I spent the morning of May 7 doing some sightseeing in Manila. I wanted to fly to Cebu in the afternoon. I tried to book tickets at a travel agency. Unfortunately, the computer at the agency was not working and they asked me to buy tickets at the airport. I had to wait in a small room for two hours to get my tickets. One would be well-advised to book tickets online in advance, which is much faster and a bit cheaper.

It's a one hour flight between Manila and Cebu. Round trip tickets cost 4,739p. (about 108USD)

I arrived at Cebu in the evening. I asked the cabbie to take me to Jasmin Pension, but they were already fully booked when I got there. Unfortunately, its neighbors were fully booked as well. They directed me to a nearby guesthouse - Verbena Capital Suites. A single room costs 890p a day, breakfast included.

After I paid at the front desk, the attendant said he would give me the receipt the next morning. I insisted on getting my receipt right away. I read a story on the Internet about a woman having to pay for her room twice because she forgot to ask for a receipt.

Below is the lobby of the guesthouse.

I didn't find their bed sheets clean enough. The room was equipped with cable TV, hot water, a telephone and,toilet soap.

Toothpaste and toothbrush were not provided. It felt good to be finally able to take a hot shower, though.

Room charges include a free breakfast. When I ordered my breakfast, I couldn't understand the attendant very well, so I asked for a menu. I ordered an American breakfast. When I checked out, I was told that I had to pay for my American breakfast. They said only Filipino breakfast was free. The thing is there's no Filipino breakfast on the menu, so I could only order non-Filipino breakfast. I argued that,"You didn't tell me that I have to pay for American breakfast." They didn't have the gall to charge me.

After I checked out, I left my luggage at the guesthouse and went sightseeing.

I asked the taxi driver to take me to Carbon Market. The driver was a bit surprised and asked, "What's your purpose of going there?" I replied,"To see the life of ordinary people."

Caron Market is definitely not a tourist attraction,as it's dirty, smelly and infested with many flies. But you can definitely have a glimpse into the daily life of Filipinos here. Carbon Market is Cebu's oldest and biggest produce market.

Carbon Market

At Cebu, you can see a lot of jeepneys, like in Manila.

City Hall is within walking distance of Carbon Market.

Magellan's Cross is right opposite the City Hall. The stone rotunda houses a wooden cross, in honor of Magellan.

Go inside and you'll see the cross.

Aside from the cross, you'll see many street hawkers selling different products, most prominently, the famed guitars of Cebu. What a happy smile that he had!

They were ready to call it a day.

Basilica Mnore Del Santo Nino venerates a Flemish image of the infant Jesus.

I saw a pregnant woman standing there for quite a while, praying for her unborn baby.

I can't name this kind of flowers. They look very tropical to me. The leaves remind me of banana trees.

I also visited Colon Street, which is said to be oldest street in the Philippines. But I failed to see anything special or historical about it.

It started to rain and I found my shelter in a dim-sum fast-food restaurant. I missed the dim-sums in Guangzhou so much that I over ordered. But I must say what I had in this restaurant cannot hold a candle to the dim-sum I have back in Guangzhou.

Cebu Heritage Monument

SM City is the biggest shopping mall of Cebu. There are a host of shops, which may be able to meet your every need. What interested most was the National Bookstore. Being an avid reader, I bought a couple of books. I couldn't really buy many because books are heavy to carry.

Fort San Fedro was built in 1521 and used to be an army garrison,a rebel stronghold,a prison camp and the city zoo. While I visited,there was a wedding reception. It's amazing how the function of a building has changed over the centuries.

It looked like a wedding reception for a rich couple.

On May 11, I returned to Cebu from Tagbilaran with a Canadian backpacker who I met on Alona Beach. We both had a flight to catch in Cebu. I stayed at Pacific Pensionne, recommended by my Canadian friend. It was cleaner and cheaper than the other guesthouse I stayed at when I first arrived at Cebu on May 7.

At the entrance of Pacific Pensionne, I was holding a copy of Lonely Planet - the Philippines.

There's a book shell in the lobby, which lends a laid-back feel to the guesthouse.

A single room at Pacific Pensionne costs 650p. Breakfast not included. The room was equipped with air-conditioning, cable TV and toiletry. It was by far the cleanest guesthouse that I had stayed at in the Philippines. I was told there was hot water supply, but all I got was cold water.

Below is the entrance of a disco.

It didn't seem like a very safe neighborhood. My Canadian friend's western face attracted a gaggle of kids begging or trying to sell something. If I were walking alone, I wouldn't have attracted as much attention. On our way back, I walked on the other side of the street, where there were fewer people.

The sign says,"Keep away from drugs." We saw some teenagers using drugs on a crossing bridge.

We also saw many homeless people sleeping on the street. What's disturbing is that we saw a whole family, including infants sleeping on the street. The government doesn't seem to have a system to shelter these people. I sometimes see one or two homeless guys in Guangzhou. But it's very rare to see a whole family sleeping on the street.

Judging from the explicit and graphic signs of the bars, we knew we entered the red light district of Cebu, inadvertently. These bars must be the girlie bars described in Lonely Planet.

I have seen the dirtiest produce market, the oldest churches and sights, the biggest shopping mall, the happy people at a wedding, the homeless and the decadent red light district of Cebu. It's safe to say that I have seen many aspects of the city, if not all.