Museo Sugbo in Cebu

Museo Sugbo ("Sugbo" is Cebu in Cebuano) was once called "Carcel de Cebu" which means "jail" as it used to be the district jail of the Visayas in the 1870s.

During the American occupation,  it served as a stable for horses competing in Cebu's hippodrome. After liberation, it was here where the spies and collaborators for the Japanese were incarcerated.

Here's the view of the grounds from the second level.  The jail warden must have watched over the prisoners from here.

The museum has a lot of interesting artifacts about the Philippine history and culture - some of which we've probably never learned from our social studies class.  

For example, did you know that around 16th century, native Cebuanos tied pieces of flat wood behind and at the front of their heads to deform their skulls as it was their concept of beauty?  Here's a Cebuano skull on display at the Museo Sugbo.

I've seen a lot of these vintage bottles in museums and exhibits before but it's the first time that I paid attention. They are called Torpedo bottles and they were really designed not to stand upright so that the soda would be in constant contact with the cork.  Because if the soda doesn't touch the cork, the cork will dry up and it would shrink.  Merchants in the early days loved these bottles since consumers had to drink all of the soda quickly since you can't put down the bottle once opened.

There are also stoneware jars like these that date back to the 14th to 15th century.

 

And a vast collection of antique religious items.   This collection was titled "Quita y Pone" (meaning "remove and insert").   Religious wooden statues were deliberately designed to have detachable heads and parts as a cost-saving measure.  Owners will assemble the statue depending on whose feast day is it.

The section where I spent the most time was looking at original documents signed by historical figures like Spanish explorer, Miguel Lopez the Legazpi.  This is the letter of Legazpi to King Philip II of Spain dated May 27, 1565. It's officially the first letter sent out of the Philippines.

Check out Legazpi's beautiful handwriting.

Here is Miguel Lopez de Legazpi's signature.

And just in case you're looking for some inspiration for a new signature, check out these compilation of signatures in Legazpi's letter.  I'm guessing these are some of Legazpi's crew members.

Other documents signed by historical figures are that of President Manuel Quezon -

And this letter signed by Emilio Aguinaldo -

It was also interesting to know that once upon a time, there was a Bisaya-Spanish dictionary. Check this out -

 

Here's a page from the Bisaya-Spanish Dictionary -

 

Did you know that during the Japanese occupation, Filipino guerrillas came up with their  own currency?  Stacks and stacks of guerrilla money are preserved at the Museo Sugbo.  But beware - if you get caught by the Japanese in possession of guerrilla currency, you either get extreme torture or instant death.  On the other hand if you refuse to accept from fellow Filipinos, it'll be taken as a sign of collaboration with the Japanese.  A pretty bad Catch 22 situation. 

 It is said that after the war, the notes were changed to dollars by the American government and in most cases, dollar for dollar. Wow.

Here's an old lotto/sweepstakes ticket during the Spanish era for the February 1898 draw. (Didn't know that there was already lotto then!)  An interesting trivia is Jose Rizal once won half of the 3rd prize of a lotto ticket while he was in exile in Dapitan!

Here's the Manila Chronicle newspaper that came out noon of August 15, 1945 declaring the end of World War II.

Ever wondered how movies were marketed during the Liberation period?  Check out these antique movie posters.

Read the posters closely - movie ticket prices were Php0.15, Php0.50, Php.80 and Php1.00!

Fascinating stuff, right?  If you're interested to visit the museum, Museo Sugbo is located at M. J. Cuenco Ave, Cebu City.  Entrance fee is Php30 for Filipinos and I think Php75 for foreigners. The museum is open Mondays to Saturdays from 9am to 6pm.  You may call 032 239 5626 for queries.

Taoist Temple in Cebu

The Philippine Taoist Temple is located in a subdivision called Beverly Hills in Cebu City.  If you like architecture or you're just plain curious, it might be an interesting place to visit. Built in 1972, this temple is open to both worshippers and non-worshippers.

You need to climb 81 steps to go to the main temple.  They say every Wednesday and Sunday , worshipers climb the 81 steps to light joss sticks and have their fortune read by the monks.  The 81 steps represent the 81 chapters of Taoism scriptures.

 

Inside the main temple, they actually have a practice of communicating with god through the use of 2 wooden blocks.  You can ask a question, problem or wish (one question at a time) then you drop the wooden blocks on the floor.  The answer to your question will be based on the position of the wooden blocks:

1 flat + 1 half round = Yes

2 half-round = No

2 flat = Maybe

But nope, I didn’t try doing it.  I prefer to pray and hope that the answer is always a yes. Haha...   

 

There are dragons all over the place.  Tried googling the significance of dragons in Taoist temples and they symbolize immortality, and yin & yang when placed with a phoenix (the phoenix being yin).

 

While at the Taoist Temple, don't forget to look up and appreciate the beautiful paintings on the ceilings.

 

 From the main temple, there's a staircase leading to the upper level.  There are smaller altars at the second level but just like in the main temple, it's strictly no picture-taking.  There are roving guards so don't even attempt.  Just explore the grounds and be grateful that they even allow regular visitors like us into the temple. :)

While at second level, don't forget to look down and appreciate the overlooking view of Cebu City.   The temple is located 300 meters above sea level.  

 

The Philippine Taoist Temple is open from 9am to 5pm. 

Suggested half-day itinerary in Cebu

If you have about 3 to 4 hours to spare for sightseeing in Cebu City, here are some places you want to check out since they are located within walking distance of each other.

1.  Basilica Minore del Sto Nino.   This houses the Sto. Nino statue brought by Magellan in 1521.  We went there during Sinulog so there was no way we could get inside.  I remember attending Sunday mass here 2 years ago and it was also jampacked so we had to stay outside the church.  Maybe next time, I'll try to visit on a weekday during odd hours.  :)

2.  Cebu Cathedral.  It was completed in 1909, got destroyed during World War 2 but was rebuilt in 1950.

Inside the Cebu Cathedral.

 

You could find a statue of the second Filipino saint, San Pedro Calungsod, inside the Cathedral.

 

3. Plaza Independencia.   This was already a plaza as early as the 1600s! Anyway, there isn't really much to see here except for the Monument of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi but you'll have to cross the plaza to get to the next and last stop which is Fort San Pedro.

4.  Fort San Pedro.  As Wikipedia describes this - it served as the nucleus of the first Spanish settlement in the Philippines.  It was built by Cebuano laborers under the rule of Spanish conquistador, Miguel Lopez de Legazpi.

 

At the main entrance is a statue of the Sto Nino.

Here are old photos of Fort San Pedro.  Comparing it to the photo above, it looks well-preserved.

 Here's the main door to the fort. Solid and super thick. Maybe 8 inches thick.  I wonder what the MI on the door stands for.

 

Inside the grounds, you'll find several cannons like this.

There are also artifacts on display like this vestidor which was worn by Katipuneros.  The vest has religious drawings and inscriptions and Katipuneros believe that they become invincible when they wear a vestidor.

 

Have you ever wondered  how Cebu looked like to the Spanish conquerors in the 16th century?  Here's the map drawn by Magellan tracing the geographical position of Cebu (though I don't exactly know how to interpret it. Haha...).

This is called the Pozo del Virgen - a well inside the Fort San Pedro wherein the second oldest statue of the Virgin Mary in the Philippines was found. 

 

This is a replica of the Nuestra Senora de la Cotta (Virgin of Remedies), the statue found inside the well between 1570 to 1575.   In the information board at Fort San Pedro, it was indicated that the original statue is housed at the Cebu Cathedral but when we went back to the Cathedral to check, we couldn't find it.  We also asked around but no one knew about it. :(

In every corner of the fort are watch towers.  Once upon a time, soldiers used to peep into this hole 24/7 to guard the fort.

Here's the view of Fort San Pedro from the second level.  Beautiful grounds. 

 

There are also lots of plants and colorful flowers.

No wonder, it's also a popular place for prenup pictorials and special events.

All of these 4 places are just walking distance to each other and you could visit them in less than 3 to 4 hours in leisure pace. :)  If you've another 1 to 2  hours to spare and are interested in Philippine history, I suggest adding Museo Sugbo in your itinerary. It's about 2 kilometers from Fort San Pedro.  The museum was once a jail and it houses a lot of fascinating artifacts during the Spanish, Japanese and American occupation.