Malacanang Palace
The island of Cebu is a bustling progressive region that has attracted many tourists. Cebu is not too hot, nor too cold. It offers modern facilities but a nature hideaway is always accessible. There are several cultural, historical, and natural attractions located in Cebu. And today, there is another tourist attraction that will showcase more of the admirable traits of the people of Cebu. This tourist attraction is the Presidential Palace of the South or the Malacañang Palace sa Sugbo.
To get to Cebu, the best route for foreign tourists is to take a direct flight from outside the Philippines towards the Mactan International Airport. There are daily international flights to Cebu from the airports of Tokyo, Singapore, and Hong Kong.
Upon arrival at the airport, the tourist will need to take a taxi that will bring him to the hotel where he has made his reservations. Cebu has several world-class hotels where a tourist can pleasantly recover from his jetlag.
Then, to reach the Malacañang sa Sugbo, the tourist may take either a taxi or a jeepney to reach the port area of Cebu. This structure was created to attain the President Arroyo’s goal to decentralized governance. That is, instead of having all national offices in Metro Manila, some of them can transfer to other cities to the south. And since Cebu is the Queen City of the South, it is only fitting that it will be the location of the Presidential Palace of the South.
A tour guide will explain that the construction of this Presidential Palace was not done the conventional way of starting from scratch. Instead, one old neglected building was renovated to become the center of government power.
This building was first built before the Second World War. It was used as the headquarters of American officials who were tasked to lead the liberation of the Philippines. But, afterwards, since the building has no significant architectural design (except for what was common during the time it was build) and has no significant historical event (except for housing the American officials during the WW2), it was left to its own.
Time and the weather elements had no mercy on it, until it was restored and renovated so that it will become the Malacañang Palace sa Sugbo.
The Cebuanos boast that the creation of the Malacañang sa Sugbo was successful due to their team spirit. That is, the 53rd Engineering Brigade of the Philippine Army provided the free labor in constructing it. And private companies in Cebu gave donations so that together, they made the Malacañang Palace sa Sugbo into one attractive government building complex.
Inside the Palace, the elegant furnishings of the Trader’s Lobby were donated by the Pacific Traders. There is a Guitar Room in which the exquisite furniture was donated by the Cebu Fil-Veneer. There is also an inner courtyard in which the furnishings came from the Dedon, which is another furniture manufacturing company. This courtyard is, of course, called Patio Dedon.
