Time & tide on Sumilon island

MANILA, Philippines - A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent upon arriving. — Lao Tzu

I had not planned on catching the sunrise. All eight cottages that line the cliff, each with two adjoining rooms and a veranda, face east. I watched as the light came softly over the cove, in bands of pale colors: first pink, then lilac, then sky blue. The tide was low.

But, as if pulled in by the light, it started to swell and soon claimed the narrow beach below. Overhead, a feathery cloud, like a giant bird in flight, graced my sky. It was the dawn of my second day on Sumilon island.

Sumilon literally means “to take refuge.” Located on the southeastern tip of Cebu, this coral island, with a total area of 24 hectares, is the first marine-protected area in the country. Its crystal clear water is rich in marine life, teeming with coral gardens and tropical fishes. In 1974, it was made a marine sanctuary under the stewardship of the Siliman University Marine Reserve.

Sumilon island is close to Dumaguete, just 30 to 45 minutes away by pump boat, depending on weather and sea conditions. The other way, via a road trip from Mactan to Bancogon in Oslob from where you take a ferry to the island, takes three hours. It took us more than twice as long, providing for all the stops that we made along the scenic route. It was an easy ride, on well-paved, tree-lined roads, passing through rustic coastal towns, and stopping at centuries-old Spanish colonial churches along the way.

Our hosts at the Maribago Bluewater Beach Resort in Mactan arranged a visita iglesia. This Lenten tradition of visiting seven churches on Holy Thursday is believed to have originated in Rome where early pilgrims visited seven churches in the ancient city as an act of devotion or penance.

In our case, we started off as tourists. But there’s something about the outward motion of going away from and to a place, especially when it involves long distances, that eventually converts a joyride into a pilgrim’s journey of discovery and introspection.

We spent two restful nights at Maribago Bluewater Beach Resort in Mactan before taking that long journey to Sumilon island. We stayed at the Amuma Spa wing, the latest addition to the seven-hectare resort, which started with just 38 rooms along its 110 meters beach front some 20 years ago. There are now 157 rooms: deluxe, premier deluxe, suites and bungalows.

There are three restaurants within the resort. The Allegro Restaurant by the main swimming pool under the shade of a huge banyan (balete) tree offers international cuisine, while Molto Joli is an Italian restaurant. At The Cove, which serves fresh seafood, large saltwater aquariums hold live Pacific lobsters from Palawan as well as a variety of fishes such as stone fish and grouper (lapu-lapu).

Cebu City is just 40 minutes away by car. If you’ve been there before, you might think you’ve seen all there is to see. But you may be in for a surprise. The Cebu Heritage Walk which we took, a project of the Cebu City Tourism Commission, include visits to three not-too-well-known old houses that have recently been restored: the Yap-Sandiego ancestral house, built around the 17th century by one of the Parian’s prominent Chinese residents; the Casa Gorordo, built in the mid-19th century and bought by the father of the first Cebuano bishop, Juan Gorordo; and the Jesuit House of 1730, a coral stone-and-wood structure hidden behind the high walls of its current owner’s HoTong Hardware warehouse.

Amuma in Visayan means “to pamper.” On our last night in Maribago, we experienced the true meaning of the word, with the Amuma hilot signature treatment, a 90-minute full-body massage that includes the application of virgin coconut oil and banana leaves heated over a candle flame. Various hilot techniques from all over the country are combined with the unique amuma touch for a thoroughly relaxing, calming, healing, and spiritual experience. Native rituals such as space cleansing through medicinal herbs, tawas and mineral smoke or pausok, prayer or dasal, and invocations or orasyon, complete the package. Sleep comes easily.

Someone once said that visiting heritage churches during Holy Week allows us to get a glimpse of our history and culture while we pray. A number of old churches in southern Cebu that date back to the earliest missions established in the country, can be found in varying conditions of conservation, restoration, or disrepair.

Our first stop was at the San Isidro Labrador church in San Fernando, a fine example of Gothic architecture. The church of St. Catherine of Alexandria in Carcar stands on a hill overlooking the town. Statues of the 12 apostles stand on columns along the church’s fence, which reminded me of a similar church I had seen in Poland, the church of Saints Peter and Paul in Cracow. With several old houses still standing, dating back to Spanish times, Carcar is also considered a heritage town. Carcar is famous for its chicharon and ampao.

The church of Nuestra Señora Del Pilar in Sibonga holds a treasure in its painted ceiling, which has been likened to the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. Done by talented local artists, Raymundo Francia and Canuto Avila, sometime in the 1920s during the American period, it has retained the luster of its original colors despite the passage of time.

The beautiful Baroque church of St. Michael Archangel in Argao was built facing the sea, with a bell tower that also served as a watchtower from where Moro marauders could be spotted from a distance.

It is one of the oldest churches in the country, with a beautiful painted ceiling depicting biblical scenes, particularly of angels and demons. Unfortunately, the parish priest decided to coat the main retablo with garish gold paint, drawing angry and harsh criticism from those who know better. At the San Guillermo de Ermitanio church in Dalaguete, the stark black and white tiles on the main aisle are a mismatch to the soft colors of the old paintings on the nave’s ceiling.

There is a curve on the road approaching the town of Boljoon where you simply must stop in order to fully appreciate the seaside setting of this charming old church of Patrocinia de Maria from a distance.

Once inside, the ornate circular pattern on the ceiling and the exquisite pulpit capture your eye. The seventh and last church we visited was the church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in the coastal town of Oslob, which was gutted by fire in 2008. Reconstruction is currently ongoing inside.

Sumilon island is separated from the Cebu mainland by the Cebu Strait. From Bancogon in Oslob, we take a 15-minute boat ride to the island where we are billeted at the Sumilon Bluewater Island Resort, the one and only hotel on the entire island. It is secluded and it is all yours, or so you feel.

There are a handful of foreign tourists, a couple of honeymooners and the rest comprise the gracious and solicitous hotel staff. The same ones who greet you with a warm smile at the front desk and serve your refreshing pineapple shake, perform the tinikling and pandango sa ilaw at the Barrio Fiesta dinner that night. The dishes prepared by chef de partie, Buddy Amodia, who trained with Lolo Dad’s Ariel Manuel, are a successful marriage of tropical ingredients with nouvelle cuisine

From the sandbar, you watch as the constellations silently shift position in the cloudless night sky. The sandbar is known to change shape and location around the island, depending on the season.

Breakfast is served on the beach under the shade of palm trees. There is a natural saltwater lagoon bounded by mangroves where you can spend hours kayaking and never notice a single minute slipping away. But the island’s most spectacular attraction can be found not above but underwater.

The waters around Sumilon Island is considered one of the best diving sites in the whole of the Visayas. Favorite dive spots have descriptive nicknames such as Garden Eel Plaza, Nikki’s Wall, Coral Landscape and Julie’s Rock. If you’d rather not get wet — but then again, why not? — you can still enjoy the beauty of this underwater wonderland from the comfort of a glass bottom boat, which we did. It was not any less marvelous. Or you can go snorkeling and swim with the tropical fishes. You don’t even need to go far from shore. Who would want to leave this tropical paradise?

We tend to linger when saying goodbye. It is our culture. We linger at the doorway, at the driveway, at the gate. On the island, it was the photo-ops that did it. We needed to take one more shot on the beach with the azure water as backdrop, by the cliff with a wave splashing against the rocks, beside the infinity pool looking out to the horizon. The fast-craft, as the locals call their pump boats, which brought us from the island to Dumaguete where we were to take our flight back to Manila, was not fast enough. Or we simply lingered too long. We lost track of time. The plane left without us.

A night in Dumaguete City was not part of the plan, but no one who has been to this charming university town by the sea will ever say that it was a waste of precious time. We never leave a place behind completely. It is up to us to give each place we visit its meaning and memories that we carry back with us. We are no longer the same when we return. We are transformed.