cebu city

Cebu City official seal/logo


Skyline - Cebu City


Cebu Heritage Shrine

The City of Cebu (Cebuano: Dakbayan sa Sugbo; Filipino: Lungsod ng Cebu; Spanish: Ciudad de Cebú), is the capital city of Cebu and the second city in the Philippines, the second most significant metropolitan center in the Philippine Islands, and known as the oldest city in the country.

The city is located on the eastern shore of Cebu, and is the first Spanish settlement in the Philippines. Cebu is the Philippines' main domestic shipping port, and is home to more than 80% of the country's domestic shipping companies. Cebu also holds the second largest international flights in the Philippine Islands, and is a significant center of commerce, trade, and industry in the Visayas, and Mindanao region. According to the 2007 Philippine census, the city has a population of 798,809 people.

Cebu City is the center of a metropolitan area called Metro Cebu, which includes the cities of Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, and Talisay. Metro Cebu has a total population of about 2 million people. The Mactan-Cebu International Airport, located in Lapu-Lapu City is only a twenty-minute drive away from Cebu City. To the northeast of the city are Mandaue City, and the town of Consolacion, to the west are Toledo City, the towns of Balamban, and Asturias, to the south are Talisay City, and the town of Minglanilla. Across Mactan Strait to the east is Mactan Island where Lapu-Lapu City and an aquarium attraction are located.

List of Barangays:

North District

* Adlaon
* Agsungot
* Apas
* Bacayan
* Banilad
* Binaliw
* Budla-an
* Busay
* Cambinocot
* Capitol Site
* Carreta
* Cogon Ramos
* Day-as
* Ermitakjhjkl
* Guba
* Hipodromo
* Kalubihan
* Kamagayan
* Kamputhaw (Camputhaw)
* Kasambagan
* Lahug
* Lorega San Miguel
* Lusaran
* Luz
* Mabini
* Mabolo Proper
* Malubog
* Pahina Central
* Parian
* Paril
* Pit-os
* Pulangbato
* Sambag I
* Sambag II
* San Antonio
* San Jose
* San Roque
* Sirao
* Santa Cruz
* Santo Niño
* T. Padilla
* Talamban
* Taptap
* Tejero
* Tinago
* Zapatera


South District

* Babag
* Basak-Pardo
* Basak San Nicolas
* Bonbon
* Buhisan
* Bulacao Pardo
* Buot-Taup
* Calamba
* Cogon Pardo
* Duljo-Fatima
* Guadalupe
* Inayawan
* Kalunasan
* Kinasang-an
* Labangon
* Mambaling
* Pahina San Nicolas
* Pamutan
* Pasil
* Poblacion Pardo - Pardo Proper
* Pung-ol Sibugay
* Punta Princesa
* Quiot Pardo
* San Nicolas Proper
* Sapangdako
* Sawang Calero
* Sinsin
* Suba
* Sudlon I
* Sudlon II
* Tabunan
* Tagba-O
* Tisa
* Toong

The city is politically subdivided into 80 barrios or barangays. These are grouped into two congressional districts, with 46 barrios or barangays in the northern district, and 34 barrios or barangays in the southern district.

Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino

Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino

Basic information
Location Cebu City, Philippines
Religious affiliation Roman Catholic
Year consecrated 1565
Ecclesiastical status Basilica Minore
Functional status active
Architectural description
Architectural type Church
Architectural style Mixed baroque and Neo-classical
Specifications
Materials coral stones

The Basilica of Santo Niño, also called Basilica del Santo Niño, Basílica Minore del Santo Niño and formerly known as the San Agustin Church prior to its elevation as a Basilica Minore, is a 16th century church in the heart of Cebu City, Philippines. It is purportedly built on the exact spot where the image of the Santo Niño, a sculpture depicting Jesus as a black Holy Child, was found by Spanish conquistadors in 1565 preserved in a burned wooden box which was left behind during the 1521 Magellan expedition.

History

The church of Santo Niño de Cebu was founded by an Augustinian priest, Andrés de Urdaneta on April 28, 1565. The first church structure was built out of earth, hard wood and nipa in 1566 ordered by Fr. Diego de Herrera. In 1735, Fernando Valdés y Tamon, the Governor of Cebu, ordered the church to be constructed of hard stone, which was built in the same spot were the previous church stood. Construction was completed in 1739. In 1965, during the fourth centenary of the Christianization of the Philippines, Pope Paul VI elevated the church to the rank of minor basilica.

The Basilica remains under the care of the Order of St. Augustine.

Museum

A small museum inside the Basilica showcases the rich history of Christianity in Cebu. Antique objects are on display, including century-old furniture, priestly vestments and the Santo Nino's old cloaks donated by individuals over the centuries. Religious articles such as statues and relics are also displayed and other items of daily life from the adjacent convento. Several toys may also be seen; these are said to be presents to the Child Jesus, as well as a large Santo Niño rosary composed of 15 beads.

More Tsino tourists expected in Cebu

Cebu is opening its doors to more Chinese tourists with the inaugural flight of China Southern Airlines from Guangzhou city last June 9.

This development marks another step for the further growth of Cebu's tourism industry as well as its neighboring province of Bohol, said Department of Tourism undersecretary Phineas Alburo.

“When you have these number of tourists coming in to Cebu every week, how much will this contribute to the local economy? This is truly positive for us and we hope to establish more partnerships with other cities in the future,” he said.

DOT hosted the welcome luncheon for the first 130 Chinese tourists at the Laguna Garden Cafe in Ayala Center on Friday.

DOT has partnered with GZL International Travel Services, a Guangzhou-based travel agency, in carrying out the chartered flight agreement.

The agreement will run until December 2009, after which, Alburo said they will be looking into the possibility of opening chartered flights with other cities or renew the agreement.

There will be two weekly flights going to Cebu every Monday and Thursday. Return flights to Guangzhou are scheduled every Tuesday and Friday.

“We are expecting 300 tourists to come every week with these chartered flights,” he told Cebu Daily News in interview.

Alburo said the direct flight from Guangzhou to Cebu is less than four hours with no stopovers.

Sarah Choi Siu Ha, DOT market representative and assistant project manager for Hong Kong, Macau and South China, said these tourists have heard about Cebu's beaches and rich natural resources and are interested to experience the “sand, sea and sun” of the province.

“Philippines as a tourism destination is included in the top ten hit countries among browsers of the leading Chinese internet portal, Baidu,” the DOT said in a statement furnished to CDN.

Guangzhou is the capital city of Guangdong province with about the same population as the Philippines at nearly 90 million.

While there are beaches in Guangdong, she said, Guangzhou is a landlocked city so residents are “excited to experience island-hopping and snorkeling” in Cebu and Bohol.

The 130 tourists are billeted at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel in the next five days. Most of these tourists are first-time travelers to the Philippines.

Alburo said these tourists travel with families with the head of the family working in a top position for a manufacturing company or an information and communication technology firm.

More than 65 of these tourists left for Bohol yesterday for a two-day tour and will be back in Cebu on Monday before leaving for Guangzhou next week, said Choi Siu Ha.

Alburo said DOT is engaged in a joint promotion program with GZL Travel Services. This enabled DOT to penetrate Guangzhou, which has 10 to 12 million population.

“It's a win-win agreement because if you partner with a big travel agency like this they will really go out of their way to do business with the department.”

“We give them the materials and some funds and they push the promotion of our destinations in their brochures and leaflets,” added Alburo.

source: www.inquirer.net