Land And Sea Travel From Cebu To Manila.
San Juanico Bridge, Samar-Leyte, Philippines.
Random Photography and Video By Smokinglems #2.
Music Video
This next adventure I would like to share during our way back home to Manila from Cebu is the San Juanico bridge in Samar-Leyte, where I never had the chance to see it personally not until now co'z this place was far from home. This place was before my first blog which is about Mount Bulusan, click here to visit Mount Bulusan. Before reaching mount bulusasan, we first pass by this long bridge that connects Samar and Leyte and vice versa which is called San Juanico Bridge.
This was considered the longest bridge in the Philippines spanning in a body of water. This bridge was one of the monumental projects by the late President Ferdinand Marcos dedicated to his his wife, Imelda Marcos.
As you can see, this bridge was composed of steel girder viaduct built on reinforced concrete pillars. Its span is made out of arch-shaped truss design.
Another striking thing to see is the sorrounding view. The bridge is long and It's shape is like a snake form and it looks like a dragon from afar.
It offers great picturesque view but marvel not only the view but also the engineering achievement of the bridge itself. Those trusses and girders have already withstand a a lot of strong typhoon like Yolanda and Haiyan and it is still operational, come to think of it, this 21.9 million worth of bridge was completed within 4 years of construction, Impressive right?
To tell you more about this famous bridge in the Philippines, here are some facts that I would like you to know about the San Juanico Bridge. Check this out.
- It was called “The Bridge of Love”. It was known to be a birthday gift and a testimonial of love dedicated by The late Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos to his wife Imelda Marcos who was known as the “Rose of Tacloban“. Marcos even called it as his most important gift to his wife
- It was once called Marcos Bridge.
- It is still considered the longest bridge in the Philippines. Although the Candaba Via duct in the province of Pampanga is longer, it’s not generally accepted because it is a part land part sea bridge crossing only and a few streams and ponds.
- Completed within four years of construction this 21.9 million worth of bridge.Compared to some unfinished roads in Samar, this length of construction of this mega structure is way shorter.
- It’s part of the Maharlika Highway, serves as the country’s backbone of transportation, the Pan-Philippine Highway which is a network of roads, bridges, and sea routes that connect the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao in the country.
- IF you seen the sign AH-26 along the highway, it means Asian Highway (AH-26). The Pan-Philippine Highway was also designated as Asian Highway (AH-26). It was a treaty under the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network to provide framework for coordinated development of the international highways in Asia.
- It crosses the narrowest strait in the Philippines. San Juanico strait, which connects the islands of Samar and Leyte,
is the narrowest strait in the Philippines with only two kilometers (2,000 meters) wide at its narrowest point. It is also said to be the narrowest in the world. - A famous action star named Dante Varona shoot the most daring stunt by jumping off San Juanico Bridge in 1981, to prove that he was the king of stunts in the Philippines. Directed by Carlo J. Caparas, Hari ng Stunt.
- The bridge remain strong and operational after the rampage of Typhoon Haiyan in November 2013. Despite the damages caused by super typhoon Yolanda, it still served as primary means of transportation of the people.
- 30,000 to 35,000 pesos worth of bronze electrical wire were stolen from the bridge and reported missing in February 2014. The bridge remained dark for a few nights after the incident and now, lights are back but the case remains unsolved (Source: Manila Bulletin).
This are some of the photos we took before reaching San Juanico Bridge. The town of Tacloban.
Passing by this famous bridge where I only read from books and watched from television is an experience to remember. The bridge is getting old and tourist are learning from its past history, we don’t know until how long it will stand but especially to Filipinos who knows about it from their childhood remains a memory to be cherish including me.
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Smokinglems. By this you are helping me to share more of my adventures.
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This are the link on the previous Land And Sea Travel From Cebu To Manila:
1. Visit Mount Bulusan