This Week in Cebu (December 15 to 21, 2019)

Since Cebu will experience rainy weather around a week before Christmas, you may want to plan your visit well to avoid the traffic that normally comes with this type of weather. Sunday to Tuesday will see clouds hovering over the city. Scattered rain showers will also be expected throughout the day. A slight improvement will be expected on Wednesday, but you should not put away your rain gear since spotty showers may come at any time of the day. Thursday will see clouds dominating the skyline of Cebu. But the slight improvement of the weather may be short-lived as rainy weather will stage a comeback over the weekend with a thunderstorm or two affecting the Queen City of the South on Saturday. The week will see temperatures ranging from 21°C to 31°C [1].

Daily commuters traversing between Mactan Island and the main island of Cebu will soon breathe a huge sigh of relief as work on the third bridge is progressing well. Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) project officials said the bridge is around 47 percent done. Officials also revealed that they are already in the construction stage. Once it is finished in August 2021, it will be the longest among the three bridges traversing the Mactan Channel. Project manager Robert Uthwatt said the bridge can withstand a magnitude 7.75 earthquake and a Category 5 typhoon. Moreover, it will also be the only bridge with a toll [2].

Terminal 2 of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport won the “Completed Buildings: Transport” category of the World Architecture Festival (WAF) 2019. It bested some of the best airports in the world, including the Istanbul Airport of Turkey and the Jewel Changi Airport of Singapore. The terminal was designed by the Integrated Design Associates (IDA) Hong Kong in collaboration with world-renowned designers like Kenneth Cobonpue. The judges of the festival said Terminal 2 is simple and elegant. It also used a good amount of locally-sourced materials. Additionally, its internal spaces are uncluttered and light. The design is also ready for future expansion and has established memorable travel experiences in the local community [3].

Robinsons Land Corp (RLC) recently opened the doors of its first luxury resort in Cebu recently. The Dusit Thani Mactan Cebu Resort is a 300-room resort that will enhance the image of Cebu as a premiere destination for both local and international visitors. Tourism Secretary Bernadette Puyat said it is an exciting time for tourism in Cebu. She also said the entry of RLC in the luxury resort market is a testament to the commitment and belief of the company in the tourism industry of the country. Aside from its 300 rooms, the new resort hotel features a 100-meter infinity pool and six event venues, including the biggest in Mactan Island, the Dusit Ballroom [4].

The mall scene of Cebu has another entry with the opening of the Ayala Malls Central Bloc at the Cebu IT Park. This is the second mall built by the Ayala Group and is the first one to cater to business process outsourcing (BPO) employees in Cebu. Aside from the mall, the two-hectare development also features two office towers and the Seda Hotel. The five-level mall has more than 200 retail spaces along with four cinemas and a chapel. It is also home to a startup business incubator [5].

The Mandaue City Council enacted Ordinance 15-2019-1453 that requires all restaurants located in the city to provide free clean drinking water to its customers. Under the new ordinance, the City Health Office will conduct water sampling and bacteriology tests on the water supply of these food outlets every month. While the ordinance was enacted on October 22, the city council has yet to finalize the implementing rules and regulations so it can be fully implemented. The ordinance was designed to deal with complaints of the lack of clean service water in some Mandaue City restaurants [6].

Visit Yoorekka for the latest travel updates on Cebu this holiday season!