My First Mass for '09

i had the time of my life when i wen to the Sto. Nino Basilica to hear mass. The novena is said each day until Sunday whne the big feast will happen and thousands upon thousans flock at the basilica to say their prayers and pay homage to the Sto Nino. It was a sight seeing all the devotees of all ages waving their hands to the Holy Child. It has been a long time since i have heard mass and I am glad I did. Somehow, my feet carried me to Colon and down the Basilica without any plans at all of going there.

And i took pics!

THE CROWN OF CEBU

Cebu's tallest building is also its tallest Christmas tree. The Crown Regency hotel and Suites boasts of its flickering neon lights that runs up and down and around its sides that anyone who'd manage to glance up would notice the towering edifice at night. It is flamboyant and ostentatious, as if telling anyone who glances the building in envy, 'Your month's electricity bill is worth our day's use for the lights alone". But yes, it is a sight at night and people waiting for jeepneys would strike a pose just about anywhere along Jones with the landmark as background.

I have also watched more than week ago in a local TV Show the Edge Coaster on the top of the skyscraper. The coaster ride goes around the edge of the topmost part of the building - probably the roofdeck. Surely, the view must be fantastic from there during sunset and at night - the whole of cebu in 360 degrees. Hmmmm, i saw the ad of the ride and it said it costs P800 per person which already includes a buffet dinner. I'm not sure however if the ride is the freebie or the food is...tsk tsk...

I have been telling friends about it and everyone is suddenly all interested. I told them how much it costs. They never spoke about the ride since.

KRISMAS NA SA SUGBO...

well, we're down to the last 28 days of 2008 and its another year again. i am not that giddy of the whole new year thing, i noticed. i have become less hopeful about my future, not to mention the future of this country. i am still glad though that there is that part of me who tries to hang on to that little spark of hope. maybe because i still wanna live. Ergo, i struggle to survive. i'm still keeping that teeny weeny hope under my sleeves. life hasn't been all that bad to me and i have more than a handful of lessons that i learned this year. but yes, i am the most forgetful person so i surely couldn't remember all of them. and since this isn't really a blog about lessons, i will spare you from that harangue.

it's christmas...hmmm almost. i am sad that the only carols i hear in Cebu so far are those of the out-of-school youth that hijacks jeepneys and sing their piece of 'Pasko na Naman' which would put you in shame if you give just a peso. Their songs literally demands 5 pesos. It's funny that everytime they jump on a jeepney and sing their carol, everyone inside the vehicle has something very important to do - checking their phones,texting, fixing their hair, changing the songs on their ipods and some just pretend to doze off or just stare blankly out of the window. Dedma. Well, i am one of them when i don't have a penny to spare. hahaha...I miss the carols on the radio that wakes me up at dawn when Christmas day is fast approaching. Especially the Max Surban song about the Krismas Tree... I might just have to visit the mall to hear it if that's even played there...ts tsk...

and so the jeepney speeds through jones avenue and approaches Fuente Osmena...it's Max Surban's giant Xmas tree you'll see.

the giant Xmas tree was lighted on the first day of December. fireworks and all, the hoopla gathered people inside the Circle and caused a humongous traffic. I took a few photos. it's hard getting photos using the cam i'm using because it's nighttime and the tree is a bit far from where i was doing the clicking. While taking the photos, some professional photographers not so far away were flashing their Nikons and Canons - professional cameras with all the lengthy accessories. My camera paled in comparison and retreated back to my pocket. I swore I will have that cam one day. Hehehe....

PASSERBY - ala lang, labay lang

Passing by the Sto. Nino Basilica, the Magellan's Cross, the Cebu City Hall and Fort Santiago, I took some snapshots again. i liked most the photos of the two old ladies selling candles. i felt a tug in my heart seeing them there under the heat of the sun working to the bone when their bodies are too old for it. . But then again, i was glad they're not one you see begging for pennies. Oprah should give them a vacation in that Tucson, Arizona Spa featured in one her show episodes where she gave some 50 women a treat of a lifetime for being such formidable forces in another person's life. Well, she ain't seen our ladies at the Sto Nino church. Somebody should write Oprah real quick...








and yes, i was only passing by all of them...LOL...

TULAY ni KA MARCELO

(Sidenote: Remember how Cebuanos are so lazy to pronounce the letter L so that balay is pronounces as ba'ay, wala as wa, batikolon as batikon and so on? The list is endless but Cebuanos never fail to pronounce the word TULAY as it is...hmmmm? what possibly could it mean?)

In a truly unplanned trip, i and three other friends - Nanoi, Diane and Eric - went to the Marcelo Fernan Bridge. It was not some big trip idea but that which randomly pops up and beats your ass to keep that feet moving instantly.







It was my first time to be under such humongous bridge and be on top of it. There is a nice small park under the bridge which i noticed is pretty popular hangout of lovebirds. we did a little videoke in a small sari-sari store where diane belted almost all Regine songs effortlessly. when dark cam, it was time to go. But not until we have crossed the bridge from Mactan island to Cebu. Yes, we walked across the bridge and took pics along the way. It was a such an experience. i probably won't be able to do that again. the Cebu city nightscape is breathtaking.

i was tired. but it was worth each sweat.

As i learned, the bridge was named after former Senate President and Supreme Court Justice Marcelo Fernan - a true-blue Sugbuanon and the only Filipino to date who has the distinction of having occupied the highest positions of two separate branches in the government. the bridge was opened in August 1999 and is 1237 meters (4058.40 feet) in length and is 185 meters (606.96 feet) high at its center. Thanks go the bridge, traveling to Mactan is not so much a hassle.Well, the fare still is...tsk tsk..

The TERRACES at AYALA

Competition is good. SM opened the North Wing a few months ago and it was spacious with its high ceilings, wide alleys and high-end shops that I could only afford to peep from their shiny glass windows. My meager salary ain't enough ticket to even look at those pricey tags. Duty Free also recently opened its doors to those who have passports to get inside and dollars to spend on chocolates that could otherwise be found in the supermarket. Bread Talk had also got people talking about the prevailing price of flour and sure, coffeeshops is almost everywhere like a painful reminder that i can only afford to drink the free coffee at the office pantry. Thank god there is Powerbooks!

Well, Ayala seemed to notice most people are flocking at SM recently. And so they came up with The Terraces - an extension to the the jigsaw puzzle architecture of the Ayala Center. The Terraces boasts of its ambiance. The park feel of the area is an easy spot to lounge around for people who don't really have cash to spend in the mall, errr like me. At least the designers were kind enough to consider the fact that, really, most of the people who go to the mall are simply window-shopping or just cooling the steam off their heads brought about by the increasing world temperature due to pollution. And so there are a few Talisay trees around, a carefully maintained garden and nice sights of the Cebu skyscrapers. Coffee shops are virtually everywhere. Food is in all directions. It is a well-planned design, I thought. Most people think so too.






Now, i can go to the mall without having to worry i am not bringing a paper bag from one of its shops. I can just sit around the its garden, ponder about life, get lost among the people and go home. if budget permits, i can always go upstairs and watch a good movie..tsk tsk...or better yet, just keep my fingers clickin' on my cam..

SIMALA - Hallowed Ground

these pictures were taken by me using Sigrid's digicam way back last summer I think....i have always promised myself to post this when i could but couldnt seem to remember where i saved them...at last, i found them again!!...yipeee....

taken at SIMALA, a popular Mama Mary Shrine located an hour south of Cebu City..it was my first time to visit the place. i heard it is teeming with people on sundays.. there were lots of people still when we were there - and it was a weekday..stories say the place is miraculous. it did feel light when i was there. the altar inside the chapel smells of fresh flowers... there wasnt any flower at the altar at all - yes, they say its something no one can seem to explain....

in a newspaper months back, i saw a photo of Gloria visiting the place...hey, the place is pretty popular, u should visit it soon!!!

i promised i will be going back...i dont know when yet but i definitely will...

"PWENTE" - The Heart and Soul of Cebu

The Fuente Osmena Circle, Pwente as commonly referred to by locals, can never be missed when you are in Cebu. Located in a rotunda where the main avenues of Metro Cebu meet, the fountain in the midst of the park is a daily sight of commuters. It has its own share of contributions to the local history of the city. To this day, it remains one of the most important landmarks where cebuanos flock to exercise their freedom.

The circle is the soul of cebu city - like an eye of a storm, it provides calm to those who take their time inside the circular park to relax under the shade of trees while the whole city around goes through its daily hustle and bustle...

The photos were taken one unlikely afternoon--- unplanned, very humid and not really the best time to go out...tk tsk...well, im not complaining....