Country > Philippines > Cebu > Cebu City
Date > 2015 > Aug
Activity > Lucid Thoughts

Aug 5, 2015

Stopping Time

Location : Cebu City, Philippines

On the Go for 9 Months
While backbacking Southeast Asia for 9 months with no reprieve, all I wanted was for time to stop so I could take a pause - perhaps catch up on things and regain perspective. I thought that was wishful thinking until I came upon Cebu. I could have, and I should have stopped. But I simply couldn't. My mind was constantly racing and I had to keep moving. There was always something to be done - a new yoga sequence to be developed, a new business proposal for a bicycle, for a hotel, for a resto, someone to meet, etc. I was still a hamster on a wheel.

Getting Sick
Since I couldn't get myself to stop, my body took matters in its own hands. It made me sick. And it did so just when I thought I was on top of my game...when I had fully regained my fitness and strength back...when I thought I was impervious to desease. I was knocked out by nothing more than the common cold which left me debilitated for a good 10 days. Yoga classes were cancelled. I could not even write a blog or pursue proposals. The things in my routine were no longer do-able.

Lee Kuan Yew
I got glued on YouTube, leisurely watching interviews on Lee Kuan Yew. Every global bigwig is in agreement that Lee has this uncanny ability to see where the world is going. He sees global dynamics between countries and almost predicts how things will take shape. World leaders take and seek his counsel. He predicts China's increasing dominance in global affairs, the emergence of India, and the continuing decline of the US. He threads at the highest level of geopolitics - making a quick stopover in the US to meet with Henry Kissinger, Ben Bernanke of the Federal Reserve and Robert Zoellick of the World Bank. His passing is a tragic loss to humanity.

Yoga Masters
Again in Youtube, I watched interviews by Stu Girling of iconic yoga masters - John Scott, Richard Freeman, Kino McGregor, Maty Ezraty, etc. I saw interviews and biographies of Iyengar, Krishnamacharya, etc. All these helped me understand the humanity of yoga - that it is not a divine gift of the gods but simply a cumulative human effort by wise men from a much earlier era and tradition. I further appreciated that yoga was never meant to be static, dogmatic or even ritualistic (let alone a religion), but a living discipline that evolves to meet the ever changing needs of people who wish to get established in the practice. I have a more rounded perspective of yoga now and even see how I can blueprint my yogic path given the visible landscape.

String Theory and the Multiverse
With time on my hands, I got to immerse myself more on my favorite subject matter - quantum mechanics, string theory, the Large Hadron Particle Collider and our multiverse. On TED Talks, I've listened to Brian Green, Sean Carroll, Gian Giudice - all of them taking me to the edge of my seat as they peel the layers of our reality into quantum bytes. What I find extremely fascinating is that the elegant mathematical equation they arrived at in explaining the universe, as the unified theory of everything, does not make sense in a 4-dimensional reality as we know it. It only makes sense on a reality with 11 dimensions! And with that, it implies that our universe is only one of a billion universe that's out there! Indeed, these are exciting times.

Archimedes and The Method
I kept stumbling from one interesting documentary to the next. Archimedes is known as the guy who exclaimed, "Eureka!" after finding out how to calculate the volume of a golden crown. But his real contribution is in the lost manuscript he wrote that was genius even by our present day standard. He pre-dated Calculus by 1800 years. It is widely established that if his manuscript was discovered during the Renaissance period (instead of the the 20th century), we as a race would have reached staggering heights with our accomplishments.

Ending Thoughts
I could have gone on indefinitely with this wealth of knowledge that was by the tips of my fingers but something happened. I got well. Back to my usual routine. Now, I realize that by stopping time (either the body makes you sick or you simply decide to drop everything down), you open up doors to a whole new world that was not even on your looming horizon when you're too busy to squeeze 25 hours in a day. Yes, rest is golden. Better yet, rest is actually very productive.

--- Gigit (TheLoneRider)
YOGA by Gigit | Learn English | Travel like a Nomad | Donation Bank

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Cebu City, Philippines

tourist attractions

Tops - hilltop offering panoramic view of the city
Taoist Temple - temple on a hillslope in Lahug with panoramic view of the city

hotel

Hostel Seven Cebu - newly opened, resto/bar, central location, solo/group travellers
Juana Osmeña Street, Cebu City
S Hotel & Residences - new hotel, luxury rooms, central location
827 M. Velez corner Andres Abellana St.

resto / cafe / bar

Fujinoya - new and refreshing twists to Western style desserts using Japanese techniques
Wilson St., Lahug, Cebu City - tel. 888.6075
Bad Boys Wingz - Buffalo Wings, unique versions of sauces! Great service, accommodating staff, bad boys vibe
Kasambagan, Cebu City | (032) 415 4811

yoga

Love Yoga World - yoga studio
11/fl, Skyrise 2 Tower, IT Park, Lahug, Cebu City
Yoga Now - first Yoga and Wellness studio in Mactan offering daily Yoga Classes
at The Yacht Club Mactan

mountain biking

Cebu Mountain Bike Adventure - MTB tours, bike sales and repairs. Bed and Breakfast + Resto Cafe + wifi
1298-b V.Rama Ave, Guadalupe, Cebu City | 0942.959.7451

Cebu City to Camotes Island

Cebu City to Camotes Islands

via Poro - from Pier One in Cebu City, take the Ocean Jet for Poro, 2 hours, daily trip - 6am and 3pm (0936.823.8762 |0956.270.6610 | 0999.889.9999).
via Consuelo - from Cebu City, take the northbound bus passing through Danao and get off at the Danao Port. At the Port, take a Jomalia Shipping boat for Consuelo (San Francisco, Camotes), P220/pax, a/c, 2 hours, daily trip - 5:30am, 7:00am (special trip), 8:30am, 12:00 noon (express), 2:30pm, 5:30pm and 9:00pm (express, Fri/Sat/Sun only).

Camotes Islands to Cebu City

Poro - Cebu City (fastest and most direct) - go to Poro and take the 8am or 5pm Ocean Jet to Pier One in Cebu City, P380/pax/aircon, 2 hours
Consuelo - Danao - Cebu City - go to Consuelo (San Francisco) and take the Jomalia Shipping boat to Danao, P220/pax, a/c, 2 hours, daily trip - 5:30am, 7:00am (special trip), 8:30am, 12:00 noon (express), 2:30pm, 5:30pm and 9:00pm (express, Fri/Sat/Sun only). From Danao, take the Ceres Bus to Cebu City

Cebu City to Dumaguete

Cebu City to Dumaguete by Boat

George and Peter Lines - Mon/Thur/Sat/Sun 10pm, (035)225.4337, 0922.557.1023
Oceanjet - via Tagbilaran, daily 6am, dumticketing@oceanjet.net, 0918.898.2188
Cokaliong - Mon/Tue/Wed/Thur/Fri/Sat 7pm, Sun 12pm, 6 hours, (035)225.3599

Cebu City to Dumaguete via Liloan (bus, boat, jeep, tricycle)

Cebu City South Terminal - take the southbound Ceres bus to Liloan, P200, 5 hours
Liloan - the bus drops you off at the Liloan Port where you board the Fastcraft to Sibulan, Negros Oriental, P62, 30 mins
Sibulan - at the Sibulan Port, the jeeps wait for Fastcraft passengers to take them to the public market in Dumaguete, P12, 30 mins.
Public Market - at the market, you can take any tricycle to your hotel, P8 for short trips

Cebu City to Tagbilaran, Bohol

Weesam Express - Pier 4, departs 9:00 AM, 2:00 PM, 6:30 PM, 2 hours
one way: Economy (aircon) P500.00, Economy (non-aircon) P400.00, First Class P600.00
round trip promo (at least 2 days advance booking): Economy (aircon) P600, Economy(non-aircon) P500, First Class P1200
round trip promo (1 day or on the day booking): Economy (aircon) P800, Economy (non-aircon) P700, First Class P1200
Ocean Jet - Pier 1, departs 6-7-8-9:20-10:40-11:40AM, 1-2-4:20-6:35PM, 2 hours
Open Air / Tourist Class P800, Business Class P1000
+63 932 8734 885 / +63 922 8572 300
SuperCat (2GO) - Pier 1, departs 08:15-13:30-15:10-18:00-19:40
P 500.00
+63 32 233 7000
Lite Ferries - Pier 1, departs daily 12:30pm, 10:00pm and 1:00pm (Mon, Wed, Sat)
Standard (Lying) Php 150, Tourist (Lying Aircon) Php 340
+63 977.822.5483 / +63 998.999.5483 / +63 925.347.5483 / (032)255-1721 to 26 / (032)414-9001 to 03
info@liteferries.com.ph / www.liteferry.com

Cebu City to Siquijor by Boat, via Tagbilaran

Cebu City to Siquijor, via Tagbilaran

Lite Ferries - Pier 1, departs M/W/SAT at 1:00pm, 10 hours, economy Php 649 (through barkota.com), layover in Tagbilaran 5:45pm-8:00pm, arrives Larena Port, Siquijor at 11:00pm
+63 977.822.5483 / +63 998.999.5483 / +63 925.347.5483 / (032)255-1721 to 26 / (032)414-9001 to 03
info@liteferries.com / www.liteferry.com
Ocean Jet - Pier 1, departs daily at 1pm, 5 hours
Open Air P1600
+63 932 8734 885 / +63 922 8572 300

Cebu City to Siquijor by Bus, via Liloan (Santander)

(as of Jan 2023)

Sugbo Urban
There is only one bus plying this route - Sugbo Urban. Tourist class coach, a/c, comfortable, Sun-Fri (these dates keep changing). P420 for bus, P275 for ferry to Liloan. Leaves Cebu City (South Bus Terminal) at 8 pm (Sundays 1 am), heads south to Liloan (Santander), takes the ferry to Larena Port, Siquijor, docks around 5 am, makes a clockwise roundtrip around Siquijor Island - Larena, Enrique Villanueva, Maria, Lazi (stops at Lazi market for breakfast and leaves 6:50 am), San Juan, Siquijor (arrives 8am, P50 from Lazi to Siquijor Poblacion) and catches the 1pm ferry at Larena Port for Liloan, Cebu and resumes its land route. Arrives Cebu City 10 pm.

Sugbo Urban is the cheapest and most convenient way because when it reaches Larena Port (Siquijor), it continues its trip around the island (clockwise) along the circumferential road, passing through - Enrique Villanueva, Maria, Lazi, San Juan, Siquijor...and back to Larena. It spares you the cost of hiring a tricycle or habal-habal which charges exhorbitant fares. Besides, it's a long trip to the other side of the island to be taking by tricycle.