Event Geek

More than 2,500 participants attended the fifth annual Gabii sa Kabilin last May 27. This is a significant increase from the 1,800 participants last year. At the same time, the Gabii sa Kabilin featured 11 museums and seven heritage sites, which are more than the nine museums and heritage sites opened in 2010.

This year’s participating museums include the Casa Gorordo Museum, Cathedral Museum of Cebu, Fort San Pedro, Yap-Sandiego Ancestral House, Museo Sugbo, University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF)-Rizal Museum, Museuo Parian sa Sugbo (1730 Jesuit House), Sacred Heart Alternative Gallery, Cebu Normal University (CNU) Museum, Cebu City Museum, and Mandaue City Central Plaza. The heritage sites include Plaza Independencia, Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral, Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño, Sacred Heart Church, Heritage of Cebu Monument (Plaza Parian), Plaza Hamabar, and Plaza Sugbo.


The Cebu City Police, in cooperation with tanods from eight barangays—Sto. Niño, San Roque, Tejero, T. Padilla, Cogon Ramos, Parian, Zapatera, and Day-as—in Cebu City, secured the routes that night. Barangays Santo Nio, San Roque, Tejero, T. Padilla, Cogon Ramos, Pari-an, Zapatera, and Day-as also provided volunteers to run information booths and drive buses back and forth selected sites.

Gabii sa Kabilin 2011 seeks to promote local museums as venues for the understanding and appreciation of Cebuano history and culture. It also aims to abolish the stereotype of museums being merely vaults for “dead objects” and instead introduce them as venues for live cultural activities.


The only one of its kind in the Philippines and even Asia, the event is also organized every year to celebrate the National Heritage Month and International Museum Day in May.

AboitizLand and Shangri-La’s Mactan Resort and Spa partnered with RAFI for this event.
That night, the activities and attractions ranged from the traditional to the contemporary. The Asian Troubadors performed at Cathedral Museum of Cebu; an arnis demonstration was performed at Fort San Pedro; a presentation on budbud kabog delicacy of Catmon was seen at the Museo Sugbo; Sandiego dancers showcased a Santacruzan cultural show in the Plaza Parian; Spanish dances by the Cebu City Children Performing Arts were shown at the Cebu City Museum; a concert by Izarzuri Vidal happened at the Casa Gorordo Museum; a Quiz Night took place at the Cathedral Museum of Cebu; fire dances were performed in Plaza Independencia; and performing arts presentation by Russ Ligtas was featured at the Sacred Heart Parish Alternative Gallery.

Gabii sa Kabilin is a program under Culture & Heritage, which is one of the five focus areas of RAFI’s comprehensive approach to elevating lives and communities, believing that a confident community begins with a strong sense of identity. The other four focus areas are Integrated Development, Micro-finance & Entrepreneurship, Leadership & Citizenship, and Education.