the Battle of Mactan that happened at dawn on April 27, 1521, where he and his warriors defeated the Spanish forces led by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan and his native allies Rajah Humabon and Datu Zula. Magellan's death ended his voyage of circumnavigation and delayed the Spanish occupation of the islands by over forty years until the expedition of Miguel López de Legazpi in 1564. Legazpi continued the expeditions of Magellan, leading to the colonization of the Philippines for 333 years. Modern Philippine society regards him as the first Filipino hero because of his resistance to imperial Spanish colonization. Monuments of Lapulapu have been built all over the Philippines to honor Lapulapu's bravery against the Spaniards. The Philippine National Police and the Bureau of Fire Protection use his image...

  The Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral , officially known as the Metropolitan Cathedral and Parish of Saint Vitalis and of the Immaculate Conception (dedicated to Mary, under her title, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception and to Saint Vitalis of Milan), 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. Before being raised as a primatial church in Cebu, the church was one of the first churches in the Philippines (besides the Basilica del Santo Niño) dedicated to St. Vitalis and built near the fort in April 1565 by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, Fray Andrés de Urdaneta, and Fray Diego de Herrera. Construction of the cathedral took many years due to frequent interruptions, brought about by lack of funds and other unexpected events. At one time, funds meant f...

  Fuerte de San Pedro is a military defense structure in Cebu (Philippines), built by the Spanish under the command of Miguel López de Legazpi, the first governor of the Captaincy General of the Philippines. It is located in the area now called Plaza Independencia, in the pier area of the city. The original fort was made of wood and built after the arrival of Legazpi and his expedition. In the early 17th century a stone fort was built to repel Muslim raiders. Today's structure dates from 1738 and is the oldest triangular bastion fort in the country. It served as the nucleus of the first Spanish settlement in the Philippines. During the Philippine Revolution at the end of the 19th century, it was attacked and taken by Filipino revolutionaries, who used it as a stronghold. The fort is triangular in shape, with two sides facing the sea and the third side fronting the land. The two sides facing the sea were defended with artillery and the front with a strong palisade made of wood. T...

  The Plaza Independencia ("Independence Plaza") is a Spanish colonial-era plaza in Cebu City. Various names have been used to refer to the Plaza Independencia throughout its history. In the 17th century, it was known as the Plaza de Armas and later the Plaza Mayor. In the later part of the Spanish colonial era in the Philippines, the civic space was referred to as the Plaza Maria Cristina, in honor of Queen Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies. Sometime during the American colonial period of the first half of the 20th century, the square was known as the Plaza Libertad. The plaza’s current name was adopted sometime before the start of World War II. The Plaza Independencia grounds feature a historic triangular fortification known as the Fort San Pedro. It also has a monument which was built in honor of Spanish navigator Miguel López de Legazpi, who also became the first Governor-General of the Philippines and a fountain. It also has other monuments dedicated to other figur...