Cebu-Philippines, Your
Vacation Trip Destination Now,
Retirement Home Later!

W E L C O M E TO MY BIRTH PLACE
Cebu-Philippines!

Dear Visitors,

Somewhere in this web site, I have welcomed you when I was talking to you about Philippine Travel and retiring in the Philippines and have given you the best reasons why you should consider doing so. It's going to be exactly the same reasons except that I am advocating a specific place and I am bias because its my national origin - my birth place.

I will be visiting every now and then Cebu and I am seriously considering to go home in a few years when I am ready to retire. It's going to be a pleasant sunset years of my life because of the freedom of stress and worry. I am not going to live in an assisted living environment, I mean the kind of assisted living here in the US.

Of course there are a lot of reasons, I would like you to make a list of your own reasons why consider visiting Cebu-Philippines and eventually make it your retirement home.

All the best!

Tony E. Angus
with Iantha

Let Me Entertain You, Sit Back And Relax, Watch A
4-1/2-Minute Video On Diving In Cebu-Philippines.

Watch A Video, Cebu-Philippines, Click Here..

MAP OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS

Cebu City

These Are The Best Reasons Why You Visit
Cebu-Philippines.

Your first time to Cebu-Philippine, it is like walking into a huge jumble sale. From the moment you arrive at Mactan International Airport outside the sprawling metropolis of Cebu City you are definitely in Cebu-Philippines. The colors, the noise, the laughter, the mothers and their kids,- you've never seen so many kids - everyone and everything mixed up together under the warm sunshine with nobody in a hurry to do much.

Except when you ask them to do something for you. The Cebuanos are respectful and attentive when you request for something like "can you tell me where to get a taxi to Carcar City", or, "where is the Comfort Room (restroom) please" - ask nicely and you will be met with a wide smile and more often than not, a friendly escort to where you need to go. Cebu-Philippines is enjoyable and lots of fun.

Over the generations, the Cebuanos have had to adapt to a number of conquerors. From the Spanish (the name The Philippines comes from King Philip of Spain some 500 years ago) the Germans, the Japanese, to the Americans (Canos or farangis as they are called locally in the nicest possible way), each has left it's mark on the nature and make-up of this friendly and resourceful people. Devout Catholics to the last, God rides with them everywhere they go. "Wallah problema" or no problem is something you hear everywhere. Cebu-Philippines educates the person traveling.

Don't be shy to ask for a favor. The Cebuanos love Americans and everything about the US. Nearly everyone you talk to speaks fluent English and they are aware the Cebu island have a complex method of getting places known only to the locals and frequent travelers and so they understand when you need a little help. To get to most places in the 7000 plus island archipelago requires a combination of taxi, bus or jeepney ride to a banca, the Philippines standard mode of transport by sea. In Cebu- Philippines you get to see many beautiful places you never saw before.

Getting around as easily as possible in Cebu-Philippines is probably the single most important factor in having a good time there. You can only enjoy crystal clear warm water, beautiful sandy beaches, diving on reefs of extraordinary beauty and mountains of volcanic wonders if you can actually get around without agony. For the most part your hotel or resort will take care of the pick-up details from the airport to their door but do not be afraid of venturing out on your own either. It is a safe place to travel around. Cebu-Philippines is safe and secure.

Let's look at each mode of transport. The taxi is of course, the fastest and most expensive method. But, unlike your mainland foreign taxis, these drivers will not blink an eye when tell them you need to go hours from the airport to say, Carcar City in the far north, or to Cebu City to pick up a friend and head off to the south for the day to a dive center of Golf Club. If you ask for a price, they will be fair, if you don't ask, they won't tell you. They will stop on the way for refreshments or the C.R. (you know what that is by now) and they all drive quite fast so be prepared. Plan for Cebu-Philippines visit every other year.

As for the buses - yes there are buses, I don't like to catch a bus. Those drivers are like nuts.

Then there is the ubiquitous jeepney. There is a saying in The Philippines "How many people can you fit on a jeepney? Always one more"

The jeepney is a remnant from WWII when the US army left hundreds of Willy's Jeeps as they departed. The resourceful Filipinos extended the chassis, put a lot of chrome and colorful lights all over the frame, erected a sign that said Jesus Rides With Us, had the contraption blessed and the jeepney was born. Cheap, crowded and full of life, it is an easy, fun way to get around. If you want air-conditioned comfort, get a taxi but if you want to have a laugh with the school kids going home, stand on the side of the road and wave down a jeepney as it comes along. Have a couple of peso coins ready and you can go most anywhere.

The favorite ride though of many people is on a banca. Cebu-Philippines as an island have coral reef's come close to the surface so the banca has been developed specifically by the sea-going Cebuanos. With a shallow draft the banca easily moves across the reef without damaging the coral.

Cebu-Philippines visit includes riding on a banca, it's exciting!

It is a wooden hulled long boat, strong, shallow with outriggers for stability and is used everywhere for fishing, transporting people and supplies and even patrolling by the authorities protecting the vast and fragile coastal areas. It is safe and the usually diesel truck engine makes it relatively reliable, easy to repair and travelers find it an enjoyable and cheap way to get around.

Ask the taxi driver where you get the banca to the island you are going to and he will steer you to a cousin or aunt at the port where a banca will be waiting for you. It doesn't matter whether you take an extra 2 hours to get to the port, the bancero (boat captain) will still be there waiting with his small crew sleeping under the palm tree stand. He is an excellent seaman and can read the intricacies of the many Philippine oceans as well, so if he tells you a typhoon is on it's way you know to stay out of the water!

Everything is but a phone call away and everyone has a mobile. The Cebuanos are the most prolific users of mobile phones on the planet. They can text faster than you can talk.

If you need reasons to visit the sandy white beaches of Boracay, dive the reefs in Puerto Galera on the island of Mindoro, or the Japanese shipwrecks off Palawan island, if you want to visit the caves and chocolate hills of Bohol, go to the cool mountains in Baguio, party it up in Angeles City, or even film a movie on the volcanic wastelands of San Fernando, then you have not thousands but millions of reasons to go - The Cebuano People. For what is a place, even paradise, without people?

For divers and Golfers Cebu-Philippines was seemingly designed by a supreme hand for these purposes - the finest dive sites in the world are in islands of The Philippines and where else can you play golf in a magnificent resort atmosphere for about 25 US? That's including a smiling caddy with a single digit handicap of course.

And don't believe everything you read in the papers, there is no terrorist hiding behind every palm tree either. The unrest is way to the south on the island of Mindanao. Mindanao Island is a very, very long way by banca and you have a few thousand more islands to see before you would want to go there. Nobody wants to go to Mindanao.

The Cebuanos probably wouldn't take you there anyway, they want you to have a good time at their place and come back again. They always leave you with "Bye, Miss you already" and the difference is, The Cebuanos mean it. Beats "Have a Nice Day", doesn't it?

Want More? Learn More About Cebu Island?

Learn More About Cebu: Click Here.

It's Time For Another Video Which Is So Fitting For My Plans Of Going Home In A Few Years. Sit Back And Relax.

Cebu-Philippines Home Coming, Click Here.

See Beautiful Still Pictures On Sinulog Parade, Cebu Festival
Taken By A Professional Photographer.

When You Want To Own A Picture To Be Framed,
Email The Web Site Owner, Click Here.

Let Me Share Another Video - A Thriller: Click Here

When You Are In Cebu, Visit Camotes Islands, Too!

Enjoy Your Visit To Camotes Islands And Thank You!

Watch A Short Video On A PLAN Event In Camotes Islands.

Short Video On PLAN Event: Click Here

More Detailed Information Of Camotes Islands?

Camotes Islands Detailed Information

Want To Join A Camotes Community Forum?

The Camotes Islands Map

Need More Information About Camotes Islands, Visit My Friend Ming's Web Site.

Click Here

PLANNING A VACATION TRIP TO CEBU IN 2009?

Now Is The Best Time To Get Started Putting Your Plans Together, Especially If You Are Targetting The Sinulog Cebu Festival In Jan. 2009.

In April and May 2008, we start to accept reservations and/or booking for "group accomodations" - Tour Packages. A family is considered "group". There will be a minimum and maximum number of individuals and couples without children to compose as a group unit.(stay tuned)

Let us help you as early to draw your Travel Plans to suit Your Needs. If you are travelling as an individual or couple without children, it's recommended to join a group to get a discount on Tour Packages.

Get Started Now, Fill Out The Form Below And
You Will Be Referred To The Travel Agency- Balik-Bigay Inc/Travel, Based In So. San Francisco.

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