Christmas in Cebu

Who would have thought that Christmas in Cebu, Philippines, would be so religious? When I booked my 4 day weekend getaway to this tropical city in the heart of the Central Visayas, Philippines, I certainly didn't expect it to be so marked by the religious celebration of Christmas. Then again, I should have known, as the famous Spanish ships of Magellan landed in Cebu almost 500 years ago, on April 14, 1521. A cross marks the spot where he landed and died shortly thereafter at the hands of the native chieftan Lapu Lapu.

Indeed, when we walked through the sprawling, incongruous city of Cebu, we encountered many people lighting candles and singing hymns outside and inside of massive churches and cathedrals. Even near our hotel, on the small, poor island of Mactan, the locals would call out Merry Christmas to us on Christmas day as well as a few days thereafter. Only the Koreans, who have taken over many of the businesses in and around Cebu, did not seem to be consumed by this religious fervor.

Besides this interesting cultural discovery, we spent our time eating much of the local food (basically grilled meat and seafood), laying out on the beach (small and relatively unimpressive as it was), and getting $3 massages. Yes, you read that right--the cheapest massages ever! You better believe we had more than one!

Overall, I had a delightful trip with two of my ABC (American born Chinese) friends. Just as in Boracay, Philippines, the locals were exceedingly polite and helpful when they weren't trying to cheat us--they thought I was a rich Westerner, as people in Asia tend to think all Westerners are rich, and they thought my friends were Korean. The beach in Boracay was much more beautiful though, and I recommend it more highly if that is what you are looking for.

Hope everyone had as interesting and fun of a Christmas as I had!!