New Favorite

So, a few weeks ago, we went to Oslob to hopefully find a place where we could stay for the long break. However, since things didn’t quite look good, we had to look somewhere else. Fortunately, out of all the many places where we could stop for a few minutes during our long ride, we stopped somewhere in the town of Dalaguete.

Long story short, with the help of a few kind locals, we were able to book a nice beach house. The beach house was baranggay-operated so it was cheap and safe. It also has a/c and a private veranda with a wonderful view of the sea (TaΓ±on Strait?) Not bad at all!

Dalaguete is around 2 hours from Cebu City. It is a huge town. However, the only parts that are readily visible to travelers down south are the spots which can be seen from the main highway. So, at first glance, Dalaguete is just some bland southern town with one busy joint and endless rows of silent neighborhoods. Wrong! It was quite a pleasant surprise to discover that Dalaguete is, actually, a lot more than just ‘southern twang’, bibingka, “itlog mo noy orange,” and bus pit stops. In fact, after being a self-proclaimed Dalaguetnon (I lived there for two days, yo!) I could say that Dalaguete is now my new favorite. Suroy na sa Dalaguete, ‘day ug dodong! πŸ™‚

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Tidet-tidet! Dalaguete is my new favorite!

Okay, before we proceed. Let me inform the uninitiated that Cebuanos have this little private joke about Dalaguete. I’m not sure if Dalaguetnons find it offensive but based on experience with Dalaguetnon friends, they don’t mind at all. They just laugh and say, “Well, that’s just the way we are. Deal with it!” If you’re non-Cebuano, please make sure your Dalaguetnon friends are okay with it. Hehe.

So, what exactly am I talking about? Well, it’s this ‘southern twang’ of the Dalaguetnons that makes them very endearing and easily recognizable. By southern twang, I mean that soft quality and tone that they use when they speak. While Cebuanos in the city use the hardest sounding accent that they could think of, Dalaguetnons sound like totalΒ romanticos. Heck, even the huge dudes I heard talking about a boxing match in the plaza sounded like complete casanovas. Haha.

For example, city Cebuanos would say, “Gi-igu niya sa nawng ang kuntra ui!” (He hit his enemy in the face!) Dalaguetnons would say, “Ge-ego neya sa nawong ang kontra oe!” Hahaha. Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a bit. But I hope you get the gist.

According to one little (but very popular) joke, when buses reach Dalaguete, the sound of their horn would turn from ti-dit (tee-diiit) to ti-det (tee-dettttttt.) Seriously, if you don’t get what I’m saying, please go to Dalaguete right this minute and just talk to the first Dalaguetnon you meet. Just be careful, though. You might fall in love! Hahaha.

View from our place. Aweesome, right?

Noon-time at the veranda. Hot!

The other side. There’s Alcoy!

Kite! Summer in the Philippines!

Ready to go swimming?

Osman and Dad were in the water an hour after we arrived.

A friendly fisherman. He’s looking for some baby bangus.

A kid flying his home-made kite.

Later that afternoon, we decided to tour the neighborhood.

The quiet neighborhood streets of Dalaguete.

Wow! Looking really peaceful and safe.

Hey, what is this?

It’s the pantalan (port)! Very nice! Perfect for afternoon chats.

Fisherman!

Wow! Wonderful view!

Park your bike for a bit and just enjoy the place.

Sea-side park. Very gorgeous. On the other side is a small food park. Cool!

The water gets really deedp when the tide is high.

Road in front of the town church.

The perimeter wal surrounding the town church. Lovely.

Awesome-looking ‘plant boxes’ in the plaza.

A watchtower in front of the church. This was used to keep locals ready for Moro invasions in the past.

The plaza in front of the church.

View of the tower and the sea.

The town church. Just beautiful.

And that age-old tree right next to the church is just really pretty.

Prohibited inside the church plaza.

The convent beside the church.

A children’s park right in front of the rectory.

Age-old trees of Dalaguete.

View of the church interior. Lovely, right?

After a quick tour of the church, we went to the highway to grab some snacks. This Petron is the only gas station in the area.

Parking our bike at the corner of the busiest intersection in Dalaguete. The road on the other side leads you to Baranggay Mantalongon. We parked in front of Julie’s for some hot bread and noodles. Yum!

When we returned to the house, the tide was low and it was perfect for some beachcombing. Hehe.

A local fisherman getting his nets ready.

Sea urchin!

Other curious beachlovers.

The vast mudflats of Dalaguete. Awesome!

Where are you going, kid?

Starfish!

Ready to swim!

His kite is still up in the sky.

Looking for clams.

Nice view, right?

A school of fish! Awesome!

The beach house.

Osman and his starfish.

Local kids ready to swim.

Saluwaki!

Fishermen calling it a day.

Look ma, no hands!

Chillaxing!

Beautiful sunset.

Osman can’t get enough of the water. He was in the water for more than 5 hours.

Another good thing about Dalaguete is that they now have Alberto’s pizza. Hehehe. Pizza after a tiring day? Why not?

Visit Dalaguete now, mga bai!

30 thoughts on “New Favorite

  1. Kalami sa pizza! That’s why I recommend MCPB to my friends because of pizza and bibingka. LOL. Just kidding. How I wish I could hear how a Dalaguetnon politician deliver his speech and how an angry wife say […] Interesting, indeed!

  2. I don’t blame you if Dalaguete is now your new favorite place. Based on your pictures, the town is beautiful and what I like most is it’s clean. The water is crystal clear and enticing one to jump in and swim. Beautiful pictures. Thank you for sharing.

  3. Thats true Ley. Dalaguetnon has a soft voice as Pauline babysitter hails from there. She invites us to visit them, telling us their place is cold as they live in the hinterland. It sounds you guys have a nice holiday, im jealous. Cutey kids posing for you Ley. Saluwaki w/ pinakurat + bahaw masarapppp. As your photos say, its a nice town Dalaguete. Salamat Bai.

      1. Beautiful shots leylander but you missed the other very interesting views out there on the hills to Mantalongon.Anyway thanks for sharing your great adventure to us!Cheers!

  4. Been to this Paradise area of Cebu,we had a wonderful time there,swimming and eating good food is the memories that we will never forget……truly love the place….

  5. panahon sa akong bakasyon sa miaging duha ka bulan, nagyampungad gyud ko dihang lugara kay dapit mantalongon amoa :-p pero wa ko kabalo nga naa na dia’y Alberto’s Pizza sa lungsod… sunod tuig na sab puhon… one of the peaceful place in south-Dalaguete… nice photos bai πŸ™‚

  6. I like living in the province kay very peaceful, limpyo, ug dili samok. Thanks for the lovely photos Mr. Leylander. Hope to see more beautiful sceneries in Cebu. πŸ™‚

  7. everytime i received an email update from you, i opened it and read the article immediately. keep up the good work bai. really love your article. keep on posting. hope lilo-an nasad imu e feature which is my hometown. hehehhee

  8. i love dalaguete. i was there around 15 years ago for the town fiesta upon the invitation of my college friend. we stayed at his house in the poblacion and walked around – to the church, plaza, beach – and ate seafood. that was a lovely break from studies for me. i’ll try to visit again soon. thanks for this uber nice article ley! your site is a balm to the nostalgia felt by ofws like me. will do what i can to support your efforts. πŸ™‚

  9. Hey bai(can I call you bai from now on)? I was viewing those photos of Mantalongon & OsmeΓ±a Peak that you directed to me & they’re so awesome! Wala gyod ko kahibalo niini kay bag-o pa man god ko ning-ukab niining imong My Cebu Blog(just a few months ago).Thanks to my friend from Labangon,it was her who encouraged me to open your blog. Thanks again!

  10. Nindota dha bai oi! Slow-moving…peaceful ug simple ra ang dagan sa life! Stress-free d pareha diri gawas kapoy bai..Cge ta apas sa oras! Kapoy!!! Nus-a kaha ko kauli for good…

  11. Hi Leylander, nice job and awesome pictures. My name is Rafael Conca and I’m from Alcoy-Spain. I need your help and also of the bloggers friends as I’m writing a book about Alcoy-Cebu. I need to contact with Alcoyanons that can inform about this lovely town, that is a sister of mine. My e-mail is: rafael.conca@wanadoo.es
    I’m waiting anxiously your kind answer. Thanks

  12. Hi Leylander,
    looking for some day trip opportunities from Cebu City I accidently and luckily came across your blog. Respect and congratulations for what you`re doing. Reading your travel reports and looking at the pictues you made I learned and discovered a lot of Cebu Island. Dalaguete became my favorite instantly. This coming weekend I`ll go there.
    Thanks a lot again and keep on going.
    A German friend. (“Kani Sugbu”, I like that as my name. Sounds perfect for me πŸ™‚

  13. I really enjoy your photo blog. I especially enjoyed this one about Dalaguete. My father grew up in Dalaguete(Cawayan) and I have a lot of relatives who were from there. You are right about the accent. It is very distinctive. This post made me think of my father who died 5 years ago. Thanks for your blog.

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