Whenever I am traveling, I make it to a point to visit a church located to the place that I am visiting. Churches are important buildings in the Philippines since it serve the focal point of the Filipino people’s faith. Churches, especially in the provinces, were built in antiquity and served as the witness of the goings on of many towns in the Philippines. The Philippines have many old churches that date to the era of Spanish colonization. Because of this, many churches in the Philippines are worth the visit for a local tourist like me.
My visit in Cebu is not an exception and I made sure that I visit the churches that could be found in Cebu City and in
Mactan Island. Cebu City is one of the country’s oldest Spanish settlement areas and is good place to go to when you are in love with old churches. Cebu City is also the best place to see the great faith of that the Filipino people with their world-famous Sinulog estival, which honors the Santo Niño. So, if you are in Cebu, I suggest that you visit Cebu churches.
In my travel, I just got a little time to visit three Cebu churches there. One is located on
Mactan Island and the other two are located in Cebu City.
Mactan Church
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This church is located in Lapu-Lapu City on Mactan Island. This church is the biggest Cebu church that could be found on the island. To know more about this church, please read my article entitled
Mactan Island.
Minor Basilica of the Santo Niño
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One of the entrances into the Basilica
The basilica of the Santo Niño is the most famous Cebu church and is located in Cebu City. This is the home of the most revered image of the Santo Niño. It is just few walks away from the Cebu Cathedral and the shrine for Magellan’s Cross. I will write more about the
Minor Basilica of Santo Niño in the next blog post.
Cebu Cathedral
The ivory white Cathedral of Cebu
If the Minor Basilica of the Santo Niño is the most visited Cebu church, the Cebu Cathedral, on the other hand, is the largest church that could be found inside the city. The Cebu Cathedral is located at the heart of the city and is accessible to major means of transportation like jeepneys (multicabs) and taxis. Luckily, I got the chance to attend the morning mass on the day that I left Cebu for Manila.
Cebu Cathedral is a beautiful and clean church. The white paint used for the church’s interior and exterior walls adds to the image of purity that is the characteristic of the Church. What I like about Cebu Cathedral is the ornate designs placed on the church, which is the very characteristic of old churches found throughout the country.
The altar is too far away...
What I like about Cebu Cathedral is its serene atmosphere, which is very unlike with atmosphere that pervades the Basilica of the Santo Niño. The lack of tourist in Cebu Cathedral is a hidden blessing because there are few bystanders who mill about the place and take pictures of the church and anyone inside it. Because of this, the serenity of the church is preserved and its atmosphere will let you communicate with God better.
Here are other images that I took for the Cebu Cathedral.
Mother Mary and other saints.
Jesus is the centerpiece of the cathedral's garden.
Here is another view of the Cebu Cathedral.
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This blog post is the continuation of my travels in Cebu last December, which started at
Mactan Island. Looking for a place to sleep, read my post about
Mactan hotels.
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