AGNES PRIETO VISITS CEBU AND REMEMBERS PAST ADVENTURES IN THE MOUNTAIN AREAS SURROUNDING THE ‘QUEEN CITY’
When I was born, my grandmother saw the unmistakable signs of a mole on my left foot. She gave a shriek. “Layas! This girl is going to be layas…” and so I grew up a gypsy, never settling, spurred by a yearning for far away places with strange sounding names… even if they were just in Quiapo. Low cost airline tickets bring out the gypsy in everyone.
Cebu has 1001 things that make it a tourist must-visit. History, sun-kissed beaches, mountains to climb and warm and smiley people. She is the Queen City of the south and the natural center for government.
Few realize that Mantalongon is also a well kept secret by serious trekkers who value it highly. There are hidden valleys, lime canyons, compact rainforests and those vegetable farms dotting the hills and slopes. In the 1960s, Mango Avenue was lined with lush mango trees shading us as we learned to bike and met up with our “crushes.” In the late 1970s, I came back to discover that Mango Avenue was a misnomer. There were no mango trees in sight, buildings had mushroomed and traffic stalled in intersections. But the Queen City reigned unchallenged with its robust economy and tourist trade. That was when I discovered Mantalongon, less than an hour away in the mountain mining area. We drove up at night, after a party, up the winding roads feeling the chill breeze in the speeding car.
In the darkened porch, we sat, trying unsuccessfully to light cigarettes only to find out that we were wrapped in the mist of a low lying cloud.
Mantalongon is the vegetable basket of Cebu. The mountain vegetablesgrown here thrive because of the pleasantly cool weather. Carrots, cabbage, lettuce, potatoes, beet and other veg are stuffed into giant baskets and loaded onto the sides of short-legged and sturdy mountain ponies.
We stayed on that porch until dawn, when the lights from the farmers’ lanterns wound down the mountain paths, as they brought their harvest to sell at market. Light broke revealing circuitous mountain pathways carved into the crags. At the market, we bought veggies at a tiny fraction of city prices.
We hiked down to one valley enjoying the brisk morning air. On the trail with us, farmers’ wives were coming home having sold their goods; and schoolchildren were on their way to town while their fathers were watering the stretches of green. All around were the verdant plateaus and wide prairies.
There are also mountains for serious climbers and Osmena Peak is the highest in the range of ridges that stretch to the south west, in Badian. One of the friends with me would come back to replant seedlings of trees along these slopes. Years later, when the narra and ipil and camagong had blanketed these areas, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources would give him an award for his one-man initiative.
Last summer I came back, kids in tow, for a weekend at Argao Beach, to play tennis, enjoy the views from glass bottomed boats and marvel at the sunset from the beachside cottages there. Although the Cebu of my youth has gone – even the landmark Casino Español has been transformed from an intimate club to a restaurant, pool and sports complex – Cebu City retains the warmth and friendly atmosphere of its laid-back, relaxed past. I went to Busay, again up in the mountains, and stayed at the Nazareth Growth Home. The house with wide terraces and picture windows has a magnificent 360° view, and is open for seminars and gatherings as well as being an alternative lodging house for travelers. The bed and breakfast package provided by the Good Shepherd nuns is good for when the chaos of the city becomes too much. Busay, at 2,000 feet above sea level, provides the solitude while offering a panoramic view. There are open kiosks too, for picnickers overlooking the splendid spread of valleys and hills. For those who want something more upmarket, the Chateau de Busay offers a sophisticated ambience and good food.
The balance between the excitement of the city and the exhilaration from nature is something the Queen has so far been able to swing. For as long as this delicate balance remains, Cebu will reign.