Southern Cebu: Heritage towns of the South

I spent my last day visiting the heritage towns of Southern Cebu, my original plan was to take photos of all the churches of the towns I’ll be passing by from Carcar to Boljoon, sounds ambitious considering the time that I have and the “bed weather” that same morning.

Carcar Church, St. Catherine of Alexandria

I woke up at the sound of thunder, I thought it was my alarm but it wasn't. I stood up half awake, half asleep and peek at the window to check if my guess is true. Unfortunately, it was already raining hard outside that for an ordinary traveler, this means cancelling all plans and just sleep the rain away all day. But, I’m not any ordinary traveler (or so I believe), after doing my morning rituals and water proofing my things I texted Doi that we’ll proceed with our plans of going further south but I think their hike to Osmeña Peak and Moalboal trip the day before caught up with her.

I decided to do it alone but the rains accompanied me all throughout the trip. It was a game of “catch me if you can” with the weather; making this trip even more exciting and made my bus trips an adventure in itself.

Heritage towns of the South

The plans of shooting churches of each town from Carcar to Boljoon didn’t push through; instead I ended up choosing three towns after consulting the Cebu map: Carcar, Argao and Boljoon.

Carcar, Chicharon and a Taxi ride

The most economical way to visit Carcar is to take a bus at the Southern Bus Station, but that morning, my brain cells acted differently and hired a taxi instead. I was telling the driver if he can drive me from the city proper to Boljoon with stops at Carcar and Argao and agreed that we’ll be using the meter (telling him this felt weird, it’s like an out-of-body-experience).

Good thing half way going to Carcar, the budget conscious me convinced me to stop this ridiculous uber expensive ride. It only took seconds to come up with a white lie and actually persuading the taxi driver that no longer needed his services.

Me: Kuya, hatid nyo na lang po ako sa simbahan ng Carcar tapos bayaran ko na lang po kayo

Kuya Driver: Bakit po sir? Nagbago isip nyo?

Me: Parating na po kasi mga kaibigan ko, hahabol na lang daw po sila sa Carcar

Kuya Driver: Sige po sir

***THE END***

After paying 200 + pesos, the taxi driver left me, alone, standing in front of Cebu’s second oldest church.  The Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria was built by the Spaniards in 1859, at the heritage town of Carcar.

The St. Catherine church is a bit small, but finds the interior interesting, especially the black and white floorings. I just hope they maximize the space inside the church, I find everything cramped in the middle.

After taking my time shooting the interior and exterior of the church, I walked down the plaza to look for the second thing Carcar is known for, their Chicharon. Carcar’s chicharon is from the pork’s back fat simmered in hot oil until it turned crispy. I bought a couple of those, one for sampling and the other one for “pasalubong” back home.

Ruins and Sweet Torta

Rain started to pour while waiting for the next bus going to Argao. After wasting 10 minutes at the nearby shed, I brave the rain to catch the Elbow bus bound to my next destination. The bus driver was very accommodating and even gave me instructions how to reach the church of Argao.

Rains gone but church was closed. The church of San Miguel Arcangel was closed when I got there, but the exterior and the well kept garden in front of the church is already a cancelation. Aside from the garden, the town hall and surroundings within 50 meter radius from the church looks awesome too. I saw two structures that caught my attention, one was the arc ruins, and two the small chapel-like structure beside the arc.

I’m not sure what the chapel-like structure is for, the arc ruins (base from observation), may be part of a wall surrounding the whole church (but don’t quote me on this one I still don’t have any first hand information regarding these structures).

I went back to the bus stop to wait for a bus bound to Boljoon. While waiting I saw several signs along the high way claiming that they have the best “Torta” in Argao. I got curious and check out one of the stores to see what “Torta” is?  Torta is a round-cup cake like bread; sweet, golden-brown, lightly sugar sprinkled crust. I got lost in translation talking to the vendor and ended up buying six instead of three torta.

Final Destination: Boljoon

The last town on my list was Boljoon; this town caught my interest after watching a documentary shown months before my Southern Cebu trip on local television. Among the three churches and towns I’ve visited, the Nuestra Señora de Patrocino is the most scenic of all as it faces the sea, a unique feature from the rest of the churches I’ve seen to date.

I stayed for 2-3 hours in Boljoon, I found a nice spot at the park near the sea, rest my tired feet before boarding an A/C bus going back to Cebu city proper. I just hope that next time I visit Southern Cebu; time will be on my side, because I saw several old churches worth visiting along the way. 

Side Trip: Moalboal Church

Aside from beach bumming in the beaches of Moalboal, I also visited San Juan Nepomuceno Church ruins. Yup, you read it right, the church façade was the only thing left from the original structure. We asked some locals why they didn’t restore the church and got the lamest answer…”masisira na rin kasi”.

The San Juan Nepomuceno Church is built in 1851and even considered as one of the most beautiful churches in Cebu.

Southern Cebu:

Southern Cebu: Journey Down South

Southern Cebu: Of delayed flights, waiting game and a picturesque coastal road

Southern Cebu: Many Falls of Kawasan

Southern Cebu: Short Trip to Moalboal Beach

Southern Cebu: Heritage towns of the South

Southern Cebu: Cebu Food Trip