Revisiting Cebu

I’ve spent a couple of summers in Cebu when Dad was assigned here. I was a kid then. Small kid. Literally. All of my memories of Cebu are so vague that I hardly recognize the city.

I came to Cebu to visit Ate Chelle, Kuya Nin, Nate and Chloe. They’re here to be with Ate Chelle’s dad who was recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer (and is now with the Lord, God bless his soul – he died a couple days after I left).

It was nice to be with them in a different setting. We are always together in their house in Wilson or our house in Raleigh or in a place where we’re always comfortable. It was fun to experience something out of our comfort zones.

One day, Cebu was hit with a blackout. There was no electricity for 4 hours between 9am – 1pm. There was no water either since their water is supplied by use of electricity. It was hell! Hahahaha. We didn’t know what to do with ourselves. It was hot and it was hard to find relief. Kuya Nin placed himself under the mango tree. I, on the other hand, embraced the heat because I couldn’t do anything about it. We celebrated the return of electricity and water by taking a shower and going to the mall.

We only really made 2 significant trips while we were there since Ate Chelle and her sister went to the hospital every day. Kuya Nin is left with the 7 kids – his two and Ate Nelle’s five. What a handful, eh?

Our first trip was to Tabo-an – the dried fish capital of the Philippines. (I just made that up. Haha. But I’m pretty sure it is though unofficially since Cebu is known for dried fish and Tabo-an IS the place to go for dried fish) ANYWAY. We were there for quite a bit. It was fun and weird being surrounded by such a large volume of dried fish. It was hot and stinky because we were in the middle of the market where the prices are cheaper compared to the stalls by the main road. I was proud of the kids because they didn’t complain about the smell or the heat. They just sat quietly in their chairs. Maybe, they were in such awe of their surroundings – thinking “What is this place?” Hahaha. Or maybe they were just too tired to say anything.

We went to the mall after Tabo-an. The smell of the dried fish was so strong such that a saleslady at a souvenir store couldn’t help but ask Kuya Nin, “Sir, galling ho kayo ng Tabo-an?” (Sir, did you just come from Tabo-an?) We were so embarrassed by our shirts’ smell that we gladly bought our souvenir shirts and changed into them. Hehe!

Of course, what would be a balikbayan’s mall trip without paying homage to Jollibee? So, we did our rightful duty and ate at Jollibee. I had a Jolly Hotdog – an all-time childhood favorite and shared this moment with Nathan as it was his first. Kuya Nin had the classic Chickenjoy. It was fun to watch him savor his food – with matching closed eyes. I swear, my love for Jollibee is on another level. I’m in heaven when I’m queuing and getting a wonderful headache because of the many wonderful selections. Ordering is a process. I have to get in touch with my appetite and discern which Jollibee entrée will satisfy me the most. I feel so strongly about Jollibee that I am compelled to write a love letter to its customer service email just because I really do love love love Jollibee. Hahahaha! And I’m sure I won’t be the first to do this.

Our other significant trip was to the Sto. Niño Church which houses the image of the Sto. Niño (Infant Jesus) that miraculously survived a fire that burned everything but the image. We also went to Magellan’s cross – planted by Magellan himself when he first landed in the Philippines in April 1521. We also went to the Sto. Niño Museum where they keep the regalia worn by the Sto. Niño image during its feast day for the past n years. They also had books from the Spanish times. They had this Cebuano dictionary for the Spaniards and it was fun for me to understand both languages. I was very fascinated by the dictionaries and the fact that they were so old.

Fun fact: Nate and Chloe are descendants of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi – the most successful voyager/explorer sent by the Spanish King to the Philippines. It was he who named the archipelago Filipinas after King Felipe II – the king who sent him.