CEBOOM

Just got back from Heaven.
I spent the weekend in Cebu, where, for two nights in a row, I had my muscles kneaded like dough, my flesh rubbed, my bones stretched, and all my stresses melted away through the Filipino's answer to the Thai and Swedish massage, hilot.
The first hilot was at the Chi Spa Village at Shangri-La Mactan. It was the second time for me, though the first time about two years ago when Chi had just opened had too many distractions what with all the extras thrown in to turn my brief indulgence into a five-hour total relaxation package, inclusive of a hydromassage, a facial, a foot treatment, etcetera, etcetera. Too much of a good thing, indeed, is not as pleasing, so on this second time I made sure I had only one hour and a half to lose myself in the pampering, healing, rejuvenating powers of touch.
The next night was at Ayuyam, the wellness center at the new extension of the old Maribago Blue Waters Resort, which was not as lavish as the Chi experience in terms of ambience and extra touches, but just as good (BUT then again just a teeny-weeny bit less expensive). Nevertheless, I loved my room at Maribago so much better than my room at the Shang, if only because it welcomed me with a huge bathroom with a tub a-bloom with bougainvilla. The spa was like twenty steps away and the grounds seemed private enough I felt comfortable walking back to my room across the pool area at two in the morning with nothing on but a pair of flimsy shorts, what I wore during my hilot.
This last trip to Cebu was also special because of my discovery of Abaca, a new restaurant, which is really just the dining outlet of a nine-room boutique hotel on the bank of the Mactan Channel. Owned by Korean Anna Ido Hyatt, who really spent most of her time as a fashion marketing specialist in Hong Kong, and her Australian chef husband Jayson, the resort has yet to pen, but the restaurant is already packing it in, what with great food and a great ambience, overlooking the channel, but feeling more like a hip resto in, say, Sydney or Hong Kong or Malibu (not that I've been to the last one). On the night I went, I bumped into Tourism Secretary Ace Durano and he was very gracious enough to introduce me to his wife and his friends. They were there to celebrate his birthday. Anna also took a lot of time to talk to me and my companions and she was so much fun, modern, candid, and totally sophisticated.
The next evening I spent chatting with Cebu governor Gwen Garcia over French wine, cheese, and cold cuts at the ultra cool (literally) wine cellar at Assazi (not sure about the name). Again, it was refreshing to talk to a politician like this hip governor in her slim jeans, stilleto boots, and a tiny shirt that revealed a Scarlet O'hara waistline, minus the corset. The place was also quite international in flavor, thoroughly sleek and modern, with a lot of glass and perfect lighting.
Cebu is really turning out to be quite as chic as Hong Kong in places. No wonder more and more of the affluent Cebuanos are beginning to overlook the Philippines on their where-to-go-for-fun map. Next month, there will be direct flights to and from Shanghai at the Mactan International Airport, so I guess more and more tourists will have to skip Manila on their way to Paradise.
As for me, I believe I am going back three more times before July, one of which is to accept the governor's invitation to experience what she calls suroy-suroy or suri-suri (no time to check right now) and the other to take Shangri-La up on its offer to arrange a trip to acquaint me more thoroughly with the fashionable side of this happening city.
So Ceboom Ceboom, here I come (again and again)!