Landing Into Cebu


This is Part 7 of the Sights & Scenes On My Iloilo To Cebu To Tacloban Flights.

Wonderful Views Again: Mactan
I heard sighs of relief, probably including mine hehe! Landing time. This is Cordova.
brid's eye view of the southern tip of Cordova Cebu
Approaching from south of the island. Therefore, we were landing into Runway 04.

This happened before.., I could see the Cordova Tourism Center in Brgy. Day-as.
bird's eye view of lantawan restaurant among the mangroves, Cordova
Syempre, Lantaw Floating Restobar right side of the causeway. Pioneer in that area.

Oy, I saw parts of the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) under construction!
aerial view: CCLEX under construction
aerial view: CCLEX under construction
aerial view: CCLEX under construction
I will be honest, I'm not that excited about this CCLEX as most other people in Cebu.

I have two reasons - personal and analytical (yes, me ganun)!

1] On the personal side, wala man koy labot ana gud hehe! I live in Banilad Mandaue, V&G Lacion and future home is Catarman Liloan. All got nothing to do with that link.

I will probably only be able to use it just for curiousity's sake, or when I'd be roaming around with my usual buwisitors! Otherwise, it's far and out of my normal commute.

2] On the analytical side, as a frequent traveler, I am not convinced it's really going to help ease traffic to the Mactan airport. Why? Eh, everyone (including me), thought it was going to be a direct unhampered road straight to the airport. Hindi naman pala!

The Mactan side of it ends, or joins the existing unbelievable traffic at Tiangue (aka Babag II Road), by the Pilipog Bridge II that connects Cordova and Lapu-lapu City. It then goes to MLQuezon Hi-way on Pajo and Pusok where traffic is always heaviest.

So travelers from Cebu City to/from the airport, don't just yet adjust your travel time allowance. It might still take the same span of time, even if you pass via the CCLEX.

Trivia: a friend told me: the name says it's a link of Cebu City and Cordova. It does not mention the airport, so why are you thinking that way? Da! Hahah, honga naman ano?

Anyway, I kept clicking pics and I caught proof of a point I've been saying eons ago!
My point? The town of Cordova is a separate island from Mactan (Lapu-lapu City) - because of that Gabi River. How many islands does our country have? Plus one na!

Bird's Eye View of Lapu-lapu
Aw, here's a "just another aerial view of Lapu-lapu" as we were descending to land...
The group of red roofs in the middle is a village that a friend once introduced to me. Not sure if the name is Broke Fields or Brook Fields. I didn't like it for many reasons.

And now I see, that those villages are/were actually swamps. Ayaw ko!

I'm also amazed that by-and-by, high-rises have been growing on Mactan. It started back in the 1980s and 90s, on the north-eastern coast (upper left corner of this pic).
They were initially hotels & resorts from up at Punta Engaño down to Maribago. But now they are spreading down towards the middle, southern and even western parts.

I do not necessarily like it 100% since what attracted me to Mactan before, were the sprawling beaches like Tambuli, Costabella, Bluewaters, White Sands, and the likes.

That's why I like to use the word "amazing" when describing Mactan's development. If I say I'm amazed, I don't necessarily mean good! Well, high-rises are the way to go.

On the western shores of Mactan (facing Cebu), I noted long ago that most edifices are/were on the industrial type, like you see on foreground of that photo above. But, even that is changing fast too. We already see buildings that are taller than 3 levels.

Anyway, let's hope everything will be for the better. Tama na yan, nag-landing na!
The good old MCIA again. From the control tower to the right is Terminal 1 (T1, now a domestic wing). That's where I am to arrive-at and depart-from today as in now na!

Left side (left edge of the photo) until that control tower is Terminal 2 or T2, now the international wing. Oh, I'll be using T2 in about 5 days. Syempre, I'll tell you my story!

I saw an area worth talking about. Let's do that next!
Previous
Next

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hinatuan, A Quick Visit

Image
Happy (and thankful) to have seen the center of this town, even if I did not at all dream of being in the place yet! I only wanted to see Tinuy-an Falls and Enchanted River which I thought were both in Bislig ! Only to find out that Enchanted River is even farther away than Hinatuan, from Bislig or Tinuy-an Falls! This place is out of the way if you come from anywhere in Bislig to the Enchanted River or vice-versa! So, how did I find myself here? Nag-detour? Well, I would like to think of this as some kind of a gift! An addition to my itinerary (at no extra cost), for lack of anything else to do and/or any place else to see! Why? Because we were moving too fast from place to place, because: I did not stay long at Tinuy-an Falls or Enchanted River.., because: there were just too many visitors that I did not enjoy it any longer! Whose fault? Mine! Lesson learned: DO NOT VISIT SURIGAO DEL SUR ON A HOLY WEEK! So.., because we were already done with Tinuy-an Falls and Enchanted Ri...
Read more

THE BOULEVARD, Surigao City

Image
Virtually everyone in Surigao City is related to this boulevard directly or indirectly! It's such a big thing , they even have a Surigao City Boulevard Development Program and a Surigao City Development Authority . I'm not joking. Those are for real. As in! Involved in it are not only their local politicians but also the chambers of commerce. What is it anyway? Foremost it's a 1.8 kilometer stretch of a highway along the seafront. The concrete pavement tells me it is still new. That is it! Walang basagan ng trip! It is an emulation (kumbaga sa Tagalog pa: gaya-gaya ) of Roxas Boulevard in Manila, or pwede rin Dumaguete’s Rizal Boulevard - and many other seafront boulevards. Aside from being a “park” for the residents, it is supposed to be an attraction in the city, showcasing whatever bla-blah-blah to attract tourists from everywhere on earth. While I was inclined to raise my eyebrows, it did attract me. I was a tourist, right?! So okay, without a speck of d...
Read more

Puerto Galera’s White Beach - Gay Capital of the Philippines?!

Image
AMAZING must be the one word that most everyone (esp first-timers) can muster to describe the place. Compared to any other place in the country, I must say, this place is truly, yes, amazing! Some friends could only say: " ang saya-saya! " I have visited this place in the late ‘80s but we stayed at a fine resort far from White Beach. We only visited White Beach during a quick day-tour. Thus, I may fairly say, I am new to this vacation spot. Here are my notes on the recent sojourn: We arrived on a Friday declared by the government as “holiday”. So we were in for a 3D2N visit. The boat’s arrival at White Beach felt like arriving at Boracay – boat hits smack to the sand, crew lays down a wooden plank, passengers disembark through the plank on to the beach and walk up to dry land where the resorts, restaurants, bars and stores are lined toe-on-toe. However, unlike in Boracay, as we disembarked, there were not so many people in the clear and really tempting blue-green waters....
Read more