Has Cebu Changed?
Wednesday, February 7th, 2007Has Cebu changed? Or have I?
I have been home for a few weeks now and this is the longest period of time I have spent in Cebu since the year 2000. I feel different now and I don’t know if it’s Cebu that has changed or me.
Before, I used to walk around the uptown area, Ayala, or SM and encounter lots of familiar faces. I really felt that I knew Cebu because everywhere I turned, I saw friends and even just acquaintances. These days, I don’t see anyone familiar anymore. Where did everyone go?
When I flew in from London to Manila, I sat beside an English lady who, I think, was around 40 years old. It was a long flight, so we chatted a lot. I told her how difficult it is to be moving around a lot since I have to always say goodbye to people and places that have already become familiar. More often than not, I get attached to these people and places too. And when the time comes for me to leave, it always breaks my heart to say goodbye.
She told me that she has been all over the world too. She was born and raised in England, went to school in Australia and the United States, worked in Milan, Lisbon, Thailand, and New Zealand. She told me that there was this time that she was sitting at a dinner table in Milan, surrounded by very good friends and that she had thought at that time that she would live in Milan forever. But then, as years passed, she realized that it was not Milan as Milan that made her happy. It was Milan with her friends that gave her such joy. Through the years, her friends moved away to other places and Milan was no longer the happy place she so loved. So, she moved on to another place to find new friends, while still keeping in touch with the old ones.
I guess both Cebu and I have changed. The city has become more crowded but I no longer see my friends malling or sitting at the current "in" bar. And I now see things from different eyes.
Cebu is still my home. The people I love most are still here. But I don’t think this is the place for me right now. At this point in my life, I think I belong somewhere else.
