Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Fort San Pedro



Our next stop is Fort San Pedro. Built primarily to protect the Spanish settlers from attacking the pirates in the area, this fort witnessed the different changes in the history of this island until much of it was destroyed during the Japanese occupation when it served as a prison camp.
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Here are some pics taken on my rainy trip to the Fort.





The Fort, located in Cebu City, is the smallest and oldest triangular bastion in the country. It was built in 1738 covers a total land area of 2,025 square meters. Located near the harbor of Cebu City and Plaza Independencia, the fort is composed of three bastions that are 20 feet high and 8 feet thick; all three bastions are still standing. According to the inscribed words written on a slab outside the fort, these bastions are named La Concepcion, San Ignacio de Loyola, and San Miguel. Moreover, the fort also has towers which rise 30 feet from the ground.

Also known as Fuerza de San Pedro, history revealed that the fort was used to repel violent sieges by native Cebuanos and Muslim pirates in the area. For centuries the fort has served as one of the settlements' defense structure. It also became barracks for the Americans and were also used as a school where Cebuanos received formal education. The fort was also used as a prison camp, a hospital and an army camp.

At the entrance of the Fort, you could see two picture galleries place on its two walls. These are the "Founding of Cebu" and the "Fort San Pedro of the Past". Then, there is also a souvenir shop located at the right side of the entrance.

Then for a minimal fee of only twenty pesos, you could go inside the fort and wander around the beautifully arranged gardens mixed with vintage war memorabilias. You could also check the canons located at the top of the Fort.

After, visiting Fort San Pedro, we are supposed to visit Casa Gorordo but it is raining really hard so we just decided to skip the place. Maybe next time.

6 comments:

  1. It's really nice that they are preserving historical places for the future generation to see. Good job.

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  2. I've not been to Cebu. It's on my list of places to go the next time I go to the Philippines.

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  3. what great timing! we're off to cebu next week. all i have to do is compile your posts and we're good to go! thank for the posts.

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  4. what great timing! we're off to cebu next week. all i have to do is compile your posts and we're good to go! thank for the posts.

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  5. Nice trip. Cool.

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