Cebu City, Philippines - Central Visayan Metropolis
Region 7 in the Philippines is characterized as central Visayas with places such as Dumaguete, Bohol, Siquijor and most importantly Cebu. Cebu is one of the biggest cities in the Visayas and it is the ultimate trade city of the south. Cebu is the oldest city in the Philippines and has the only International Airport in the Visayas which makes Cebu an important metropolis in the Visayas.
The native language of the Philippines is Tagalog, but the native language of Cebu is Cebuano, which is also spoken in other places such as Bohol, Leyte, Negros Oriental and parts of Mindanao. Every city in the Philippines has a patron saint and the patron saint of Cebu happens to be Our Lady of Guadalupe. There are many religious events in Cebu and the saint that is widely used by the natives is Santo Niño de Cebu. A whole festival is dedicated to him, called the Sinulog which is celebrated every January with street shows and dances.
Cebu is the center of economic activity in the central Visayas. The total investments, export and import of Cebu city totals an amount of an estimated 10 Million US dollars, which makes Cebu a powerful metropolis. Cebu has big industries including electronic, computer, food processing and most importantly mining and shipping industries. When you take a bus to Cebu city you will see the big coal mines near the sea and you will even drive underneath a mining company that is situated alongside the highway. Most of the shipping industries are located in Cebu which makes this metropolis the most and easiest accessible city in the Philippines. National and International shipping is going through Cebu and the city earns millions just from the shipping taxes and toll taxes.
Other multimillion business chances can be found in the Mactan International Airport at Mactan City, Cebu. This International Airport gives access to all the trade opportunities in Asia, Europe and the US. Cebu is also the home of the International Convention Center in which the 12th ASEAN summit has been held where world leaders congregated. This shows that Cebu is already the international metropolis that it should be. The education in Cebu is also very international. The first International Academy of Film and Television has been established in Mactan, Cebu in 2004 and is the only international film school in the Central Visayas.
The central Visayas also have a big network of print media and broadcasting media. Cebu itself has three local newspapers that are published daily and several other little tabloids and community newspapers. Broadcasting outlets are also numerous in the queen city of the south. Cebu has three television stations that can be accessed through cable and a total of 23 radio stations with 13 AM radio stations and 20 FM radio stations. This is just another proof that Cebu City is not only the oldest city in the Philippines, but also one of the richest and economically stronger cities in the Philippines.
You can also find many historical monuments in this central Visayan city. One of the most important and often visited monuments is the Magellan's Cross. Magellan's Cross can be found in a small chapel that is located next to the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño, which is fronting Cebu's city hall. Cebu has something for everybody; good food, great malls for shopping, and monuments for your cultural desires. Cebu will be unlike any other city you can visit in the Central Visayas.
