The sea, in all its emerald glory, opened the ninth hour of our stay on Mactan island. The sun was in full blast, with only a few puffs of cloud to contend with. And the water, oh my goodness, the water. It was indescribably clear and vivid, mercurial even! I wanted to jump in, but my doctor’s advice regarding my eardrums stopped me from doing so.

CEBU FROM THE PLANE WINDOW

Cebu became our jump-off point for our two-month Asean Summer Loop tour after being forced to, due to lack of flights from Manila to Kuala Lumpur via the AirAsia Asean Pass. So there was our plane, landing at Lapu Lapu City’s tarmac close to midnight.

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BLUEWATER MARIBAGO BEACH RESORT’S ICONIC DOLPHINS

From the airport gates, we were greeted by a driver for Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort, our abode for the twelve hours we’d be staying in Cebu, flying out to Kota Kinabalu the next day. The ride took about a quarter of an hour before we were found signing forms at the resort’s open-aired circular lobby.

MIDNIGHT CHECK IN

If I were to judge from the way the lobby is finished; cogon roof held up by huge wooden pillars, simple yet tasteful furnishing and everything illuminated by warm wooden chandeliers hanging from the ceiling’s apex, I’d say twelve hours probably wouldn’t be enough.

BLUEWATER MARIBAGO’S DELUXE ROOM BALCONY

We were billeted on their Deluxe Room situated at the Garden Wing. The room is set on the second floor and has its own private veranda. Opening the capiz-laden sliding doors, we were greeted by a huge room with two queen-sized beds. We were four in the group and it fitted our needs quite well.

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OUR VERY SPACIOUS ROOM FOR THE NIGHT

The room has minimal decors, but the way they arranged the color of the throw pillows, bed runners, and the textured surfaces of the doors and cabinets were enough to give it a distinct beachy vibe.

EN SUITE TOILET AND BATH

It has the usual mini-bar, tea and coffee facilities, flatscreen cable-TV, a vanity area, and a spacious en suite toilet and bath complete with bath tub—not that we have time to use it anyways, lol. Only thing I didn’t like about it was the shower being incorporated right at the tub itself, which always makes for an uncomfortable bath experience for me.

THE VIEW FROM THE BED

It was way past midnight when we finished settling down. We haven’t had anything to eat since leaving Manila that afternoon so it was unanimously decided that we’re to have some sort of midnight snack. We were about to leave to look for a place to eat out in when we saw that Bluewater Maribago’s Allegro Restaurant is open 24 hours.

I WANT A CHEESEBURGER!

Leafing through their menu from our room, we quickly phoned the lobby and asked for their adobo rice (PHP 410.00), grilled chicken salad (PHP 230.00), allegro salad (PHP 245.00), and my personal choice—Bluewater  cheese burger (PHP 550.00). Indeed, I am craving for a burger. Prices were on the high side but serving size were good for sharing, as we would later find out.

CEBU’S ADOBO IS VERY DIFFERENT FROM WHAT WE WERE EXPECTING

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL LECHE FLAN I’VE EVER SEEN ~ PHP 165.00

There was a bit of a delay for our orders, which was understandable as it was already very late, but they sure looked appetizing when it was finally brought up to our veranda. A midnight feast it was, and the clear winner being Bluewater’s adobo, which curiously, isn’t what you’d think as adobo at all. It was closer to lechon kawali or even bagnet.

Our Cebuano friend told us that, yes, that’s what they call adobo in Cebu. We finished everything off with bottles of Red Horse Beer and promptly flopped to our soft beds, snoring in less than a minute.

MORNING ALONG THE GARDEN VILLAS

THERE’S A POOL, BUT THEY HAVE A BEACH, SO…

BREAKFAST BUFFET!

We woke up early the next day, not wanting to waste precious minutes by simply sleeping, and immediately headed to their open-air restaurant for the complimentary buffet breakfast. I was delighted to find crispy bacons neck to neck with Cebu’s favorite, dangit. Can you say Taboan Market? I piled a plateful of both and sat by the pool.

ALLEGRO RESTAURANT’S STYLISH INTERIORS

FIRST TIME ON THE BEACHES OF MACTAN ISLAND

We didn’t even pause after breakfast, immediately heading to the beach area right after. It was actually my first time to really spend time on a beach in Lapu-Lapu City and I was surprised at how beautiful it was. I was expecting something subpar (since I heard rumours that the sand were artificially transported to Mactan Island from somewhere else), but everything was quite grand.

MARIBAGO’S ALEGRADO ISLAND, RIGHT ACROSS THE BEACH

The water looked amazing too; azure and very, very clear. I was longing for a dip, but I have some ear problem at the time. I can only curse and look with envy at the people swimming about.

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THE COVE RESTAURANT

Lunch came too fast and we were soon heading towards Maribago’s The Cove Restaurant. Sitting on stilts above the water, the view from the restaurant was remarkable. It was perfect for downing a couple of Cerveza Negras while waiting for our meals to be served. And so we did.

NOW THAT’S A CHANDELIER

The Cove’s specialty is fresh seafood. And another feast was laid to our table; lato and guso salad (PHP 190.00), oyster with garlic butter (PHP 260.00), scallop with garlic butter (PHP 240.00), ocean crab (PHP 130.00), prawns (PHP 695.00) and pugapo (grouper) (PHP 180.00). While my companions were raving about the steamed grouper, which I really don’t like since I don’t dig fishes that aren’t fried, I was found digging through the oysters, crabs, and prawns.

HUGE GARLIC PRAWNS

SUCCULENT FRESH CRABS

It was as good a farewell to the Philippines as it was probably gonna get. Our twelve hours was over, quite too soon if I might add, and it’s time to head to the airport and start our summer trip! Here we go South East Asia!

~ OUR GRATITUDE TO MARIBAGO BLUEWATER FOR HOSTING OUR NIGHT IN CEBU

Maribago Bluewater Beach Resort ► ROOM RATES
Address: Barangay Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City, Mactan Island, Cebu
Contact Numbers: (02) 817-5751 | (02) 492-0100
Email: maribago@bluewater.com.ph
GPS Coordinates Map: 10.286369, 124.001156

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