Trip to Cebu (end of May)

The end of May - We were able to go down to Cebu in the Southern Philippines for the open house of the Cebu City Temple. The dedication date is June 13th. It is a beautiful temple right on a main street of Cebu. We spent three days there and did a little touring. Cebu is the oldest "city" in the Philippines - established as a Spanish settlement by Magellan in 1571. {Note: I had too many pictures for one posting so there are three postings of pictures}

Marlon was able to go to Cebu with us.

Adjacent to the temple is a stake center, a three story building (below right) with temple patron housing, temple missionaries' apartments, Cebu Mission Office, distribution center and waiting area. The homes of the mission president and the temple president are also located on site. (to center back of the photo)

Cebu is a much smaller city than Manila but has a lot of tourism because you have to go through Cebu to go to Bohol and Boracay. Our hotel was up on a hill to the north so we had a great view of the city.

On one of our walks through the market place.

Notice the destination of the jeepney - I don't know where or what JONES was.

Trip to Cebu #2

Here are more pictures from our trip to Cebu City.

This is Fort San Pedro - built by Legaspi when he returned with Spanish reinforcements 40 years after Magellan. The original fort was wood but was replaced quickly with a stone fort.

The original well still has water in the bottom!

A group of students playing guitars, banduras and a "cello" like a bass guitar.
Dancer in native costume outside the fort.
I love the shell lights!!

This is the Basicilia of the Santa Nino (baby Jesus). The story is that Magellan brought a statue of Jesus as a child. It was left behind when the Spanish left after Magellans death. When Legaspi returned 40 years later, a tribe had found it and made a special shrine. The tribe was convereted to the Catholic Church and the statue is housed in the Basilica. (built in the 1600's)

Magellan's Cross is kept in a small rotunda next to the Basilica. Over the years so many people kept taking pieces off the cross that it is now encapsulated inside another cross.

The Cebu Cathedral dates to the mid/late 1700's.

The organ is one of the oldest organs in the Philippines still in existance. (many were destroyed during the bombing of WWII)

Trip to Cebu City #3

Here are more pictures from our trip to Cebu

We visited some of the remaining Spanish era houses. This one is from the late 1700's - Made of all wood with very open rooms and open beam ceiling. Notice the harps. There were 3 old European harps in the house.

This is Casa Gorordo - a well preserved home from the mid 1800's. The house is built with sliding panels so the rooms can be opened up and air can move through to cool the house. There are beautiful carved wood borders at the top of the panels.

The second floor had an open balcony running the entire length of the house.
This is an open courtyard with an old well and a carriage house.

This is the LapuLapu Monument in honor of King LapuLapu who killed Magellan when he tried to force the King's tribe to convert to the Catholic Church.

The monument is on the bay were Magellan first landed. This is one of the bancas (boats) up in "dry dock". The boys swimming in the bay are bold (Tagalog for "bare naked")

The Taoist Temple was built for the Chinese-Filipino population. It is located up on a hillside in northern Cebu City. The surrounding neighborhood has large homes and is called "Beverly Hills".

The dragons everywhere reminded me of the Eddy Murphy character in the Disney cartoon "Mulan".