✈ Cebu 2019 — 1-Day City with Uphill Tour Itinerary

I’m fresh from Cebu with my family today (we were there since Saturday) and I’ve decided to share about it as soon as possible~ It’s high-time I also update this space.

Well, back to our trip…

Mama and Papa’s main agenda was Simala and Sto. Nino but since we allotted 2 days at most, I figured we’d do a city tour first then conquer Simala on another day.

I rented a van for the 8 of us and our start was at 10:30 in the morning because we had to wait for my tita from Manila to arrive + we had to check into our AirBnB. It was actually gloomy then raining when we docked in Cebu and I was even tempted to reschedule! Good thing the weather picked up, although it also kept changing from hot to rainy then hot~

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 MAGELLAN'S CROSS & STO. NINO CHURCH 

Entrance Fee: FREE

  

The parentals bought their Sto. Nino here and they took their time *rolls eyes* so I dragged my sis and we took shots by the cross.

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 CEBU HERITAGE MONUMENT 

Entrance Fee: FREE

I was okay passing this up just to arrive and have lunch at Tops right on time but our driver / tourist guide suggested it was gonna be quick anyway. He's right ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

 Taoist Temple 

Entrance Fee: FREE

I’ve been here during our college field trip and the temple’s pretty much the same? Only difference is we went through a different entrance~ Well, I like my photos now too since I have a better camera? Lol I owe it all to my gear, yall.

  

  

  

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 TOP OF CEBU RESTAURANT 

The view deck thing is beside the restaurant and we didn’t bother going there anymore since the Cebu landscape was visible from the resto anyway. Basically, this was where our group had lunch. There was waiting – we were 4th in line – but it wasn’t major enough as we were seated in no time.

  

While waiting for our orders, sis and I went down to explore and then document.

  

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 SIRAO PICTORIAL GARDEN 

Entrance Fee: 50 PHP

From research, I knew there were already 2 Sirao gardens and this is the first one. The second one – Little Amsterdam – is further down the road and honestly, it was the one I was aiming for. The driver convinced me otherwise and I can’t believe I got swayed. Lol

These was his *arguments*:

• Entrance was only 50 PHP compared to 100 PHP

• Sirao Pictorial Garden apparently had bigger space and more “pakulo”

It’s not that I regretted my decision since this garden was really pretty but when I travel, I already have these target pictures and one (or many) would be in Sirao around those celosia flowers~

  

I can't stop laughing when I look at the above photo! Career! Hahahaha

  

♡( •ॢ◡-ॢ)✧˖° ♡

 MSDEA ORNAMENTAL GARDEN 

Entrance Fee: 60 PHP

This was a stubborn choice of mine; I wanted to fit it in as it’s new and photos online looked good. The place was very far from the highway though… And it was underwhelming but I definitely see its potential.

  

If only the garden’s filled with more flowers and color, it would be a sight to see. The business is just starting so I understand. And / or not much was in bloom!

By this point, we were en route to Terrazas de Flores but I told the driver to skip since we were pressed for time (tour only lasts for 8 hours) and I’d rather spend more time in picturesque Temple of Leah.

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 TEMPLE OF LEAH 

Entrance Fee: 50 PHP

Photoshoot instincts kicked in, of course! Photobombers were a given so best to snap, snap, snap away~ The inside of the temple wasn’t that enticing… I was better off taking shots at the veranda areas (or what do you call them? Lol) and / or by the stairs. I’m gonna let these below do the talking:

  

Now I wonder how Rome – Europe, in general – would look and feel like. Could I possibly even end up there in this lifetime?

  

♡( •ॢ◡-ॢ)✧˖° ♡

 TABOAN MARKET 

Here’s our last stop before being dropped at our AirBnB. You can shop for danggit and other pasalubong delicacies here. We bought Chorizo de Cebu to cook and devour in our unit!

Quickly, here’s our itinerary, in order:

• Magellan’s Cross
• Sto. Nino Church
• Cebu Heritage Monument
• Taoist Temple
• Top of Cebu Restaurant
• Sirao Pictorial Garden
• MSDEA Ornamental Garden
• Temple of Leah
• Taboan Market

Much time is spent on transit so I would recommend starting early or availing a tour with more hours~ I srsly enjoyed this getaway because I got a lot of beautiful photos of myself ㅋㅋㅋㅋ and I can finally tick Sirao and Temple of Leah (among others) off my bucket list!