Day 2 (Saturday): Philippine Taoist Temple, Mountain View Park, Mr. A Bar & Restaurant and K1 Family KTV
Views
Note: This is the second of my three-part post about my Cebu trip last 19-22 September 2008. You can read the first part (Day 1) here.
After participating in the Make Your Own Havaianas Event at the North Wing of SM City Cebu, Edwin, Taps and I had a late lunch at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (CBTL). I treated them using the P1,000 worth of gift cert I got during a CBTL workshop I attended months ago.
We stayed there for a few hours while waiting for Chivs and John Paul who took us on a South stroll. Cebu City is divided into two congressional districts: Northern and Southern. The former is composed of 46 barangays while the latter has 34.
PHILIPPINE TAOIST TEMPLE
Our first stop was the Philippine Taoist Temple where a group of monks live and practice their religion. According to our friends, it is one of the sites in Cebu City most frequented by tourists. The worship center is located in a high-end subdivision called Beverly Hills, a few kilometers away from the city proper.
Climbing the 99 steps of the grand stairs leading to the main temple is not a simple feat. But go ahead unperturbed and you'll soon be rewarded with a panoramic view of the city.
The place was solemn and you could actually feel it. On normal days, you could light joss sticks and say your wishes. If you're more on the astrology side, you could have your fortune read by the monks. But since it was a Saturday and nearing dusk, we never got around to actually try those things. The guard on duty started refusing visitors when the clock struck six.
Admission at Philippine Taoist Temple is free but I think the monks would appreciate donation from generous people. After all, the place was founded and is being supported by the Chinese community in Cebu.
To get there, you could ride on a habal-habal (motorcycle) or bring your own private vehicle. In our case, we were fortunate to have friends who had cars. It was all a smooth ride.
Philippine Taoist Temple
Beverly Hills, Cebu City
MR. A BAR AND RESTAURANT
We had dinner at Mr. A Bar and Restaurant in Busay, Cebu City. It was a sumptuous dinner on top of a hill shared with good company.
Read my review of the restaurant complete with food photos here.
Mr. A Bar & Restaurant
Sitio Maasmum, Busay
Lahug, Cebu City
(032) 232-5200
MOUNTAIN VIEW PARK
To burn the calories, we strolled some more and got to Mountain View Park. It is an enormous nature park owned and operated by a wealthy business clan in Cebu.
Amenities include rented rooms, camp sites, rope bridges, picnic groves, cottages, restaurants, small eateries, karaoke machines at P5 ($1.08) per song, playgrounds and comfort rooms (built-in and portables), among others.
As the name suggests, the place is also overlooking the mountains and the city. It's quite cold up there so protect yourself by wearing a sweater or a hooded jacket. That night, it felt like Baguio. Or maybe it was just me when my attention was caught by the pine trees standing by the roadside.
Admission fee is P50 ($1.08) which is paid at the entrance gate. Again, the mode of transportation to get there is habal-habal (motorcycle). For convenience though, you might want to consider renting a car or ask your Cebu-based friend with wheels to drive for you.
Mountain View Park
Sitio Gorohe
Busay, Cebu City
(032) 231-5444 / (032) 231-5454
K1 FAMILY KTV
After the awesome view of the mountains, we headed to Crossroads to soak in Cebu's colorful night life. We entered K1 Family KTV and started belting out songs one after another. At first I was shy to sing but several hits later, I finally gave in. I enjoyed each song by not minding the quality of my voice (or the lack thereof).
The rates are reasonable. You pay P250 or $5.43 (Sunday to Thursday) and P375 or $8.15 (Friday and Saturday) per hour. Prices are consumable. One thing I noticed was that the place was full of Koreans. Just like in Baguio City and Manila, more and more Koreans are staying in Cebu City to get cheap ESL education. Tourism-wise, I think that's a good thing.
Before we knew it, it was already past 2:00 a.m.
K1 Family KTV
Crossroads Arcade
Banilad, Cebu City
(032) 412-1111 / (032) 412-2222
The next day saw Edwin and I enjoying the city day life. It was our last day so we decided to make the most of it.
My Cebu tale continues here:
Day 3 (Sunday): The Burger Joint, Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño, Magellan's Cross, Larsian Fuente and Chez Andre
Currency Exchange Used: $1 = P46
After participating in the Make Your Own Havaianas Event at the North Wing of SM City Cebu, Edwin, Taps and I had a late lunch at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (CBTL). I treated them using the P1,000 worth of gift cert I got during a CBTL workshop I attended months ago.
We stayed there for a few hours while waiting for Chivs and John Paul who took us on a South stroll. Cebu City is divided into two congressional districts: Northern and Southern. The former is composed of 46 barangays while the latter has 34.
PHILIPPINE TAOIST TEMPLE
Our first stop was the Philippine Taoist Temple where a group of monks live and practice their religion. According to our friends, it is one of the sites in Cebu City most frequented by tourists. The worship center is located in a high-end subdivision called Beverly Hills, a few kilometers away from the city proper.
Climbing the 99 steps of the grand stairs leading to the main temple is not a simple feat. But go ahead unperturbed and you'll soon be rewarded with a panoramic view of the city.
The place was solemn and you could actually feel it. On normal days, you could light joss sticks and say your wishes. If you're more on the astrology side, you could have your fortune read by the monks. But since it was a Saturday and nearing dusk, we never got around to actually try those things. The guard on duty started refusing visitors when the clock struck six.
Admission at Philippine Taoist Temple is free but I think the monks would appreciate donation from generous people. After all, the place was founded and is being supported by the Chinese community in Cebu.
To get there, you could ride on a habal-habal (motorcycle) or bring your own private vehicle. In our case, we were fortunate to have friends who had cars. It was all a smooth ride.
Philippine Taoist Temple
Beverly Hills, Cebu City
MR. A BAR AND RESTAURANT
We had dinner at Mr. A Bar and Restaurant in Busay, Cebu City. It was a sumptuous dinner on top of a hill shared with good company.
Read my review of the restaurant complete with food photos here.
Mr. A Bar & Restaurant
Sitio Maasmum, Busay
Lahug, Cebu City
(032) 232-5200
MOUNTAIN VIEW PARK
To burn the calories, we strolled some more and got to Mountain View Park. It is an enormous nature park owned and operated by a wealthy business clan in Cebu.
Amenities include rented rooms, camp sites, rope bridges, picnic groves, cottages, restaurants, small eateries, karaoke machines at P5 ($1.08) per song, playgrounds and comfort rooms (built-in and portables), among others.
As the name suggests, the place is also overlooking the mountains and the city. It's quite cold up there so protect yourself by wearing a sweater or a hooded jacket. That night, it felt like Baguio. Or maybe it was just me when my attention was caught by the pine trees standing by the roadside.
Admission fee is P50 ($1.08) which is paid at the entrance gate. Again, the mode of transportation to get there is habal-habal (motorcycle). For convenience though, you might want to consider renting a car or ask your Cebu-based friend with wheels to drive for you.
Mountain View Park
Sitio Gorohe
Busay, Cebu City
(032) 231-5444 / (032) 231-5454
K1 FAMILY KTV
After the awesome view of the mountains, we headed to Crossroads to soak in Cebu's colorful night life. We entered K1 Family KTV and started belting out songs one after another. At first I was shy to sing but several hits later, I finally gave in. I enjoyed each song by not minding the quality of my voice (or the lack thereof).
The rates are reasonable. You pay P250 or $5.43 (Sunday to Thursday) and P375 or $8.15 (Friday and Saturday) per hour. Prices are consumable. One thing I noticed was that the place was full of Koreans. Just like in Baguio City and Manila, more and more Koreans are staying in Cebu City to get cheap ESL education. Tourism-wise, I think that's a good thing.
Before we knew it, it was already past 2:00 a.m.
K1 Family KTV
Crossroads Arcade
Banilad, Cebu City
(032) 412-1111 / (032) 412-2222
The next day saw Edwin and I enjoying the city day life. It was our last day so we decided to make the most of it.
My Cebu tale continues here:
Day 3 (Sunday): The Burger Joint, Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño, Magellan's Cross, Larsian Fuente and Chez Andre
Currency Exchange Used: $1 = P46
