Filipino Sojourner

"Bili ka ng danggit" - is the usual spiel of my Beloved Wife Lei whenever I have a trip to Cebu.

What the wife commands the good husband obeys so I dedicated a day to visit the pasalubong center of Cebu City, which is none other than the Taboan (Tabo-an) Market.

I have been to Cebu so many times but I still have a hard time going to Taboan Market. There was an instance that I reached Carbon Market instead of Taboan. Losing my way was not a total disaster since I got the chance to visit the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church.

My visits to Taboan Market are dizzying experiences not only because of the strong odor of dried seafood but also of the variety of dried fishes for sale here. First time visitors will be amazed by the sheer volume of dried goodies.

Dried seafood for sale in Taboan Market, Cebu City

I thought that Taboan was so called because dried seafood is "tabo tabo sa sobrang dami!" Well, I was wrong.

I read from the article of Clarence Paul Oaminal in Freeman that Taboan Market was established after the Tres de Abril Battle between the Katipuneros and the Spaniards. The revolutionaries lost the battle and the colonial government arrested almost all the residents of the San Nicolas District where many of the Katipuneros came from.

San Nicolas became a ghost town since the residents fled to the mountains to avoid arrest and interrogation.

The responsibility for reviving the town fell to a certain Teniente Indong and some San Nicolas officials who were released from the prison in Fort San Pedro. They revived San Nicolas by establishing a market in a place called Tagbu-an, where the consumers from the city and the vendors from the mountains would meet.

The place eventually became the center of trade in the Visayas where produce from the seas and mountains are sold. In time Tagbu-an became Tabo-an.

Buyers of danggit and other dried seafood in Taboan Market, Cebu City

I thought that danggit is the Visayan word for "dry" or "dried". Lei laughs at me whenever I ask if she wants the "danggit na pusit" aside from "danggit na isda". I was wrong because danggit is the local name for rabbitfish.

Dried Danggit in Taboan Market in Cebu City

I bought dried danggit for Lei and I also bought dried squid, which is my favorite. We usually fry them and then dip then in vinegar. It is best paired with sinangag.

Aside from dried seafood, I also saw other Cebu pasalubong like the langgonisa hanging like fat hair strands.

Longganisa for sale in Taboan Market in Cebu City

Those sausages are enticing but Lei didn't want it because they are exposed to the elements and flies.

I also saw Cebu pasalubong sweets from like broas, otap, and dried mangoes. However, I didn't buy from Taboan because I prefer to buy directly from Shamrock. Souvenirs such as key chains and ref magnets are also available in Taboan.

Souvenirs for sale in Taboan Market, Cebu City

A visit to Taboan is truly overwhelming. I was overwhelmed by the sheer number of dried seafood. I was also overwhelmed by the fishy odor that sticks to my shirt.

If you are a visitor to Cebu, I suggest that you drop by Taboan and buy all your Cebu pasalubong in one go.

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Laag-Laag sa Cebu (Part 3): Feasting on Consolacion’s Fresh Talaba
Laag-Laag sa Cebu (Part 2): Finding Consolation in Consolacion Church

Laag-Laag sa Cebu (Part 1): My Boat Ride Under the Bridges of Mactan Channel

A Foretaste of Cebu in Mactan Cebu International Airport

In the midst of cacophony of sounds of the Carbon Market stands the modern-looking church dedicated to the Virgin Mary in her title that is less popular to Cebuanos as the Birhen sa Regla. That church is the Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish Church, which is under the care of the Augustinian Recollects.

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in Cebu City

I accidentally discovered this church while I was looking for a market where I can buy danggit. I know that dried seafood may be found in Tabo-an but I still tried my luck in Carbon Market.

Carbon Market is very much like the Divisoria of Cebu City. This place have stores of meat, fish, vegetables, and other non-food products. The place is crowded and confusing that I was not able to find the danggit. Well, I guess I really have to go to Tabo-an for My Beloved Wife's much requested dried fish.

Carbon Market and The Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church are both located in Barangay Ermita. The barrio got its name not because it copied the name of Manila's Ermita district but because of the Augustinian Recollects that inhabited the area.

Old hermitage of the Augustinian Recollects in Cebu City

The old Colegio de San Jose and part of hermitage of the Recollects.

The Augustinian Recollect is a contemplative religious order. This means that their focus is more on prayers and being away from the outside world. Their way of life is very much the same as the Pink Sisters in Tagaytay City.

The Augustinian Recollects first set foot in Cebu in 1606 but they only built their hermitage on the same spot as the Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in 1621. Thus, Barangay Ermita got its name from the hermitage of the Augustinian Recollects.

The silence inside the church is a great break from the noise of the busy Carbon Market.

Inside Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church, Cebu City

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church is eerily silent during my visit. There is no tourist snapping photos here and there. No onlookers and noisy visitors. Just a good place to sit down and pray. I guess that the should-have-been-contemplative Recollects are successful in making this church a place for contemplation.

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church Altar in Cebu City

The Recollects should have little contact with the outside world but Filipinos attended masses at the door of their hermitage thus they have no choice but to open their place to the public. The result of this is that they became missionaries and built various learning institutions, the famous of which is the Colegio de San Sebastian - Recoletos de Manila.

Just like their old hermitage in Manila, the Recollects' hermitage in Cebu became a educational institution, which is now called the University of San Jose – Recoletos. This university was established by the Recollects in 1947.

University of San Jose - Recoletos in Cebu City

I left Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church after a short prayer and few photos. I went out again to the busy world of Carbon Market and the search for the dried danggit.

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Read more of my latest adventure in the island of Cebu!

Laag-Laag sa Cebu (Part 3): Feasting on Consolacion’s Fresh Talaba
Laag-Laag sa Cebu (Part 2): Finding Consolation in Consolacion Church

Laag-Laag sa Cebu (Part 1): My Boat Ride Under the Bridges of Mactan Channel

A Foretaste of Cebu in Mactan Cebu International Airport

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The image of the old hermitage of Augustinian Recollects in Cebu was obtained from the website of University of San Jose - Recoletos.

Some historical information about the Recollects in the Philippines was obtained from Simbahan.Net.
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Pages

Laag-Laag sa Cebu (Part 15): Taboan the Pasalubong Center of Cebu City

Laag-Laag sa Cebu (Part 14): My Accidental Visit to Mt. Carmel Church