Municipality of LILOAN

The lighthouse tower stands at a height of 172 feet in an uphill area overlooking the Mactan Channel. It sits on an elevated 5,000-sq m government property. With a focal plane of 146 feet, the third-order flashing light was first lit on 1 April 1905. The present octagonal tower is all masonry and painted white. The landmark was built by virtue of an executive order issued on 28 July 1903 by William Howart Taft, the first American Governor-General of the Philippines who came to the country in 1900 as president of the Philippine Commission. The point light was originally established in 1857 by the ruling Spanish Government.

For over 100 years, this lighthouse has provided guiding light to mariners, navigators and fishermen from coastal towns in northern Cebu. It has been a favorite subject of many painters and photographers for its notable architectural design.

All navigational aids in the Philippines are managed by the Philippine Coast Guard.

When the Spaniards colonized the Philippines, they built churches all over the archipelago. Many of these churches have stood the test of time and continue to serve the needs of the faithful. But, some of these churches are shrouded by stories of the mysterious kind. One of these churches is the San Fernando Rey Parish in Liloan. The San Fernando Rey Parish is one of the oldest structures in the town of Liloan. It was built in 1847 and was named after the saint who recaptured Spain from the Moors. The materials used for the construction came from the Camotes Islands and Leyte. On the other hand, the glass window shutters were sourced from Barcelona, Spain. It is the only church on the island that faces west. One unique feature of the church is it does not face the sea, unlike many of the churches in Cebu. One theory for this orientation is that the designers of the church may have wanted to protect churchgoers from the heat of the sun during morning services. Another notable feature is its size. When the church was built, the population of the town was smaller compared to Mandaue. But, the church was bigger compared to the church found in Mandaue.

Liloan’s Bantayan sa Hari, a forgotten historical treasure that is located few meters away from the lighthouse, I had a hard time going to where it was located since going to where it stands has lots of cave on the ground and no proper trail and was full of shrubs. The Bantayan sa Hari was built around 1857. In the early part of the 17th century, Moros pillaged Liloan, sending residents fleeing for safety to Danao, when Moro raiders concentrated their attacks on Cebu’s north. The Moro raiders turned their attention to the north after the southern Cebu towns’ effective defense of their territories. The raiders not only divested local residents of goods, people were also snatched for slavery. The watchtower is now left to ruins and rubble, only its base part remain

Rosquillos are cookies that originated from the Municipality of Liloan, Cebu. The cookies are circular in shape with flower-like edges and a ring-shaped hole in the center. It is a snack unique to Cebu and is a favorite snack of locals and expatriate Cebuanos in the United States. The late Philippine president Sergio Osmeña Sr. reputedly gave the name of rosquillos from the Spanish word rosca, meaning ringlet.

Margarita “Titay” T. Frasco created the rosquillos in 1907 in the town of Liloan. She later founded Titay’s Liloan Rosquillos and Delicacies Inc., the pioneer and premier company producing delicious and fine-quality rosquillos in Cebu. Descendants of her family presently run the company, which now produces other native snacks. Titay’s Rosquillos supplies and delivers its products to supermarkets in Cebu City and has several retail outlets in the city.

The packaging of the rosquillos states that the cookies are made of flour, eggs, shortening, sugar and baking powder, with no preservatives and artificial colorings. However, descendants of the Frasco family claim that the recipe for the rosquillos is a patented family recipe passed on to succeeding generations of the family.

Although there have been other bakeshops creating and selling their own rosquillos, many people still attest that they prefer the original Titay’s Rosquillos because of its unique and delicious taste.

Titay’s is located in Poblacion, Liloan, Cebu. You may call them at (032)564-2993 or 424-8888.