With the Sept. 30 earthquake that rocked the province, derailing the activities of the 2025 Miss Asia Pacific International pageant, the organizers were able to squeeze in a quick tour for the delegates.
After four straight days of taking part in various relief missions to help those severely impacted by the tremor, the ladies were finally able to get a much-needed day to unwind.
On Sunday morning, Oct. 5, the ladies participated in a personality development workshop with Trainstation, then headed out to the city to let their hair down.
They went to Mactan Newtown in Lapu-Lapu City to have lunch at two dining outlets of famed British chef Gordon Ramsay that recently opened in Cebu.
After having their fill of Ramsay’s signature Fish and Chips, Classic Cheeseburger, and Gordon’s Fried Chicken, the ladies then stopped by the Lapu-Lapu Monument just a few meters away.
Next in their itinerary was Magellan’s Cross, one of the most popular tourist sites in Cebu City, located at the Plaza Sugbo adjacent to the Basilica del Santo Niño compound.
Before the magnitude-6.9 earthquake halted the pageant’s benefit gala night on Tuesday, Sept. 30, the ladies were really scheduled for a tour of the province in the succeeding days.
But the organizers realigned the pageant’s events to respond to the most pressing concern of the host province, and instead held relief missions and other activities. On Oct. 1 and 2, the ladies went to the Cebu Province Warehouse to help with the packing of goods for distribution to those hit hardest by the quake.
Also on Oct. 2, the delegates underwent a mental health workshop to help them process their emotions after the tremor, and to prepare them for a visit to the quake-hit towns in northern Cebu.
On Oct. 3, the pageant brought relief goods to Daanbantayan, Medellin and San Remigio, neighboring towns of Bogo City, where the earthquake’s epicenter was traced.
The following day, they kicked off the earthquake relief program of the pageant’s official shoe provider, dubbed ‘From Glamour to Giving.’