i am finally here in the beautiful island of cebu philippines for a very short vacation trip. sadly, i do not have any major activities outside the city. a major factor of that were the rains brought by the typhoons (although not a direct hit) and the monsoons it tagged along with it.
in one of the very rare mini trips, i finally visited the biggest mall here in cebu. welcome to
sm seaside city cebu
with a leasable area of more that 470 thousand square meters, this mall ranked 4th biggest in the philippines and 17th worldwide. this mall opened in 2015 and easily became the talk of the town. the size and the circular design garnered attention.
although it was the biggest and well celebrated in my island, it was also the least accessible from my home. now after around 9 yrs, i have finally visited.
the outside
i initially planned to go on foot from home, but i'm glad i didn't. there were no clear walkway on the bridges google maps suggested. so upon arrival, i started exploring the outside perimeter first just to get a feel of how it should have been outside.
i found cebu ocean park just immediately across, another establishment i have not yet been in. and an archery range on the otherside.
the chapel of st pedro calungsod can also be found here. i wanted to go in but there was a wedding shoot inside. they were taking pictures and video fotages, and the chapel was just small so i would only be a distraction.
there were still lots of vacant and undeveloped areas around. you could clearly see that this was a reclaimed land. hope these will be filled in the coming years.
the inside
i went back inside, the grand exploration of this wide mall will now commence. like any other malls, this one had shops of all sorts.
there were still shops under construction and this one had a very special way of dealing with the inclosure. what a great way to get attention, and a great way to spread joy.
and if you ever heard that christmas is a big celebration in the philippines, yes that is correct. as early as september, vhristmas decors started sprouting in the malls.
escalators are filled with decors, christmas is the longest celebration in the philippines indeed. and just look at how wide this mall is. i think the ceiling height added grandeur to everything in this mall. the circular design added to how lost you can get, unattentive people will surely go around in circles and continue walking for hours before realizing what has happened.
but first, coffee
this long walk deserves a coffee break, i finally saw a shop and followed its command. but first, coffee ! who wouldn't stop for coffee? oh no, not me. i ordered a vietnamese flavored one, a first for me. that gave me the kick to continue this journey around the mall.
sky park
at the uppermost floor, i turned one corner and saw an exit or an entrance, rather. this was the sky park, an outside piece of greenery. a place where you can feel the wind and the sun, the sun hid behind the clouds though.
for the kids and kids at heart, there is a wet area to refresh from the heat. it would surely be tempting to get wet once the scorching sun is out.
for the not so bold, here is the rest area with shade. sadly the angle is quite off but these shady structures resembles large four legged animals, and this promotes active imagination for the kids.
kids have a whole lot of obstacle courses to enjoy. while the parents enjoy the green plants while resting on the many benches and even on the ground, the children play their hearts out. this whole park was made in collaboration with world renowned cebuano industrial designer kenneth cobonpue, no wonder the artistry is overflowing.
from the park, the nearby construction site is very visible. in here will soon rise sm seaside arena, cebu will finally have a large venue for concerts and sporting events and will no longer need to fly to manila. this is a very good news to people from the central and southern parts of the country.
ice skating
as i explored further, i passed along rows of indoor entertainment centers, cinemas, bowling complex, and even an ice skating rink. this is something new for the people of cebu. if my childhood memory serves me right, i think there was an ice rink from long time ago but it was closed in decades now. i hope this will inspire future winter olympians from this part of the country.
the cube
another iconic landmark is the cube. i just took a picture of it from the inside. i guess this is cebu's version of the globe found in sm moa arena
tower park
here is my entry to #pobphotocontest. such a tall structure jutting out of nowhere reminds me of rapunzel's tower. i'm just waiting for the golden hair to fall.
from the previous pictures, there is a very prominent tower in the middle of the mall. people told me that the tower is still not accessible so i wasn't planning to go. but then, i saw an entrance to the middle part of the building and my curiosity took over.
at the very center of this circular mall was an open space, a park with greeneries, and the tower at its core. in here were obstacle courses for dogs and a couple of courts for pickleball. i have very little knowledge of this sport but it looks like a very large ping pong and a slower paced tennis based on what i observed from the people playing.
children will also love the garden area, two dinosaurs were seen wrecking havoc among the many insects over there. they are very huge, you will surely not miss them.
the end
everything must come to an end, i have traversed the enter place a couple of times more after this initial stroll. after getting everything i came for, i finally headed home.
ended the day with bottle of beer and some nuts. it was quite a long stroll but discovering something new is always fun for me. don't you also feel the same?
as always, AMPING KANUNAY!
all content is by yours truly unless otherwise specified
all photos are taken with a galaxy s23 ultra
This report was published via Actifit app (Android | iOS). Check out the original version here on actifit.io
Height168.0 cm |  | Weight71.3 kg |  | Body Fat19.8 % |  |
Waistcm |  | Thighscm |  | Chestcm |  |
