Gabie sa Kabilin (A Night of Heritage) | Cebu City, Philippines [Part 1]

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José Rizal, our National Hero, coined the famous saying “Ang hindi marunong lumingon sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makararating sa paroroonan" (He who does not know how to look back to where he comes from will not reach his destination). We're lucky that in 2007, the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Inc. (RAFI) founded Gabii sa Kabilin (A Night of Heritage), an annual event that celebrates and showcases Cebu's extensive impact on Philippine's history.

According to the official website of the event, Gabii sa Kabilin "aims to help preserve Cebu's rich history, culture and heritage, and encourage the public to visit museums". There are about 20 historical sites from the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Lapu-lapu and Talisay that are usually included in this one night of festivities.

Join me as I walk down memory lane through Cebu's museums and other historical landmarks.

Step 1 is to purchase your tickets ahead. I got mine from Rizal Museum in Osmeña Boulevard. I couldn't remember the exact cost of the tickets but it's nothing above Php 250. There are more expensive ones that offers unlimited rides from one destination to another.

Considering Cebu's usual late afternoon to early evening traffic, it would be difficult to visit all 20+ destinations in less than 24hrs. Some of the destinations are near each other but there are secluded museums and sites that would take longer to reach. It's a bit tricky to decide which destinations in this event we'd go, but in the end, we decide to concentrate our energy in an area where most of the main destinations are.

We decided to go with a walking tour and visit at least six (6) sites along the way. My boyfriend and I thought it's the best strategy to cover as many sites as possible without wasting time in traveling to and from sites.

Our first stop was the Archiocesan Museum of Cebu. It's located right beside Cebu Cathedral. I've seen it a couple of times when I attended mass in the Cebu Cathedral or when I rode a jeepney that passed by near the area.

Perhaps, it's true that one tends to disregard those that are accessible; I have lived in Cebu for three (3) decades but it was my first in this museum. Archiocesan Museum of Cebu is one of the most organized and well-kept musuems we visited that night. The structure might be ancient but the renovation and remodelling they did make the museum looked brandnew.

As expected for a Gabii sa Kabilin, people from all walks of life came in hopping with glee and excitement. It was also my first Gabii sa Kabilin and I must say, I'm impressed by how the event was rolling.

Below are photos of massive and hardwood benches etched with intricate designs. Whoever first owned this piece must be damn rich; it can easily cost a few thousands. A welcome gift to one and all attending the event.

As you might've guessed from the name of this museum, it's actually a museum that focuses on religious artifacts and stories of the past relating to Cebuanos spirituality.

We proceeded to Msgr. Virgilio R. Yap Memorial Chapel and was astonished by the collection of religious artifacts and relics housed in this chapel. This gallery is named after the founder.

The exhibition's description told me so many things about what I could expect to witness inside. The short description says:

The Carmen Collection, which consists of the exquisitely stamped silver-plated frontal, tabernaculo, and cadillarios ramilletes, among others from the Parish Church of San Agustin in Carmen, Cebu before it was renovated. The chapel also features 70 First Class relics of Saints, part of the vast collection of His Eminence Julio Cardinal Rosales, the first Cardinal of the Archdiocese of Cebu.

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw each that has been described above. These are very old relics but they looked spotless and in perfect condition.

Look at this altar frontal and tabernacle from an old church in Carmen, Cebu. It looked a bit old but not dilapidated.

Statues of Saints, old clothing used by the Church leaders (Pope John Paull II) and other religious items can be seen in this gallery.

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Wait, there's more!

After visiting Msgr. Virgilio R. Yap Memorial Chapel, we moved to the 2nd floor. The prodigious bifurcated staircase led to another masterful exhibitions of Cebu's deeply religion-related culture and history.

Below are some of the interesting thigns we've noted in the 2nd floor. On the left hand side of the staircase, most displays were focused on old vestments that Cardinals and other religious leaders from Cebu and neighboring Provinces wore during special occassions in the past.

On another corner of this exhibition,showcased a curve wall printed with an old photo of a church in Cebu. Another wall had a list of Cebu's churches with historical significance.

From the 2nd floor, we had a good glimpse of Cebu Cathedral and the road the separate it from the museum; as expected, traffic was building up.

More old statues of Saints and religious symbols were on display in the second floor, too. I took as many photos as I could. Below are some of them:

I bumped into familiar faces from college. A quick photo op before we went our separate ways. I saw then a few more times during this event in other sites.

I was planning to write just a single blog about my first Gabii sa Kabilin experience but when I reviewed my photos, there's no way I'll be able to compress everything in one blog. I'm planning to write 2 or 3 more blogs about Gabii sa Kabilin. And while we're at it, this year's Gabii sa Kabilin will be this coming May 23, 2025, if you're from Cebu and haven't attended this event in the past, be sure to check out Gabii sa Kabilin's page for more details.

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