I felt butterflies in my stomach while we were waiting for our flight to get called. It's my first time going outside Luzon. I felt like a tiny bird trying to fly outside its nest. I didn't actually know what to feel as I anticipated for the moment. A part of me wanted to call my loved ones, in case something bad happens to me during the flight and the other part of me was telling me to suck my gut in and just get over it.

Riding an airplane wasn't really bad or maybe I was just lucky we got a decent pilot. The travel was so smooth. I didn't have the time to get frightened or paranoid. I just started with a prayer, took a deep breath, and just laid my 100% trust on the pilot. Once I looked outside the window, then I knew... I was gonna love riding airplanes from then on.

Bokeh of city lights welcomed us. It's so surreal, that moment seemed infinite.

We arrived almost midnight. We were welcomed with cold breezes and unfamiliar faces trying to get past us. Apparently, there were more foreigners in the airport than us locals that night. We made our way out and surprisingly, taxis were lined up with drivers smiling from ear to ear. I've never seen drivers like them in Metro Manila. Maybe, that's one of the charms of Cebu. I was actually off to a good start. A definite plus point for Cebu.

We headed to Sampaguita Suites, which is strategically located in the heart of Cebu City.  The suite's okay. It's worth what you have paid for. But I have to say that the view outside was spectacular. You can actually see how Cebuanos live their normal daily lives.

The next morning, we went out early to start our journey. We first dropped by the Basilica del Menor Santo Nino. It's just a few steps away from where we stayed. Heard a few parts of the mass then made our way through the city with the help of our not-so-handy research.


Outside the cathedral lies Magellan's Cross. Unfortunately, the tourist spot's under some major reconstruction. We went inside and a few old ladies bombarded us with these colorful candles and they were talking in gibberish. In a moment of a knee-jerk reaction, I bought a full set of those candles.




With nothing but printed itineraries on our hands, we set foot on an incredible walkathon of our lives. We walked across of what I thought were "used-to-be-night clubs" and I took some snapshots. I love taking pictures of raw urban structures. It has a certain effect of realness and vulnerability to me.


 Clearly, we have not thought about how to get around the city. The public vehicles were marked with some kind of a route distinction. So what we did was to go back to basics, which was walking. Lots and lots of walking.

We first made our way to Malacanan sa Sugbo, which is a long pearl-white building topped with coral blue roofs. Nearby, is the Plaza Independencia and Fort San Pedro, with a museum that houses Lapu-Lapu's life portraits.






Then, we walked through some narrow streets to ride a jeepney.  Much to my surprise, a jeepney ride to the Cebu Provincial Capitol only costs 7 pesos though it's far from where we currently were. We passed by San Carlos University and I tried snapping some while on the road.

Colorful jeepneys everywhere. Love it.





White House just popped into my head when I saw this.

We stopped by the Cebu Provincial Capitol. There was a ceremony that time so we just took off and went to the nearest convenience store to buy some water. I was so parched from all the heat, I felt like all my bodily fluids were flushed all over my shirt... and shorts. After drinking the bottled water, we went off to continue are journey. It's still a long day ahead, but I have already felt that it's gonna be a great story once I have returned home.