Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) is no longer just a maximum security prison but has turned its facilities into a dance studio famous for “The Dancing Inmates”. After their “Thriller” performance in 2007 that brought them to Time Magazine’s most popular viral video list, the accused bad boys returned to You Tube in orange jumpsuits and black shirts performing Michael Jackson’s “This Is It”.
Michael Jackson’s long-time choreographer Travis Payne and dancers Daniel Celebre and Dres Reid came to visit and joined them in another You Tube phenomenon. You should watch them. The guys were having fun in their stay, not to mention the entire exercise was keeping them fit without relying much on joint supplements. Makes the entire detention period worthwhile.
If you ever wonder how this group of 1500 inmates was formed, provincial security advisor Byron Garcia derived the inspiration from The Shawshank Redemption wherein Mozart’s Figaro played all over the prison.
We were at Sto. Nino Parish Church in Mactan to hear mass on a late Sunday afternoon. This is the first time I attended mass conducted in Cebuano dialect and saw young women in their ministry wear long veils like the very icons in the altar. We left with no idea what the entire one-hour sermon was all about. It felt like much being a foreigner in your own land. I hope they have English and Filipino versions during the day, and even Korean. This particular area in Mactan Island is a tourist belt.
Inside the hat-shaped church on a Sunday
So in between ho-hums, unimaginable boredom and missing church services at CCF, I managed to steal shots of the Sto. Nino Parish Church. The small church is right across two major roads leading to Cordova and Punta Engano. What’s amazing about this church is its unique architecture. The building was shaped like Magellan’s hat (I would have said Anakin Skywalker’s) and its glass panels depict the image of the Sto. Nino tinted with bright colors. It is no longer as backward as what a typical parish in the outskirts of a province should be, bamboo blinds and all. Cebu churches have actually come a long way to become one of the province’s heritage sites.
Maribago Bluewater Beach Resort is not really my typical beach haven compared to other beaches I’ve been to in the north. Crablets seemed to have invaded their artificial shorelines and made walking around the beach area on barefoot quite uncomfortable. Either I might crush one of these creatures or I risk losing a toe. My feet simply missed those smooth white sands that define most of the beaches in Luzon.
Allegro Restaurant at night
But Maribago’s facilities and the hospitality of people made up for what is lacking. After dinner, we went around the beach and saw how lovely the place was at night. The lights made the entire beach landscape appear more like a fantasy island than a resort. We went to The Cove, a bar and restaurant that allows you to choose from a selection of live fishes, seafood and appetizer recipes and drinks.
The way to The Cove
And there’s this cold sea breeze blowing from the north. So we got out frolicking along the shore in our rubber shoes.
